# easy_fuser
`easy_fuser` is a high-level, ergonomic wrapper around the `fuser` crate, designed to simplify
the process of implementing FUSE (Filesystem in Userspace) filesystems in Rust. It abstracts away
many of the complexities, offering a more intuitive and Rust-idiomatic approach to filesystem development.
## Key Features
- **Simplified API**: Provides a higher-level interface compared to `fuser`, reducing boilerplate
and making filesystem implementation more straightforward.
- **Flexible Concurrency Models**: Offers three distinct concurrency models to suit different
use cases and performance requirements.
- **Flexible File Identification**: Supports both path-based and inode-based operations,
allowing you to choose between `Inode` and `PathBuf` as your file identifier type. This
offers flexibility in how you represent and manage file identities, suitable for different
filesystem structures and performance requirements.
- **Error Handling**: Provides a structured error handling system, facilitating the management
of filesystem-specific errors.
- **Templates and Examples**: Includes pre-built templates and a comprehensive examples folder
to help you get started quickly and understand various implementation patterns.
## File Identification Flexibility
`easy_fuser` supports two main approaches for file identification:
1. **Path-based Operations**: Work with file paths directly, which can be more intuitive for
certain use cases.
2. **Inode-based Operations**: Use inode numbers for more efficient control, especially useful
for complex filesystem structures or when performance is critical.
You can choose the approach that best fits your filesystem's needs and switch between them
as necessary.
## Usage
To use `easy_fuser`, follow these steps:
1. Implement the `FuseHandler` trait for your filesystem structure.
2. (Optional) Utilize provided templates to jumpstart your implementation.
3. Choose an appropriate concurrency model by enabling the corresponding feature.
4. Use the `mount` or `spawn_mount` functions to start your filesystem.
Here's a basic example:
```rust,no_run
use easy_fuser::prelude::*;
use easy_fuser::templates::DefaultFuseHandler;
use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
struct MyFS {
inner: Box<DefaultFuseHandler>,
}
impl FuseHandler<PathBuf> for MyFS {
fn get_inner(&self) -> &dyn FuseHandler<PathBuf> {
self.inner.as_ref()
}
}
fn main() -> std::io::Result<()> {
let fs = MyFS { inner: Box::new(DefaultFuseHandler::new()) };
easy_fuser::mount(fs, Path::new("/mnt/myfs"), &[], 1)
}
```
## Templates
`easy_fuser` provides a set of templates to help you get started quickly:
- **DefaultFuseHandler**: A backbone implementation that acts as a NullFs, implementing every
operation. It can also be used as a PanicFs for debugging purposes.
- **FdHandlerHelper**: Provides boilerplate for operations on open files (ReadOnly and ReadWrite variants available)
- **MirrorFs**: A passthrough filesystem that can be leveraged for creating more complex filesystems.
These templates serve as starting points or building blocks for your custom filesystem implementations.
## Examples
The `examples` folder in the repository is currently under construction. It is expected to include
various implementations demonstrating different aspects of filesystem creation, including:
- ZipFs: A filesystem for browsing and accessing zip archives.
- FtpFs: A filesystem that provides access to FTP servers.
- SqlFs: A filesystem that represents SQL database contents.
These examples, once completed, will serve as valuable references when building your own filesystem.
## Feature Flags
This crate provides three mutually exclusive feature flags for different concurrency models:
- `serial`: Enables single-threaded operation. Use this for simplicity and when concurrent
access is not required. When this feature is enabled, `num_threads` must be set to 1.
- `parallel`: Enables multi-threaded operation using a thread pool. This is suitable for
scenarios where you want to handle multiple filesystem operations concurrently on separate
threads. It can improve performance on multi-core systems.
- `async`: *_This is not yet implemented_* Enables asynchronous operation. This is ideal for high-concurrency scenarios and
when you want to integrate the filesystem with asynchronous Rust code. It allows for
efficient handling of many concurrent operations without the overhead of threads.
You must enable exactly one of these features when using this crate. The choice depends on
your specific use case and performance requirements.
Example usage in Cargo.toml:
```toml
[dependencies]
easy_fuser = { version = "0.1.0", features = ["parallel"] }
```
By leveraging `easy_fuser`, you can focus more on your filesystem's logic and less on the
intricacies of FUSE implementation, making it easier to create robust, efficient, and
maintainable filesystem solutions in Rust.