# Holehe Prerequisites: Complete Installation Requirements for the OSINT Tool

> Discover the holehe prerequisites including Python 3.7+ for OSINT tool installation. Learn about PyPI, GitHub, and Docker requirements to get holehe running quickly.

- Repository: [Palenath/holehe](https://github.com/megadose/holehe)
- Tags: getting-started
- Published: 2026-08-16

---

**The only hard prerequisite for installing holehe is Python 3.7 or newer**, with additional requirements depending on whether you use PyPI, GitHub source, or Docker.

Holehe is a Python-based OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) tool developed by megadose that checks if an email address is registered on various websites. This guide covers every installation path and its specific dependencies based on the actual source code in the `megadose/holehe` repository.

---

## Python Version Requirement

All installation methods require **Python 3 ≥ 3.7**. This is explicitly declared in [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py) at line 11, where the `python_requires` field enforces this minimum version.

No other system-level dependencies are needed—the tool relies entirely on Python packages that `pip` can install automatically.

---

## PyPI Installation Prerequisites

The simplest approach uses pip to install holehe directly from PyPI.

**Requirements:**
- Python 3.7+
- pip (bundled with modern Python distributions)

**Runtime dependencies** (installed automatically by pip):

| Package | Purpose |
|---------|---------|
| `termcolor` | Colored terminal output |
| `bs4` | HTML parsing via BeautifulSoup |
| `httpx` | Asynchronous HTTP client |
| `trio` | Async concurrency framework |
| `tqdm` | Progress bars for long operations |
| `colorama` | Cross-platform terminal color support |

These six packages are defined in the `install_requires` list in [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py)[setup py line 11].

Install with:

```bash
pip3 install holehe

```

---

## GitHub Source Installation Prerequisites

For development, customization, or the latest unreleased changes, install from source.

**Requirements:**
- Python 3.7+
- pip
- **Git** (to clone the repository)

Installation steps:

```bash
git clone https://github.com/megadose/holehe.git
cd holehe/
python3 setup.py install

```

Running `python3 setup.py install` triggers the same dependency resolution as the PyPI method, pulling in the six required packages from [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py).

---

## Docker Installation Prerequisites

For containerized deployment or isolated environments, use the provided Dockerfile.

**Requirement:**
- **Docker** (any recent version)

The Dockerfile builds a self-contained image that includes:
- Python runtime
- All holehe dependencies
- The holehe application code

Build and run:

```bash
docker build . -t my-holehe-image
docker run my-holehe-image holehe test@gmail.com

```

The Docker approach eliminates any need to manage Python versions or virtual environments locally.

---

## Verifying Your Installation

After installation, confirm holehe is available:

```bash
holehe --help

```

The CLI entry point is defined in [`holehe/core.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/holehe/core.py), which exposes the `holehe` command for checking email addresses across supported platforms.

---

## Summary

- **Minimum requirement**: Python 3.7 or newer for all installation methods
- **PyPI route**: Python 3.7+ and pip; dependencies auto-installed
- **Source route**: Add Git to the PyPI requirements
- **Docker route**: Only Docker engine needed; no local Python required
- **Core dependencies** (`termcolor`, `bs4`, `httpx`, `trio`, `tqdm`, `colorama`) are declared in [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py) and resolved automatically

---

## Frequently Asked Questions

### What Python version do I need for holehe?

Holehe requires **Python 3.7 or newer**. This is enforced in [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py) through the `python_requires='>=3.7'` declaration. The tool will not install on Python 2 or Python 3.6 and earlier.

### Do I need to install dependencies manually?

No. Whether using `pip3 install holehe` or `python3 setup.py install`, pip automatically resolves and installs the six required packages: `termcolor`, `bs4`, `httpx`, `trio`, `tqdm`, and `colorama`.

### Can I run holehe without installing Python?

Yes. The **Docker method** requires only a Docker engine. The Dockerfile packages the Python runtime and all dependencies internally, so no local Python installation is necessary.

### Where are the installation requirements defined?

The authoritative source is [`setup.py`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/setup.py) at the repository root. Line 11 contains both the `python_requires` field and the `install_requires` list specifying all runtime dependencies. Installation instructions are also documented in [`README.md`](https://github.com/megadose/holehe/blob/main/README.md).