Clang

To download and install Clang, you need to apply the following instructions.

• Open a terminal window. Enter the command (clang — version) to confirm if the Clang Compilers had already been installed.
• To update or install the Clang Compilers, you need to type in the following command: command xcode-select–install

This will generate a pop-up window asking you if you want to install it now or later. Once you click on install, this will direct you to a License Agreement. Select “Agree” and you will see the installation in progress. Once the installation is completed, click on “Done.”

In case you still want to double-check the installation, type in the command: clang –version into the Terminal.

The first version of clang was Clang 1.0 and it was released with LLVM 2.6. The next version was Clang C++ which was able to parse GCC 4.2 libstdc, compile itself and function as a working code generator for non-trivial operations.

From Clang 3.0 down to the latest version – Clang 12.0.0, the compiler has evolved with a ton of meaningful features.

It has become more scalable, extremely light and very fast. It is designed to keep more data in the course of the compiling process when compared to GCC (learn about what is GCC). Also, it preserves the form of the main code.

The reason for this is that it will be easy to map errors back into the main source. Clang provides error reports that are specific and detailed and it is also machine-readable. This way IDEs get to index the compiler’s output while compiling.

According to performance comparisons carried out by Alibabatech, the results show that Clang’s front-end is significantly faster than GCC in the compilation and it uses less memory. This gives Clang an edge especially for making large projects.

Clang compiler generates diagnostics (error and warning messages) that are more useful and understandable.

Also, Clang uses a Library based Architecture as the front-end is separated into distinct libraries that can suit various needs. This makes it easy to time and estimates the cost of every stack layer.

Clang’s library-based process makes it easy for fresh developers to join because all they need is to get the basics and not the entire picture.

Clang Supports Diverse Clients as the primary goal is to aid incremental compilation. This gives it a better connection to the GUI of IDE. Great care was taken to build and design clang to give it a firm foundation for a new set of C++, Objective C and C development tools.

Clang supports a wide range of language extensions as they are compatible with Microsoft, GCC, and other well-known compilers to enhance functionality via specific features of clang.

Clang Compilers are also able to integrate with IDEs which gives the user more visibility over the entire project. Clang uses the BSD license of the LLVM for commercial projects as it was designed not to be used as a separate compiler alone.

It was designed as a library embedded within a third-party app. The BSD license encourages several contributors to go through and improve the source code which enhances it at the end of the day.

To learn more about Clang features, visit this GCC vs Clang blog post.

One of the recommended IDEs for using Clang on Windows is Visual Studio as it comes with full support for targeting Clang/LLVM based toolsets. To install the Clang tools on Windows is easy. There is a Clang compiler for Windows which is an optional component built with the ‘Desktop development with C++’ workload. This will handle the complete development of Clang on Windows. To get the best support in IDE, it is best to use the latest version of Clang.