Rust Support

ThinkCode provides robust support for Rust development, offering specialized tools, intelligent code assistance, and advanced features designed to enhance productivity when working with Rust's powerful systems programming language.

Getting Started

Setup and Configuration

ThinkCode automatically detects Rust projects. For optimal experience:

Install Rust Extension:
- ThinkCode will prompt to install the Rust extension when you open a Rust file
- Alternatively, open the Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X / Cmd+Shift+X) and search for "ThinkCode Rust"
Install Rust:
- Ensure Rust is installed via rustup
- ThinkCode will detect the Rust installation automatically
- Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P / Cmd+Shift+P) → "ThinkCode: Configure Rust Toolchain" to switch between stable/beta/nightly
Project Configuration:
- ThinkCode supports standard Rust project structures
- Automatically recognizes Cargo.toml files
- Configures the Rust toolchain
Create a New Project:
- Command Palette → "ThinkCode: Create New Project"
- Select Rust from template categories
- Choose from templates:
  - Binary application
  - Library
  - Workspace
  - WebAssembly
  - Embedded system

Code Intelligence

ThinkCode provides advanced intelligence for Rust:

Type Information: View detailed type information with tooltips
Auto-Completion: Context-aware suggestions for:
- Functions and methods
- Struct/enum fields
- Traits and implementations
- Crates and modules
Signature Help: View parameter information for functions
Inlay Hints: See types and parameter names inline

Example of Rust code with intelligent assistance:

// ThinkCode provides intelligent assistance for Rust
use std::collections::HashMap;
 
// ThinkCode shows documentation and autocompletion
pub struct Person {
    name: String,
    age: u32,
}
 
impl Person {
    // ThinkCode supports autocompletion for methods
    pub fn new(name: String, age: u32) -> Self {
        Person { name, age }
    }
    
    pub fn greet(&self) -> String {
        format!("Hello, my name is {} and I am {} years old", self.name, self.age)
    }
}
 
fn main() {
    // ThinkCode provides smart completion
    let person = Person::new("Alice".to_string(), 30);
    
    // ThinkCode shows inlay type hints
    let greeting = person.greet();
    
    println!("{}", greeting);
    
    // ThinkCode offers autocompletion for the standard library
    let mut map = HashMap::new();
    map.insert("key", "value");
    
    // ThinkCode understands Option/Result types
    if let Some(value) = map.get("key") {
        println!("Found value: {}", value);
    }
}

Navigate your codebase efficiently:

Go to Definition: Jump to symbol definitions
- Keyboard: F12 or Ctrl+Click / Cmd+Click
- Works across crates and dependencies
Find All References: Locate all usages of a symbol
- Keyboard: Shift+F12
- Results organized by file and location
Go to Implementation: Navigate to trait implementations
- Keyboard: Ctrl+F12 / Cmd+F12
- Jump between trait and impl blocks
Outline View: Browse file structure
- Keyboard: Ctrl+Shift+O / Cmd+Shift+O
- Shows structs, functions, modules, and more
Symbol Search: Search across your entire project
- Keyboard: Ctrl+T / Cmd+T

Use Statements Management

Efficient handling of Rust imports:

Auto-Import: Automatically add missing imports
Organize Imports: Sort and remove unused imports
Import Completion: Intelligent crate suggestions
Import Conflict Resolution: Choose between ambiguous imports

Configure import behavior:

{
  "thinkcode.rust.imports": {
    "autoOrganize": true,
    "granularity": "item", // Options: "item", "module", "crate"
    "enableImportMergingFor": ["std", "alloc", "core"],
    "preferPrelude": true
  }
}

AI-Powered Development Features

Smart Code Generation

Generate Rust code with natural language prompts:

Function Generation:

Add a comment describing function purpose
Press Alt+I / Option+I for AI implementation

Example:

// Generate a function that validates an email address using regex
// Press Alt+I here and ThinkCode generates the implementation
fn is_valid_email(email: &str) -> bool {
    use regex::Regex;
    
    // Using a simplified regex pattern for email validation
    let re = Regex::new(r"^[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$")
        .expect("Invalid regex pattern");
        
    re.is_match(email)
}

Struct/Enum Generation:
- Describe the data structure purpose in a comment
- ThinkCode generates a complete type with methods and trait implementations
Test Generation:
- Select function to test
- Right-click and select "Generate Unit Tests"
- ThinkCode analyzes function and creates comprehensive tests

Code Refactoring

AI-assisted refactoring capabilities:

Extract Function: Create a new function from selected code
Extract Variable: Create a variable from an expression
Intelligent Renaming: Rename symbols with precision
Convert to Struct: Transform function parameters into a struct
Implement Traits: Generate trait implementations

Access refactoring tools:

Right-click in editor
Select "Refactor" menu
Choose desired refactoring operation

Documentation Assistant

Generate and maintain Rust documentation:

Doc Comment Generation: Create rustdoc-style documentation
Example Code: Generate example usage for functions
README Creation: Generate project documentation
API Documentation: Create API reference documentation

Example of AI-assisted documentation:

// Place cursor here and use Command Palette > "Generate Documentation"
/// Processes a collection of items using the provided configuration.
///
/// This function applies the transformer to each item that passes the filter criteria.
/// If `parallel` is set to `true`, processing will be performed in parallel using rayon.
///
/// # Arguments
///
/// * `items` - A slice of items to process
/// * `config` - Processing configuration including filter and transformer functions
/// * `parallel` - Whether to process items in parallel
///
/// # Returns
///
/// A `Result` containing:
/// * `Ok`: A vector of transformed items that passed the filter
/// * `Err`: An error if transformation fails for any item
///
/// # Errors
///
/// Returns an error if:
/// * Any transformation operation fails
/// * The filter or transformer panics
///
/// # Examples
///
/// ```
/// use my_crate::{ProcessingConfig, process_items};
///
/// let items = vec![1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
/// let config = ProcessingConfig::new(
///     |x| x % 2 == 0,                 // Filter even numbers
///     |x| Ok(x * x)                  // Square the value
/// );
///
/// let result = process_items(&items, config, true);
/// assert_eq!(result.unwrap(), vec![4, 16]);
/// ```
pub fn process_items<T, R, E>(
    items: &[T],
    config: ProcessingConfig<T, R, E>,
    parallel: bool,
) -> Result<Vec<R>, E>
where
    T: Clone + Send + Sync,
    R: Send,
    E: From<std::sync::mpsc::RecvError> + Send,
{
    // Implementation...
}

Project Management

Cargo Integration

Seamless integration with Cargo:

Cargo Commands: Run Cargo commands directly from ThinkCode
Dependency Management: Add, update, and remove dependencies
Feature Toggling: Enable/disable crate features
Cargo Watch: Auto-run commands on file changes

Access Cargo tools:

Open Cargo view in sidebar
Right-click on project to see available commands
Use Command Palette for quick access to common Cargo tasks

Example of Cargo panel:

Build: cargo build
Run: cargo run
Test: cargo test
Check: cargo check
Clean: cargo clean
Update: cargo update

Workspace Support

Efficiently manage Cargo workspaces:

Workspace Explorer: Navigate multi-crate projects
Inter-Crate Navigation: Jump between workspace members
Dependency Graph: Visualize workspace dependencies
Bulk Operations: Run commands across workspace members

Debugging and Testing

Debugging

Powerful Rust debugging capabilities:

LLDB/GDB Integration: Debug Rust applications with native debuggers
Variable Inspection: Examine complex Rust types
Expression Evaluation: Evaluate Rust expressions during debugging
Memory View: Inspect memory and raw pointers
Advanced Breakpoints:
- Conditional breakpoints
- Function breakpoints
- Data breakpoints

Example launch configuration:

// .vscode/launch.json
{
  "version": "0.2.0",
  "configurations": [
    {
      "type": "thinkcode-rust",
      "request": "launch",
      "name": "Debug Rust Program",
      "program": "${workspaceFolder}/target/debug/${workspaceFolderBasename}",
      "args": [],
      "cwd": "${workspaceFolder}",
      "sourceLanguages": ["rust"],
      "sourceMap": {
        "/rustc/*": "${env:HOME}/.rustup/toolchains/stable-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu/lib/rustlib/src/rust"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Testing

Integrated support for Rust testing:

Test Explorer: View and run tests with visual UI
Test Discovery: Automatically find tests in your project
Test Generation: AI-assisted test creation
Coverage Visualization: See code coverage in editor

Configure test features:

{
  "thinkcode.rust.testing": {
    "enabled": true,
    "cargoArgs": ["--all-features"],
    "runBefore": "check",
    "showOutput": true,
    "coverage": {
      "enabled": true,
      "decorator": "gutter" // Options: "none", "gutter", "coverage", "both"
    }
  }
}

Code Quality and Analysis

Linting and Formatting

Integrated code quality tools:

Clippy Integration: Catch common mistakes and improve code
Rustfmt: Format code according to Rust style guidelines
Style Checking: Enforce consistent coding style
Error Lens: See errors and warnings inline

Configure linting and formatting:

{
  "thinkcode.rust.clippy": {
    "enabled": true,
    "level": "all", // Options: "correctness", "style", "complexity", "perf", "pedantic", "nursery", "all"
    "checkOnSave": true,
    "allowEmbeddedClippyLevel": true,
    "allowClippyOptions": true
  },
  "thinkcode.rust.rustfmt": {
    "enabled": true,
    "formatOnSave": true,
    "useRustfmtToml": true,
    "extraArgs": []
  }
}

Static Analysis

Advanced code analysis features:

Type Flow Analysis: Track value flow through code
Unsafe Code Analysis: Verify unsafe code blocks
Dead Code Detection: Find unused code
Error Propagation Analysis: Check Result/Option handling

Security Analysis

Rust-specific security scanning:

Unsafe Code Verification: Validate unsafe blocks
Vulnerability Detection: Scan dependencies for vulnerabilities
Memory Safety Checks: Identify potential memory safety issues
Input Validation: Verify proper input handling

Performance Tools

Performance Analysis

Identify and optimize Rust performance:

Flamegraph Integration: Visualize performance bottlenecks
Allocation Profiling: Track memory allocation patterns
Binary Size Analysis: Reduce executable size
Microbenchmarking: Test performance of specific functions

Access performance tools:

Command Palette
Type "ThinkCode: Analyze Rust Performance"
Select analysis type

Example benchmark integration:

// ThinkCode provides intelligent performance analysis
#[bench]
fn bench_sort_small_array(b: &mut Bencher) {
    b.iter(|| {
        let mut v = vec![5, 3, 1, 8, 2, 4, 7, 6];
        v.sort();
    });
    // ThinkCode shows performance metrics and suggestions
}

Optimization Suggestions

Get intelligent suggestions for improving performance:

Algorithmic Improvements: More efficient implementations
Memory Layout Optimization: Better data structure choices
Concurrency Opportunities: Identify parallelizable code
Compiler Optimization Guidance: Leverage Rust compiler optimizations

Specialized Rust Development

Async Rust

Specialized tools for async programming:

Async/Await Intelligence: Smart completion for async code
Future Visualization: Track futures through your code
Runtime Integration: Support for Tokio, async-std, and more
Task Debugging: Debug async tasks effectively

WebAssembly Support

Tools for WebAssembly development:

wasm-pack Integration: Build and pack WebAssembly modules
wasm-bindgen Support: Generate JavaScript bindings
WebAssembly Preview: Test WebAssembly modules directly
Size Optimization: Reduce WebAssembly binary size

Embedded Development

Support for embedded Rust:

Embedded Target Support: Work with microcontrollers
Peripheral Access: Smart completion for hardware peripherals
Flash & Debug: Program and debug embedded devices
Memory Analysis: Track ROM and RAM usage

Ecosystem Integration

Crate Exploration

Discover and use Rust crates:

Crate Browser: Search and explore available crates
Documentation Viewer: Browse crate documentation
Version Comparison: Compare crate versions
Feature Explorer: Discover and enable crate features

Rust Analyzer Integration

Leverage Rust Analyzer's capabilities:

Semantic Highlighting: Enhanced syntax highlighting
Proc Macro Support: Intelligent handling of procedural macros
Recursive Expansion: Expand macros to see generated code
Type Inference: View inferred types inline

Configure Rust Analyzer:

{
  "thinkcode.rust.analyzer": {
    "checkOnSave": true,
    "procMacro": {
      "enable": true,
      "attributes": {
        "enable": true
      }
    },
    "cargo": {
      "loadOutDirsFromCheck": true,
      "allFeatures": true
    },
    "inlayHints": {
      "bindingModeHints": {
        "enable": true
      },
      "chainingHints": {
        "enable": true
      },
      "parameterHints": {
        "enable": true
      },
      "typeHints": {
        "enable": true,
        "hideClosureInitialization": false,
        "hideNamedConstructor": false
      }
    }
  }
}

Customization

Extension Points

Extend ThinkCode's Rust support:

Custom Clippy Rules: Create specialized linting rules
Code Generation Templates: Implement custom templates
Build Task Automation: Configure custom build workflows
Analysis Plugins: Add custom analysis capabilities

Configuration Options

Comprehensive configuration for Rust development:

{
  "thinkcode.rust": {
    "cargoPath": "cargo",
    "rustupPath": "rustup",
    "rustfmtPath": "rustfmt",
    "clippyPath": "clippy-driver",
    "sysroot": null,
    "engine": "rust-analyzer", // Options: "rust-analyzer", "rls"
    "trace": {
      "extension": false,
      "server": "off"
    },
    "debug": {
      "sourceFile": "${file}",
      "sourceLanguages": ["rust"],
      "preLaunchTask": "rust: cargo build"
    }
  }
}