Installing CLion

Background

Programs in C++ are nothing more than text files saved with extensions like .cpp and .h. A computer's microprocessor, however, cannot directly run the code in those files. The job of the C++ compiler is to compile a set of C++ source code files into a single executable file that can be run on the microprocessor.

Many common C++ compilers are command-line programs, meaning they do not contain a graphical user interface; they are run by typing text-based commands to the computer. Therefore, many C++ users use integrated development environments (IDEs) to both edit their C++ source code files and automatically compile them using the command-line compiler behind the scenes.

CLion (pronounced "sea lion") is a C++ IDE created by the JetBrains company that is available for both Macs and PCs. This document will walk you through the process of getting CLion up and running.

Steps

This is a multi-step processes and the steps should be done in this order.

Download and install a C++ compiler.
- For Mac: Download and install the Xcode command-line tools.
- For PC: Download and install MinGW.
- For Linux, you most likely already have the gcc compiler. Continue to the next step.
Download and install CLion.
Make a CLion project.

These instructions are based on those from Richard E. Pattis, UC-Irvine.