Installation

Installing logsmith is simple and straightforward. Choose your preferred package manager to get started with the modern changelog generation tool.

Package Managers

Choose your preferred package manager:

bun

# Install globally (recommended)
bun add -g logsmith

# Or install as a development dependency
bun add -d logsmith

npm

# Install globally
npm install -g logsmith

# Or install as a development dependency
npm install --save-dev logsmith

pnpm

# Install globally
pnpm add -g logsmith

# Or install as a development dependency
pnpm add -D logsmith

yarn

# Install globally
yarn global add logsmith

# Or install as a development dependency
yarn add -D logsmith

Quick Start

After installation, you can immediately start generating changelogs:

# Check current version
logsmith --version

# Generate a changelog and display in console
logsmith

# Generate and save to CHANGELOG.md
logsmith --output CHANGELOG.md

# Generate with a specific theme
logsmith --theme github --output CHANGELOG.md

# View repository statistics
logsmith stats

# List available themes
logsmith themes

From Source

To build and install from source:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/stacksjs/logsmith.git
cd logsmith

# Install dependencies
bun install

# Build the project
bun run build

# Link for global usage
bun link

System Requirements

logsmith requires:

• Bun 1.2+ (primary runtime - Node.js support coming soon)
• Git (for repository analysis and commit parsing)
• A Git repository with conventional commits for best results

Verification

Verify your installation:

# Check logsmith version
logsmith --version

# Test changelog generation (dry run to console)
logsmith --no-output

# Test with verbose logging
logsmith --verbose --no-output

# View help
logsmith --help

Platform Support

logsmith works on all major platforms:

• macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon)
• Linux (Ubuntu, CentOS, Alpine, etc.)
• Windows (Windows 10/11, WSL)

Updating

Keep logsmith up to date:

# Update global installation
bun update -g logsmith

# Update local installation
bun update logsmith

Uninstalling

Remove logsmith when no longer needed:

# Remove global installation
bun remove -g logsmith

# Remove local installation
bun remove logsmith

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Command not found:

# Check if globally installed packages are in PATH
echo $PATH | grep bun

# Reinstall globally
bun add -g logsmith

Permission errors (macOS/Linux):

# Install bun properly with install script
curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash

# Or use package manager that doesn't require sudo

Git not found:

# Install Git
# macOS: xcode-select --install
# Ubuntu: sudo apt install git
# Windows: https://git-scm.com/download/win

No conventional commits found:

# Logsmith works best with conventional commits
# Example conventional commit:
git commit -m "feat: add new feature for user authentication"

# Learn more about conventional commits:
# https://www.conventionalcommits.org/

Getting Help

If you encounter issues:

1. Check the troubleshooting guide
2. Search existing issues
3. Create a new issue
4. Join our Discord community

Next Steps

After installation, you might want to:

• Configure logsmith to customize changelog generation
• Learn about basic usage to start creating changelogs
• Explore theming options for custom styling
• Set up repository statistics for project analytics