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Student Setup

This set of instructions will guide you through setting up your local environment with all the tools and accounts you will need for this course.

Part 1: Operating System Specific Setup

Use the following instructions to properly set up your local environment. The instructions are slightly different for different operating systems.

Mac OS X

Mac OS X doesn't come standard with a lot of the developer tools necessary for this course. To get these developer tools, you will have to install XCode tools on your computer. To do so, follow the instructions below:

  • Install XCode Tools
    • In a terminal, run the command xcode-select --install
  • Install Bazel (via homebrew)
    • In a terminal window, run the following commands: 
      /usr/bin/ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)"
brew tap bazelbuild/tap
brew install bazelbuild/tap/bazel

Windows

Windows doesn't come standard with a lot of the developer tools necessary for this course. To get these developer tools, you will have to install a few different programs. To do so, follow the instructions below:

  • Download and install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable
    • Navigate to the Microsoft Downloads page
    • At the bottom of the page, you'll find a section entitled "All Downloads" with a search bar
    • Search for "redistributable"
    • Download and run the appropriate package for your architecture (e.g. 32 bit or 64 bit Windows)
  • Download and install git
    • The default settings already selected during installation are fine to use
  • Download and install Java JDK 11
  • Install Bazel
    • In a new PowerShell window, execute the following commands: 
      Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -scope CurrentUser
iwr -useb get.scoop.sh | iex
scoop install sudo
sudo scoop install bazel --global

Part 2: Bootstrap Your Repository

Use the following instructions to create your repository.

  • Ensure you have a GitHub account, have verified your email address, and are signed in
  • Navigate to the classroom page on GitHub
  • Accept the assignment to have GitHub create a repository for you to do your work in

Part 3: Cloning Your Repository

Now that you have a repository with some starter code in it, you can clone your repository using GitHub Desktop or whatever other method you prefer.

Note: some of the tools we use in this course don't work well with paths that contain spaces. If you are using Windows, make sure to clone your repository to a location that doesn't have a space in its path.

Part 4: Installing an IDE

An integrated development environment (IDE) is a tool that developers use to work on code. The IDE includes all of the elements necessary to compile, run, and debug our programs. You aren't required to use any specific set of tools for this class outside of git and bazel. You may use whatever tools you prefer using and that includes your choice of IDE. It is up to you to determine whichever development environment works best for your personal tastes. As such, detailed instructions on how to set up your IDE or perform various environment related operations won't be provided. I assume that by this stage of your software engineering career, you are familiar with your tools of choice.

Having said that, I offer you the following suggestions:

  • IntelliJ IDEA
    • WARNING: use the latest version that starts with 2019. Avoid version numbers starting with 2020. The Bazel plugin doesn't work with some of the latter versions of IntelliJ.
    • Note: Some of these instructions are available in video form.
    • Once installed, open IntelliJ IDEA and open the preferences pane
    • Search for and install the following extensions within IntelliJ IDEA
      • Bazel by Google
      • google-java-format by Google
    • Restart IntelliJ IDEA after installing your plugins
    • Open the preferences pane for IntelliJ IDEA
    • Open the Other Settings dropdown on the left side pane
    • Click on Bazel Settings to enter Bazel specific preferences
    • Enter the location of the bazel binary into the Bazel binary location text field. This instructs IntelliJ IDEA where Bazel lives on your system.
      • Windows: C:\ProgramData\scoop\apps\bazel\current\bazel.exe
      • Mac OS/Linux: /usr/local/bin/bazel
      • You may also place the Bazel binary on your PATH environment variable if you prefer
    • Load your assignment repository by importing a Bazel project in IntelliJ IDEA
      • Note: Select to load the top level directory of the entire repository
    • Click through until the repository is loaded (default settings are fine to use)
    • Open the Project Settings under the File menu in IntelliJ IDEA and set the JDK IntelliJ should use to JDK 11.

Part 5: Making Your First Commit

Now that you have properly configured your system, let's start making some changes.

  • Identify yourself within your repository
    • Open the name.md file in the top level root of the repository
    • Replace the contents with your name
    • Commit the addition and push the change to GitHub
    • This is how I know who the repository belongs to

Troubleshooting

For most students, the above instructions should work. However, on some systems, you may receive one of the following errors. Follow the instructions below to fix them. If you receive an error that isn't listed here, please reach out to me and we can look into it together.

Error: Deriving targets from project directories failed

  • Open the project view file within IntelliJ: Bazel | Project | Open Project View File

  • Replace the contents of the file with the following:

    derive_targets_from_directories: false
directories:
  .
targets:
  //...

  • Sync the project once more by clicking the green heart button on the top right of IntelliJ IDEA

Windows Specific Issues If you use Windows and are unable to sync properly, the Bazel website has a guide specifically for fixing issues on Windows. Specifically, the following instructions have worked for students in the past:

  • Open the .bazelrc file from the top-level root of the repository

  • Add the following contents to the file:

    startup --output_user_root=C:/tmp
startup --windows_enable_symlinks
build --enable_runfiles

  • Sync the project once more by clicking the green heart button on the top right of IntelliJ IDEA