# niminst User's manual

Dark Mode

- Manual
- Standard library
- Index

Search:

Author: | Andreas Rumpf
Version: | 1.2.8

# Introduction

niminst is a tool to generate an installer for a Nim program. Currently it can create an installer for Windows via Inno Setup as well as installation/deinstallation scripts for UNIX. Later versions will support Linux' package management systems.

niminst works by reading a configuration file that contains all the information that it needs to generate an installer for the different operating systems.

# Configuration file

niminst uses the Nim parsecfg module to parse the configuration file. Here's an example of how the syntax looks like:

    # This is a comment.
    ; this too.

    [Common]
    cc=gcc     # '=' and ':' are the same
    --foo="bar"   # '--cc' and 'cc' are the same, 'bar' and '"bar"' are the same (except for '#')
    macrosym: "#"  # Note that '#' is interpreted as a comment without the quotation
    --verbose

    [Windows]
    isConsoleApplication=False ; another comment

    [Posix]
    isConsoleApplication=True

    key1: "in this string backslash escapes are interpreted\n"
    key2: r"in this string not"
    key3: """triple quotes strings
    are also supported. They may span
    multiple lines."""

    --"long option with spaces": r"c:\myfiles\test.txt"

The value of a key-value pair can reference user-defined variables via the `$variable` notation: They can be defined in the command line with the `--var:name=value` switch. This is useful to not hard-coding the program's version number into the configuration file, for instance.

It follows a description of each possible section and how it affects the generated installers.

## Project section

The project section gathers general information about your project. It must contain the following key-value pairs:

Key | description
--- | ---
`Name` | the project's name; this needs to be a single word
`DisplayName` | the project's long name; this can contain spaces. If not specified, this is the same as `Name`.
`Version` | the project's version
`OS` | the OSes to generate C code for; for example: `"windows;linux;macosx"`
`CPU` | the CPUs to generate C code for; for example: `"i386;amd64;powerpc"`
`Authors` | the project's authors
`Description` | the project's description
`App` | the application's type: "Console" or "GUI". If "Console", niminst generates a special batch file for Windows to open up the command line shell.
`License` | the filename of the application's license

## `files` key

Many sections support the `files` key. Listed filenames can be separated by semicolon or the `files` key can be repeated. Wildcards in filenames are supported. If it is a directory name, all files in the directory are used:

    [Config]
    Files: "configDir"
    Files: "otherconfig/*.conf;otherconfig/*.cfg"

## Config section

The `config` section currently only supports the `files` key. Listed files will be installed into the OS's configuration directory.

## Documentation section

The `documentation` section supports the `files` key. Listed files will be installed into the OS's native documentation directory (which might be `$appdir/doc`).

There is a `start` key which determines whether the Windows installer generates a link to e.g. the `index.html` of your documentation.

## Other section

The `other` section currently only supports the `files` key. Listed files will be installed into the application installation directory (`$appdir`).

## Lib section

The `lib` section currently only supports the `files` key. Listed files will be installed into the OS's native library directory (which might be `$appdir/lib`).

## Windows section

The `windows` section supports the `files` key for Windows specific files. Listed files will be installed into the application installation directory (`$appdir`).

Other possible options are:

Key | description
--- | ---
`BinPath` | paths to add to the Windows `%PATH%` environment variable. Example: `BinPath: r"bin;dist\mingw\bin"`
`InnoSetup` | boolean flag whether an Inno Setup installer should be generated for Windows. Example: `InnoSetup: "Yes"`

## UnixBin section

The `UnixBin` section currently only supports the `files` key. Listed files will be installed into the OS's native bin directory (e.g. `/usr/local/bin`). The exact location depends on the installation path the user specifies when running the `install.sh` script.

## Unix section

Possible options are:

Key | description
--- | ---
`InstallScript` | boolean flag whether an installation shell script should be generated. Example: `InstallScript: "Yes"`
`UninstallScript` | boolean flag whether a deinstallation shell script should be generated. Example: `UninstallScript: "Yes"`

## InnoSetup section

Possible options are:

Key | description
--- | ---
`path` | Path to Inno Setup. Example: `path = r"c:\inno setup 5\iscc.exe"`
`flags` | Flags to pass to Inno Setup. Example: `flags = "/Q"`

## C_Compiler section

Possible options are:

Key | description
--- | ---
`path` | Path to the C compiler.
`flags` | Flags to pass to the C Compiler. Example: `flags = "-w"`

# Real world example

The installers for the Nim compiler itself are generated by niminst. Have a look at its configuration file:

    ; This config file holds configuration information about the Nim compiler
    ; and project.

    [Project]
    Name: "Nim"
    Version: "$version"
    Platforms: """
      windows: i386;amd64
      linux: i386;hppa;ia64;alpha;amd64;powerpc64;arm;sparc;sparc64;m68k;mips;mipsel;mips64;mips64el;powerpc;powerpc64el;arm64;riscv64
      macosx: i386;amd64;powerpc64
      solaris: i386;amd64;sparc;sparc64
      freebsd: i386;amd64;powerpc64;arm;arm64
      netbsd: i386;amd64
      openbsd: i386;amd64
      dragonfly: i386;amd64
      haiku: i386;amd64
      android: i386;arm;arm64
      nintendoswitch: arm64
    """

    Authors: "Andreas Rumpf"
    Description: """This is the Nim Compiler. Nim is a new statically typed,
    imperative programming language, that supports procedural, functional, object
    oriented and generic programming styles while remaining simple and efficient.
    A special feature that Nim inherited from Lisp is that Nim's abstract
    syntax tree (AST) is part of the specification - this allows a powerful macro
    system which can be used to create domain specific languages.

    Nim is a compiled, garbage-collected systems programming language
    which has an excellent productivity/performance ratio. Nim's design
    focuses on the 3E: efficiency, expressiveness, elegance (in the order of
    priority)."""

    App: Console
    License: "copying.txt"

    [Config]
    Files: "config/nim.cfg"
    Files: "config/nimdoc.cfg"
    Files: "config/nimdoc.tex.cfg"

    [Documentation]
    ; Files: "doc/*.html"
    ; Files: "doc/*.cfg"
    ; Files: "doc/*.pdf"
    ; Files: "doc/*.ini"
    Files: "doc/html/overview.html"
    Start: "doc/html/overview.html"

    [Other]
    Files: "copying.txt"
    Files: "koch.nim"

    Files: "icons/nim.ico"
    Files: "icons/nim.rc"
    Files: "icons/nim.res"
    Files: "icons/nim_icon.o"
    Files: "icons/koch.ico"
    Files: "icons/koch.rc"
    Files: "icons/koch.res"
    Files: "icons/koch_icon.o"

    Files: "compiler"
    Files: "doc"
    Files: "doc/html"
    Files: "tools"
    Files: "tools/nim-gdb.py"
    Files: "nimpretty"
    Files: "testament"
    Files: "nimsuggest"
    Files: "nimsuggest/tests/*.nim"

    [Lib]
    Files: "lib"

    [Other]
    Files: "examples"
    Files: "dist/nimble"
    Files: "dist/fusion"

    Files: "tests"

    [Windows]
    Files: "bin/nim.exe"
    Files: "bin/nimgrep.exe"
    Files: "bin/nimsuggest.exe"
    Files: "bin/nimble.exe"
    Files: "bin/vccexe.exe"
    Files: "bin/nimgrab.exe"
    Files: "bin/nimpretty.exe"
    Files: "bin/testament.exe"
    Files: "bin/nim-gdb.bat"

    Files: "koch.exe"
    Files: "finish.exe"
    ; Files: "bin/downloader.exe"

    ; Files: "dist/mingw"
    Files: r"tools\start.bat"
    BinPath: r"bin;dist\mingw\bin;dist"

    ;           Section | dir | zipFile | size hint (in KB) | url | exe start menu entry
    Download: r"Documentation|doc|docs.zip|13824|https://nim-lang.org/download/docs-${version}.zip|overview.html"
    Download: r"C Compiler (MingW)|dist|mingw.zip|82944|https://nim-lang.org/download/${mingw}.zip"
    Download: r"Support DLLs|bin|nim_dlls.zip|479|https://nim-lang.org/download/dlls.zip"
    Download: r"Aporia Text Editor|dist|aporia.zip|97997|https://nim-lang.org/download/aporia-0.4.0.zip|aporia-0.4.0\bin\aporia.exe"
    ; for now only NSIS supports optional downloads

    [WinBin]
    Files: "bin/makelink.exe"
    Files: "bin/7zG.exe"
    Files: "bin/*.dll"

    [UnixBin]
    Files: "bin/nim"

    [Unix]
    InstallScript: "yes"
    UninstallScript: "yes"
    Files: "bin/nim-gdb"
    Files: "bin/nim-gdb.bash"

    [InnoSetup]
    path = r"c:\Program Files (x86)\Inno Setup 5\iscc.exe"
    flags = "/Q"

    [NSIS]
    flags = "/V0"

    [C_Compiler]
    path = r""
    flags = "-w"

    [deb]
    buildDepends: "gcc (>= 4:4.3.2)"
    pkgDepends: "gcc (>= 4:4.3.2)"
    shortDesc: "The Nim Compiler"
    licenses: "bin/nim,MIT;lib/*,MIT;"

    [nimble]
    pkgName: "compiler"
    pkgFiles: "compiler/*;doc/basicopt.txt;doc/advopt.txt;doc/nimdoc.css"