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https://github.com/vlang/v

Simple, fast, safe, compiled language for developing maintainable software. Compiles itself in <1s with zero library dependencies. Supports automatic C => V translation. https://vlang.io
https://github.com/vlang/v

compiler language programming-language v

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Simple, fast, safe, compiled language for developing maintainable software. Compiles itself in <1s with zero library dependencies. Supports automatic C => V translation. https://vlang.io

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README 

        




    V logo



The V Programming Language



[vlang.io](https://vlang.io)

| [Docs](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/doc/docs.md)

| [Changelog](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md)

| [Speed](https://fast.vlang.io/)

| [Contributing & compiler design](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/CONTRIBUTING.md)








[![Sponsor][SponsorBadge]][SponsorUrl]

[![Patreon][PatreonBadge]][PatreonUrl]

[![Discord][DiscordBadge]][DiscordUrl]

[![X][XBadge]][XUrl]

[![Modules][ModulesBadge]][ModulesUrl]






## Key Features of V



- Simplicity: the language can be learned over the course of a weekend

- Fast compilation: ≈110k loc/s with a Clang backend,

  ≈500k loc/s with native and tcc backends *(Intel i5-7500, SSD, no

  optimization)* ([demo video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvP6wmcl_Sc))

- Easy to develop: V compiles itself in less than a second

- Performance: as fast as C (V's main backend compiles to human-readable C)

- Safety: no null, no globals, no undefined behavior (wip), immutability by default

- C to V translation ([Translating DOOM demo video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oXrz3oRoEg))

- Hot code reloading

- [Flexible memory management](https://vlang.io/#memory). GC by default, manual via `v -gc none`,

  arena allocation via `v -prealloc`, autofree via `v -autofree`

  ([autofree demo video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmB8ea8uLsM)).

- [Cross-platform UI library](https://github.com/vlang/ui)

- Built-in graphics library

- Easy cross-compilation

- REPL

- [Built-in ORM](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/doc/docs.md#orm)

- [Built-in web framework](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/vlib/veb/README.md)

- C and JavaScript backends

- Great for writing low-level software ([Vinix OS](https://github.com/vlang/vinix))



## Stability, future changes, post 1.0 freeze



Despite being at an early development stage, the V language is relatively stable, and doesn't

change often. But there will be changes before 1.0.

Most changes in the syntax are handled via vfmt automatically.



The V core APIs (primarily the `os` module) will also have minor changes until

they are stabilized in V 1.0. Of course, the APIs will grow after that, but without breaking

existing code.



After the 1.0 release V is going to be in the "feature freeze" mode. That means no breaking changes

in the language, only bug fixes and performance improvements. Similar to Go.



Will there be V 2.0? Not within a decade after 1.0, perhaps not ever.



To sum it up, unlike many other languages, V is not going to be always changing, with new features

introduced and old features modified. It is always going to be a small and simple

language, very similar to the way it is right now.



## Installing V from source



--> **_(this is the preferred method)_**



### Linux, macOS, Windows, \*BSD, Solaris, WSL, etc.



Usually, installing V is quite simple if you have an environment that already has a

functional `git` installation.



Note: On Windows, run `make.bat` instead of `make` in CMD, or `./make.bat` in PowerShell.

Note: On Ubuntu/Debian, you may need to run `sudo apt install git build-essential make` first.



To get started, execute the following in your terminal/shell:

```bash

git clone https://github.com/vlang/v

cd v

make

```



That should be it, and you should find your V executable at `[path to V repo]/v`.

`[path to V repo]` can be anywhere.



(Like the note above says, on Windows, use `make.bat`, instead of `make`.)



Now try running `./v run examples/hello_world.v` (or `v run examples/hello_world.v` in cmd shell).



- *Trouble? Please see the notes above, and link to

  [Installation Issues](https://github.com/vlang/v/discussions/categories/installation-issues)

  for help.*



Note: V is being constantly updated. To update V to its latest version, simply run:



```bash

v up

```



> [!NOTE]

> If you run into any trouble, or you have a different operating

> system or Linux distribution that doesn't install or work immediately, please see

> [Installation Issues](https://github.com/vlang/v/discussions/categories/installation-issues)

> and search for your OS and problem.

>

> If you can't find your problem, please add it to an existing discussion if one exists for

> your OS, or create a new one if a main discussion doesn't yet exist for your OS.



### C compiler



The [Tiny C Compiler (tcc)](https://repo.or.cz/w/tinycc.git) is downloaded for you by `make` if

there is a compatible version for your system, and installed under the V `thirdparty` directory.



This compiler is very fast, but does almost no optimizations. It is best for development builds.



For production builds (using the `-prod` option to V), it's recommended to use clang, gcc, or

Microsoft Visual C++. If you are doing development, you most likely already have one of those

installed.



Otherwise, follow these instructions:



- [Installing a C compiler on Linux and macOS](https://github.com/vlang/v/wiki/Installing-a-C-compiler-on-Linux-and-macOS)



- [Installing a C compiler on Windows](https://github.com/vlang/v/wiki/Installing-a-C-compiler-on-Windows)



### Symlinking



> [!NOTE]

> It is *highly recommended*, that you put V on your PATH. That saves

> you the effort to type in the full path to your v executable every time.

> V provides a convenience `v symlink` command to do that more easily.



On Unix systems, it creates a `/usr/local/bin/v` symlink to your

executable. To do that, run:



```bash

sudo ./v symlink

```



On Windows, start a new shell with administrative privileges, for example by pressing the

Windows Key, then type `cmd.exe`, right-click on its menu entry, and choose `Run as

administrator`. In the new administrative shell, cd to the path where you have compiled V, then

type:



```bat

v symlink

```



(or `./v symlink` in PowerShell)



That will make V available everywhere, by adding it to your PATH. Please restart your

shell/editor after that, so that it can pick up the new PATH variable.



> [!NOTE]

> There is no need to run `v symlink` more than once - v will still be available, even after

> `v up`, restarts, and so on. You only need to run it again if you decide to move the V repo

> folder somewhere else.



### Void Linux



Expand Void Linux instructions



```bash

# xbps-install -Su base-devel

# xbps-install libatomic-devel

$ git clone https://github.com/vlang/v

$ cd v

$ make

```



### Docker



```bash

git clone https://github.com/vlang/v

cd v

docker build -t vlang .

docker run --rm -it vlang:latest

```



### Docker with Alpine/musl



```bash

git clone https://github.com/vlang/v

cd v

docker build -t vlang_alpine - < Dockerfile.alpine

alias with_alpine='docker run -u 1000:1000 --rm -it -v .:/src -w /src vlang_alpine:latest'

```



Compiling *static* executables, ready to be copied to a server, that is running

another linux distro, without dependencies:

```bash

with_alpine v -skip-unused -prod -cc gcc -cflags -static -compress examples/http_server.v

with_alpine v -skip-unused -prod -cc gcc -cflags -static -compress -gc none examples/hello_world.v

ls -la examples/http_server examples/hello_world

file   examples/http_server examples/hello_world

examples/http_server: ELF 64-bit LSB executable, x86-64, version 1 (SYSV), statically linked, no section header

examples/hello_world: ELF 64-bit LSB executable, x86-64, version 1 (SYSV), statically linked, no section header

```



You should see something like this:

```

-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root  16612 May 27 17:07 examples/hello_world

-rwxr-xr-x 1 root root 335308 May 27 17:07 examples/http_server

```



### Termux/Android



On Termux, V needs some packages preinstalled - a working C compiler, also `libexecinfo`,

`libgc` and `libgc-static`. After installing them, you can use the same script, like on

Linux/macos:



```bash

pkg install clang libexecinfo libgc libgc-static make git

git clone https://github.com/vlang/v

cd v

make

```



## Editor/IDE Plugins



To bring IDE functions for the V programming languages to your editor, check out

[v-analyzer](https://github.com/vlang/v-analyzer). It provides a

[VS Code extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=VOSCA.vscode-v-analyzer)

and language server capabilities for other editors.



The plugin for JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ, CLion, GoLand, etc.) also offers a great development

experience with V. You can find all features in [its documentation](https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugin/20287-vlang/docs/syntax-highlighting.html).



Other Plugins:



- [Vim plugins](https://github.com/vlang/awesome-v#vim)

- [Emacs plugins](https://github.com/vlang/awesome-v#emacs)

- [Sublime Text 3 plugins](https://github.com/vlang/awesome-v#sublime-text-3)

- [Atom plugins](https://github.com/vlang/awesome-v#atom)



## Testing and running the examples



Make sure V can compile itself:



```bash

$ v self

$ v

V 0.3.x

Use Ctrl-C or `exit` to exit



>>> println('hello world')

hello world

>>>

```



```bash

cd examples

v hello_world.v && ./hello_world    # or simply

v run hello_world.v                 # this builds the program and runs it right away



v run word_counter/word_counter.v word_counter/cinderella.txt

v run news_fetcher.v

v run tetris/tetris.v

```



tetris screenshot



In order to build Tetris or 2048 (or anything else using `sokol` or `gg` graphics modules),

you will need additional development libraries for your system.



| System              | Installation method                                                                                |

|---------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

| Debian/Ubuntu based | `sudo apt install libxi-dev libxcursor-dev libgl-dev libasound2-dev`                               |

| Fedora/RH/CentOS    | `sudo dnf install libXcursor-devel libXi-devel libX11-devel libglvnd-devel`                        |

| NixOS               | add `xorg.libX11.dev xorg.libXcursor.dev xorg.libXi.dev libGL.dev` to `environment.systemPackages` |



## V net.http, net.websocket, `v install`



The net.http module, the net.websocket module, and the `v install` command may all use SSL.

V comes with a version of mbedtls, which should work on all systems. If you find a need to

use OpenSSL instead, you will need to make sure that it is installed on your system, then

use the `-d use_openssl` switch when you compile.



To install OpenSSL on non-Windows systems:



| System              | Installation command             |

|---------------------|----------------------------------|

| macOS               | `brew install openssl`           |

| Debian/Ubuntu based | `sudo apt install libssl-dev`    |

| Arch/Manjaro        | openssl is installed by default  |

| Fedora/CentOS/RH    | `sudo dnf install openssl-devel` |



On Windows, OpenSSL is simply hard to get working correctly. The instructions

[here](https://tecadmin.net/install-openssl-on-windows/) may (or may not) help.



## V sync



V's `sync` module and channel implementation uses libatomic.

It is most likely already installed on your system, but if not,

you can install it, by doing the following:



| System              | Installation command                |

|---------------------|-------------------------------------|

| macOS               | already installed                   |

| Debian/Ubuntu based | `sudo apt install libatomic1`       |

| Fedora/CentOS/RH    | `sudo dnf install libatomic-static` |



## V UI





V UI example screenshot




https://github.com/vlang/ui



## Android graphical apps



With V's `vab` tool, building V UI and graphical apps for Android can become as easy as:



```

./vab /path/to/v/examples/2048

```



[https://github.com/vlang/vab](https://github.com/vlang/vab).

vab examples screenshot



## Developing web applications



Check out the

[Building a simple web blog](https://github.com/vlang/v/blob/master/tutorials/building_a_simple_web_blog_with_vweb/README.md)

tutorial and Gitly, a light and fast alternative to GitHub/GitLab:



https://github.com/vlang/gitly



gitly screenshot



## Vinix, an OS/kernel written in V



V is great for writing low-level software like drivers and kernels.

Vinix is an OS/kernel that already runs bash, GCC, V, and nano.



https://github.com/vlang/vinix



vinix screenshot 1

vinix screenshot 2



## Acknowledgement



V thanks Fabrice Bellard for his original work on the

[TCC - Tiny C Compiler](https://bellard.org/tcc/).

Note the TCC website is old; the current TCC repository can be found

[here](https://repo.or.cz/w/tinycc.git).

V utilizes pre-built TCC binaries located at

[https://github.com/vlang/tccbin/](https://github.com/vlang/tccbin/).



## Troubleshooting



Please see the

[Troubleshooting](https://github.com/vlang/v/wiki/Troubleshooting)

section on our

[wiki page](https://github.com/vlang/v/wiki).



[WorkflowBadge]: https://github.com/vlang/v/workflows/CI/badge.svg

[DiscordBadge]: https://img.shields.io/discord/592103645835821068?label=Discord&logo=discord&logoColor=white

[PatreonBadge]: https://img.shields.io/endpoint.svg?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshieldsio-patreon.vercel.app%2Fapi%3Fusername%3Dvlang%26type%3Dpatrons&style=flat

[SponsorBadge]: https://img.shields.io/github/sponsors/medvednikov?style=flat&logo=github&logoColor=white

[XBadge]: https://img.shields.io/badge/follow-%40v__language-1DA1F2?logo=x&style=flat&logoColor=white

[ModulesBadge]: https://img.shields.io/badge/modules-reference-027d9c?logo=v&logoColor=white&logoWidth=10



[WorkflowUrl]: https://github.com/vlang/v/commits/master

[DiscordUrl]: https://discord.gg/vlang

[PatreonUrl]: https://patreon.com/vlang

[SponsorUrl]: https://github.com/sponsors/medvednikov

[XUrl]: https://x.com/v_language

[ModulesUrl]: https://modules.vlang.io