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brec is a tool that allows you to quickly and easily create a custom message exchange protocol with resilience to data "corruption" and the ability to extract messages from mixed streams (i.e., streams containing not only brec packets but also any other data). brec is developed for designing your own custom binary protocol — without predefined message formats or rigid schemas.
Notice: Public Beta
The
brecis currently in a public beta phase. Its core functionality has demonstrated strong reliability under heavy stress testing, and the system is considered stable for most use cases.However, the public API is still evolving as we work to support a wider range of scenarios. We welcome your feedback and would be grateful if you share which features or improvements would make brec more valuable for your needs.
Thanks for being part of the journey!
Key Features
- Protocol without constraints – Unlike many alternatives,
brecdoesn’t enforce a fixed message layout. Instead, you define your own building blocks (blocks) and arbitrary payloads (payloads), combining them freely into custom packets. - Stream-recognizable messages – Each block, payload, and packet is automatically assigned a unique signature, making them easily discoverable within any byte stream.
- Built-in reliability – All parts of a packet (blocks, payloads, and headers) are automatically linked with their own CRC checksums to ensure data integrity.
- Stream-aware reading –
brecincludes a powerful streaming reader capable of extracting packets even from noisy or corrupted streams — skipping irrelevant or damaged data without breaking. - Non-packet data is preserved – When reading mixed streams, unrecognized data is not lost. You can capture and process it separately using rules and callbacks.
- Persistent storage layer –
brecprovides a high-performance storage engine for persisting packets. Its slot-based layout enables fast indexed access, filtering, and direct access by packet index. - High performance – Parsing performance is on par with the most optimized binary parsers (see the Performance section in performance).
- Simple to use – Just annotate your structs with #[block] or #[payload], and brec takes care of the rest — your protocol is ready to go.
Recent Performance Test Results
| Test | Mode | Size | Rows | Time (ms) | Iterations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storage (brec) | Filtering | 908 Mb | 140,000 | 612 | 10 |
| Storage (brec) | Reading | 908 Mb | 1,000,000 | 987 | 10 |
| JSON | Reading | 919 Mb | 1,000,000 | 597 | 10 |
| JSON | Filtering | 919 Mb | 140,000 | 608 | 10 |
| Binary Stream (brec) | Reading | 831 Mb | 1,000,000 | 764 | 10 |
| Binary Stream (brec) | Filtering | 831 Mb | 140,000 | 340 | 10 |
| Plain Text | Reading | 774 Mb | 1,000,000 | 247 | 10 |
| Plain Text | Filtering | 774 Mb | 150,000 | 276 | 10 |
| Streamed Storage (brec) | Filtering | 908 Mb | 140,000 | 355 | 10 |
| Streamed Storage (brec) | Reading | 908 Mb | 1,000,000 | 790 | 10 |
See more details in the test about how tests are performed and what they mean.