ctx — Modern C++ Project Scaffolder

A CLI tool that combines Cargo-like project management with Conan's package management power.

Install

pip install ctx

Or from source:

git clone <repo>
cd ctx
pip install .

Usage

Create a new project

ctx new my-app
# Interactive prompts: C++ standard, build system, compiler
cd my-app

Build & run

ctx build           # Debug build (default)
ctx build --profile release
ctx run             # Build + run
ctx test            # Build + run tests
ctx clean           # Clean build artifacts

Manage dependencies

ctx deps list                      # List all dependencies
ctx deps add fmt=12.1.0            # Add a dependency
ctx deps add gtest --dev           # Add dev dependency
ctx deps add cmake --tool          # Add tool dependency
ctx deps remove fmt                # Remove a dependency
ctx deps tree                      # Show dependency tree (Conan)

Manage compilers

ctx compiler list                  # Detect installed compilers
ctx compiler use gcc-13            # Switch project compiler
ctx compiler add my-toolchain --cc /path/to/gcc --cxx /path/to/g++

Conan profiles

ctx profile list                   # List Conan profiles
ctx profile detect                 # Auto-detect host profile

Code quality

ctx fmt                            # Format code (clang-format)
ctx lint                           # Static analysis (clang-tidy)

cpps.toml

The project configuration file (cpps.toml) is the single source of truth:

[project]
name = "my-app"
version = "0.1.0"
cpp_std = "20"
namespace = "my_app"

[build]
system = "cmake"          # cmake | ninja | make

[profile]
compiler = "gcc"
compiler.version = "13"
compiler.libcxx = "libstdc++11"

[dependencies]
fmt = "12.1.0"

[dev-dependencies]
gtest = "1.17.0"

[tool-requires]
cmake = "3.31.11"

How it works

cpps.toml
    │
    ▼
ctx generates ├── conanfile.py    ← Conan 2.x package config
              ├── CMakeLists.txt   ← CMake build
              ├── CMakePresets.json
              └── source templates
    │
    ▼
User runs ├── ctx build → conan install + cmake configure + cmake build
          ├── ctx test  → build + ctest
          └── ctx deps  → manage dependencies in cpps.toml

Commands reference

Command	Description
ctx new <name>	Create a new C++ project
ctx build	Build the project
ctx run	Build and run
ctx test	Build and run tests
ctx clean	Clean build artifacts
ctx fmt	Format source code
ctx lint	Static analysis
ctx deps add <pkg>	Add a dependency
ctx deps remove <pkg>	Remove a dependency
ctx deps list	List dependencies
ctx deps tree	Show dependency tree
ctx compiler list	List available compilers
ctx compiler use <name>	Switch compiler
ctx compiler add <name>	Register custom toolchain
ctx profile list	List Conan profiles
ctx profile detect	Auto-detect Conan profile