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Installation#

Get Jac installed and ready to use in under 2 minutes.

Requirements#

  • Python 3.12+ (check with python --version)

Quick Install#

pip install jaseci

The jaseci package is a meta-package that bundles all Jac ecosystem packages together. This installs:

  • jaclang - The Jac language and compiler
  • byllm - AI/LLM integration
  • jac-client - Full-stack web development
  • jac-scale - Production deployment
  • jac-super - Enhanced console output

Verify the installation:

jac --version

This also warms the cache, making subsequent commands faster.

Installation Options#

Minimal Install (Language Only)#

If you only need the core language:

pip install jaclang

Individual Plugins#

Install plugins as needed:

# AI/LLM integration
pip install byllm

# Full-stack web development
pip install jac-client

# Production deployment & scaling
pip install jac-scale

# Enhanced console output
pip install jac-super

# Create environment
python -m venv jac-env

# Activate it
source jac-env/bin/activate   # Linux/Mac
jac-env\Scripts\activate      # Windows

# Install Jac
pip install jaseci

IDE Setup#

Install the official Jac extension for the best development experience:

Option 1: From Marketplace

  1. Open VS Code
  2. Click Extensions in the sidebar (or press Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X)
  3. Search for "Jac"
  4. Click Install on "Jac Language Support" by Jaseci Labs

Or install directly: Open in VS Code Marketplace

Option 2: Quick Install

Press Ctrl+P / Cmd+P and paste:

ext install jaseci-labs.jaclang-extension

Features:

  • Syntax highlighting for .jac files
  • Intelligent autocomplete
  • Real-time error detection
  • Hover documentation
  • Go to definition
  • Graph visualization

Cursor#

  1. Download the latest .vsix from GitHub releases
  2. Press Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P
  3. Select "Extensions: Install from VSIX"
  4. Choose the downloaded file

Verify Installation#

jac --version

Expected output:

   _
  (_) __ _  ___     Jac Language
  | |/ _` |/ __|
  | | (_| | (__     Version:  0.X.X
 _/ |\__,_|\___|    Python 3.12.3
|__/                Platform: Linux x86_64

📚 Documentation: https://docs.jaseci.org
💬 Community:     https://discord.gg/6j3QNdtcN6
🐛 Issues:        https://github.com/Jaseci-Labs/jaseci/issues

Upgrading Jac#

When upgrading to a new version of Jaseci packages, clear the bytecode cache to avoid compatibility issues:

# Upgrade packages
pip install --upgrade jaseci

# Clear the global bytecode cache
jac purge

⚠️ Important: After upgrading, always run jac purge to clear stale bytecode. Skipping this step can cause errors like "No module named 'jaclang.pycore'", "NodeAnchor is not a valid reference", or the setup hanging during compilation.

If you encounter issues during first-time setup or after upgrading, jac purge is your first troubleshooting step.

For Contributors#

See the Contributing Guide for development setup.

Next Steps#