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Installing FVM for Flutter and Setting the Default Environment on macOS, Windows, and Linux

Introduction

Flutter Version Management (FVM) is a simple tool to manage Flutter SDK versions per project. It allows you to install and manage multiple versions of the Flutter SDK, making it easier to switch between different projects that require different versions. This guide will walk you through the steps to install FVM and set the default Flutter environment on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

Prerequisites

• Flutter SDK: Ensure that you have Flutter installed on your system.

• Dart SDK: FVM requires Dart. If you have Flutter installed, Dart comes bundled with it.

• Command-Line Tools: Basic knowledge of using the terminal or command prompt.

Installation on macOS

Method 1: Using Homebrew (Recommended)

Step 1: Install Homebrew (if not already installed)

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Step 2: Install FVM

brew tap leoafarias/fvm

brew install fvm

Method 2: Using Dart Pub

Step 1: Activate FVM

dart pub global activate fvm

Step 2: Add FVM to PATH

Add the following line to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, or ~/.bash_profile):

export PATH="$PATH":"$HOME/.pub-cache/bin"

Then, reload your shell:

source ~/.zshrc

Installation on Windows

Method 1: Using Chocolatey (Recommended)

Step 1: Install Chocolatey (if not already installed)

Run the following command in an elevated Command Prompt or PowerShell:

Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; `

[System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072; `

iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

Step 2: Install FVM

choco install fvm

Method 2: Using Dart Pub

Step 1: Activate FVM

dart pub global activate fvm

Step 2: Add FVM to PATH

Add the following path to your system environment variables:

%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Pub\Cache\bin

Installation on Linux

Method 1: Using APT (For Debian/Ubuntu)

Step 1: Add the FVM APT Repository

echo "deb [trusted=yes] https://apt.fvm.app stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/fvm.list

Step 2: Update and Install FVM

sudo apt update

sudo apt install fvm

Method 2: Using Snap

Step 1: Install FVM

sudo snap install fvm

Method 3: Using Dart Pub

Step 1: Activate FVM

dart pub global activate fvm

Step 2: Add FVM to PATH

Add the following line to your shell profile (~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc):

export PATH="$PATH":"$HOME/.pub-cache/bin"

Then, reload your shell:

source ~/.bashrc

Setting the Default Flutter Version

After installing FVM, you can manage Flutter SDK versions and set a default version.

Step 1: List Available Flutter Versions

fvm releases

Step 2: Install a Specific Flutter Version

Replace stable with the desired version (e.g., 3.3.10).

fvm install stable

Step 3: Set the Global Flutter Version

fvm global stable

Step 4: Verify the Default Flutter Version

flutter --version

You should see that Flutter is now using the version you set globally with FVM.

Note: Ensure that the Flutter command is pointing to FVM. If not, you may need to adjust your PATH or use the FVM Flutter wrapper.

Optional: Use FVM Flutter Wrapper

To ensure you’re always using the FVM-managed Flutter, you can alias the Flutter command.

On macOS and Linux:

Add to your shell profile:

alias flutter="fvm flutter"

Then, reload your shell:

source ~/.bashrc

On Windows:

Use the following command in PowerShell:

function flutter { fvm flutter $args }

To make it permanent, add the function to your PowerShell profile script.

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