After this page your editor highlights Phel and evaluates code inline. Install the plugin for your editor, then connect it to Phel's nREPL server or language server.
| Editor | Plugin | Highlighting | Structural editing | Inline eval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PhpStorm | Phel IntelliJ plugin | yes | yes | yes (REPL actions) |
| VS Code | Phel VS Code extension | yes | no | yes |
| Emacs | interactive-lang-tools | yes | with paredit or smartparens | yes |
| Vim | phel.vim | yes, plus indentation | no | with an nREPL client |
PhpStorm
Open Settings -> Plugins -> Marketplace, search for "Phel", install, and restart the IDE. The REPL actions evaluate code in a Phel process, so use them inside a project that has Phel installed (composer require phel-lang/phel-lang).
VS Code
Open the Extensions view (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+X), search for "Phel", install, and reload the window. The extension also adds code snippets and step-through debugging: see Xdebug setup for launch.json and breakpoints in .phel files.
Emacs
The package is not on MELPA. Install it from source (for example with package-vc-install or straight.el) and follow the setup in its repository. For paren-aware editing, pair it with the structural mode you already use.
Vim
Install with your plugin manager, for example vim-plug:
Plug 'danirod/phel.vim'Run :PlugInstall, restart Vim, and open a .phel file. The plugin covers syntax and indentation only. For inline evaluation, point a generic nREPL client (such as vim-iced or conjure) at a running phel nrepl server.
nREPL and editor integration
Inline evaluation sends a form from your editor to a running server and shows the result. Phel ships an nREPL server:
vendor/bin/phel nrepl --port=7888 --host=127.0.0.1Port 7888 and host 127.0.0.1 are the defaults. --port=0 picks a free port. Every evaluation runs in the same process, so state and loaded namespaces persist between evaluations, as in the REPL.
The server implements the standard operations (eval, clone, close, describe, load-file, interrupt, completions, lookup, info, eldoc), so stock nREPL clients work unchanged. Two Phel operations back the REPL workflow:
| Operation | Parameters | Bind it to |
|---|---|---|
reload | optional all to reload every namespace | "reload changed namespaces" |
run-tests | ns, optional var | "run the test under the cursor" |
Language server (LSP)
For editors that use the Language Server Protocol, Phel ships an LSP server (version 3.17, JSON-RPC over stdio):
vendor/bin/phel lspIt provides hover, go-to-definition, find references, completion, document and workspace symbols, rename, formatting, and diagnostics. Completion also knows PHP interop:
- instance methods and properties after
(.and(.- - static methods and constants after
Class/ - class names in
(new ...)and\Fully\Qualifiedpositions - PHP functions after
php/
Hover shows the signature of PHP methods, functions, and classes, and signature help works inside (new ...) and method calls. The server infers the receiver's type from :tag metadata or a (new ...) expression or binding. When it cannot infer the type, it offers no completion instead of guessing.
Both servers are also listed in CLI commands.