binary-codec-derive Usage Guide

binary-codec-derive provides macros for bit-level serialization and deserialization of Rust structs and enums using the binary-codec crate. This guide explains usage, attributes, and how bits are packed into bytes.

Getting Started
Bit Packing
Supported Attributes
Attribute Priority & Inheritance
Enum Example
Dynamic Length Example
Option and Toggled Example
Arrays & Vecs
Advanced Use Cases
ZigZag Encoding
Error Handling
Full Example

Getting Started

Add to your Cargo.toml:

[dependencies]
binary-codec = "0.1.0"

Import macros:

use binary_codec::{ToBytes, FromBytes};

Example: Bit Packing

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct Example {
    #[bits = 3]
    a: u8,           // 3 bits
    #[bits = 5]
    b: i8,           // 5 bits, zigzag encoded
    flag: bool,      // 1 bit
}

let config = SerializationConfig::default();
let value = Example { a: 5, b: -7, flag: true };
let bytes = value.to_bytes(&config).unwrap();
let decoded = Example::from_bytes(&bytes, &config).unwrap();
assert_eq!(value, decoded);

How Bits Are Packed

Fields are packed left-to-right, lowest bits first. When the total bits exceed 8, the next byte is used. For the above struct:

a (3 bits): 0b101
b (5 bits, zigzag): -7 → zigzag encode → 13 → 0b01101
flag (1 bit): 1

Packing order:

Byte 0
a (3)
101

Byte 1
flag (1)
1

If the sum of field bits in a struct is not a multiple of 8, the last byte is padded with zeros.

If another value is put in byte 1 and it is bigger than 7 bits, it will be but in a new byte and the serializer will 'waste' 7 bits. So the order of properties in your struct is very important!

Multi-Byte Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct MultiByte {
    #[bits = 4]
    a: u8, // 4 bits
    #[bits = 4]
    b: u8, // 4 bits
    #[bits = 6]
    c: u8, // 6 bits
    #[bits = 2]
    d: u8, // 2 bits
}

// Packing:
// a: 0b1010 (4 bits)
// b: 0b1100 (4 bits)
// c: 0b111100 (6 bits)
// d: 0b11 (2 bits)

// Byte 0: a (4) | b (4) => 0b11001010
// Byte 1: c (6) | d (2) => 0b11111100

Supported Attributes

#[bits = N]: Use N bits for this integer field (1 ≤ N ≤ 7 for u8/i8).
#[dynamic]: Use dynamic integer encoding (see dyn_int.rs in binary-codec).
#[dynamic_len]: Prefix Vec, String, or object with a dynamic length field (using dynamic integer encoding)
#[length_determined_by = "field"]: Use another field to determine the length of a Vec or String. You can also use field.0 if the field is an array or Vec.
#[toggled_by = "field"]: Option is present only if the referenced field is true (should be a bool). You can also use field.0 if the field is an array or Vec.
#[variant_by = "field"]: For enums, select variant by another field's value. You can also use field.0 if the field is an array or Vec.
#[no_disc_prefix]: For enums, do not write a discriminant prefix. This is needed if you use the variant_by.

Attribute Priority & Inheritance

Attributes are processed in the following order of priority:

#[bits = N] (highest priority for integer fields)
#[dynamic] (overrides bits for dynamic encoding)
#[dynamic_len] (applies to Vec/array element count, or to the length of a nested element)
#[length_determined_by = "field"] (overrides dynamic_len if present)
#[toggled_by = "field"] (controls Option presence)
#[variant_by = "field"] (for enums)
#[no_disc_prefix] (for enums)

Inheritance Rules

In Option<T>, all attributes inherit to the inner type.
In Vec<T> or [T; N], only bits, dynamic, and dynamic_len can inherit, and dynamic_len requires a depth argument for nested Vecs.

Attribute Precedence Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes)]
struct Example {
    #[bits = 3]
    a: u8,           // 3 bits

    #[dynamic]
    b: u8,           // dynamic encoding, bits ignored

    #[dynamic_len]
    data: Vec<u8>,   // dynamic length prefix for element count

    #[length_determined_by = "a"]
    fixed_data: Vec<u8>, // length determined by field 'a'
}

Enum Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
enum MyEnum {
    A,
    B(u8),
    C { x: i32 },
}
// Discriminant (variant index) is written as the first byte unless #[no_disc_prefix] is used.
// You can use #[variant_by = "field"] to select the variant based on another field's value.

Enum with Variant By Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct Container {
    kind: u8,
    #[variant_by = "kind"]
    value: MyEnum,
}

Dynamic Length Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct WithVec {
    #[dynamic_len]
    data: Vec<u8>,
}
// The length of `data` is encoded as a dynamic integer before the actual bytes.

Dynamic Length with Depth Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct DeepVec {
    #[dynamic_len(3)]
    data: Vec<Vec<String>>,
}
// The outer Vec's length is encoded as a dynamic integer, then each inner Vec's length is also encoded dynamically. The string length is also encoded dynamically.
// Binary structure will look like this:
// [ elem count vec, elem count first vec, string length,..., elem count second vec, string length etc ]

Option and Toggled Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct WithOption {
    flag: bool,
    #[toggled_by = "flag"]
    maybe: Option<u8>,
}
// If flag is false, maybe is not deserialized.

Option with Nested Attributes

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct NestedOption {
    flag: bool,

    #[toggled_by = "flag"]
    #[bits = 4]
    maybe: Option<u8>, // If flag is true, maybe is present and uses 4 bits
}

Arrays

Arrays are supported and serialized element by element. You can use #[bits = N] on array elements for compact encoding. If you are serializing array of a dynamic length type, you need to put #[dynamic_len] on top.

Array Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct ArrayExample {
    #[bits = 2]
    arr: [u8; 4], // Each element uses 2 bits
}

Vecs

Vecs work like arrays, BUT the #[dynamic_len] attribute will apply to the ELEMENT COUNT and not to the individual structs like arrays do. If you want that, use #[dynamic_len(2)] so it will be applied to the first level of children. If you for instance have Vec<Vec<String>> you need #[dynamic_len(3)]. So for the dynamic_len attribute, inheritance level needs to be specified. Other attributes then dynamic, dynamic_len and bits DO NOT inherit in a Vec or array. In an Option however, all attributes inherit without decreasing the inheritance level.

Vec Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct VecExample {
    #[dynamic_len]
    values: Vec<u16>, // Length prefix, then each value as u16
}

Nested Vec Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct NestedVecExample {
    #[dynamic_len(2)]
    values: Vec<Vec<u8>>,
}

Advanced Use Cases

Combining Attributes

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct Complex {
    #[bits = 3]
    a: u8,

    #[dynamic]
    b: u32,

    #[dynamic_len]
    data: Vec<u8>,

    #[length_determined_by = "a"]
    fixed_data: Vec<u8>,

    #[toggled_by = "flag"]
    flag: bool,

    #[toggled_by = "flag"]
    maybe: Option<u8>,
}

Nested Option and Vec (error)

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct Deep {
    #[dynamic_len(2)]
    values: Vec<Option<Vec<u8>>>,
    // !!! THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE !!!
    // Because we need to know if the option is present or not
}

// Instead, wrap in a struct:
struct OptionalVec {
    is_present: bool,

    #[dynamic_len]
    #[toggled_by = "is_present"]
    data: Option<Vec<u8>>
}

ZigZag Encoding

Signed integers with #[bits = N] or #[dynamic] use zigzag encoding for efficient bit packing:

Positive: n → n << 1
Negative: n → (n << 1) ^ (-1)

Example: -3 → zigzag encode → 5 → 0b101

Error Handling

All serialization and deserialization methods return a Result<T, SerializationError> or Result<T, DeserializationError>. Errors include out-of-bounds values, unexpected lengths, and unknown enum discriminants.

Full Example

#[derive(ToBytes, FromBytes, Debug, PartialEq)]
struct Demo {
    #[bits = 3]
    a: u8,

    #[bits = 5]
    b: i8,

    flag: bool,
    
    #[dynamic_len]
    data: Vec<u8>,
}

let config = SerializationConfig::default();
let demo = Demo { a: 7, b: -4, flag: true, data: vec![1,2,3] };
let bytes = demo.to_bytes(&config).unwrap();
let decoded = Demo::from_bytes(&bytes, &config).unwrap();
assert_eq!(demo, decoded);

binary-codec-derive 0.1.3