Skip to main content

Installation

Get started with Krema by installing the required dependencies.

Prerequisites​

Before installing Krema, ensure you have the following:

  • Java 25+ (required for Foreign Function & Memory API)
  • Maven 3.8+
  • Node.js 18+ (for frontend development)
  • macOS 11+, Windows 10+, or Linux (with WebKitGTK)

Platform-Specific Setup​

macOS​

macOS comes with the necessary WebKit libraries built-in. Just install the development tools:

# Install Java 25 (required)
brew install openjdk@25

# Install Maven
brew install maven

# Install Node.js
brew install node

Windows​

Windows 10+ includes WebView2 (Edge-based) by default. If needed:

# Install WebView2 Runtime (usually pre-installed)
winget install Microsoft.EdgeWebView2Runtime

# Install Java 25
winget install EclipseAdoptium.Temurin.25.JDK

# Install Maven
winget install Apache.Maven

# Install Node.js
winget install OpenJS.NodeJS

Linux​

Install the WebKitGTK runtime libraries (the webview wrapper library is bundled with Krema):

Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-0 libgtk-3-0
# Optional: for system tray support
sudo apt install libayatana-appindicator3-1

Fedora/RHEL:

sudo dnf install webkit2gtk4.0 gtk3
# Optional: for system tray support
sudo dnf install libayatana-appindicator-gtk3

Arch Linux:

sudo pacman -S webkit2gtk-4.1 gtk3
# Optional: for system tray support
sudo pacman -S libayatana-appindicator

Then install Java 25, Maven, and Node.js using your package manager or SDKMAN.

Installing Krema CLI​

Choose the installation method that works best for you:

npm install -g @krema-build/krema

Or use it without installing globally:

npx @krema-build/krema init my-app --template react
No Java? No problem

The npm package handles Java automatically. It ships a native binary when available for your platform, falls back to a fat JAR with your existing JDK 25, or offers to install Eclipse Temurin 25 for you.

curl (macOS / Linux)​

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/krema-build/krema/master/packages/install.sh | bash

This installs krema to ~/.krema/bin/. The script will:

  1. Download a native binary if available for your platform
  2. Otherwise download the fat JAR and locate (or install) Java 25
  3. Create a launcher script and suggest adding it to your PATH

From source​

# Clone the Krema repository
git clone https://github.com/ApokalypsixDev/krema.git
cd krema

# Build and install the CLI
./install.sh

# Verify installation
krema --version

The install script checks for Java 25, builds with Maven, and creates a symlink in /usr/local/bin.

For manual setup:

mvn clean install -DskipTests
export PATH="$PATH:$(pwd)/bin"

Add the PATH export to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc.) for persistence.

Verify Installation​

krema --version

You should see the Krema version number printed.

Next Steps​

Now that Krema is installed, create your first app.