Installing from Source

Requirements

Before building Zap, install:

• clang 21.1.8
• llvm 21.1.8
• doxygen
• cmake 20+

Clone and build

Clone the repository, enter the project directory, make the build script executable, and run it:

git clone https://github.com/thezaplang/zap.git
cd zap
chmod +x build.sh
./build.sh

Compiler location

After a successful build, the compiler will be available at:

build/zapc

You can verify it with:

./build/zapc --version
./build/zapc --help

Add zapc to PATH

zsh

Add this line to ~/.zshrc:

export PATH="$PATH:/absolute/path/to/zap/build"

Then reload your shell:

source ~/.zshrc

bash

Add this line to ~/.bashrc:

export PATH="$PATH:/absolute/path/to/zap/build"

Then reload your shell:

source ~/.bashrc

fish

Add the path with:

fish_add_path /absolute/path/to/zap/build

Or make it universal:

set -Ux fish_user_paths /absolute/path/to/zap/build $fish_user_paths

Example

If the repository is in ~/dev/zap, then the compiler path is:

~/dev/zap/build/zapc

and the directory you add to PATH is:

~/dev/zap/build