getting-started-from-node.md

Getting started from Node

You know npm, package.json, and npm run dev. You have never installed Go. This guide gets you from zero to a running rfw app without assuming any Go background.

rfw requires Go 1.25 or newer.

1. Install Go

Linux

Most distro packages lag behind. Prefer the official tarball:

curl -LO https://go.dev/dl/go1.25.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/go
sudo tar -C /usr/local -xzf go1.25.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz

Then add Go to your PATH (in ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc):

export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin

If you prefer your package manager, check the version first: you need 1.25+. On Arch pacman -S go is current; on Debian/Ubuntu the golang package is often too old, use the tarball instead.

macOS

brew install go

Or download the official .pkg installer from go.dev/dl and run it.

Windows

Download the .msi installer from go.dev/dl and run it. It sets up PATH for you. Alternatively:

winget install GoLang.Go

Verify

go version
# go version go1.25.0 linux/amd64

2. The PATH gotcha

This is the step that trips up almost everyone coming from Node.

go install downloads, compiles, and drops binaries into $(go env GOPATH)/bin (usually ~/go/bin). That directory is not on your PATH by default. If you run go install ... and then get command not found, this is why.

Fix it once, in your shell profile:

# ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc
export PATH="$PATH:$(go env GOPATH)/bin"

On Windows, add %USERPROFILE%\go\bin to your user PATH in the environment variables settings.

Open a new terminal (or source the profile) and you are done.

3. Mental model: npm to Go

Node world	Go world	Notes
npm i -g <tool>	go install <module>@latest	Installs a binary into $(go env GOPATH)/bin
npm create <template>	rfw init <module-path>	Scaffolds a new project
npm run dev	rfw dev	Dev server with rebuild on change
package.json	go.mod	Module name plus dependency list; managed by go mod tidy
node_modules/	module cache in ~/go/pkg/mod	Global, deduplicated, never inside your project
the JS bundle	the wasm binary	One compiled artifact instead of a bundling pipeline

Two things have no npm equivalent and need no replacement: there is no npm install step after cloning (the toolchain fetches dependencies on build), and there is no bundler config at all.

4. Install rfw and run your first app

go install github.com/rfwlab/rfw/v2/cmd/rfw@latest
rfw init github.com/yourname/hello
cd hello
rfw dev

Notes:

• rfw init takes a module path (like the name field in package.json, but globally unique by convention; a GitHub-style path is customary even if you never publish it). The project directory is the last segment, hello.
• rfw dev serves on port 8080 by default. Override with --port, the RFW_PORT environment variable, or a port field in rfw.json.

Open http://localhost:8080 and you should see the scaffolded hello page.

5. Where to go next

• Build a real-time dashboard in 30 minutes
• Dynamic lists and events