Patterns

Architectural patterns

• Modular interop - a high level approach for ensuring effective interop
• Layered library design - how to structure libraries and crates for interop
• -sys crate
• Wrap a C library
• Serialization
• Cross-language ownership

Design patterns

• Foreign dtor
• Object-based API (https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/patterns/ffi/export.html)
• Rust version of C object
• Something about intermediate types like CString/OsString (https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/idioms/ffi/accepting-strings.html, https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/idioms/ffi/passing-strings.html)
• Transparent smart pointer
• Consolidated wrapper (https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/patterns/ffi/wrappers.html)
• Strings (how to actually use them, see strings links above, https://snacky.blog/en/string-ffi-rust.html, https://dev.to/kgrech/7-ways-to-pass-a-string-between-rust-and-c-4iebZ) )

Programming idioms and best practices

• Representing Rust errors in C (https://rust-unofficial.github.io/patterns/idioms/ffi/errors.html)
• Representing C errors in Rust

Anti-patterns

• Disguising pointers as values (unclear, disguises unsafety)
• Using C structs directly in Rust (back compat hazards including padding, due to different back compat between C and Rust)