Gofred CLI

A powerful command-line tool for creating and running Go WebAssembly applications with hot reload capabilities.

Features

• 🚀 Quick App Creation: Generate new Go WebAssembly applications with a single command
• 🔥 Hot Reload: Automatic recompilation and browser refresh on file changes
• 🌐 Web Server: Built-in development server with WebSocket support
• 📦 Cross-Platform: Support for Windows, macOS, and Linux (AMD64 and ARM64)
• 🔧 VS Code Integration: Automatic workspace configuration for optimal development experience
• 📱 Responsive Development: Live reload across local and network devices

Installation

Quick Install (Recommended)

Run the installation script:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/gofred-io/gofred-cli/refs/heads/master/install.sh | bash

This script will:

• Detect your operating system and architecture
• Download the appropriate binary
• Install it to ~/.local/bin (or ~/AppData/Local/bin on Windows)
• Add the directory to your PATH if needed

Manual Installation

1. Download the appropriate binary for your platform from the releases page
2. Extract the binary to a directory in your PATH
3. Make it executable (on Unix systems): chmod +x gofred

Verify Installation

gofred version

Usage

Create a New Application

Create a new Go WebAssembly application:

gofred app create my-app --package my-app

Options:

• path: Path where to create the application (required, positional argument)
• --package, -p: Package name for the application (default: "gofred-app")

Example:

gofred app create hello-world --package hello-world

This will create:

• A main.go file with a basic "Hello, world" application
• A web/ folder with necessary HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files
• A .vscode/settings.json file configured for Go WebAssembly development
• A go.mod file initialized with the specified package name

Run Your Application

Navigate to your application directory and start the development server:

cd my-app
gofred app run

This will:

• Compile your Go code to WebAssembly
• Start a development server (usually on http://localhost:PORT)
• Open your browser automatically
• Watch for file changes and automatically recompile and reload

Available Commands

gofred --help                    # Show help information
gofred version                   # Show version information
gofred update                    # Update to the latest version
gofred app create <path> [flags] # Create a new application
gofred app run                   # Run the application (must be in app directory)

Global Flags

• --offline, -o: Run in offline mode (uses embedded web assets instead of downloading from CDN)

Development Workflow

1. Create your app: gofred app create my-app --package my-app
2. Navigate to the directory: cd my-app
3. Start development: gofred app run
4. Edit your code: Modify main.go or other .go files
5. See changes instantly: The app automatically recompiles and reloads in your browser

Project Structure

When you create a new application, the following structure is generated:

my-app/
├── main.go                 # Your main application file
├── go.mod                  # Go module file
├── web/                    # Web assets
│   ├── index.html         # Main HTML file
│   ├── index.css          # Styles
│   ├── index.js           # JavaScript runtime
│   ├── wasm_exec.js       # WebAssembly execution helper
│   └── env.js             # Environment configuration (auto-generated)
├── .vscode/               # VS Code configuration
│   └── settings.json      # Go WebAssembly settings
└── web/main.wasm          # Compiled WebAssembly binary (auto-generated)

Example Application

The generated main.go file contains a simple example:

package main

import (
    "github.com/gofred-io/gofred/foundation/text"
    "github.com/gofred-io/gofred/application"
)

func main() {
    app := text.New("Hello, world")
    application.Run(app)
}

Requirements

• Go 1.25.1 or later
• A modern web browser that supports WebAssembly
• For installation: curl, tar, and jq (automatically installed by the install script)

Troubleshooting

Installation Issues

• Permission denied: Make sure the installation directory is writable
• Command not found: Ensure the binary directory is in your PATH
• Download failed: Check your internet connection and try again

Development Issues

• Compilation errors: Check your Go code for syntax errors
• Browser not opening: Manually navigate to the URL shown in the terminal
• Hot reload not working: Ensure you're running the command from within your app directory

Offline Mode

If you're having network issues, you can run in offline mode:

gofred app create my-app --package my-app --offline
gofred app run --offline

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions, please:

1. Check the troubleshooting section above
2. Search existing GitHub Issues
3. Create a new issue with detailed information about your problem

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Happy coding with Gofred! 🚀