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…ructure in README and moved CLI specific information to the CLI package
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175 changes: 23 additions & 152 deletions README.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -252,9 +252,7 @@ protobuf.load("awesome.proto")

### Using JSON descriptors

The library utilizes a JSON format that is equivalent to a .proto definition (see also: [Command line usage](#command-line)).

The following is identical to the .proto definition seen above, but it can also be used with just the light library because it doesn't require the parser:
The library utilizes a JSON format that is equivalent to a .proto definition. For example, the following is identical to the .proto definition seen above:

```json
// awesome.json
Expand All @@ -272,6 +270,25 @@ The following is identical to the .proto definition seen above, but it can also
}
```

The JSON format closely resembles the internal reflection structure:

| Type (T) | Extends | Type-specific properties
|--------------------|--------------------|-------------------------
| *ReflectionObject* | | options
| *Namespace* | *ReflectionObject* | nested
| Type | *Namespace* | **fields**
| Enum | *ReflectionObject* | **values**
| Field | *ReflectionObject* | rule, **type**, **id**
| MapField | Field | **keyType**
| Service | *Namespace* | **methods**
| Method | *ReflectionObject* | *type*, **requestType**, **responseType**, requestStream, responseStream

* **Bold** properties are required. *Italic* types are abstract.
* `T.fromJSON(name, json)` creates the respective reflection object from a JSON descriptor
* `T#toJSON()` creates a JSON descriptor from the respective reflection object (`name` is used as the key within the parent)

Exclusively using JSON instead of .proto files enables the use of just the light library (the parser isn't required in this case).

A JSON descriptor can either be loaded the usual way:

```js
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -438,9 +455,7 @@ protobuf.load("awesome.proto", function(err, root) {
});
```

To achieve the same with static code generated by [pbjs](#command-line), there is the [pbts](#generating-typescript-definitions-from-static-modules) command line utility to generate type definitions from static code as well.

Let's say you generated your static code to `bundle.js` and its type definitions to `bundle.d.ts`, then you can do:
If you generated static code using the CLI to `bundle.js` and its type definitions to `bundle.d.ts`, then you can do:

```ts
import * as root from "./bundle.js";
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -470,6 +485,7 @@ Documentation

#### protobuf.js
* [API Documentation](http://dcode.io/protobuf.js)
* [CLI Documentation](./cli/README.md)
* [CHANGELOG](https://github.com/dcodeIO/protobuf.js/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md)
* [Frequently asked questions](https://github.com/dcodeIO/protobuf.js/wiki) on our wiki

Expand All @@ -478,152 +494,7 @@ Documentation

Command line
------------

The `pbjs` command line utility can be used to bundle and translate between .proto and .json files. It also generates static code.

```
Consolidates imports and converts between file formats.
-t, --target Specifies the target format. Also accepts a path to require a custom target.
json JSON representation
json-module JSON representation as a module
proto2 Protocol Buffers, Version 2
proto3 Protocol Buffers, Version 3
static Static code without reflection
static-module Static code without reflection as a module
-p, --path Adds a directory to the include path.
-o, --out Saves to a file instead of writing to stdout.
Module targets only:
-w, --wrap Specifies the wrapper to use. Also accepts a path to require a custom wrapper.
default Default wrapper supporting both CommonJS and AMD
commonjs CommonJS wrapper
amd AMD wrapper
es6 ES6 wrapper (implies --es6)
-r, --root Specifies an alternative protobuf.roots name.
-l, --lint Linter configuration. Defaults to protobuf.js-compatible rules:
eslint-disable block-scoped-var, no-redeclare, no-control-regex, no-prototype-builtins
--es6 Enables ES6 syntax (const/let instead of var)
Proto sources only:
--keep-case Keeps field casing instead of converting to camel case.
Static targets only:
--no-create Does not generate create functions used for reflection compatibility.
--no-encode Does not generate encode functions.
--no-decode Does not generate decode functions.
--no-verify Does not generate verify functions.
--no-convert Does not generate convert functions like from/toObject
--no-delimited Does not generate delimited encode/decode functions.
--no-beautify Does not beautify generated code.
--no-comments Does not output any JSDoc comments.
usage: pbjs [options] file1.proto file2.json ... (or) other | pbjs [options] -
```

For production environments it is recommended to bundle all your .proto files to a single .json file, which minimizes the number of network requests and avoids any parser overhead (hint: works with just the [light library](#distributions)):

```
$> pbjs -t json file1.proto file2.proto > bundle.json
```

Now, either include this file in your final bundle:

```js
var root = protobuf.Root.fromJSON(require("./bundle.json"));
```

or load it the usual way:

```js
protobuf.load("bundle.json", function(err, root) {
...
});
```

The `pbjs` utility is also capable of generating static code (hint: works with just the [minimal library](#distributions)). For example

```
$> pbjs -t static-module -w commonjs -o compiled.js file1.proto file2.proto
```

will generate static code for definitions within `file1.proto` and `file2.proto` to a CommonJS module `compiled.js`.

**ProTip!** Documenting your .proto files with `/** ... */`-blocks or (trailing) `/// ...` lines translates to generated static code.

### Generating TypeScript definitions from static modules

Likewise, the `pbts` command line utility can be used to generate TypeScript definitions from `pbjs`-generated static modules.

```
Generates TypeScript definitions from annotated JavaScript files.
-o, --out Saves to a file instead of writing to stdout.
-g, --global Name of the global object in browser environments, if any.
--no-comments Does not output any JSDoc comments.
Internal flags:
-n, --name Wraps everything in a module of the specified name.
-m, --main Whether building the main library without any imports.
usage: pbts [options] file1.js file2.js ... (or) other | pbts [options] -
```

Picking up on the example above, the following not just generates static code to a CommonJS module `compiled.js` but also its respective TypeScript definitions to `compiled.d.ts`:

```
$> pbjs -t static-module -w commonjs -o compiled.js file1.proto file2.proto
$> pbts -o compiled.d.ts compiled.js
```

Additionally, TypeScript definitions of static modules are compatible with their reflection-based counterparts (i.e. as exported by JSON modules), as long as the following conditions are met:

1. Instead of using `new SomeMessage(...)`, always use `SomeMessage.create(...)` because reflection objects do not provide a constructor.
2. Types, services and enums must start with an uppercase letter to become available as properties of the reflected types as well (i.e. to be able to use `MyMessage.MyEnum` instead of `root.lookup("MyMessage.MyEnum")`).

For example, the following generates a JSON module `bundle.js` and a `bundle.d.ts`, but no static code:

```
$> pbjs -t json-module -w commonjs -o bundle.js file1.proto file2.proto
$> pbjs -t static-module file1.proto file2.proto | pbts -o bundle.d.ts -
```

### On reflection vs. static code

While using .proto files directly requires the full library respectively pure reflection/JSON the light library, pretty much all code but the relatively short descriptors is shared.

Static code, on the other hand, requires just the minimal library, but generates additional, albeit editable, source code without any reflection features.

There is no significant difference performance-wise as the code generated statically is pretty much the same as generated at runtime and both are largely interchangeable as seen in the previous section.

### Using pbjs and pbts programmatically

Both utilities can be used programmatically by providing command line arguments and a callback to their respective `main` functions:

```js
var pbjs = require("protobufjs/cli/pbjs");

pbjs.main([ "--target", "json-module", "path/to/myproto.proto" ], function(err, output) {
if (err)
throw err;
// do something with output
});
```
Command line usage has moved to the (soon to be decoupled) [CLI package]((./cli/README.md))

Performance
-----------
Expand Down
185 changes: 185 additions & 0 deletions cli/README.md
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@@ -0,0 +1,185 @@
protobufjs-cli
==============
[![npm](https://img.shields.io/npm/v/protobufjscli.svg)](https://www.npmjs.com/package/protobufjs-cli)

Command line interface (CLI) for [protobuf.js](https://github.com/dcodeIO/protobuf.js). Translates between file formats and generates static code as well as TypeScript definitions.

Contents
--------

<!--
* [Installation](#installation)<br />
How to get started using the CLI.
-->

* [Usage](#usage)<br />
An introduction to the toolset.

* [API](#api)<br />
Details on using pbjs and pbts programmatically.

<!--
Installation
------------
```
$> npm install protobufjs protobufjs-cli [--save --save-prefix=~]
```
Note that the CLI package is tightly coupled to the main package, so don't forget to update it as well.
-->

Usage
-----

### pbjs

```
Translates between file formats and generates static code.
-t, --target Specifies the target format. Also accepts a path to require a custom target.
json JSON representation
json-module JSON representation as a module
proto2 Protocol Buffers, Version 2
proto3 Protocol Buffers, Version 3
static Static code without reflection
static-module Static code without reflection as a module
-p, --path Adds a directory to the include path.
-o, --out Saves to a file instead of writing to stdout.
Module targets only:
-w, --wrap Specifies the wrapper to use. Also accepts a path to require a custom wrapper.
default Default wrapper supporting both CommonJS and AMD
commonjs CommonJS wrapper
amd AMD wrapper
es6 ES6 wrapper (implies --es6)
-r, --root Specifies an alternative protobuf.roots name.
-l, --lint Linter configuration. Defaults to protobuf.js-compatible rules:
eslint-disable block-scoped-var, no-redeclare, no-control-regex, no-prototype-builtins
--es6 Enables ES6 syntax (const/let instead of var)
Proto sources only:
--keep-case Keeps field casing instead of converting to camel case.
Static targets only:
--no-create Does not generate create functions used for reflection compatibility.
--no-encode Does not generate encode functions.
--no-decode Does not generate decode functions.
--no-verify Does not generate verify functions.
--no-convert Does not generate convert functions like from/toObject
--no-delimited Does not generate delimited encode/decode functions.
--no-beautify Does not beautify generated code.
--no-comments Does not output any JSDoc comments.
usage: pbjs [options] file1.proto file2.json ... (or) other | pbjs [options] -
```

For production environments it is recommended to bundle all your .proto files to a single .json file, which minimizes the number of network requests and avoids any parser overhead (hint: works with just the **light** library):

```
$> pbjs -t json file1.proto file2.proto > bundle.json
```

Now, either include this file in your final bundle:

```js
var root = protobuf.Root.fromJSON(require("./bundle.json"));
```

or load it the usual way:

```js
protobuf.load("bundle.json", function(err, root) {
...
});
```

Generated static code, on the other hand, works with just the **minimal** library. For example

```
$> pbjs -t static-module -w commonjs -o compiled.js file1.proto file2.proto
```

will generate static code for definitions within `file1.proto` and `file2.proto` to a CommonJS module `compiled.js`.

**ProTip!** Documenting your .proto files with `/** ... */`-blocks or (trailing) `/// ...` lines translates to generated static code.


### pbts

```
Generates TypeScript definitions from annotated JavaScript files.
-o, --out Saves to a file instead of writing to stdout.
-g, --global Name of the global object in browser environments, if any.
--no-comments Does not output any JSDoc comments.
Internal flags:
-n, --name Wraps everything in a module of the specified name.
-m, --main Whether building the main library without any imports.
usage: pbts [options] file1.js file2.js ... (or) other | pbts [options] -
```

Picking up on the example above, the following not just generates static code to a CommonJS module `compiled.js` but also its respective TypeScript definitions to `compiled.d.ts`:

```
$> pbjs -t static-module -w commonjs -o compiled.js file1.proto file2.proto
$> pbts -o compiled.d.ts compiled.js
```

Additionally, TypeScript definitions of static modules are compatible with their reflection-based counterparts (i.e. as exported by JSON modules), as long as the following conditions are met:

1. Instead of using `new SomeMessage(...)`, always use `SomeMessage.create(...)` because reflection objects do not provide a constructor.
2. Types, services and enums must start with an uppercase letter to become available as properties of the reflected types as well (i.e. to be able to use `MyMessage.MyEnum` instead of `root.lookup("MyMessage.MyEnum")`).

For example, the following generates a JSON module `bundle.js` and a `bundle.d.ts`, but no static code:

```
$> pbjs -t json-module -w commonjs -o bundle.js file1.proto file2.proto
$> pbjs -t static-module file1.proto file2.proto | pbts -o bundle.d.ts -
```

### Reflection vs. static code

While using .proto files directly requires the full library respectively pure reflection/JSON the light library, pretty much all code but the relatively short descriptors is shared.

Static code, on the other hand, requires just the minimal library, but generates additional, albeit editable, source code without any reflection features.

There is no significant difference performance-wise as the code generated statically is pretty much the same as generated at runtime and both are largely interchangeable as seen in the previous section.

API
---

Both utilities can be used programmatically by providing command line arguments and a callback to their respective `main` functions:

```js
var pbjs = require("protobufjs-cli/pbjs"); // or require("protobufjs-cli").pbjs / .pbts

pbjs.main([ "--target", "json-module", "path/to/myproto.proto" ], function(err, output) {
if (err)
throw err;
// do something with output
});
```

**License:** [BSD 3-Clause License](https://opensource.org/licenses/BSD-3-Clause)
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