# <img src="web/docs/static/favicon.svg" width="32" height="32" alt=""> syntaqlite
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A parser, formatter, validator, and language server for SQLite SQL, built on SQLite's own grammar and tokenizer. If SQLite accepts it, syntaqlite parses it. If SQLite rejects it, so does syntaqlite.
**[Docs](https://docs.syntaqlite.com)** · **[Playground](https://playground.syntaqlite.com)** · **[VS Code Extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=syntaqlite.syntaqlite)** · **[MCP Server](integrations/mcp/README.md)**
> **Note:** syntaqlite is at 0.x — APIs and CLI flags may change before 1.0.
## Why syntaqlite
Most SQL tools parse a subset of SQL, invent their own grammar, or handle SQLite as an afterthought. syntaqlite uses SQLite's own Lemon-generated grammar and tokenizer, compiled from C — the parser doesn't approximate SQLite, it _is_ SQLite's grammar compiled into a reusable library.
SQLite isn't one fixed language — syntax changes between releases, and compile-time flags enable optional features. syntaqlite tracks this across all tools:
```bash
syntaqlite --sqlite-version 3.32.0 validate \
-e "DELETE FROM users WHERE id = 1 RETURNING *;"
```
```text
error: syntax error near 'RETURNING'
--> <stdin>:1:32
|
```text
Error: in prepare, table monthly_stats has 2 values for 3 columns
```
**syntaqlite** finds both — CTE column count mismatch and the `ROUDN` typo — with source locations and suggestions:
```text
error: table 'monthly_stats' has 2 values for 3 columns
|
warning: unknown function 'ROUDN'
|
= help: did you mean 'round'?
```
### Format
Deterministic formatting with configurable line width, keyword casing, and indentation:
```bash
echo "select u.id,u.name, p.title from users u join posts p on u.id=p.user_id
where u.active=1 and p.published=true order by p.created_at desc limit 10" \
| syntaqlite fmt
```
```sql
SELECT u.id, u.name, p.title
FROM users u
JOIN posts p ON u.id = p.user_id
WHERE u.active = 1
AND p.published = true
ORDER BY p.created_at DESC
LIMIT 10;
```
### Version and compile-flag aware
SQLite isn't one fixed language — syntax changes between releases, and [compile-time flags](https://www.sqlite.org/compile.html) enable optional features. syntaqlite tracks this across all tools:
```bash
# Reject syntax your target SQLite version doesn't support
syntaqlite --sqlite-version 3.32.0 validate query.sql
# Enable optional syntax from compile-time flags
syntaqlite --sqlite-cflag SQLITE_ENABLE_MATH_FUNCTIONS validate query.sql
```
### Validate SQL inside other languages *(experimental)*
SQL lives inside Python and TypeScript strings in most real codebases. syntaqlite extracts and validates it, handling interpolation holes:
```python
# app.py
def get_user_stats(user_id: int):
return conn.execute(
f"SELECT nme, ROUDN(score, 2) FROM users WHERE id = {user_id}"
)
```
```bash
syntaqlite validate --experimental-lang python app.py
```
```text
warning: unknown function 'ROUDN'
--> app.py:3:23
|
= help: did you mean 'round'?
```
### Editor integration
Full language server — no database connection required. Diagnostics, format on save, completions, and semantic highlighting.
**VS Code** — install the [syntaqlite extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=syntaqlite.syntaqlite) from the marketplace.
**Claude Code** — `syntaqlite plugin install` · **Claude Desktop / Cursor** — `pip install syntaqlite-mcp` ([docs](integrations/mcp/README.md))
**Any editor with LSP support:**
```bash
syntaqlite lsp
```
### Parse
Full abstract syntax tree with side tables for tokens, comments, and whitespace — for code generation, migration tooling, or static analysis.
```bash
syntaqlite parse -e "SELECT 1 + 2" --output text
```
## Install
**Homebrew**
```bash
brew install LalitMaganti/tap/syntaqlite
```
**Shell (macOS / Linux)**
```bash
**PowerShell (Windows)**
```powershell
**Cargo**
```bash
cargo install syntaqlite-cli
```
## Use as a library
**Rust**
```toml
[dependencies]
syntaqlite = { version = "0.0.7", features = ["fmt"] }
```
**JavaScript / WASM**
```bash
npm install @syntaqlite/js
```
**C** — the parser, tokenizer, formatter, and validator all have C APIs. See the [C API docs](https://docs.syntaqlite.com/reference/c-api/) for details.
## Architecture
The parser and tokenizer are written in C, directly wrapping SQLite's own grammar. Everything else — formatter, validator, LSP — is written in Rust with C bindings available.
The split is intentional. The C parser is as portable as SQLite itself: it can run inside database engines, embedded systems, or anywhere SQLite runs. The Rust layer moves fast for developer tooling where the standard library and the crate ecosystem matter.
## Building from source
```bash
tools/install-build-deps
tools/cargo build
```
## Contributing
See the [contributing guide](https://docs.syntaqlite.com/contributing/) for architecture overview and testing instructions.
## License
Apache 2.0. SQLite components are public domain under the [SQLite blessing](https://www.sqlite.org/copyright.html). See [LICENSE](LICENSE) for details.