{"categories":[{"label":"Utilities","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/utilities/4"},{"label":"Testing","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/software-development-testing/2"},{"label":"Quality Assurance","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/software-development-quality-assurance"},{"label":"Packaging","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/system-archiving-packaging"}],"enrichment":{"capability":"Bindep checks for missing system binary packages needed by an application or library, reading requirements from a declarative file and reporting gaps in a format suitable for package managers.","skillfed_tags":["system-dependencies","ci-cd","multi-platform"],"use_cases":["Validate that all system dependencies are installed before running tests in a CI pipeline, with brief output piped to apt-get or yum.","Document system-level requirements in a project's bindep.txt file so developers can quickly set up a working environment.","Handle platform-specific package names (e.g., libxml2-dev on Debian vs. libxml2-devel on RPM) in a single requirements file.","Define test-specific system dependencies (e.g., database servers, development headers) using profiles without cluttering runtime requirements.","Distinguish between Python 2 and Python 3 system packages using base-py2 and base-py3 labels on supported platforms."],"what_it_does":"Bindep is a command-line tool that validates whether system-level binary packages are installed on a machine. It reads a declarative requirements file (bindep.txt) listing Debian package names and outputs which packages are missing, making it easier to set up development and test environments where non-Python dependencies must be installed before pip can run. The tool supports profiles to handle different scenarios (e.g., test vs. production), platform-specific selectors to map Debian package names to RPM, Gentoo, or other package managers, and version constraints similar to pip's syntax.\n\nBindep is particularly useful in CI/CD pipelines and development setup documentation. It can output results in verbose or brief format (one package per line), making it easy to pipe missing packages directly to apt, yum, or other package managers. Exit codes indicate success (0), missing packages (1), or parse errors (2), allowing integration into automated workflows. The tool has been in production use since 2015 and supports modern Python versions.","worth_installing":"Yes. Bindep is a stable, actively maintained tool with no known vulnerabilities, low install friction, and permissive licensing. It solves a real problem\u2014declaratively specifying and validating system-level dependencies\u2014that is difficult to handle otherwise, especially in multi-platform projects. Install it if your project has non-Python system dependencies or if you need to standardize dependency setup across a team."},"id":"bindep","links":{"html":"https://skillfed.io/packages/bindep","md":"https://skillfed.io/packages/bindep.md","pypi":"https://pypi.org/project/bindep/"},"maintenance":{"status":"active"},"meta":{"latest_release":"2026-03-19","license_spdx":null,"license_treatment":"permissive","name":"bindep","python_support":"supports_current","summary":"Binary dependency utility"},"popularity":{"monthly_downloads":1118737,"position":4343,"tier":"top_5000"},"security":{"n_vulnerabilities":0},"version":"2.14.0"}