ChromaDB Debian Package Builder

Builds .deb packages for ChromaDB from pre-built wheels.

Usage

Build requires: curl, python3

# Build latest version
MAINTAINER_EMAIL=you@example.com ./bin/build-deb

# Build specific version
MAINTAINER_EMAIL=you@example.com ./bin/build-deb 1.5.7

# Build with debug output
MAINTAINER_EMAIL=you@example.com ./bin/build-deb --debug 1.5.7

Set MAINTAINER_EMAIL to your email (required).

Output: python3-chromadb_<version>-1_<arch>.deb (e.g., amd64)

Install

sudo apt install ./python3-chromadb_*.deb

Package dependencies (python3, python3-pydantic, python3-hnswlib) are automatically installed by apt.

Remove

sudo apt remove python3-chromadb

Supported Architectures

• amd64 (x86_64)

Tests

# Run all tests
./tests/run.sh

# Run with debug output
./tests/run.sh --debug

# Run individual tests
./tests/01-syntax.sh   # Script syntax check
./tests/02-build.sh    # Build package and validate

Build Automation

This repo runs two github actions to automate building and releasing new versions.

Poll for New Versions

poll.yml runs every hour through Github actions cron. It checks for a new version of ChromaDB that doesn't have a release in this repo, then creates a release branch with version, and triggers the build process.

Build and Release

build.yml is triggered by poll. It fetches the version as outlined in the release branch, then runs the build-deb script, runs the tests, creates a tag and release, then attaches the deb to the release. The release branch is then removed.

LICENSE AND COPYRIGHT

ChromaDB is Copyright (c) 2023 ChromaDB Contributors (Apache License 2.0).

This packaging script is Copyright (c) 2026 Blaine Motsinger (MIT License).