Setting up the development environment for C/C++

26 August 2024

Steps to setup c/c++ development environment.

Setting up a development environment for C programming is essential to ensure smooth code writing, compilation, and debugging. It provides the necessary tools, like a compiler and IDE, to transform code into executable programs. A proper setup boosts productivity and minimizes errors, allowing developers to focus on learning and building projects efficiently.

Step-by-Step Setup

The first thing that you need to do is to install the c/c++ compiler.compiler is a software or program that understand c/c++ syntax and help it to execute on your machine.

Popular Compilers:

GCC (GNU Compiler Collection) – Mention that it’s one of the most popular compilers and works across various platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux).
Clang – An alternative to GCC, often used on macOS and Linux.
Steps:
- For Windows: Go to MinGW to get GCC installed.
- For Mac: use Homebrew to get GCC.
- For Linux: you use apt or yum to install GCC. Read more

Setting Up an IDE or Text Editor

Popular Choices:

Visual Studio Code: Install VS Code and the C/C++ extension for syntax highlighting, intellisense, and debugging support.
Code::Blocks: A simple, cross-platform IDE specifically for C/C++.
Eclipse: Use CDT (C/C++ Development Tooling) plugin for Eclipse a full-featured IDE.

Configuring the Environment

After the finishing the compiler installation process it's time to configure the path,
configuring the environment path ensure the command like `gcc` , `clang` works properly from terminal

Setup Steps for windows :

If you are install GCC properly from here . Next simply go to windows file explorer where the MinGW/GCC installed.
Copy the MinGW path generally `C:\MinGW\bin`, then go to this PC option.
Right click on it , click to properties and then go to advanced system settings.
In bottom right part click to Environment, then under the System Variable
click to Path add Edit it
In the path Edit section click to new paste the path of MinGW path here.

Setup Steps for Macos :

First, open your terminal and install GCC via Homebrew if don't have Homebrew download it fore here. and type `brew install gcc`
After installation, locate the installation using `brew info gcc` command.
generally in mac the location would be (/opt/homebrew/Cellar/gcc)
Open the terminal and edit your shell configuration file. Depending on your
the file could be `.bash_profile`, .`zshrc`, or `.bashrc`. type nano ~/.zshrc.
Add the following line at the end of the file to include GCC in the PATH
export PATH="/usr/local/opt/gcc/bin:$PATH" , then Restart the terminal.

Run the Program

#include <stdio.h>
int main() {
printf("Hello, World!\n");
return 0;
}

compile and run it using the command line (e.g., gcc hello.c -o hello && ./hello).