Crew - The C/C++ Package Manager

What is Crew?

Crew is not a framework. It is a Dependency Manager (like npm for JavaScript or cargo for Rust) designed specifically for C and C++.

It solves the biggest headache in C++ development: Installing Libraries.

Requirements

• Python 3.x: To run the crew tool.
• Git: To download packages.
• Compiler: gcc, g++, or clang for building your projects.

Installation

Option 1: Install from PyPI (Recommended)

Once published, you can install it with a single command:

pip install crew-cli

Option 2: Install from Source (For Developers)

1. Clone the repo:

   git clone https://github.com/127crew/crew.git
   cd crew

2. Install locally:

   pip install .

3. Verify: Open a new terminal and type:

   crew --help

   If it works, you can now go to any folder and just run crew init or crew create.

Quick Start

New Project (crew create)

Best for starting from scratch. Creates a folder, code, and config.

# Create a C project
python3 crew.py create my-app --template c

Existing Project (crew init)

Best if you already have code. Creates crew.json in the current folder.

cd my-existing-project
python3 crew.py init

Install Dependencies

# Install a C library (stb)
python3 crew.py install https://github.com/nothings/stb.git

# Install a C++ library (nlohmann json)
python3 crew.py install https://github.com/nlohmann/json.git@v3.11.2

License

This project is licensed under the GPL-3.0 License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Examples

C Example (stb_image)

File: main.c

#include <stdio.h>
#define STB_IMAGE_IMPLEMENTATION
#include "stb_image.h"

int main() {
    printf("STB Image Version: %d\n", STBI_VERSION);
    return 0;
}

Build & Run:

gcc main.c -lm $(python3 crew.py flags) -o app_c
./app_c

---

C++ Example (nlohmann/json)

File: main.cpp

#include <iostream>
#include <nlohmann/json.hpp>
using json = nlohmann::json;

int main() {
    json j = { {"name", "Crew"}, {"awesome", true} };
    std::cout << j.dump(4) << std::endl;
    return 0;
}

Build & Run:

g++ main.cpp $(python3 crew.py flags) -o app_cpp
./app_cpp

How to use in your project

You don't need to change your build system. Just add $(crew flags) to your compiler command. It generates the necessary -I flags (e.g., -Icrew_modules/stb).