berks
Manage and resolve cookbook dependencies for Chef
TLDR
Install cookbook dependencies into a local repo
Update a specific cookbook and its dependencies
Upload a cookbook to the Chef server
View the dependencies of a cookbook
SYNOPSIS
berks [COMMAND] [options] [args]
PARAMETERS
-h, --help
Show help for command or subcommand
-v, --version
Display Berkshelf version
--berkshelf-path PATH
Set path to Berkshelf directory
--format FORMAT
Output format (human, json, shell)
--log-level LEVEL
Set log level (debug, info, warn, error)
--no-git
Disable Git dependency resolution
--no-progress
Disable progress bars
--only ENV
Resolve only for specified environments
--path PATH
Set path for cookbook operations
--verbose
Enable verbose logging
DESCRIPTION
The berks command is the CLI interface for Berkshelf, a tool designed to manage cookbook dependencies in Chef infrastructure automation projects. It treats cookbooks like gems, using a Berksfile to declare dependencies much like a Gemfile in Ruby projects.
Key workflows include initializing a Berksfile with berks init, installing dependencies into a local Berkshelf with berks install, vendoring cookbooks for offline use via berks vendor, and uploading resolved cookbooks to a Chef Server using berks upload. It handles transitive dependencies, locking versions in a Berksfile.lock, and supports multiple environments.
Berkshelf streamlines collaboration by ensuring reproducible cookbook sets across teams. However, it requires the Berkshelf Ruby gem (part of Chef Development Kit) and is primarily used in legacy Chef setups. Integration with Git and various cookbook sources like Supermarket enhances its utility for large-scale deployments.
CAVEATS
Berkshelf is deprecated since Chef 13 (2017); migrate to Policyfiles for new projects.
Requires Ruby >= 2.2 and Berkshelf gem. Not a core Linux utility.
KEY SUBCOMMANDS
init: Create Berksfile.
install: Install dependencies.
upload: Upload to Chef Server.
vendor: Vendor to path.
list: List installed cookbooks.
BERKSFILE EXAMPLE
source 'https://supermarket.chef.io'
cookbook 'apt', '>= 2.0'
cookbook 'nginx', git: 'https://github.com/chef-cookbooks/nginx.git'
HISTORY
Developed by Reset in 2011 as Berkshelf gem; acquired by Chef Software in 2013. Widely used until deprecated in Chef 13 (2017) favoring Policyfiles for dependency management.
