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With a m1 Mac, home-brew does not store things in /usr/local, but /opt/homebrew. Is there any difference to switch homebrew over to /usr/local? I think the only reason would be that when you google something you don't have to change /usr/local to /opt/homebrew. Are there any other practical reasons other than consistency?

nohillside
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1 Answers1

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From https://docs.brew.sh/FAQ#why-should-i-install-homebrew-in-the-default-location

Homebrew’s pre-built binary packages (known as bottles) of many formulae can only be used if you install in the default installation prefix, otherwise they have to be built from source. Building from source takes a long time, is prone to failure, and is not supported.

Also

The prefix /opt/homebrew was chosen to allow installations in /opt/homebrew for Apple Silicon and /usr/local for Rosetta 2 to coexist and use bottles.

nohillside
  • 100,768