Hexagonal Architecgture Configuration Service

A flexible, type-safe configuration management library for Rust applications, built with hexagonal architecture principles.

Features

• Multiple Configuration Sources: Environment variables, YAML files, command-line arguments, etcd, and Redis
• Type Safety: Automatic type conversions with comprehensive error handling
• Priority-Based Precedence: CLI arguments override environment variables, which override configuration files
• Dynamic Reloading: Watch configuration files, etcd, and Redis for changes and reload automatically
• Hexagonal Architecture: Clean separation of concerns with domain, ports, and adapters
• Extensible: Easy to implement custom configuration sources via traits
• Async Support: Built-in support for async remote sources (etcd, Redis)

Quick Start

Add this to your Cargo.toml:

[dependencies]
configuration = "0.7.0"

Basic Usage

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    // Create a configuration service with environment variables
    let service = DefaultConfigService::builder()
        .with_env_vars()
        .build()?;

    // Get a configuration value (convenience method with string slice)
    let app_name = service.get_str("app.name")?;
    println!("Application name: {}", app_name.as_str());

    // Or use ConfigKey explicitly if preferred
    let app_name = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("app.name"))?;
    println!("Application name: {}", app_name.as_str());

    // Get with type conversion
    let port = service.get_str("app.port")?;
    let port_number: i32 = port.as_i32("app.port")?;

    // Use default values for optional configuration (convenience method)
    let log_level = service.get_or_default_str("log.level", "info");

    // Check if a key exists (convenience method)
    if service.has_str("app.debug") {
        println!("Debug mode is configured");
    }

    Ok(())
}

Feature Flags

The crate uses feature flags to enable optional functionality:

Feature	Description	Default
yaml	YAML file support via serde_yaml	✅
env	Environment variable support	✅
cli	Command-line argument support	✅
reload	Dynamic reloading with file watching	❌
etcd	etcd remote configuration support	❌
redis	Redis remote configuration support	❌
remote	All remote sources (etcd + redis)	❌
full	All features	❌

Custom Feature Configuration

[dependencies]
configuration = { version = "0.7.0", default-features = false, features = ["yaml", "env"] }

Architecture

This crate follows hexagonal architecture principles:

┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                     Application                   │
│                                                   │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │                 Domain Layer                │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  │  • ConfigKey, ConfigValue (core types)      │  │
│  │  • ConfigurationService (business logic)    │  │
│  │  • ConfigError (error types)                │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
│                         │                         │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │                 Ports Layer                 │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  │  • ConfigSource trait (source interface)    │  │
│  │  • ConfigWatcher trait (watcher interface)  │  │
│  │  • ConfigParser trait (parser interface)    │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
│                         │                         │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │                Adapters Layer               │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  │  • YamlFileAdapter                          │  │
│  │  • EnvVarAdapter                            │  │
│  │  • CommandLineAdapter                       │  │
│  │  • EtcdAdapter                              │  │
│  │  • RedisAdapter                             │  │
│  │  • FileWatcher, EtcdWatcher, RedisWatcher   │  │
│  │                                             │  │
│  └─────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

String Convenience Methods

For more ergonomic usage, the crate provides _str variants of common methods that accept string slices directly:

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = DefaultConfigService::builder()
        .with_env_vars()
        .build()?;

    // Use string slices directly without creating ConfigKey
    let value = service.get_str("app.name")?;              // Instead of get(&ConfigKey::from("app.name"))
    let value = service.get_or_default_str("log.level", "info");  // Instead of get_or_default(&ConfigKey::from(...), ...)
    let exists = service.has_str("app.debug");             // Instead of has(&ConfigKey::from("app.debug"))

    // Also available for ConfigSource trait
    let adapter = EnvVarAdapter::new();
    let value = adapter.get_str("database.host")?;        // Instead of get(&ConfigKey::from("database.host"))

    Ok(())
}

Both approaches work - use whichever feels more natural for your code style!

Examples

Multiple Configuration Sources

Combine multiple sources with automatic precedence handling:

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
        .with_yaml_file("/etc/myapp/config.yaml")?
        .with_env_vars()
        .with_cli_args(std::env::args().collect())
        .build()?;

    // CLI args (priority 3) override env vars (priority 2),
    // which override YAML files (priority 1)
    let value = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("database.host"))?;

    Ok(())
}

Dynamic Configuration Reloading

Watch configuration files for changes:

use configuration::prelude::*;
use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex};

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = Arc::new(Mutex::new(
        ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
            .with_yaml_file("/etc/myapp/config.yaml")?
            .build()?
    ));

    let mut watcher = FileWatcher::new(
        "/etc/myapp/config.yaml",
        None // Use default debounce delay
    )?;

    let service_clone = Arc::clone(&service);
    watcher.watch(Arc::new(move |_key| {
        println!("Configuration changed, reloading...");
        if let Ok(mut svc) = service_clone.lock() {
            let _ = svc.reload();
        }
    }))?;

    // Application continues running with live config updates

    Ok(())
}

Type Conversions

Automatic type conversion with error handling:

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = DefaultConfigService::builder()
        .with_env_vars()
        .build()?;

    // String value (no conversion)
    let name = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("app.name"))?;
    println!("Name: {}", name.as_str());

    // Integer conversion
    let port = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("app.port"))?;
    let port_i32: i32 = port.as_i32("app.port")?;
    let port_u16: u64 = port.as_u64("app.port")?;

    // Boolean conversion
    let debug = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("app.debug"))?;
    let debug_mode: bool = debug.as_bool("app.debug")?;

    // Float conversion
    let timeout = service.get(&ConfigKey::from("api.timeout"))?;
    let timeout_secs: f64 = timeout.as_f64("api.timeout")?;

    Ok(())
}

Environment Variable Prefix Filtering

Filter environment variables by prefix:

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    // Only read environment variables starting with "MYAPP_"
    // MYAPP_DATABASE_HOST becomes "database.host"
    let service = ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
        .with_env_prefix("MYAPP_")
        .build()?;

    Ok(())
}

Remote Configuration (etcd)

use configuration::prelude::*;

#[tokio::main]
async fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
        .with_etcd(vec!["localhost:2379"], Some("myapp/")).await?
        .build()?;

    // Configuration is now loaded from etcd
    Ok(())
}

Remote Configuration (Redis)

use configuration::prelude::*;

#[tokio::main]
async fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
        .with_redis(
            "redis://localhost:6379",
            "myapp:",
            RedisStorageMode::StringKeys
        ).await?
        .build()?;

    // Configuration is now loaded from Redis
    Ok(())
}

Watching Remote Configuration Changes

etcd Watcher

Watch for configuration changes in etcd using its native watch API:

use configuration::prelude::*;
use configuration::adapters::EtcdWatcher;
use configuration::ports::ConfigWatcher;
use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex};

#[tokio::main]
async fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = Arc::new(Mutex::new(
        ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
            .with_etcd(vec!["localhost:2379"], Some("myapp/")).await?
            .build()?
    ));

    let mut watcher = EtcdWatcher::new(
        vec!["localhost:2379"],
        Some("myapp/")
    ).await?;

    let service_clone = Arc::clone(&service);
    watcher.watch(Arc::new(move |key| {
        println!("Configuration changed in etcd: {}", key);
        if let Ok(mut svc) = service_clone.lock() {
            let _ = svc.reload();
        }
    }))?;

    // Application continues running with live config updates from etcd

    Ok(())
}

Redis Watcher

Watch for configuration changes in Redis using keyspace notifications:

use configuration::prelude::*;
use configuration::adapters::RedisWatcher;
use configuration::ports::ConfigWatcher;
use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex};

fn main() -> Result<()> {
    let service = Arc::new(Mutex::new(
        ConfigurationServiceBuilder::new()
            .with_redis(
                "redis://localhost:6379",
                "myapp:",
                RedisStorageMode::StringKeys
            ).await?
            .build()?
    ));

    let mut watcher = RedisWatcher::new(
        "redis://localhost:6379",
        "myapp:"
    )?;

    // Try to enable keyspace notifications (requires CONFIG permission)
    let _ = watcher.try_enable_keyspace_notifications();

    let service_clone = Arc::clone(&service);
    watcher.watch(Arc::new(move |key| {
        println!("Configuration changed in Redis: {}", key);
        if let Ok(mut svc) = service_clone.lock() {
            let _ = svc.reload();
        }
    }))?;

    // Application continues running with live config updates from Redis

    Ok(())
}

Note: Redis keyspace notifications must be enabled on the Redis server:

# Via redis-cli
CONFIG SET notify-keyspace-events KEA

# Or in redis.conf
notify-keyspace-events KEA

Custom Configuration Sources

Implement the ConfigSource trait to create custom sources:

use configuration::ports::ConfigSource;
use configuration::domain::{ConfigKey, ConfigValue, Result};

struct MyCustomSource;

impl ConfigSource for MyCustomSource {
    fn name(&self) -> &str {
        "my-custom-source"
    }

    fn priority(&self) -> u8 {
        1 // Lower than env vars but same as files
    }

    fn get(&self, key: &ConfigKey) -> Result<Option<ConfigValue>> {
        // Your custom logic here
        Ok(None)
    }

    fn all_keys(&self) -> Result<Vec<ConfigKey>> {
        Ok(vec![])
    }

    fn reload(&mut self) -> Result<()> {
        // Reload logic if applicable
        Ok(())
    }
}

Priority System

Configuration sources have priorities that determine precedence:

Priority	Source	Description
3	CLI Arguments	Highest priority, overrides all others
2	Environment Variables	Overrides files and remote sources
1	Files & Remote	YAML, etcd, Redis - lowest priority

When multiple sources provide the same key, the value from the highest priority source is used.

Error Handling

The crate provides comprehensive error types via thiserror:

use configuration::prelude::*;

fn load_config() -> Result<()> {
    let service = DefaultConfigService::builder()
        .with_yaml_file("/etc/myapp/config.yaml")?
        .build()?;

    match service.get(&ConfigKey::from("database.host")) {
        Ok(value) => println!("Host: {}", value.as_str()),
        Err(ConfigError::ConfigKeyNotFound { key }) => {
            eprintln!("Missing required configuration: {}", key);
        }
        Err(e) => eprintln!("Configuration error: {}", e),
    }

    Ok(())
}

Running Examples

The crate includes several examples:

# Basic usage with environment variables
export APP_NAME="MyApp"
export APP_PORT="8080"
cargo run --example basic_usage --features env

# String convenience methods
export APP_NAME="MyApp"
export APP_PORT="8080"
cargo run --example string_convenience --features env

# Multiple sources with precedence
cargo run --example multi_source --features yaml,env,cli -- --app.name=CliApp

# Dynamic reloading
cargo run --example dynamic_reload --features yaml,reload

Testing

Run tests with different feature combinations:

# Run all tests with default features
cargo test

# Run tests with all features
cargo test --all-features

# Run tests with specific features
cargo test --features yaml,env,cli

# Run property-based tests
cargo test --test proptest_tests

Remote Watcher Integration Tests

Integration tests for etcd and Redis watchers are included in their respective integration test files and use Docker containers automatically via testcontainers-rs. These tests will automatically skip if Docker is not available:

# Run all Redis tests (including watcher tests)
cargo test --test redis_integration_tests --all-features

# Run all etcd tests (including watcher tests)
cargo test --test etcd_integration_tests --all-features

# Run specific watcher tests
cargo test --test redis_integration_tests test_redis_watcher --all-features
cargo test --test etcd_integration_tests test_etcd_watcher --all-features

Docker must be installed and running for these tests to execute. If Docker is unavailable, the tests will be skipped with a warning message.

Documentation

Generate and view the full API documentation:

cargo doc --open --all-features

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please ensure:

1. All tests pass: cargo test --all-features
2. Code is formatted: cargo fmt --check
3. No clippy warnings: cargo clippy --all-features
4. Documentation is updated for public APIs

License

Licensed under either of:

• Apache License, Version 2.0 (LICENSE-APACHE or http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0)
• MIT license (LICENSE-MIT or http://opensource.org/licenses/MIT)

at your option.

Contribution

Unless you explicitly state otherwise, any contribution intentionally submitted for inclusion in the work by you, as defined in the Apache-2.0 license, shall be dual licensed as above, without any additional terms or conditions.

Project Status

This crate is currently at version 1.0.0 and includes:

• ✅ Core domain types (ConfigKey, ConfigValue)
• ✅ Configuration service with priority-based source management
• ✅ YAML file support
• ✅ Environment variable support
• ✅ Command-line argument support
• ✅ Dynamic reloading with file watching
• ✅ etcd integration
• ✅ Redis integration
• ✅ Comprehensive test suite (unit, integration, property-based)
• ✅ Full API documentation
• ✅ Example code

Acknowledgments

This crate was designed with inspiration from configuration management libraries in other ecosystems, adapted to Rust's ownership model and type system.