Rust CLI Libraries You Should Be Using

Are you tired of writing the same boilerplate code every time you create a new command-line interface (CLI) tool? Do you want to make your CLI tools more efficient and user-friendly? If so, then you should be using Rust CLI libraries!

Rust is a modern programming language that has gained popularity in recent years due to its safety, speed, and concurrency features. It is also an excellent choice for building CLI tools because of its strong type system, memory safety, and zero-cost abstractions. In this article, we will explore some of the best Rust CLI libraries that you should be using to build your CLI tools.

Clap

Clap is a powerful and easy-to-use command-line argument parser for Rust. It provides a simple and intuitive syntax for defining command-line arguments and options, and it generates help messages and usage information automatically. Clap also supports subcommands, which allow you to create complex CLI tools with multiple commands.

use clap::{Arg, App};

let matches = App::new("MyApp")
                .version("1.0")
                .author("John Doe <john.doe@example.com>")
                .about("My awesome CLI tool")
                .arg(Arg::with_name("input")
                    .short("i")
                    .long("input")
                    .value_name("FILE")
                    .help("Sets the input file to use")
                    .takes_value(true))
                .arg(Arg::with_name("output")
                    .short("o")
                    .long("output")
                    .value_name("FILE")
                    .help("Sets the output file to use")
                    .takes_value(true))
                .get_matches();

With Clap, you can easily define command-line arguments and options, and access them in your code using the matches object. Clap also provides a lot of customization options, such as custom help messages, validators, and default values.

StructOpt

StructOpt is a Rust library that builds on top of Clap to provide a more concise and ergonomic syntax for defining CLI tools. It uses Rust's derive macro to generate argument parsing code automatically, which makes it easy to define CLI tools with complex data structures.

use structopt::StructOpt;

#[derive(StructOpt)]
struct Cli {
    #[structopt(short = "i", long = "input", help = "Sets the input file to use")]
    input: String,
    #[structopt(short = "o", long = "output", help = "Sets the output file to use")]
    output: String,
}

let args = Cli::from_args();

With StructOpt, you can define your CLI tool as a Rust struct, and annotate its fields with attributes to specify the command-line arguments and options. StructOpt also supports subcommands, custom help messages, and default values.

Termion

Termion is a Rust library that provides low-level terminal handling and ANSI escape code manipulation. It allows you to create interactive CLI tools with advanced terminal features, such as colors, styles, cursor movement, and keyboard input.

use std::io::{Write, stdout};
use termion::{color, style};

fn main() {
    let mut stdout = stdout();

    write!(stdout, "{}Hello, {}world!{}", color::Fg(color::Red), style::Bold, style::Reset).unwrap();
}

With Termion, you can control the terminal output and input using simple and intuitive Rust code. Termion also provides a lot of convenience functions for common terminal operations, such as clearing the screen, moving the cursor, and reading keyboard input.

Tui

Tui is a Rust library that builds on top of Termion to provide a high-level terminal user interface (TUI) framework. It allows you to create interactive CLI tools with rich graphical user interfaces, such as menus, dialogs, tables, and charts.

use tui::widgets::{Block, Borders, List, ListItem};
use tui::layout::{Layout, Constraint, Direction};
use tui::Terminal;
use tui::backend::TermionBackend;
use termion::raw::IntoRawMode;

fn main() {
    let items = ["Item 1", "Item 2", "Item 3", "Item 4", "Item 5"]
        .iter()
        .map(|i| ListItem::new(*i))
        .collect::<Vec<_>>();

    let backend = TermionBackend::new().unwrap();
    let mut terminal = Terminal::new(backend).unwrap();

    terminal.draw(|f| {
        let chunks = Layout::default()
            .direction(Direction::Vertical)
            .margin(1)
            .constraints([Constraint::Percentage(100)].as_ref())
            .split(f.size());

        let block = Block::default()
            .title("List")
            .borders(Borders::ALL);

        f.render_widget(block, chunks[0]);
        let list = List::new(items)
            .block(block)
            .start_corner(tui::layout::Corner::TopLeft);

        f.render_widget(list, chunks[0]);
    }).unwrap();
}

With Tui, you can create complex TUIs using a declarative and composable API. Tui also provides a lot of customization options, such as themes, styles, and event handling.

Rustyline

Rustyline is a Rust library that provides a readline-like interface for CLI tools. It allows you to create interactive CLI tools with advanced line editing and history features, such as tab completion, syntax highlighting, and undo/redo.

use rustyline::Editor;

fn main() {
    let mut editor = Editor::<()>::new();

    loop {
        let readline = editor.readline("> ");
        match readline {
            Ok(line) => {
                editor.add_history_entry(line.as_str());
                println!("You typed: {}", line);
            },
            Err(_) => break,
        }
    }
}

With Rustyline, you can easily add advanced line editing and history features to your CLI tools using a simple and intuitive Rust API. Rustyline also supports custom completers, key bindings, and configuration options.

Conclusion

In this article, we have explored some of the best Rust CLI libraries that you should be using to build your CLI tools. Clap and StructOpt provide powerful and easy-to-use argument parsing, while Termion and Tui allow you to create interactive and graphical user interfaces. Rustyline provides advanced line editing and history features for interactive CLI tools.

By using these Rust CLI libraries, you can make your CLI tools more efficient, user-friendly, and professional-looking. Rust's safety, speed, and concurrency features also make it an excellent choice for building CLI tools that are reliable and scalable. So, what are you waiting for? Start using Rust CLI libraries today and take your CLI tools to the next level!

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