Bazel: Can someone elaborate on the instructions to install zsh completion?

[vmrob]

I'm looking at the instructions for how to install zsh completion here and am left a little confused about what to do. I'm only a casual user of ZSH, so I think I'm missing something fundamental.

Getting zsh completion

Bazel also comes with a zsh completion script. To install it:

Add this script to a directory on your $fpath:

fpath[1,0]=~/.zsh/completion/
mkdir -p ~/.zsh/completion/
cp scripts/zsh_completion/_bazel ~/.zsh/completion

You may have to call rm -f ~/.zcompdump; compinit the first time to make it work.

Optionally, add the following to your .zshrc.

# This way the completion script does not have to parse Bazel's options
# repeatedly.  The directory in cache-path must be created manually.
zstyle ':completion:*' use-cache on
zstyle ':completion:*' cache-path ~/.zsh/cache

The second step is very clear, but the first is confusing to me.

My $fpath includes a whole list of directories. So should I just pick a directory and write a file with the contents of that first script? Does it matter what I name it? Is there an existing convention I should be following? I'm reviewing the docs for zsh functions at http://zsh.sourceforge.net/Doc/Release/Functions.html, but I'm still unsure of how to proceed.

[laszlocsomor]

I know nothing about zsh.

@schroederc : I believe you added the zsh completion script to Bazel in commit https://github.com/bazelbuild/bazel/commit/6b2766dd0, so I'm hoping you can help.
@damienmg : you approved Cody's change, you may know about zsh.

[dongzhuoyao]

also confused by this sentence

[schroederc]

The _bazel file just needs to be in one of the directories listed in your fpath. The installation example shows how add a directory to your fpath and move the _bazel file into it, but if you already have a directory in your fpath that you prefer, you can move _bazel there instead.

It doesn't matter what the name of the directory is at all ($HOME/.zsh/completion/ is just commonly used). The _bazel filename only matters because that is what the completion function is named (i.e. https://github.com/bazelbuild/bazel/blob/64d9a4d6dcd720a3b7a60ff550a17a7707dd41d0/scripts/zsh_completion/_bazel#L247). Otherwise, it's only a convention to name the completion file/function after the command it completes with a leading underscore. When compinit is run, zsh will look through all files in all of the fpath directories and look for #compdef lines at the start of each to register completion functions.

[vmrob]

Oh, I see. So the documentation was written from the perspective of that file and was copy/pasted/generated into documentation here: https://docs.bazel.build/versions/master/install.html#zsh

It looks like there may be a need to reword it.

[ymd-ponyai]

The document disappeared. Is zsh auto completion not supported anymore?

[laszlocsomor]

Looking at the history of install.md, the instructions were there at 3e0c545404be6bce908d035044a5ff0ee41cc472, but not anymore at 70e84f8926bd2cc38fea9e74af292d19038607b8.

Let me see if they are still up-to-date and put them back.

[jackwish]

FYI: alternatively, you guys may try this https://github.com/jackwish/bazel which is to make the process easier.

[keith]

on macOS the zsh completions are installed automatically if you install via homebrew