What causes "Homebrew now owns this cask" in jdx/mise?

Let Homebrew own it: `brew uninstall --cask `, then remove mise's tracking (`mise rm brew:cask/ ` or the equivalent uninstall) if you no longer want it

jdx/mise · error · eyre::Report

Homebrew now owns this cask

Error message

Homebrew now owns this cask

What it means

validate_cask_prune_candidate refuses to prune a cask when Homebrew's .metadata directory exists under the caskroom token dir (homebrew_metadata_present). That directory only appears when Homebrew itself has (re)installed or taken over the cask, so mise's stored receipt no longer describes the on-disk owner and pruning from mise would fight Homebrew.

Source

Thrown at src/system/packages/brew/cask.rs:7006

        }
    }
    for target in &candidate.receipt.targets {
        if claims
            .get(&target.path)
            .is_some_and(|tokens| tokens.iter().any(|token| token != &candidate.token))
        {
            bail!(
                "artifact target is now claimed by another cask: {}",
                target.path.display()
            );
        }
    }
    Ok(())
}

fn validate_cask_prune_candidate(candidate: &CaskPruneCandidate) -> Result<()> {
    if homebrew_metadata_present(&candidate.token) {
        bail!("Homebrew now owns this cask");
    }
    let receipt = &candidate.receipt;
    if read_receipt(&candidate.version_dir)?.as_ref() != Some(receipt) {
        bail!("ownership receipt has changed");
    }
    if receipt.schema_version != 3 || !receipt.prune_safe || !receipt.pkg_ids.is_empty() {
        bail!("receipt is not marked safe for direct-artifact pruning");
    }
    let records = receipt
        .targets
        .iter()
        .map(|record| (record.path.clone(), record))
        .collect::<BTreeMap<_, _>>();
    let expected = receipt
        .apps
        .iter()
        .chain(&receipt.binaries)
        .chain(&receipt.fonts)

View on GitHub (pinned to 9dcfcaa0dc)

Solutions

Let Homebrew own it: `brew uninstall --cask <token>`, then remove mise's tracking (`mise rm brew:cask/<token>` or the equivalent uninstall) if you no longer want it
Keep managing it with Homebrew and stop tracking it in mise config
If you truly want mise to own it again, `brew uninstall --cask <token>` first, then reinstall via mise

Example fix

# before: cask now owned by Homebrew, mise prune refuses
brew uninstall --cask <token> && mise rm brew:cask/<token>
# after: Homebrew removed it cleanly; mise tracking dropped

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

fn homebrew_owns(token: &str) -> bool {
    caskroom_token_dir(token)
        .join(".metadata")
        .symlink_metadata()
        .is_ok()
}
// before prune:
if homebrew_owns(token) {
    eprintln!("Homebrew owns this cask; use brew uninstall --cask {token}");
}

Try / catch

match validate_cask_prune_candidate(&candidate) {
    Ok(()) => prune(),
    Err(e) if e.to_string().contains("Homebrew now owns this cask") => {
        warn!("deferring to brew uninstall --cask {}");
        Ok(())
    }
    Err(e) => Err(e),
}

Prevention

Pick one manager per cask — do not alternate brew and mise installs of the same token
After brew reinstalls a cask, drop mise's tracking (mise rm brew:cask/<token>) before pruning
Check for caskroom/<token>/.metadata when diagnosing prune refusals

When it happens

Trigger: Running a mise prune/uninstall of a cask after `brew install --cask` (or `brew upgrade`) has installed it — the caskroom/<token>/.metadata marker is present, so mise declines to act.

Common situations: Machines where a cask was first installed via mise and later managed by Homebrew (or vice versa); brew upgrades recreating .metadata on a mise-installed cask; mixed brew/mise workflows on shared state.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of jdx/mise@9dcfcaa0dc (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/60d06b02de75014f. Report an issue: GitHub.