Homebrew Installation Guide for macOS

This guide covers how to install Homebrew on Apple Silicon Macs and use it to set up essential tools for cybersecurity labs, including QEMU.

Prerequisites

• Apple Silicon Mac (M1/M2/M3)
• macOS Big Sur (11.0) or later
• Admin access
• Internet connection
• Terminal application

Step 1: Install Homebrew

In Your Terminal Run:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

You’ll be prompted for your Mac password. Enter it and press RETURN when asked for confirmation.

Step 2: Configure Homebrew PATH

After installation you need to add Homebrew to your current terminal environment:

echo 'eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"' >> ~/.zprofile
eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)"

Step 3: Verify Your Installation

Run the following command in your terminal to verify Homebrew was installed properly:

brew --version

You should see a Homebrew version number outputted to your terminal window:

Install Tools For UTM Labs

Install QEMU for VM Disk Conversion

brew install qemu

Other Recommended Utilities and Tools

The following utilities and tools can be easily installed using homebrew. They are not required, but will come in handy for labs.

Network Utilities (NMAP and WIRESHARK)

brew install nmap wireshark

File Transfer Tools (WGET and CURL)

brew install wget curl

Development Tools (GIT and PYTHON)

brew install git python

Disk Utilities

brew install coreutils

Step 5: Update and Upgrade

To update and upgrade everything, use the following command:

brew update && brew upgrade

To updgrade one specific tool:

brew upgrade [package-name-here]

Additional Resources

Official Homebrew Documentation

Official Homebrew Troubleshooting Guide