In this article, I'm going to show you how to set up your environment for Angular development using the command-line interface.
If you want to get the grasp of Angular then you should know the following:
If you know Typescript, it's better to understand some concept but it's not required.
Let's set up the environment by installing the components one by one.
Requirement 1: Node.js
Make sure your development environment includes Node.js and an npm package manager.
Angular requires a current, active LTS, or maintenance LTS version of Node.js.
To check your version, run node -v in a terminal/console window.
To get Node.js, go to nodejs.org.
Requirement 2: npm package manager
Angular, the Angular CLI, and Angular apps depend on features and functionality provided by libraries that are available as npm packages.
To download and install npm packages, you must have an npm package manager. npm client command line interface is installed with Node.js by default.
To check that you have the npm client installed, run npm -v in a terminal/console window.
One you have those 2 required components, then you can go ahead and start with step 1 of installation.
Step 1: Install the Angular CLI
We use the Angular CLI to create projects, generate application and library code, and perform a variety of ongoing development tasks such as testing, bundling, and deployment.
We need to install the Angular CLI globally.
To install the CLI using npm, open a terminal/console window and enter the following command:
npm install -g @angular/cli
Step 2: Create a workspace and initial application
We develop apps in the context of a workspace, which is called Angular workspace.
To create a new workspace and initial starter app:
1. Run the CLI command ng new and provide the name my-app, as shown here:
ng new my-app //you can use any name you want
2. The ng new command might ask you for information about features to include in the initial app. You can just accept the default options as per now. To do that, just press the return key (MAC users) or enter key (Windows/Linux users).
The Angular CLI installs the necessary Angular npm packages and other dependencies. This can take a few minutes. Probably 5-10 minutes.
The CLI creates a new workspace and a simple Welcome app, ready to run.
Step 3: Run the application
The Angular CLI includes a server, so that you can easily build and serve your app locally.
1. Go to the workspace folder (my-app).
When you run this command, the CLI installs the necessary Angular npm packages and other dependencies in a new workspace, with a root-level application named my-project. The workspace root folder contains various support and configuration files, and a README file with generated descriptive text that you can customize.
If you're not sure where your project folder is located. Just go to your C drive (Windows users) and you'll see the folder named my-app.
For MAC users, it's located inside your admin user's root directory.
2. Launch the server by using the CLI command ng serve, with the –open option.
cd my-app ng serve --open
The ng serve command launches the server, watches your files, and rebuilds the app as you make changes to those files.
The –open (or just -o) option automatically opens your browser to http://localhost:4200/.
You will see this window open automatically. (It doesn't have to be a guest window.)
command-line environment local development workspace