Rura is a terminal UI for building shell pipelines. Edit a pipe like grep | sort | uniq, see output update live, inspect any stage, and diff between runs — replacing the usual edit, up-arrow, rerun loop.

Features

• Partial Pipeline Execution: Execute only up to the current subcommand to debug complex pipes.
• Live Execution Modes: Real-time feedback as you type, with optional "Live Until Cursor" or "Live Full" modes.
• Diff Mode: Line-based diff between two outputs, with a selectable base (stdin or any subcommand's output).
• Presets: Save frequently used commands as named presets with optional single-key shortcuts.
• Context-aware Completion: Tab-complete commands and file paths using your system's bash, zsh, or fish tools.
• Command Caching: Automatically caches output of subcommands to speed up iteration.
• Customizable: Fully configurable key bindings, themes, and UI placement via TOML.

More features

• Syntax & Error Highlighting: Visual feedback for subcommand boundaries, quotes, and pipes, plus highlighting of failed subcommands.
• Custom Shell Support: Specify which shell to use for command execution and completions (supports sh, bash, zsh, fish on Unix and powershell on Windows).
• Search: Search and highlight text within the output pane with regex support.
• Command Formatting: Automatically format your command pipeline.
• Subcommand Editing: Quick copy, cut, and paste of subcommands.
• Progress Indicator: Visual indicator for long-running commands.
• Persistent History: Quickly access and reuse previous commands.
• Save to File: Save current output or command to a file.
• Line Wrapping: Toggle whether long output lines wrap to fit the view.
• Line Numbers: Toggle line numbers in the output pane.
• Output Follow: Automatically scroll to the end of output as new data arrives from stdin.

Demos

Live Execution

Diff Mode

Command and filename completion

More demos

Configurable layout

History

Search with regex support

Line wrapping

Installation

Check the Releases page for pre-compiled binaries for your platform.

Homebrew (macOS/Linux):

brew install rura

Arch Linux (AUR): Install via your AUR helper:

# Pre-compiled binary
yay -S rura-bin

# Build from latest git source
yay -S rura-git

Debian/Ubuntu: Download the .deb package from the Releases page and install it with:

sudo dpkg -i rura_<version>_<arch>.deb

Fedora/RHEL: Download the .rpm package from the Releases page and install it with:

sudo rpm -ivh rura_<version>_<arch>.rpm

NixOS:

nix-shell -p rura

For other Nix-based installation methods and options, see search.nixos.org.

Cargo:

# From crates.io
cargo install rura

# From source
cargo install --git https://github.com/tlipinski/rura

Usage

You can start Rura by passing a file as an argument, piping data into it, or providing an initial command.

# Open a file
rura --file data.json

# Pipe data into rura
cat logs.txt | rura

# Start with an initial command
rura --command "grep error | sort"

# Print the last executed command from history without opening the UI
rura --last

CLI Arguments

Argument	Description
-f, --file <FILE>	Path to the input file.
-c, --command <COMMAND>	Initial command to populate the input field.
-C, --config <FILE>	Path to a custom TOML configuration file.
-l, --last	Print the last command from history and exit.
--no-cache	Disable caching of command output.
-s, --shell <SHELL>	Specify the shell to use for execution and completions (e.g., bash, zsh, fish). Defaults to sh on Unix and powershell on Windows.
-V, --version	Print version information.

Key Bindings

Command Execution

Key	Action
Enter	Execute the full command pipeline.
Alt + \	Execute the pipeline up to the current subcommand (where your cursor is).
Alt + |	Execute the pipeline up to the previous subcommand.
Alt + i	Reset view to show the original input data.
F9	Toggle execution details view.

Navigation & View

Key	Action
Arrows Alt + h / j / k / l	Scroll the output (Left, Down, Up, Right).
PageUp / PageDown Alt + Up / Down Alt + Shift + j / k Ctrl + u / d	Scroll the output up/down by page.
Alt + Shift + h / l	Scroll the output left/right by page.
Alt + w	Toggle line wrapping.
Alt + n	Toggle line numbers.

Search

Key	Action
F3 / F4 Ctrl + f / b	Search forward or backward in the output.
Alt + x	Toggle regex mode.
Alt + c	Toggle case sensitivity.
Ctrl + p	Previous search query in history.
Ctrl + n	Next search query in history.

Live Execution Modes

Key	Action
F11	Toggle "Live Until Cursor" mode. Executes the pipeline up to the cursor as you type (requires confirmation). When already in "Live Full", switches to "Live Until Cursor".
F12	Toggle "Live Full" mode. Executes the entire pipeline as you type (requires confirmation). When already in "Live Until Cursor", switches to "Live Full".

Diff

Key	Action
Alt + d	Toggle diff mode. Shows a line-based diff between the diff base and the current output.
Alt + /	Set the current subcommand's output as the diff base.
Alt + ?	Reset the diff base back to the original stdin.

Command Input & Subcommands

Key	Action
Tab	Trigger forward command or file completion (requires bash, zsh, or fish available).
Shift + Tab	Trigger backward command or file completion.
Alt + Right	Move cursor to the next subcommand.
Alt + Left	Move cursor to the previous subcommand.
Alt + o	Format the command pipeline.
Alt + c	Copy the current subcommand.
Alt + x	Cut the current subcommand.
Alt + v	Paste the copied/cut subcommand after the current one.
Home / End Ctrl + a / e	Move cursor to the beginning or end of the command line.
Ctrl + p	Previous command in history.
Ctrl + n	Next command in history.

Presets

Key	Action
Alt + p	Open/close the presets panel.

In the presets panel (select mode):

Key	Action
Up / Down	Navigate the preset list.
Enter	Insert the selected preset after the current subcommand and close the panel.
Alt + Enter	Insert the selected preset before the current subcommand and close the panel.
<shortcut>	Insert the preset with that shortcut after the current subcommand and close the panel.
Shift + <shortcut>	Insert the preset with that shortcut before the current subcommand and close the panel.
Ctrl + n	Add a new empty preset.
Ctrl + t	Add a new preset pre-filled with the current command.
Ctrl + e	Edit the selected preset.
Ctrl + k	Duplicate the selected preset.
Ctrl + d	Delete the selected preset (asks for confirmation).
Ctrl + Up	Move the selected preset up.
Ctrl + Down	Move the selected preset down.
Esc	Close the presets panel.

When editing a preset:

Key	Action
Tab	Switch focus between the command and shortcut fields.
Enter	Save the preset.
Esc	Cancel editing.

Saving to File

Key	Action
Ctrl + s	Save the current output to a file.
Ctrl + Alt + s	Save the current command to a file.

In the save popup, type a destination path (Tab completes paths) and press Enter to write. Existing files are not overwritten.

Stdin

Key	Action
F5	Toggle continuous stdin reading.
F6	Toggle output follow (automatically scroll to the end).

General

Key	Action
F1	Toggle help screen.
Ctrl + c	Exit Rura. The last executed command is printed to your terminal.

Configuration

Rura can be configured via a TOML file. The shell used by Rura is determined by (in order of priority):

1. The --shell (or -s) CLI argument.
2. The shell property in the configuration file.
3. The SHELL environment variable.
4. Default to sh.

The configuration path is determined as follows:

1. Path specified by the --config (or -C) CLI argument.
2. Path specified by the RURA_CONFIG environment variable.
3. Default path:
   • Linux: ~/.config/rura/config.toml
   • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/rura/config.toml
   • Windows: %APPDATA%\rura\config.toml

General Options

Option	Description
shell	The shell to use for execution and completions (e.g., "bash", "zsh", "fish", "nu").
command_line_placement	Set to "top" or "bottom" (default) to change where the input field is rendered.
highlight_duration_ms	Duration in milliseconds for the temporary highlighting when executing commands (default: 250).
debounce_duration_ms	Duration in milliseconds to wait before executing commands in live mode (default: 500).
no_cache	Disable caching of command output when set to true (default: false).
log_level	Set the logging level (e.g., "info", "debug", "error"). Default is "info".
stdin_reading_interval_ms	Duration in milliseconds between stdin updates (default: 1000).

Customizing Key Bindings

You can override any default key binding in the [keybindings] section. Multiple keys can be assigned to the same action.

[keybindings]
quit = ["ctrl+q", "ctrl+c"]
execute_full = ["enter"]
complete = ["tab"]
complete_prev = ["shift+tab"]
subcommand_next = ["alt+right"]

Customizing Theme

Colors and styles can be adjusted in the [theme] section. Supported colors include red, green, yellow, blue, magenta, cyan, gray, black, white, and hex codes (e.g., "#ffffff").

Available theme keys:

Key	Description
cmd_regular	Default command style.
cmd_regular_pipe	Style for the pipe character in regular mode.
cmd_regular_current	Style for the currently selected subcommand.
cmd_highlight	Style for the subcommand being executed.
cmd_highlight_pipe	Style for the pipe character during execution.
cmd_highlight_current	Style for the current subcommand during execution.
cmd_quoted	Style for quoted strings.
cmd_invalid	Style for invalid subcommands (if parsing fails).
cmd_diff_base	Style for the subcommand currently marked as the diff base.
output_highlight	Style for search results in the output.
output_highlight_current	Style for the currently selected search result.
line_nums	Style for line numbers in the output.
popup	Style for popups (e.g., help, save, live mode confirmation).
diff_addition	Style for lines added in diff mode.
diff_deletion	Style for lines removed in diff mode.
diff_equal	Style for unchanged lines in diff mode.

[theme.cmd_highlight]
fg = "black"
bg = "yellow"
bold = true

[theme.line_nums]
fg = "magenta"

Storage & Logs

History

Rura maintains a persistent command history. The history file is located at:

• Linux: ~/.local/share/rura/history.txt
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/rura/history.txt
• Windows: %APPDATA%\rura\history.txt

Search History

Search queries are persisted across sessions. The search history file is located at:

• Linux: ~/.local/share/rura/search_history.txt
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/rura/search_history.txt
• Windows: %APPDATA%\rura\search_history.txt

Presets

Presets are saved commands stored in a TOML file:

• Linux: ~/.local/share/rura/presets.toml
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/rura/presets.toml
• Windows: %APPDATA%\rura\presets.toml

Logs

Application logs are useful for troubleshooting. They are stored at:

• Linux: ~/.cache/rura/logs.txt
• macOS: ~/Library/Caches/rura/logs.txt
• Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\rura\logs.txt

License

Licensed under the MIT License.