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author | Richard M. Stallman <rms@gnu.org> |
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date | Thu, 19 Jan 2006 17:52:09 +0000 |
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@c -*-texinfo-*- @c This is part of the GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual. @c Copyright (C) 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, @c 2005 Free Software Foundation, Inc. @c See the file elisp.texi for copying conditions. @setfilename ../info/internals @node GNU Emacs Internals, Standard Errors, Tips, Top @comment node-name, next, previous, up @appendix GNU Emacs Internals This chapter describes how the runnable Emacs executable is dumped with the preloaded Lisp libraries in it, how storage is allocated, and some internal aspects of GNU Emacs that may be of interest to C programmers. @menu * Building Emacs:: How the dumped Emacs is made. * Pure Storage:: A kludge to make preloaded Lisp functions sharable. * Garbage Collection:: Reclaiming space for Lisp objects no longer used. * Memory Usage:: Info about total size of Lisp objects made so far. * Writing Emacs Primitives:: Writing C code for Emacs. * Object Internals:: Data formats of buffers, windows, processes. @end menu @node Building Emacs @appendixsec Building Emacs @cindex building Emacs @pindex temacs This section explains the steps involved in building the Emacs executable. You don't have to know this material to build and install Emacs, since the makefiles do all these things automatically. This information is pertinent to Emacs maintenance. Compilation of the C source files in the @file{src} directory produces an executable file called @file{temacs}, also called a @dfn{bare impure Emacs}. It contains the Emacs Lisp interpreter and I/O routines, but not the editing commands. @cindex @file{loadup.el} The command @w{@samp{temacs -l loadup}} uses @file{temacs} to create the real runnable Emacs executable. These arguments direct @file{temacs} to evaluate the Lisp files specified in the file @file{loadup.el}. These files set up the normal Emacs editing environment, resulting in an Emacs that is still impure but no longer bare. It takes a substantial time to load the standard Lisp files. Luckily, you don't have to do this each time you run Emacs; @file{temacs} can dump out an executable program called @file{emacs} that has these files preloaded. @file{emacs} starts more quickly because it does not need to load the files. This is the Emacs executable that is normally installed. To create @file{emacs}, use the command @samp{temacs -batch -l loadup dump}. The purpose of @samp{-batch} here is to prevent @file{temacs} from trying to initialize any of its data on the terminal; this ensures that the tables of terminal information are empty in the dumped Emacs. The argument @samp{dump} tells @file{loadup.el} to dump a new executable named @file{emacs}. Some operating systems don't support dumping. On those systems, you must start Emacs with the @samp{temacs -l loadup} command each time you use it. This takes a substantial time, but since you need to start Emacs once a day at most---or once a week if you never log out---the extra time is not too severe a problem. @cindex @file{site-load.el} You can specify additional files to preload by writing a library named @file{site-load.el} that loads them. You may need to add a definition @example #define SITELOAD_PURESIZE_EXTRA @var{n} @end example @noindent to make @var{n} added bytes of pure space to hold the additional files. (Try adding increments of 20000 until it is big enough.) However, the advantage of preloading additional files decreases as machines get faster. On modern machines, it is usually not advisable. After @file{loadup.el} reads @file{site-load.el}, it finds the documentation strings for primitive and preloaded functions (and variables) in the file @file{etc/DOC} where they are stored, by calling @code{Snarf-documentation} (@pxref{Definition of Snarf-documentation,, Accessing Documentation}). @cindex @file{site-init.el} You can specify other Lisp expressions to execute just before dumping by putting them in a library named @file{site-init.el}. This file is executed after the documentation strings are found. If you want to preload function or variable definitions, there are three ways you can do this and make their documentation strings accessible when you subsequently run Emacs: @itemize @bullet @item Arrange to scan these files when producing the @file{etc/DOC} file, and load them with @file{site-load.el}. @item Load the files with @file{site-init.el}, then copy the files into the installation directory for Lisp files when you install Emacs. @item Specify a non-@code{nil} value for @code{byte-compile-dynamic-docstrings} as a local variable in each of these files, and load them with either @file{site-load.el} or @file{site-init.el}. (This method has the drawback that the documentation strings take up space in Emacs all the time.) @end itemize It is not advisable to put anything in @file{site-load.el} or @file{site-init.el} that would alter any of the features that users expect in an ordinary unmodified Emacs. If you feel you must override normal features for your site, do it with @file{default.el}, so that users can override your changes if they wish. @xref{Startup Summary}. In a package that can be preloaded, it is sometimes useful to specify a computation to be done when Emacs subsequently starts up. For this, use @code{eval-at-startup}: @defmac eval-at-startup body@dots{} This evaluates the @var{body} forms, either immediately if running in an Emacs that has already started up, or later when Emacs does start up. Since the value of the @var{body} forms is not necessarily available when the @code{eval-at-startup} form is run, that form always returns @code{nil}. @end defmac @defun dump-emacs to-file from-file @cindex unexec This function dumps the current state of Emacs into an executable file @var{to-file}. It takes symbols from @var{from-file} (this is normally the executable file @file{temacs}). If you want to use this function in an Emacs that was already dumped, you must run Emacs with @samp{-batch}. @end defun @node Pure Storage @appendixsec Pure Storage @cindex pure storage Emacs Lisp uses two kinds of storage for user-created Lisp objects: @dfn{normal storage} and @dfn{pure storage}. Normal storage is where all the new data created during an Emacs session are kept; see the following section for information on normal storage. Pure storage is used for certain data in the preloaded standard Lisp files---data that should never change during actual use of Emacs. Pure storage is allocated only while @file{temacs} is loading the standard preloaded Lisp libraries. In the file @file{emacs}, it is marked as read-only (on operating systems that permit this), so that the memory space can be shared by all the Emacs jobs running on the machine at once. Pure storage is not expandable; a fixed amount is allocated when Emacs is compiled, and if that is not sufficient for the preloaded libraries, @file{temacs} crashes. If that happens, you must increase the compilation parameter @code{PURESIZE} in the file @file{src/puresize.h}. This normally won't happen unless you try to preload additional libraries or add features to the standard ones. @defun purecopy object This function makes a copy in pure storage of @var{object}, and returns it. It copies a string by simply making a new string with the same characters, but without text properties, in pure storage. It recursively copies the contents of vectors and cons cells. It does not make copies of other objects such as symbols, but just returns them unchanged. It signals an error if asked to copy markers. This function is a no-op except while Emacs is being built and dumped; it is usually called only in the file @file{emacs/lisp/loaddefs.el}, but a few packages call it just in case you decide to preload them. @end defun @defvar pure-bytes-used The value of this variable is the number of bytes of pure storage allocated so far. Typically, in a dumped Emacs, this number is very close to the total amount of pure storage available---if it were not, we would preallocate less. @end defvar @defvar purify-flag This variable determines whether @code{defun} should make a copy of the function definition in pure storage. If it is non-@code{nil}, then the function definition is copied into pure storage. This flag is @code{t} while loading all of the basic functions for building Emacs initially (allowing those functions to be sharable and non-collectible). Dumping Emacs as an executable always writes @code{nil} in this variable, regardless of the value it actually has before and after dumping. You should not change this flag in a running Emacs. @end defvar @node Garbage Collection @appendixsec Garbage Collection @cindex garbage collector @cindex memory allocation When a program creates a list or the user defines a new function (such as by loading a library), that data is placed in normal storage. If normal storage runs low, then Emacs asks the operating system to allocate more memory in blocks of 1k bytes. Each block is used for one type of Lisp object, so symbols, cons cells, markers, etc., are segregated in distinct blocks in memory. (Vectors, long strings, buffers and certain other editing types, which are fairly large, are allocated in individual blocks, one per object, while small strings are packed into blocks of 8k bytes.) It is quite common to use some storage for a while, then release it by (for example) killing a buffer or deleting the last pointer to an object. Emacs provides a @dfn{garbage collector} to reclaim this abandoned storage. (This name is traditional, but ``garbage recycler'' might be a more intuitive metaphor for this facility.) The garbage collector operates by finding and marking all Lisp objects that are still accessible to Lisp programs. To begin with, it assumes all the symbols, their values and associated function definitions, and any data presently on the stack, are accessible. Any objects that can be reached indirectly through other accessible objects are also accessible. When marking is finished, all objects still unmarked are garbage. No matter what the Lisp program or the user does, it is impossible to refer to them, since there is no longer a way to reach them. Their space might as well be reused, since no one will miss them. The second (``sweep'') phase of the garbage collector arranges to reuse them. @c ??? Maybe add something describing weak hash tables here? @cindex free list The sweep phase puts unused cons cells onto a @dfn{free list} for future allocation; likewise for symbols and markers. It compacts the accessible strings so they occupy fewer 8k blocks; then it frees the other 8k blocks. Vectors, buffers, windows, and other large objects are individually allocated and freed using @code{malloc} and @code{free}. @cindex CL note---allocate more storage @quotation @b{Common Lisp note:} Unlike other Lisps, GNU Emacs Lisp does not call the garbage collector when the free list is empty. Instead, it simply requests the operating system to allocate more storage, and processing continues until @code{gc-cons-threshold} bytes have been used. This means that you can make sure that the garbage collector will not run during a certain portion of a Lisp program by calling the garbage collector explicitly just before it (provided that portion of the program does not use so much space as to force a second garbage collection). @end quotation @deffn Command garbage-collect This command runs a garbage collection, and returns information on the amount of space in use. (Garbage collection can also occur spontaneously if you use more than @code{gc-cons-threshold} bytes of Lisp data since the previous garbage collection.) @code{garbage-collect} returns a list containing the following information: @example @group ((@var{used-conses} . @var{free-conses}) (@var{used-syms} . @var{free-syms}) @end group (@var{used-miscs} . @var{free-miscs}) @var{used-string-chars} @var{used-vector-slots} (@var{used-floats} . @var{free-floats}) (@var{used-intervals} . @var{free-intervals}) (@var{used-strings} . @var{free-strings})) @end example Here is an example: @example @group (garbage-collect) @result{} ((106886 . 13184) (9769 . 0) (7731 . 4651) 347543 121628 (31 . 94) (1273 . 168) (25474 . 3569)) @end group @end example Here is a table explaining each element: @table @var @item used-conses The number of cons cells in use. @item free-conses The number of cons cells for which space has been obtained from the operating system, but that are not currently being used. @item used-syms The number of symbols in use. @item free-syms The number of symbols for which space has been obtained from the operating system, but that are not currently being used. @item used-miscs The number of miscellaneous objects in use. These include markers and overlays, plus certain objects not visible to users. @item free-miscs The number of miscellaneous objects for which space has been obtained from the operating system, but that are not currently being used. @item used-string-chars The total size of all strings, in characters. @item used-vector-slots The total number of elements of existing vectors. @item used-floats @c Emacs 19 feature The number of floats in use. @item free-floats @c Emacs 19 feature The number of floats for which space has been obtained from the operating system, but that are not currently being used. @item used-intervals The number of intervals in use. Intervals are an internal data structure used for representing text properties. @item free-intervals The number of intervals for which space has been obtained from the operating system, but that are not currently being used. @item used-strings The number of strings in use. @item free-strings The number of string headers for which the space was obtained from the operating system, but which are currently not in use. (A string object consists of a header and the storage for the string text itself; the latter is only allocated when the string is created.) @end table @end deffn @defopt garbage-collection-messages If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Emacs displays a message at the beginning and end of garbage collection. The default value is @code{nil}, meaning there are no such messages. @end defopt @defvar post-gc-hook This is a normal hook that is run at the end of garbage collection. Garbage collection is inhibited while the hook functions run, so be careful writing them. @end defvar @defopt gc-cons-threshold The value of this variable is the number of bytes of storage that must be allocated for Lisp objects after one garbage collection in order to trigger another garbage collection. A cons cell counts as eight bytes, a string as one byte per character plus a few bytes of overhead, and so on; space allocated to the contents of buffers does not count. Note that the subsequent garbage collection does not happen immediately when the threshold is exhausted, but only the next time the Lisp evaluator is called. The initial threshold value is 400,000. If you specify a larger value, garbage collection will happen less often. This reduces the amount of time spent garbage collecting, but increases total memory use. You may want to do this when running a program that creates lots of Lisp data. You can make collections more frequent by specifying a smaller value, down to 10,000. A value less than 10,000 will remain in effect only until the subsequent garbage collection, at which time @code{garbage-collect} will set the threshold back to 10,000. @end defopt @defopt gc-cons-percentage The value of this variable specifies the amount of consing before a garbage collection occurs, as a fraction of the current heap size. This criterion and @code{gc-cons-threshold} apply in parallel, and garbage collection occurs only when both criteria are satisfied. As the heap size increases, the time to perform a garbage collection increases. Thus, it can be desirable to do them less frequently in proportion. @end defopt The value returned by @code{garbage-collect} describes the amount of memory used by Lisp data, broken down by data type. By contrast, the function @code{memory-limit} provides information on the total amount of memory Emacs is currently using. @c Emacs 19 feature @defun memory-limit This function returns the address of the last byte Emacs has allocated, divided by 1024. We divide the value by 1024 to make sure it fits in a Lisp integer. You can use this to get a general idea of how your actions affect the memory usage. @end defun @defvar memory-full This variable is @code{t} if Emacs is close to out of memory for Lisp objects, and @code{nil} otherwise. @end defvar @defun memory-use-counts This returns a list of numbers that count the number of objects created in this Emacs session. Each of these counters increments for a certain kind of object. See the documentation string for details. @end defun @defvar gcs-done This variable contains the total number of garbage collections done so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar gc-elapsed This variable contains the total number of seconds of elapsed time during garbage collection so far in this Emacs session, as a floating point number. @end defvar @node Memory Usage @section Memory Usage These functions and variables give information about the total amount of memory allocation that Emacs has done, broken down by data type. Note the difference between these and the values returned by @code{(garbage-collect)}; those count objects that currently exist, but these count the number or size of all allocations, including those for objects that have since been freed. @defvar cons-cells-consed The total number of cons cells that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar floats-consed The total number of floats that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar vector-cells-consed The total number of vector cells that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar symbols-consed The total number of symbols that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar string-chars-consed The total number of string characters that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar misc-objects-consed The total number of miscellaneous objects that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. These include markers and overlays, plus certain objects not visible to users. @end defvar @defvar intervals-consed The total number of intervals that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @defvar strings-consed The total number of strings that have been allocated so far in this Emacs session. @end defvar @node Writing Emacs Primitives @appendixsec Writing Emacs Primitives @cindex primitive function internals Lisp primitives are Lisp functions implemented in C. The details of interfacing the C function so that Lisp can call it are handled by a few C macros. The only way to really understand how to write new C code is to read the source, but we can explain some things here. An example of a special form is the definition of @code{or}, from @file{eval.c}. (An ordinary function would have the same general appearance.) @cindex garbage collection protection @smallexample @group DEFUN ("or", For, Sor, 0, UNEVALLED, 0, doc: /* Eval args until one of them yields non-nil, then return that value. The remaining args are not evalled at all. If all args return nil, return nil. @end group @group usage: (or CONDITIONS ...) */) (args) Lisp_Object args; @{ register Lisp_Object val = Qnil; struct gcpro gcpro1; @end group @group GCPRO1 (args); @end group @group while (CONSP (args)) @{ val = Feval (XCAR (args)); if (!NILP (val)) break; args = XCDR (args); @} @end group @group UNGCPRO; return val; @} @end group @end smallexample Let's start with a precise explanation of the arguments to the @code{DEFUN} macro. Here is a template for them: @example DEFUN (@var{lname}, @var{fname}, @var{sname}, @var{min}, @var{max}, @var{interactive}, @var{doc}) @end example @table @var @item lname This is the name of the Lisp symbol to define as the function name; in the example above, it is @code{or}. @item fname This is the C function name for this function. This is the name that is used in C code for calling the function. The name is, by convention, @samp{F} prepended to the Lisp name, with all dashes (@samp{-}) in the Lisp name changed to underscores. Thus, to call this function from C code, call @code{For}. Remember that the arguments must be of type @code{Lisp_Object}; various macros and functions for creating values of type @code{Lisp_Object} are declared in the file @file{lisp.h}. @item sname This is a C variable name to use for a structure that holds the data for the subr object that represents the function in Lisp. This structure conveys the Lisp symbol name to the initialization routine that will create the symbol and store the subr object as its definition. By convention, this name is always @var{fname} with @samp{F} replaced with @samp{S}. @item min This is the minimum number of arguments that the function requires. The function @code{or} allows a minimum of zero arguments. @item max This is the maximum number of arguments that the function accepts, if there is a fixed maximum. Alternatively, it can be @code{UNEVALLED}, indicating a special form that receives unevaluated arguments, or @code{MANY}, indicating an unlimited number of evaluated arguments (the equivalent of @code{&rest}). Both @code{UNEVALLED} and @code{MANY} are macros. If @var{max} is a number, it may not be less than @var{min} and it may not be greater than eight. @item interactive This is an interactive specification, a string such as might be used as the argument of @code{interactive} in a Lisp function. In the case of @code{or}, it is 0 (a null pointer), indicating that @code{or} cannot be called interactively. A value of @code{""} indicates a function that should receive no arguments when called interactively. @item doc This is the documentation string. It uses C comment syntax rather than C string syntax because comment syntax requires nothing special to include multiple lines. The @samp{doc:} identifies the comment that follows as the documentation string. The @samp{/*} and @samp{*/} delimiters that begin and end the comment are not part of the documentation string. If the last line of the documentation string begins with the keyword @samp{usage:}, the rest of the line is treated as the argument list for documentation purposes. This way, you can use different argument names in the documentation string from the ones used in the C code. @samp{usage:} is required if the function has an unlimited number of arguments. All the usual rules for documentation strings in Lisp code (@pxref{Documentation Tips}) apply to C code documentation strings too. @end table After the call to the @code{DEFUN} macro, you must write the argument name list that every C function must have, followed by ordinary C declarations for the arguments. For a function with a fixed maximum number of arguments, declare a C argument for each Lisp argument, and give them all type @code{Lisp_Object}. When a Lisp function has no upper limit on the number of arguments, its implementation in C actually receives exactly two arguments: the first is the number of Lisp arguments, and the second is the address of a block containing their values. They have types @code{int} and @w{@code{Lisp_Object *}}. Within the function @code{For} itself, note the use of the macros @code{GCPRO1} and @code{UNGCPRO}. @code{GCPRO1} is used to ``protect'' a variable from garbage collection---to inform the garbage collector that it must look in that variable and regard its contents as an accessible object. This is necessary whenever you call @code{Feval} or anything that can directly or indirectly call @code{Feval}. At such a time, any Lisp object that you intend to refer to again must be protected somehow. @code{UNGCPRO} cancels the protection of the variables that are protected in the current function. It is necessary to do this explicitly. It suffices to ensure that at least one pointer to each object is GC-protected; as long as the object is not recycled, all pointers to it remain valid. So if you are sure that a local variable points to an object that will be preserved by some other pointer, that local variable does not need a @code{GCPRO}. (Formerly, strings were an exception to this rule; in older Emacs versions, every pointer to a string needed to be marked by GC.) The macro @code{GCPRO1} protects just one local variable. If you want to protect two, use @code{GCPRO2} instead; repeating @code{GCPRO1} will not work. Macros, @code{GCPRO3}, @code{GCPRO4}, @code{GCPRO5}, and @code{GCPRO6} also exist. These macros implicitly use local variables such as @code{gcpro1}; you must declare these explicitly, with type @code{struct gcpro}. Thus, if you use @code{GCPRO2}, you must declare @code{gcpro1} and @code{gcpro2}. Alas, we can't explain all the tricky details here. Built-in functions that take a variable number of arguments actually accept two arguments at the C level: the number of Lisp arguments, and a @code{Lisp_Object *} pointer to a C vector containing those Lisp arguments. This C vector may be part of a Lisp vector, but it need not be. The responsibility for using @code{GCPRO} to protect the Lisp arguments from GC if necessary rests with the caller in this case, since the caller allocated or found the storage for them. You must not use C initializers for static or global variables unless the variables are never written once Emacs is dumped. These variables with initializers are allocated in an area of memory that becomes read-only (on certain operating systems) as a result of dumping Emacs. @xref{Pure Storage}. Do not use static variables within functions---place all static variables at top level in the file. This is necessary because Emacs on some operating systems defines the keyword @code{static} as a null macro. (This definition is used because those systems put all variables declared static in a place that becomes read-only after dumping, whether they have initializers or not.) Defining the C function is not enough to make a Lisp primitive available; you must also create the Lisp symbol for the primitive and store a suitable subr object in its function cell. The code looks like this: @example defsubr (&@var{subr-structure-name}); @end example @noindent Here @var{subr-structure-name} is the name you used as the third argument to @code{DEFUN}. If you add a new primitive to a file that already has Lisp primitives defined in it, find the function (near the end of the file) named @code{syms_of_@var{something}}, and add the call to @code{defsubr} there. If the file doesn't have this function, or if you create a new file, add to it a @code{syms_of_@var{filename}} (e.g., @code{syms_of_myfile}). Then find the spot in @file{emacs.c} where all of these functions are called, and add a call to @code{syms_of_@var{filename}} there. @anchor{Defining Lisp variables in C} @vindex byte-boolean-vars The function @code{syms_of_@var{filename}} is also the place to define any C variables that are to be visible as Lisp variables. @code{DEFVAR_LISP} makes a C variable of type @code{Lisp_Object} visible in Lisp. @code{DEFVAR_INT} makes a C variable of type @code{int} visible in Lisp with a value that is always an integer. @code{DEFVAR_BOOL} makes a C variable of type @code{int} visible in Lisp with a value that is either @code{t} or @code{nil}. Note that variables defined with @code{DEFVAR_BOOL} are automatically added to the list @code{byte-boolean-vars} used by the byte compiler. If you define a file-scope C variable of type @code{Lisp_Object}, you must protect it from garbage-collection by calling @code{staticpro} in @code{syms_of_@var{filename}}, like this: @example staticpro (&@var{variable}); @end example Here is another example function, with more complicated arguments. This comes from the code in @file{window.c}, and it demonstrates the use of macros and functions to manipulate Lisp objects. @smallexample @group DEFUN ("coordinates-in-window-p", Fcoordinates_in_window_p, Scoordinates_in_window_p, 2, 2, "xSpecify coordinate pair: \nXExpression which evals to window: ", "Return non-nil if COORDINATES is in WINDOW.\n\ COORDINATES is a cons of the form (X . Y), X and Y being distances\n\ ... @end group @group If they are on the border between WINDOW and its right sibling,\n\ `vertical-line' is returned.") (coordinates, window) register Lisp_Object coordinates, window; @{ int x, y; @end group @group CHECK_LIVE_WINDOW (window, 0); CHECK_CONS (coordinates, 1); x = XINT (Fcar (coordinates)); y = XINT (Fcdr (coordinates)); @end group @group switch (coordinates_in_window (XWINDOW (window), &x, &y)) @{ case 0: /* NOT in window at all. */ return Qnil; @end group @group case 1: /* In text part of window. */ return Fcons (make_number (x), make_number (y)); @end group @group case 2: /* In mode line of window. */ return Qmode_line; @end group @group case 3: /* On right border of window. */ return Qvertical_line; @end group @group default: abort (); @} @} @end group @end smallexample Note that C code cannot call functions by name unless they are defined in C. The way to call a function written in Lisp is to use @code{Ffuncall}, which embodies the Lisp function @code{funcall}. Since the Lisp function @code{funcall} accepts an unlimited number of arguments, in C it takes two: the number of Lisp-level arguments, and a one-dimensional array containing their values. The first Lisp-level argument is the Lisp function to call, and the rest are the arguments to pass to it. Since @code{Ffuncall} can call the evaluator, you must protect pointers from garbage collection around the call to @code{Ffuncall}. The C functions @code{call0}, @code{call1}, @code{call2}, and so on, provide handy ways to call a Lisp function conveniently with a fixed number of arguments. They work by calling @code{Ffuncall}. @file{eval.c} is a very good file to look through for examples; @file{lisp.h} contains the definitions for some important macros and functions. If you define a function which is side-effect free, update the code in @file{byte-opt.el} which binds @code{side-effect-free-fns} and @code{side-effect-and-error-free-fns} so that the compiler optimizer knows about it. @node Object Internals @appendixsec Object Internals @cindex object internals GNU Emacs Lisp manipulates many different types of data. The actual data are stored in a heap and the only access that programs have to it is through pointers. Pointers are thirty-two bits wide in most implementations. Depending on the operating system and type of machine for which you compile Emacs, twenty-nine bits are used to address the object, and the remaining three bits are used for the tag that identifies the object's type. Because Lisp objects are represented as tagged pointers, it is always possible to determine the Lisp data type of any object. The C data type @code{Lisp_Object} can hold any Lisp object of any data type. Ordinary variables have type @code{Lisp_Object}, which means they can hold any type of Lisp value; you can determine the actual data type only at run time. The same is true for function arguments; if you want a function to accept only a certain type of argument, you must check the type explicitly using a suitable predicate (@pxref{Type Predicates}). @cindex type checking internals @menu * Buffer Internals:: Components of a buffer structure. * Window Internals:: Components of a window structure. * Process Internals:: Components of a process structure. @end menu @node Buffer Internals @appendixsubsec Buffer Internals @cindex internals, of buffer @cindex buffer internals Buffers contain fields not directly accessible by the Lisp programmer. We describe them here, naming them by the names used in the C code. Many are accessible indirectly in Lisp programs via Lisp primitives. Two structures are used to represent buffers in C. The @code{buffer_text} structure contains fields describing the text of a buffer; the @code{buffer} structure holds other fields. In the case of indirect buffers, two or more @code{buffer} structures reference the same @code{buffer_text} structure. Here is a list of the @code{struct buffer_text} fields: @table @code @item beg This field contains the actual address of the buffer contents. @item gpt This holds the character position of the gap in the buffer. @xref{Buffer Gap}. @item z This field contains the character position of the end of the buffer text. @item gpt_byte Contains the byte position of the gap. @item z_byte Holds the byte position of the end of the buffer text. @item gap_size Contains the size of buffer's gap. @xref{Buffer Gap}. @item modiff This field counts buffer-modification events for this buffer. It is incremented for each such event, and never otherwise changed. @item save_modiff Contains the previous value of @code{modiff}, as of the last time a buffer was visited or saved in a file. @item overlay_modiff Counts modifications to overlays analogous to @code{modiff}. @item beg_unchanged Holds the number of characters at the start of the text that are known to be unchanged since the last redisplay that finished. @item end_unchanged Holds the number of characters at the end of the text that are known to be unchanged since the last redisplay that finished. @item unchanged_modified Contains the value of @code{modiff} at the time of the last redisplay that finished. If this value matches @code{modiff}, @code{beg_unchanged} and @code{end_unchanged} contain no useful information. @item overlay_unchanged_modified Contains the value of @code{overlay_modiff} at the time of the last redisplay that finished. If this value matches @code{overlay_modiff}, @code{beg_unchanged} and @code{end_unchanged} contain no useful information. @item markers The markers that refer to this buffer. This is actually a single marker, and successive elements in its marker @code{chain} are the other markers referring to this buffer text. @item intervals Contains the interval tree which records the text properties of this buffer. @end table The fields of @code{struct buffer} are: @table @code @item next Points to the next buffer, in the chain of all buffers including killed buffers. This chain is used only for garbage collection, in order to collect killed buffers properly. Note that vectors, and most kinds of objects allocated as vectors, are all on one chain, but buffers are on a separate chain of their own. @item own_text This is a @code{struct buffer_text} structure. In an ordinary buffer, it holds the buffer contents. In indirect buffers, this field is not used. @item text This points to the @code{buffer_text} structure that is used for this buffer. In an ordinary buffer, this is the @code{own_text} field above. In an indirect buffer, this is the @code{own_text} field of the base buffer. @item pt Contains the character position of point in a buffer. @item pt_byte Contains the byte position of point in a buffer. @item begv This field contains the character position of the beginning of the accessible range of text in the buffer. @item begv_byte This field contains the byte position of the beginning of the accessible range of text in the buffer. @item zv This field contains the character position of the end of the accessible range of text in the buffer. @item zv_byte This field contains the byte position of the end of the accessible range of text in the buffer. @item base_buffer In an indirect buffer, this points to the base buffer. In an ordinary buffer, it is null. @item local_var_flags This field contains flags indicating that certain variables are local in this buffer. Such variables are declared in the C code using @code{DEFVAR_PER_BUFFER}, and their buffer-local bindings are stored in fields in the buffer structure itself. (Some of these fields are described in this table.) @item modtime This field contains the modification time of the visited file. It is set when the file is written or read. Before writing the buffer into a file, this field is compared to the modification time of the file to see if the file has changed on disk. @xref{Buffer Modification}. @item auto_save_modified This field contains the time when the buffer was last auto-saved. @item auto_save_failure_time The time at which we detected a failure to auto-save, or -1 if we didn't have a failure. @item last_window_start This field contains the @code{window-start} position in the buffer as of the last time the buffer was displayed in a window. @item clip_changed This flag is set when narrowing changes in a buffer. @item prevent_redisplay_optimizations_p this flag indicates that redisplay optimizations should not be used to display this buffer. @item undo_list This field points to the buffer's undo list. @xref{Undo}. @item name The buffer name is a string that names the buffer. It is guaranteed to be unique. @xref{Buffer Names}. @item filename The name of the file visited in this buffer, or @code{nil}. @item directory The directory for expanding relative file names. @item save_length Length of the file this buffer is visiting, when last read or saved. This and other fields concerned with saving are not kept in the @code{buffer_text} structure because indirect buffers are never saved. @item auto_save_file_name File name used for auto-saving this buffer. This is not in the @code{buffer_text} because it's not used in indirect buffers at all. @item read_only Non-@code{nil} means this buffer is read-only. @item mark This field contains the mark for the buffer. The mark is a marker, hence it is also included on the list @code{markers}. @xref{The Mark}. @item local_var_alist This field contains the association list describing the buffer-local variable bindings of this buffer, not including the built-in buffer-local bindings that have special slots in the buffer object. (Those slots are omitted from this table.) @xref{Buffer-Local Variables}. @item major_mode Symbol naming the major mode of this buffer, e.g., @code{lisp-mode}. @item mode_name Pretty name of major mode, e.g., @code{"Lisp"}. @item mode_line_format Mode line element that controls the format of the mode line. If this is @code{nil}, no mode line will be displayed. @item header_line_format This field is analoguous to @code{mode_line_format} for the mode line displayed at the top of windows. @item keymap This field holds the buffer's local keymap. @xref{Keymaps}. @item abbrev_table This buffer's local abbrevs. @item syntax_table This field contains the syntax table for the buffer. @xref{Syntax Tables}. @item category_table This field contains the category table for the buffer. @item case_fold_search The value of @code{case-fold-search} in this buffer. @item tab_width The value of @code{tab-width} in this buffer. @item fill_column The value of @code{fill-column} in this buffer. @item left_margin The value of @code{left-margin} in this buffer. @item auto_fill_function The value of @code{auto-fill-function} in this buffer. @item downcase_table This field contains the conversion table for converting text to lower case. @xref{Case Tables}. @item upcase_table This field contains the conversion table for converting text to upper case. @xref{Case Tables}. @item case_canon_table This field contains the conversion table for canonicalizing text for case-folding search. @xref{Case Tables}. @item case_eqv_table This field contains the equivalence table for case-folding search. @xref{Case Tables}. @item truncate_lines The value of @code{truncate-lines} in this buffer. @item ctl_arrow The value of @code{ctl-arrow} in this buffer. @item selective_display The value of @code{selective-display} in this buffer. @item selective_display_ellipsis The value of @code{selective-display-ellipsis} in this buffer. @item minor_modes An alist of the minor modes of this buffer. @item overwrite_mode The value of @code{overwrite_mode} in this buffer. @item abbrev_mode The value of @code{abbrev-mode} in this buffer. @item display_table This field contains the buffer's display table, or @code{nil} if it doesn't have one. @xref{Display Tables}. @item save_modified This field contains the time when the buffer was last saved, as an integer. @xref{Buffer Modification}. @item mark_active This field is non-@code{nil} if the buffer's mark is active. @item overlays_before This field holds a list of the overlays in this buffer that end at or before the current overlay center position. They are sorted in order of decreasing end position. @item overlays_after This field holds a list of the overlays in this buffer that end after the current overlay center position. They are sorted in order of increasing beginning position. @item overlay_center This field holds the current overlay center position. @xref{Overlays}. @item enable_multibyte_characters This field holds the buffer's local value of @code{enable-multibyte-characters}---either @code{t} or @code{nil}. @item buffer_file_coding_system The value of @code{buffer-file-coding-system} in this buffer. @item file_format The value of @code{buffer-file-format} in this buffer. @item auto_save_file_format The value of @code{buffer-auto-save-file-format} in this buffer. @item pt_marker In an indirect buffer, or a buffer that is the base of an indirect buffer, this holds a marker that records point for this buffer when the buffer is not current. @item begv_marker In an indirect buffer, or a buffer that is the base of an indirect buffer, this holds a marker that records @code{begv} for this buffer when the buffer is not current. @item zv_marker In an indirect buffer, or a buffer that is the base of an indirect buffer, this holds a marker that records @code{zv} for this buffer when the buffer is not current. @item file_truename The truename of the visited file, or @code{nil}. @item invisibility_spec The value of @code{buffer-invisibility-spec} in this buffer. @item last_selected_window This is the last window that was selected with this buffer in it, or @code{nil} if that window no longer displays this buffer. @item display_count This field is incremented each time the buffer is displayed in a window. @item left_margin_width The value of @code{left-margin-width} in this buffer. @item right_margin_width The value of @code{right-margin-width} in this buffer. @item indicate_empty_lines Non-@code{nil} means indicate empty lines (lines with no text) with a small bitmap in the fringe, when using a window system that can do it. @item display_time This holds a time stamp that is updated each time this buffer is displayed in a window. @item scroll_up_aggressively The value of @code{scroll-up-aggressively} in this buffer. @item scroll_down_aggressively The value of @code{scroll-down-aggressively} in this buffer. @end table @node Window Internals @appendixsubsec Window Internals @cindex internals, of window @cindex window internals Windows have the following accessible fields: @table @code @item frame The frame that this window is on. @item mini_p Non-@code{nil} if this window is a minibuffer window. @item parent Internally, Emacs arranges windows in a tree; each group of siblings has a parent window whose area includes all the siblings. This field points to a window's parent. Parent windows do not display buffers, and play little role in display except to shape their child windows. Emacs Lisp programs usually have no access to the parent windows; they operate on the windows at the leaves of the tree, which actually display buffers. The following four fields also describe the window tree structure. @item hchild In a window subdivided horizontally by child windows, the leftmost child. Otherwise, @code{nil}. @item vchild In a window subdivided vertically by child windows, the topmost child. Otherwise, @code{nil}. @item next The next sibling of this window. It is @code{nil} in a window that is the rightmost or bottommost of a group of siblings. @item prev The previous sibling of this window. It is @code{nil} in a window that is the leftmost or topmost of a group of siblings. @item left This is the left-hand edge of the window, measured in columns. (The leftmost column on the screen is @w{column 0}.) @item top This is the top edge of the window, measured in lines. (The top line on the screen is @w{line 0}.) @item height The height of the window, measured in lines. @item width The width of the window, measured in columns. This width includes the scroll bar and fringes, and/or the separator line on the right of the window (if any). @item buffer The buffer that the window is displaying. This may change often during the life of the window. @item start The position in the buffer that is the first character to be displayed in the window. @item pointm @cindex window point internals This is the value of point in the current buffer when this window is selected; when it is not selected, it retains its previous value. @item force_start If this flag is non-@code{nil}, it says that the window has been scrolled explicitly by the Lisp program. This affects what the next redisplay does if point is off the screen: instead of scrolling the window to show the text around point, it moves point to a location that is on the screen. @item frozen_window_start_p This field is set temporarily to 1 to indicate to redisplay that @code{start} of this window should not be changed, even if point gets invisible. @item start_at_line_beg Non-@code{nil} means current value of @code{start} was the beginning of a line when it was chosen. @item too_small_ok Non-@code{nil} means don't delete this window for becoming ``too small''. @item height_fixed_p This field is temporarily set to 1 to fix the height of the selected window when the echo area is resized. @item use_time This is the last time that the window was selected. The function @code{get-lru-window} uses this field. @item sequence_number A unique number assigned to this window when it was created. @item last_modified The @code{modiff} field of the window's buffer, as of the last time a redisplay completed in this window. @item last_overlay_modified The @code{overlay_modiff} field of the window's buffer, as of the last time a redisplay completed in this window. @item last_point The buffer's value of point, as of the last time a redisplay completed in this window. @item last_had_star A non-@code{nil} value means the window's buffer was ``modified'' when the window was last updated. @item vertical_scroll_bar This window's vertical scroll bar. @item left_margin_width The width of the left margin in this window, or @code{nil} not to specify it (in which case the buffer's value of @code{left-margin-width} is used. @item right_margin_width Likewise for the right margin. @ignore @item last_mark_x @item last_mark_y ???Not used. @end ignore @item window_end_pos This is computed as @code{z} minus the buffer position of the last glyph in the current matrix of the window. The value is only valid if @code{window_end_valid} is not @code{nil}. @item window_end_bytepos The byte position corresponding to @code{window_end_pos}. @item window_end_vpos The window-relative vertical position of the line containing @code{window_end_pos}. @item window_end_valid This field is set to a non-@code{nil} value if @code{window_end_pos} is truly valid. This is @code{nil} if nontrivial redisplay is preempted since in that case the display that @code{window_end_pos} was computed for did not get onto the screen. @item redisplay_end_trigger If redisplay in this window goes beyond this buffer position, it runs the @code{redisplay-end-trigger-hook}. @ignore @item orig_height @item orig_top ??? Are temporary storage areas. @end ignore @item cursor A structure describing where the cursor is in this window. @item last_cursor The value of @code{cursor} as of the last redisplay that finished. @item phys_cursor A structure describing where the cursor of this window physically is. @item phys_cursor_type The type of cursor that was last displayed on this window. @item phys_cursor_on_p This field is non-zero if the cursor is physically on. @item cursor_off_p Non-zero means the cursor in this window is logically on. @item last_cursor_off_p This field contains the value of @code{cursor_off_p} as of the time of the last redisplay. @item must_be_updated_p This is set to 1 during redisplay when this window must be updated. @item hscroll This is the number of columns that the display in the window is scrolled horizontally to the left. Normally, this is 0. @item vscroll Vertical scroll amount, in pixels. Normally, this is 0. @item dedicated Non-@code{nil} if this window is dedicated to its buffer. @item display_table The window's display table, or @code{nil} if none is specified for it. @item update_mode_line Non-@code{nil} means this window's mode line needs to be updated. @item base_line_number The line number of a certain position in the buffer, or @code{nil}. This is used for displaying the line number of point in the mode line. @item base_line_pos The position in the buffer for which the line number is known, or @code{nil} meaning none is known. @item region_showing If the region (or part of it) is highlighted in this window, this field holds the mark position that made one end of that region. Otherwise, this field is @code{nil}. @item column_number_displayed The column number currently displayed in this window's mode line, or @code{nil} if column numbers are not being displayed. @item current_matrix A glyph matrix describing the current display of this window. @item desired_matrix A glyph matrix describing the desired display of this window. @end table @node Process Internals @appendixsubsec Process Internals @cindex internals, of process @cindex process internals The fields of a process are: @table @code @item name A string, the name of the process. @item command A list containing the command arguments that were used to start this process. @item filter A function used to accept output from the process instead of a buffer, or @code{nil}. @item sentinel A function called whenever the process receives a signal, or @code{nil}. @item buffer The associated buffer of the process. @item pid An integer, the operating system's process @acronym{ID}. @item childp A flag, non-@code{nil} if this is really a child process. It is @code{nil} for a network connection. @item mark A marker indicating the position of the end of the last output from this process inserted into the buffer. This is often but not always the end of the buffer. @item kill_without_query If this is non-@code{nil}, killing Emacs while this process is still running does not ask for confirmation about killing the process. @item raw_status_low @itemx raw_status_high These two fields record 16 bits each of the process status returned by the @code{wait} system call. @item status The process status, as @code{process-status} should return it. @item tick @itemx update_tick If these two fields are not equal, a change in the status of the process needs to be reported, either by running the sentinel or by inserting a message in the process buffer. @item pty_flag Non-@code{nil} if communication with the subprocess uses a @acronym{PTY}; @code{nil} if it uses a pipe. @item infd The file descriptor for input from the process. @item outfd The file descriptor for output to the process. @item subtty The file descriptor for the terminal that the subprocess is using. (On some systems, there is no need to record this, so the value is @code{nil}.) @item tty_name The name of the terminal that the subprocess is using, or @code{nil} if it is using pipes. @item decode_coding_system Coding-system for decoding the input from this process. @item decoding_buf A working buffer for decoding. @item decoding_carryover Size of carryover in decoding. @item encode_coding_system Coding-system for encoding the output to this process. @item encoding_buf A working buffer for encoding. @item encoding_carryover Size of carryover in encoding. @item inherit_coding_system_flag Flag to set @code{coding-system} of the process buffer from the coding system used to decode process output. @end table @ignore arch-tag: 4b2c33bc-d7e4-43f5-bc20-27c0db52a53e @end ignore