clang-tool-chain-bins 0.4.1

LLVM/Clang Toolchain Build Tools - Rust-powered toolchain packaging with Python bindings

clang-tool-chain-bins

clang-tool-chain-bins is the package and CLI for querying and installing the archived LLVM, Clang, MSVC-adjacent, and related tool bundles managed in this repository.

It is designed for machine consumption first:

• per-archive JSON indexes for every *.tar.zst
• aggregate tool index for exact and glob lookup
• JSON Lines query output for scripting and AI agents
• install resolution with cache tracking and concurrency-safe locking

Install

pip install clang-tool-chain-bins

The CLI uses ~/.clang-tool-chain as its default cache and install root. Set CLANG_TOOL_CHAIN_DOWNLOAD_PATH or pass --home-dir to use a different location.

Python API

The published package now exposes an importable top-level API at clang_tool_chain_bins.

from clang_tool_chain_bins import ensure, install, is_installed, query, resolve_one

matches = query("clang", platform="win", arch="x86_64")
selected = resolve_one("clang", platform="win", arch="x86_64", version="21.1.5", component="clang")

if not is_installed("clang", platform="win", arch="x86_64", version="21.1.5", component="clang"):
    result = ensure("clang", platform="win", arch="x86_64", version="21.1.5", component="clang")[0]
    print(result.install_path)

Public API types:

• ToolMatch
• QueryResult
• InstallResult

Public API functions:

• query(*patterns, ...)
• resolve(tool, ...)
• resolve_one(tool, ...)
• is_installed(tool, ...)
• install(tool, ...)
• ensure(tool, ...)
• try_install(tool, ...)

Query CLI

query is the discovery command. Default JSONL output returns one matched entry per line.

• Patterns without glob characters are exact matches.
• Patterns containing *, ?, or [] use glob matching.
• Matching is case-insensitive against both normalized tool_name and the archived file_name.
• Filters narrow matches by platform, arch, version, and component.
• Output is JSON Lines by default, one matched entry per line. Use --pretty for a human-readable table plus per-match source URL and install path details.

Exact lookup:

clang-tool-chain-bins query clang

Glob lookup:

clang-tool-chain-bins query "llvm-*"

Multiple patterns in one call:

clang-tool-chain-bins query clang clang++ --platform linux --arch x86_64

Pretty output:

clang-tool-chain-bins query clang++ --pretty

Typical JSONL shape:

{"query":"clang","tool_name":"clang","file_name":"clang","component":"clang","version":"21.1.5","platform":"linux","arch":"x86_64","archive_url":"https://...","source_urls":["https://..."],"archive_sha256":"...","local_cache_path":"...","install_path":"...","installed":false}

Each JSON line for a match includes the aggregate index metadata plus derived local state such as:

• query
• tool_name and file_name
• component, version, platform, arch
• archive_filename, archive_path, archive_sha256, archive_url
• source_urls
• path_in_archive, tool_type, tool_sha256, size
• parts, download_kind, probe_urls
• local_cache_path
• install_path
• installed

installed is a local state check against the selected home directory. It becomes true when the install directory or its done.txt marker already exists there; it is not a remote availability check.

install_path is always the resolved destination for that archive candidate, even when installed is false. source_urls resolves to the concrete download URL list for that match; for normal archives it is a one-item list, and for multipart archives it contains the part URLs.

If a query has no matches, the JSONL stream emits a marker line like {"query":"missing-tool","matched":false}.

Index selection for query works like this:

• --index PATH uses that local aggregate index file.
• CLANG_TOOL_CHAIN_BINS_INDEX_URL overrides the remote index URL when --index is not set.
• Otherwise the CLI first tries to discover a repo-relative raw GitHub tool-index.json.
• If that remote lookup fails, it falls back to the packaged local index at tools/data/tool-index.json.

Install CLI

install resolves an exact tool or filename to one or more archive candidates, then downloads and extracts the selected archive.

• install does not support globs.
• Matching is exact against tool_name or file_name.
• If more than one archive matches, the command exits with an error unless you add filters or pass --all.
• Output is always JSON, one object per installed candidate.
• --dry-run prints the install plan without downloading or extracting anything.

Install a single archive:

clang-tool-chain-bins install clang --platform linux --arch x86_64

Preview the plan only:

clang-tool-chain-bins install clang --platform linux --arch x86_64 --dry-run

If multiple archives match, narrow the selection with:

• --platform
• --arch
• --version
• --component

Use --all to install every matching archive.

Typical install result:

{"operation":"install","status":"installed","tool_name":"clang","component":"clang","version":"21.1.5","platform":"linux","arch":"x86_64","install_path":"~/.clang-tool-chain/clang/linux/x86_64","archive_sha256":"...","archive_url":"https://...","dry_run":false}

Possible status values include:

• installed
• already_installed
• dry_run

The installer is concurrency-safe for each component/platform/arch target:

• archives are cached under HOME/archives/
• installs land under HOME/<component>/<platform>/<arch>/
• a per-target lock file prevents concurrent writers
• done.txt records the installed archive hash and source URL

Download behavior:

• file:// archive URLs are copied directly
• HTTP(S) archive URLs are downloaded automatically

install uses the packaged local aggregate index unless --index is provided. Unlike query, it does not try to fetch a remote index automatically.

Index Generation

Generate or refresh sidecar indexes and the aggregate tool index:

clang-tool-chain-bins-index

Publishing

Build and validate release artifacts locally:

clang-tool-chain-bins-publish --skip-upload

Publish to TestPyPI:

clang-tool-chain-bins-publish --testpypi

Publish to PyPI:

clang-tool-chain-bins-publish

By default the publish script reads the token from PYPI_TOKEN.

Repository Scope

This repository still contains maintainer-oriented archive build scripts under tools/. The published package hardens the artifact boundary so wheel and sdist contents are limited to intentional code, metadata, tests, and generated tool index data rather than the raw archive payloads.