Install Larva

Install the larva toolchain on Windows, Linux or macOS, check it, and set up VS Code for Antril.

Antril programs are built with Larva, a toolchain behind a single command: larva. Installing Larva gives you the compiler for .ant files, the standard library (System.Core), the project templates and the Hive package manager.

Get the installer for your system from the download page.

Windows

The setup wizard

Run LarvaSetup-<version>-win-x64.exe. It installs for the current user, so it does not need administrator rights. The wizard asks for:

the destination folder (by default %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Larva);
whether to add that folder to your user PATH, so larva runs from any terminal;
whether to register Larva in Settings > Apps, with its uninstaller;
whether to use https://www.antril.org/hive-api as the default package registry;
whether to show Larva's files (.lva, .lvo, .queen, .hive, source files) with their icons.

Before installing, it also checks for the optional tools listed below.

Without the wizard

The same program installs from a terminal:

Terminal

$ LarvaSetup-0.8.0-win-x64.exe --silent

Option	What it does
`--silent`	Installs without questions, printing what it does.
`--dir <folder>`	Installs into `<folder>` instead of `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Larva`.
`--no-path`	Does not add the folder to your `PATH`.
`--no-registry`	Does not register Larva in Settings > Apps.
`--no-hive`	Does not make `www.antril.org/hive-api` the default package registry.
`--no-types`	Does not register Larva's file types and icons.
`--uninstall`	Removes Larva (add `--silent` to skip the confirmation).
`--help`	Lists the options.

You can also uninstall from Settings > Apps.

The zip

Larva-<version>-win-x64.zip holds the same files. Unpack it anywhere and run larva.exe from there. Nothing is added to PATH or to Settings > Apps.

Linux and macOS

Note

The Linux and macOS packages are new in this release. They are tested less than the Windows installer; please report anything that goes wrong.

Download Larva-<version>-linux-x64.tar.gz (or the macOS archive), unpack it and run install.sh:

Terminal

$ tar -xzf Larva-0.8.0-linux-x64.tar.gz
$ cd Larva-0.8.0-linux-x64
$ ./install.sh

The script installs for the current user, without root. It copies Larva into ~/.local/share/larva (on macOS, ~/Library/Application Support/Larva) and puts a larva command in ~/.local/bin.

Option	What it does
`--prefix <folder>`	Installs into `<folder>`.
`--no-path`	Does not add `~/.local/bin` to the `PATH` of new shells.
`--no-hive`	Does not make `www.antril.org/hive-api` the default package registry.
`--no-types`	Does not register Larva's file types and icons.
`--uninstall`	Removes what the script installed (with `--prefix` if you used one).
`--help`	Lists the options.

What gets installed

File	What it is
`larva` (`larva.exe`)	The toolchain: build, run, projects, packages, bindings, the language server.
`System.Core.dll`	The standard library, compiled. Programs are built against it.
`System.Bindings.dll`	What binding profiles are written against (see Native bindings).
`Languages/`	The languages larva compiles, one folder each. Antril is in `Languages/Antril`.
`Templates/`	The project templates of `larva new`.
`icons/`	The icons of Larva's file types.
`LLVM-C.dll`, `libLLVMSharp.dll`	The code generator larva uses.

Check the installation from a new terminal:

Terminal

$ larva --version
larva 0.8.0
$ larva languages
Antril 0.8.0  (antril: .ant)
  Antril for Larva: its frontend (Antril source to Larva HIR), its view (HIR written as Antril) and its editor services
  author:    Antril Organization
  license:   Proprietary
  homepage:  https://antril.org
  folder:    C:\Users\you\AppData\Local\Programs\Larva\Languages\Antril
  signature: signed, key c8794c3d0dd4d1fc
  status:    ok (files verified)

Uninstall

Each installer also removes Larva:

Terminal

$ LarvaSetup-0.8.0-win-x64.exe --uninstall

Terminal

$ ./install.sh --uninstall

Terminal

$ ./install.sh --uninstall

Run install.sh with the same --prefix as when you installed, if you used one.

Optional tools

Larva works without anything else for checking code and building libraries. Some builds use tools from your system:

Tool	Needed for
MSVC build tools (Windows: Visual Studio Build Tools with the C++ workload)	Native executables (`larva build`, `larva run`).
A C compiler, `cc` (Linux, macOS)	Linking native executables, once native builds on Linux and macOS are finished: today `larva build` links with the MSVC tools only (see Native builds).
clang	Reading C headers with the preprocessor in `larva bind`. Without it, headers are read as they are.
Node.js	Running WebAssembly builds outside a browser (`node app.js`).

VS Code

Two extensions add Larva and Antril to VS Code. Install Antril; it brings Larva with it.

Larva runs the language server (larva lsp) for every language Larva has installed. It understands .queen project files and adds commands: New Project from a Template, Run, Check, Build Native Executable, Build WebAssembly, Bind a Native Library, Generate Bindings from the Profile Open, List a Native Library's Exports, Show Type (decompiled) and Restart Language Server. If larva is not on your PATH, set larva.path in the settings.
Antril is the language itself: syntax highlighting, snippets, file icons and semantic colors for .ant files. Errors as you type, completion and navigation come from the Larva extension.

Next: write your first program.