Go get and Go install

In the Go programming language, go get and go install are two different commands used for managing and fetching external packages or libraries, but they serve different purposes.

go get

  • go get is primarily used to download and install packages or libraries from remote repositories, such as those hosted on GitHub or other version control systems. It fetches the package's source code and installs it into your workspace, typically under your GOPATH/src directory.
    • It's often used to acquire third-party packages and their dependencies. For example, you can use go get to download a specific package like this: go get github.com/example/package.
    • It updates the packages in your workspace to the latest version, which might not be what you want in all cases, so it's often used with caution.

go install

-go install is used to compile and install a Go program or package that you've written into your GOPATH/bin directory. It compiles the code and places the resulting binary in the bin directory.
- It's commonly used when you want to build and install your own Go programs or packages into a location where you can easily run them.

In summary, go get is primarily used for fetching and managing third-party packages, while go install is used to build and install your own Go programs or packages. The key difference is in their use cases and where they place the resulting code or binary.