enhance cpp and rust tokio examples

Co-authored-by: Copilot <copilot@github.com>

.gitignore

@@ -11,7 +11,10 @@ tests/test_ffi_context
 tests/test_serial
 
 # Generated binding crates (regenerated by `nimble genbindings_*`)
-examples/**/nim_bindings/
+examples/**/rust_bindings/target/
+
+# Example build artifacts
+examples/**/cpp_bindings/build/
 
 # Cargo build artifacts
 examples/**/rust_client/target/

README.md

@@ -1,2 +1,7 @@
 # nim-ffi
 Allows exposing Nim projects to other languages
+
+## Example
+
+`examples/nim_timer` is now a self-contained Nimble project that imports `nim-ffi` directly.
+Use `cd examples/nim_timer && nimble install -y ../.. && nimble build` to compile the example.

examples/nim_timer/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+# nim_timer example
+
+This example is a self-contained Nimble project demonstrating how to import `nim-ffi` and use the `.ffiCtor.` / `.ffi.` abstraction.
+
+## Usage
+
+1. Change into the example directory:
+   ```sh
+   cd examples/nim_timer
+   ```
+
+2. Install the local `ffi` dependency:
+   ```sh
+   nimble install -y ../..
+   ```
+
+3. Build the example library:
+   ```sh
+   nimble build
+   ```
+
+4. Generate bindings:
+   ```sh
+   nimble genbindings_rust
+   nimble genbindings_cpp
+   ```
+
+## Rust example clients
+
+The Rust client lives in `examples/nim_timer/rust_client`.
+
+- Run the sync example:
+  ```sh
+  cd examples/nim_timer/rust_client
+  cargo run --bin rust_client
+  ```
+
+- Run the Tokio example:
+  ```sh
+  cd examples/nim_timer/rust_client
+  cargo run --bin tokio_client
+  ```
+
+## C++ example
+
+The generated C++ example lives in `examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings`.
+
+Build and run it with:
+```sh
+cd examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings
+cmake -S . -B build
+cmake --build build
+./build/example
+```

examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings/CMakeLists.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.14)
+project(nimtimer_cpp_bindings CXX)
+
+set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
+set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED ON)
+
+# ── nlohmann/json ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+include(FetchContent)
+FetchContent_Declare(
+    nlohmann_json
+    GIT_REPOSITORY https://github.com/nlohmann/json.git
+    GIT_TAG        v3.11.3
+    GIT_SHALLOW    TRUE
+)
+FetchContent_MakeAvailable(nlohmann_json)
+
+# ── Locate the repository root (contains ffi.nimble) ─────────────────────────
+set(_search_dir "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}")
+set(REPO_ROOT "")
+foreach(_i RANGE 10)
+    if(EXISTS "${_search_dir}/ffi.nimble")
+        set(REPO_ROOT "${_search_dir}")
+        break()
+    endif()
+    get_filename_component(_search_dir "${_search_dir}" DIRECTORY)
+endforeach()
+if("${REPO_ROOT}" STREQUAL "")
+    message(FATAL_ERROR "Cannot find repo root (no ffi.nimble in any ancestor)")
+endif()
+
+# ── Nim source path ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+get_filename_component(NIM_SRC
+    "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}/../nim_timer.nim"
+    ABSOLUTE)
+
+# ── Compile the Nim shared library ───────────────────────────────────────────
+find_program(NIM_EXECUTABLE nim REQUIRED)
+
+if(CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME STREQUAL "Darwin")
+    set(NIM_LIB_FILE "${REPO_ROOT}/libnimtimer.dylib")
+elseif(CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME STREQUAL "Windows")
+    set(NIM_LIB_FILE "${REPO_ROOT}/nimtimer.dll")
+else()
+    set(NIM_LIB_FILE "${REPO_ROOT}/libnimtimer.so")
+endif()
+
+add_custom_command(
+    OUTPUT  "${NIM_LIB_FILE}"
+    COMMAND "${NIM_EXECUTABLE}" c
+                --mm:orc
+                -d:chronicles_log_level=WARN
+                --app:lib
+                --noMain
+                "--nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer"
+                "-o:${NIM_LIB_FILE}"
+                "${NIM_SRC}"
+    WORKING_DIRECTORY "${REPO_ROOT}"
+    DEPENDS "${NIM_SRC}"
+    COMMENT "Compiling Nim library libnimtimer"
+    VERBATIM
+)
+add_custom_target(nim_lib ALL DEPENDS "${NIM_LIB_FILE}")
+
+add_library(nimtimer SHARED IMPORTED GLOBAL)
+set_target_properties(nimtimer PROPERTIES IMPORTED_LOCATION "${NIM_LIB_FILE}")
+add_dependencies(nimtimer nim_lib)
+
+# ── Interface target exposing the generated header ────────────────────────────
+add_library(nimtimer_headers INTERFACE)
+target_include_directories(nimtimer_headers INTERFACE "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}")
+target_link_libraries(nimtimer_headers INTERFACE nimtimer nlohmann_json::nlohmann_json)
+
+# ── Optional example executable ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+if(EXISTS "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}/main.cpp")
+    add_executable(example main.cpp)
+    target_link_libraries(example PRIVATE nimtimer_headers)
+    add_dependencies(example nim_lib)
+endif()

examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+# C++ Bindings for nim-timer
+
+## Purpose
+
+This folder contains **auto-generated C++ bindings** for the `nim_timer` Nim library. It is generated from `../nim_timer.nim` and provides:
+
+- `nimtimer.hpp`: High-level C++ class (`NimTimerCtx`) wrapping the FFI interface
+- `main.cpp`: Example executable demonstrating how to use the bindings
+- `CMakeLists.txt`: Build configuration that compiles the Nim library and links the C++ example
+
+## How It's Generated
+
+Generate or regenerate these bindings by running from the parent directory:
+
+```sh
+cd examples/nim_timer
+nimble genbindings_cpp
+```
+
+This command:
+1. Invokes the Nim compiler with `-d:targetLang:cpp` flag
+2. Triggers `genBindings("examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings", "../nim_timer.nim")` in `nim_timer.nim`
+3. Creates/updates the generated binding files
+
+## Building the Example
+
+```sh
+cd examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings
+cmake -S . -B build
+cmake --build build
+./build/example
+```
+
+## Do Not Edit
+
+The generated files in this folder are overwritten each time `nimble genbindings_cpp` runs. Any manual changes will be lost.

examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings/main.cpp

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+#include "nimtimer.hpp"
+#include <iostream>
+
+int main() {
+    try {
+        auto ctx = NimTimerCtx::create(TimerConfig{"cpp-demo"});
+        std::cout << "[1] Context created\n";
+
+        auto version = ctx.version();
+        std::cout << "[2] Version: " << version << "\n";
+
+        auto echo = ctx.echo(EchoRequest{"hello from C++", 200});
+        std::cout << "[3] Echo 1: echoed=" << echo.echoed
+                  << ", timerName=" << echo.timerName << "\n";
+
+        auto echo2 = ctx.echo(EchoRequest{"second C++ request", 50});
+        std::cout << "[4] Echo 2: echoed=" << echo2.echoed
+                  << ", timerName=" << echo2.timerName << "\n";
+
+        auto complexReq = ComplexRequest{
+            std::vector<EchoRequest>{EchoRequest{"one", 10}, EchoRequest{"two", 20}},
+            std::vector<std::string>{"fast", "async"},
+            std::optional<std::string>("extra note"),
+            std::optional<int64_t>(3)
+        };
+        auto complex = ctx.complex(complexReq);
+        std::cout << "[5] Complex: summary=" << complex.summary
+                  << ", itemCount=" << complex.itemCount
+                  << ", hasNote=" << complex.hasNote << "\n";
+
+        std::cout << "\nDone.\n";
+    } catch (const std::exception& ex) {
+        std::cerr << "Error: " << ex.what() << "\n";
+        return 1;
+    }
+    return 0;
+}

examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings/nimtimer.hpp

@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+#pragma once
+#include <string>
+#include <cstdint>
+#include <stdexcept>
+#include <mutex>
+#include <condition_variable>
+#include <functional>
+#include <vector>
+#include <optional>
+#include <nlohmann/json.hpp>
+
+namespace nlohmann {
+    template<typename T>
+    void to_json(json& j, const std::optional<T>& opt) {
+        if (opt) j = *opt;
+        else j = nullptr;
+    }
+
+    template<typename T>
+    void from_json(const json& j, std::optional<T>& opt) {
+        if (j.is_null()) opt = std::nullopt;
+        else opt = j.get<T>();
+    }
+}
+
+// ============================================================
+// Types
+// ============================================================
+
+struct TimerConfig {
+    std::string name;
+};
+NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE(TimerConfig, name)
+
+struct EchoRequest {
+    std::string message;
+    int64_t delayMs;
+};
+NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE(EchoRequest, message, delayMs)
+
+struct EchoResponse {
+    std::string echoed;
+    std::string timerName;
+};
+NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE(EchoResponse, echoed, timerName)
+
+struct ComplexRequest {
+    std::vector<EchoRequest> messages;
+    std::vector<std::string> tags;
+    std::optional<std::string> note;
+    std::optional<int64_t> retries;
+};
+NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE(ComplexRequest, messages, tags, note, retries)
+
+struct ComplexResponse {
+    std::string summary;
+    int64_t itemCount;
+    bool hasNote;
+};
+NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE(ComplexResponse, summary, itemCount, hasNote)
+
+// ============================================================
+// C FFI declarations
+// ============================================================
+
+extern "C" {
+typedef void (*FfiCallback)(int ret, const char* msg, size_t len, void* user_data);
+
+int nimtimer_create(const char* config_json, FfiCallback callback, void* user_data);
+int nimtimer_echo(void* ctx, FfiCallback callback, void* user_data, const char* req_json);
+int nimtimer_version(void* ctx, FfiCallback callback, void* user_data);
+int nimtimer_complex(void* ctx, FfiCallback callback, void* user_data, const char* req_json);
+} // extern "C"
+
+
+template<typename T>
+inline std::string serializeFfiArg(const T& value) {
+    return nlohmann::json(value).dump();
+}
+
+inline std::string serializeFfiArg(void* value) {
+    return std::to_string(reinterpret_cast<uintptr_t>(value));
+}
+
+template<typename T>
+inline T deserializeFfiResult(const std::string& raw) {
+    return nlohmann::json::parse(raw).get<T>();
+}
+
+template<>
+inline void* deserializeFfiResult<void*>(const std::string& raw) {
+    return reinterpret_cast<void*>(static_cast<uintptr_t>(std::stoull(raw)));
+}
+
+// ============================================================
+// Synchronous call helper (anonymous namespace, header-only)
+// ============================================================
+
+namespace {
+
+struct FfiCallState_ {
+    std::mutex              mtx;
+    std::condition_variable cv;
+    bool                    done{false};
+    bool                    ok{false};
+    std::string             msg;
+};
+
+inline void ffi_cb_(int ret, const char* msg, size_t /*len*/, void* ud) {
+    auto* s = static_cast<FfiCallState_*>(ud);
+    std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lock(s->mtx);
+    s->ok   = (ret == 0);
+    s->msg  = msg ? std::string(msg) : std::string{};
+    s->done = true;
+    s->cv.notify_one();
+}
+
+inline std::string ffi_call_(std::function<int(FfiCallback, void*)> f) {
+    FfiCallState_ state;
+    const int ret = f(ffi_cb_, &state);
+    if (ret == 2)
+        throw std::runtime_error("RET_MISSING_CALLBACK (internal error)");
+    std::unique_lock<std::mutex> lock(state.mtx);
+    state.cv.wait(lock, [&state]{ return state.done; });
+    if (!state.ok)
+        throw std::runtime_error(state.msg);
+    return state.msg;
+}
+
+} // anonymous namespace
+
+// ============================================================
+// High-level C++ context class
+// ============================================================
+
+class NimTimerCtx {
+public:
+    static NimTimerCtx create(const TimerConfig& config) {
+        const auto config_json = serializeFfiArg(config);
+        const auto raw = ffi_call_([&](FfiCallback cb, void* ud) {
+            return nimtimer_create(config_json.c_str(), cb, ud);
+        });
+        // ctor returns the context address as a plain decimal string
+        const auto addr = std::stoull(raw);
+        return NimTimerCtx(reinterpret_cast<void*>(static_cast<uintptr_t>(addr)));
+    }
+
+    EchoResponse echo(const EchoRequest& req) const {
+        const auto req_json = serializeFfiArg(req);
+        const auto raw = ffi_call_([&](FfiCallback cb, void* ud) {
+            return nimtimer_echo(ptr_, cb, ud, req_json.c_str());
+        });
+        return deserializeFfiResult<EchoResponse>(raw);
+    }
+
+    std::string version() const {
+        const auto raw = ffi_call_([&](FfiCallback cb, void* ud) {
+            return nimtimer_version(ptr_, cb, ud);
+        });
+        return deserializeFfiResult<std::string>(raw);
+    }
+
+    ComplexResponse complex(const ComplexRequest& req) const {
+        const auto req_json = serializeFfiArg(req);
+        const auto raw = ffi_call_([&](FfiCallback cb, void* ud) {
+            return nimtimer_complex(ptr_, cb, ud, req_json.c_str());
+        });
+        return deserializeFfiResult<ComplexResponse>(raw);
+    }
+
+private:
+    void* ptr_;
+    explicit NimTimerCtx(void* p) : ptr_(p) {}
+};

examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim

@@ -1,10 +1,12 @@
-import ffi, chronos
+import ffi, chronos, options
+
+type Maybe[T] = Option[T]
 
 declareLibrary("nimtimer")
 
 # The library's main state type. The FFI context owns one instance.
 type NimTimer = object
-  name: string  # set at creation time, read back in each response
+  name: string # set at creation time, read back in each response
 
 ffiType:
   type TimerConfig = object
@@ -13,12 +15,25 @@ ffiType:
 ffiType:
   type EchoRequest = object
     message: string
-    delayMs: int  # how long chronos sleeps before replying
+    delayMs: int # how long chronos sleeps before replying
 
 ffiType:
   type EchoResponse = object
     echoed: string
-    timerName: string  # proves that the timer's own state is accessible
+    timerName: string # proves that the timer's own state is accessible
+
+ffiType:
+  type ComplexRequest = object
+    messages: seq[EchoRequest]
+    tags: seq[string]
+    note: Option[string]
+    retries: Maybe[int]
+
+ffiType:
+  type ComplexResponse = object
+    summary: string
+    itemCount: int
+    hasNote: bool
 
 # --- Constructor -----------------------------------------------------------
 # Called once from Rust. Creates the FFIContext + NimTimer.
@@ -26,7 +41,7 @@ ffiType:
 proc nimtimer_create*(
     config: TimerConfig
 ): Future[Result[NimTimer, string]] {.ffiCtor.} =
-  await sleepAsync(1.milliseconds)  # proves chronos is live on the FFI thread
+  await sleepAsync(1.milliseconds) # proves chronos is live on the FFI thread
   return ok(NimTimer(name: config.name))
 
 # --- Async method ----------------------------------------------------------
@@ -41,10 +56,18 @@ proc nimtimer_echo*(
 # --- Sync method -----------------------------------------------------------
 # No await — the macro detects this and fires the callback inline,
 # without going through the request channel.
-proc nimtimer_version*(
-    timer: NimTimer
-): Future[Result[string, string]] {.ffi.} =
+proc nimtimer_version*(timer: NimTimer): Future[Result[string, string]] {.ffi.} =
   return ok("nim-timer v0.1.0")
 
-when defined(ffiGenBindings):
-  genBindings("examples/nim_timer/nim_bindings", "../nim_timer.nim")
+proc nimtimer_complex*(
+    timer: NimTimer, req: ComplexRequest
+): Future[Result[ComplexResponse, string]] {.ffi.} =
+  let note = if req.note.isSome: req.note.get else: "<none>"
+  let retries = if req.retries.isSome: req.retries.get else: 0
+  let count = req.messages.len
+  let summary =
+    "received " & $count & " messages, note=" & note & ", retries=" & $retries
+  return
+    ok(ComplexResponse(summary: summary, itemCount: count, hasNote: req.note.isSome))
+
+genBindings() # reads -d:ffiOutputDir, -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath, -d:targetLang from compile flags

examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nimble

@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+version = "0.1.0"
+packageName = "nimtimer"
+author = "Institute of Free Technology"
+description = "Example Nim timer library using nim-ffi"
+license = "MIT or Apache License 2.0"
+
+requires "nim >= 2.2.4"
+requires "chronos"
+requires "chronicles"
+requires "taskpools"
+requires "ffi >= 0.1.3"
+
+# Build the example library and optionally generate bindings.
+task build, "Compile the nimtimer library":
+  exec "nim c --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=rust nim_timer.nim"
+
+task genbindings_rust, "Generate Rust bindings for the nimtimer example":
+  exec "nim c --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=rust nim_timer.nim"
+
+task genbindings_cpp, "Generate C++ bindings for the nimtimer example":
+  exec "nim c --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=cpp nim_timer.nim"

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/Cargo.toml

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+[package]
+name = "nimtimer"
+version = "0.1.0"
+edition = "2021"
+
+[dependencies]
+serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
+serde_json = "1"

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+# Rust Bindings for nim-timer
+
+## Purpose
+
+This folder contains **auto-generated Rust bindings** (the `nimtimer` crate) for the `nim_timer` Nim library. It is generated from `../nim_timer.nim` and provides:
+
+- `src/lib.rs`: Main library exposing high-level Rust types and the `NimTimerCtx` API
+- `src/api.rs`: High-level async/sync wrapper around the FFI
+- `src/ffi.rs`: Raw `extern "C"` declarations for the Nim library
+- `src/types.rs`: Serializable Rust types matching the Nim FFI types
+- `build.rs`: Build script that compiles the Nim library to `libnimtimer.dylib` (or `.so`/`.dll`)
+- `Cargo.toml`: Package manifest with serde and serde_json dependencies
+
+## How It's Generated
+
+Generate or regenerate these bindings by running from the parent directory:
+
+```sh
+cd examples/nim_timer
+nimble genbindings_rust
+```
+
+This command:
+1. Invokes the Nim compiler with `-d:targetLang:rust` flag
+2. Triggers `genBindings("examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings", "../nim_timer.nim")` in `nim_timer.nim`
+3. Creates/updates the generated binding files
+
+## Using as a Dependency
+
+The `rust_client` example consumes this crate:
+
+```toml
+[dependencies]
+nimtimer = { path = "../rust_bindings" }
+```
+
+## Do Not Edit
+
+The generated files in this folder are overwritten each time `nimble genbindings_rust` runs. Any manual changes will be lost.

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/build.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+use std::path::PathBuf;
+use std::process::Command;
+
+fn main() {
+    let manifest = PathBuf::from(std::env::var("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR").unwrap());
+    let nim_src = manifest.join("../nim_timer.nim");
+    let nim_src = nim_src.canonicalize().unwrap_or(manifest.join("../nim_timer.nim"));
+
+    // Walk up to find the nim-ffi repo root (directory containing nim_src's library)
+    // The repo root is where nim c should be run from (contains config.nims).
+    // We assume nim_src lives somewhere under repo_root.
+    // Derive repo_root as the ancestor that contains the .nimble file or config.nims.
+    let mut repo_root = nim_src.clone();
+    loop {
+        repo_root = match repo_root.parent() {
+            Some(p) => p.to_path_buf(),
+            None => break,
+        };
+        if repo_root.join("config.nims").exists() || repo_root.join("ffi.nimble").exists() {
+            break;
+        }
+    }
+
+    #[cfg(target_os = "macos")]
+    let lib_ext = "dylib";
+    #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+    let lib_ext = "so";
+
+    let out_lib = repo_root.join(format!("libnimtimer.{lib_ext}"));
+
+    let mut cmd = Command::new("nim");
+    cmd.arg("c")
+        .arg("--mm:orc")
+        .arg("-d:chronicles_log_level=WARN")
+        .arg("--app:lib")
+        .arg("--noMain")
+        .arg(format!("--nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer"))
+        .arg(format!("-o:{}", out_lib.display()));
+    cmd.arg(&nim_src).current_dir(&repo_root);
+
+    let status = cmd.status().expect("failed to run nim compiler");
+    assert!(status.success(), "Nim compilation failed");
+
+    println!("cargo:rustc-link-search={}", repo_root.display());
+    println!("cargo:rustc-link-lib=nimtimer");
+    println!("cargo:rerun-if-changed={}", nim_src.display());
+}

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/src/api.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+use std::ffi::{CStr, CString};
+use std::os::raw::{c_char, c_int, c_void};
+use std::sync::{Arc, Condvar, Mutex};
+use std::time::Duration;
+use super::ffi;
+use super::types::*;
+
+#[derive(Default)]
+struct FfiCallbackResult {
+    payload: Option<Result<String, String>>,
+}
+
+type Pair = Arc<(Mutex<FfiCallbackResult>, Condvar)>;
+
+unsafe extern "C" fn on_result(
+    ret: c_int,
+    msg: *const c_char,
+    _len: usize,
+    user_data: *mut c_void,
+) {
+    let pair = Arc::from_raw(user_data as *const (Mutex<FfiCallbackResult>, Condvar));
+    {
+        let (lock, cvar) = &*pair;
+        let mut state = lock.lock().unwrap();
+        state.payload = Some(if ret == 0 {
+            Ok(CStr::from_ptr(msg).to_string_lossy().into_owned())
+        } else {
+            Err(CStr::from_ptr(msg).to_string_lossy().into_owned())
+        });
+        cvar.notify_one();
+    }
+    std::mem::forget(pair);
+}
+
+fn ffi_call<F>(timeout: Duration, f: F) -> Result<String, String>
+where
+    F: FnOnce(ffi::FfiCallback, *mut c_void) -> c_int,
+{
+    let pair: Pair = Arc::new((Mutex::new(FfiCallbackResult::default()), Condvar::new()));
+    let raw = Arc::into_raw(pair.clone()) as *mut c_void;
+    let ret = f(on_result, raw);
+    if ret == 2 {
+        return Err("RET_MISSING_CALLBACK (internal error)".into());
+    }
+    let (lock, cvar) = &*pair;
+    let guard = lock.lock().unwrap();
+    let (guard, timed_out) = cvar
+        .wait_timeout_while(guard, timeout, |s| s.payload.is_none())
+        .unwrap();
+    if timed_out.timed_out() {
+        return Err(format!("timed out after {:?}", timeout));
+    }
+    guard.payload.clone().unwrap()
+}
+
+/// High-level context for `NimTimer`.
+pub struct NimTimerCtx {
+    ptr: *mut c_void,
+    timeout: Duration,
+}
+
+unsafe impl Send for NimTimerCtx {}
+unsafe impl Sync for NimTimerCtx {}
+
+impl NimTimerCtx {
+    pub fn create(config: TimerConfig, timeout: Duration) -> Result<Self, String> {
+        let config_json = serde_json::to_string(&config).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;
+        let config_c = CString::new(config_json).unwrap();
+        let raw = ffi_call(timeout, |cb, ud| unsafe {
+            ffi::nimtimer_create(config_c.as_ptr(), cb, ud)
+        })?;
+        // ctor returns the context address as a plain decimal string
+        let addr: usize = raw.parse().map_err(|e: std::num::ParseIntError| e.to_string())?;
+        Ok(Self { ptr: addr as *mut c_void, timeout })
+    }
+
+    pub fn echo(&self, req: EchoRequest) -> Result<EchoResponse, String> {
+        let req_json = serde_json::to_string(&req).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;
+        let req_c = CString::new(req_json).unwrap();
+        let raw = ffi_call(self.timeout, |cb, ud| unsafe {
+            ffi::nimtimer_echo(self.ptr, cb, ud, req_c.as_ptr())
+        })?;
+        serde_json::from_str::<EchoResponse>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())
+    }
+
+    pub fn version(&self) -> Result<String, String> {
+        let raw = ffi_call(self.timeout, |cb, ud| unsafe {
+            ffi::nimtimer_version(self.ptr, cb, ud)
+        })?;
+        serde_json::from_str::<String>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())
+    }
+
+    pub fn complex(&self, req: ComplexRequest) -> Result<ComplexResponse, String> {
+        let req_json = serde_json::to_string(&req).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;
+        let req_c = CString::new(req_json).unwrap();
+        let raw = ffi_call(self.timeout, |cb, ud| unsafe {
+            ffi::nimtimer_complex(self.ptr, cb, ud, req_c.as_ptr())
+        })?;
+        serde_json::from_str::<ComplexResponse>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())
+    }
+
+}

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/src/ffi.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+use std::os::raw::{c_char, c_int, c_void};
+
+pub type FfiCallback = unsafe extern "C" fn(
+    ret: c_int,
+    msg: *const c_char,
+    len: usize,
+    user_data: *mut c_void,
+);
+
+#[link(name = "nimtimer")]
+extern "C" {
+    pub fn nimtimer_create(config_json: *const c_char, callback: FfiCallback, user_data: *mut c_void) -> c_int;
+    pub fn nimtimer_echo(ctx: *mut c_void, callback: FfiCallback, user_data: *mut c_void, req_json: *const c_char) -> c_int;
+    pub fn nimtimer_version(ctx: *mut c_void, callback: FfiCallback, user_data: *mut c_void) -> c_int;
+    pub fn nimtimer_complex(ctx: *mut c_void, callback: FfiCallback, user_data: *mut c_void, req_json: *const c_char) -> c_int;
+}

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/src/lib.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+mod ffi;
+mod types;
+mod api;
+pub use types::*;
+pub use api::*;

examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings/src/types.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct TimerConfig {
+    pub name: String,
+}
+
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct EchoRequest {
+    pub message: String,
+    #[serde(rename = "delayMs")]
+    pub delay_ms: i64,
+}
+
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct EchoResponse {
+    pub echoed: String,
+    #[serde(rename = "timerName")]
+    pub timer_name: String,
+}
+
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct ComplexRequest {
+    pub messages: Vec<EchoRequest>,
+    pub tags: Vec<String>,
+    pub note: Option<String>,
+    pub retries: Option<i64>,
+}
+
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct ComplexResponse {
+    pub summary: String,
+    #[serde(rename = "itemCount")]
+    pub item_count: i64,
+    #[serde(rename = "hasNote")]
+    pub has_note: bool,
+}

examples/nim_timer/rust_client/Cargo.lock

@@ -22,6 +22,12 @@ dependencies = [
  "serde_json",
 ]
 
+[[package]]
+name = "pin-project-lite"
+version = "0.2.17"
+source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
+checksum = "a89322df9ebe1c1578d689c92318e070967d1042b512afbe49518723f4e6d5cd"
+
 [[package]]
 name = "proc-macro2"
 version = "1.0.106"
@@ -46,6 +52,7 @@ version = "0.1.0"
 dependencies = [
  "nimtimer",
  "serde_json",
+ "tokio",
 ]
 
 [[package]]
@@ -102,6 +109,27 @@ dependencies = [
  "unicode-ident",
 ]
 
+[[package]]
+name = "tokio"
+version = "1.52.1"
+source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
+checksum = "b67dee974fe86fd92cc45b7a95fdd2f99a36a6d7b0d431a231178d3d670bbcc6"
+dependencies = [
+ "pin-project-lite",
+ "tokio-macros",
+]
+
+[[package]]
+name = "tokio-macros"
+version = "2.7.0"
+source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
+checksum = "385a6cb71ab9ab790c5fe8d67f1645e6c450a7ce006a33de03daa956cf70a496"
+dependencies = [
+ "proc-macro2",
+ "quote",
+ "syn",
+]
+
 [[package]]
 name = "unicode-ident"
 version = "1.0.24"

examples/nim_timer/rust_client/Cargo.toml

@@ -4,5 +4,14 @@ version = "0.1.0"
 edition = "2021"
 
 [dependencies]
-nimtimer = { path = "../nim_bindings" }
+nimtimer = { path = "../rust_bindings" }
 serde_json = "1"
+tokio = { version = "1", features = ["rt-multi-thread", "macros"] }
+
+[[bin]]
+name = "rust_client"
+path = "src/main.rs"
+
+[[bin]]
+name = "tokio_client"
+path = "src/tokio_main.rs"

examples/nim_timer/rust_client/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+# Rust Client Examples
+
+## Purpose
+
+This folder contains **example Rust applications** that demonstrate how to use the auto-generated `nimtimer` crate (from `../rust_bindings`).
+
+## What's Included
+
+Two executable examples:
+
+- **`rust_client`** — Synchronous example
+  - Shows basic synchronous calls to the Nim timer API
+  - Uses blocking wait with condition variables
+  - Source: `src/main.rs`
+
+- **`tokio_client`** — Asynchronous example with Tokio runtime
+  - Demonstrates the Tokio async runtime integration
+  - Uses `spawn_blocking` to handle the blocking FFI callbacks on a separate thread pool
+  - Source: `src/tokio_main.rs`
+
+## Building
+
+```sh
+cd examples/nim_timer/rust_client
+cargo build
+```
+
+## Running
+
+```sh
+# Sync example
+cargo run --bin rust_client
+
+# Tokio async example
+cargo run --bin tokio_client
+```
+
+## Important Notes
+
+- The `nimtimer` crate is a **local dependency** (`path = "../rust_bindings"`)
+- It is **auto-generated** — do not manually edit it
+- These examples are **not** part of the generated output; they are hand-written to show usage patterns
+- To regenerate the `nimtimer` crate, run `nimble genbindings_rust` from the parent directory

examples/nim_timer/rust_client/src/main.rs

@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 // This file uses the generated `nimtimer` crate, which wraps all the raw FFI
 // boilerplate (extern "C" declarations, callback machinery, JSON encode/decode).
 //
-// To regenerate the `nim_bindings` crate:
+// To regenerate the `rust_bindings` crate:
 //   nim c --mm:orc -d:chronicles_log_level=WARN --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer \
 //         -d:ffiGenBindings examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim
 use nimtimer::{EchoRequest, NimTimerCtx, TimerConfig};

examples/nim_timer/rust_client/src/tokio_main.rs

@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+use nimtimer::{EchoRequest, NimTimerCtx, TimerConfig};
+use std::sync::{Arc, Mutex};
+use std::time::Duration;
+use tokio::task;
+
+#[tokio::main(flavor = "multi_thread", worker_threads = 2)]
+async fn main() {
+    let timeout = Duration::from_secs(5);
+
+    let ctx = task::spawn_blocking(move || {
+        NimTimerCtx::create(TimerConfig { name: "tokio-demo".into() }, timeout)
+    })
+    .await
+    .expect("failed to join create task")
+    .expect("nimtimer_create failed");
+
+    let ctx = Arc::new(Mutex::new(ctx));
+
+    let version = task::spawn_blocking({
+        let ctx = Arc::clone(&ctx);
+        move || {
+            let ctx = ctx.lock().unwrap();
+            ctx.version()
+        }
+    })
+    .await
+    .expect("failed to join version task")
+    .expect("nimtimer_version failed");
+
+    println!("[1] Tokio runtime started");
+    println!("[2] Version: {version}");
+
+    let req1 = EchoRequest {
+        message: "hello from tokio".into(),
+        delay_ms: 200,
+    };
+    let req2 = EchoRequest {
+        message: "second tokio request".into(),
+        delay_ms: 50,
+    };
+
+    let fut1 = task::spawn_blocking({
+        let ctx = Arc::clone(&ctx);
+        move || {
+            let ctx = ctx.lock().unwrap();
+            ctx.echo(req1)
+        }
+    });
+
+    let fut2 = task::spawn_blocking({
+        let ctx = Arc::clone(&ctx);
+        move || {
+            let ctx = ctx.lock().unwrap();
+            ctx.echo(req2)
+        }
+    });
+
+    let echo1 = fut1
+        .await
+        .expect("failed to join tokio blocking task")
+        .expect("nimtimer_echo failed");
+    let echo2 = fut2
+        .await
+        .expect("failed to join tokio blocking task")
+        .expect("nimtimer_echo failed");
+
+    println!("[3] Echo 1: echoed={}, timerName={}", echo1.echoed, echo1.timer_name);
+    println!("[4] Echo 2: echoed={}, timerName={}", echo2.echoed, echo2.timer_name);
+
+    println!("\nDone. Tokio runtime shut down.");
+}

ffi.nimble

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ author = "Institute of Free Technology"
 description = "FFI framework with custom header generation"
 license = "MIT or Apache License 2.0"
 
-packageName   = "ffi"
+packageName = "ffi"
 
 requires "nim >= 2.2.4"
 requires "chronos"
@@ -32,7 +32,17 @@ task test_serial, "Run serial unit tests":
   exec "nim c -r " & nimFlags & " tests/test_serial.nim"
 
 task genbindings_rust, "Generate Rust bindings for the nim_timer example":
-  exec "nim c " & nimFlags & " --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer -d:ffiGenBindings -d:ffiTargetLang=rust -o:/dev/null examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim"
+  exec "nim c " & nimFlags &
+    " --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer" &
+    " -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=rust" &
+    " -d:ffiOutputDir=examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings" &
+    " -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath=../nim_timer.nim" &
+    " -o:/dev/null examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim"
 
 task genbindings_cpp, "Generate C++ bindings for the nim_timer example":
-  exec "nim c " & nimFlags & " --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer -d:ffiGenBindings -d:ffiTargetLang=cpp -o:/dev/null examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim"
+  exec "nim c " & nimFlags &
+    " --app:lib --noMain --nimMainPrefix:libnimtimer" &
+    " -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=cpp" &
+    " -d:ffiOutputDir=examples/nim_timer/cpp_bindings" &
+    " -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath=../nim_timer.nim" &
+    " -o:/dev/null examples/nim_timer/nim_timer.nim"

ffi/codegen/cpp.nim

@@ -4,15 +4,36 @@
 import std/[os, strutils]
 import ./meta
 
+proc genericInnerType(typeName, prefix: string): string =
+  if typeName.startsWith(prefix) and typeName.endsWith("]"):
+    let start = prefix.len
+    let lastIndex = typeName.len - 2
+    return typeName[start .. lastIndex]
+  return ""
+
 proc nimTypeToCpp*(typeName: string): string =
-  case typeName
+  let trimmed = typeName.strip()
+  if trimmed.startsWith("ptr "):
+    return "void*"
+  else:
+    let seqInner = genericInnerType(trimmed, "seq[")
+    if seqInner.len > 0:
+      return "std::vector<" & nimTypeToCpp(seqInner) & ">"
+    let optionInner = genericInnerType(trimmed, "Option[")
+    if optionInner.len > 0:
+      return "std::optional<" & nimTypeToCpp(optionInner) & ">"
+    let maybeInner = genericInnerType(trimmed, "Maybe[")
+    if maybeInner.len > 0:
+      return "std::optional<" & nimTypeToCpp(maybeInner) & ">"
+  case trimmed
   of "string", "cstring": "std::string"
   of "int", "int64": "int64_t"
   of "int32": "int32_t"
   of "bool": "bool"
-  of "float", "float64": "double"
+  of "float": "float"
+  of "float64": "double"
   of "pointer": "void*"
-  else: typeName
+  else: trimmed
 
 proc stripLibPrefixCpp(procName, libName: string): string =
   let prefix = libName & "_"
@@ -21,9 +42,7 @@ proc stripLibPrefixCpp(procName, libName: string): string =
   return procName
 
 proc generateCppHeader*(
-    procs: seq[FFIProcMeta],
-    types: seq[FFITypeMeta],
-    libName: string,
+    procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], types: seq[FFITypeMeta], libName: string
 ): string =
   var lines: seq[string] = @[]
 
@@ -34,8 +53,24 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
   lines.add("#include <mutex>")
   lines.add("#include <condition_variable>")
   lines.add("#include <functional>")
+  lines.add("#include <vector>")
+  lines.add("#include <optional>")
   lines.add("#include <nlohmann/json.hpp>")
   lines.add("")
+  lines.add("namespace nlohmann {")
+  lines.add("    template<typename T>")
+  lines.add("    void to_json(json& j, const std::optional<T>& opt) {")
+  lines.add("        if (opt) j = *opt;")
+  lines.add("        else j = nullptr;")
+  lines.add("    }")
+  lines.add("")
+  lines.add("    template<typename T>")
+  lines.add("    void from_json(const json& j, std::optional<T>& opt) {")
+  lines.add("        if (j.is_null()) opt = std::nullopt;")
+  lines.add("        else opt = j.get<T>();")
+  lines.add("    }")
+  lines.add("}")
+  lines.add("")
 
   # Types
   if types.len > 0:
@@ -52,7 +87,9 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
       var fieldNames: seq[string] = @[]
       for f in t.fields:
         fieldNames.add(f.name)
-      lines.add("NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE($1, $2)" % [t.name, fieldNames.join(", ")])
+      lines.add(
+        "NLOHMANN_DEFINE_TYPE_NON_INTRUSIVE($1, $2)" % [t.name, fieldNames.join(", ")]
+      )
       lines.add("")
 
   # C extern declarations
@@ -61,7 +98,9 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
   lines.add("// ============================================================")
   lines.add("")
   lines.add("extern \"C\" {")
-  lines.add("typedef void (*FfiCallback)(int ret, const char* msg, size_t len, void* user_data);")
+  lines.add(
+    "typedef void (*FfiCallback)(int ret, const char* msg, size_t len, void* user_data);"
+  )
   lines.add("")
 
   for p in procs:
@@ -82,6 +121,30 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
   lines.add("} // extern \"C\"")
   lines.add("")
 
+  # Transport serialization helpers
+  lines.add("")
+  lines.add("template<typename T>")
+  lines.add("inline std::string serializeFfiArg(const T& value) {")
+  lines.add("    return nlohmann::json(value).dump();")
+  lines.add("}")
+  lines.add("")
+  lines.add("inline std::string serializeFfiArg(void* value) {")
+  lines.add("    return std::to_string(reinterpret_cast<uintptr_t>(value));")
+  lines.add("}")
+  lines.add("")
+  lines.add("template<typename T>")
+  lines.add("inline T deserializeFfiResult(const std::string& raw) {")
+  lines.add("    return nlohmann::json::parse(raw).get<T>();")
+  lines.add("}")
+  lines.add("")
+  lines.add("template<>")
+  lines.add("inline void* deserializeFfiResult<void*>(const std::string& raw) {")
+  lines.add(
+    "    return reinterpret_cast<void*>(static_cast<uintptr_t>(std::stoull(raw)));"
+  )
+  lines.add("}")
+  lines.add("")
+
   # Anonymous namespace with synchronous call helper
   lines.add("// ============================================================")
   lines.add("// Synchronous call helper (anonymous namespace, header-only)")
@@ -110,7 +173,9 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
   lines.add("    FfiCallState_ state;")
   lines.add("    const int ret = f(ffi_cb_, &state);")
   lines.add("    if (ret == 2)")
-  lines.add("        throw std::runtime_error(\"RET_MISSING_CALLBACK (internal error)\");")
+  lines.add(
+    "        throw std::runtime_error(\"RET_MISSING_CALLBACK (internal error)\");"
+  )
   lines.add("    std::unique_lock<std::mutex> lock(state.mtx);")
   lines.add("    state.cv.wait(lock, [&state]{ return state.done; });")
   lines.add("    if (!state.ok)")
@@ -125,12 +190,16 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
   var ctors: seq[FFIProcMeta] = @[]
   var methods: seq[FFIProcMeta] = @[]
   for p in procs:
-    if p.kind == ffiCtorKind: ctors.add(p)
-    else: methods.add(p)
+    if p.kind == ffiCtorKind:
+      ctors.add(p)
+    else:
+      methods.add(p)
 
   let libTypeName =
-    if ctors.len > 0: ctors[0].libTypeName
-    else: libName[0 .. 0].toUpperAscii() & libName[1 .. ^1]
+    if ctors.len > 0:
+      ctors[0].libTypeName
+    else:
+      libName[0 .. 0].toUpperAscii() & libName[1 .. ^1]
 
   let ctxTypeName = libTypeName & "Ctx"
 
@@ -150,7 +219,7 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
 
     lines.add("    static $1 create($2) {" % [ctxTypeName, ctorParams.join(", ")])
     for ep in ctor.extraParams:
-      lines.add("        const auto $1_json = nlohmann::json($1).dump();" % [ep.name])
+      lines.add("        const auto $1_json = serializeFfiArg($1);" % [ep.name])
 
     var callArgs: seq[string] = @[]
     for ep in ctor.extraParams:
@@ -163,7 +232,10 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
     lines.add("        });")
     lines.add("        // ctor returns the context address as a plain decimal string")
     lines.add("        const auto addr = std::stoull(raw);")
-    lines.add("        return $1(reinterpret_cast<void*>(static_cast<uintptr_t>(addr)));" % [ctxTypeName])
+    lines.add(
+      "        return $1(reinterpret_cast<void*>(static_cast<uintptr_t>(addr)));" %
+        [ctxTypeName]
+    )
     lines.add("    }")
     lines.add("")
 
@@ -180,7 +252,7 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
 
     lines.add("    $1 $2($3) const {" % [retCppType, methodName, methParamsStr])
     for ep in m.extraParams:
-      lines.add("        const auto $1_json = nlohmann::json($1).dump();" % [ep.name])
+      lines.add("        const auto $1_json = serializeFfiArg($1);" % [ep.name])
 
     var callArgs = @["ptr_", "cb", "ud"]
     for ep in m.extraParams:
@@ -190,10 +262,10 @@ proc generateCppHeader*(
     lines.add("            return $1($2);" % [m.procName, callArgs.join(", ")])
     lines.add("        });")
 
-    if retCppType == "std::string":
-      lines.add("        return nlohmann::json::parse(raw).get<std::string>();")
+    if retCppType == "void*":
+      lines.add("        return deserializeFfiResult<void*>(raw);")
     else:
-      lines.add("        return nlohmann::json::parse(raw).get<$1>();" % [retCppType])
+      lines.add("        return deserializeFfiResult<$1>(raw);" % [retCppType])
     lines.add("    }")
     lines.add("")
 
@@ -210,12 +282,12 @@ proc generateCppCMakeLists*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   ## CMake uses ${...} which would clash with Nim's % format operator,
   ## so we build the file line by line using string concatenation.
   let src = nimSrcRelPath.replace("\\", "/")
-  let cv  = "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}"  # CMake variable shorthand
-  let rv  = "${REPO_ROOT}"
-  let lf  = "${NIM_LIB_FILE}"
-  let nm  = "${NIM_EXECUTABLE}"
-  let ns  = "${NIM_SRC}"
-  let sd  = "${_search_dir}"
+  let cv = "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}" # CMake variable shorthand
+  let rv = "${REPO_ROOT}"
+  let lf = "${NIM_LIB_FILE}"
+  let nm = "${NIM_EXECUTABLE}"
+  let ns = "${NIM_SRC}"
+  let sd = "${_search_dir}"
   var L: seq[string] = @[]
   L.add("cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.14)")
   L.add("project(" & libName & "_cpp_bindings CXX)")
@@ -223,7 +295,9 @@ proc generateCppCMakeLists*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   L.add("set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)")
   L.add("set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED ON)")
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── nlohmann/json ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── nlohmann/json ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("include(FetchContent)")
   L.add("FetchContent_Declare(")
   L.add("    nlohmann_json")
@@ -233,7 +307,9 @@ proc generateCppCMakeLists*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   L.add(")")
   L.add("FetchContent_MakeAvailable(nlohmann_json)")
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── Locate the repository root (contains ffi.nimble) ─────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── Locate the repository root (contains ffi.nimble) ─────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("set(_search_dir \"" & cv & "\")")
   L.add("set(REPO_ROOT \"\")")
   L.add("foreach(_i RANGE 10)")
@@ -244,15 +320,21 @@ proc generateCppCMakeLists*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   L.add("    get_filename_component(_search_dir \"" & sd & "\" DIRECTORY)")
   L.add("endforeach()")
   L.add("if(\"${REPO_ROOT}\" STREQUAL \"\")")
-  L.add("    message(FATAL_ERROR \"Cannot find repo root (no ffi.nimble in any ancestor)\")")
+  L.add(
+    "    message(FATAL_ERROR \"Cannot find repo root (no ffi.nimble in any ancestor)\")"
+  )
   L.add("endif()")
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── Nim source path ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── Nim source path ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("get_filename_component(NIM_SRC")
   L.add("    \"" & cv & "/" & src & "\"")
   L.add("    ABSOLUTE)")
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── Compile the Nim shared library ───────────────────────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── Compile the Nim shared library ───────────────────────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("find_program(NIM_EXECUTABLE nim REQUIRED)")
   L.add("")
   L.add("if(CMAKE_SYSTEM_NAME STREQUAL \"Darwin\")")
@@ -281,15 +363,24 @@ proc generateCppCMakeLists*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   L.add("add_custom_target(nim_lib ALL DEPENDS \"" & lf & "\")")
   L.add("")
   L.add("add_library(" & libName & " SHARED IMPORTED GLOBAL)")
-  L.add("set_target_properties(" & libName & " PROPERTIES IMPORTED_LOCATION \"" & lf & "\")")
+  L.add(
+    "set_target_properties(" & libName & " PROPERTIES IMPORTED_LOCATION \"" & lf & "\")"
+  )
   L.add("add_dependencies(" & libName & " nim_lib)")
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── Interface target exposing the generated header ────────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── Interface target exposing the generated header ────────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("add_library(" & libName & "_headers INTERFACE)")
   L.add("target_include_directories(" & libName & "_headers INTERFACE \"" & cv & "\")")
-  L.add("target_link_libraries(" & libName & "_headers INTERFACE " & libName & " nlohmann_json::nlohmann_json)")
+  L.add(
+    "target_link_libraries(" & libName & "_headers INTERFACE " & libName &
+      " nlohmann_json::nlohmann_json)"
+  )
   L.add("")
-  L.add("# ── Optional example executable ───────────────────────────────────────────────")
+  L.add(
+    "# ── Optional example executable ───────────────────────────────────────────────"
+  )
   L.add("if(EXISTS \"" & cv & "/main.cpp\")")
   L.add("    add_executable(example main.cpp)")
   L.add("    target_link_libraries(example PRIVATE " & libName & "_headers)")

ffi/codegen/meta.nim

@@ -3,27 +3,27 @@
 
 type
   FFIParamMeta* = object
-    name*: string       # Nim param name, e.g. "req"
-    typeName*: string   # Nim type name, e.g. "EchoRequest"
-    isPtr*: bool        # true if the type is `ptr T`
+    name*: string # Nim param name, e.g. "req"
+    typeName*: string # Nim type name, e.g. "EchoRequest"
+    isPtr*: bool # true if the type is `ptr T`
 
   FFIProcKind* = enum
     ffiCtorKind
     ffiFfiKind
 
   FFIProcMeta* = object
-    procName*: string       # e.g. "nimtimer_echo"
-    libName*: string        # library name, e.g. "nimtimer"
+    procName*: string # e.g. "nimtimer_echo"
+    libName*: string # library name, e.g. "nimtimer"
     kind*: FFIProcKind
-    libTypeName*: string    # e.g. "NimTimer"
-    extraParams*: seq[FFIParamMeta]   # all params except the lib param
-    returnTypeName*: string  # e.g. "EchoResponse", "string", "pointer"
-    returnIsPtr*: bool       # true if return type is ptr T
+    libTypeName*: string # e.g. "NimTimer"
+    extraParams*: seq[FFIParamMeta] # all params except the lib param
+    returnTypeName*: string # e.g. "EchoResponse", "string", "pointer"
+    returnIsPtr*: bool # true if return type is ptr T
     isAsync*: bool
 
   FFIFieldMeta* = object
-    name*: string       # e.g. "delayMs"
-    typeName*: string   # e.g. "int"
+    name*: string # e.g. "delayMs"
+    typeName*: string # e.g. "int"
 
   FFITypeMeta* = object
     name*: string
@@ -34,5 +34,12 @@ var ffiProcRegistry* {.compileTime.}: seq[FFIProcMeta]
 var ffiTypeRegistry* {.compileTime.}: seq[FFITypeMeta]
 var currentLibName* {.compileTime.}: string
 
-# Target language for binding generation; override with -d:ffiTargetLang=cpp
-const ffiTargetLang* {.strdefine.} = "rust"
+# Target language for binding generation; override with -d:targetLang=cpp
+const targetLang* {.strdefine.} = "rust"
+
+# Output directory for generated bindings; set with -d:ffiOutputDir=path/to/dir
+const ffiOutputDir* {.strdefine.} = ""
+
+# Nim source path (relative to outputDir) embedded in generated build files;
+# set with -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath=../relative/path.nim
+const ffiNimSrcRelPath* {.strdefine.} = ""

ffi/codegen/rust.nim

@@ -19,20 +19,28 @@ proc toSnakeCase*(s: string): string =
 
 proc toPascalCase*(s: string): string =
   ## Converts the first letter to uppercase.
-  if s.len == 0: return s
+  if s.len == 0:
+    return s
   result = s
   result[0] = s[0].toUpperAscii()
 
 proc nimTypeToRust*(typeName: string): string =
-  ## Maps Nim type names to Rust type names.
-  case typeName
+  ## Maps Nim type names to Rust type names, including generics.
+  let t = typeName.strip()
+  if t.startsWith("seq[") and t.endsWith("]"):
+    return "Vec<" & nimTypeToRust(t[4 .. ^2]) & ">"
+  if t.startsWith("Option[") and t.endsWith("]"):
+    return "Option<" & nimTypeToRust(t[7 .. ^2]) & ">"
+  if t.startsWith("Maybe[") and t.endsWith("]"):
+    return "Option<" & nimTypeToRust(t[6 .. ^2]) & ">"
+  case t
   of "string", "cstring": "String"
   of "int", "int64": "i64"
   of "int32": "i32"
   of "bool": "bool"
   of "float", "float64": "f64"
   of "pointer": "usize"
-  else: toPascalCase(typeName)
+  else: toPascalCase(t)
 
 proc deriveLibName*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta]): string =
   ## Extracts the common prefix before the first `_` from proc names.
@@ -60,7 +68,8 @@ proc stripLibPrefix*(procName: string, libName: string): string =
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 proc generateCargoToml*(libName: string): string =
-  result = """[package]
+  result =
+    """[package]
 name = "$1"
 version = "0.1.0"
 edition = "2021"
@@ -68,13 +77,15 @@ edition = "2021"
 [dependencies]
 serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
 serde_json = "1"
-""" % [libName]
+""" %
+    [libName]
 
 proc generateBuildRs*(libName: string, nimSrcRelPath: string): string =
   ## Generates build.rs that compiles the Nim library.
   ## nimSrcRelPath is relative to the output (crate) directory.
   let escapedSrc = nimSrcRelPath.replace("\\", "\\\\")
-  result = """use std::path::PathBuf;
+  result =
+    """use std::path::PathBuf;
 use std::process::Command;
 
 fn main() {
@@ -121,7 +132,8 @@ fn main() {
     println!("cargo:rustc-link-lib=$2");
     println!("cargo:rerun-if-changed={}", nim_src.display());
 }
-""" % [escapedSrc, libName]
+""" %
+    [escapedSrc, libName]
 
 proc generateLibRs*(): string =
   result = """mod ffi;
@@ -239,7 +251,7 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
   lines.add("use super::types::*;")
   lines.add("")
 
-  # FfiCallbackResult struct
+  # FfiCallbackResult + Pair
   lines.add("#[derive(Default)]")
   lines.add("struct FfiCallbackResult {")
   lines.add("    payload: Option<Result<String, String>>,")
@@ -248,7 +260,7 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
   lines.add("type Pair = Arc<(Mutex<FfiCallbackResult>, Condvar)>;")
   lines.add("")
 
-  # on_result callback
+  # on_result callback (Arc-based, blocking)
   lines.add("unsafe extern \"C\" fn on_result(")
   lines.add("    ret: c_int,")
   lines.add("    msg: *const c_char,")
@@ -270,7 +282,7 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
   lines.add("}")
   lines.add("")
 
-  # ffi_call helper
+  # Blocking ffi_call helper using Condvar::wait_timeout_while
   lines.add("fn ffi_call<F>(timeout: Duration, f: F) -> Result<String, String>")
   lines.add("where")
   lines.add("    F: FnOnce(ffi::FfiCallback, *mut c_void) -> c_int,")
@@ -325,10 +337,18 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
       let rustType = nimTypeToRust(ep.typeName)
       if rustType == "String":
         # Primitive string — wrap it in JSON
-        lines.add("        let $1_json_str = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" % [snakeName])
-        lines.add("        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json_str).unwrap();" % [snakeName])
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_json_str = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" %
+            [snakeName]
+        )
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json_str).unwrap();" % [snakeName]
+        )
       else:
-        lines.add("        let $1_json = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" % [snakeName])
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_json = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" %
+            [snakeName]
+        )
         lines.add("        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json).unwrap();" % [snakeName])
 
     # Build the ffi_call closure
@@ -344,7 +364,9 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
     lines.add("            ffi::$1($2)" % [ctor.procName, ffiCallArgsStr])
     lines.add("        })?;")
     lines.add("        // ctor returns the context address as a plain decimal string")
-    lines.add("        let addr: usize = raw.parse().map_err(|e: std::num::ParseIntError| e.to_string())?;")
+    lines.add(
+      "        let addr: usize = raw.parse().map_err(|e: std::num::ParseIntError| e.to_string())?;"
+    )
     lines.add("        Ok(Self { ptr: addr as *mut c_void, timeout })")
     lines.add("    }")
     lines.add("")
@@ -359,19 +381,34 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
       let rustType = nimTypeToRust(ep.typeName)
       let snakeName = toSnakeCase(ep.name)
       paramsList.add("$1: $2" % [snakeName, rustType])
-    let paramsStr = if paramsList.len > 0: ", " & paramsList.join(", ") else: ""
+    let paramsStr =
+      if paramsList.len > 0:
+        ", " & paramsList.join(", ")
+      else:
+        ""
 
-    lines.add("    pub fn $1(&self$2) -> Result<$3, String> {" % [methodName, paramsStr, retRustType])
+    lines.add(
+      "    pub fn $1(&self$2) -> Result<$3, String> {" %
+        [methodName, paramsStr, retRustType]
+    )
 
     # Serialize extra params
     for ep in m.extraParams:
       let snakeName = toSnakeCase(ep.name)
       let rustType = nimTypeToRust(ep.typeName)
       if rustType == "String":
-        lines.add("        let $1_json_str = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" % [snakeName])
-        lines.add("        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json_str).unwrap();" % [snakeName])
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_json_str = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" %
+            [snakeName]
+        )
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json_str).unwrap();" % [snakeName]
+        )
       else:
-        lines.add("        let $1_json = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" % [snakeName])
+        lines.add(
+          "        let $1_json = serde_json::to_string(&$1).map_err(|e| e.to_string())?;" %
+            [snakeName]
+        )
         lines.add("        let $1_c = CString::new($1_json).unwrap();" % [snakeName])
 
     # Build ffi call args: ctx first, then callback/ud, then json args
@@ -387,11 +424,16 @@ proc generateApiRs*(procs: seq[FFIProcMeta], libName: string): string =
 
     # Deserialize return value
     if retRustType == "String":
-      lines.add("        serde_json::from_str::<String>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())")
+      lines.add(
+        "        serde_json::from_str::<String>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())"
+      )
     elif retRustType == "usize":
       lines.add("        raw.parse::<usize>().map_err(|e| e.to_string())")
     else:
-      lines.add("        serde_json::from_str::<$1>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())" % [retRustType])
+      lines.add(
+        "        serde_json::from_str::<$1>(&raw).map_err(|e| e.to_string())" %
+          [retRustType]
+      )
     lines.add("    }")
     lines.add("")
 

ffi/internal/ffi_macro.nim

@@ -200,6 +200,7 @@ proc buildFfiNewReqProc(reqTypeName, body: NimNode): NimNode =
         FFIThreadRequest.init(callback, userData, typeStr.cstring, `reqObjIdent`)
       proc destroyContent(content: pointer) {.nimcall.} =
         ffiDeleteReq(cast[ptr `reqTypeName`](content))
+
       ret[].deleteReqContent = destroyContent
       return ret
   )
@@ -363,12 +364,11 @@ proc addNewRequestToRegistry(reqTypeName, reqHandler: NimNode): NimNode =
   #   CreateNodeRequest.processFFIRequest(request, reqHandler)
   let asyncProc = newProc(
     name = newEmptyNode(), # anonymous proc
-    params =
-      @[
-        returnType,
-        newIdentDefs(ident("request"), ident("pointer")),
-        newIdentDefs(ident("reqHandler"), ident("pointer")),
-      ],
+    params = @[
+      returnType,
+      newIdentDefs(ident("request"), ident("pointer")),
+      newIdentDefs(ident("reqHandler"), ident("pointer")),
+    ],
     body = newBody,
     pragmas = nnkPragma.newTree(ident("async")),
   )
@@ -587,19 +587,27 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
 
   # Extract LibType from the first parameter
   let firstParam = formalParams[1]
-  let libParamName = firstParam[0]  # e.g. `w`
-  let libTypeName = firstParam[1]   # e.g. `Waku`
+  let libParamName = firstParam[0] # e.g. `w`
+  let libTypeName = firstParam[1] # e.g. `Waku`
 
   # Extract the return type: Future[Result[RetType, string]]
   # RetType is used in the body helper proc signature
   let retTypeNode = formalParams[0]
   if retTypeNode.kind == nnkEmpty:
-    error("`.ffi.` proc must have an explicit return type Future[Result[RetType, string]]")
+    error(
+      "`.ffi.` proc must have an explicit return type Future[Result[RetType, string]]"
+    )
   if retTypeNode.kind != nnkBracketExpr or $retTypeNode[0] != "Future":
-    error("`.ffi.` return type must be Future[Result[RetType, string]], got: " & retTypeNode.repr)
+    error(
+      "`.ffi.` return type must be Future[Result[RetType, string]], got: " &
+        retTypeNode.repr
+    )
   let resultInner = retTypeNode[1] # Result[RetType, string]
   if resultInner.kind != nnkBracketExpr or $resultInner[0] != "Result":
-    error("`.ffi.` return type must be Future[Result[RetType, string]], got: " & retTypeNode.repr)
+    error(
+      "`.ffi.` return type must be Future[Result[RetType, string]], got: " &
+        retTypeNode.repr
+    )
 
   # Collect additional param names and types (everything after the first param)
   var extraParamNames: seq[string] = @[]
@@ -613,7 +621,10 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
   # Generate type/proc names from proc name
   let procNameStr = block:
     let raw = $procName
-    if raw.endsWith("*"): raw[0 ..^ 2] else: raw
+    if raw.endsWith("*"):
+      raw[0 ..^ 2]
+    else:
+      raw
   let camelName = toCamelCase(procNameStr)
 
   # Names of generated things
@@ -631,9 +642,8 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
       procName
 
   # Common exported params (needed for both branches)
-  let ctxType = nnkPtrTy.newTree(
-    nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName)
-  )
+  let ctxType =
+    nnkPtrTy.newTree(nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName))
 
   if isAsync:
     # -------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -668,9 +678,8 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
     )
 
     let ctxHandlerName = ident("ffiCtxHandler")
-    let ptrFfiCtx = nnkPtrTy.newTree(
-      nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName)
-    )
+    let ptrFfiCtx =
+      nnkPtrTy.newTree(nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName))
 
     var lambdaParams = newSeq[NimNode]()
     lambdaParams.add(futStrStr)
@@ -785,8 +794,10 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
           tn = $ptype[0]
         else:
           tn = $ptype
-        ffiExtraParams.add(FFIParamMeta(name: extraParamNames[i], typeName: tn, isPtr: isPtr))
-      let retTypeInner = resultInner[1]  # RetType from Result[RetType, string]
+        ffiExtraParams.add(
+          FFIParamMeta(name: extraParamNames[i], typeName: tn, isPtr: isPtr)
+        )
+      let retTypeInner = resultInner[1] # RetType from Result[RetType, string]
       var retIsPtr = false
       var retTn = ""
       if retTypeInner.kind == nnkPtrTy:
@@ -794,19 +805,20 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
         retTn = $retTypeInner[0]
       else:
         retTn = $retTypeInner
-      ffiProcRegistry.add(FFIProcMeta(
-        procName: procNameStr,
-        libName: currentLibName,
-        kind: ffiFfiKind,
-        libTypeName: $libTypeName,
-        extraParams: ffiExtraParams,
-        returnTypeName: retTn,
-        returnIsPtr: retIsPtr,
-        isAsync: true,
-      ))
+      ffiProcRegistry.add(
+        FFIProcMeta(
+          procName: procNameStr,
+          libName: currentLibName,
+          kind: ffiFfiKind,
+          libTypeName: $libTypeName,
+          extraParams: ffiExtraParams,
+          returnTypeName: retTn,
+          returnIsPtr: retIsPtr,
+          isAsync: true,
+        )
+      )
 
     result = newStmtList(helperProc, registerReq, ffiProc)
-
   else:
     # -------------------------------------------------------------------------
     # SYNC PATH — no await/waitFor in body; bypass thread-channel machinery
@@ -881,7 +893,9 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
         callback(RET_ERR, unsafeAddr errStr[0], cast[csize_t](errStr.len), userData)
         return RET_ERR
       let serialized = ffiSerialize(`retValOrErrIdent`.value)
-      callback(RET_OK, unsafeAddr serialized[0], cast[csize_t](serialized.len), userData)
+      callback(
+        RET_OK, unsafeAddr serialized[0], cast[csize_t](serialized.len), userData
+      )
       return RET_OK
 
     let syncFfiProc = newProc(
@@ -909,7 +923,9 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
           tn = $ptype[0]
         else:
           tn = $ptype
-        ffiExtraParamsSync.add(FFIParamMeta(name: extraParamNames[i], typeName: tn, isPtr: isPtr))
+        ffiExtraParamsSync.add(
+          FFIParamMeta(name: extraParamNames[i], typeName: tn, isPtr: isPtr)
+        )
       let retTypeInnerSync = resultInner[1]
       var retIsPtrSync = false
       var retTnSync = ""
@@ -918,16 +934,18 @@ macro ffi*(prc: untyped): untyped =
         retTnSync = $retTypeInnerSync[0]
       else:
         retTnSync = $retTypeInnerSync
-      ffiProcRegistry.add(FFIProcMeta(
-        procName: procNameStr,
-        libName: currentLibName,
-        kind: ffiFfiKind,
-        libTypeName: $libTypeName,
-        extraParams: ffiExtraParamsSync,
-        returnTypeName: retTnSync,
-        returnIsPtr: retIsPtrSync,
-        isAsync: false,
-      ))
+      ffiProcRegistry.add(
+        FFIProcMeta(
+          procName: procNameStr,
+          libName: currentLibName,
+          kind: ffiFfiKind,
+          libTypeName: $libTypeName,
+          extraParams: ffiExtraParamsSync,
+          returnTypeName: retTnSync,
+          returnIsPtr: retIsPtrSync,
+          isAsync: false,
+        )
+      )
 
     result = newStmtList(syncHelperProc, syncFfiProc)
 
@@ -953,11 +971,15 @@ proc buildCtorRequestType(reqTypeName: NimNode, paramNames: seq[string]): NimNod
     if fields.len > 0:
       newTree(nnkRecList, fields)
     else:
-      newTree(nnkRecList, newTree(nnkIdentDefs, ident("_placeholder"), ident("pointer"), newEmptyNode()))
+      newTree(
+        nnkRecList,
+        newTree(nnkIdentDefs, ident("_placeholder"), ident("pointer"), newEmptyNode()),
+      )
 
   let objTy = newTree(nnkObjectTy, newEmptyNode(), newEmptyNode(), recList)
   let typeName = postfix(reqTypeName, "*")
-  result = newNimNode(nnkTypeSection).add(newTree(nnkTypeDef, typeName, newEmptyNode(), objTy))
+  result =
+    newNimNode(nnkTypeSection).add(newTree(nnkTypeDef, typeName, newEmptyNode(), objTy))
 
   when defined(ffiDumpMacros):
     echo result.repr
@@ -990,9 +1012,8 @@ proc buildCtorFfiNewReqProc(reqTypeName: NimNode, paramNames: seq[string]): NimN
 
   var formalParams = newSeq[NimNode]()
 
-  let typedescParam = newIdentDefs(
-    ident("T"), nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("typedesc"), reqTypeName)
-  )
+  let typedescParam =
+    newIdentDefs(ident("T"), nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("typedesc"), reqTypeName))
   formalParams.add(typedescParam)
   formalParams.add(newIdentDefs(ident("callback"), ident("FFICallBack")))
   formalParams.add(newIdentDefs(ident("userData"), ident("pointer")))
@@ -1018,6 +1039,7 @@ proc buildCtorFfiNewReqProc(reqTypeName: NimNode, paramNames: seq[string]): NimN
     var ret = FFIThreadRequest.init(callback, userData, typeStr.cstring, `reqObjIdent`)
     proc destroyContent(content: pointer) {.nimcall.} =
       ffiDeleteReq(cast[ptr `reqTypeName`](content))
+
     ret[].deleteReqContent = destroyContent
     return ret
 
@@ -1084,9 +1106,8 @@ proc buildCtorProcessFFIRequestProc(
   )
 
   # The ctx param type: ptr FFIContext[LibType]
-  let ctxType = nnkPtrTy.newTree(
-    nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName)
-  )
+  let ctxType =
+    nnkPtrTy.newTree(nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName))
 
   let typedescParam =
     newIdentDefs(ident("T"), nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("typedesc"), reqTypeName))
@@ -1152,9 +1173,8 @@ proc addCtorRequestToRegistry(reqTypeName, libTypeName: NimNode): NimNode =
   ## Registers the ctor request in the registeredRequests table.
   ## The handler casts reqHandler to ptr FFIContext[LibType] and calls processFFIRequest.
 
-  let ctxType = nnkPtrTy.newTree(
-    nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName)
-  )
+  let ctxType =
+    nnkPtrTy.newTree(nnkBracketExpr.newTree(ident("FFIContext"), libTypeName))
 
   let returnType = nnkBracketExpr.newTree(
     ident("Future"),
@@ -1173,20 +1193,18 @@ proc addCtorRequestToRegistry(reqTypeName, libTypeName: NimNode): NimNode =
 
   let asyncProc = newProc(
     name = newEmptyNode(),
-    params =
-      @[
-        returnType,
-        newIdentDefs(ident("request"), ident("pointer")),
-        newIdentDefs(ident("reqHandler"), ident("pointer")),
-      ],
+    params = @[
+      returnType,
+      newIdentDefs(ident("request"), ident("pointer")),
+      newIdentDefs(ident("reqHandler"), ident("pointer")),
+    ],
     body = newBody,
     pragmas = nnkPragma.newTree(ident("async")),
   )
 
   let key = newLit($reqTypeName)
-  result = newAssignment(
-    newTree(nnkBracketExpr, ident("registeredRequests"), key), asyncProc
-  )
+  result =
+    newAssignment(newTree(nnkBracketExpr, ident("registeredRequests"), key), asyncProc)
 
   when defined(ffiDumpMacros):
     echo result.repr
@@ -1219,13 +1237,21 @@ macro ffiCtor*(prc: untyped): untyped =
   let retTypeNode = formalParams[0]
   # retTypeNode should be Future[Result[LibType, string]]
   if retTypeNode.kind == nnkEmpty:
-    error("ffiCtor: proc must have an explicit return type Future[Result[LibType, string]]")
+    error(
+      "ffiCtor: proc must have an explicit return type Future[Result[LibType, string]]"
+    )
   # retTypeNode: BracketExpr(Future, BracketExpr(Result, LibType, string))
   if retTypeNode.kind != nnkBracketExpr or $retTypeNode[0] != "Future":
-    error("ffiCtor: return type must be Future[Result[LibType, string]], got: " & retTypeNode.repr)
+    error(
+      "ffiCtor: return type must be Future[Result[LibType, string]], got: " &
+        retTypeNode.repr
+    )
   let resultInner = retTypeNode[1] # Result[LibType, string]
   if resultInner.kind != nnkBracketExpr or $resultInner[0] != "Result":
-    error("ffiCtor: return type must be Future[Result[LibType, string]], got: " & retTypeNode.repr)
+    error(
+      "ffiCtor: return type must be Future[Result[LibType, string]], got: " &
+        retTypeNode.repr
+    )
   let libTypeName = resultInner[1] # LibType
 
   # Collect param names and types (skip return type at index 0)
@@ -1256,9 +1282,11 @@ macro ffiCtor*(prc: untyped): untyped =
   # Helper proc name: e.g., TestlibCreateCtorReq -> TestlibCreateCtorBody
   let helperProcNameStr = reqTypeNameStr[0 ..^ ("CtorReq".len + 1)] & "CtorBody"
   let helperProcName = ident(helperProcNameStr)
-  let helperProc = buildCtorBodyProc(helperProcName, paramNames, paramTypes, libTypeName, bodyNode)
-  let processProc =
-    buildCtorProcessFFIRequestProc(reqTypeName, helperProcName, paramNames, paramTypes, libTypeName)
+  let helperProc =
+    buildCtorBodyProc(helperProcName, paramNames, paramTypes, libTypeName, bodyNode)
+  let processProc = buildCtorProcessFFIRequestProc(
+    reqTypeName, helperProcName, paramNames, paramTypes, libTypeName
+  )
   let addToReg = addCtorRequestToRegistry(reqTypeName, libTypeName)
 
   # Build the C-exported proc params:
@@ -1311,9 +1339,8 @@ macro ffiCtor*(prc: untyped): untyped =
       return RET_ERR
 
   # sendRequestToFFIThread using the gensym'd ctx
-  let sendCall = newCall(
-    newDotExpr(ctxSym, ident("sendRequestToFFIThread")), newReqCall
-  )
+  let sendCall =
+    newCall(newDotExpr(ctxSym, ident("sendRequestToFFIThread")), newReqCall)
 
   let sendResIdent = genSym(nskLet, "sendRes")
   ffiBody.add quote do:
@@ -1363,18 +1390,22 @@ macro ffiCtor*(prc: untyped): untyped =
       else:
         tn = $ptype
       ctorExtraParams.add(FFIParamMeta(name: paramNames[i], typeName: tn, isPtr: isPtr))
-    ffiProcRegistry.add(FFIProcMeta(
-      procName: cleanName,
-      libName: currentLibName,
-      kind: ffiCtorKind,
-      libTypeName: $libTypeName,
-      extraParams: ctorExtraParams,
-      returnTypeName: $libTypeName,
-      returnIsPtr: false,
-      isAsync: true,
-    ))
+    ffiProcRegistry.add(
+      FFIProcMeta(
+        procName: cleanName,
+        libName: currentLibName,
+        kind: ffiCtorKind,
+        libTypeName: $libTypeName,
+        extraParams: ctorExtraParams,
+        returnTypeName: $libTypeName,
+        returnIsPtr: false,
+        isAsync: true,
+      )
+    )
 
-  result = newStmtList(typeDef, deleteProc, ffiNewReqProc, helperProc, processProc, addToReg, ffiProc)
+  result = newStmtList(
+    typeDef, deleteProc, ffiNewReqProc, helperProc, processProc, addToReg, ffiProc
+  )
 
   when defined(ffiDumpMacros):
     echo result.repr
@@ -1384,28 +1415,39 @@ macro ffiCtor*(prc: untyped): untyped =
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 macro genBindings*(
-    outputDir: static[string],
-    nimSrcRelPath: static[string] = "",
+    outputDir: static[string] = ffiOutputDir,
+    nimSrcRelPath: static[string] = ffiNimSrcRelPath,
 ): untyped =
-  ## Generates binding files for the target language set by -d:ffiTargetLang=<lang>.
+  ## Generates binding files for the language set by -d:targetLang=<lang>.
   ## Supported values: "rust" (default), "cpp" (case-insensitive).
-  ## Call at the END of your library file, after all {.ffiCtor.} and {.ffi.} procs.
+  ## Output path and nim source path default to -d:ffiOutputDir and
+  ## -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath, or can be passed as explicit arguments.
+  ## This macro is a no-op unless -d:ffiGenBindings is set.
   ##
-  ## Example:
-  ##   genBindings("examples/nim_timer/nim_bindings", "../nim_timer.nim")
-  ##
-  ## Activate with: nim c -d:ffiGenBindings -d:ffiTargetLang=rust mylib.nim
-  ##            or: nim c -d:ffiGenBindings -d:ffiTargetLang=cpp  mylib.nim
+  ## Example (all via compile flags):
+  ##   genBindings()
+  ##   # nim c -d:ffiGenBindings -d:targetLang=rust \
+  ##   #        -d:ffiOutputDir=examples/nim_timer/rust_bindings \
+  ##   #        -d:ffiNimSrcRelPath=../nim_timer.nim mylib.nim
 
   when defined(ffiGenBindings):
-    let lang = ffiTargetLang.toLowerAscii()
+    if outputDir.len == 0:
+      error(
+        "genBindings: output directory is empty." &
+        " Pass it as an argument or set -d:ffiOutputDir=path/to/output"
+      )
+    let lang = targetLang.toLowerAscii()
     let libName = deriveLibName(ffiProcRegistry)
     case lang
     of "rust":
-      generateRustCrate(ffiProcRegistry, ffiTypeRegistry, libName, outputDir, nimSrcRelPath)
+      generateRustCrate(
+        ffiProcRegistry, ffiTypeRegistry, libName, outputDir, nimSrcRelPath
+      )
     of "cpp", "c++":
-      generateCppBindings(ffiProcRegistry, ffiTypeRegistry, libName, outputDir, nimSrcRelPath)
+      generateCppBindings(
+        ffiProcRegistry, ffiTypeRegistry, libName, outputDir, nimSrcRelPath
+      )
     else:
-      error("genBindings: unknown ffiTargetLang '" & lang & "'. Use 'rust' or 'cpp'.")
+      error("genBindings: unknown targetLang '" & lang & "'. Use 'rust' or 'cpp'.")
 
   result = newEmptyNode()

ffi/serial.nim

@@ -1,13 +1,15 @@
-import std/[json, macros]
+import std/[json, macros, sequtils, options]
 import results
 import ./codegen/meta
 
 proc ffiSerialize*(x: string): string =
-  $(%* x)
+  $(%*x)
 
 proc ffiSerialize*(x: cstring): string =
-  if x.isNil: "null"
-  else: ffiSerialize($x)
+  if x.isNil:
+    "null"
+  else:
+    ffiSerialize($x)
 
 proc ffiSerialize*(x: int): string =
   $x
@@ -19,7 +21,7 @@ proc ffiSerialize*(x: bool): string =
   if x: "true" else: "false"
 
 proc ffiSerialize*(x: float): string =
-  $(%* x)
+  $(%*x)
 
 proc ffiSerialize*(x: pointer): string =
   $cast[uint](x)
@@ -67,6 +69,18 @@ proc ffiDeserialize*(s: cstring, _: typedesc[pointer]): Result[pointer, string]
 proc ffiSerialize*[T](x: ptr T): string =
   $cast[uint](x)
 
+proc ffiSerialize*[T](x: seq[T]): string =
+  var arr = newJArray()
+  for item in x:
+    arr.add(parseJson(ffiSerialize(item)))
+  result = $arr
+
+proc ffiSerialize*[T](x: Option[T]): string =
+  if x.isSome:
+    ffiSerialize(x.get)
+  else:
+    "null"
+
 proc ffiDeserialize*[T](s: cstring, _: typedesc[ptr T]): Result[ptr T, string] =
   try:
     let address = cast[ptr T](uint(parseJson($s).getBiggestInt()))
@@ -74,6 +88,38 @@ proc ffiDeserialize*[T](s: cstring, _: typedesc[ptr T]): Result[ptr T, string] =
   except Exception as e:
     err(e.msg)
 
+proc ffiDeserialize*[T](s: cstring, _: typedesc[seq[T]]): Result[seq[T], string] =
+  try:
+    let node = parseJson($s)
+    if node.kind != JArray:
+      return err("expected JSON array")
+    var resultSeq: seq[T] = @[]
+    for item in node:
+      let itemJson = $item
+      let parsed = ffiDeserialize(itemJson.cstring, typedesc[T])
+      if parsed.isOk:
+        resultSeq.add(parsed.get)
+      else:
+        return err(parsed.error)
+    ok(resultSeq)
+  except Exception as e:
+    err(e.msg)
+
+proc ffiDeserialize*[T](s: cstring, _: typedesc[Option[T]]): Result[Option[T], string] =
+  try:
+    let node = parseJson($s)
+    if node.kind == JNull:
+      ok(none(T))
+    else:
+      let itemJson = $node
+      let parsed = ffiDeserialize(itemJson.cstring, typedesc[T])
+      if parsed.isOk:
+        ok(some(parsed.get))
+      else:
+        err(parsed.error)
+  except Exception as e:
+    err(e.msg)
+
 macro ffiType*(body: untyped): untyped =
   ## Statement macro applied to a type declaration block.
   ## Generates ffiSerialize and ffiDeserialize overloads for each type,
@@ -116,15 +162,30 @@ macro ffiType*(body: untyped): untyped =
 
   ffiTypeRegistry.add(FFITypeMeta(name: typeNameStr, fields: fieldMetas))
 
-  let serializeProc = quote do:
+  let serializeProc = quote:
     proc ffiSerialize*(x: `typeName`): string =
-      $(%* x)
+      $(%*x)
 
-  let deserializeProc = quote do:
-    proc ffiDeserialize*(s: cstring, _: typedesc[`typeName`]): Result[`typeName`, string] =
+  var assignmentText = ""
+  for field in fieldMetas:
+    if assignmentText.len > 0:
+      assignmentText &= "\n"
+    assignmentText &=
+      "  result[\"" & field.name & "\"] = parseJson(ffiSerialize(x." & field.name & "))"
+  let jsonProc = parseStmt(
+    "proc `%`*(x: " & typeNameStr & "): JsonNode =\n  var result = newJObject()\n" &
+      assignmentText & "\n  return result\n"
+  )
+
+  let importJson = quote:
+    import json
+  let deserializeProc = quote:
+    proc ffiDeserialize*(
+        s: cstring, _: typedesc[`typeName`]
+    ): Result[`typeName`, string] =
       try:
         ok(parseJson($s).to(`typeName`))
       except Exception as e:
         err(e.msg)
 
-  result = newStmtList(body, serializeProc, deserializeProc)
+  result = newStmtList(importJson, body, serializeProc, jsonProc, deserializeProc)