How to Install KittoX

There are two ways to install Kitto^x into your Delphi environment:

Option 1: Setup Installer (recommended)

The setup installer provides the fastest way to get started. It includes the KIDEX visual IDE (Enterprise edition) and handles all compilation and configuration automatically.

Download

Download the latest setup from GitHub:

Download KittoXSetup.exe

What the setup does

Running the setup you can:

• Choose the installation folder
• Choose the module to install
• Install KIDE and acquire a Trial license

The setup automatically:

• Installs all Kitto^x source files, resources, templates, and examples
• Installs KIDEX — the visual IDE for designing Kitto^x applications

KIDEX trial license

KIDEX is part of the Enterprise Edition. The setup installs a trial version that works for 90 days. To request a trial license key, contact Ethea S.r.l. after installation, using the License Form:

After the trial period, KIDEX requires a commercial license. The Kitto^x framework itself (Core + Enterprise modules) remains fully functional without KIDEX.

After installation

Once installed, you can:

1. Open the KIDEX IDE to create a new project or explore the examples
2. Open one of the example projects directly in Delphi (see below)
3. Start developing your own application using UseKitto.pas and YAML metadata

Option 2: Git Clone (manual installation)

If you prefer to work directly with the source repository, clone from GitHub and compile manually.

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/EtheaDev/KittoX.git

Repository structure

KittoX/
  Source/                    # Framework source code
    EF/                      # Entity Framework layer
    ThirdParty/              # Third-party libraries
  Home/                      # System Home (shared resources, templates)
  Projects/                  # Delphi packages (D10_4, D11, D12, D13)
  Examples/
    HelloKitto/              # Simple example
    TasKitto/                # Activity tracking example
    KEmployee/               # Employee management example

Compile the packages

Open the group project for your Delphi version from Projects/D12/ (or D10_4, D11, D13):

1. Build runtime packages:

Package	Description
KittoXCore.dproj	Core framework (Apache 2.0)
KittoXEnterprise.dproj	Enterprise modules — Chart, Calendar, Map, Dashboard (AGPL-3.0 / Commercial)

Build both for Win32 and Win64 platforms in Release configuration.

2. Build and install design-time package:

Package	Description
KittoXIDE.dproj	IDE integration (property editors, component registration)

Build for Win32 only (IDE packages are always 32-bit for Delphi up to 12). Right-click and Install to register in the Delphi IDE.

Group project

The file Kitto.groupproj in the same folder contains all three packages. Open it to build everything at once.

Configure environment paths

Add the following paths to your Delphi Library Path (Tools → Options → Language → Delphi → Library → Library Path) for both Win32 and Win64:

<installdir>\Source
<installdir>\Source\EF
<installdir>\Source\ThirdParty

Alternatively, set the KITTOX environment variable to the installation folder and use:

$(KITTOX)\Source
$(KITTOX)\Source\EF
$(KITTOX)\Source\ThirdParty

Example projects

The example projects already have relative search paths configured, so they compile without modifying the environment. The library path is only needed for your own projects.

Compile and run an example

Each example has four deployment projects in its Projects/ directory:

Project	Mode
HelloKitto.dpr	Standalone (GUI / Windows Service)
HelloKittoDesktop.dpr	Desktop Embedded (WebView2)
HelloKittoISAPI.dpr	ISAPI DLL for IIS
mod_hellokitto.dpr	Apache module

To get started quickly:

1. Open Examples/HelloKitto/Projects/HelloKitto.dpr in Delphi
2. Set the target platform to Win64
3. Build and Run
4. The application starts an HTTP server on the port configured in Config.yaml (default 3621)
5. Open http://localhost:3621/hellokittox/ in a browser
6. Log in with the default credentials (see Config.yaml → Auth/.Defaults)

See the HelloKitto, TasKitto, and KEmployee pages for details on each example, and the Deployment guide for IIS and Apache setup.

Build examples from the command line

A build script is provided to compile all examples (or a selection) in all deployment modes without opening the Delphi IDE.

Run from the Examples/ directory:

cd Examples
build_Examples.cmd

The script will:

1. Ask for the Delphi BDS path (default: C:\BDS\Studio\37.0). It initializes the compiler environment using rsvars.bat from the BDS installation — no manual environment variables needed.

2. Ask which examples to build:

   • All (HelloKitto + TasKitto + KEmployee)
   • A single example by name

3. Ask which deployment modes to build:

   • All (Desktop, ISAPI, Apache, Embedded)
   • Or a single mode:

   Mode	Platform	Output
   Desktop (Standalone)	Win64	Home/{AppName}.exe
   ISAPI (IIS)	Win64	Home/{AppName}ISAPI.dll
   Apache Module	Win32	Home/mod_{appname}.dll
   Windows Embedded	Win64	Home/{AppName}Desktop.exe

4. Build each selected project using msbuild in Release mode, with separate log files per build (e.g. HelloKitto_Desktop.log, TasKitto_Apache.log).

5. Report results with a summary of successes and failures. Check the .log files in each Projects/ folder for detailed build output.

Apache module requires Win32

Apache modules must be compiled for the same bitness as the Apache server. Most Apache 2.4 installations on Windows are 32-bit, so the build script uses Win32 for Apache modules. If your Apache is 64-bit, change the platform in the script or compile manually.

Next steps

• Getting Started — create your first application
• Basic Concepts — YAML metadata, models, views
• Deployment — standalone, IIS, Apache, desktop embedded
• Kitto^x Enterprise — KIDEX IDE, charts, calendar, dashboard