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6 <title>A Few Coding Standards</title>
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Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +00009
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000010<div class="doc_title">
11 A Few Coding Standards
12</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000013
14<ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000015 <li><a href="#introduction">Introduction</a></li>
Chris Lattner7ae36bb2001-07-23 20:40:41 +000016 <li><a href="#mechanicalissues">Mechanical Source Issues</a>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000017 <ol>
18 <li><a href="#sourceformating">Source Code Formatting</a>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000019 <ol>
20 <li><a href="#scf_commenting">Commenting</a></li>
21 <li><a href="#scf_commentformat">Comment Formatting</a></li>
22 <li><a href="#scf_includes">#include Style</a></li>
23 <li><a href="#scf_codewidth">Source Code Width</a></li>
24 <li><a href="#scf_spacestabs">Use Spaces Instead of Tabs</a></li>
25 <li><a href="#scf_indentation">Indent Code Consistently</a></li>
26 </ol></li>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000027 <li><a href="#compilerissues">Compiler Issues</a>
28 <ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000029 <li><a href="#ci_warningerrors">Treat Compiler Warnings Like
30 Errors</a></li>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000031 <li><a href="#ci_portable_code">Write Portable Code</a></li>
32 </ol></li>
33 </ol></li>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000034 <li><a href="#styleissues">Style Issues</a>
35 <ol>
36 <li><a href="#macro">The High Level Issues</a>
37 <ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000038 <li><a href="#hl_module">A Public Header File <b>is</b> a
39 Module</a></li>
40 <li><a href="#hl_dontinclude">#include as Little as Possible</a></li>
41 <li><a href="#hl_privateheaders">Keep "internal" Headers
42 Private</a></li>
43 </ol></li>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000044 <li><a href="#micro">The Low Level Issues</a>
45 <ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000046 <li><a href="#hl_assert">Assert Liberally</a></li>
47 <li><a href="#hl_preincrement">Prefer Preincrement</a></li>
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +000048 <li><a href="#hl_avoidendl">Avoid std::endl</a></li>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000049 <li><a href="#hl_exploitcpp">Exploit C++ to its Fullest</a></li>
50 </ol></li>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000051 </ol></li>
52 <li><a href="#seealso">See Also</a></li>
53</ol>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000054
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +000055<div class="doc_author">
56 <p>Written by <a href="mailto:sabre@nondot.org">Chris Lattner</a></p>
57</div>
58
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000059
60<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000061<div class="doc_section">
62 <a name="introduction">Introduction</a>
63</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000064<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
65
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000066<div class="doc_text">
67
68<p>This document attempts to describe a few coding standards that are being used
69in the LLVM source tree. Although no coding standards should be regarded as
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +000070absolute requirements to be followed in all instances, coding standards can be
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000071useful.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000072
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000073<p>This document intentionally does not prescribe fixed standards for religious
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +000074issues such as brace placement and space usage. For issues like this, follow
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000075the golden rule:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000076
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000077<blockquote>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000078
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000079<p><b><a name="goldenrule">If you are adding a significant body of source to a
80project, feel free to use whatever style you are most comfortable with. If you
81are extending, enhancing, or bug fixing already implemented code, use the style
82that is already being used so that the source is uniform and easy to
83follow.</a></b></p>
84
85</blockquote>
86
87<p>The ultimate goal of these guidelines is the increase readability and
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +000088maintainability of our common source base. If you have suggestions for topics to
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000089be included, please mail them to <a
90href="mailto:sabre@nondot.org">Chris</a>.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000091
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000092</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000093
94<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +000095<div class="doc_section">
96 <a name="mechanicalissues">Mechanical Source Issues</a>
97</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +000098<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
99
100<!-- ======================================================================= -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000101<div class="doc_subsection">
102 <a name="sourceformating">Source Code Formatting</a>
103</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000104
105<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000106<div class="doc_subsubsection">
107 <a name="scf_commenting">Commenting</a>
108</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000109
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000110<div class="doc_text">
111
112<p>Comments are one critical part of readability and maintainability. Everyone
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000113knows they should comment, so should you. :) Although we all should probably
114comment our code more than we do, there are a few very critical places that
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000115documentation is very useful:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000116
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000117<b>File Headers</b>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000118
119<p>Every source file should have a header on it that
120describes the basic purpose of the file. If a file does not have a header, it
121should not be checked into CVS. Most source trees will probably have a standard
122file header format. The standard format for the LLVM source tree looks like
123this:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000124
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000125<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000126<pre>
Chris Lattnerc49fcd12003-10-13 14:58:11 +0000127//===-- llvm/Instruction.h - Instruction class definition -------*- C++ -*-===//
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000128//
129// The LLVM Compiler Infrastructure
130//
131// This file was developed by the LLVM research group and is distributed under
132// the University of Illinois Open Source License. See LICENSE.TXT for details.
133//
134//===----------------------------------------------------------------------===//
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000135//
136// This file contains the declaration of the Instruction class, which is the
137// base class for all of the VM instructions.
138//
139//===----------------------------------------------------------------------===//
140</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000141</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000142
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000143<p>A few things to note about this particular format: The "<tt>-*- C++
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000144-*-</tt>" string on the first line is there to tell Emacs that the source file
145is a C++ file, not a C file (Emacs assumes .h files are C files by default [Note
146that tag this is not necessary in .cpp files]). The name of the file is also on
147the first line, along with a very short description of the purpose of the file.
148This is important when printing out code and flipping though lots of pages.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000149
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000150<p>The next section in the file is a concise note that defines the license that
151the file is released under. This makes it perfectly clear what terms the source
152code can be distributed under.</p>
153
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000154<p>The main body of the description does not have to be very long in most cases.
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000155Here it's only two lines. If an algorithm is being implemented or something
156tricky is going on, a reference to the paper where it is published should be
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000157included, as well as any notes or "gotchas" in the code to watch out for.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000158
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000159<b>Class overviews</b>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000160
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000161<p>Classes are one fundemental part of a good object oriented design. As such,
162a class definition should have a comment block that explains what the class is
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000163used for... if it's not obvious. If it's so completely obvious your grandma
164could figure it out, it's probably safe to leave it out. Naming classes
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000165something sane goes a long ways towards avoiding writing documentation. :)</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000166
167
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000168<b>Method information</b>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000169
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000170<p>Methods defined in a class (as well as any global functions) should also be
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000171documented properly. A quick note about what it does any a description of the
172borderline behaviour is all that is necessary here (unless something
173particularly tricky or insideous is going on). The hope is that people can
174figure out how to use your interfaces without reading the code itself... that is
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000175the goal metric.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000176
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000177<p>Good things to talk about here are what happens when something unexpected
178happens: does the method return null? Abort? Format your hard disk?</p>
179
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000180</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000181
182<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000183<div class="doc_subsubsection">
184 <a name="scf_commentformat">Comment Formatting</a>
185</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000186
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000187<div class="doc_text">
188
189<p>In general, prefer C++ style (<tt>//</tt>) comments. They take less space,
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000190require less typing, don't have nesting problems, etc. There are a few cases
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000191when it is useful to use C style (<tt>/* */</tt>) comments however:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000192
193<ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000194 <li>When writing a C code: Obviously if you are writing C code, use C style
195 comments. :)</li>
196 <li>When writing a header file that may be #included by a C source file.</li>
197 <li>When writing a source file that is used by a tool that only accepts C
198 style comments.</li>
199</ol>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000200
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000201<p>To comment out a large block of code, use <tt>#if 0</tt> and <tt>#endif</tt>.
202These nest properly and are better behaved in general than C style comments.</p>
203
204</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000205
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000206<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000207<div class="doc_subsubsection">
208 <a name="scf_includes">#include Style</a>
209</div>
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000210
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000211<div class="doc_text">
212
213<p>Immediately after the <a href="#scf_commenting">header file comment</a> (and
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000214include guards if working on a header file), the <a
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000215href="#hl_dontinclude">minimal</a> list of <tt>#include</tt>s required by the
216file should be listed. We prefer these <tt>#include</tt>s to be listed in this
217order:</p>
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000218
219<ol>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000220 <li><a href="#mmheader">Main Module header</a></li>
221 <li><a href="#hl_privateheaders">Local/Private Headers</a></li>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000222 <li><tt>llvm/*</tt></li>
223 <li><tt>llvm/Analysis/*</tt></li>
224 <li><tt>llvm/Assembly/*</tt></li>
225 <li><tt>llvm/Bytecode/*</tt></li>
226 <li><tt>llvm/CodeGen/*</tt></li>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000227 <li>...</li>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000228 <li><tt>Support/*</tt></li>
229 <li><tt>Config/*</tt></li>
230 <li>System <tt>#includes</tt></li>
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000231</ol>
232
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000233<p>... and each catagory should be sorted by name.</p>
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000234
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000235<p><a name="mmheader">The "Main Module Header"</a> file applies to .cpp file
236which implement an interface defined by a .h file. This #include should always
237be included <b>first</b> regardless of where it lives on the file system. By
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000238including a header file first in the .cpp files that implement the interfaces,
239we ensure that the header does not have any hidden dependencies which are not
240explicitly #included in the header, but should be. It is also a form of
241documentation in the .cpp file to indicate where the interfaces it implements
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000242are defined.</p>
Chris Lattner2e5cbc22003-08-07 21:45:47 +0000243
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000244</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000245
246<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000247<div class="doc_subsubsection">
248 <a name="scf_codewidth">Source Code Width</a>
249</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000250
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000251<div class="doc_text">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000252
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000253<p>Write your code to fit within 80 columns of text. This helps those of us who
254like to print out code and look at your code in an xterm without resizing
255it.</p>
256
257</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000258
259<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000260<div class="doc_subsubsection">
261 <a name="scf_spacestabs">Use Spaces Instead of Tabs</a>
262</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000263
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000264<div class="doc_text">
265
266<p>In all cases, prefer spaces to tabs in source files. People have different
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000267prefered indentation levels, and different styles of indentation that they
268like... this is fine. What isn't is that different editors/viewers expand tabs
269out to different tab stops. This can cause your code to look completely
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000270unreadable, and it is not worth dealing with.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000271
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000272<p>As always, follow the <a href="#goldenrule">Golden Rule</a> above: follow the
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000273style of existing code if your are modifying and extending it. If you like four
274spaces of indentation, <b>DO NOT</b> do that in the middle of a chunk of code
275with two spaces of indentation. Also, do not reindent a whole source file: it
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000276makes for incredible diffs that are absolutely worthless.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000277
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000278</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000279
280<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000281<div class="doc_subsubsection">
282 <a name="scf_indentation">Indent Code Consistently</a>
283</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000284
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000285<div class="doc_text">
286
287<p>Okay, your first year of programming you were told that indentation is
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000288important. If you didn't believe and internalize this then, now is the time.
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000289Just do it.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000290
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000291</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000292
293
294<!-- ======================================================================= -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000295<div class="doc_subsection">
296 <a name="compilerissues">Compiler Issues</a>
297</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000298
299
300<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000301<div class="doc_subsubsection">
302 <a name="ci_warningerrors">Treat Compiler Warnings Like Errors</a>
303</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000304
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000305<div class="doc_text">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000306
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000307<p>If your code has compiler warnings in it, something is wrong: you aren't
308casting values correctly, your have "questionable" constructs in your code, or
309you are doing something legitimately wrong. Compiler warnings can cover up
310legitimate errors in output and make dealing with a translation unit
311difficult.</p>
312
313<p>It is not possible to prevent all warnings from all compilers, nor is it
Misha Brukman1b36d672003-10-06 19:26:00 +0000314desirable. Instead, pick a standard compiler (like <tt>gcc</tt>) that provides
315a good thorough set of warnings, and stick to them. At least in the case of
316<tt>gcc</tt>, it is possible to work around any spurious errors by changing the
317syntax of the code slightly. For example, an warning that annoys me occurs when
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000318I write code like this:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000319
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000320<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000321<pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000322if (V = getValue()) {
323 ...
324}
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000325</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000326</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000327
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000328<p><tt>gcc</tt> will warn me that I probably want to use the <tt>==</tt>
329operator, and that I probably mistyped it. In most cases, I haven't, and I
330really don't want the spurious errors. To fix this particular problem, I
331rewrite the code like this:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000332
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000333<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000334<pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000335if ((V = getValue())) {
336 ...
337}
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000338</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000339</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000340
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000341<p>...which shuts <tt>gcc</tt> up. Any <tt>gcc</tt> warning that annoys you can
342be fixed by massaging the code appropriately.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000343
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000344<p>These are the <tt>gcc</tt> warnings that I prefer to enable: <tt>-Wall
345-Winline -W -Wwrite-strings -Wno-unused</tt></p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000346
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000347</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000348
349<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000350<div class="doc_subsubsection">
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000351 <a name="ci_portable_code">Write Portable Code</a>
352</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000353
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000354<div class="doc_text">
355
356<p>In almost all cases, it is possible and within reason to write completely
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000357portable code. If there are cases where it isn't possible to write portable
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000358code, isolate it behind a well defined (and well documented) interface.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000359
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000360<p>In practice, this means that you shouldn't assume much about the host
361compiler, including its support for "high tech" features like partial
362specialization of templates. In fact, Visual C++ 6 could be an important target
363for our work in the future, and we don't want to have to rewrite all of our code
364to support it.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000365
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000366</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000367
368<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000369<div class="doc_section">
370 <a name="styleissues">Style Issues</a>
371</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000372<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
373
374
375<!-- ======================================================================= -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000376<div class="doc_subsection">
377 <a name="macro">The High Level Issues</a>
378</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000379
380
381<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000382<div class="doc_subsubsection">
383 <a name="hl_module">A Public Header File <b>is</b> a Module</a>
384</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000385
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000386<div class="doc_text">
387
388<p>C++ doesn't do too well in the modularity department. There is no real
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000389encapsulation or data hiding (unless you use expensive protocol classes), but it
390is what we have to work with. When you write a public header file (in the LLVM
391source tree, they live in the top level "include" directory), you are defining a
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000392module of functionality.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000393
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000394<p>Ideally, modules should be completely independent of each other, and their
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000395header files should only include the absolute minimum number of headers
396possible. A module is not just a class, a function, or a namespace: <a
397href="http://www.cuj.com/articles/2000/0002/0002c/0002c.htm">it's a collection
398of these</a> that defines an interface. This interface may be several
399functions, classes or data structures, but the important issue is how they work
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000400together.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000401
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000402<p>In general, a module should be implemented with one or more <tt>.cpp</tt>
403files. Each of these <tt>.cpp</tt> files should include the header that defines
404their interface first. This ensure that all of the dependences of the module
405header have been properly added to the module header itself, and are not
406implicit. System headers should be included after user headers for a
407translation unit.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000408
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000409</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000410
411<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000412<div class="doc_subsubsection">
413 <a name="hl_dontinclude">#include as Little as Possible</a>
414</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000415
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000416<div class="doc_text">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000417
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000418<p><tt>#include</tt> hurts compile time performance. Don't do it unless you
419have to, especially in header files.</p>
420
421<p>But wait, sometimes you need to have the definition of a class to use it, or
422to inherit from it. In these cases go ahead and #include that header file. Be
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000423aware however that there are many cases where you don't need to have the full
424definition of a class. If you are using a pointer or reference to a class, you
425don't need the header file. If you are simply returning a class instance from a
426prototyped function or method, you don't need it. In fact, for most cases, you
427simply don't need the definition of a class... and not <tt>#include</tt>'ing
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000428speeds up compilation.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000429
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000430<p>It is easy to try to go too overboard on this recommendation, however. You
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000431<b>must</b> include all of the header files that you are using, either directly
432or indirectly (through another header file). To make sure that you don't
433accidently forget to include a header file in your module header, make sure to
434include your module header <b>first</b> in the implementation file (as mentioned
435above). This way there won't be any hidden dependencies that you'll find out
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000436about later...</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000437
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000438</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000439
440<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000441<div class="doc_subsubsection">
442 <a name="hl_privateheaders">Keep "internal" Headers Private</a>
443</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000444
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000445<div class="doc_text">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000446
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000447<p>Many modules have a complex implementation that causes them to use more than
448one implementation (<tt>.cpp</tt>) file. It is often tempting to put the
449internal communication interface (helper classes, extra functions, etc) in the
450public module header file. Don't do this. :)</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000451
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000452<p>If you really need to do something like this, put a private header file in
453the same directory as the source files, and include it locally. This ensures
454that your private interface remains private and undisturbed by outsiders.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000455
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000456<p>Note however, that it's okay to put extra implementation methods a public
457class itself... just make them private (or protected), and all is well.</p>
458
459</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000460
461<!-- ======================================================================= -->
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000462<div class="doc_subsection">
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000463 <a name="micro">The Low Level Issues</a>
464</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000465
466
467<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000468<div class="doc_subsubsection">
469 <a name="hl_assert">Assert Liberally</a>
470</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000471
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000472<div class="doc_text">
473
474<p>Use the "<tt>assert</tt>" function to its fullest. Check all of your
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000475preconditions and assumptions, you never know when a bug (not neccesarily even
476yours) might be caught early by an assertion, which reduces debugging time
477dramatically. The "<tt>&lt;cassert&gt;</tt>" header file is probably already
478included by the header files you are using, so it doesn't cost anything to use
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000479it.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000480
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000481<p>To further assist with debugging, make sure to put some kind of error message
482in the assertion statement (which is printed if the assertion is tripped). This
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000483helps the poor debugging make sense of why an assertion is being made and
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000484enforced, and hopefully what to do about it. Here is one complete example:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000485
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000486<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000487<pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000488inline Value *getOperand(unsigned i) {
489 assert(i &lt; Operands.size() &amp;&amp; "getOperand() out of range!");
490 return Operands[i];
491}
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000492</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000493</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000494
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000495<p>Here are some examples:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000496
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000497<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000498<pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000499assert(Ty-&gt;isPointerType() &amp;&amp; "Can't allocate a non pointer type!");
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000500
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000501assert((Opcode == Shl || Opcode == Shr) &amp;&amp; "ShiftInst Opcode invalid!");
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000502
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000503assert(idx &lt; getNumSuccessors() &amp;&amp; "Successor # out of range!");
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000504
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000505assert(V1.getType() == V2.getType() &amp;&amp; "Constant types must be identical!");
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000506
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000507assert(isa&lt;PHINode&gt;(Succ-&gt;front()) &amp;&amp; "Only works on PHId BBs!");
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000508</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000509</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000510
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000511<p>You get the idea...</p>
512
513</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000514
515
516<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000517<div class="doc_subsubsection">
518 <a name="hl_preincrement">Prefer Preincrement</a>
519</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000520
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000521<div class="doc_text">
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000522
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000523<p>Hard fast rule: Preincrement (<tt>++X</tt>) may be no slower than
524postincrement (<tt>X++</tt>) and could very well be a lot faster than it. Use
525preincrementation whenever possible.</p>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000526
527<p>The semantics of postincrement include making a copy of the value being
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000528incremented, returning it, and then preincrementing the "work value". For
529primitive types, this isn't a big deal... but for iterators, it can be a huge
530issue (for example, some iterators contains stack and set objects in them...
531copying an iterator could invoke the copy ctor's of these as well). In general,
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000532get in the habit of always using preincrement, and you won't have a problem.</p>
533
534</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000535
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000536<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000537<div class="doc_subsubsection">
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000538 <a name="hl_avoidendl">Avoid std::endl</a>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000539</div>
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000540
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000541<div class="doc_text">
542
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000543<p>The <tt>std::endl</tt> modifier, when used with iostreams outputs a newline
544to the output stream specified. In addition to doing this, however, it also
545flushes the output stream. In other words, these are equivalent:</p>
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000546
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000547<div class="doc_code">
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000548<pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000549std::cout &lt;&lt; std::endl;
550std::cout &lt;&lt; '\n' &lt;&lt; std::flush;
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000551</pre>
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000552</div>
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000553
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000554<p>Most of the time, you probably have no reason to flush the output stream, so
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000555it's better to use a literal <tt>'\n'</tt>.</p>
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000556
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000557</div>
Chris Lattner13c46592002-01-20 19:01:26 +0000558
559<!-- _______________________________________________________________________ -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000560<div class="doc_subsubsection">
561 <a name="hl_exploitcpp">Exploit C++ to its Fullest</a>
562</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000563
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000564<div class="doc_text">
565
Misha Brukmana8c760a2004-07-28 22:31:54 +0000566<p>C++ is a powerful language. With a firm grasp on its capabilities, you can
567make write effective, consise, readable and maintainable code all at the same
568time. By staying consistent, you reduce the amount of special cases that need
569to be remembered. Reducing the total number of lines of code you write is a
570good way to avoid documentation, and avoid giving bugs a place to hide.</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000571
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000572<p>For these reasons, come to know and love the contents of your local
Misha Brukman2d10d752003-07-28 21:57:18 +0000573&lt;algorithm&gt; header file. Know about &lt;functional&gt; and what it can do
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000574for you. C++ is just a tool that wants you to master it. :)</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000575
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000576</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000577
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000578<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000579<div class="doc_section">
580 <a name="seealso">See Also</a>
581</div>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000582<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
583
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000584<div class="doc_text">
585
586<p>A lot of these comments and recommendations have been culled for other
587sources. Two particularly important books for our work are:</p>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000588
589<ol>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000590
Tanya Lattner09cf73c2004-06-22 04:24:55 +0000591<li><a href="http://www.aw-bc.com/catalog/academic/product/0,1144,0201310155,00.html">Effective
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000592C++</a> by Scott Meyers. There is an online version of the book (only some
593chapters though) <a
Chris Lattner999cf092004-05-23 21:05:07 +0000594href="http://www.awlonline.com/cseng/meyerscddemo/">available as well</a>. Also
595interesting and useful are "More Effective C++" and "Effective STL" by the same
596author.</li>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000597
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000598<li><a href="http://cseng.aw.com/book/0,3828,0201633620,00.html">Large-Scale C++
599Software Design</a> by John Lakos</li>
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000600
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000601</ol>
602
603<p>If you get some free time, and you haven't read them: do so, you might learn
604something. :)</p>
605
606</div>
607
Chris Lattnerd80c43c2001-07-09 03:27:08 +0000608<!-- *********************************************************************** -->
609
610<hr>
Misha Brukman6c16c4b2004-05-12 18:37:22 +0000611<address>
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613 src="http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/images/vcss" alt="Valid CSS!"></a>
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Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000616
Misha Brukman6c16c4b2004-05-12 18:37:22 +0000617 <a href="mailto:sabre@nondot.org">Chris Lattner</a><br>
618 <a href="http://llvm.cs.uiuc.edu">LLVM Compiler Infrastructure</a><br>
Misha Brukman75f258e2003-10-24 17:57:33 +0000619 Last modified: $Date$
Misha Brukman6c16c4b2004-05-12 18:37:22 +0000620</address>
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