cargo-godot-lib

A Rust library for launching Godot from a Cargo run script, specifically designed for GDExtension development.

cargo-godot-lib provides similar functionality to the cargo-godot executable but as a library. This allows you to include it as a dependency in your project, ensuring all developers have access to the same runner without requiring a separate global installation via cargo install.

Features

• .gdextension Generation: Supports customized Cargo target directory (e.g. target-dir = ".cache/cargo/target").
• Godot Project Import: Automatically runs godot --import --headless if the .godot folder is missing, eliminating the need to manually open the editor on a fresh clone.
• Godot Binary Discovery: Intelligently locates the Godot binary via environment variables (godot or GODOT), the system PATH, or common installation paths.
• Developer Friendly: Launches Godot with the --debug flag by default for better output in your terminal.
• Configurable: Convenient builder pattern allows customization of run parameters (See GodotRunner for details).

Example Usage

Example project structure:

project/
├── Cargo.toml (workspace)
├── godot/
│   └── project.godot
└── rust/
    ├── Cargo.toml (package: example)
    ├── run_godot.rs
    └── src/
        └── main.rs

The main interface of cargo-godot-lib is the GodotRunner struct. This struct follows a builder pattern and can be configured to suit your needs. See the following project/rust/run_godot.rs example:

fn main() {
    let runner = cargo_godot_lib::GodotRunner::create(
        env!("CARGO_PKG_NAME"),
        &std::path::PathBuf::from(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../godot"),
    );
    if let Err(e) = runner.execute() {
        eprintln!("{e}");
        std::process::exit(1);
    }
}

Add cargo-godot-lib to your dependencies and define the binary in project/rust/Cargo.toml:

[package]
name = "example"
version = "0.1.0"
edition = "2024"

[[bin]]
name = "run-godot"
path = "run_godot.rs"

[dependencies]
# ... your other dependencies (e.g. godot-rust)
cargo-godot-lib = "<latest_version_goes_here>"

Now any developer can launch the Godot project and build the extension in one command:

cargo run --package example

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.