miniFIX Blog Posts

This directory contains comprehensive blog posts covering all aspects of the miniFIX library, from basic usage to advanced production scenarios.

Table of Contents

Getting Started

1. Getting Started with miniFIX: Decoding FIX Messages
   • Basic FIX message decoding
   • Type-safe field access
   • Working with repeating groups
   • Flexible separator support

Advanced Decoding

2. Streaming FIX Message Decoding
   • Handling continuous message streams
   • Buffer management for partial messages
   • Production streaming patterns

Message Encoding

3. Encoding FIX Messages: Creating New Order Singles
   • Building FIX messages from scratch
   • Working with financial decimal types
   • Type-safe enum values
   • Production order encoding patterns

Customization & Extension

4. Custom FIX Specifications and Code Generation
   • Loading custom QuickFIX XML specifications
   • Code generation for type safety
   • Exchange-specific field extensions
   • Working with Coinbase and other custom specs

Format Conversion

5. JSON to FIX Message Conversion
   • Bidirectional JSON ↔ FIX conversion
   • API integration patterns
   • Testing with human-readable formats
   • Field mapping and validation

Interactive Applications

6. Building an Interactive Trading Client
   • Command-line trading interfaces
   • User input validation
   • Order entry workflows
   • Session management

Network & Async

7. Building High-Performance SOFH TCP Servers
   • Simple Open Framing Header (SOFH) protocol
   • Async TCP servers with Tokio
   • Connection pool management
   • Production-ready networking

Security

8. Building Secure TLS FIX Acceptors
   • TLS-secured FIX communication
   • Certificate management
   • Authentication and authorization
   • Security best practices for financial systems

miniFIX Features Covered

Core Features

• ✅ FIX message decoding and encoding
• ✅ Multiple FIX versions (4.2, 4.4)
• ✅ Type-safe field access
• ✅ Streaming message processing
• ✅ Repeating groups support

Advanced Features

• ✅ Custom FIX specifications
• ✅ Code generation from XML specs
• ✅ JSON ↔ FIX conversion
• ✅ SOFH framing protocol
• ✅ TLS security integration

Integration Patterns

• ✅ Async networking with Tokio
• ✅ Interactive CLI applications
• ✅ API gateway patterns
• ✅ Message logging and auditing
• ✅ Production deployment considerations

Example Use Cases

The following parts in the series demonstrate miniFIX in various scenarios:

• Order Management Systems: Examples 1, 3, 6
• Market Data Processing: Examples 1, 2, 7
• API Integration: Examples 5, 8
• Custom Exchange Protocols: Example 4
• High-Frequency Trading: Examples 2, 7
• Regulatory Compliance: Examples 8, 5
• Testing & Development: Examples 5, 6

Get Started with the Tutorial Series

1. Start with Basic FIX Decoding to understand the fundamentals
2. Move to Message Encoding to learn message creation
3. Explore Streaming for real-time applications
4. Check out Custom Specifications for exchange-specific needs
5. Review Security for production deployment

Code Examples

All blog posts include:

• Complete, runnable code examples
• Error handling patterns
• Production considerations
• Performance optimization tips
• Security best practices

Dependencies

The examples use these key dependencies:

• minifix - The core FIX protocol library
• tokio - Async runtime for networking
• serde_json - JSON processing
• rust_decimal - Financial precision arithmetic
• chrono - Date and time handling
• inquire - Interactive CLI prompts

---

miniFIX: A modern, type-safe FIX protocol library for Rust, designed for performance, correctness, and developer experience in financial applications.