Getting Started with ugrep: Installation, Syntax, and Examples
ugrep is a modern, high-performance command-line search tool compatible with GNU grep but enhanced with additional features like PCRE2 regex support, colorized output, simultaneous file and directory matching, and fast multithreaded search. This guide shows how to install ugrep, explains its basic and useful options, and gives practical examples to help you start using it effectively.
Installation
Linux
- Debian/Ubuntu:
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sudo apt install ugrep(If package not available, use the prebuilt binary or build from source.)
- Fedora:
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sudo dnf install ugrep - From prebuilt tarball (all distros):
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wget https://github.com/Genivia/ugrep/releases/latest/download/ugrep-Linux-x86_64.tar.xz tar -xJf ugrep-Linux-x8664.tar.xz sudo cp ugrep /usr/local/bin/
macOS
- Homebrew:
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brew install ugrep - Prebuilt binary:
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curl -LO https://github.com/Genivia/ugrep/releases/latest/download/ugrep-macos-x86_64.tar.xz tar -xJf ugrep-macos-x8664.tar.xz sudo cp ugrep /usr/local/bin/
Windows
- Scoop:
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scoop install ugrep - Download the Windows binary from the ugrep GitHub releases page and add it to PATH.
Basic Syntax
ugrep follows the general form:
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ugrep [OPTIONS] PATTERN [FILE…]
- PATTERN: plain text or regular expression.
- If FILE omitted, ugrep reads from standard input.
- Common options:
-nshow line numbers-Hshow filenames-Rrecursive search-icase-insensitive-Ffixed-string (literal) search-Puse PCRE2 regex-C NUMshow NUM lines of context-vinvert match (show non-matching lines)-cprint count of matching lines per file–line-numbersame as-n–exclude/–includefor file filtering-j NUMset number of threads
Useful Features
PCRE2 and Perl-like regex
Use -P to enable PCRE2 for advanced constructs (lookahead, lookbehind, conditionals).
Multithreading
Use -j to speed up large codebase searches:
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ugrep -R -j 8 ‘TODO’ .
Colorized output and match highlighting
ugrep highlights matches by default. Control colors with –color and –color-dark.
Context and file filters
Show surrounding lines and narrow files:
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ugrep -R -n -C 2 –include=’.py’ –exclude-dir=‘.git’ ‘def myfunc’ .
Inverted and counted matches
Count matches per file:
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ugrep -R -c ‘FIXME’ src/
Show files without matches:
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ugrep -R -L ‘password’ .
Examples
- Search recursively for a literal string with filenames and line numbers:
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ugrep -R -n -F ‘initializedatabase’ .
- Case-insensitive regex search for function definitions in C:
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ugrep -R -n -i -P ‘^\s(?:int|void|char)\s+\w+\s(’ –include=’.c’ .
- Find TODOs and show 3 lines of context:
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ugrep -R -n -C 3 ‘TODO’ –exclude-dir=‘vendor’ .
- Search with multithreading and limit to specific extensions:
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ugrep -R -j 4 –include=’.js’ –include=’.ts’ ‘console.log’ .
- Use lookaround to find words not preceded by “not”:
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ugrep -P ‘\b(?<!not\s)available\b’ README.md
- Count matching lines per file:
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ugrep -R -c ‘error’ /var/log
- Filter binary files and show only filenames with matches:
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ugrep -R –text -l ‘API_KEY’ .
Tips and Best Practices
- Prefer
–include/–excludeand–exclude-dirto limit search scope and speed up results. - Use
-Ffor fixed-string searches when regex not needed — it’s faster. - For complex patterns, use
-Pfor PCRE2; test patterns with online PCRE testers if needed. - Combine
-jwith large repositories but avoid setting threads higher than CPU cores. - Use
–colorsettings if color output is hard to read in your terminal.
Further Reading
- Official ugrep GitHub: https://github.com/Genivia/ugrep
- ugrep man page: run
man ugreporugrep –help
Enjoy fast, flexible searching with ugrep — it’s a powerful upgrade if you need more than traditional grep.
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