Configuration Markup Syntax

The Markdown-based syntax for configuration files

The most of the configuration files in Bench are actually Markdown files. The key-value-pairs of the configuration properties, for the whole Bench environment or for individual apps, are written as items in unordered lists.

Overview

Basic Syntax

The key-value-pairs are written with a colon, separating the name and the value. Two simple properties e.g. can be written in the following form.

Some text block...

* Property1: Value 1
* Property2: Value 2

More text...

Property names must consist of alpha-numerical characters and must not contain whitespaces. A value can be surrounded by angle brackets < and > if it is an URL, or it can be surrounded by backticks if it helps the readability.

* Property: Value 1
* UrlProperty: <http://github.com>
* QuotedProperty: `some value`

Lists and Dictionaries

If a value is a list, its items must be surrounded by backticks and separated by commas or formatted as nested list. If a list value is written as nested list, the values can be quoted with backtics, angle brackets, or not at all.

* ListProperty1: `Value 1`, `http://value-2.com`, `Value 3`
* ListProperty2:
    + Value 1
    + <http://value-2.com>
    + `Value 3`

If a value is a dictionary, its items follow the rules of a list value, but each item is a key-value-pair separated by a colon. If the dictionary is written as a nested list, the key and the value can be quoted individually.

* DictionaryProperty1: `Key 1: Value`, `KEY_2: http://value-2.com`
* DictionaryProperty2:
    + Key 1: Value
    + `KEY_2`: <http://value-2.com>

Property Groups

In the app libraries res\apps.md and config\apps.md the properties are grouped. Each group of properties relates to one app.

A property group starts with an ID property, and ends when the list is interrupted or ended by an empty line. Therefore, in an app library, the properties usually look like this.

### App X

* ID: `AppX`
* Property1: Value 1.1
* Property2: Value 1.2

### App Y

* ID: `AppY`
* Property1: Value 2.1
* Property2: Value 2.2

The third-level-headlines are ignored.

Variable Expansion

You can use placeholders for variables in property values. A placeholder is written in dollar signs like this $variable$. If a variable is grouped in a namespace, the namespace is separated by a colon like this $namespace:variable$.

In the configuration files of Bench, the variables are the configuration properties themselfs. As a result, repetitions can be avoided.

E.g. if one property defines the path to a folder and another property defines a sub-folder of that first folder it can be written as follows.

Folder1: `path\to\folder`
Folder2: `$Folder1$\sub-folder`

The value of Folder2 expandeds to path\to\folder\sub-folder.

If a placeholder can not be resolved, its dollar signs are replaced by hash signs to signal the error $NotExisting$#NotExisting#.

In the app libraries res\apps.md and config\apps.md, the apps are namespaces for their property variables. Therefore, a placeholder for an app property is written like this: $AppId:PropertyName$.

If an app property contains a placeholder for another property of the same app, the namespace, aka the app ID, can be ommited.

* ID: `AppX`
* Property1: `cd`
* Property2: `ab$:Property1$ef`

Note the colon before the property name. The value of Property2 of AppX expandeds to abcdef.

Variable expansion works recursively to an arbitrary level, but cyclic references can not be resolved.