Go Installation

Install Gate using Go tools, build from source, or run directly with go run

If you have Go installed, you can install and run Gate directly using Go’s toolchain. This is ideal for developers or those who want to build from source.

Prerequisites

Ensure you have the following installed:

Go

Version 1.24.1 or later

Download from go.dev/doc/install

Git

For cloning the repository (optional)

Install from git-scm.com

Verify your installation:

go version
# Expected: go version go1.24.1 or later

Quick Install

Install Gate globally using go install:

go install go.minekube.com/gate@latest

This will:

• Download the Gate source code
• Compile the binary
• Install it to $GOPATH/bin/gate (typically ~/go/bin/gate)

Make sure $GOPATH/bin is in your PATH:

echo 'export PATH="$HOME/go/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Run Gate:

gate

Run Without Installation

You can run Gate directly without installing using go run:

go run go.minekube.com/gate@latest

This is perfect for:

• Testing Gate without installing
• Running different versions side-by-side
• CI/CD pipelines
• Development environments

Go downloads and caches modules locally, so subsequent runs are much faster.

Install Specific Version

Install a specific version or commit:

Specific Version

go install go.minekube.com/gate@v0.42.2

Build from Source

For development or custom builds:

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/minekube/gate.git
   cd gate
   
2. Install dependencies

   go mod download
   

   This downloads all required dependencies specified in go.mod.

3. Build the binary

   go build -o gate gate.go
   

   For a production build with optimizations:

   CGO_ENABLED=0 go build \
     -ldflags="-s -w -X 'go.minekube.com/gate/pkg/version.Version=custom'" \
     -o gate gate.go
   

   Flags explained:

   • CGO_ENABLED=0 - Static binary without C dependencies
   • -s -w - Strip debug info (smaller binary)
   • -X - Set version information
4. Run the binary

   ./gate
   
5. (Optional) Install to PATH

   sudo mv gate /usr/local/bin/
   # or for user install:
   mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
   mv gate ~/.local/bin/
   

Cross-Compilation

Build Gate for different platforms:

Linux AMD64

GOOS=linux GOARCH=amd64 go build -o gate-linux-amd64 gate.go

Development Workflow

For active development:

1. Clone and enter directory

   git clone https://github.com/minekube/gate.git
   cd gate
   
2. Run in development mode

   go run gate.go
   

   This rebuilds automatically when you run the command.

3. Run tests

   go test ./...
   
4. Format code

   go fmt ./...
   
5. Check for issues

   go vet ./...
   

See the Developers Guide for comprehensive development documentation.

Module Information

Gate’s Go module details:

module go.minekube.com/gate

go 1.24.1

View all dependencies:

go list -m all

Update dependencies:

go get -u ./...
go mod tidy

Using Gate as a Library

You can also import Gate as a library in your own Go projects:

package main

import (
    "go.minekube.com/gate/pkg/edition/java/proxy"
)

func main() {
    // Create and configure Gate proxy programmatically
    // See API documentation for details
}

Add to your project:

go get go.minekube.com/gate@latest

Troubleshooting

go: command not found

Go is not installed or not in your PATH.

1. Install Go from go.dev/doc/install

2. Add Go to your PATH:

   export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin
   

gate: command not found after install

$GOPATH/bin is not in your PATH.

Add it to your shell profile:

echo 'export PATH="$HOME/go/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Build fails with 'go version too old'

Gate requires Go 1.24.1 or later.

Update Go:

# Download latest from go.dev
go version

Module download errors

Check your internet connection and proxy settings:

go env GOPROXY
# Should show: https://proxy.golang.org,direct

Clear module cache and retry:

go clean -modcache
go mod download

Build errors with dependencies

Update and tidy dependencies:

go get -u ./...
go mod tidy
go mod verify

Performance Optimization

For production builds, use these optimizations:

CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux GOARCH=amd64 go build \
  -a \
  -ldflags='-s -w -extldflags "-static"' \
  -tags netgo \
  -o gate \
  gate.go

Benefits:

• Fully static binary (no external dependencies)
• Smaller binary size (stripped symbols)
• Better portability
• Suitable for containers (distroless, scratch)

Verify Installation

Check that Gate is installed correctly:

gate --version

Expected output:

Gate 0.42.2

Next Steps

Quick Start

Get your proxy running

Configuration

Customize Gate settings

Developers Guide

Contribute to Gate or build plugins

Binary Installation

Install pre-built binaries instead