src/content/docs/plugin/cli.mdx
import PluginLinks from '@components/PluginLinks.astro'; import Compatibility from '@components/plugins/Compatibility.astro';
import { Tabs, TabItem, Steps } from '@astrojs/starlight/components'; import CommandTabs from '@components/CommandTabs.astro'; import PluginPermissions from '@components/PluginPermissions.astro';
<PluginLinks plugin={frontmatter.plugin} />Tauri enables your app to have a CLI through clap, a robust command line argument parser. With a simple CLI definition in your tauri.conf.json file, you can define your interface and read its argument matches map on JavaScript and/or Rust.
Install the CLI plugin to get started.
<Tabs> <TabItem label="Automatic"> Use your project's package manager to add the dependency:
<CommandTabs
npm="npm run tauri add cli"
yarn="yarn run tauri add cli"
pnpm="pnpm tauri add cli"
deno="deno task tauri add cli"
bun="bun tauri add cli"
cargo="cargo tauri add cli"
/>
</TabItem>
<TabItem label="Manual">
<Steps>
1. Run the following command in the `src-tauri` folder to add the plugin to the project's dependencies in `Cargo.toml`:
```sh frame=none
cargo add tauri-plugin-cli --target 'cfg(any(target_os = "macos", windows, target_os = "linux"))'
```
2. Modify `lib.rs` to initialize the plugin:
```rust title="src-tauri/src/lib.rs" ins={5-6}
#[cfg_attr(mobile, tauri::mobile_entry_point)]
pub fn run() {
tauri::Builder::default()
.setup(|app| {
#[cfg(desktop)]
app.handle().plugin(tauri_plugin_cli::init());
Ok(())
})
.run(tauri::generate_context!())
.expect("error while running tauri application");
}
```
3. Install the JavaScript Guest bindings using your preferred JavaScript package manager:
<CommandTabs
npm="npm install @tauri-apps/plugin-cli"
yarn="yarn add @tauri-apps/plugin-cli"
pnpm="pnpm add @tauri-apps/plugin-cli"
deno="deno add npm:@tauri-apps/plugin-cli"
bun="bun add @tauri-apps/plugin-cli"
/>
</Steps>
</TabItem>
Under tauri.conf.json, you have the following structure to configure the interface:
{
"plugins": {
"cli": {
"description": "Tauri CLI Plugin Example",
"args": [
{
"short": "v",
"name": "verbose",
"description": "Verbosity level"
}
],
"subcommands": {
"run": {
"description": "Run the application",
"args": [
{
"name": "debug",
"description": "Run application in debug mode"
},
{
"name": "release",
"description": "Run application in release mode"
}
]
}
}
}
}
}
:::note
All JSON configurations here are just samples, many other fields have been omitted for the sake of clarity.
:::
The args array represents the list of arguments accepted by its command or subcommand.
A positional argument is identified by its position in the list of arguments. With the following configuration:
{
"args": [
{
"name": "source",
"index": 1,
"takesValue": true
},
{
"name": "destination",
"index": 2,
"takesValue": true
}
]
}
Users can run your app as ./app tauri.txt dest.txt and the arg matches map will define source as "tauri.txt" and destination as "dest.txt".
A named argument is a (key, value) pair where the key identifies the value. With the following configuration:
{
"args": [
{
"name": "type",
"short": "t",
"takesValue": true,
"multiple": true,
"possibleValues": ["foo", "bar"]
}
]
}
Users can run your app as ./app --type foo bar, ./app -t foo -t bar or ./app --type=foo,bar and the arg matches map will define type as ["foo", "bar"].
A flag argument is a standalone key whose presence or absence provides information to your application. With the following configuration:
{
"args": [
{
"name": "verbose",
"short": "v"
}
]
}
Users can run your app as ./app -v -v -v, ./app --verbose --verbose --verbose or ./app -vvv and the arg matches map will define verbose as true, with occurrences = 3.
Some CLI applications have additional interfaces as subcommands. For instance, the git CLI has git branch, git commit and git push. You can define additional nested interfaces with the subcommands array:
{
"cli": {
...
"subcommands": {
"branch": {
"args": []
},
"push": {
"args": []
}
}
}
}
Its configuration is the same as the root application configuration, with the description, longDescription, args, etc.
The CLI plugin is available in both JavaScript and Rust.
<Tabs syncKey="lang"> <TabItem label="JavaScript">import { getMatches } from '@tauri-apps/plugin-cli';
// when using `"withGlobalTauri": true`, you may use
// const { getMatches } = window.__TAURI__.cli;
const matches = await getMatches();
if (matches.subcommand?.name === 'run') {
// `./your-app run $ARGS` was executed
const args = matches.subcommand.matches.args;
if (args.debug?.value === true) {
// `./your-app run --debug` was executed
}
if (args.release?.value === true) {
// `./your-app run --release` was executed
}
}
use tauri_plugin_cli::CliExt;
#[cfg_attr(mobile, tauri::mobile_entry_point)]
pub fn run() {
tauri::Builder::default()
.plugin(tauri_plugin_cli::init())
.setup(|app| {
match app.cli().matches() {
// `matches` here is a Struct with { args, subcommand }.
// `args` is `HashMap<String, ArgData>` where `ArgData` is a struct with { value, occurrences }.
// `subcommand` is `Option<Box<SubcommandMatches>>` where `SubcommandMatches` is a struct with { name, matches }.
Ok(matches) => {
println!("{:?}", matches)
}
Err(_) => {}
}
Ok(())
})
.run(tauri::generate_context!())
.expect("error while running tauri application");
}
By default all potentially dangerous plugin commands and scopes are blocked and cannot be accessed. You must modify the permissions in your capabilities configuration to enable these.
See the Capabilities Overview for more information and the step by step guide to use plugin permissions.
{
"$schema": "../gen/schemas/desktop-schema.json",
"identifier": "main-capability",
"description": "Capability for the main window",
"windows": ["main"],
"permissions": ["cli:default"]
}