`brew install external/tap/formula` when external/tap is not tapped fails with "No available formula or cask"

[SimonBarendse]

Bug report

• ran brew update and can still reproduce the problem?
• ran brew doctor, fixed all issues and can still reproduce the problem?
• ran brew config and brew doctor and included their output with your issue?

What you were trying to do (and why)

Install the secrethub-cli in the Docker container linuxbrew/brew:latest.

What happened (include command output)

The formulae was not found (Error: No available formula or cask with the name "secrethub/tools/secrethub-cli".)

Command output

brew install secrethub/tools/secrethub-cli      
==> Tapping secrethub/tools
Cloning into '/home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew/Homebrew/Library/Taps/secrethub/homebrew-tools'...
remote: Enumerating objects: 55, done.
remote: Counting objects: 100% (55/55), done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (43/43), done.
remote: Total 182 (delta 12), reused 0 (delta 0), pack-reused 127
Receiving objects: 100% (182/182), 30.87 KiB | 1.19 MiB/s, done.
Resolving deltas: 100% (39/39), done.
Tapped 1 formula (27 files, 136.6KB).
Error: No available formula or cask with the name "secrethub/tools/secrethub-cli".
==> Searching for similarly named formulae...
This similarly named formula was found:
secrethub-cli
To install it, run:
  brew install secrethub-cli
  

What you expected to happen

Successful installation of the CLI, just like when using the linuxbrew/brew:2.5.2 image.

Step-by-step reproduction instructions (by running brew commands)

docker run linuxbrew/brew brew install secrethub/tools/secrethub-cli

Output of brew config and brew doctor commands

# brew doctor
Your system is ready to brew.

# brew config
HOMEBREW_VERSION: 2.5.2-69-g2331927
ORIGIN: https://github.com/Homebrew/brew
HEAD: 2331927a3498e1107aef13f76f1ed2b8309be4b0
Last commit: 5 hours ago
Core tap ORIGIN: https://github.com/Homebrew/linuxbrew-core
Core tap HEAD: ebc6339d1832683cb3d9e14ae0f7e2b049102299
Core tap last commit: 5 hours ago
Core tap branch: master
HOMEBREW_PREFIX: /home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew
HOMEBREW_CASK_OPTS: []
HOMEBREW_MAKE_JOBS: 8
Homebrew Ruby: 2.6.3 => /home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew/Homebrew/Library/Homebrew/vendor/portable-ruby/2.6.3_2/bin/ruby
CPU: octa-core 64-bit skylake
Clang: N/A
Git: 2.28.0 => /bin/git
Curl: 7.68.0 => /usr/bin/curl
Kernel: Linux 5.4.0-48-generic x86_64 GNU/Linux
OS: Ubuntu 20.04.1 LTS (focal)
Host glibc: 2.31
/usr/bin/gcc: 9.3.0
/usr/bin/ruby: N/A
glibc: N/A
gcc: N/A
xorg: N/A

[SimonBarendse]

brew doctor resolves the problem. Should we run brew doctor every time we start using the docker image?

[SimonBarendse]

This isn't limited to the SecretHub tap. I'm seeing a similar error for `heroku/brew/heroku`

docker run linuxbrew/brew brew install heroku/brew/heroku
==> Homebrew has enabled anonymous aggregate formula and cask analytics.
Read the analytics documentation (and how to opt-out) here:
  https://docs.brew.sh/Analytics
No analytics have been recorded yet (or will be during this `brew` run).
==> Homebrew is run entirely by unpaid volunteers. Please consider donating:

https://github.com/Homebrew/brew#donations

==> Tapping heroku/brew

Cloning into '/home/linuxbrew/.linuxbrew/Homebrew/Library/Taps/heroku/homebrew-brew'...

Tapped 2 formulae (30 files, 368KB).

Error: No available formula or cask with the name "heroku/brew/heroku".

==> Searching for similarly named formulae...

This similarly named formula was found:

heroku

To install it, run:

brew install heroku

[MikeMcQuaid]

brew doctor resolves the problem. Should we run brew doctor every time we start using the docker image?

Can you elaborate how it seems to fix the problem?

[SimonBarendse]

@MikeMcQuaid I cannot seem to reproduce. I must have overlooked something when I reported it did solve the problem, sorry.

So the problem still persists after running brew doctor.

[jonchang]

Docker is a red herring. Merely running:

brew untap secrethub/tools
HOMEBREW_NO_ANALYTICS=1 brew install --only-dependencies secrethub/tools/secrethub-cli

is enough to observe the error. Bisect says:

f54b458cdaec5091cf7abfa3e09e9050a94a4a26 is the first bad commit
commit f54b458cdaec5091cf7abfa3e09e9050a94a4a26
Author: Markus Reiter <me@reitermark.us>
Date:   Fri Sep 25 21:13:26 2020 +0200

    Allow installing casks with `brew install`.

 Library/Homebrew/cask/cmd/abstract_command.rb |   1 +
 Library/Homebrew/cask/cmd/install.rb          |  29 +++-
 Library/Homebrew/cask/cmd/reinstall.rb        |   6 +-
 Library/Homebrew/cli/named_args.rb            |  63 ++++---
 Library/Homebrew/cmd/install.rb               | 227 +++++++++++++++++---------
 Library/Homebrew/exceptions.rb                |  16 +-
 docs/Manpage.md                               |  20 ++-
 manpages/brew.1                               |  40 ++++-
 8 files changed, 285 insertions(+), 117 deletions(-)