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Installation

Get forge up and running on your machine in a few minutes.

Prerequisites​

Before installing forge, make sure you have:

Install forge CLI​

The forge CLI tool is your main interface for creating projects, generating code, running migrations, and starting your development server.

Clone the repository and build:

git clone https://github.com/forgego/forge.git
cd forge
go build -o forge ./cli/cmd

Add forge to your PATH:

# Add to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc.)
export PATH="$PATH:/path/to/forge"

Option 2: Install via go install​

go install github.com/forgego/forge/cli/cmd@latest

Make sure $GOPATH/bin or $HOME/go/bin is in your PATH.

Option 3: Download Binary (Coming Soon)​

We'll have pre-built binaries available for download soon.

Verify Installation​

Check that forge is installed correctly:

forge --version
forge help

You should see the version number and available commands.

Set Up PostgreSQL​

forge uses PostgreSQL as its primary database. Make sure PostgreSQL is installed and running.

Create a Database​

Create a database for your project:

# Connect to PostgreSQL
psql -U postgres

# Create database
CREATE DATABASE myapp_db;

# Exit
\q

Test Connection​

Verify you can connect to PostgreSQL:

psql -U postgres -d myapp_db -c "SELECT version();"

Project Structure​

When you create a new forge project, you'll get this structure:

myapp/
├── main.go              # Application entry point
├── go.mod               # Go module file
├── config/
│   └── config.yaml      # Configuration file
├── models/              # Your model definitions
│   └── example.go       # Example model
└── migrations/          # Database migrations

Next Steps​

Now that you have forge installed:

  1. Create your first project
  2. Learn about models
  3. Explore the examples

Troubleshooting​

Go Version Issues​

If you get errors about Go version, make sure you're using Go 1.25 or later:

go version

PostgreSQL Connection Issues​

If you can't connect to PostgreSQL:

  1. Make sure PostgreSQL is running:

    # Linux/macOS
    sudo systemctl status postgresql

    # macOS (Homebrew)
    brew services list

  2. Check your connection settings in config/config.yaml

  3. Verify PostgreSQL is listening on the correct port (default: 5432)

Permission Issues​

If you get permission errors:

  • Make sure your PostgreSQL user has the necessary permissions
  • Check that the database exists and is accessible
  • Verify file permissions for your project directory

Development Tools​

Recommended tools for forge development:

  • IDE: VS Code with Go extension, GoLand, or Vim/Neovim with gopls
  • Database Client: pgAdmin, DBeaver, or psql
  • API Testing: Postman, Insomnia, or curl

What's Next?​

Ready to create your first application? Head over to the Quick Start Guide!