# beyondgrep/ack2

**ack 2 is no longer being maintained.  ack 3 is the latest version.**

Repository: https://github.com/beyondgrep/ack2
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/ack2
Homepage: https://github.com/beyondgrep/ack3/
Language: Perl
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Topics: perl, tree, grep, ack
Last push: 2019-03-19T14:41:58+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 5695, "days_push": 2724, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases, no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1466, forks 138 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:48.377723+00:00)

## What it is
ack 2 is a grep-like code-searching tool written in pure Perl, optimized for programmers searching large trees of source code. This version is no longer maintained; ack 3 is the actively developed successor.

## Use cases
- search source code across a project tree
- grep alternative optimized for programmers
- find text in large codebases
- search code ignoring version control and backup directories
- portable code search on any platform with Perl

## When to choose
- you need a grep-like tool on a system limited to Perl 5.8.8
- you must maintain legacy environments pinned to ack 2

## When to avoid
- starting a new project - use ack 3 instead
- you need active maintenance, bug fixes, or newer features
- you want ripgrep-level performance

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: abandoned
- function: search-engine, developer-tools, cli
- domain: developer-tools, files
- platform: cli, cross-platform, windows
- tags: grep, source-code-search, perl, text-search, superseded, command-line, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- beyondgrep/ack2 (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:48.377723+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T04:35:03.093596+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/beyondgrep/ack2 (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:48.377723+00:00, sha 66337bb6b3cc)
  - homepage: https://github.com/beyondgrep/ack3/ (fetched 2026-08-29T11:43:11.820793+00:00, sha fd2acb22ebd2)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.