--- title: "Resolution 021" --- - Topic: Budget 011: Migrate to Cobra - Date: 18-07-2024 - Deadline: 31-07-2024 - Size: Large ### Summary Migrate away from our current command-line dependency so `abra` usage is more predictable. The goal is to maintain feature parity with no breaking changes. The main advantage that we will get is robust and flexible handling of flags/arguments which don't depend on forcing a specific order (see [`#581`](https://git.coopcloud.tech/coop-cloud/organising/issues/581)). There are other bonuses such as built-in support for auto-completion, better handling of example usage, improved support for global flags (`--debug`) and manpage support. ### Details (Budget 011) #### The problem The current help output of `abra app deploy` is as follows: `abra app deploy [command options] []` However, it is possible to do both of the following: ``` abra app deploy --chaos example.org # "before" style abra app deploy example.org --chaos # "after" style ``` However, `abra app cmd` is broken if you try to use the "after" style: ``` abra app cmd --local -- ``` This results in ` doesn't have a --local function` which is a bug in the `abra` code. It tries to read the position of the arguments but `--local` is included as an argument. The bug in `abra` is due to a bug in `urfave/cli` - "after" style options appear as arguments 😱 The only way to use `abra app cmd` right now is using the "before" style: ``` abra app cmd --local -- ``` This means that some commands allow both "after" and "before" style and some only allow "before" style. This is a source of confusion, raised issues and frustration. #### The solution [Several](https://git.coopcloud.tech/coop-cloud/abra/pulls/404) [attempts](https://git.coopcloud.tech/coop-cloud/abra/pulls/435) have been made to upgrade `urfave/cli` to fix this behaviour. However, as it turns out, it is **highly unlikely** that they will fix this upstream: [`urfave/cli#1950`](https://github.com/urfave/cli/issues/1950) [`urfave/cli#1928`](https://github.com/urfave/cli/pull/1928) (and even this proposal does not really include the desired robust flexible handling we need). `@decentral1se` has done a spike to confirm that [`cobra`](https://cobra.dev) handles flexible handling of arguments/flags. Those reading this proposal and wishing to try it out for themselves can take [Hugo](https://gohugo.io/) for a spin (it uses `cobra` as the underlying command-line library). This tool is well maintained and used by several large projects such as Hugo and Kubernetes. The library matches all functionality we require. #### Budget `@decentral1se` can carry out this work. Proposed budget of 15 hrs: `15 hrs * 20 = 300 EUR`