Following up on our decision to shift away from C++, we have officially kicked off the rewrite of the Azin bootstrap compiler in Go. The repository has been restructured, the first modules are landing, and the foundations of the new architecture are taking shape. Our singular focus right now is velocity. building a clean, maintainable pipeline so we can get to a self-hosted compiler as efficiently as possible. Here is a look at what we’ve built so far and how the new codebase is structured.
Layout of the New Compiler
We are leveraging Go's strict package boundaries to ensure the compiler remains highly modular from day one. Instead of a monolithic layout, each distinct phase of the compilation process lives in its own isolated package under internal/.cmd/compiler: The main entry point. It handles CLI flags, manages the overall compilation workflow, and prints debugging metadata.internal/fs: Dedicated to robust file system operations, including strict verification of the .az file extension.
internal/lexer: The tokenizer phase. It ingests raw source bytes and converts them into structured token streams.internal/diagnostics: The central error-reporting hub designed to handle pipeline failures gracefully rather than relying on unhandled crashes.
Keeping it Lightweight and Toolchain-Ready
One of our immediate wins with Go has been the integration of robust developer tooling. We have already introduced a completely overhauled GitHub Actions CI workflow that automatically handles the heavy lifting across Linux, macOS, and Windows.
Automated Linting and Formatting: Code formatting verification is strictly enforced via go fmt to keep the codebase pristine across all contributors.
Static Verification: Integrated go vet and test pipelines to catch syntax errors or typing mismatches instantly on every push.
Cross-Platform Delivery: Compiling native azc binaries smoothly across entirely different operating system targets.
Next Steps: The Parser
With the lexer stabilized and generating structured token output, we are moving directly into the parsing stage. The goal for the upcoming days is mapping out our Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) structure and plugging the parser into our diagnostics error-reporting engine. Every stage of the compiler will cleanly pass down diagnostic states, making it incredibly accessible for new contributors to jump in and improve compiler messages.
If you want to get your hands dirty with the new Go implementation, check out the repository, run go test ./..., or drop by the Discord Server