Installation¶

Setting up Neovim with LazyVim from scratch.

Prerequisites¶

Ensure the following tools are installed:

# macOS
brew install neovim git curl

# Required for plugins
brew install ripgrep fd lazygit

# Optional but recommended
brew install node npm python3

Minimum Versions¶

Neovim >= 0.9.0 (0.10+ recommended)
Git >= 2.19.0
A Nerd Font for icons (recommended)

Install a Nerd Font¶

# Install JetBrains Mono Nerd Font
brew install --cask font-jetbrains-mono-nerd-font

Configure your terminal to use the Nerd Font.

Installing Neovim¶

macOS (Homebrew)¶

brew install neovim

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)¶

# Via apt (may not be latest)
sudo apt install neovim

# Via AppImage (latest)
curl -LO https://github.com/neovim/neovim/releases/latest/download/nvim.appimage
chmod u+x nvim.appimage
sudo mv nvim.appimage /usr/local/bin/nvim

Verify Installation¶

nvim --version
# Should show v0.9+ or v0.10+

Installing LazyVim¶

Backup Existing Configuration¶

# Required backup
mv ~/.config/nvim ~/.config/nvim.bak

# Optional: backup runtime data
mv ~/.local/share/nvim ~/.local/share/nvim.bak
mv ~/.local/state/nvim ~/.local/state/nvim.bak
mv ~/.cache/nvim ~/.cache/nvim.bak

Clone LazyVim Starter¶

git clone https://github.com/LazyVim/starter ~/.config/nvim

Remove Git History (Optional)¶

To start fresh without starter's git history:

rm -rf ~/.config/nvim/.git

First Launch¶

nvim

On first launch:

lazy.nvim (plugin manager) bootstraps itself
LazyVim plugins are installed
Language servers are downloaded via Mason

This may take a few minutes. Press q to close any prompts and let it finish.

Post-Installation¶

Health Check¶

Run inside Neovim:

:checkhealth

Address any warnings or errors shown.

Install Language Servers¶

Open Mason UI:

:Mason

Navigate and install language servers for your languages.

Set Up Shell Alias¶

Add to ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc:

alias vim='nvim'
alias vi='nvim'

Updating¶

Update Plugins¶

Inside Neovim:

:Lazy sync

Or press S in the Lazy UI (:Lazy).

Update Neovim¶

brew upgrade neovim

Update LazyVim¶

LazyVim updates automatically with :Lazy sync. To check the version:

:LazyVersion

Uninstalling¶

Remove Configuration¶

rm -rf ~/.config/nvim

Remove Runtime Data¶

rm -rf ~/.local/share/nvim
rm -rf ~/.local/state/nvim
rm -rf ~/.cache/nvim

Restore Backup¶

mv ~/.config/nvim.bak ~/.config/nvim

Directory Structure¶

After installation:

~/.config/nvim/
├── init.lua              # Entry point
├── lazy-lock.json        # Plugin version lockfile
├── lazyvim.json          # LazyVim extras config
├── lua/
│   ├── config/
│   │   ├── autocmds.lua  # Auto commands
│   │   ├── keymaps.lua   # Custom keybindings
│   │   ├── lazy.lua      # Plugin manager setup
│   │   └── options.lua   # Editor options
│   └── plugins/
│       └── *.lua         # Custom plugin specs
└── stylua.toml           # Lua formatter config

Dotfiles Integration¶

To manage your Neovim config with dotfiles:

# Move config to dotfiles
mv ~/.config/nvim ~/dotfiles/config/nvim

# Create symlink
ln -s ~/dotfiles/config/nvim ~/.config/nvim

Or use a dotfiles manager like stow:

cd ~/dotfiles
stow -t ~ config