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Soli Docs

Installation

Get Soli MVC up and running on your machine in minutes. Follow these steps to bootstrap your new project.

1
Prerequisites

Rust & Cargo

Latest stable version

rustc --version

Node.js

v16 or higher (for Tailwind CSS)

node --version

npm

Package manager

npm --version

2
Install Soli CLI

Terminal 
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/solisoft/soli_lang.git
cd soli_lang

# Build and install the soli CLI
cargo install --path .

# Verify installation
soli --version

3
Create Your Project

Terminal 
# Create a new Soli app
soli new my_app

This command creates a new project with everything you need:

  • MVC directory structure (app/controllers, app/views, app/models)
  • Tailwind CSS configuration and dependencies
  • Home controller and welcome page
  • Application layout with responsive design
  • Helper functions for views

4
Start Development Server

Terminal 
cd my_app
soli serve . --dev

Your app is now running at http://localhost:3000

Hot Reload Enabled

The --dev flag enables hot reload. Edit any controller, middleware, or view file and refresh your browser to see changes instantly. No restart needed!

Project Structure

Understanding the layout of a Soli MVC application.

my_app/
├── app/
│   ├── controllers/          # Request handlers
│   │   └── home_controller.soli
│   ├── helpers/              # View helpers
│   │   └── application_helper.soli
│   ├── models/               # Data models
│   └── views/                # Templates
│       ├── home/
│       │   └── index.html.erb
│       └── layouts/
│           └── application.html.erb
├── config/
│   └── routes.soli           # Route definitions
├── db/
│   └── migrations/           # Database migrations
├── public/                   # Static files
│   ├── css/
│   │   ├── app.css           # Source (Tailwind directives)
│   │   └── output.css        # Compiled CSS
│   ├── js/
│   └── images/
├── tests/                    # Test files
├── .env                      # Environment variables
├── package.json              # Node.js dependencies
└── tailwind.config.js        # Tailwind configuration

Production Deployment

Terminal 
# Start production server
soli serve . --port 3000

# Or run as a daemon (background process)
soli serve . -d

Troubleshooting

  • If changes don't appear, check the terminal for errors
  • Make sure port 3000 isn't in use by another process

Next Steps

Introduction →

Learn about MVC architecture and Soli's philosophy.

Routing →

Define URLs and connect them to controllers.