Setup on macOS

Apple Clang via Xcode Command Line Tools · ~10–15 minutes · part of Compiler Setup

1. Install the Command Line Tools

Open Terminal (Applications → Utilities → Terminal) and run:

xcode-select --install

A dialog appears — choose Install (you do not need the full Xcode IDE). When it finishes, the clang++ compiler and make are installed.

Note: on Apple Silicon Macs, the Command Line Tools include a g++ command that is actually Clang. That’s fine — it compiles this course perfectly. Wherever the course says g++, clang++ (or that g++ alias) behaves the same for our purposes.

2. Verify

clang++ --version

You should see Apple clang version 15.x.x (or similar). Any Apple Clang from recent macOS versions compiles C++17 out of the box.

3. First compile

mkdir -p ~/code/cpp-course/unit-01 && cd ~/code/cpp-course/unit-01
nano hello.cpp        # paste the sanity-check program; Ctrl+O to save, Ctrl+X to exit
clang++ -std=c++17 -Wall -Wextra hello.cpp -o hello
./hello

You should see the program’s output. Errors? See FAQ troubleshooting.

4. Editor (recommended, 5 min)

Install Visual Studio Code and the C/C++ extension, then follow toolchain/vs-code-tips.md for a one-keystroke build and a working debugger.

Next: verify with the course’s sanity check → then Lesson 1.