Mac & Windows Development Environment Setup Guide

Welcome to the team! This guide will help you set up your MacBook or Windows machine for development. Follow these steps to install the necessary tools and software.

Mac Development Environment Setup Guide

1. Install Homebrew

Homebrew is a package manager for macOS. Install it by running this command in Terminal:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

2. Install Git

Git is essential for version control. Install it using Homebrew:

brew install git

3. Install NVM (Node Version Manager)

NVM allows you to manage multiple Node.js versions. Install it using this command:

brew install nvm

After installation, close and reopen your terminal, then run:

nvm install --lts

This installs the latest LTS version of Node.js.

4. Install Laravel Herd

Laravel Herd is a native macOS application that provides a complete PHP development environment. To install:

1. Visit the Laravel Herd website
2. Download the latest version
3. Open the downloaded .dmg file and drag Laravel Herd to your Applications folder
4. Launch Laravel Herd from your Applications folder

5. Install Visual Studio Code

VS Code is a popular code editor. Download it from the official website or install it using Homebrew:

brew install --cask visual-studio-code

Windows Development Environment Setup Guide

1. Install Git

Git is essential for version control.

Download and install from the official website: https://git-scm.com/downloads

After installation, you can open Git Bash or use Git in Command Prompt / PowerShell

2. Install NVM for Windows

NVM allows you to manage multiple Node.js versions easily.

Download NVM for Windows: https://github.com/coreybutler/nvm-windows/releases

Download the latest .exe installer (e.g., nvm-setup.exe) and follow the installation wizard.

Once installed, open a new Command Prompt and run:

nvm install lts
nvm use lts

This installs and activates the latest LTS (Long-Term Support) version of Node.js.

3. Install Laravel Herd for Windows

Laravel Herd is now available for Windows and offers a fast local PHP environment.

Download it from the official site: https://herd.laravel.com/

After download:

1. Run the .exe installer
2. Follow the setup instructions
3. Launch Laravel Herd and configure your local development folder

Laravel Herd includes PHP, Composer, Laravel, and more.

4. Install Visual Studio Code

VS Code is a lightweight and powerful editor.

Download from: https://code.visualstudio.com/

VS Code Plugins

Our recommendations for optimal settings:

{
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "[javascript]": {
    "editor.defaultFormatter": "esbenp.prettier-vscode"
  },
  "emmet.includeLanguages": {
    "javascript": "javascriptreact"
  },
  "editor.codeActionsOnSave": {
    "source.fixAll.eslint": true
  }
}

Recommended Extensions

• Tailwind CSS Intellisense
• Prettier
• ESLint
• Auto Close Tag
• Code Spell Checker
• EditorConfig for VS Code
• ES7 React/Redux/GraphQL/React-Native snippets
• GitLens
• Highlight Matching Tag
• Import Cost
• Live Share
• Version Lens

Configure Git (Windows/Mac/Linux)

1. Set up your Git identity

Run these commands in your terminal (Git Bash / Command Prompt / macOS Terminal):

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"

These settings are stored globally in your system. Git will use them for all repositories.

2. Generate an SSH Key (For GitHub Authentication)

SSH lets you securely connect to GitHub without entering your username and password every time.

Run:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your.email@example.com"

When prompted:

1. Press Enter to accept the default file path (~/.ssh/id_ed25519)

2. Set a passphrase (optional)

3. Add Your SSH Key to the SSH Agent

Ensure the SSH agent is running and add your key:

On macOS/Linux:

eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

On Windows (Git Bash):

eval $(ssh-agent -s)
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

4. Add the SSH Key to GitHub

Copy your public key:

cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

Then:

1. Go to GitHub SSH settings

2. Click “New SSH key”

3. Paste the key and give it a title (e.g., My Laptop)

4. Click “Add SSH key”

5. Test SSH Connection

To verify everything works:

ssh -T git@github.com

You should see: Hi your-username! You’ve successfully authenticated…

Install Discord

We use Discord to stay in sync with our projects and work. You can download and install it as any other Mac app.

Ask the Lucky Media PM for an Invite to our server

Optional Applications

• Raycast
• iTerm

Next Steps

1. Clone the project repositories you’ll be working on
2. Set up your SSH keys for GitHub/GitLab
3. Install any project-specific dependencies
4. Familiarize yourself with our coding standards and workflows

If you encounter any issues during setup, don’t hesitate to ask for help from your team lead or colleagues.

Happy coding!