cbindgen

generate C/C++ headers from Rust FFI libraries

TLDR

Generate C header from Rust library

$ cbindgen -o [header.h]

Generate C++ header

$ cbindgen --lang c++ -o [header.hpp]

Generate C header explicitly

$ cbindgen --lang c -o [header.h]

Use specific config file

$ cbindgen --config [cbindgen.toml] -o [header.h]

Generate from specific crate

$ cbindgen --crate [crate_name] -o [header.h]

Show help

$ cbindgen --help

SYNOPSIS

cbindgen [options] [cratedirectory_]

cbindgen generates C and C++11 headers from Rust libraries that expose a public C API. It parses Rust source code and creates corresponding C declarations for FFI-exported types and functions.
Developed by Mozilla, it ensures generated headers match Rust's type layout and ABI guarantees.

PARAMETERS

-o, --output file

Output header file path

--lang language

Output language: c or c++ (default: c++)

--config file

Path to cbindgen.toml configuration

--crate name

Crate name to generate bindings for

--profile name

Cargo profile to use

-v, --verbose

Enable verbose output

-q, --quiet

Suppress output

--verify

Verify existing header matches generated

--help

Show help

CONFIGURATION

cbindgen.toml

Controls output language, header guards, include directives, formatting style, and type renaming rules.

BUILD SCRIPT USAGE

Add to build.rs for automatic generation on build.

CAVEATS

Only generates headers for pub extern "C" functions and #[repr(C)] types. Requires proper FFI annotations in Rust code. Configuration file customizes output format.