Kernel

Laravel semantics with Rust type safety

Minimal, async-first Rust web framework inspired by Laravel, providing routing, controllers, middleware, configuration, and a CLI—all built with Rust’s performance and safety in mind.

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Table of Contents

• Goals
• Features
• Architecture
• MVP Scope
• Getting Started
• Project Structure
• Milestones
• Contribution
• License

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Goals

Kernel aims to provide:

• A developer-friendly, structured Rust web framework
• Laravel-inspired conventions and philosophy
• Modular components that can be extended over time
• CLI tooling for server management and project scaffolding

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Features (MVP)

• Async HTTP server (GET & POST)
• Simple routing system with path parameters
• Controller abstractions
• Middleware pipeline
• Basic dependency injection container
• Configuration loading from .env
• CLI tool for running the server and generating controllers
• Basic test harness for integration testing

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Architecture

Kernel follows an MVC-inspired modular design:

• App – central orchestrator holding router, container, and middleware
• Router – handles route registration and matching
• Middleware – global request/response pipeline
• Container – dependency injection for services
• Config – environment-based configuration

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MVP Scope

Included in MVP:

• HTTP server
• Routing & controllers
• Middleware
• DI container
• Config system
• CLI scaffold
• Test harness

Out of Scope:

• ORM / database integration
• Auth / sessions / CSRF
• View templating
• WebSockets / background jobs
• Macro-based routing

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Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Rust 1.70+
• Cargo

Run the Server

cargo run -- serve

Create a Controller

cargo run -- make:controller UserController

Run Tests

cargo test

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Project Structure

kernel/
 ├── src/
 │   ├── main.rs           # Entry point / CLI
 │   ├── app.rs            # App kernel
 │   ├── router.rs         # Routing system
 │   ├── middleware.rs     # Middleware pipeline
 │   ├── container.rs      # Dependency injection
 │   ├── request.rs        # Request abstraction
 │   ├── response.rs       # Response abstraction
 │   ├── config.rs         # Configuration loader
 │   └── cli.rs            # CLI commands
 └── Cargo.toml

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Milestones

1. Server – Hardcoded route responding to requests
2. Router – Dynamic route table with path parameters
3. Middleware – Logging pipeline example
4. DI Container – Singleton service registration and resolution
5. Config – .env loading into typed structs
6. CLI – serve & make:controller
7. Tests – Async integration test harness

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Contribution

Kernel is open for contributions. Developers are welcome to improve features, add components, or enhance the CLI.

Guidelines

• Keep code idiomatic and safe
• Use async/await for all I/O operations
• Document your code
• Follow Rustfmt and Clippy recommendations
• Discuss major changes via issues before submitting pull requests

How to Contribute

1. Fork the repo
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/my-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -am 'Add feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/my-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

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License

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.