Crate serialize_fields

SerializeFields

A Rust procedural macro that enables dynamic field selection for struct serialization. Control exactly which fields get serialized at runtime using a hierarchical field selector system.

Features

• 🎯 Dynamic Field Selection: Choose which fields to serialize at runtime
• 🌳 Hierarchical Selection: Use dot notation for nested structs ("user.profile.name")
• 🔧 Type Safe: Compile-time validation of field paths
• 🚀 Zero Runtime Cost: Only enabled fields are processed during serialization
• 📦 Serde Integration: Works seamlessly with the serde ecosystem
• 🔄 Collection Support: Handles Vec, Option, HashMap, and other containers
• 🏗️ Generic Architecture: Single trait-based serialization implementation

Quick Start

use serialize_fields::{SerializeFields, SerializeFieldsTrait};
use serde::{Serialize, Deserialize};

#[derive(SerializeFields, Serialize, Deserialize)]
struct User {
    id: u32,
    name: Option<String>,
    email: Option<String>,
}

let user = User {
    id: 123,
    name: Some("Alice".to_string()),
    email: Some("alice@example.com".to_string()),
};

// Create field selector using the trait method
let mut fields = user.serialize_fields();
fields.enable_dot_hierarchy("id");
fields.enable_dot_hierarchy("name");

// Serialize with selected fields only
let json = serde_json::to_string(&SerializeFields(&user, &fields)).unwrap();
// Output: {"id":123,"name":"Alice"}

Advanced Usage

Nested Structs

#[derive(SerializeFields, Serialize, Deserialize)]
struct User {
    id: u32,
    profile: UserProfile,
}

#[derive(SerializeFields, Serialize, Deserialize)]
struct UserProfile {
    bio: Option<String>,
    avatar_url: Option<String>,
}

let mut fields = user.serialize_fields();
fields.enable_dot_hierarchy("id");
fields.enable_dot_hierarchy("profile.bio");  // Nested field selection

let json = serde_json::to_string(&SerializeFields(&user, &fields)).unwrap();
// Output: {"id":123,"profile":{"bio":"Software Engineer"}}

Dynamic Field Selection

fn serialize_user_with_fields(user: &User, requested_fields: &[&str]) -> String {
    let mut selector = user.serialize_fields();
     
    for field in requested_fields {
        selector.enable_dot_hierarchy(field);
    }
     
    serde_json::to_string(&SerializeFields(user, &selector)).unwrap()
}

// Usage: GET /users/123?fields=id,name
let fields = vec!["id", "name"];
let json = serialize_user_with_fields(&user, &fields);

Modules

utils

Utility functions for working with field selectors.

Structs

SerializeFields

A wrapper struct that combines data with a field selector for serialization.

Traits

FieldSelector

Helper trait for field selectors to provide common functionality.

SerializeFieldsTrait

Trait for types that can provide field selectors for dynamic serialization.

Derive Macros

SerializeFields

Derive macro for generating field selectors and dynamic serialization.