Use .proto files without installing protoc

istek reads .proto source files directly, so a server with reflection turned off needs nothing but the files: drag them onto the window, connect and call. There is no protoc to install and no descriptor set to build.

Updated

Steps

  1. Drag the .proto files, or the folder that holds them, onto the istek window. File ▸ Import .proto Files… (⌘O) and Finder's Open With do the same.
  2. Type the server address and click Connect (⇧⌘C).
  3. Pick a method from the sidebar and press ⌘↩.

What the parser understands

  • Syntax: proto2 and proto3.
  • Constructs: imports, nested messages, enums, oneof, map fields, repeated and optional, reserved ranges.
  • Bundled well-known types: google/protobuf/any.proto, google/protobuf/duration.proto, google/protobuf/empty.proto, google/protobuf/field_mask.proto, google/protobuf/struct.proto, google/protobuf/timestamp.proto, google/protobuf/wrappers.proto. An import of any of them resolves with nothing on your disk.

If a file will not import

  • Import every file the method's messages depend on, not only the file that declares the service.
  • istek reads .proto source, not compiled protoset files.

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macOS 14.0+ · Apple Silicon · no account, no telemetry

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