Development Server

The zzz server command (also available as zzz s) starts a development server that builds and runs your application, then watches for changes and automatically restarts when source files are modified.

Usage

zzz server

The server performs the following cycle:

Runs zig build run to compile and start your application.
Prints “Server running. Watching for changes…” when the build succeeds.
When the process exits (due to a file change trigger or an error), it rebuilds and restarts.
Press Ctrl+C to stop.

Getting started

Navigate to your zzz project directory:
Terminal window
```
cd my_app
```
Start the development server:
Terminal window
```
zzz server
```
Open http://127.0.0.1:4000 in your browser.
Edit any .zig file under src/ — the server will rebuild and restart automatically.

Typical output

Starting zzz development server...
  Building...
  Server running. Watching for changes... (Ctrl+C to stop)

If the build fails or the server exits with a non-zero code, the CLI waits two seconds before retrying:

  Server exited with code 1. Waiting for changes to retry...
  Building...

A clean exit (code 0) or a termination signal (e.g., Ctrl+C) stops the loop entirely.

Environment selection

The dev server uses zig build run, which loads config/dev.zig by default. To run with a different environment configuration, use zig build run directly with the -Denv flag:

zig build run -Denv=staging

Development workflow

A typical development session looks like this:

Start the dev server:
Terminal window
```
zzz server
```

Generate new code as needed:

# In another terminal:
zzz gen controller Products
zzz gen model Product name:string price:float in_stock:boolean
zzz migrate

Edit the generated files to add your application logic.
The dev server detects the changes and rebuilds automatically.
Test your endpoints in the browser or with curl:
Terminal window
```
curl http://127.0.0.1:4000/products
```

Running tests alongside the server

In a separate terminal, use the test command to run your project’s test suite at any time:

zzz test

This invokes zig build test and reports the results.

Listing routes

To see all routes defined in your application:

zzz routes

This runs your app with the --routes flag, which prints a formatted table of all registered routes, their HTTP methods, and handler functions.

Next steps

CLI overview for the full list of commands
Create a new project if you have not set one up yet
Generate code to add controllers, models, and channels
Run migrations after generating models