CLI

Process, format, and validate Styx files from the command line.

Installation

bash

cargo install styx-cli

Usage

Styx uses a simple disambiguation rule:

If the first argument contains . or /, or is - → file mode
Otherwise → subcommand mode

bash

styx config.styx [options]    # File mode (has '.')
styx ./config [options]       # File mode (has '/')
styx -                        # Stdin (file mode)
styx lsp                      # Subcommand (bare word)
styx tree config.styx         # Subcommand with file arg

File Mode

Process a Styx file — format, convert, or validate.

bash

# Format and print to stdout
styx config.styx

# Format in place
styx config.styx --in-place

# Convert to JSON
styx config.styx --json-out -
styx config.styx --json-out output.json

# Single-line compact format
styx config.styx --compact

# Read from stdin
styx - < input.styx
cat input.styx | styx -

Options

Option	Description
`-o <file>`	Output to file (styx format)
`--json-out <file>`	Output as JSON (`-` for stdout)
`--in-place`	Modify input file in place
`--compact`	Single-line formatting
`--validate`	Validate against declared schema (no output)
`--schema <file>`	Use this schema instead of declared

Note: --in-place intentionally has no short form — destructive operations should require the full flag.

Validation

Styx files can declare their schema with a @schema key:

styx

@schema ./schema.styx

host localhost
port 8080

Then validate:

bash

styx config.styx --validate

This validates and exits with code 0 (success) or 2 (validation error). No output is printed on success — use exit codes in scripts.

To validate and also output:

bash

styx config.styx --validate -o -

Override the schema:

bash

styx config.styx --validate --schema ./other-schema.styx

Subcommands

tree

Show the parse tree:

bash

styx tree config.styx
styx tree --format sexp config.styx   # S-expression format
styx tree --format debug config.styx  # Debug format (default)

cst

Show the concrete syntax tree (CST) structure:

bash

styx cst config.styx

lsp

Start the language server (stdio transport):

bash

styx lsp

extract

Extract embedded schemas from a binary:

bash

styx extract ./my-binary

diff

Compare a local schema against a published version:

bash

styx diff schema.styx --crate my-schema
styx diff schema.styx --crate my-schema --baseline 0.1.0

package

Generate a publishable crate from a schema:

bash

styx package schema.styx --name my-schema --version 0.1.0
styx package schema.styx --name my-schema --version 0.1.0 --output ./out

publish

Publish a schema to staging.crates.io:

bash

styx publish schema.styx
styx publish schema.styx -y  # Skip confirmation

Requires STYX_STAGING_TOKEN environment variable.

cache

Manage the schema cache:

bash

styx cache              # Show cache info
styx cache --open       # Open cache directory
styx cache --clear      # Clear all cached schemas

skill

Output Claude Code skill for AI assistance:

bash

styx skill

completions

Generate shell completions. Add one of these to your shell config:

Bash (~/.bashrc):

bash

eval "$(styx completions bash)"

Zsh (~/.zshrc):

zsh

eval "$(styx completions zsh)"

Fish (~/.config/fish/config.fish):

fish

styx completions fish | source

Or write to a file for faster shell startup:

bash

styx completions bash > ~/.local/share/bash-completion/completions/styx
styx completions zsh > ~/.zfunc/_styx
styx completions fish > ~/.config/fish/completions/styx.fish

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success
1	Syntax error
2	Validation error
3	I/O error

CI Integration

yaml

# GitHub Actions
- name: Validate config
  run: styx config.styx --validate

# Check formatting
- name: Check format
  run: |
    styx config.styx > /tmp/formatted.styx
    diff config.styx /tmp/formatted.styx