1a8a8c610d
Previously, the `test-stack-traces` step was essentially just testing error traces, and even there we didn't have much coverage. This commit solves that by splitting the "stack trace" tests into two separate harnesses: the "stack trace" tests are for actual stack traces (i.e. involving stack unwinding), while the "error trace" tests are specifically for error return traces. The "stack trace" tests will test different configurations of: * `-lc` * `-fPIE` * `-fomit-frame-pointer` * `-fllvm` * unwind tables (currently disabled) * strip debug info (currently disabled) The main goal there is to test *stack unwinding* under different conditions. Meanwhile, the "error trace" tests will test different configurations of `-O` and `-fllvm`; the main goal here, aside from checking that error traces themselves do not miscompile, is to check whether debug info is still working even in optimized builds. Of course, aggressive optimizations *can* thwart debug info no matter what, so as before, there is a way to disable cases for specific targets / optimize modes. The program which converts stack traces into a more validatable format by removing things like addresses (previously `check-stack-trace.zig`, now `convert-stack-trace.zig`) has been rewritten and simplified. Also, thanks to various fixes in this branch, several workarounds have become unnecessary: for instance, we don't need to ignore the function name printed in stack traces in release modes, because `std.debug.Dwarf` now uses the correct DIE for inlined functions! Neither `test-stack-traces` nor `test-error-traces` does general foreign architecture testing, because it seems that (at least for now) external executors often aren't particularly good at handling stack tracing correctly (looking at you, Wine). Generally, they just test the native target (this matches the old behavior of `test-stack-traces`). However, there is one exception: when on an x86_64 or aarch64 host, we will also test the 32-bit version (x86 or arm) if the OS supports it, because such executables can be trivially tested without an external executor. Oh, also, I wrote a bunch of stack trace tests. Previously there was, erm, *one* test in `test-stack-traces` which wasn't for error traces. Now there are a good few!
A general-purpose programming language and toolchain for maintaining robust, optimal, and reusable software.
Documentation
If you are looking at this README file in a source tree, please refer to the Release Notes, Language Reference, or Standard Library Documentation corresponding to the version of Zig that you are using by following the appropriate link on the download page.
Otherwise, you're looking at a release of Zig, so you can find the language
reference at doc/langref.html, and the standard library documentation by
running zig std, which will open a browser tab.
Installation
A Zig installation is composed of two things:
- The Zig executable
- The lib/ directory
At runtime, the executable searches up the file system for the lib/ directory, relative to itself:
- lib/
- lib/zig/
- ../lib/
- ../lib/zig/
- (and so on)
In other words, you can unpack a release of Zig anywhere, and then begin
using it immediately. There is no need to install it globally, although this
mechanism supports that use case too (i.e. /usr/bin/zig and /usr/lib/zig/).
Building from Source
Ensure you have the required dependencies:
- CMake >= 3.15
- System C/C++ Toolchain
- LLVM, Clang, LLD development libraries == 21.x
Then it is the standard CMake build process:
mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
make install
For more options, tips, and troubleshooting, please see the Building Zig From Source page on the wiki.
Building from Source without LLVM
In this case, the only system dependency is a C compiler.
cc -o bootstrap bootstrap.c
./bootstrap
This produces a zig2 executable in the current working directory. This is a
"stage2" build of the compiler,
without LLVM extensions, and is
therefore lacking these features:
- Release mode optimizations
- aarch64 machine code backend
- @cImport
- zig translate-c
- Ability to compile assembly files
- Some ELF linking features
- Most COFF/PE linking features
- Some WebAssembly linking features
- Ability to create import libs from def files
- Ability to create static archives from object files
- Ability to compile C, C++, Objective-C, and Objective-C++ files
However, a compiler built this way does provide a C backend, which may be useful for creating system packages of Zig projects using the system C toolchain. In this case, LLVM is not needed!
Furthermore, a compiler built this way provides an LLVM backend that produces bitcode files, which may be compiled into object files via a system Clang package. This can be used to produce system packages of Zig applications without the Zig package dependency on LLVM.
Contributing
Zig is Free and Open Source Software. We welcome bug reports and patches from everyone. However, keep in mind that Zig governance is BDFN (Benevolent Dictator For Now) which means that Andrew Kelley has final say on the design and implementation of everything.
One of the best ways you can contribute to Zig is to start using it for an open-source personal project.
This leads to discovering bugs and helps flesh out use cases, which lead to further design iterations of Zig. Importantly, each issue found this way comes with real world motivations, making it straightforward to explain the reasoning behind proposals and feature requests.
You will be taken much more seriously on the issue tracker if you have a personal project that uses Zig.
The issue label Contributor Friendly exists to help you find issues that are limited in scope and/or knowledge of Zig internals.
Please note that issues labeled Proposal but do not also have the Accepted label are still under consideration, and efforts to implement such a proposal have a high risk of being wasted. If you are interested in a proposal which is still under consideration, please express your interest in the issue tracker, providing extra insights and considerations that others have not yet expressed. The most highly regarded argument in such a discussion is a real world use case.
For more tips, please see the Contributing page on the wiki.
Community
The Zig community is decentralized. Anyone is free to start and maintain their own space for Zig users to gather. There is no concept of "official" or "unofficial". Each gathering place has its own moderators and rules. Users are encouraged to be aware of the social structures of the spaces they inhabit, and work purposefully to facilitate spaces that align with their values.
Please see the Community wiki page for a public listing of social spaces.