bbpb

library1.4.2pypypi✓ verified 80d ago

Library for encoding and decoding protobuf messages without needing a .proto type definition. It infers the schema automatically and supports repeated fields, enums, and nested messages. Current version 1.4.2, supports Python 3.8+, released irregularly.

serialization

pip install bbpb

github ↗package ↗

INSTALL

IMPORT

SIG · BBPB

bbpb

serializationpythonv1.4.2

Install

1.6s avg

Import

—

Disk

16MB

Pass rate

10/ 10

Env Coverage10 / 10

glibc

3.9–3.13

musl

3.9–3.13

Install & Compatibility

Where this runs

tested against v1.4.2 · pip install

no network on importno background threads

Install × environment matrix

Each cell = how many times install + import succeeded across repeated harness runs. Partial = flaky.
glibc = Debian/Ubuntu slim · musl = Alpine Linux

musl

py 3.10–3.95 runs

installs and imports cleanly · install 0.0s · import 0.000s · 18.2MB

glibc

py 3.10–3.95 runs

installs and imports cleanly · install 1.6s · import 0.000s · 19MB

16MB installed

● package 16MB

Code

Verified usage

Verified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.

encode_message

✓ from blackboxprotobuf import encode_message

✗ from bbpb import encode_message

decode_message

✓ from blackboxprotobuf import decode_message

protobuf_to_json

✓ from blackboxprotobuf import protobuf_to_json

Decode and encode protobuf binary data without a .proto file. The library infers a type definition (typedef) that can be reused for encoding.

from bbpb import decode_message, encode_message # Example protobuf raw bytes (from a known message) raw_bytes = b'\x08\x96\x01' # field 1, varint 150 # Decode to a plain data structure decoded = decode_message(raw_bytes) print(decoded) # {'data': {1: 150}, 'typedef': {'1': {'type': 'uint'}}} # Modify and re-encode encoded = encode_message({'data': {1: 200}}, decoded['typedef']) print(encoded.hex()) # 08c801

Debug

Known issues

breakingVersion 1.4.0 changed the return format of decode_message: it now returns a dict with 'data' and 'typedef' keys, not a tuple. Old code expecting a tuple will break.

fix

Update code to handle dict: result = decode_message(blob); data = result['data']; typedef = result['typedef']

affects: >=1.4.0

gotchaThe library does not support all protobuf features (e.g. groups, maps, oneofs). It may misinterpret or skip unsupported wire types silently.

fix

Test against known messages; verify round-trip encoding/decoding. For complex schemas, consider using actual .proto files.

affects: all

deprecatedThe function 'decode_message_with_type' is deprecated since v1.3.0 and removed in v1.4.0. Use decode_message instead.

fix

Replace decode_message_with_type(blob, typedef) with decode_message(blob, typedef). Note the return format change.

affects: >=1.4.0

gotchaField numbers are treated as keys in the data dict; they are integers, not strings. Attempting to access by string will fail.

fix

Use integer keys: data[1] not data['1']. The typedef dict uses string keys for field numbers.

affects: all

Upgrade

Version history

1.4.2latest on PyPI · released Mar 14, 2025

Audit

Dependencies

protobufrequiredUsed for serialization/deserialization of wire format

Agent activity

21 hits · last 30 days

node

OpenAI (training)

Resources

githubhttps://github.com/nccgroup/blackboxprotobuf ↗

packagehttps://pypi.org/project/bbpb/ ↗