Homebrew App Migrator

A utility tool that helps migrate macOS applications to be managed by Homebrew Casks, simplifying application management and updates.

Inspiration

This project was inspired by the challenge of managing applications from multiple sources (App Store, direct downloads, etc.). Having Homebrew manage applications offers significant advantages:

• Centralized Updates: Update all applications with a single brew upgrade command
• Consistent Management: One tool to install, update, and remove applications
• Version Control: Track what's installed across systems
• Automation: Generate a Brewfile using brew bundle dump that can be used to quickly set up new development machines with identical software

Features

• Scans your /Applications folder to find installed applications
• Searches for matching Homebrew casks
• Interactive selection interface with pagination
• Tracks migration progress with detailed history
• Provides reports on successfully migrated, failed, and skipped applications

Prerequisites

• Python 3.6+
• Homebrew installed on your macOS system

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/chriszimbizi/homebrew-app-migrator.git
cd homebrew-app-migrator

# Make the script executable
chmod +x brew_migrator.py

Usage

Basic Usage

./brew_migrator.py

This will scan your /Applications folder and guide you through migrating each application to Homebrew casks.

Command-line Options

• --list-apps: List all applications found in /Applications
• --app [APP_NAME]: Process a specific application by name
• --reset-history: Clear the migration history file
• --batch: Run in batch mode, automatically install top match
• --retry-skipped: Retry apps previously skipped

Examples

# List all applications in /Applications
./brew_migrator.py --list-apps

# Migrate a specific application
./brew_migrator.py --app "Firefox"

# Clear migration history
./brew_migrator.py --reset-history

Creating and Using a Brewfile

After migrating your applications, create a Brewfile to capture your environment:

brew bundle dump

This generates a Brewfile containing all your Homebrew-managed packages, casks, and taps.

Setting Up a New Machine

1. Install Homebrew on the new device
2. Copy your Brewfile to the new machine
3. Run brew bundle

This will install all applications and packages listed in your Brewfile, effectively replicating your setup.

Migration History

The script maintains a history file at ~/.brew_migrator_history tracking your migration progress.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.