On Sun, Feb 14, 2016 at 3:50 PM, Basile Starynkevitch <bas...@starynkevitch.net> wrote: > Dear all > > In https://gcc.gnu.org/ml/gcc/2016-02/msg00157.html > > Richard Biener (richard dot guenther at gmail dot com) is mentioning: > >> Help with picking up the partially completed work on a stable plugin >> (introspection) API is of course welcome. > > > > Can anyone explain me what and where is that stable plugin introspection > API?
It's a proposal, follow the thread here (also up-thread). There were similar threads with another (python?) plugin API from David Malcom(?) IIRC. https://gcc.gnu.org/ml/gcc/2012-09/msg00098.html > In https://gcc.gnu.org/ml/gcc/2016-02/msg00159.html I (Basile) wrote: > >> What exact functions (their name, the source files defining them) in the >> current GCC trunk >> are you referring to by your "introspection" word? Last time I checked (a >> few months ago) >> there where nothing related to that. Today, the only occurrences of >> introspection >> (in GCC trunk svn rev233268) are in Java part and in the libsanitizer. > > FWIW, Richard Beiner did not had time or wish to answer to that > (I've got no answer neither privately nor on the list). > > So I am rephrasing my question: > > which functions and source files are relevant today in the trunk for a > "stable plugin introspection API"? None, it doesn't exist in trunk (nor does Melt exist in trunk). > > > I did try to find something related, but my search is completely > unsuccessful yet. > > My feeling (and I really hope to be wrong, because any reflective or > introspective > ability in GCC would help my work in the MELT plugin, see > http://gcc-melt.org/ for more, a big lot) > is that today there is no plugin-related introspection API at all in GCC. It > still > looks today (february 20165) as a wish or some vaporware. Correct. It has to be filled with reality from plugin people. I personally care zero for plugins but will of course guard what gets into the GCC repository itself (a thin translation layer from GCC internals to a "plugin API", avoiding the need to export all of GCCs internals as "API"). > I still hope to be very wrong, but then please enlighten me by naming the > actual functions and source files > related to the plugin introspection API. Or give me some source files and > line numbers > (in the GCC trunk, i.e. future GCC 6, of february 2016) if you like so. > > > Since I am not a native English speaker, I am referring to: > > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_introspection > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reflection_%28computer_programming%29 > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homoiconicity > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metadata > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaclass > > (BTW, MELT does have some of these, but they are currently for MELT specific > features, > not yet for general GCC ones; this means that I -Basile- value & cherish > these features > a lot and I am hungry > to have them inside GCC) I proposed to define a stable introspection API because a) people like the idea of a stable plugin API (or even ABI!), b) introspection is easy - no code modification, only inspection, but also enough for a variety of academic uses, c) introspection can be reasonably defined compiler-independent and thus plugin sharing between, say, GCC and LLVM should be possible Step 2 would be to add basic instrumentation support to the API (add global data, insert calls or simple statements at program points). I wouldn't ever go as far as allowing arbitrary IL modification in a stable API as that's not going to work and I believe in "real passes" living in GCC itself. To sum up: if you like your issues resolved help driving that tiny abstraction layer. Richard. > So it looks like Richard see a "partially completed work" on "plugin > introspection API" > while I (Basile) don't see even the smallest start about it (or even > consensus about wishing that). > I hope to be wrong, so please point me some actual piece of code related to > that in GCC 6. > > FWIW, it is possible for some C++ program to have some metadata. Qt is a > concrete example. > http://doc.qt.io/qt-5/metaobjects.html; > GTK is explicitly mentioning Introspection in > https://wiki.gnome.org/Projects/GObjectIntrospection > but I don't see anything remotely related to such things inside GCC. > > AFAIU, we don't have any programmatic way to query the GCC API useful in > plugins today. > > So please help me finding some related features in current GCC 6 (trunk) > code base (in February 2016). > > I'm sure that most plugin writers would be pleased to know about that. > > Regards. > > > -- > Basile STARYNKEVITCH http://starynkevitch.net/Basile/ > email: basile<at>starynkevitch<dot>net mobile: +33 6 8501 2359 > 8, rue de la Faiencerie, 92340 Bourg La Reine, France > *** opinions {are only mine, sont seulement les miennes} *** >
