Data Types and Values

Matchy stores structured data values with each entry. This chapter explains the supported data types.

Supported Types

String

Text values of any length.

Numbers

• Unsigned integers (uint16, uint32, uint64, uint128)
• Signed integers (int32)
• Floating point (float, double)

Boolean

True or false values.

Arrays

Ordered lists of values (can contain mixed types).

Maps

Key-value pairs (like JSON objects or hash maps).

Null

Explicit null/missing value.

Tool-Specific Representations

How you specify data types depends on your tool:

CLI: Use JSON notation in CSV/JSON files

key,data
192.0.2.1,"{""threat"": ""high"", ""score"": 95}"

Rust API: Use the DataValue enum

#![allow(unused)]
fn main() {
use matchy::DataValue;
data.insert("score".to_string(), DataValue::Uint32(95));
}

C API: Use JSON strings

matchy_builder_add(builder, "192.0.2.1", "{\"score\": 95}");

See tool-specific docs for complete details:

• Rust API: DataValue
• C API: JSON format
• CLI: Input formats

Nested Data

Maps and arrays can be nested to arbitrary depth:

{
  "threat": {
    "level": "high",
    "categories": ["malware", "c2"],
    "metadata": {
      "first_seen": "2024-01-15",
      "confidence": 0.95
    }
  }
}

Size Limits

Data is stored in compact binary format. Practical limits:

• Strings: Megabytes per string
• Arrays: Thousands of elements
• Maps: Thousands of keys
• Nesting: Dozens of levels deep

Most use cases store kilobytes per entry.

Next Steps

• Database Concepts - How data is stored
• Performance Considerations - Data size impact