Course overview

This course is targeted at developers experienced in other procedural or object-oriented programming languages.

  • Day 1: Rust foundations and the concept of ownership
  • Day 2: Type system and error handling
  • Day 3: Systems programming & concurrency
  • Transfer day: other languages to Rust

Each day is a mix of theory and exercises. day 1 and 2 feature exercises in a std environment (building cli applications on desktop). day 3 and transfer day feature no_std and building embedded applications on an ESP32C3 microcontroller.

This repository

Contains the course slides/script as an mdbook and solutions to the exercises in the solutions directory. Will be updated before and during the course.

Installation Instructions Day 1 and 2

Please ensure the following software is installed on the device you bring to the course.

If there are any questions or difficulties during the installation please don’t hesitate to contact the instructor (rolandbrand11@gmail.com).

Rust

Install Rust using rustup (Rust’s official installer)

  • Visit rust-lang.org and follow the installation instructions for your operating system.
  • Verify installation with: rustc --version and cargo --version

Git

Git for version control: git-scm.com

  • Make sure you can access it through the command line: git --version

Zed Editor

Download from zed.dev

During the course the trainer will use Zed - participants are recommended to use the same editor, but are free to choose any other editor or IDE. The trainer will not be able to provide setup or configuration support for other editors or IDEs during the course.

Create a Test Project

Create a new Rust project and build it:

cargo new hello-rust
cd hello-rust
cargo build

Run the Project

Execute the project to verify your Rust installation:

cargo run

You should see “Hello, world!” printed to your terminal.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter any issues:

Rust Installation Issues

  • On Unix-like systems, you might need to install build essentials: sudo apt install build-essential (Ubuntu/Debian)
  • On Windows, you might need to install Visual Studio C++ Build Tools

Cargo Issues

  • Try clearing the cargo cache: cargo clean
  • Update rust: rustup update

Cleanup

To remove the test project:

cd
rm -rf hello-rust

If you can complete all these steps successfully, your environment is ready for the first two days of the Rust course!

Installation Instructions Day 3 and 4 - ESP32-C3 Embedded Development

For Thursday, we will be using ESP32-C3 boards. Please install the following tooling in advance:

Required ESP32-C3 Tooling

1. Rust Source Code

This downloads the rust source code. Needed to build the std or core library, no pre-compiled provided:

rustup component add rust-src

2. ESP32-C3 Target Architecture

The toolchain for the ESP32-C3 (RISC-V architecture):

rustup target add riscv32imc-unknown-none-elf

3. cargo-espflash for Flashing

cargo-espflash is the recommended tool for flashing ESP32-C3 boards across all platforms.

Installation:

# Install cargo-espflash
cargo install cargo-espflash

4. probe-rs for Debugging (Optional - Linux/macOS)

probe-rs provides debugging capabilities and works best on Linux and macOS.

Installation (Optional):

# Install probe-rs (optional, primarily for debugging)
cargo install probe-rs --features cli

5. esp-generate for Project Scaffolding

Tool for creating no_std projects targeting ESP32 chips:

cargo install esp-generate

Verification Steps

Test ESP32-C3 Setup

  1. Connect your ESP32-C3 board via USB cable
  2. Generate a test project: 
    esp-generate --chip esp32c3 test-esp32c3
cd test-esp32c3
  3. Build the project: 
    cargo build --release
  4. Flash to the board: 
    cargo run --release

Zed Editor ESP32 Debugging Setup

If using Zed editor:

  1. Install probe-rs extension in Zed: https://zed.dev/extensions/probe-rs
  2. probe-rs integrates seamlessly with Zed for debugging ESP32-C3 projects

Platform-Specific Instructions

Windows

  • Use PowerShell or Command Prompt
  • Consider adding Windows Defender exclusions for Cargo directories
  • Ensure you have the latest USB drivers

macOS/Linux

  • Installation should work out of the box
  • Use Terminal for all commands
  • May need to add user to dialout group on Linux: sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER

Troubleshooting ESP32-C3 Setup

Common Issues and Solutions

Flashing Issues:

  • If cargo-espflash fails to detect the board, ensure the ESP32-C3 is connected via USB and the correct port is being used

Port Detection Issues:

  • On Windows: Check Device Manager for COM port assignments
  • On Linux: Ensure user is in dialout group (see below)
  • On macOS: Look for /dev/cu.usbserial-* or /dev/cu.usbmodem* devices

ESP32-C3 Chip Revision:

  • Most ESP32-C3 boards work with cargo-espflash regardless of revision
  • Check revision during flashing: Look for “Chip is ESP32-C3 (revision 3)” message

Permission Issues (Linux):

  • Add user to dialout group: sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER
  • Log out and back in for changes to take effect

Alternative Debugging Tools

For advanced debugging beyond cargo-espflash:

  • probe-rs: Best on Linux/macOS for hardware debugging
  • ESP-IDF monitor: Traditional ESP toolchain option
  • Serial monitor: Use any serial terminal for basic output monitoring

Resources

→ Regularly pull updates to the repo. There will also be additional setup instructions for days 3 and 4.