Zig's New Relationship with LLVM (2020)
Zig is transitioning from relying on LLVM to a self-hosted compiler, marking a significant step in its development. This change aims to improve compilation speed and streamline the development experience for users. The new compiler will also introduce features like incremental compilation and in-place binary patching, enhancing efficiency for developers.
- ▪Zig is moving to a self-hosted compiler, making LLVM an optional dependency.
- ▪The new compiler is expected to increase compilation speed and improve the development experience.
- ▪Incremental compilation and in-place binary patching are key features of the self-hosted compiler.
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In the early days, Zig was but a thin frontend in front of LLVM. This was instrumental for getting started quickly and filling in gaps of Andrew’s knowledge as a compiler developer. Now, the training wheels of the bicycle are coming off, and LLVM is transitioning into an optional component.The work to replace the current C++ compiler implementation with a new pure Zig version has begun. Moving to a self-hosted implementation is usually considered a step towards maturity, with most benefits being felt by developers of the language itself.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Kristoff.
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