Rust by Example

Attributes

An attribute is metadata applied to some module, crate or item. This metadata can be used to/for:

• conditional compilation of code

• set crate name, version and type (binary or library)

• disable lints (warnings)

• enable compiler features (macros, glob imports, etc.)

• link to a foreign library

• mark functions as unit tests

• mark functions that will be part of a benchmark

When attributes apply to a whole crate, their syntax is #![crate_attribute], and when they apply to a module or item, the syntax is #[item_attribute] (notice the missing bang !).

Attributes can take arguments with different syntaxes:

• #[attribute = "value"]

• #[attribute(key = "value")]

• #[attribute(value)]

Attributes can have multiple values and can be separated over multiple lines, too:

#[attribute(value, value2)]

#[attribute(value, value2, value3,

value4, value5)]