inspect-deps

A command-line tool to statically analyze ELF shared library dependencies and optionally map them to Arch Linux packages.

Features

• Dependency tree visualization (handles cycles).
• Safer than ldd: Performs static analysis (ELF parsing) without executing the binary, making it safe for inspecting untrusted files.
• RPATH/RUNPATH support (including $ORIGIN).
• Package resolution via libalpm (Pacman).
• Minimal package dependency calculation.
• Explanation of library presence.
• JSON and DOT export.
• Standalone operation; libalpm loaded dynamically.

Limitations

• x86_64 architecture only.
• Package resolution requires libalpm.
• Does not detect dlopen-loaded libraries.

Requirements

• Linux (x86_64)
• libalpm (optional, for package resolution)

Build

Build requirements:

• CMake 3.28+
• C++23 compiler (GCC 13+ or Clang 16+)

cmake -S . -B build
cmake --build build --parallel
# binary at build/inspect-deps

Installation

PKGBUILD included. Available on AUR: https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/inspect-deps. Package resolution requires pacman/libalpm.

Usage

inspect-deps [options] <binary> [mode]

Global Options

These options apply to all output modes:

• --no-pkg: Disable package resolution.
• --full-path: Show full library paths instead of SONAMEs.
• --show-stdlib: Show standard library dependencies (glibc, etc.).
• --no-header: Suppress header (for default output).
• ANSI colors are used automatically when stdout is a TTY.

Modes

Default (no mode flag)

Compact tabular summary of libraries.

Columns:

• Library: SONAME (or full path with --full-path).
• Package: Arch package (if libalpm available and enabled).
• Depth: Graph distance from root.
• Required By: Immediate parent (or "-" if none; "(+)" for multiple).

Example:

inspect-deps /usr/bin/curl

Dependency Tree (--tree)

Visualizes the dependency graph.

inspect-deps /usr/bin/curl --tree

Note: Repeated nodes (diamonds) are marked with (+) and not expanded. Circular dependencies are marked with (cycle).

Package List (--pkg-list)

List minimal set of packages required by the binary. Note: If the binary itself belongs to a package, that package is excluded from the list, showing only external dependencies.

inspect-deps /usr/bin/curl --pkg-list
> brotli krb5 libnghttp2 libnghttp3 libpsl libssh2 zstd

Explain (--why <lib>)

Explain why a library is needed (shows dependency chain).

inspect-deps /usr/bin/curl --why libcrypto.so.3

JSON / DOT (--json, --dot)

Export dependency graph.

inspect-deps /usr/bin/git --json
inspect-deps /usr/bin/git --dot > graph.dot

Generate completions:

inspect-deps --completions fish > ~/.config/fish/completions/inspect-deps.fish