Cerf

Cerf is a cross-platform shell written in Rust, providing a POSIX-like environment with core features like job control and structured control flow.

A CodeTease project. (CerfSh branch)

Features

• POSIX-inspired: Pipelines, redirections, and logic operators.
• Control Flow: if, while, for, loop, and function support.
• Cross-platform: Native support for Windows and Unix-like systems.
• Interactive: Command history, tab completion, and rich prompts.
• Job Control: Manage background tasks with bg, fg, and jobs.

Quick Start

Run the executable to enter the interactive shell:

cerf

Installation

Please go to Releases to download the latest release (and read the guide)

Or see: INSTALLATION.md

Build from source:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/cerfsh/cerf.git

cd cerf
cargo build

Examples

# Multi-stage pipelines
cat file.txt | grep "rust" | wc -l

# Structured loops (Brace-style)
for file in src/*.rs { 
    echo "Checking $file" 
}

# Control flow
if test -f Cargo.toml { 
    echo "Rust project detected" 
} else { 
    echo "No Cargo.toml found" 
}

# Shell functions
func hello {
    echo "Hello, Cerf!"
}
hello

Scripting Best Practices

When writing scripts for Cerf, it is recommended to use the namespaced command syntax (e.g., dir.cd instead of cd).

Most common commands in Cerf are actually aliases to their namespaced counterparts:

• cd → dir.cd
• pwd → dir.pwd
• echo → io.echo
• exit → sys.exit

Why use Namespaces?

Namespaced commands provide several advantages for scripting:

1. No Alias Overrides: Namespaced commands cannot be overridden by user aliases. This ensures that your script always uses the intended builtin command, regardless of the user's interactive configuration.
2. Stability: Scripts using namespaced commands are more resilient to changes in the shell's default alias mappings or user environment.

Example

# Recommendation: Use namespaced commands in scripts
dir.cd src
io.echo "Building project..."
sys.exec cargo build

License

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0.