aboutdepends

Aboutdepends is a community-driven format and registry specification for describing software component dependencies and related metadata. It provides a neutral, machine-readable representation of how software parts depend on each other, including version constraints, optional relationships, and provenance information. The goal is to enable comparable dependency graphs across languages and ecosystems and to support reproducible builds, audits, and compliance checks.

Origin and scope: The concept emerged from open-source tooling communities in the early 2020s as an attempt to standardize dependency metadata beyond language-specific manifest files. The name blends “about” with “depends” to emphasize the focus on dependency relationships and their context. The specification is maintained as a collaborative, language-agnostic effort.

Data model and features: The spec defines a schema in which each component is identified by a unique name and a version, with fields such as requires (required dependencies), optional (non-mandatory), conflicts (incompatible versions), provides (virtual capabilities), and provenance (source and integrity data). It supports transitive resolution, environment constraints, and can be serialized in JSON or YAML. A minimal manifest can describe a project and its immediate dependencies.

Usage and tooling: Aboutdepends serves as a common input for build systems, package managers, and security scanners to construct dependency graphs, check for conflicts, and verify provenance. Several reference implementations exist for popular languages, and editors or CI systems can validate manifests.

Reception and limitations: As a relatively new and voluntary standard, adoption varies by ecosystem. Benefits include interoperability and improved traceability, while challenges include achieving consensus on a single schema, keeping data up to date, and handling privacy or proprietary constraints.