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Installation

This guide will help you set up everything needed to start building applications with Freya.

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Prerequisites

Make sure you have Rust installed. If you don’t have it yet, visit rustup.rs to install the Rust toolchain.

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Platform-Specific Setup

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Windows Requirements

Install Visual Studio 2022 with the “Desktop Development with C++” workflow.
1

Download Visual Studio 2022

Download the Visual Studio 2022 Community Edition installer.
2

Install C++ Development Tools

During installation, select the “Desktop Development with C++” workload. This includes:
  • MSVC C++ compiler
  • Windows SDK
  • CMake tools
3

Verify Installation

Open a new terminal and verify your Rust installation:
rustc --version
cargo --version
If you’re using windows-gnu toolchain and encounter compile errors, check this issue for potential solutions.

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Creating a New Project

Once you have the platform dependencies installed, create a new Rust project:
1

Create a new binary project

cargo new my-freya-app
cd my-freya-app
2

Add Freya as a dependency

Add Freya to your Cargo.toml:
[dependencies]
freya = "0.4.0-rc.11"
The main branch contains the latest features but may have breaking changes. Use stable releases for production applications.
3

Write your first app

Replace the contents of src/main.rs with:
#![cfg_attr(
    all(not(debug_assertions), target_os = "windows"),
    windows_subsystem = "windows"
)]

use freya::prelude::*;

fn main() {
    launch(LaunchConfig::new().with_window(WindowConfig::new(app)))
}

fn app() -> impl IntoElement {
    rect()
        .center()
        .expanded()
        .child("Hello, Freya!")
}
4

Run your application

cargo run
You should see a window with “Hello, Freya!” displayed in the center.

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Optional Features

Freya supports optional features that you can enable based on your needs: 
[dependencies]
freya = { version = "0.4.0-rc.11", features = ["router", "i18n", "icons"] }
  • router - Type-safe routing with freya-router
  • i18n - Internationalization support with Fluent
  • icons - Icon library (Lucide icons)
  • radio - Global state management with freya-radio
  • sdk - Additional utilities and integrations
  • material-design - Material Design components and effects
  • webview - Embed web content in your app
  • terminal - Terminal emulation support
  • code-editor - Code editor with syntax highlighting
  • plot - Charting and data visualization with Plotters
  • calendar - Calendar component
  • markdown - Markdown rendering
  • gif - GIF animation support
  • devtools - Developer tools for debugging
  • performance - Performance monitoring
  • all - Enable all features (except devtools)

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Known Issues

Custom Linkers: The following custom linkers are currently not supported:
  • mold
If you encounter issues with other linkers, please report them.

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Testing Your Setup

To verify everything is working correctly, try running one of the examples from the Freya repository: 
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/marc2332/freya
cd freya

# Initialize submodules (required)
git submodule update --init --recursive

# Run the counter example
cargo run --example counter
If the counter example runs successfully, your environment is ready for development!

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Next Steps

Quick Start Tutorial

Build your first interactive app with our step-by-step guide

Browse Examples

Explore 100+ examples covering all features

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Getting Help

If you encounter any issues during installation:

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