rable 0.1.6

A Rust implementation of the Parable bash parser

Rable

A complete GNU Bash 5.3-compatible parser, written in Rust.

Rable is a from-scratch reimplementation of Parable — the excellent Python-based bash parser by @ldayton. It produces identical S-expression output and provides a drop-in replacement Python API via PyO3.

Acknowledgments

This project would not exist without Parable.

Parable is a remarkable piece of work — a complete, well-tested bash parser that produces clean S-expression AST output validated against bash's own internal parser. Its comprehensive test suite (1,604 tests across 36 files) defines the gold standard for bash parsing correctness, and Rable's compatibility is measured entirely against it.

We are deeply grateful to @ldayton for:

• Building a high-quality, MIT-licensed bash parser that others can learn from and build upon
• Creating the bash-oracle approach that validates parser output against bash itself
• Maintaining the extensive .tests corpus that made Rable's development possible
• Designing the clean S-expression output format that Rable faithfully reproduces

Rable exists because Parable showed the way. Thank you.

Compatibility

Metric	Value
Parable test compatibility	1,604 / 1,604 (100%)
Test files at 100%	36 / 36
S-expression output	Identical to Parable

Performance

Rable is approximately 9.5x faster than Parable across all test inputs:

Input Type	Parable	Rable	Speedup
Simple command	41us	5us	8.1x
Pipeline (5 stages)	144us	14us	10.6x
Nested compound	265us	27us	10.0x
Complex real-world script	640us	67us	9.5x
Overall	2.1ms	221us	9.5x

Run just benchmark to reproduce these results on your machine.

Installation

As a Rust library

[dependencies]
rable = "0.1"

As a Python package

pip install rable

Or build from source:

just setup       # creates venv, builds bindings, installs Parable
just develop     # rebuild after code changes

Usage

Rust

use rable::parse;

fn main() {
    let nodes = parse("echo hello | grep h", false).unwrap();
    for node in &nodes {
        println!("{node}");
    }
    // Output: (pipe (command (word "echo") (word "hello")) (command (word "grep") (word "h")))
}

Python

from rable import parse, ParseError, MatchedPairError

# Parse bash source into AST nodes
nodes = parse('if [ -f file ]; then cat file; fi')
for node in nodes:
    print(node.to_sexp())
# Output: (if (command (word "[") (word "-f") (word "file") (word "]")) (command (word "cat") (word "file")))

# Errors are raised as exceptions
try:
    parse('if')
except ParseError as e:
    print(f"Syntax error: {e}")

# Enable extended glob patterns
nodes = parse('echo @(foo|bar)', extglob=True)

The Python API is a drop-in replacement for Parable:

# Before (Parable)
from parable import parse, ParseError, MatchedPairError

# After (Rable) — same API, ~10x faster
from rable import parse, ParseError, MatchedPairError

Development

Prerequisites

• Rust 1.93+ (see rust-toolchain.toml)
• Python 3.12+ (for Python bindings)
• just (task runner)

Quick start

just              # format, lint, test
just check        # same as above
just test-parable # run full Parable compatibility suite
just setup        # set up Python environment + benchmarks
just benchmark    # compare performance vs Parable

Available commands

Command	Description
just	Format, lint, and test (default)
just fmt	Format all Rust code
just clippy	Run clippy with strict settings
just test	Run all Rust tests
just test-parable	Run Parable compatibility suite
just test-file NAME	Run a specific test file
just setup	Full Python environment setup
just develop	Build and install Python bindings
just test-python	Run Parable's test runner with Rable
just benchmark	Performance benchmark vs Parable
just ci	Run exactly what CI runs
just clean	Clean build artifacts

Architecture

Rable is a hand-written recursive descent parser with a context-sensitive lexer:

Module	Responsibility
lexer/	Context-sensitive tokenizer with heredoc, quote, and expansion handling
parser/	Recursive descent parser for all bash constructs
ast.rs	50+ AST node types covering the full bash grammar
sexp/	S-expression output with word segment processing
format/	Canonical bash reformatter (used for command substitution content)
python.rs	PyO3 bindings (feature-gated)

Design principles

1. Compatibility is correctness — output matches Parable's S-expressions exactly
2. If it is not tested, it is not shipped — 1,604 integration tests + unit tests
3. Simplicity is king — solve problems with least complexity
4. Correctness over speed — match bash-oracle behavior, optimize later

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please ensure:

1. All tests pass: just check must succeed
2. Parable compatibility: just test-parable must show 1604/1604
3. Code quality: No clippy warnings (just clippy)
4. Formatting: Code is formatted (just fmt)

Adding new features

If you're adding support for new bash syntax:

1. Add test cases to the appropriate .tests file in tests/parable/
2. Implement the lexer/parser changes
3. Verify S-expression output matches what Parable would produce
4. Run just test-parable to confirm no regressions

Code limits

Limit	Value
Line width	100 chars
Function length	60 lines
Cognitive complexity	15
Function arguments	5
Clippy	deny(unwrap_used, expect_used, panic, todo)

License

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.

Disclosure

Rable is a complete reimplementation of Parable in Rust. It was built by studying Parable's test suite and output format, not by translating Parable's Python source code. The test corpus (tests/parable/*.tests) originates from the Parable project and is used under its MIT license.