In the world of software distribution, few things are as disparate as the raw, executable binary and the polished, user-friendly installer package. For users on macOS, the .pkg format is the gold standard for installation. Behind the scenes, however, many applications and command-line tools start as nothing more than a compiled binary (a .bin file or a set of executable files) or an archive of binaries.
Create ffmpeg-cli.pkg that installs the binary to /usr/local/bin/ffmpeg and places a man page. bin to pkg
| Feature | Raw Binary | PKG Package | |---------|------------|-------------| | | Manual: cp mybin /usr/local/bin | Automatic, configurable ( /usr/local , /Applications , /Library/Frameworks ) | | Uninstallation | Manual deletion | Can integrate with pkgutil --forget or uninstall scripts | | Permissions | User must chmod +x | Setuid, sticky bits, ownership preserved | | Receipts | None | Stored in SQLite database for version tracking | | Scripted actions | None | Pre/post install scripts to configure services, create users, set up launch daemons | | Code signing | Possible but rare | Required for distribution (notarization) | | GUI deployment | Terminal only | Double-click installer + Apple Remote Desktop / Jamf Pro support | In the world of software distribution, few things
pkgbuild --root ./root \ --identifier com.ffmpeg.cli \ --version 5.1.2 \ --install-location / \ --scripts ./scripts \ ffmpeg-5.1.2.pkg Create ffmpeg-cli
pkgutil --payload-files ffmpeg-5.1.2.pkg # Should list ./usr/local/bin/ffmpeg and ./usr/share/man/man1/ffmpeg.1