1 | \chapter{Exception Features}
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2 |
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3 | This chapter covers the design and user interface of the \CFA
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4 | exception-handling mechanism (EHM). % or exception system.
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5 | While an EHM is free to add many features,
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6 | the following overview covers the basic features that all EHMs use, but it is not an
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7 | exhaustive list of everything an EHM can do.
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8 |
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9 | % We should cover what is an exception handling mechanism and what is an
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10 | % exception before this. Probably in the introduction. Some of this could
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11 | % move there.
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12 | \paragraph{Raise / Handle}
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13 | An exception operation has two main parts: raise and handle.
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14 | These terms are sometimes also known as throw and catch but this work uses
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15 | throw/catch as a particular kind of raise/handle.
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16 | These are the two parts a programmer writes and so
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17 | are the only two pieces of the EHM that have language syntax.
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18 |
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19 | \subparagraph{Raise}
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20 | The raise is the starting point for exception handling and usually how \PAB{This sentence is cut off.}
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21 | Some well known examples include the @throw@ statement of \Cpp and Java and
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22 | the \lstinline[language=Python]{raise} statement from Python.
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23 |
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24 | For this overview, a raise starts the handling of an
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25 | exception, which is called \newterm{raising} an exception. This simple description is sufficient
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26 | for the overview.
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27 |
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28 | \subparagraph{Handle}
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29 | The purpose of raising an exception is to run user code to address (handle) the
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30 | issue found at the raise point.
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31 | The @try@ statement of \Cpp illustrates a common approach for specifying multiple handlers.
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32 | A handler has three common features: the scope in which it applies, an
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33 | exception label that describes what exceptions it can handle, and code to run
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34 | that deals with the raised issue.
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35 | Each handler can handle exceptions raised in the region matching its
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36 | exception label. For multiple matches, different EHMs have different rules for matching an exception to a handler label,
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37 | such as ``best match" or ``first found".
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38 |
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39 | \paragraph{Propagation}
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40 | After an exception is raised, comes the most complex step for the
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41 | EHM: finding and setting up the handler. This propagation of exception from raise to handler can be broken up into three
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42 | different tasks: searching, matching, and
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43 | installing the handler so it can execute.
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44 |
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45 | \subparagraph{Searching}
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46 | The EHM searches for possible handlers that can be used to handle
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47 | the exception. Searching is usually independent of the exception that is
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48 | thrown and instead depends on the call stack: current function, its caller
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49 | and repeating down the stack.
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50 |
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51 | \subparagraph{Matching}
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52 | For each handler found, it compares the raised exception with the handler label to see which one is the
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53 | best match, and hence, which one should be used to handle the exception.
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54 | In languages where the best match is the first match, these two steps are often
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55 | intertwined, \ie a match check is performed immediately after the search finds
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56 | a possible handler.
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57 |
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58 | \subparagraph{Installing}
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59 | After a handler is chosen, it must be made ready to run.
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60 | This step varies widely to fit with the rest of the
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61 | design of the EHM. The installation step might be trivial or it can be
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62 | the most expensive step in handling an exception. The latter tends to be the
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63 | case when stack unwinding is involved.
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64 | An alternate action occurs if no appropriate handler is found, then some implicit action
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65 | is performed. This step is only required with unchecked
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66 | exceptions as checked exceptions (Java) promise a handler is always found. The implicit action
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67 | also installs a handler but it is a default handle that may be
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68 | installed differently.
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69 |
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70 | \subparagraph{Hierarchy}
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71 | Some EHM (\CFA, Java) organize exceptions in a hierarchical structure.
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72 | This strategy is borrowed from object-orientated languages where the
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73 | exception hierarchy is a natural extension of the object hierarchy.
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74 |
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75 | Consider the following hierarchy of exceptions:
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76 | \begin{center}
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77 | \input{exceptionHierarchy}
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78 | \end{center}
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79 | A handler labelled with any given exception can handle exceptions of that
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80 | type or any child type of that exception. The root of the exception hierarchy
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81 | (here \lstinline[language=C++]{exception}) acts as a catch-all, leaf types catch single types
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82 | and the exceptions in the middle can be used to catch different groups of
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83 | related exceptions.
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84 |
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85 | This system has some notable advantages, such as multiple levels of grouping,
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86 | the ability for libraries to add new exception types, and the isolation
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87 | between different sub-hierarchies. This capability had to be adapted for \CFA, which is a
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88 | non-object-orientated language.
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89 |
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90 | % Could I cite the rational for the Python IO exception rework?
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91 |
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92 | \paragraph{Completion}
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93 | After the handler has returned, the entire exception operation has to complete
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94 | and continue executing somewhere. This step is usually simple,
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95 | both logically and in its implementation, as the installation of the handler
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96 | usually does the preparation.
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97 | The EHM can return control to different places,
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98 | where the most common are after the handler definition or after the raise.
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99 |
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100 | \paragraph{Communication}
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101 | For effective exception handling, additional information is usually passed from the raise,
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102 | where this basic model only communicates the exception's identity. A common
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103 | methods for communication is putting fields into an exception and
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104 | allowing a handler to access these fields via an exception instance in the handler's scope.
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105 |
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106 | \section{Virtuals}
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107 | Virtual types and casts are not part of an EHM nor are they
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108 | required for an EHM. But as pointed out, an object-oriented-style hierarchy is an
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109 | excellent way of organizing exceptions. Hence, a minimal virtual system has been added
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110 | to \CFA to support hierarchical exceptions.
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111 |
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112 | The virtual system supports multiple ``trees" of types. Each tree is
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113 | a simple hierarchy with a single root type. Each type in a tree has exactly
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114 | one parent -- except for the root type with zero parents -- and any
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115 | number of children.
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116 | Any type that belongs to any of these trees is called a virtual type.
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117 |
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118 | % A type's ancestors are its parent and its parent's ancestors.
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119 | % The root type has no ancestors.
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120 | % A type's descendents are its children and its children's descendents.
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121 |
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122 | Every virtual type has a list of virtual members. Children inherit
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123 | their parent's virtual members but may add new members to it.
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124 | It is important to note that these are virtual members, not virtual methods of an object type.
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125 | However, as \CFA has function pointers, they can be used to mimic virtual
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126 | methods.
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127 |
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128 | Each virtual type has a unique id.
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129 | The unique id for the virtual type and all its virtual members are combined
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130 | into a virtual-table type. Each virtual type has a pointer to a virtual table
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131 | as a hidden field.
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132 |
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133 | Up to this point, a virtual system is similar to ones found in object-oriented
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134 | languages but this is where \CFA diverges. Objects encapsulate a
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135 | single set of behaviours in each type, universally across the entire program,
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136 | and indeed all programs that use that type definition. In this sense, the
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137 | types are ``closed" and cannot be altered.
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138 | However, \CFA types do not encapsulate any behaviour. Instead, traits are used and
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139 | types can satisfy a trait, stop satisfying a trait, or satisfy the same
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140 | trait in a different way depending on the lexical context. In this sense, the types are
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141 | ``open" as their behaviour can change in different scopes. This capability means it is impossible to pick
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142 | a single set of functions that represent the type's virtual members.
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143 |
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144 | Hence, \CFA does not have a single virtual table for a type. A user can define different virtual tables,
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145 | which are filled in at their declaration and given a name.
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146 | That name is used as the virtual table, even if it is defined locally
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147 | inside a function, although lifetime issues must be considered.
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148 | Specifically, an object of a virtual type is ``bound" to a virtual table instance, which
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149 | sets the virtual members for that object. The virtual members can be accessed
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150 | through the object.
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151 |
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152 | While much of the virtual infrastructure is created, it is currently only used
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153 | internally for exception handling. The only user-level feature is the virtual
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154 | cast, which is the same as the \Cpp \lstinline[language=C++]|dynamic_cast|.
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155 | \label{p:VirtualCast}
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156 | \begin{cfa}
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157 | (virtual TYPE)EXPRESSION
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158 | \end{cfa}
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159 | Note, the syntax and semantics matches a C-cast, rather than the function-like
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160 | \Cpp syntax for special casts. Both the type of @EXPRESSION@ and @TYPE@ must be
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161 | a pointer to a virtual type.
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162 | The cast dynamically checks if the @EXPRESSION@ type is the same or a subtype
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163 | of @TYPE@, and if true, returns a pointer to the
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164 | @EXPRESSION@ object, otherwise it returns @0p@ (null pointer).
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165 |
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166 | \section{Exception}
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167 | % Leaving until later, hopefully it can talk about actual syntax instead
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168 | % of my many strange macros. Syntax aside I will also have to talk about the
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169 | % features all exceptions support.
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170 |
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171 | Exceptions are defined by the trait system; there are a series of traits, and
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172 | if a type satisfies them, then it can be used as an exception. The following
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173 | is the base trait all exceptions need to match.
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174 | \begin{cfa}
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175 | trait is_exception(exceptT &, virtualT &) {
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176 | virtualT const & get_exception_vtable(exceptT *);
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177 | };
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178 | \end{cfa}
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179 | The trait is defined over two types, the exception type and the virtual table
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180 | type. These type should have a one-to-one relationship: each exception type has only one virtual
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181 | table type and vice versa. The only assertion in the trait is
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182 | @get_exception_vtable@, which takes a pointer of the exception type and
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183 | returns a reference to the virtual-table type-instance.
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184 |
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185 | The function @get_exception_vtable@ is actually a constant function.
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186 | Regardless of the value passed in (including the null pointer) it
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187 | returns a reference to the virtual-table instance for that type.
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188 | The reason it is a function instead of a constant is to make type
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189 | annotations easier to write using the exception type rather than the
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190 | virtual-table type, which usually has a mangled name because it is an internal component of the EHM.
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191 | % Also \CFA's trait system handles functions better than constants and doing
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192 | % it this way reduce the amount of boiler plate we need.
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193 |
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194 | % I did have a note about how it is the programmer's responsibility to make
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195 | % sure the function is implemented correctly. But this is true of every
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196 | % similar system I know of (except Ada's I guess) so I took it out.
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197 |
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198 | There are two more exception traits defined as follows:
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199 | \begin{cfa}
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200 | trait is_termination_exception(
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201 | exceptT &, virtualT & | is_exception(exceptT, virtualT)) {
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202 | void defaultTerminationHandler(exceptT &);
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203 | };
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204 |
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205 | trait is_resumption_exception(
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206 | exceptT &, virtualT & | is_exception(exceptT, virtualT)) {
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207 | void defaultResumptionHandler(exceptT &);
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208 | };
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209 | \end{cfa}
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210 | These traits ensure a given type and virtual type are an
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211 | exception type and defines one of the two default handlers. The default handlers
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212 | are used in the main exception-handling operations and discussed in detail in \VRef{s:ExceptionHandling}.
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213 |
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214 | However, all three of these traits are tricky to use directly.
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215 | While there is a bit of repetition required,
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216 | the largest issue is that the virtual-table type is mangled and not in a user
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217 | facing way. So three macros are provided to wrap these traits
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218 | to simplify referring to the names:
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219 | @IS_EXCEPTION@, @IS_TERMINATION_EXCEPTION@ and @IS_RESUMPTION_EXCEPTION@.
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220 |
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221 | These macros take one or two arguments. The first argument is the name of the
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222 | exception type. The macro passes the unmangled and mangled form to the trait.
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223 | The second (optional) argument is a parenthesized list of polymorphic
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224 | arguments. This argument is only used with polymorphic exceptions and the
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225 | list is passed to both types.
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226 | In the current set-up, the base name and the polymorphic arguments have to
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227 | match so these macros can be used without losing flexibility.
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228 |
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229 | For example consider a function that is polymorphic over types that have a
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230 | defined arithmetic exception:
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231 | \begin{cfa}
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232 | forall(Num | @IS_EXCEPTION(Arithmetic, Num)@)
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233 | void some_math_function(Num & left, Num & right);
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234 | \end{cfa}
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235 | where the function may raise exception @Arithmetic@ or any of its decedents.
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236 |
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237 | \section{Exception Handling}
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238 | \label{s:ExceptionHandling}
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239 | \CFA provides two kinds of exception handling: termination and resumption.
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240 | These twin mechanisms are the core of the \CFA EHM and
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241 | multiple features are provided to support them.
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242 | This section covers the general patterns shared by the two kinds of exceptions and
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243 | then covers the individual detail operations.
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244 |
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245 | Both mechanisms follow the same set of steps to do their operations. Both
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246 | start with the user performing an exception raise.
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247 | Then there is the handler search. If one is found, than the exception
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248 | is caught and the handler is run. When the handler returns, control returns to an
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249 | location appropriate for each kind of exception.
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250 |
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251 | \begin{sloppypar}
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252 | If the search fails, an appropriate default handler, @defaultTermiationHandler@
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253 | or @defaultResumptionHandler@, is run and control returns to the
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254 | appropriate location.
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255 | \end{sloppypar}
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256 |
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257 | \subsection{Termination}
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258 | \label{s:Termination}
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259 | Termination handling is familiar and used in most programming
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260 | languages with exception handling.
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261 | It is a dynamic, non-local goto. The raise starts searching, and if matched and handled, the stack is
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262 | unwound and control (usually) continues in the function on
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263 | the call stack containing the handler. Terminate is commonly used for an error where recovery
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264 | is impossible in the function performing the raise.
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265 |
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266 | % (usually) Control can continue in the current function but then a different
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267 | % control flow construct should be used.
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268 |
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269 | A termination raise is started with the @throw@ statement:
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270 | \begin{cfa}
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271 | throw EXPRESSION;
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272 | \end{cfa}
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273 | The expression must return a reference to a termination exception, where the
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274 | termination exception is any type that satisfies trait
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275 | @is_termination_exception@ at the call site. Through \CFA's trait system, the
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276 | trait functions are implicitly passed into the hidden throw code and available
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277 | to the exception system while handling the exception. A new
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278 | @defaultTerminationHandler@ can be defined in any scope to change the throw's
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279 | unhandled behaviour (see below).
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280 |
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281 | The throw must copy the provided exception into managed memory because the stack is unwounded.
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282 | The lifetime of the exception copy is managed by the exception runtime.
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283 | It is the user's responsibility to ensure the original exception is cleaned up, where allocating it on the unwound stack is sufficient.
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284 |
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285 | The exception search walks the stack matching with the copied exception.
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286 | It starts from the throwing function and proceeds to the base of the stack,
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287 | from callee to caller.
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288 | At each stack frame, a check is made for termination handlers defined by the
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289 | @catch@ clauses of a @try@ statement.
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290 | \begin{cfa}
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291 | try {
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292 | GUARDED_BLOCK
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293 | } catch (EXCEPTION_TYPE$\(_1\)$ [* NAME$\(_1\)$]) {
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294 | HANDLER_BLOCK$\(_1\)$
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295 | } catch (EXCEPTION_TYPE$\(_2\)$ [* NAME$\(_2\)$]) {
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296 | HANDLER_BLOCK$\(_2\)$
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297 | }
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298 | \end{cfa}
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299 | When viewed on its own, a @try@ statement with @catch@ clauses simply executes the statements in
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300 | the @GUARDED_BLOCK@, and when those are finished, the try statement finishes.
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301 |
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302 | However, while the guarded statements are being executed, including any invoked
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303 | functions, a termination exception may be thrown. If that exception is not handled by a try
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304 | statement further up the stack, the handlers following the try block are now
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305 | searched for a matching termination exception-type from top to bottom.
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306 |
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307 | Exception matching checks each @catch@ clasue from top to bottom, if the representation of the thrown exception-type is
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308 | the same or a descendant type of the exception types in the @catch@ clauses. If
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309 | it is the same or a descendant of @EXCEPTION_TYPE@$_i$, then the optional @NAME@$_i$ is
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310 | bound to a pointer to the exception and the statements in @HANDLER_BLOCK@$_i$
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311 | are executed. If control reaches the end of the handler, the exception is
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312 | freed and control continues after the @try@ statement.
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313 |
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314 | If no termination handler is found during the search, the default termination
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315 | handler visible at the raise is called. Through \CFA's trait-system the best
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316 | default-handler match at the throw sight is used. This function is
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317 | passed the copied exception given to the raise. After the default handler is
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318 | run, control continues after the @throw@ statement.
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319 |
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320 | There is a global @defaultTerminationHandler@ function that that is polymorphic
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321 | over all exception types allowing new default handlers to be defined for
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322 | different exception types and so different exception types can have different
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323 | default handlers. The global default termination-handler performs a
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324 | cancellation \see{\VRef{s:Cancellation}} on the current stack with the copied
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325 | exception.
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326 |
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327 | \subsection{Resumption}
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328 | \label{s:Resumption}
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329 | Resumption exception-handling is a less common counterpart to termination but is
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330 | just as old~\cite{Goodenough75} and is simpler to understand.
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331 | It is a dynamic, non-local function call (like Lisp). If the throw is successful, a
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332 | closure is taken from up the stack and executed, after which the throwing
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333 | function continues executing.
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334 | Resumption is used when an error occurred, and if the error is repaired,
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335 | then the function can continue.
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336 |
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337 | An alternative approach is explicitly passing fixup functions with local
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338 | closures up the stack to be called when an error occurs. However, fixup
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339 | functions significantly expand the parameters list of functions, even when the
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340 | fixup function is not used by a function but must be passed to other called
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341 | functions.
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342 |
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343 | A resumption raise is started with the @throwResume@ statement:
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344 | \begin{cfa}
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345 | throwResume EXPRESSION;
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346 | \end{cfa}
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347 | Like termination, the expression must return a reference to a resumption
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348 | exception, where the resumption exception is any type that satisfies the trait
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349 | @is_termination_exception@ at the call site.
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350 | The assertions for this trait are available to
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351 | the exception system while handling the exception.
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352 |
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353 | At runtime, no exception copy is made, as the stack is not unwound. Hence, the exception and
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354 | any values on the stack remain in scope while the resumption is handled.
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355 |
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356 | The exception searches walks the stack matching with the provided exception.
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357 | It starts from the resuming function and proceeds to the base of the stack,
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358 | from callee to caller.
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359 | At each stack frame, a check is made for resumption handlers defined by the
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360 | @catchResume@ clauses of a @try@ statement.
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361 | \begin{cfa}
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362 | try {
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363 | GUARDED_BLOCK
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364 | } catchResume (EXCEPTION_TYPE$\(_1\)$ [* NAME$\(_1\)$]) {
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365 | HANDLER_BLOCK$\(_1\)$
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366 | } catchResume (EXCEPTION_TYPE$\(_2\)$ [* NAME$\(_2\)$]) {
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367 | HANDLER_BLOCK$\(_2\)$
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368 | }
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369 | \end{cfa}
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370 | Termination and resumption handlers may be intermixed in a @try@
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371 | statement but the kind of throw must match with kind of handler for it to be
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372 | considered as a possible match.
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373 | Like termination, when viewed on its own, a @try@ statement with
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374 | @catchResume@ clauses simply executes the statements in the @GUARDED_BLOCK@,
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375 | and when those are finished, the try statement finishes.
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376 |
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377 | However, while the guarded statements are being executed, including any invoked
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378 | functions, a resumption exception may be thrown. If that exception is not handled by a try
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379 | statement further up the stack, the handlers following the try block are now
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380 | searched for a matching resumption exception-type from top to bottom.
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381 |
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382 | Like termination, exception matching checks each @catch@ clasue from top to bottom, if the representation of the thrown exception-type is
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383 | the same or a descendant type of the exception types in the @catchResume@ clauses. If
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384 | it is the same or a descendant of @EXCEPTION_TYPE@$_i$, then the optional @NAME@$_i$ is
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385 | bound to a pointer to the exception and the statements in @HANDLER_BLOCK@$_i$
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386 | are executed. If control reaches the end of the handler, the exception is
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387 | freed and control continues after the @throwResume@ statement.
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388 |
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389 | Like termination, if no resumption handler is found during the search, the
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390 | default resumption handler visible at the raise is called, which is the best
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391 | match at the according to \CFA's overloading rules. This function is passed the
|
---|
392 | exception given to the raise. After the default handler is run, execution
|
---|
393 | continues after the @throwResume@ statement.
|
---|
394 |
|
---|
395 | There is a global @defaultResumptionHandler@ that is polymorphic over all
|
---|
396 | resumption and preforms a termination throw on the exception.
|
---|
397 | The @defaultTerminationHandler@ for that throw is matched at the original
|
---|
398 | throw statement (the resumption @throwResume@) and it can be customized by
|
---|
399 | introducing a new or better match as well.
|
---|
400 |
|
---|
401 | \subsection{Resumption Marking}
|
---|
402 | A key difference between resumption and termination is that resumption does
|
---|
403 | not unwind the stack. A side effect is that when a handler is matched
|
---|
404 | and run its try block (the guarded statements) and every try statement
|
---|
405 | searched before it are still on the stack. This can lead to the recursive
|
---|
406 | resumption problem.
|
---|
407 |
|
---|
408 | The recursive resumption problem is any situation where a resumption handler
|
---|
409 | ends up being called while it is running.
|
---|
410 | Consider a trivial case:
|
---|
411 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
412 | try {
|
---|
413 | throwResume (E &){};
|
---|
414 | } catchResume(E *) {
|
---|
415 | throwResume (E &){};
|
---|
416 | }
|
---|
417 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
418 | When this code is executed the guarded @throwResume@ starts a
|
---|
419 | search and matches the handler in the @catchResume@ clause. The handler is
|
---|
420 | called and placed on the stack on top of the try-block. The second throw in the handler
|
---|
421 | searches the same try block and calls another instance of the
|
---|
422 | same handler leading to an infinite loop.
|
---|
423 |
|
---|
424 | While this situation is trivial and easy to avoid, much more complex cycles
|
---|
425 | can form with multiple handlers and different exception types.
|
---|
426 |
|
---|
427 | To prevent this case, examined try statements on the stack are marked, so that
|
---|
428 | subsequent resumption searches skip over them and continue with the next unmarked section
|
---|
429 | of the stack.
|
---|
430 | Unmarking occurs when that exception is handled
|
---|
431 | or the search completes without finding a handler.
|
---|
432 |
|
---|
433 | % This might need a diagram. But it is an important part of the justification
|
---|
434 | % of the design of the traversal order.
|
---|
435 |
|
---|
436 | \begin{center}
|
---|
437 | %\begin{verbatim}
|
---|
438 | % throwResume2 ----------.
|
---|
439 | % | |
|
---|
440 | % generated from handler |
|
---|
441 | % | |
|
---|
442 | % handler |
|
---|
443 | % | |
|
---|
444 | % throwResume1 -----. :
|
---|
445 | % | | :
|
---|
446 | % try | : search skip
|
---|
447 | % | | :
|
---|
448 | % catchResume <----' :
|
---|
449 | % | |
|
---|
450 | %\end{verbatim}
|
---|
451 | \input{stackMarking}
|
---|
452 | \end{center}
|
---|
453 |
|
---|
454 | The resulting search can be understood by thinking about what is searched for
|
---|
455 | termination. When a throw happens in a handler, a termination handler
|
---|
456 | skips everything from the original throw to the original catch because that
|
---|
457 | part of the stack is unwound. A resumption handler skips the same
|
---|
458 | section of stack because it is marked.
|
---|
459 | A throw in a resumption default-handler performs the same search as the original
|
---|
460 | @throwResume@ because for resumption nothing has been unwound.
|
---|
461 |
|
---|
462 | The symmetry between resumption masking and termination searching is why this pattern was picked. Other patterns,
|
---|
463 | such as marking just the handlers that caught, also work but the
|
---|
464 | symmetry seems to match programmer intuition.
|
---|
465 |
|
---|
466 | \section{Conditional Catch}
|
---|
467 | Both termination and resumption handler-clauses can be given an additional
|
---|
468 | condition to further control which exceptions is handled:
|
---|
469 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
470 | catch (EXCEPTION_TYPE [* NAME] @; CONDITION@)
|
---|
471 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
472 | First, the same semantics is used to match the exception type. Second, if the
|
---|
473 | exception matches, @CONDITION@ is executed. The condition expression may
|
---|
474 | reference all names in the scope of the try block and @NAME@
|
---|
475 | introduced in the handler clause. If the condition is true, then the handler
|
---|
476 | matches. Otherwise, the exception search continues as if the exception type
|
---|
477 | did not match.
|
---|
478 |
|
---|
479 | Conditional catch allows fine-gain matching based on object values as well as exception types.
|
---|
480 | For example, assume the exception hierarchy @OpenFailure@ $\rightarrow$ @CreateFailure@ and these exceptions are raised by function @open@.
|
---|
481 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
482 | try {
|
---|
483 | f1 = open( ... ); // open raises CreateFailure/OpenFailure
|
---|
484 | f2 = open( ... ); // with the associate file
|
---|
485 | ...
|
---|
486 | } catch( CreateFailure * f ; @fd( f ) == f1@ ) {
|
---|
487 | // only handle IO failure for f1
|
---|
488 | } catch( OpenFailure * f ; @fd( f ) == f2@ ) {
|
---|
489 | // only handle IO failure for f2
|
---|
490 | }
|
---|
491 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
492 | Here, matching is very precise on the I/O exception and particular file with an open problem.
|
---|
493 | This capability cannot be easily mimiced within the handler.
|
---|
494 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
495 | try {
|
---|
496 | f1 = open( ... );
|
---|
497 | f2 = open( ... );
|
---|
498 | ...
|
---|
499 | } catch( CreateFailure * f ) {
|
---|
500 | if ( @fd( f ) == f1@ ) ... else // reraise
|
---|
501 | } catch( OpenFailure * f ) {
|
---|
502 | if ( @fd( f ) == f2@ ) ... else // reraise
|
---|
503 | }
|
---|
504 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
505 | When an exception @CreateFailure@ is raised, the first handler catches the
|
---|
506 | derived exception and reraises it if the object is inappropriate. The reraise
|
---|
507 | immediately terminates the current guarded block, which precludes the handler
|
---|
508 | for the base exception @OpenFailure@ from consideration for object
|
---|
509 | @f2@. Therefore, the ``catch first, then reraise'' approach is an incomplete
|
---|
510 | substitute for conditional catch.
|
---|
511 |
|
---|
512 | \section{Reraise}
|
---|
513 | \label{s:Rethrowing}
|
---|
514 | \colour{red}{From Andrew: I recommend we talk about why the language doesn't
|
---|
515 | have rethrows/reraises instead.}
|
---|
516 |
|
---|
517 | Within the handler block or functions called from the handler block, it is
|
---|
518 | possible to reraise the most recently caught exception with @throw@ or
|
---|
519 | @throwResume@, respectively.
|
---|
520 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
521 | try {
|
---|
522 | ...
|
---|
523 | } catch( ... ) {
|
---|
524 | ... throw;
|
---|
525 | } catchResume( ... ) {
|
---|
526 | ... throwResume;
|
---|
527 | }
|
---|
528 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
529 | The only difference between a raise and a reraise is that reraise does not
|
---|
530 | create a new exception; instead it continues using the current exception, \ie
|
---|
531 | no allocation and copy. However the default handler is still set to the one
|
---|
532 | visible at the raise point, and hence, for termination could refer to data that
|
---|
533 | is part of an unwound stack frame. To prevent this problem, a new default
|
---|
534 | handler is generated that does a program-level abort.
|
---|
535 | \PAB{I don't see how this is different from the normal throw/throwResume.}
|
---|
536 |
|
---|
537 | \section{Finally Clauses}
|
---|
538 | Finally clauses are used to perform unconditional clean-up when leaving a
|
---|
539 | scope and appear at the end of a try statement after any catch clauses:
|
---|
540 | \begin{cfa}
|
---|
541 | try {
|
---|
542 | GUARDED_BLOCK
|
---|
543 | } ... // any number or kind of handler clauses
|
---|
544 | ... finally {
|
---|
545 | FINALLY_BLOCK
|
---|
546 | }
|
---|
547 | \end{cfa}
|
---|
548 | The @FINALLY_BLOCK@ is executed when the try statement is removed from the
|
---|
549 | stack, including when the @GUARDED_BLOCK@ finishes, any termination handler
|
---|
550 | finishes, or during an unwind.
|
---|
551 | The only time the block is not executed is if the program is exited before
|
---|
552 | the stack is unwound.
|
---|
553 |
|
---|
554 | Execution of the finally block should always finish, meaning control runs off
|
---|
555 | the end of the block. This requirement ensures execution always continues as if the
|
---|
556 | finally clause is not present, \ie @finally@ is for cleanup not changing control
|
---|
557 | flow. Because of this requirement, local control flow out of the finally block
|
---|
558 | is forbidden. The compiler precludes any @break@, @continue@, @fallthru@ or
|
---|
559 | @return@ that causes control to leave the finally block. Other ways to leave
|
---|
560 | the finally block, such as a long jump or termination are much harder to check,
|
---|
561 | and at best require additional run-time overhead, and so are
|
---|
562 | discouraged.
|
---|
563 |
|
---|
564 | Not all languages with exceptions have finally clauses. Notably \Cpp does
|
---|
565 | without it as destructors serve a similar role. Although destructors and
|
---|
566 | finally clauses can be used in many of the same areas, they have their own
|
---|
567 | use cases like top-level functions and lambda functions with closures.
|
---|
568 | Destructors take a bit more work to set up but are much easier to reuse while
|
---|
569 | finally clauses are good for one-off situations and can easily include local information.
|
---|
570 |
|
---|
571 | \section{Cancellation}
|
---|
572 | \label{s:Cancellation}
|
---|
573 | Cancellation is a stack-level abort, which can be thought of as an
|
---|
574 | uncatchable termination. It unwinds the entire stack, and when
|
---|
575 | possible, forwards the cancellation exception to a different stack.
|
---|
576 |
|
---|
577 | Cancellation is not an exception operation like termination or resumption.
|
---|
578 | There is no special statement for starting a cancellation; instead the standard
|
---|
579 | library function @cancel_stack@ is called passing an exception. Unlike a
|
---|
580 | throw, this exception is not used in matching only to pass information about
|
---|
581 | the cause of the cancellation.
|
---|
582 | (This semantics also means matching cannot fail so there is no default handler.)
|
---|
583 |
|
---|
584 | After @cancel_stack@ is called, the exception is copied into the EHM's
|
---|
585 | memory and the current stack is
|
---|
586 | unwound. After that it depends one which stack is being cancelled.
|
---|
587 | \begin{description}
|
---|
588 | \item[Main Stack:]
|
---|
589 | The main stack is the one used by the program main at the start of execution,
|
---|
590 | and is the only stack in a sequential program. Even in a concurrent program,
|
---|
591 | the main stack is often used as the environment to start the concurrent threads.
|
---|
592 | Hence, when the main stack is cancelled there is nowhere else in the program
|
---|
593 | to go. Hence, after the main stack is unwound, there is a program-level abort.
|
---|
594 |
|
---|
595 | \item[Thread Stack:]
|
---|
596 | A thread stack is created for a \CFA @thread@ object or object that satisfies the
|
---|
597 | @is_thread@ trait. A thread only has two points of communication that must
|
---|
598 | happen: start and join. A thread must be running to perform a
|
---|
599 | cancellation (a thread cannot cancel another thread). Therefore, a cancellation must
|
---|
600 | occur after start and before join, so join is used
|
---|
601 | for cancellation communication.
|
---|
602 | After the stack is unwound, the thread halts and waits for
|
---|
603 | another thread to join with it. The joining thread checks for a cancellation,
|
---|
604 | and if present, resumes exception @ThreadCancelled@.
|
---|
605 |
|
---|
606 | \begin{sloppypar}
|
---|
607 | There is a subtle difference between the explicit join (@join@ function) and
|
---|
608 | implicit join (from a @thread@'s destructor call). The explicit join takes the default
|
---|
609 | handler (@defaultResumptionHandler@) from its calling context, which is used if
|
---|
610 | the exception is not caught. The implicit join does a program abort instead.
|
---|
611 | \end{sloppypar}
|
---|
612 |
|
---|
613 | \PAB{uC++ does not have these issues, but catch(...) is not working.}
|
---|
614 | \begin{lstlisting}[language=uC++]
|
---|
615 | #include <iostream>
|
---|
616 | using namespace std;
|
---|
617 |
|
---|
618 | struct Cl {
|
---|
619 | ~Cl() { cout << "C" << endl; }
|
---|
620 | };
|
---|
621 | _Coroutine C {
|
---|
622 | void main() {
|
---|
623 | Cl c;
|
---|
624 | try {
|
---|
625 | cancel();
|
---|
626 | } catch( ... ) {
|
---|
627 | cout << "..." << endl;
|
---|
628 | } _Finally {
|
---|
629 | cout << "F" << endl;
|
---|
630 | }
|
---|
631 | }
|
---|
632 | public:
|
---|
633 | void mem() { resume(); }
|
---|
634 | };
|
---|
635 | _Task T {
|
---|
636 | void main() {
|
---|
637 | Cl c;
|
---|
638 | try {
|
---|
639 | cancel();
|
---|
640 | } catch( ... ) {
|
---|
641 | cout << "..." << endl;
|
---|
642 | } _Finally {
|
---|
643 | cout << "F" << endl;
|
---|
644 | }
|
---|
645 | }
|
---|
646 | };
|
---|
647 | int main() {
|
---|
648 | C c;
|
---|
649 | cout << "here1" << endl;
|
---|
650 | c.mem();
|
---|
651 | cout << "here2" << endl;
|
---|
652 | {
|
---|
653 | T t;
|
---|
654 | }
|
---|
655 | cout << "here3" << endl;
|
---|
656 | }
|
---|
657 | \end{lstlisting}
|
---|
658 |
|
---|
659 | \PAB{This discussion should be its own section.}
|
---|
660 | This semantics is for safety. If an unwind is triggered while another unwind
|
---|
661 | is underway only one of them can proceed as they both want to ``consume" the
|
---|
662 | stack. Letting both try to proceed leads to very undefined behaviour.
|
---|
663 | Both termination and cancellation involve unwinding and, since the default
|
---|
664 | @defaultResumptionHandler@ preforms a termination that could more easily
|
---|
665 | happen in an implicate join inside a destructor. So there is an error message
|
---|
666 | and an abort instead.
|
---|
667 |
|
---|
668 | \todo{Perhaps have a more general disucssion of unwind collisions before
|
---|
669 | this point.}
|
---|
670 |
|
---|
671 | The recommended way to avoid the abort is to handle the initial resumption
|
---|
672 | from the implicate join. If required you may put an explicate join inside a
|
---|
673 | finally clause to disable the check and use the local
|
---|
674 | @defaultResumptionHandler@ instead.
|
---|
675 |
|
---|
676 | \item[Coroutine Stack:] A coroutine stack is created for a @coroutine@ object
|
---|
677 | or object that satisfies the @is_coroutine@ trait. A coroutine only knows of
|
---|
678 | two other coroutines, its starter and its last resumer. Of the two the last
|
---|
679 | resumer has the tightest coupling to the coroutine it activated and the most
|
---|
680 | up-to-date information.
|
---|
681 |
|
---|
682 | Hence, cancellation of the active coroutine is forwarded to the last resumer
|
---|
683 | after the stack is unwound. When the resumer restarts, it resumes exception
|
---|
684 | @CoroutineCancelled@, which is polymorphic over the coroutine type and has a
|
---|
685 | pointer to the cancelled coroutine.
|
---|
686 |
|
---|
687 | The resume function also has an assertion that the @defaultResumptionHandler@
|
---|
688 | for the exception. So it will use the default handler like a regular throw.
|
---|
689 | \end{description}
|
---|
690 |
|
---|
691 | \PAB{You should have more test programs that compare \CFA EHM to uC++ EHM.}
|
---|