I've been studying the Rex module. Rex allows you to manage remote servers over ssh using a configuration file. It uses a crude "DSL," or "domain specific language" for adding tasks through a configuration file. Here's a sample of the configuration file: 

set user => "root";

group "frontend" => "server1", "server2", "server3", "server4";
group "local"    => "mango", "debian01";

desc "Show uptime";
task "uptime", group => "local", sub {
   run "uptime";
};

desc "Show free space";
task "show_disk_free", sub {
   run "df -h";
};

desc "Upload file";
task "upload", "mango", sub {
   upload "/tmp/test.txt", "/tmp/test.txt";
};

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The idea behind this DSL is straightforward. Each keyword is a call to a function and the arguments are separated by commas. I'm not even sure if this is the true definition of a DSL but that's what they call it in their documentation.

Anyway, I've never seen anything like this before and I'm wondering if there are any advantages to this approach to a configuration file. Are there any big advantages/disadvantages to this approach? And why not just use something more universal like JSON? My experience with config files is limited to writing my own Simple::Config files and .ini files with Dist::Zilla. So I'm interested in learning more about best practices for setting up config files. Thanks.

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In reply to Is use of a simple DSL for a configuration a good idea? by nysus

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