How to Install and Use hexyl in Linux for Coloured Command-Line Hex Viewing

Inspecting raw binary files, debugging compiled binaries, and reverse-engineering network packets typically involves invoking classic command-line utilities like hexdump, xxd, or od. While these time-tested tools are universally available, their monochrome output makes scanning through large binary blobs fatiguing and slow. hexyl is a modern command-line hex viewer written in Rust that incorporates coloured byte categorisation, distinct column separators, and integrated character previews to dramatically accelerate binary analysis.

What Sets hexyl Apart from Traditional Hex Dumpers?

Developed by David Peter (creator of bat and fd), hexyl applies terminal colour palettes to convey structural information about binary data at a single glance:

• Coloured Byte Categorisation: Differentiates NULL bytes, printable ASCII characters, control codes, and non-ASCII high bytes using dedicated colours.
• Clear Visual Hierarchy: Splits output into aligned panels displaying hexadecimal offsets, 16-byte raw data columns, and ASCII decoded representations.
• Squeeze Redundant Lines: Collapses repeated identical rows using asterisks to keep output concise without losing positional context.
• Flexible Input Support: Reads binary streams from local file paths or standard input pipelines seamlessly.

Understanding hexyl Colour Coding

Byte Category	Visual Styling	Hexadecimal Range
NULL Bytes (0x00)	Dim / Faded Grey	00
Printable ASCII	Bright Cyan / Green	20 through 7E
ASCII Whitespace	Bright Green	09 (Tab), 0A (LF), 0D (CR)
Control Characters	Deep Red / Magenta	01–1F and 7F
Non-ASCII High Bytes	Vibrant Yellow / Orange	80 through FF

Installing hexyl Across Linux Distributions

The hexyl package is available in official repositories across major distributions.

Installing on Ubuntu, Debian, and Linux Mint

On modern Debian and Ubuntu releases, install directly from official apt repositories:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install hexyl

Installing on Arch Linux and Manjaro

Arch Linux includes hexyl in its extra repositories:

sudo pacman -S hexyl

Installing via Cargo (Any Distribution)

Compile and install directly with Rust’s Cargo package manager:

cargo install hexyl

Core Usage and Command-Line Flags

To inspect any binary file, pass its path to hexyl:

hexyl image.png

You can refine the output using several powerful filtering options:

1. Limiting Byte Output Length (-n)

When inspecting large binaries where you only need to examine file headers or magic numbers, limit the inspection size with -n:

# Inspect the first 256 bytes of an executable
hexyl -n 256 /bin/bash

2. Setting Offset Position (-r)

To skip initial header data and jump straight to an embedded data payload at a specific byte offset:

# Start viewing from byte offset 1024 to 2048
hexyl -r 1024:2048 firmware.bin

3. Piping Data from Pipelines

Inspect output directly from network sockets, encryption commands, or compressed archives without saving temporary files:

head -c 64 /dev/urandom | hexyl

Customising Terminal Display Options

Adapt hexyl to match terminal dimensions or documentation preferences:

• --border <style>: Select border formatting styles such as unicode, ascii, or none.
• --panels <n>: Display 8, 16, or 24 bytes per line to match wide or narrow displays.
• --color never: Strip terminal escape codes when redirecting output to plain text notes.

By replacing traditional monochrome hex dumps with hexyl, developers and security researchers gain immediate visual clarity when analysing binary formats and packet traces.