Archduino/archduino-guide.md

Archduino — TUI-Only Arch Linux Arduino Development Environment

A keyboard-driven, mouse-free Arch Linux setup for Arduino development built on Zellij + Neovim + Arduino CLI, themed in Gruvbox, targeting both WSL2 and native Arch.

---

Architecture Overview

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Zellij (multiplexer + workspace manager)       │
│ ┌─────────────────────┬───────────────────────┐ │
│ │  Neovim (LazyVim)   │  Serial Monitor       │ │
│ │  - clangd LSP       │  (arduino-cli monitor)│ │
│ │  - Arduino syntax   │                       │ │
│ │  - compile/upload   │                       │ │
│ │    keybinds         │                       │ │
│ ├─────────────────────┼───────────────────────┤ │
│ │  Terminal / Build   │  lazygit              │ │
│ │  output pane        │                       │ │
│ └─────────────────────┴───────────────────────┘ │
│  [zjstatus bar — board | port | project | git]  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Table of Contents

1. Base System
2. Shell — Zsh + Starship
3. Zellij
4. Neovim + LazyVim
5. Arduino CLI
6. Serial Monitor
7. Git + Lazygit
8. Project Scaffolding
9. Zellij Arduino Layout
10. Neovim Arduino Keybinds
11. WSL2-Specific Notes
12. Quick Reference Card

---

1. Base System

Native Arch

sudo pacman -Syu
sudo pacman -S base-devel git curl unzip wget ripgrep fd bat eza tree jq

WSL2 Arch

If you hit SSL issues (common behind corporate proxies):

sed -i 's|https://|http://|g' /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
pacman -Syu ca-certificates archlinux-keyring --noconfirm
sed -i 's|http://|https://|g' /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist

Create your user (if root-only)

pacman -S sudo
useradd -m -G wheel -s /bin/zsh myuser
passwd myuser
EDITOR=nano visudo   # uncomment: %wheel ALL=(ALL) ALL

Add to /etc/wsl.conf:

[user]
default=myuser

---

2. Shell — Zsh + Starship

Install Zsh

sudo pacman -S zsh
chsh -s /bin/zsh

Oh My Zsh

sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ohmyzsh/ohmyzsh/master/tools/install.sh)"

Zsh Plugins

git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-autosuggestions ${ZSH_CUSTOM:-~/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/plugins/zsh-autosuggestions
git clone https://github.com/zsh-users/zsh-syntax-highlighting ${ZSH_CUSTOM:-~/.oh-my-zsh/custom}/plugins/zsh-syntax-highlighting

Edit ~/.zshrc:

plugins=(git zsh-autosuggestions zsh-syntax-highlighting)

Starship Prompt

sudo pacman -S starship

Add to ~/.zshrc:

eval "$(starship init zsh)"

Create ~/.config/starship.toml:

palette = "gruvbox_dark"

format = """
$directory$git_branch$git_status$character"""

[directory]
style = "bold fg:bright-yellow"
truncation_length = 3

[git_branch]
style = "bold fg:bright-green"
format = " [$branch]($style) "

[git_status]
style = "bold fg:bright-red"

[character]
success_symbol = "[❯](bold fg:bright-green)"
error_symbol = "[❯](bold fg:bright-red)"

[palettes.gruvbox_dark]
bright-yellow = "#fabd2f"
bright-green = "#b8bb26"
bright-red = "#fb4934"
bright-blue = "#83a598"
bright-purple = "#d3869b"
bright-aqua = "#8ec07c"
bright-orange = "#fe8019"

---

3. Zellij

Install

sudo pacman -S zellij

Or latest binary:

curl -kL https://github.com/zellij-org/zellij/releases/latest/download/zellij-x86_64-unknown-linux-musl.tar.gz | tar xz -C /tmp
sudo mv /tmp/zellij /usr/local/bin/

Gruvbox Theme Config

Create ~/.config/zellij/config.kdl:

theme "gruvbox-dark"

default_layout "default"
default_mode "normal"
pane_frames false
simplified_ui true
mouse_mode false

keybinds {
    shared {
        bind "Alt h" { MoveFocusOrTab "Left"; }
        bind "Alt l" { MoveFocusOrTab "Right"; }
        bind "Alt j" { MoveFocus "Down"; }
        bind "Alt k" { MoveFocus "Up"; }
        bind "Alt n" { NewPane "Down"; }
        bind "Alt v" { NewPane "Right"; }
        bind "Alt f" { ToggleFloatingPanes; }
        bind "Alt t" { NewTab; }
    }
}

themes {
    gruvbox-dark {
        fg "#ebdbb2"
        bg "#282828"
        black "#1d2021"
        red "#cc241d"
        green "#98971a"
        yellow "#d79921"
        blue "#458588"
        magenta "#b16286"
        cyan "#689d6a"
        white "#a89984"
        orange "#d65d0e"
    }
}

Auto-start Zellij

Add to ~/.zshrc:

if [[ -z "$ZELLIJ" ]]; then
    zellij attach --create archduino
fi

---

4. Neovim + LazyVim

Install latest Neovim

curl -kLO https://github.com/neovim/neovim/releases/latest/download/nvim-linux-x86_64.tar.gz
sudo tar -xzf nvim-linux-x86_64.tar.gz -C /opt
sudo ln -sf /opt/nvim-linux-x86_64/bin/nvim /usr/local/bin/nvim
rm nvim-linux-x86_64.tar.gz

Install LazyVim

mv ~/.config/nvim{,.bak} 2>/dev/null
mv ~/.local/share/nvim{,.bak} 2>/dev/null
mv ~/.local/state/nvim{,.bak} 2>/dev/null
mv ~/.cache/nvim{,.bak} 2>/dev/null

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

LSP for Arduino (clangd)

sudo pacman -S clang

LazyVim Gruvbox + Arduino config

Create ~/.config/nvim/lua/plugins/gruvbox.lua:

return {
  {
    "ellisonleao/gruvbox.nvim",
    priority = 1000,
    config = function()
      require("gruvbox").setup({
        contrast = "hard",
      })
    end,
  },
  {
    "LazyVim/LazyVim",
    opts = {
      colorscheme = "gruvbox",
    },
  },
}

Create ~/.config/nvim/lua/plugins/arduino.lua:

return {
  -- Arduino filetype & syntax
  {
    "stevearc/vim-arduino",
    ft = { "arduino", "cpp", "c" },
    config = function()
      vim.g.arduino_use_cli = 1
      vim.g.arduino_cli_path = "arduino-cli"
    end,
  },
  -- Better C/C++ treesitter support
  {
    "nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter",
    opts = function(_, opts)
      vim.list_extend(opts.ensure_installed, { "c", "cpp", "arduino" })
    end,
  },
}

Create ~/.config/nvim/lsp/clangd.lua (native Neovim 0.11+ LSP config):

return {
  cmd = {
    "clangd",
    "--background-index",
    "--clang-tidy",
    "--header-insertion=iwyu",
    "--completion-style=detailed",
  },
  filetypes = { "c", "cpp", "objc", "objcpp", "cuda", "arduino" },
}

Enable the server (e.g. in init.lua or a plugin file):

vim.lsp.enable("clangd")

---

5. Arduino CLI

Install

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/arduino/arduino-cli/master/install.sh | BINDIR=/usr/local/bin sh

If SSL issues:

curl -kfsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/arduino/arduino-cli/master/install.sh | BINDIR=/usr/local/bin sh

Initialize & install cores

arduino-cli config init
arduino-cli core update-index

# AVR boards (Uno, Mega, Nano)
arduino-cli core install arduino:avr

# ESP32
arduino-cli config add board_manager.additional_urls \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/espressif/arduino-esp32/gh-pages/package_esp32_index.json
arduino-cli core update-index
arduino-cli core install esp32:esp32

# ESP8266
arduino-cli config add board_manager.additional_urls \
  https://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json
arduino-cli core update-index
arduino-cli core install esp8266:esp8266

Install common libraries

arduino-cli lib install "Servo"
arduino-cli lib install "WiFi"
arduino-cli lib install "ArduinoJson"
arduino-cli lib install "Adafruit Unified Sensor"
arduino-cli lib install "DHT sensor library"

---

6. Serial Monitor

TUI Serial Monitor — tio

sudo pacman -S tio

Usage:

tio /dev/ttyUSB0 -b 115200

tio auto-detects ports, supports timestamps, and is fully keyboard-driven. Quit with Ctrl+t q.

WSL2 serial passthrough

WSL2 doesn't natively see USB devices. You need usbipd-win on Windows:

# In Windows PowerShell (admin)
winget install usbipd

# List USB devices
usbipd list

# Bind and attach your Arduino
usbipd bind --busid <BUSID>
usbipd attach --wsl --busid <BUSID>

Then in WSL:

ls /dev/ttyUSB*   # or /dev/ttyACM*

Add user to dialout group

sudo usermod -aG uucp $USER   # Arch
sudo usermod -aG dialout $USER  # if needed

---

7. Git + Lazygit

sudo pacman -S git lazygit

Git config

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "you@example.com"
git config --global init.defaultBranch main

Lazygit Gruvbox

Create ~/.config/lazygit/config.yml:

gui:
  theme:
    activeBorderColor:
      - "#fabd2f"
      - bold
    inactiveBorderColor:
      - "#665c54"
    selectedLineBgColor:
      - "#3c3836"
    cherryPickedCommitFgColor:
      - "#b8bb26"
    defaultFgColor:
      - "#ebdbb2"

Neovim lazygit keybind

Already included in LazyVim — press <leader>gg to open lazygit in a floating terminal.

---

8. Project Scaffolding

Create the scaffolding script at ~/.local/bin/arduino-new:

#!/bin/bash
set -e

TEMPLATE_DIR="$HOME/.config/archduino/templates"

declare -A FQBN_MAP=(
  ["uno"]="arduino:avr:uno"
  ["mega"]="arduino:avr:mega"
  ["nano"]="arduino:avr:nano"
  ["esp32"]="esp32:esp32:esp32"
  ["esp32s3"]="esp32:esp32:esp32s3"
  ["esp8266"]="esp8266:esp8266:nodemcuv2"
)

usage() {
  echo "Usage: arduino-new <project-name> <board>"
  echo ""
  echo "Available boards:"
  for board in "${!FQBN_MAP[@]}"; do
    printf "  %-12s %s\n" "$board" "${FQBN_MAP[$board]}"
  done
  exit 1
}

[[ $# -lt 2 ]] && usage

PROJECT="$1"
BOARD="$2"
FQBN="${FQBN_MAP[$BOARD]}"

[[ -z "$FQBN" ]] && echo "Unknown board: $BOARD" && usage

mkdir -p "$PROJECT"
cd "$PROJECT"

# Copy board-specific template or default
if [[ -f "$TEMPLATE_DIR/$BOARD.ino" ]]; then
  cp "$TEMPLATE_DIR/$BOARD.ino" "$PROJECT.ino"
else
  cp "$TEMPLATE_DIR/default.ino" "$PROJECT.ino"
fi

# Project-local config
cat > sketch.yaml <<EOF
default_fqbn: $FQBN
default_port: auto
EOF

# clangd compile flags for LSP
cat > .clangd <<EOF
CompileFlags:
  Add:
    - -xc++
    - -std=c++17
    - -I$HOME/.arduino15/packages/arduino/hardware/avr/*/cores/arduino
    - -I$HOME/.arduino15/packages/arduino/hardware/avr/*/variants/standard
    - -I$HOME/.arduino15/packages/arduino/tools/avr-gcc/*/avr/include
EOF

# .gitignore
cat > .gitignore <<EOF
build/
.cache/
*.elf
*.hex
*.bin
EOF

git init -q
echo "✓ Created '$PROJECT' for $BOARD ($FQBN)"
echo "  cd $PROJECT && nvim $PROJECT.ino"

Templates

mkdir -p ~/.config/archduino/templates

Create ~/.config/archduino/templates/default.ino:

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);
  while (!Serial) { ; }
  Serial.println("Hello from Arduino!");
}

void loop() {
  // Your code here
}

Create ~/.config/archduino/templates/esp32.ino:

#include <WiFi.h>

const char* ssid = "YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "YOUR_PASS";

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);
  delay(1000);

  WiFi.begin(ssid, password);
  Serial.print("Connecting to WiFi");

  while (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) {
    delay(500);
    Serial.print(".");
  }

  Serial.println();
  Serial.print("Connected! IP: ");
  Serial.println(WiFi.localIP());
}

void loop() {
  // Your code here
  delay(1000);
}

Create ~/.config/archduino/templates/esp8266.ino:

#include <ESP8266WiFi.h>

const char* ssid = "YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "YOUR_PASS";

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);
  delay(1000);

  WiFi.begin(ssid, password);
  Serial.print("Connecting to WiFi");

  while (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) {
    delay(500);
    Serial.print(".");
  }

  Serial.println();
  Serial.print("Connected! IP: ");
  Serial.println(WiFi.localIP());
}

void loop() {
  // Your code here
  delay(1000);
}

Make it executable and on PATH:

chmod +x ~/.local/bin/arduino-new
# Ensure ~/.local/bin is in PATH (add to .zshrc if needed)
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

Usage

arduino-new blink-test uno
arduino-new wifi-scanner esp32

---

9. Zellij Arduino Layout

Create ~/.config/zellij/layouts/arduino.kdl:

layout {
    tab name="code" focus=true {
        pane split_direction="vertical" {
            pane size="65%" {
                command "nvim"
                args "."
            }
            pane split_direction="horizontal" {
                pane size="60%" name="terminal"
                pane size="40%" name="serial" {
                    command "bash"
                    args "-c" "echo 'Run: tio /dev/ttyUSB0 -b 115200'"
                }
            }
        }
    }
    tab name="git" {
        pane {
            command "lazygit"
        }
    }
    tab name="monitor" {
        pane {
            command "bash"
            args "-c" "echo 'Board monitor — run: arduino-cli monitor -p /dev/ttyUSB0 -c baudrate=115200'"
        }
    }
}

Launch with:

zellij --layout arduino

Or add a shell alias in ~/.zshrc:

alias adev="zellij --layout arduino"

---

10. Neovim Arduino Keybinds

Create ~/.config/nvim/lua/plugins/arduino-keys.lua:

return {
  {
    "folke/which-key.nvim",
    opts = function(_, opts)
      opts.spec = opts.spec or {}
      table.insert(opts.spec, {
        { "<leader>a", group = "Arduino", icon = "⚡" },
      })
    end,
  },
  {
    "stevearc/vim-arduino",
    keys = {
      { "<leader>ac", "<cmd>ArduinoChooseBoard<cr>", desc = "Choose Board" },
      { "<leader>ap", "<cmd>ArduinoChoosePort<cr>", desc = "Choose Port" },
      { "<leader>av", "<cmd>ArduinoVerify<cr>", desc = "Verify (compile)" },
      { "<leader>au", "<cmd>ArduinoUpload<cr>", desc = "Upload" },
      { "<leader>as", "<cmd>ArduinoSerial<cr>", desc = "Serial Monitor" },
      { "<leader>ai", "<cmd>ArduinoInfo<cr>", desc = "Board Info" },
    },
  },
}

Quick reference:

• <leader>av — compile/verify sketch
• <leader>au — upload to board
• <leader>ac — pick board
• <leader>ap — pick port
• <leader>as — open serial monitor
• <leader>gg — lazygit (built into LazyVim)

---

11. WSL2-Specific Notes

USB passthrough (required for uploading)

Install on Windows:

winget install usbipd

Create a helper script at ~/.local/bin/arduino-usb:

#!/bin/bash
# Quick attach Arduino USB in WSL2
# Run the Windows-side command via PowerShell interop
powershell.exe -Command "usbipd list"
echo ""
echo "To attach, run in Windows PowerShell:"
echo "  usbipd attach --wsl --busid <BUSID>"

Git SSL workaround (corporate proxies)

git config --global http.sslVerify false
echo 'insecure' >> ~/.curlrc

Performance tip

Add to /etc/wsl.conf:

[interop]
appendWindowsPath = false

[network]
generateResolvConf = true

Disabling appendWindowsPath significantly speeds up shell startup.

---

12. Quick Reference Card

Action	Keybind / Command
New project	arduino-new <name> <board>
Open dev workspace	adev
Compile	<leader>av
Upload	<leader>au
Choose board	<leader>ac
Choose port	<leader>ap
Serial monitor	<leader>as or tio
Lazygit	<leader>gg
New Zellij pane ↓	Alt+n
New Zellij pane →	Alt+v
Navigate panes	Alt+h/j/k/l
Floating pane	Alt+f
New tab	Alt+t