bsdiff

Name: bsdiff
Author: Colin Percival

A binary diff and patch utility for building and applying updates to files.

By Colin Percival

Free Open sourceCommand line

Official websitedaemonology.net

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Alternatives

HDiffPatchHDiffPatch creates and applies binary diffs between files or directories, and also provides a C/C++ library for patch workflows.
XdeltaXdelta creates and applies binary diffs using VCDIFF format, so switching changes the patch format and command-line tool.
diffoscopeA command-line tool that recursively compares files, archives, directories and binary formats.
biodiffA terminal hex diff viewer that aligns two binary files using bioinformatics alignment algorithms.

See all alternatives

About bsdiff

bsdiff creates patches between binary files, and bspatch applies them. The project describes the format as useful for distributing updates to executable files and provides both tools.

The documented implementation uses bzip2. bsdiff requires substantial memory relative to the input file size, so it may not suit systems with limited memory.

Strengths

Creates and applies binary patches
Designed for changes to executable files

Limitations

bsdiff requires substantial memory
Uses bzip2

Details

Pricing: FreeFree and open source under the BSD-2-Clause license.
License: BSD-2-Clause
Developer: Colin Percival
Platforms: Command line
How it runs: Downloadable app
Best suited for: Developers building or applying binary file updates
Categories: CLI tools, Developer tools
Last verified: October 8, 2026
Added: October 8, 2026
Provenance: Selected from the Homebrew formula
Sources: daemonology.net/bsdiff

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