cobs

library1.2.2pypypi✓ verified 87d ago

Consistent Overhead Byte Stuffing (COBS) implementation for Python. Encodes arbitrary binary data into a form that removes any occurrence of a specific delimiter byte (typically 0x00), with minimal overhead. Current version 1.2.2 supports Python >=3.6. Development is stable with infrequent releases.

serialization

pip install cobs

github ↗package ↗

INSTALL

IMPORT

SIG · COBS

cobs

serializationpythonv1.2.2

Install

3.2s 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 v1.2.2 · 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 · 17.9MB

glibc

py 3.10–3.95 runs

installs and imports cleanly · install 3.2s · import 0.000s · 18MB

16MB installed

● package 16MB

Code

Verified usage

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

cobs

✓ import cobs.cobs as cobs

✗ import cobs

cobs package has submodules; 'import cobs' only imports the package, not the cobs.encode/decode functions.

cobsr

✓ import cobs.cobsr as cobsr

✗ from cobs import cobsr

cobsr is a submodule; use 'cobs.cobsr' for clarity.

Encode and decode data using COBS. The delimiter byte (0x00) is removed from the encoded output.

import cobs.cobs as cobs data = b'\x00\x01\x02\x00\x03' encoded = cobs.encode(data) print('Encoded:', list(encoded)) decoded = cobs.decode(encoded) print('Decoded:', list(decoded))

Debug

Known issues

deprecatedCOBSR (reducing overhead variant) module cobs.cobsr is less tested and may have edge cases.

fix

Use cobs.cobs for compatibility unless you specifically need reduced overhead.

affects: all

gotchaThe encode() function does NOT add a trailing delimiter byte. You must add it yourself if your protocol expects it.

fix

encoded = cobs.encode(data) + b'\x00'

affects: all

gotchaThe decode() function expects the encoded data to NOT contain the delimiter byte (except possibly the final byte). Incorrectly encoded data may raise ValueError.

fix

Ensure your encoded data does not include delimiter bytes (except the optional trailing delimiter).

affects: all

Errors

Common errors & fixes

AttributeError: module 'cobs' has no attribute 'encode'

Imported cobs package instead of cobs.cobs submodule.

fix

Change to 'import cobs.cobs as cobs' or 'from cobs import cobs'

ValueError: decoded data contains unexpected zero byte

Encoded data includes a delimiter byte (0x00) that is not the final byte, or the decoder was given raw data.

fix

Ensure you pass properly COBS-encoded data. Use cobs.encode() to encode before transmission.

cobs.decode() returns empty bytes when input contains only a trailing zero

A single 0x00 byte decodes to an empty byte string (valid COBS). This might be unexpected.

fix

Check for empty decoded output if protocol expects non-empty data.

Upgrade

Version history

1.2.2latest on PyPI · released Jul 20, 2025

Audit

Dependencies

No dependency data recorded yet.

Agent activity

16 hits · last 30 days

node

OpenAI (training)

Resources

githubhttps://github.com/cmcqueen/cobs-python ↗

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