path: root/doc/ref/libguile-foreign-objects.texi

@c -*-texinfo-*-
@c This is part of the GNU Guile Reference Manual.
@c Copyright (C)  1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018
@c   Free Software Foundation, Inc.
@c See the file guile.texi for copying conditions.

@node Defining New Foreign Object Types
@section Defining New Foreign Object Types

The @dfn{foreign object type} facility is Guile's mechanism for
importing object and types from C or other languages into Guile's
system.  If you have a C @code{struct foo} type, for example, you can
define a corresponding Guile foreign object type that allows Scheme code
to handle @code{struct foo *} objects.

To define a new foreign object type, the programmer provides Guile with
some essential information about the type --- what its name is, how many
fields it has, and its finalizer (if any) --- and Guile allocates a
fresh type for it.  Foreign objects can be accessed from Scheme or from
C.

@menu
* Defining Foreign Object Types::       
* Creating Foreign Objects::          
* Type Checking of Foreign Objects::                
* Foreign Object Memory Management::    
* Foreign Objects and Scheme::    
@end menu

@node Defining Foreign Object Types
@subsection Defining Foreign Object Types

To create a new foreign object type from C, call
@code{scm_make_foreign_object_type}.  It returns a value of type
@code{SCM} which identifies the new type.

Here is how one might declare a new type representing eight-bit
gray-scale images:

@example
#include <libguile.h>

struct image @{
  int width, height;
  char *pixels;

  /* The name of this image */
  SCM name;

  /* A function to call when this image is
     modified, e.g., to update the screen,
     or SCM_BOOL_F if no action necessary */
  SCM update_func;
@};

static SCM image_type;

void
init_image_type (void)
@{
  SCM name, slots;
  scm_t_struct_finalize finalizer;

  name = scm_from_utf8_symbol ("image");
  slots = scm_list_1 (scm_from_utf8_symbol ("data"));
  finalizer = NULL;

  image_type =
    scm_make_foreign_object_type (name, slots, finalizer);
@}
@end example

The result is an initialized @code{image_type} value that identifies the
new foreign object type.  The next section describes how to create
foreign objects and how to access their slots.


@node Creating Foreign Objects
@subsection Creating Foreign Objects

Foreign objects contain zero or more ``slots'' of data.  A slot can hold
a pointer, an integer that fits into a @code{size_t} or @code{ssize_t},
or a @code{SCM} value.

All objects of a given foreign type have the same number of slots.  In
the example from the previous section, the @code{image} type has one
slot, because the slots list passed to
@code{scm_make_foreign_object_type} is of length one.  (The actual names
given to slots are unimportant for most users of the C interface, but
can be used on the Scheme side to introspect on the foreign object.)

To construct a foreign object and initialize its first slot, call
@code{scm_make_foreign_object_1 (@var{type}, @var{first_slot_value})}.
There are similarly named constructors for initializing 0, 1, 2, or 3
slots, or initializing @var{n} slots via an array.  @xref{Foreign
Objects}, for full details.  Any fields that are not explicitly
initialized are set to 0.

To get or set the value of a slot by index, you can use the
@code{scm_foreign_object_ref} and @code{scm_foreign_object_set_x}
functions.  These functions take and return values as @code{void *}
pointers; there are corresponding convenience procedures like
@code{_signed_ref}, @code{_unsigned_set_x} and so on for dealing with
slots as signed or unsigned integers.

Foreign objects fields that are pointers can be tricky to manage.  If
possible, it is best that all memory that is referenced by a foreign
object be managed by the garbage collector.  That way, the GC can
automatically ensure that memory is accessible when it is needed, and
freed when it becomes inaccessible.  If this is not the case for your
program -- for example, if you are exposing an object to Scheme that was
allocated by some other, Guile-unaware part of your program -- then you
will probably need to implement a finalizer.  @xref{Foreign Object
Memory Management}, for more.

Continuing the example from the previous section, if the global variable
@code{image_type} contains the type returned by
@code{scm_make_foreign_object_type}, here is how we could construct a
foreign object whose ``data'' field contains a pointer to a freshly
allocated @code{struct image}:

@example
SCM
make_image (SCM name, SCM s_width, SCM s_height)
@{
  struct image *image;
  int width = scm_to_int (s_width);
  int height = scm_to_int (s_height);

  /* Allocate the `struct image'.  Because we
     use scm_gc_malloc, this memory block will
     be automatically reclaimed when it becomes
     inaccessible, and its members will be traced
     by the garbage collector.  */
  image = (struct image *)
    scm_gc_malloc (sizeof (struct image), "image");

  image->width = width;
  image->height = height;

  /* Allocating the pixels with
     scm_gc_malloc_pointerless means that the
     pixels data is collectable by GC, but
     that GC shouldn't spend time tracing its
     contents for nested pointers because there
     aren't any.  */
  image->pixels =
    scm_gc_malloc_pointerless (width * height, "image pixels");

  image->name = name;
  image->update_func = SCM_BOOL_F;

  /* Now wrap the struct image* in a new foreign
     object, and return that object.  */
  return scm_make_foreign_object_1 (image_type, image);
@}
@end example

We use @code{scm_gc_malloc_pointerless} for the pixel buffer to tell the
garbage collector not to scan it for pointers.  Calls to
@code{scm_gc_malloc}, @code{scm_make_foreign_object_1}, and
@code{scm_gc_malloc_pointerless} raise an exception in out-of-memory
conditions; the garbage collector is able to reclaim previously
allocated memory if that happens.


@node Type Checking of Foreign Objects
@subsection Type Checking of Foreign Objects

Functions that operate on foreign objects should check that the passed
@code{SCM} value indeed is of the correct type before accessing its
data.  They can do this with @code{scm_assert_foreign_object_type}.

For example, here is a simple function that operates on an image object,
and checks the type of its argument.

@example
SCM
clear_image (SCM image_obj)
@{
  int area;
  struct image *image;

  scm_assert_foreign_object_type (image_type, image_obj);

  image = scm_foreign_object_ref (image_obj, 0);
  area = image->width * image->height;
  memset (image->pixels, 0, area);

  /* Invoke the image's update function.  */
  if (scm_is_true (image->update_func))
    scm_call_0 (image->update_func);

  return SCM_UNSPECIFIED;
@}
@end example


@node Foreign Object Memory Management
@subsection Foreign Object Memory Management

Once a foreign object has been released to the tender mercies of the
Scheme system, it must be prepared to survive garbage collection.  In
the example above, all the memory associated with the foreign object is
managed by the garbage collector because we used the @code{scm_gc_}
allocation functions.  Thus, no special care must be taken: the garbage
collector automatically scans them and reclaims any unused memory.

However, when data associated with a foreign object is managed in some
other way---e.g., @code{malloc}'d memory or file descriptors---it is
possible to specify a @dfn{finalizer} function to release those
resources when the foreign object is reclaimed.

As discussed in @pxref{Garbage Collection}, Guile's garbage collector
will reclaim inaccessible memory as needed.  This reclamation process
runs concurrently with the main program.  When Guile analyzes the heap
and determines that an object's memory can be reclaimed, that memory is
put on a ``free list'' of objects that can be reclaimed.  Usually that's
the end of it---the object is available for immediate re-use.  However
some objects can have ``finalizers'' associated with them---functions
that are called on reclaimable objects to effect any external cleanup
actions.

Finalizers are tricky business and it is best to avoid them.  They can
be invoked at unexpected times, or not at all---for example, they are
not invoked on process exit.  They don't help the garbage collector do
its job; in fact, they are a hindrance.  Furthermore, they perturb the
garbage collector's internal accounting.  The GC decides to scan the
heap when it thinks that it is necessary, after some amount of
allocation.  Finalizable objects almost always represent an amount of
allocation that is invisible to the garbage collector.  The effect can
be that the actual resource usage of a system with finalizable objects
is higher than what the GC thinks it should be.

All those caveats aside, some foreign object types will need finalizers.
For example, if we had a foreign object type that wrapped file
descriptors---and we aren't suggesting this, as Guile already has ports
---then you might define the type like this:

@example
static SCM file_type;

static void
finalize_file (SCM file)
@{
  int fd = scm_foreign_object_signed_ref (file, 0);
  if (fd >= 0)
    @{
      scm_foreign_object_signed_set_x (file, 0, -1);
      close (fd);
    @}
@}

static void
init_file_type (void)
@{
  SCM name, slots;
  scm_t_struct_finalize finalizer;

  name = scm_from_utf8_symbol ("file");
  slots = scm_list_1 (scm_from_utf8_symbol ("fd"));
  finalizer = finalize_file;

  image_type =
    scm_make_foreign_object_type (name, slots, finalizer);
@}

static SCM
make_file (int fd)
@{
  return scm_make_foreign_object_1 (file_type, (void *) fd);
@}
@end example

@cindex finalizer
@cindex finalization

Note that the finalizer may be invoked in ways and at times you might
not expect.  In a Guile built without threading support, finalizers are
invoked via ``asyncs'', which interleaves them with running Scheme code;
@pxref{Asyncs}.  If the user's Guile is built with support for threads,
the finalizer will probably be called by a dedicated finalization
thread, unless the user invokes @code{scm_run_finalizers ()} explicitly.

In either case, finalizers run concurrently with the main program, and
so they need to be async-safe and thread-safe.  If for some reason this
is impossible, perhaps because you are embedding Guile in some
application that is not itself thread-safe, you have a few options.  One
is to use guardians instead of finalizers, and arrange to pump the
guardians for finalizable objects.  @xref{Guardians}, for more
information.  The other option is to disable automatic finalization
entirely, and arrange to call @code{scm_run_finalizers ()} at
appropriate points.  @xref{Foreign Objects}, for more on these
interfaces.

Finalizers are allowed to allocate memory, access GC-managed memory, and
in general can do anything any Guile user code can do.  This was not the
case in Guile 1.8, where finalizers were much more restricted.  In
particular, in Guile 2.0, finalizers can resuscitate objects.  We do not
recommend that users avail themselves of this possibility, however, as a
resuscitated object can re-expose other finalizable objects that have
been already finalized back to Scheme.  These objects will not be
finalized again, but they could cause use-after-free problems to code
that handles objects of that particular foreign object type.  To guard
against this possibility, robust finalization routines should clear
state from the foreign object, as in the above @code{free_file} example.

One final caveat.  Foreign object finalizers are associated with the
lifetime of a foreign object, not of its fields.  If you access a field
of a finalizable foreign object, and do not arrange to keep a reference
on the foreign object itself, it could be that the outer foreign object
gets finalized while you are working with its field.

For example, consider a procedure to read some data from a file, from
our example above.

@example
SCM
read_bytes (SCM file, SCM n)
@{
  int fd;
  SCM buf;
  size_t len, pos;

  scm_assert_foreign_object_type (file_type, file);

  fd = scm_foreign_object_signed_ref (file, 0);
  if (fd < 0)
    scm_wrong_type_arg_msg ("read-bytes", SCM_ARG1,
                            file, "open file");

  len = scm_to_size_t (n);
  SCM buf = scm_c_make_bytevector (scm_to_size_t (n));

  pos = 0;
  while (pos < len)
    @{
      char *bytes = SCM_BYTEVECTOR_CONTENTS (buf);
      ssize_t count = read (fd, bytes + pos, len - pos);
      if (count < 0)
        scm_syserror ("read-bytes");
      if (count == 0)
        break;
      pos += count;
    @}

  scm_remember_upto_here_1 (file);

  return scm_values (scm_list_2 (buf, scm_from_size_t (pos)));
@}
@end example

After the prelude, only the @code{fd} value is used and the C compiler
has no reason to keep the @code{file} object around.  If
@code{scm_c_make_bytevector} results in a garbage collection,
@code{file} might not be on the stack or anywhere else and could be
finalized, leaving @code{read} to read a closed (or, in a multi-threaded
program, possibly re-used) file descriptor.  The use of
@code{scm_remember_upto_here_1} prevents this, by creating a reference
to @code{file} after all data accesses.  @xref{Garbage Collection
Functions}.

@code{scm_remember_upto_here_1} is only needed on finalizable objects,
because garbage collection of other values is invisible to the program
-- it happens when needed, and is not observable.  But if you can, save
yourself the headache and build your program in such a way that it
doesn't need finalization.


@node Foreign Objects and Scheme
@subsection Foreign Objects and Scheme

It is also possible to create foreign objects and object types from
Scheme, and to access fields of foreign objects from Scheme.  For
example, the file example from the last section could be equivalently
expressed as:

@example
(define-module (my-file)
  #:use-module (system foreign-object)
  #:use-module ((oop goops) #:select (make))
  #:export (make-file))

(define (finalize-file file)
  (let ((fd (struct-ref file 0)))
    (unless (< fd 0)
      (struct-set! file 0 -1)
      (close-fdes fd))))

(define <file>
  (make-foreign-object-type '<file> '(fd)
                            #:finalizer finalize-file))

(define (make-file fd)
  (make <file> #:fd fd))
@end example

Here we see that the result of @code{make-foreign-object-type}, which is
the equivalent of @code{scm_make_foreign_object_type}, is a struct
vtable.  @xref{Vtables}, for more information.  To instantiate the
foreign object, which is really a Guile struct, we use @code{make}.  (We
could have used @code{make-struct/no-tail}, but as an implementation
detail, finalizers are attached in the @code{initialize} method called
by @code{make}).  To access the fields, we use @code{struct-ref} and
@code{struct-set!}.  @xref{Structure Basics}.

There is a convenience syntax, @code{define-foreign-object-type}, that
defines a type along with a constructor, and getters for the fields.  An
appropriate invocation of @code{define-foreign-object-type} for the
file object type could look like this:

@example
(use-modules (system foreign-object))

(define-foreign-object-type <file>
  make-file
  (fd)
  #:finalizer finalize-file)
@end example

This defines the @code{<file>} type with one field, a @code{make-file}
constructor, and a getter for the @code{fd} field, bound to @code{fd}.

Foreign object types are not only vtables but are actually GOOPS
classes, as hinted at above.  @xref{GOOPS}, for more on Guile's
object-oriented programming system.  Thus one can define print and
equality methods using GOOPS:

@example
(use-modules (oop goops))

(define-method (write (file <file>) port)
  ;; Assuming existence of the `fd' getter
  (format port "#<<file> ~a>" (fd file)))

(define-method (equal? (a <file>) (b <file>))
  (eqv? (fd a) (fd b)))
@end example

One can even sub-class foreign types.

@example
(define-class <named-file> (<file>)
  (name #:init-keyword #:name #:init-value #f #:accessor name))
@end example

The question arises of how to construct these values, given that
@code{make-file} returns a plain old @code{<file>} object.  It turns out
that you can use the GOOPS construction interface, where every field of
the foreign object has an associated initialization keyword argument.

@example
(define* (my-open-file name #:optional (flags O_RDONLY))
  (make <named-file> #:fd (open-fdes name flags) #:name name))

(define-method (write (file <named-file>) port)
  (format port "#<<file> ~s ~a>" (name file) (fd file)))
@end example

@xref{Foreign Objects}, for full documentation on the Scheme interface
to foreign objects.  @xref{GOOPS}, for more on GOOPS.

As a final note, you might wonder how this system supports encapsulation
of sensitive values.  First, we have to recognize that some facilities
are essentially unsafe and have global scope.  For example, in C, the
integrity and confidentiality of a part of a program is at the mercy of
every other part of that program -- because any part of the program can
read and write anything in its address space.  At the same time,
principled access to structured data is organized in C on lexical
boundaries; if you don't expose accessors for your object, you trust
other parts of the program not to work around that barrier.

The situation is not dissimilar in Scheme.  Although Scheme's unsafe
constructs are fewer in number than in C, they do exist.  The
@code{(system foreign)} module can be used to violate confidentiality
and integrity, and shouldn't be exposed to untrusted code.  Although
@code{struct-ref} and @code{struct-set!} are less unsafe, they still
have a cross-cutting capability of drilling through abstractions.
Performing a @code{struct-set!} on a foreign object slot could cause
unsafe foreign code to crash.  Ultimately, structures in Scheme are
capabilities for abstraction, and not abstractions themselves.

That leaves us with the lexical capabilities, like constructors and
accessors.  Here is where encapsulation lies: the practical degree to
which the innards of your foreign objects are exposed is the degree to
which their accessors are lexically available in user code.  If you want
to allow users to reference fields of your foreign object, provide them
with a getter.  Otherwise you should assume that the only access to your
object may come from your code, which has the relevant authority, or via
code with access to cross-cutting @code{struct-ref} and such, which also
has the cross-cutting authority.