When impl lookup results in an `ImplWitness`, either directly or later
through `LookupImplWitness` evaluating to an `ImplWitness` inside some
specific, it represents a dependency on the eval blocks of the
`ImplDecl` that the `ImplWitness` comes from. The `ImplWitness` contains
a `SpecificId` of the `ImplDecl`, and the constants in the witness table
must be viewed through that `SpecificId`. The constants may depend on
the declaration or the definition block of the `ImplDecl`'s specific, so
any use of the witness table from `ImplWitness` requires the specific
from the `ImplWitness` to be fully resolved: both the decl and
definition blocks.
The specific declaration block is always resolved immediately when
forming a specific id, so there's nothing to do there. And things are
simple when the `ImplWitness` returned from impl lookup is concrete. We
would simply resolve the specific definition directly in the evaluation
of `LookupImplWitness`.
But when the `ImplWitness` is symbolic, meaning there's a dependency on
generic parameters in its referenced specific, then we have a dependency
on resolving the specific definition in the `ImplWitness` for every
specific that gets applied to the `ImplWitness`, eventually resulting in
a concrete specific.
Previously we attempted to do this by representing a dependency edge
from the eval block containing the `ImplWitness` instruction to the
definition block of the specific inside the `ImplWitness`. We
represented this dependency edge with the `RequireSpecificDefinition`
instruction.
The challenge with the `RequireSpecificDefinition` instruction was
ensuring it always landed in the _same eval block_ as the one holding
the symbolic `ImplWitness`. Ultimately, we've found a way to do this
without the `RequireSpecificDefinition`. The witness table is accessed
through `ImplWitnessAccess`, so we resolve the specific definition
before each access to the witness table. If the definition is already
resolved, this just costs a lookup of the Specific from the value store.
We document the other things we tried, which don't work or were too
complex, below.
In PR #6236, we added the `RequireSpecificDefinition` instruction in the
eval of `LookupImplWitness`, but this is too late. If impl lookup
resolved to a symbolic `LookupImplWitness`, the `LookupImplWitness` is
added some eval block. Later, we form specifics and re-evaluate that
eval block, and the `LookupImplWitness` can evaluate to an
`ImplWitness`. Adding the `RequireSpecificDefinition` instruction at
this point inserts the instruction into whatever generic's eval block
happens to be on the top of the generic stack, not the eval block of the
generic we are building a specific for. And indeed we can't add
instructions to a generic's eval block later like this, as it would be
missing from specifics that were already resolved for the generic. This
incorrect insertion shows up as a crash in eval at the CHECK introduced
but commented out in [eval.cpp in
#7981](https://github.com/carbon-language/carbon-lang/blob/56d9bbc40add1e9263f2f9b2555c3a27292d1725/toolchain/check/eval.cpp#L3507-L3512).
This is covered by the
`require_specific_impl_definition_through_specific_instantiation.carbon`
test.
We tried moving the insertion of `RequireSpecificDefinition` to be
earlier - at the point where the `LookupImplWitness` is constructed, in
the `LookupImplWitness()` function, instead of inside evaluation. This
seemed like a straightforwardly correct answer, as the eval block that
contains the `LookupImplWitness` will then also contain the
`RequireSpecificDefinition`. However, this can cause us to lose the
`RequireSpecificDefinition` entirely. Because it's a separate
instruction, not an operand of `LookupImplWitness`, it does not get
treated as a dependency of the witness. When we do an impl lookup inside
an `alias`, we build a generic for the alias and then discard it. This
discards the eval block containing the `LookupImplWitness`. Then, in an
enclosing generic, we refer to the constructed `AliasDecl` instruction,
which pulls all its dependent operands into the enclosing eval block.
This pulls in the `LookupImplWitness` into the enclosing eval block, but
it does not preserve the `RequireSpecificDefinition`. This is covered by
the
`require_specific_impl_definition_from_lookup_impl_witness_in_class_definition.carbon`
test.
We tried having `ImplWitness` evaluation resolve the specific definition
of the specific `ImplDecl` it refers to. This seems like the simplest
approach by far as we should always be working with the correct eval
block and nothing can get lost. However it does not work because of the
recursive nature of `ImplWitness`. The `ImplWitness` instruction appears
in the declaration of an `ImplDecl`, and the `ImplWitness` holds a
`SpecificId` for that same `ImplDecl`. When building a specific
`ImplDecl`, we evaluate the `ImplWitness` in the `ImplDecl`'s
declaration block which then immediately resolves the specific
definition before the declaration is finished. This leads to missing
instructions in the specific definition. In short, this puts the
dependency edge to the `ImplDecl`'s specific inside the `ImplDecl`
itself, which is problematic.
We tried wrapping `ImplWitness` in another instruction,
`ImplWitnessUse`. Inside the `ImplDecl` declaration there is still
`ImplWitness`, but then in the definition there is `ImplWitnessUse` and
that is what is returned from the evaluation of `LookupImplWitness`. The
`ImplWitnessUse` is an `ImplWitness` plus it ensures the specific
referred to by the witness has its definition resolved. However this
breaks constant comparisons, as we get different witnesses inside an
impl versus outside.
The first iteration of this PR's solution had us insert the
`RequireSpecificDefinition` into the eval block when we sniffed a
`LookupImplWitness` instruction, however that missed cases where impl
lookup immediately resolved to a symbolic `ImplWitness`, which is why we
now sniff for the `ImplWitness` in the eval block. This is covered by
the
`require_specific_impl_definition_from_symbolic_impl_in_class_definition.carbon`
test.
We also originally made a mistake of not inserting
`RequireSpecificDefinition` when inside the impl definition that the
`ImplWitness` refers to. But we can form specifics ImplWitness values
through function signatures, and these must add the dependency edge on
that specific ImplDecl definition. This is covered by the
`require_specific_impl_definition_from_inside_impl_definition.carbon`
test.
Finally, we did have a working solution. It was to sniff instructions
added to the eval block of a generic, and when an `ImplWitness` is added
to the eval block (it is implied that it is symbolic), also add a
`RequireSpecificDefinition` to that eval block immediately. We also
resolved the definition of a specific referred to by `ImplWitness` when
`LookupImplWitness` evaluates to `ImplWitness` to cover the concrete
witness case. This complicated the construction of the eval block
immensely, however. It caused a situation where adding one inst to the
eval block actually adds two, which we needed to avoid when importing.
And it required inst-kind specific behaviour in the very general
construction of an eval block, completely outside of eval itself.
When identifying a facet type, defer evaluation of LookupImplWitnesses
by redirecting them to evaluate into IdentifiedWitness. Then the caller
of identify will need to substitute the IdentifiedWitnesses, either with
witnesses of their own, or with LookupImplWitness to cause a lookup
operation.
This allows:
- An `impl as` on a named constraint can subst the witnesses in
designators from the named constraint with a witness to the impl itself.
This prevents them from looking for and finding some other overlapping
impl. (This PR)
- Impl lookup to collect rewrite/equality requirements from all named
constraints and then use the impls it has already found to evaluate any
designators in those requirements instead of performing impl lookup
again (creating a cycle). (Done in
https://github.com/carbon-language/carbon-lang/pull/7944)
- Similarly, an `impl as` can collect impls and equality requirements
from all named constraints and verify them correctly by replacing
witnesses that should refer to the impl with the correct witness instead
of performing a lookup and finding an overlapping impl. (Done in
https://github.com/carbon-language/carbon-lang/pull/7937)
- ImplWitnessAccess to be able to find rewrites from a named constraint,
not just from the initial DeclaredFacetType. (TBD)
To do this we need to introduce the concept of "identified" specifics.
In order to identify a facet type, we must construct a specific for each
require decl in a named constraint. These specifics will have
IdentifiedWitnesses inside them, but their args would otherwise match a
specific for the require decl constructed in another context. To avoid
polluting the canonical specific namespace, we introduce a second
namespace of specifics that are "identified" since they are created by
identifying.
As we have introduced a new global state that modifies eval behaviour,
we must disable that state when resolving a specific (as per
https://github.com/carbon-language/carbon-lang/pull/7923). But inside an
"identified" specific, we preserve the behaviour so that the witnesses
modified by identify (through SubstPeriodSelf or through evaluating a
require specific) have their evaluation deferred.
The type `type` is now a `FacetType` inst with no constraints. This
brings the model implemented in the toolchain into better alignment with
the language design. The `SemIR::TypeType` struct remains as a scope for
holding the `TypeInstId`, `ConstantId`, and `TypeId` constants, but is
not an `InstKind` anymore.
The `TypeType` inst looks a lot like singletons, but there are many
`FacetType` insts so it doesn't quite fit that model. So we put it
alongside singletons with a fixed inst id but refer to it as a more
general "builtin" inst that is not a singleton.
`Namespace::PackageInstId` is similar, and we group it with `TypeType`
conceptually as another builtin instruction with a fixed id.
No conversion is needed anymore to use a `type` as a facet, since types
also have a `FacetType` type. This simplifies and removes a number of
helpers and branches throughout the code.
The `TypeType` inst is now part of the constant store, so we end up
printing it in the constants block in every test. But it's also named
`type` rather than `%type` to preserve the majority of existing
formatting behaviour, though this does look different from other
constants.
Assisted-by: Opus 5 was used to generate a first draft and validate the
refactoring. Though nearly everything non-trivial the tool wrote has
been modified or rewritten.
Implementing interface modifiers causes an infinite loop when generating
fingerprints because the witness value generates a fingerprint that's
dependent on something dependent on the witness value. We've debugged
this to the witness table's `elements_id` field.
This hack is a workaround for creating a new block type whose value is
not codependent with its identity.
Co-authored-by: Richard Smith <richard@metafoo.co.uk>
Co-authored-by: Richard Smith <richard@metafoo.co.uk>
This adds SemIR structs and implements building `observe` lists, as well
as naming, formatting, and importing `observe` declarations.
---------
Co-authored-by: Dana Jansens <danakj@orodu.net>
The bulk of this change is changing most pattern insts to be `Always`
rather than `AlwaysUnique` constants, so that they can be wrapped in
`SpecificConstant`s to perform substitution. That then lets thunking
rely much more on `SpecificConstant` wrappers instead of deep-copying
the inst tree with modified types.
This approach to thunking should scale better, particularly as things
like form generics make function signatures more complex, because we can
leverage the existing support for constant evaluation and substitution.
Unfortunately, applying this approach to binding patterns will require
more work; see the TODO near the top of `thunk.cpp` for details.
---------
Co-authored-by: Richard Smith <richard@metafoo.co.uk>
Implements proposal #7016: `self` moves from the deduced implicit list
(`fn F[self: Self]()`) to the front of the explicit list. Its type may
be written explicitly (`fn F(self: Self)`) or omitted, in which case it
defaults to `Self` (`fn F(self)`, `fn F(ref self)`); `self` in the
implicit list is rejected.
Throughout checking, `self` is modeled as the first explicit parameter.
Because a method is just a function whose first parameter is `self`, it
can also be called as an ordinary function with the receiver passed
explicitly (`Type.M(obj, ...)`), not only as `obj.M(...)`. A new
`SemIR::CallArgParamPatterns` helper chooses the parameters matched
against the explicit arguments, excluding a leading `self` only when it
is supplied as a method-call receiver; arity checking, conversion, and
generic deduction use it. The resulting SemIR and lowering are
unchanged: `self` is still `call_param0`, and witnesses, thunks, and
vtables are unaffected.
An omitted `self` type is parsed as a `SelfBindingPattern` node with no
type expression; checking synthesizes the `Self` type so it behaves
exactly like `self: Self`. However, the exact spelling used must match
between a forward declaration and a definition, following #3763's rules
around declaration matching.
Generated functions, thunks, and C++ interop import/export build `self`
as the first explicit parameter, and the `self`-type override (e.g.
Derived->Base for a virtual override) applies to the explicit `self`.
Placement is validated by new diagnostics: `SelfInImplicitParamList`,
`SelfNotFirstParam`, and `SelfOutsideParamList`. The benchmark source
generator and the documentation adopt the `(self)` shorthand; the
prelude, the examples, and the test data are migrated in the following
commits.
Assisted-by: Claude Code with Claude Opus 4.7
---------
Co-authored-by: josh11b <15258583+josh11b@users.noreply.github.com>
Dana Jansens
Geoff Romer
Nicholas Bishop
Christopher Di BellaandRichard Smith
Özgür T. ÖnsoyandDana Jansens
Chandler Carruthandjosh11b