Welcome to argus

Modern command-line argument parsing for C

Explore argus

• Start Using argus

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  Get up and running with argus in minutes:

  Installation Quick Start Examples

• Learn the Basics

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  Master the core concepts:

  Basic Options Option Formats Validation

• Advanced Features

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  Unlock the full power of argus:

  Subcommands Multi-Values Environment Variables

• API Reference

  ---

  Complete documentation for developers:

  Functions Macros Types

Features at a glance

argus provides a unique combination of power and simplicity for C command-line argument parsing:

• Elegant API - Concise, expressive macros for defining options
• Type Safety - Built-in support for strings, integers, floats, booleans
• Multi-Value Collections - Arrays and maps for complex data
• Nested Subcommands - Git/Docker-style command hierarchies
• Input Validation - Range, regex, and custom validators
• Error Handling - Clear, informative error messages
• Environment Variables - Auto-load options from environment
• Help Generation - Beautiful, formatted help output

Quick Example

#include "argus.h"
#include <stdio.h>

// Define options
ARGUS_OPTIONS(
    options,
    HELP_OPTION(),
    VERSION_OPTION(),
    OPTION_FLAG('v', "verbose", HELP("Enable verbose output")),
    OPTION_STRING('o', "output", HELP("Output file"), DEFAULT("output.txt")),
    OPTION_INT('p', "port", HELP("Port number"), RANGE(1, 65535), DEFAULT(8080)),
    POSITIONAL_STRING("input", HELP("Input file"))
)

int main(int argc, char **argv)
{
    // Initialize argus
    argus_t argus = argus_init(options, "my_program", "1.0.0");
    argus.description = "argus demonstrator";

    // Parse arguments
    if (argus_parse(&argus, argc, argv) != ARGUS_SUCCESS) {
        return 1;
    }

    // Access parsed values
    const char *input = argus_get(argus, "input").as_string;
    const char *output = argus_get(argus, "output").as_string;
    int port = argus_get(argus, "port").as_int;
    bool verbose = argus_get(argus, "verbose").as_bool;

    printf("Configuration:\n");
    printf("  Input: %s\n", input);
    printf("  Output: %s\n", output);
    printf("  Port: %d\n", port);
    printf("  Verbose: %s\n", verbose ? "yes" : "no");

    // Free resources
    argus_free(&argus);
    return 0;
}

Automatic Help Display

When users invoke your program with --help, argus automatically generates a formatted help message like this:

my_program v1.0.0

argus demonstrator

Usage: my_program [OPTIONS] <input>

Arguments:
  <input>                - Input file

Options:
  -h, --help             - Display this help message (exit)
  -V, --version          - Display version information (exit)
  -v, --verbose          - Enable verbose output
  -o, --output <STR>     - Output file (default: "output.txt")
  -p, --port <NUM>       - Port number [1-65535] (default: 8080)

Getting Help

• User Guide - Learn how to use argus step by step
• API Reference - Explore the complete API documentation
• GitHub - Report issues or contribute to development

Community

We welcome contributions and feedback from the community:

• Contribute - Help improve argus
• License - MIT License