The whim Command

The whim program runs source, formats it, prints bytecode, and manages Git dependencies.

Use whim --help or whim COMMAND --help for the installed version’s exact options.

Run

The short and explicit forms are equal:

whim app.whim one two
whim run app.whim one two

The first argument after the file has index zero in Whim\Env\get_arguments().

Use - as the file to read source from standard input:

printf "write_line!('hello');\n" | whim -

Source read this way cannot use embed! because it has no directory.

Global options must come before the source file:

Use -- before a source path that starts with -.

whim run reads the nearest whim.toml, loads the bundled standard-library artifact, then compiles the entry file and files that the program loads. It does not inspect whim.lock or vendor/.

Runtime settings belong in [runtime]:

[runtime]
optimizations = "on"
call-depth = 10000
cycle-threshold = 10001
full-trace = false

Each field is optional. For one run, use WHIM_OPTIMIZATIONS, WHIM_CALL_DEPTH, WHIM_CYCLE_THRESHOLD, or WHIM_FULL_TRACE. Environment values override the file:

WHIM_OPTIMIZATIONS=off whim app.whim
WHIM_FULL_TRACE=true whim app.whim

Format

whim fmt
whim fmt src/ tests/
whim fmt --check

With no paths, the command finds the nearest whim.toml and formats the project from that file’s directory. It skips vendor/ and .git/. A command with no paths fails when it cannot find a manifest.

The command also accepts files and directories. An explicit directory ignores format.include but honors exclusions. An explicit file bypasses both. --check reports files that would change and writes nothing.

Project selection belongs in [format]:

[format]
include = ["**/*.whim"]
exclude = ["src/generated/**"]

Patterns use / and are relative to the manifest directory. Exclusion wins. The default inclusion is **/*.whim; vendor/ and .git/ are always excluded from directory walks.

Layout settings can come from the nearest whim.toml, a file passed through the global --config option, or command options:

• --print-width N
• --tab-width N or --tab-size N
• --use-tabs true|false
• --end-of-line lf|crlf

Command options override file settings.

Disassemble

whim disassemble app.whim
WHIM_OPTIMIZATIONS=off whim disassemble app.whim
printf "write_line!('hello');\n" | whim disassemble -

This command compiles the program and prints its register bytecode. It does not run the entry file. WHIM_OPTIMIZATIONS=off prints the form before optimization.

Language server

whim language-server

The language server speaks LSP over standard input and output. It provides keyword completion, snippets, formatting, keyword colors, folding, selection ranges, and occurrence highlights. It does not index the project or provide symbol navigation.

Project commands

init, add, remove, install, and update change dependency state. show, why, suggestions, and fund inspect it. why-not tests a new requirement against the graph. It creates and locks the project cache and may fetch Git tags, so it needs a writable project and network access.

These commands search the current directory and its parents for whim.toml, except init, which creates a project in the current directory. whim init --no-git skips Git setup.

Package command failures leave the old manifest, lock, vendor tree, and loader together. See Git Dependencies.

Log output

WHIM_LOG sets the CLI log filter. WHIM_LOG=off disables all log output, including error-level records. A CLI command can therefore fail with no error text while still returning a nonzero status. This is intended.

Log errors are not Whim exceptions. Disabling log output does not catch or change a thrown value, an uncaught throwable, or a panic! trace.

Exit status

The CLI returns zero on success. exit!($status) selects another status. panic! and an uncaught throwable use 255. CLI errors return a nonzero status. Error text goes to standard error; program output goes to the handle used by its write calls.