Rust API Service — Project CLAUDE.md

Real-world example for a Rust API service with Axum, PostgreSQL, and Docker. Copy this to your project root and customize for your service.

Project Overview

Stack: Rust 1.78+, Axum (web framework), SQLx (async database), PostgreSQL, Tokio (async runtime), Docker

Architecture: Layered architecture with handler → service → repository separation. Axum for HTTP, SQLx for type-checked SQL at compile time, Tower middleware for cross-cutting concerns.

Critical Rules

Rust Conventions

Use thiserror for library errors, anyhow only in binary crates or tests
No .unwrap() or .expect() in production code — propagate errors with ?
Prefer &str over String in function parameters; return String when ownership transfers
Use clippy with #![deny(clippy::all, clippy::pedantic)] — fix all warnings
Derive Debug on all public types; derive Clone, PartialEq only when needed
No unsafe blocks unless justified with a // SAFETY: comment

Database

All queries use SQLx query! or query_as! macros — compile-time verified against the schema
Migrations in migrations/ using sqlx migrate — never alter the database directly
Use sqlx::Pool<Postgres> as shared state — never create connections per request
All queries use parameterized placeholders ($1, $2) — never string formatting

rust

// BAD: String interpolation (SQL injection risk)
let q = format!("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = '{}'", id);

// GOOD: Parameterized query, compile-time checked
let user = sqlx::query_as!(User, "SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $1", id)
    .fetch_optional(&pool)
    .await?;

Error Handling

Define a domain error enum per module with thiserror
Map errors to HTTP responses via IntoResponse — never expose internal details
Use tracing for structured logging — never println! or eprintln!

rust

use thiserror::Error;

#[derive(Debug, Error)]
pub enum AppError {
    #[error("Resource not found")]
    NotFound,
    #[error("Validation failed: {0}")]
    Validation(String),
    #[error("Unauthorized")]
    Unauthorized,
    #[error(transparent)]
    Internal(#[from] anyhow::Error),
}

impl IntoResponse for AppError {
    fn into_response(self) -> Response {
        let (status, message) = match &self {
            Self::NotFound => (StatusCode::NOT_FOUND, self.to_string()),
            Self::Validation(msg) => (StatusCode::BAD_REQUEST, msg.clone()),
            Self::Unauthorized => (StatusCode::UNAUTHORIZED, self.to_string()),
            Self::Internal(err) => {
                tracing::error!(?err, "internal error");
                (StatusCode::INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR, "Internal error".into())
            }
        };
        (status, Json(json!({ "error": message }))).into_response()
    }
}

Testing

Unit tests in #[cfg(test)] modules within each source file
Integration tests in tests/ directory using a real PostgreSQL (Testcontainers or Docker)
Use #[sqlx::test] for database tests with automatic migration and rollback
Mock external services with mockall or wiremock

Code Style

Max line length: 100 characters (enforced by rustfmt)
Group imports: std, external crates, crate/super — separated by blank lines
Modules: one file per module, mod.rs only for re-exports
Types: PascalCase, functions/variables: snake_case, constants: UPPER_SNAKE_CASE

File Structure

src/
  main.rs              # Entrypoint, server setup, graceful shutdown
  lib.rs               # Re-exports for integration tests
  config.rs            # Environment config with envy or figment
  router.rs            # Axum router with all routes
  middleware/
    auth.rs            # JWT extraction and validation
    logging.rs         # Request/response tracing
  handlers/
    mod.rs             # Route handlers (thin — delegate to services)
    users.rs
    orders.rs
  services/
    mod.rs             # Business logic
    users.rs
    orders.rs
  repositories/
    mod.rs             # Database access (SQLx queries)
    users.rs
    orders.rs
  domain/
    mod.rs             # Domain types, error enums
    user.rs
    order.rs
migrations/
  001_create_users.sql
  002_create_orders.sql
tests/
  common/mod.rs        # Shared test helpers, test server setup
  api_users.rs         # Integration tests for user endpoints
  api_orders.rs        # Integration tests for order endpoints

Key Patterns

Handler (Thin)

rust

async fn create_user(
    State(ctx): State<AppState>,
    Json(payload): Json<CreateUserRequest>,
) -> Result<(StatusCode, Json<UserResponse>), AppError> {
    let user = ctx.user_service.create(payload).await?;
    Ok((StatusCode::CREATED, Json(UserResponse::from(user))))
}

Service (Business Logic)

rust

impl UserService {
    pub async fn create(&self, req: CreateUserRequest) -> Result<User, AppError> {
        if self.repo.find_by_email(&req.email).await?.is_some() {
            return Err(AppError::Validation("Email already registered".into()));
        }

        let password_hash = hash_password(&req.password)?;
        let user = self.repo.insert(&req.email, &req.name, &password_hash).await?;

        Ok(user)
    }
}

Repository (Data Access)

rust

impl UserRepository {
    pub async fn find_by_email(&self, email: &str) -> Result<Option<User>, sqlx::Error> {
        sqlx::query_as!(User, "SELECT * FROM users WHERE email = $1", email)
            .fetch_optional(&self.pool)
            .await
    }

    pub async fn insert(
        &self,
        email: &str,
        name: &str,
        password_hash: &str,
    ) -> Result<User, sqlx::Error> {
        sqlx::query_as!(
            User,
            r#"INSERT INTO users (email, name, password_hash)
               VALUES ($1, $2, $3) RETURNING *"#,
            email, name, password_hash,
        )
        .fetch_one(&self.pool)
        .await
    }
}

Integration Test

rust

#[tokio::test]
async fn test_create_user() {
    let app = spawn_test_app().await;

    let response = app
        .client
        .post(&format!("{}/api/v1/users", app.address))
        .json(&json!({
            "email": "[email protected]",
            "name": "Alice",
            "password": "securepassword123"
        }))
        .send()
        .await
        .expect("Failed to send request");

    assert_eq!(response.status(), StatusCode::CREATED);
    let body: serde_json::Value = response.json().await.unwrap();
    assert_eq!(body["email"], "[email protected]");
}

#[tokio::test]
async fn test_create_user_duplicate_email() {
    let app = spawn_test_app().await;
    // Create first user
    create_test_user(&app, "[email protected]").await;
    // Attempt duplicate
    let response = create_user_request(&app, "[email protected]").await;
    assert_eq!(response.status(), StatusCode::BAD_REQUEST);
}

Environment Variables

bash

# Server
HOST=0.0.0.0
PORT=8080
RUST_LOG=info,tower_http=debug

# Database
DATABASE_URL=postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/myapp

# Auth
JWT_SECRET=your-secret-key-min-32-chars
JWT_EXPIRY_HOURS=24

# Optional
CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS=http://localhost:3000

Testing Strategy

bash

# Run all tests
cargo test

# Run with output
cargo test -- --nocapture

# Run specific test module
cargo test api_users

# Check coverage (requires cargo-llvm-cov)
cargo llvm-cov --html
open target/llvm-cov/html/index.html

# Lint
cargo clippy -- -D warnings

# Format check
cargo fmt -- --check

ECC Workflow

bash

# Planning
/plan "Add order fulfillment with Stripe payment"

# Development with TDD
/tdd                    # cargo test-based TDD workflow

# Review
/code-review            # Rust-specific code review
/security-scan          # Dependency audit + unsafe scan

# Verification
/verify                 # Build, clippy, test, security scan

Git Workflow

feat: new features, fix: bug fixes, refactor: code changes
Feature branches from main, PRs required
CI: cargo fmt --check, cargo clippy, cargo test, cargo audit
Deploy: Docker multi-stage build with scratch or distroless base