Crate syn

  

Syn is a parsing library for parsing a stream of Rust tokens into a syntax tree of Rust source code.

Currently this library is geared toward use in Rust procedural macros, but contains some APIs that may be useful more generally.

• Data structures — Syn provides a complete syntax tree that can represent any valid Rust source code. The syntax tree is rooted at syn::File which represents a full source file, but there are other entry points that may be useful to procedural macros including syn::Item, syn::Expr and syn::Type.

• Derives — Of particular interest to derive macros is syn::DeriveInput which is any of the three legal input items to a derive macro. An example below shows using this type in a library that can derive implementations of a user-defined trait.

• Parsing — Parsing in Syn is built around parser functions with the signature fn(ParseStream) -> Result<T>. Every syntax tree node defined by Syn is individually parsable and may be used as a building block for custom syntaxes, or you may dream up your own brand new syntax without involving any of our syntax tree types.

• Location information — Every token parsed by Syn is associated with a Span that tracks line and column information back to the source of that token. These spans allow a procedural macro to display detailed error messages pointing to all the right places in the user's code. There is an example of this below.

• Feature flags — Functionality is aggressively feature gated so your procedural macros enable only what they need, and do not pay in compile time for all the rest.

Example of a derive macro

The canonical derive macro using Syn looks like this. We write an ordinary Rust function tagged with a proc_macro_derive attribute and the name of the trait we are deriving. Any time that derive appears in the user's code, the Rust compiler passes their data structure as tokens into our macro. We get to execute arbitrary Rust code to figure out what to do with those tokens, then hand some tokens back to the compiler to compile into the user's crate.

[dependencies]
syn = "1.0"
quote = "1.0"

[lib]
proc-macro = true

extern crate proc_macro;

use proc_macro::TokenStream;
use quote::quote;
use syn::{parse_macro_input, DeriveInput};

#[proc_macro_derive(MyMacro)]
pub fn my_macro(input: TokenStream) -> TokenStream {
    // Parse the input tokens into a syntax tree
    let input = parse_macro_input!(input as DeriveInput);

    // Build the output, possibly using quasi-quotation
    let expanded = quote! {
        // ...
    };

    // Hand the output tokens back to the compiler
    TokenStream::from(expanded)
}

The heapsize example directory shows a complete working implementation of a derive macro. It works on any Rust compiler 1.31+. The example derives a HeapSize trait which computes an estimate of the amount of heap memory owned by a value.

pub trait HeapSize {
    /// Total number of bytes of heap memory owned by `self`.
    fn heap_size_of_children(&self) -> usize;
}

The derive macro allows users to write #[derive(HeapSize)] on data structures in their program.

#[derive(HeapSize)]
struct Demo<'a, T: ?Sized> {
    a: Box<T>,
    b: u8,
    c: &'a str,
    d: String,
}

Spans and error reporting

The token-based procedural macro API provides great control over where the compiler's error messages are displayed in user code. Consider the error the user sees if one of their field types does not implement HeapSize.

#[derive(HeapSize)]
struct Broken {
    ok: String,
    bad: std::thread::Thread,
}

By tracking span information all the way through the expansion of a procedural macro as shown in the heapsize example, token-based macros in Syn are able to trigger errors that directly pinpoint the source of the problem.

error[E0277]: the trait bound `std::thread::Thread: HeapSize` is not satisfied
 --> src/main.rs:7:5
  |
7 |     bad: std::thread::Thread,
  |     ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ the trait `HeapSize` is not implemented for `Thread`

Parsing a custom syntax

The lazy-static example directory shows the implementation of a functionlike!(...) procedural macro in which the input tokens are parsed using Syn's parsing API.

The example reimplements the popular lazy_static crate from crates.io as a procedural macro.

lazy_static! {
    static ref USERNAME: Regex = Regex::new("^[a-z0-9_-]{3,16}$").unwrap();
}

The implementation shows how to trigger custom warnings and error messages on the macro input.

warning: come on, pick a more creative name
  --> src/main.rs:10:16
   |
10 |     static ref FOO: String = "lazy_static".to_owned();
   |                ^^^

Testing

When testing macros, we often care not just that the macro can be used successfully but also that when the macro is provided with invalid input it produces maximally helpful error messages. Consider using the trybuild crate to write tests for errors that are emitted by your macro or errors detected by the Rust compiler in the expanded code following misuse of the macro. Such tests help avoid regressions from later refactors that mistakenly make an error no longer trigger or be less helpful than it used to be.

Debugging

When developing a procedural macro it can be helpful to look at what the generated code looks like. Use cargo rustc -- -Zunstable-options --pretty=expanded or the cargo expand subcommand.

To show the expanded code for some crate that uses your procedural macro, run cargo expand from that crate. To show the expanded code for one of your own test cases, run cargo expand --test the_test_case where the last argument is the name of the test file without the .rs extension.

This write-up by Brandon W Maister discusses debugging in more detail: Debugging Rust's new Custom Derive system.

Optional features

Syn puts a lot of functionality behind optional features in order to optimize compile time for the most common use cases. The following features are available.

• derive (enabled by default) — Data structures for representing the possible input to a derive macro, including structs and enums and types.
• full — Data structures for representing the syntax tree of all valid Rust source code, including items and expressions.
• parsing (enabled by default) — Ability to parse input tokens into a syntax tree node of a chosen type.
• printing (enabled by default) — Ability to print a syntax tree node as tokens of Rust source code.
• visit — Trait for traversing a syntax tree.
• visit-mut — Trait for traversing and mutating in place a syntax tree.
• fold — Trait for transforming an owned syntax tree.
• clone-impls (enabled by default) — Clone impls for all syntax tree types.
• extra-traits — Debug, Eq, PartialEq, Hash impls for all syntax tree types.
• proc-macro (enabled by default) — Runtime dependency on the dynamic library libproc_macro from rustc toolchain.

Modules

buffer	A stably addressed token buffer supporting efficient traversal based on a cheaply copyable cursor.
ext	Extension traits to provide parsing methods on foreign types.
fold	Syntax tree traversal to transform the nodes of an owned syntax tree.
parse	Parsing interface for parsing a token stream into a syntax tree node.
punctuated	A punctuated sequence of syntax tree nodes separated by punctuation.
spanned	A trait that can provide the Span of the complete contents of a syntax tree node.
token	Tokens representing Rust punctuation, keywords, and delimiters.
visit	Syntax tree traversal to walk a shared borrow of a syntax tree.
visit_mut	Syntax tree traversal to mutate an exclusive borrow of a syntax tree in place.

Macros

Token	A type-macro that expands to the name of the Rust type representation of a given token.
braced	Parse a set of curly braces and expose their content to subsequent parsers.
bracketed	Parse a set of square brackets and expose their content to subsequent parsers.
custom_keyword	Define a type that supports parsing and printing a given identifier as if it were a keyword.
custom_punctuation	Define a type that supports parsing and printing a multi-character symbol as if it were a punctuation token.
parenthesized	Parse a set of parentheses and expose their content to subsequent parsers.
parse_macro_input	Parse the input TokenStream of a macro, triggering a compile error if the tokens fail to parse.
parse_quote	Quasi-quotation macro that accepts input like the quote! macro but uses type inference to figure out a return type for those tokens.

Structs

Abi	The binary interface of a function: extern "C".
AngleBracketedGenericArguments	Angle bracketed arguments of a path segment: the <K, V> in HashMap<K, V>.
Arm	One arm of a match expression: 0...10 => { return true; }.
Attribute	An attribute like #[repr(transparent)].
BareFnArg	An argument in a function type: the usize in fn(usize) -> bool.
Binding	A binding (equality constraint) on an associated type: Item = u8.
Block	A braced block containing Rust statements.
BoundLifetimes	A set of bound lifetimes: for<'a, 'b, 'c>.
ConstParam	A const generic parameter: const LENGTH: usize.
Constraint	An associated type bound: Iterator<Item: Display>.
DataEnum	An enum input to a proc_macro_derive macro.
DataStruct	A struct input to a proc_macro_derive macro.
DataUnion	An untagged union input to a proc_macro_derive macro.
DeriveInput	Data structure sent to a proc_macro_derive macro.
Error	Error returned when a Syn parser cannot parse the input tokens.
ExprArray	A slice literal expression: [a, b, c, d].
ExprAssign	An assignment expression: a = compute().
ExprAssignOp	A compound assignment expression: counter += 1.
ExprAsync	An async block: async { ... }.
ExprAwait	An await expression: fut.await.
ExprBinary	A binary operation: a + b, a * b.
ExprBlock	A blocked scope: { ... }.
ExprBox	A box expression: box f.
ExprBreak	A break, with an optional label to break and an optional expression.
ExprCall	A function call expression: invoke(a, b).
ExprCast	A cast expression: foo as f64.
ExprClosure	A closure expression: |a, b| a + b.
ExprContinue	A continue, with an optional label.
ExprField	Access of a named struct field (obj.k) or unnamed tuple struct field (obj.0).
ExprForLoop	A for loop: for pat in expr { ... }.
ExprGroup	An expression contained within invisible delimiters.
ExprIf	An if expression with an optional else block: if expr { ... } else { ... }.
ExprIndex	A square bracketed indexing expression: vector[2].
ExprLet	A let guard: let Some(x) = opt.
ExprLit	A literal in place of an expression: 1, "foo".
ExprLoop	Conditionless loop: loop { ... }.
ExprMacro	A macro invocation expression: format!("{}", q).
ExprMatch	A match expression: match n { Some(n) => {}, None => {} }.
ExprMethodCall	A method call expression: x.foo::<T>(a, b).
ExprParen	A parenthesized expression: (a + b).
ExprPath	A path like std::mem::replace possibly containing generic parameters and a qualified self-type.
ExprRange	A range expression: 1..2, 1.., ..2, 1..=2, ..=2.
ExprReference	A referencing operation: &a or &mut a.
ExprRepeat	An array literal constructed from one repeated element: [0u8; N].
ExprReturn	A return, with an optional value to be returned.
ExprStruct	A struct literal expression: Point { x: 1, y: 1 }.
ExprTry	A try-expression: expr?.
ExprTryBlock	A try block: try { ... }.
ExprTuple	A tuple expression: (a, b, c, d).
ExprType	A type ascription expression: foo: f64.
ExprUnary	A unary operation: !x, *x.
ExprUnsafe	An unsafe block: unsafe { ... }.
ExprWhile	A while loop: while expr { ... }.
ExprYield	A yield expression: yield expr.
Field	A field of a struct or enum variant.
FieldPat	A single field in a struct pattern.
FieldValue	A field-value pair in a struct literal.
FieldsNamed	Named fields of a struct or struct variant such as Point { x: f64, y: f64 }.
FieldsUnnamed	Unnamed fields of a tuple struct or tuple variant such as Some(T).
File	A complete file of Rust source code.
ForeignItemFn	A foreign function in an extern block.
ForeignItemMacro	A macro invocation within an extern block.
ForeignItemStatic	A foreign static item in an extern block: static ext: u8.
ForeignItemType	A foreign type in an extern block: type void.
Generics	Lifetimes and type parameters attached to a declaration of a function, enum, trait, etc.
Ident	A word of Rust code, which may be a keyword or legal variable name.
ImplGenerics	Returned by Generics::split_for_impl.
ImplItemConst	An associated constant within an impl block.
ImplItemMacro	A macro invocation within an impl block.
ImplItemMethod	A method within an impl block.
ImplItemType	An associated type within an impl block.
Index	The index of an unnamed tuple struct field.
ItemConst	A constant item: const MAX: u16 = 65535.
ItemEnum	An enum definition: enum Foo<A, B> { A(A), B(B) }.
ItemExternCrate	An extern crate item: extern crate serde.
ItemFn	A free-standing function: fn process(n: usize) -> Result<()> { ... }.
ItemForeignMod	A block of foreign items: extern "C" { ... }.
ItemImpl	An impl block providing trait or associated items: impl<A> Trait for Data<A> { ... }.
ItemMacro	A macro invocation, which includes macro_rules! definitions.
ItemMacro2	A 2.0-style declarative macro introduced by the macro keyword.
ItemMod	A module or module declaration: mod m or mod m { ... }.
ItemStatic	A static item: static BIKE: Shed = Shed(42).
ItemStruct	A struct definition: struct Foo<A> { x: A }.
ItemTrait	A trait definition: pub trait Iterator { ... }.
ItemTraitAlias	A trait alias: pub trait SharableIterator = Iterator + Sync.
ItemType	A type alias: type Result<T> = std::result::Result<T, MyError>.
ItemUnion	A union definition: union Foo<A, B> { x: A, y: B }.
ItemUse	A use declaration: use std::collections::HashMap.
Label	A lifetime labeling a for, while, or loop.
Lifetime	A Rust lifetime: 'a.
LifetimeDef	A lifetime definition: 'a: 'b + 'c + 'd.
LitBool	A boolean literal: true or false.
LitByte	A byte literal: b'f'.
LitByteStr	A byte string literal: b"foo".
LitChar	A character literal: 'a'.
LitFloat	A floating point literal: 1f64 or 1.0e10f64.
LitInt	An integer literal: 1 or 1u16.
LitStr	A UTF-8 string literal: "foo".
Local	A local let binding: let x: u64 = s.parse()?.
Macro	A macro invocation: println!("{}", mac).
MetaList	A structured list within an attribute, like derive(Copy, Clone).
MetaNameValue	A name-value pair within an attribute, like feature = "nightly".
MethodTurbofish	The ::<> explicit type parameters passed to a method call: parse::<u64>().
ParenthesizedGenericArguments	Arguments of a function path segment: the (A, B) -> C in Fn(A,B) -> C.
PatBox	A box pattern: box v.
PatIdent	A pattern that binds a new variable: ref mut binding @ SUBPATTERN.
PatLit	A literal pattern: 0.
PatMacro	A macro in pattern position.
PatOr	A pattern that matches any one of a set of cases.
PatPath	A path pattern like Color::Red, optionally qualified with a self-type.
PatRange	A range pattern: 1..=2.
PatReference	A reference pattern: &mut var.
PatRest	The dots in a tuple or slice pattern: [0, 1, ..]
PatSlice	A dynamically sized slice pattern: [a, b, ref i @ .., y, z].
PatStruct	A struct or struct variant pattern: Variant { x, y, .. }.
PatTuple	A tuple pattern: (a, b).
PatTupleStruct	A tuple struct or tuple variant pattern: Variant(x, y, .., z).
PatType	A type ascription pattern: foo: f64.
PatWild	A pattern that matches any value: _.
Path	A path at which a named item is exported (e.g. std::collections::HashMap).
PathSegment	A segment of a path together with any path arguments on that segment.
PredicateEq	An equality predicate in a where clause (unsupported).
PredicateLifetime	A lifetime predicate in a where clause: 'a: 'b + 'c.
PredicateType	A type predicate in a where clause: for<'c> Foo<'c>: Trait<'c>.
QSelf	The explicit Self type in a qualified path: the T in <T as Display>::fmt.
Receiver	The self argument of an associated method, whether taken by value or by reference.
Signature	A function signature in a trait or implementation: unsafe fn initialize(&self).
TraitBound	A trait used as a bound on a type parameter.
TraitItemConst	An associated constant within the definition of a trait.
TraitItemMacro	A macro invocation within the definition of a trait.
TraitItemMethod	A trait method within the definition of a trait.
TraitItemType	An associated type within the definition of a trait.
Turbofish	Returned by TypeGenerics::as_turbofish.
TypeArray	A fixed size array type: [T; n].
TypeBareFn	A bare function type: fn(usize) -> bool.
TypeGenerics	Returned by Generics::split_for_impl.
TypeGroup	A type contained within invisible delimiters.
TypeImplTrait	An impl Bound1 + Bound2 + Bound3 type where Bound is a trait or a lifetime.
TypeInfer	Indication that a type should be inferred by the compiler: _.
TypeMacro	A macro in the type position.
TypeNever	The never type: !.
TypeParam	A generic type parameter: T: Into<String>.
TypeParen	A parenthesized type equivalent to the inner type.
TypePath	A path like std::slice::Iter, optionally qualified with a self-type as in <Vec<T> as SomeTrait>::Associated.
TypePtr	A raw pointer type: *const T or *mut T.
TypeReference	A reference type: &'a T or &'a mut T.
TypeSlice	A dynamically sized slice type: [T].
TypeTraitObject	A trait object type Bound1 + Bound2 + Bound3 where Bound is a trait or a lifetime.
TypeTuple	A tuple type: (A, B, C, String).
UseGlob	A glob import in a use item: *.
UseGroup	A braced group of imports in a use item: {A, B, C}.
UseName	An identifier imported by a use item: HashMap.
UsePath	A path prefix of imports in a use item: std::....
UseRename	An renamed identifier imported by a use item: HashMap as Map.
Variadic	The variadic argument of a foreign function.
Variant	An enum variant.
VisCrate	A crate-level visibility: crate.
VisPublic	A public visibility level: pub.
VisRestricted	A visibility level restricted to some path: pub(self) or pub(super) or pub(crate) or pub(in some::module).
WhereClause	A where clause in a definition: where T: Deserialize<'de>, D: 'static.

Enums

AttrStyle	Distinguishes between attributes that decorate an item and attributes that are contained within an item.
BinOp	A binary operator: +, +=, &.
Data	The storage of a struct, enum or union data structure.
Expr	A Rust expression.
Fields	Data stored within an enum variant or struct.
FnArg	An argument in a function signature: the n: usize in fn f(n: usize).
ForeignItem	An item within an extern block.
GenericArgument	An individual generic argument, like 'a, T, or Item = T.
GenericMethodArgument	An individual generic argument to a method, like T.
GenericParam	A generic type parameter, lifetime, or const generic: T: Into<String>, 'a: 'b, const LEN: usize.
ImplItem	An item within an impl block.
Item	Things that can appear directly inside of a module or scope.
Lit	A Rust literal such as a string or integer or boolean.
MacroDelimiter	A grouping token that surrounds a macro body: m!(...) or m!{...} or m![...].
Member	A struct or tuple struct field accessed in a struct literal or field expression.
Meta	Content of a compile-time structured attribute.
NestedMeta	Element of a compile-time attribute list.
Pat	A pattern in a local binding, function signature, match expression, or various other places.
PathArguments	Angle bracketed or parenthesized arguments of a path segment.
RangeLimits	Limit types of a range, inclusive or exclusive.
ReturnType	Return type of a function signature.
Stmt	A statement, usually ending in a semicolon.
StrStyle	The style of a string literal, either plain quoted or a raw string like r##"data"##.
TraitBoundModifier	A modifier on a trait bound, currently only used for the ? in ?Sized.
TraitItem	An item declaration within the definition of a trait.
Type	The possible types that a Rust value could have.
TypeParamBound	A trait or lifetime used as a bound on a type parameter.
UnOp	A unary operator: *, !, -.
UseTree	A suffix of an import tree in a use item: Type as Renamed or *.
Visibility	The visibility level of an item: inherited or pub or pub(restricted).
WherePredicate	A single predicate in a where clause: T: Deserialize<'de>.

Functions

parse	Parse tokens of source code into the chosen syntax tree node.
parse2	Parse a proc-macro2 token stream into the chosen syntax tree node.
parse_file	Parse the content of a file of Rust code.
parse_str	Parse a string of Rust code into the chosen syntax tree node.

Type Definitions

AttributeArgs	Conventional argument type associated with an invocation of an attribute macro.
Result	The result of a Syn parser.