# Development Setup

## Prerequisites

* PHP 8.2+ with extensions: intl, gd, curl, zip, mbstring, xml, json, pdo, ldap, exif, bcmath
* Composer
* Node.js and npm (or Yarn — the project uses Yarn 4; see `package.json` for the exact pinned version)
* MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.11+
* Git

## Installation Steps

### 1. Clone the Repository

```bash
git clone https://github.com/chamilo/chamilo-lms.git chamilo
cd chamilo
```

### 2. Install PHP Dependencies

```bash
composer install
```

### 3. Configure Environment

The repository ships `.env.dist` as a reference. Create an empty `.env` file that the web installer will populate — keeping it empty ensures upgrades never overwrite your local configuration:

```bash
touch .env
```

Then make `.env` and `config/` writable by the web server so the installer can write your local configuration:

```bash
sudo chown -R www-data: .env config/ var/
```

### 4. Install Frontend Dependencies and Build

```bash
# Install JavaScript dependencies
yarn install

# Build frontend assets for development
yarn encore dev

# Or watch for changes during development
yarn encore dev --watch
```

### 5. Start the Development Server

```bash
symfony server:start
```

Or use Apache/Nginx pointing to the `public/` directory.

### 6. Set Up the Database

Run the web-based installation wizard by navigating to your Chamilo URL in a browser.

### 7. Generate JWT Keys

```bash
php bin/console lexik:jwt:generate-keypair
```

### 8. Secure your system

The `.env` file and `config/` directory only need to be writeable for the time of the installation. Secure them afterwards:

```bash
sudo chown -R root: .env config/
```

The `var/` directory needs to remain writeable by the web server.

## Build Commands

| Command                       | Purpose                        |
| ----------------------------- | ------------------------------ |
| `yarn encore dev`             | Build frontend for development |
| `yarn encore dev --watch`     | Build and watch for changes    |
| `yarn encore production`      | Build optimized for production |
| `php bin/console cache:clear` | Clear Symfony cache            |

## Development Tips

* Set `APP_ENV=dev` and `APP_DEBUG=1` in `.env` for detailed error messages
* The Symfony debug toolbar appears at the bottom of pages in development mode
* API documentation is available at `/api` when `APP_ENABLE_API_ENTRYPOINT=1`
* Use `yarn encore dev --watch` to automatically rebuild frontend changes


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.chamilo.org/developer-guide/developer-guide/getting-started/development-setup.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.