# Splice
Span-safe refactoring kernel for 7 languages using tree-sitter and SQLiteGraph.
**Version**: 0.3.0
**License**: GPL-3.0-or-later
## What This Is
Splice is a command-line tool that performs byte-accurate, AST-validated refactoring operations on code in 7 languages: Rust, Python, C, C++, Java, JavaScript, and TypeScript. It can replace function bodies and delete symbols along with all their references.
## What This Is NOT
- An IDE or LSP server - Use Rust Analyzer, IntelliJ, PyCharm, VSCode, or your editor
- A general-purpose refactoring tool - Focused on specific operations
- A complete solution - It's a focused tool for specific jobs
- Production-hardened - Use with version control
## What It Does
- **patch**: Replace function bodies, class definitions, enum variants with validation
- **delete**: Remove symbol definitions and all references (cross-file, Rust-only)
- Validates syntax with tree-sitter after every operation
- Validates compilation with language-specific compilers
- Rolls back atomically on any failure
- Orchestrates multi-step refactors via JSON plans
## Supported Languages
| Rust | `.rs` | Full | Full | `cargo check` |
| Python | `.py` | Basic | Full | `python -m py_compile` |
| C | `.c`, `.h` | Basic | Full | `gcc -fsyntax-only` |
| C++ | `.cpp`, `.hpp`, `.cc`, `.cxx` | Basic | Full | `g++ -fsyntax-only` |
| Java | `.java` | Basic | Full | `javac` |
| JavaScript | `.js`, `.mjs`, `.cjs` | Basic | Full | `node --check` |
| TypeScript | `.ts`, `.tsx` | Basic | Full | `tsc --noEmit` |
**Delete modes:**
- **Full**: Finds all references across files (Rust only)
- **Basic**: Deletes definition only, no reference finding (other languages)
## Installation
```bash
cargo install splice
```
Or from source:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/oldnordic/splice.git
cd splice
cargo build --release
cp target/release/splice ~/.local/bin/
```
## Quick Start
### Delete a Symbol (Rust)
Delete a function and all its references:
```bash
splice delete --file src/lib.rs --symbol helper --kind function
```
Output:
```
Deleted 'helper' (3 references + definition) across 2 file(s).
```
### Patch a Symbol (Rust)
Replace a function body:
```bash
cat > new_greet.rs << 'EOF'
pub fn greet(name: &str) -> String {
format!("Hi, {}!", name)
}
EOF
splice patch --file src/lib.rs --symbol greet --kind function --with new_greet.rs
```
### Patch a Symbol (Python)
```bash
cat > new_calc.py << 'EOF'
def calculate(x: int, y: int) -> int:
return x * y
EOF
splice patch --file utils.py --symbol calculate --language python --with new_calc.py
```
### Patch a Symbol (TypeScript)
```bash
cat > new_fn.ts << 'EOF'
function calculate(x: number, y: number): number {
return x * y;
}
EOF
splice patch --file src/math.ts --symbol calculate --language type-script --with new_fn.ts
```
### Multi-Step Plan
```bash
cat > plan.json << 'EOF'
{
"steps": [
{
"file": "src/lib.rs",
"symbol": "foo",
"kind": "function",
"with": "patches/foo.rs"
},
{
"file": "src/lib.rs",
"symbol": "bar",
"kind": "function",
"with": "patches/bar.rs"
}
]
}
EOF
splice plan --file plan.json
```
## Commands
### splice delete
Remove a symbol definition and all its references.
```bash
splice delete --file <PATH> --symbol <NAME> [--kind <KIND>]
```
**Rust-specific features:**
- Finds references across the entire workspace
- Tracks imports and re-exports
- Handles shadowing correctly
- Cross-file reference resolution
**Other languages:**
- Deletes the symbol definition only
- Use with `--language` flag or auto-detection from file extension
### splice patch
Apply a patch to a symbol's span.
```bash
splice patch --file <PATH> --symbol <NAME> --with <FILE> [--kind <KIND>] [--language <LANG>]
```
**Optional Arguments:**
- `--kind <KIND>`: Symbol kind filter (function, method, class, struct, interface, enum, trait, impl, module, variable, constructor, type-alias)
- `--language <LANG>`: Language override (rust, python, c, cpp, java, java-script, type-script)
- `--analyzer <MODE>`: Validation mode (off, os, path)
### splice plan
Execute a multi-step refactoring plan.
```bash
splice plan --file <PLAN.json>
```
## Documentation
- **manual.md** - Complete user manual
- **CHANGELOG.md** - Version history
## Requirements
- Rust 1.70+ (for building)
- Language-specific compilers (for validation):
- Rust: `cargo`
- Python: `python`
- C/C++: `gcc`/`g++`
- Java: `javac`
- JavaScript: `node`
- TypeScript: `tsc`
## Architecture
- **src/cli/** - CLI argument parsing
- **src/ingest/** - Symbol parsing for 7 languages
- **src/graph/** - SQLiteGraph integration
- **src/resolve/** - Symbol resolution and reference finding
- **src/patch/** - Span-safe replacement + validation
- **src/validate/** - Tree-sitter + compiler validation gates
- **src/plan/** - JSON plan orchestration
## Validation Gates
Every operation passes:
1. UTF-8 boundary validation
2. Tree-sitter reparse (syntax check)
3. Language-specific compiler check (cargo check, python -m py_compile, etc.)
## Testing
```bash
cargo test
```
Test Coverage: 339/339 tests passing
## Feedback
If you use this tool and find a bug or miss a feature that would be useful, drop a line. It's appreciated.
## License
GPL-3.0-or-later
## Disclaimer
This software modifies source code. Always commit your changes before running Splice.