CFG++ Language Support for VS Code

Language support for CFG++ configuration files. Another VS Code extension? Probably useful if you're working with CFG++ files and want syntax highlighting, validation, and auto-completion.

When This Extension Might Be Useful

• Large configuration files where JSON becomes unwieldy
• Type safety to prevent configuration errors
• Schema validation for complex configurations
• Teams using CFG++ for microservice deployments

When You Probably Don't Need This

• Simple JSON/YAML configs work fine for your use case
• Your team isn't using CFG++ format
• You prefer existing configuration formats

Why CFG++ Was Created

CFGPP's initial goal was to create a configuration format with more features than JSON but without YAML's indentation dependency. This makes CFG++ particularly useful in field environments - at industrial plants, remote sites, or anywhere you might need to edit configs without IDE assistance.

Practical Field Advantages

• No indentation sensitivity - Works fine in basic text editors
• Explicit braces - Clear structure without whitespace dependency
• Type safety - Prevents configuration errors in production environments
• Comments supported - Document complex industrial configurations
• Schema validation - Catch errors before deployment to remote systems

Perfect for: Industrial automation, IoT deployments, field engineering, remote system configuration where you can't rely on fancy IDE features.

What It Does

• Syntax highlighting - Colors for .cfgpp and .cfgpp-schema files
• Auto-completion - Suggests identifiers, enum values, and schema elements
• Validation - Shows syntax and schema errors
• Language server - LSP integration for IDE features
• Schema support - Works with .cfgpp-schema files for type checking

Syntax Support

Supports the CFG++ syntax including:

• ✅ Basic objects: ObjectName { property = value }
• ✅ Nested objects: Deep nesting with clean syntax
• ✅ Arrays: [1, 2, 3, "mixed", true]
• ✅ Enums: enum::Status { values = ["active", "inactive"] }
• ✅ Type safety: Strong typing with validation
• ✅ Include directives: @include "other.cfgpp"
• ✅ Constructor syntax: Config(string name = "app") { ... }
• ✅ Namespaced identifiers: Database::PostgreSQL
• ✅ Comments: Single-line // and multi-line /* */

Quick Start

1. Install the extension
2. Create a new .cfgpp file
3. Start writing CFG++ configuration:

// Example CFG++ configuration
AppConfig {
    name = "MyApp"
    version = "1.0.0"
    
    server = ServerConfig {
        host = "localhost"
        port = 8080
        ssl = true
    }
    
    database = Database::PostgreSQL {
        host = "localhost"
        port = 5432
    }
}

Documentation

• 📖 Complete Syntax Reference - Authoritative syntax guide
• 🚀 Quick Start Guide - Get up and running quickly
• 📝 Examples - Practical configuration examples
• 🔧 API Reference - Programming interface documentation

Requirements

• VS Code 1.75.0 or later (or Windsurf IDE)
• Python 3.8+ (for Language Server features)

Language Server Features

The extension includes a full Language Server Protocol implementation providing:

• Real-time validation with detailed error messages
• Auto-completion for identifiers, properties, and enum values
• Hover information for schema elements
• Go to definition for included files and schema references
• Document formatting with configurable styles

Extension Settings

This extension contributes the following settings:

• cfgpp.validation.enabled: Enable/disable syntax validation
• cfgpp.completion.enabled: Enable/disable auto-completion
• cfgpp.formatting.enabled: Enable/disable document formatting

Release Notes

1.1.0 (Latest)

• Major Update: Synchronized with authoritative syntax documentation
• Verified Syntax: All syntax patterns tested against actual parser
• Updated Grammar: TextMate grammar aligned with parser implementation
• Better Documentation: Links to authoritative syntax reference
• Improved Reliability: Extension now reflects verified working syntax

1.0.4

• Previous release with basic language support

Contributing

This extension is part of the CFG++ Format project. See the main Contributing Guide for information on how to contribute.

License

This extension is released under the same license as the main CFG++ Format project. See LICENSE for details.