3 perlguts - Perl's Internal Functions
7 This document attempts to describe some of the internal functions of the
8 Perl executable. It is far from complete and probably contains many errors.
9 Please refer any questions or comments to the author below.
15 Perl has three typedefs that handle Perl's three main data types:
21 Each typedef has specific routines that manipulate the various data types.
23 =head2 What is an "IV"?
25 Perl uses a special typedef IV which is a simple integer type that is
26 guaranteed to be large enough to hold a pointer (as well as an integer).
28 Perl also uses two special typedefs, I32 and I16, which will always be at
29 least 32-bits and 16-bits long, respectively.
31 =head2 Working with SVs
33 An SV can be created and loaded with one command. There are four types of
34 values that can be loaded: an integer value (IV), a double (NV), a string,
35 (PV), and another scalar (SV).
37 The five routines are:
41 SV* newSVpv(char*, int);
42 SV* newSVpvf(const char*, ...);
45 To change the value of an *already-existing* SV, there are six routines:
47 void sv_setiv(SV*, IV);
48 void sv_setnv(SV*, double);
49 void sv_setpv(SV*, char*);
50 void sv_setpvn(SV*, char*, int)
51 void sv_setpvf(SV*, const char*, ...);
52 void sv_setsv(SV*, SV*);
54 Notice that you can choose to specify the length of the string to be
55 assigned by using C<sv_setpvn> or C<newSVpv>, or you may allow Perl to
56 calculate the length by using C<sv_setpv> or by specifying 0 as the second
57 argument to C<newSVpv>. Be warned, though, that Perl will determine the
58 string's length by using C<strlen>, which depends on the string terminating
59 with a NUL character. The arguments of C<sv_setpvf> are processed like
60 C<sprintf>, and the formatted output becomes the value.
62 All SVs that will contain strings should, but need not, be terminated
63 with a NUL character. If it is not NUL-terminated there is a risk of
64 core dumps and corruptions from code which passes the string to C
65 functions or system calls which expect a NUL-terminated string.
66 Perl's own functions typically add a trailing NUL for this reason.
67 Nevertheless, you should be very careful when you pass a string stored
68 in an SV to a C function or system call.
70 To access the actual value that an SV points to, you can use the macros:
76 which will automatically coerce the actual scalar type into an IV, double,
79 In the C<SvPV> macro, the length of the string returned is placed into the
80 variable C<len> (this is a macro, so you do I<not> use C<&len>). If you do not
81 care what the length of the data is, use the global variable C<na>. Remember,
82 however, that Perl allows arbitrary strings of data that may both contain
83 NULs and might not be terminated by a NUL.
85 If you want to know if the scalar value is TRUE, you can use:
89 Although Perl will automatically grow strings for you, if you need to force
90 Perl to allocate more memory for your SV, you can use the macro
92 SvGROW(SV*, STRLEN newlen)
94 which will determine if more memory needs to be allocated. If so, it will
95 call the function C<sv_grow>. Note that C<SvGROW> can only increase, not
96 decrease, the allocated memory of an SV and that it does not automatically
97 add a byte for the a trailing NUL (perl's own string functions typically do
98 C<SvGROW(sv, len + 1)>).
100 If you have an SV and want to know what kind of data Perl thinks is stored
101 in it, you can use the following macros to check the type of SV you have.
107 You can get and set the current length of the string stored in an SV with
108 the following macros:
111 SvCUR_set(SV*, I32 val)
113 You can also get a pointer to the end of the string stored in the SV
118 But note that these last three macros are valid only if C<SvPOK()> is true.
120 If you want to append something to the end of string stored in an C<SV*>,
121 you can use the following functions:
123 void sv_catpv(SV*, char*);
124 void sv_catpvn(SV*, char*, int);
125 void sv_catpvf(SV*, const char*, ...);
126 void sv_catsv(SV*, SV*);
128 The first function calculates the length of the string to be appended by
129 using C<strlen>. In the second, you specify the length of the string
130 yourself. The third function processes its arguments like C<sprintf> and
131 appends the formatted output. The fourth function extends the string
132 stored in the first SV with the string stored in the second SV. It also
133 forces the second SV to be interpreted as a string.
135 If you know the name of a scalar variable, you can get a pointer to its SV
136 by using the following:
138 SV* perl_get_sv("package::varname", FALSE);
140 This returns NULL if the variable does not exist.
142 If you want to know if this variable (or any other SV) is actually C<defined>,
147 The scalar C<undef> value is stored in an SV instance called C<sv_undef>. Its
148 address can be used whenever an C<SV*> is needed.
150 There are also the two values C<sv_yes> and C<sv_no>, which contain Boolean
151 TRUE and FALSE values, respectively. Like C<sv_undef>, their addresses can
152 be used whenever an C<SV*> is needed.
154 Do not be fooled into thinking that C<(SV *) 0> is the same as C<&sv_undef>.
158 if (I-am-to-return-a-real-value) {
159 sv = sv_2mortal(newSViv(42));
163 This code tries to return a new SV (which contains the value 42) if it should
164 return a real value, or undef otherwise. Instead it has returned a NULL
165 pointer which, somewhere down the line, will cause a segmentation violation,
166 bus error, or just weird results. Change the zero to C<&sv_undef> in the first
167 line and all will be well.
169 To free an SV that you've created, call C<SvREFCNT_dec(SV*)>. Normally this
170 call is not necessary (see L<Reference Counts and Mortality>).
172 =head2 What's Really Stored in an SV?
174 Recall that the usual method of determining the type of scalar you have is
175 to use C<Sv*OK> macros. Because a scalar can be both a number and a string,
176 usually these macros will always return TRUE and calling the C<Sv*V>
177 macros will do the appropriate conversion of string to integer/double or
178 integer/double to string.
180 If you I<really> need to know if you have an integer, double, or string
181 pointer in an SV, you can use the following three macros instead:
187 These will tell you if you truly have an integer, double, or string pointer
188 stored in your SV. The "p" stands for private.
190 In general, though, it's best to use the C<Sv*V> macros.
192 =head2 Working with AVs
194 There are two ways to create and load an AV. The first method creates an
199 The second method both creates the AV and initially populates it with SVs:
201 AV* av_make(I32 num, SV **ptr);
203 The second argument points to an array containing C<num> C<SV*>'s. Once the
204 AV has been created, the SVs can be destroyed, if so desired.
206 Once the AV has been created, the following operations are possible on AVs:
208 void av_push(AV*, SV*);
211 void av_unshift(AV*, I32 num);
213 These should be familiar operations, with the exception of C<av_unshift>.
214 This routine adds C<num> elements at the front of the array with the C<undef>
215 value. You must then use C<av_store> (described below) to assign values
216 to these new elements.
218 Here are some other functions:
221 SV** av_fetch(AV*, I32 key, I32 lval);
222 SV** av_store(AV*, I32 key, SV* val);
224 The C<av_len> function returns the highest index value in array (just
225 like $#array in Perl). If the array is empty, -1 is returned. The
226 C<av_fetch> function returns the value at index C<key>, but if C<lval>
227 is non-zero, then C<av_fetch> will store an undef value at that index.
228 The C<av_store> function stores the value C<val> at index C<key>, and does
229 not increment the reference count of C<val>. Thus the caller is responsible
230 for taking care of that, and if C<av_store> returns NULL, the caller will
231 have to decrement the reference count to avoid a memory leak. Note that
232 C<av_fetch> and C<av_store> both return C<SV**>'s, not C<SV*>'s as their
237 void av_extend(AV*, I32 key);
239 The C<av_clear> function deletes all the elements in the AV* array, but
240 does not actually delete the array itself. The C<av_undef> function will
241 delete all the elements in the array plus the array itself. The
242 C<av_extend> function extends the array so that it contains C<key>
243 elements. If C<key> is less than the current length of the array, then
246 If you know the name of an array variable, you can get a pointer to its AV
247 by using the following:
249 AV* perl_get_av("package::varname", FALSE);
251 This returns NULL if the variable does not exist.
253 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
254 information on how to use the array access functions on tied arrays.
256 =head2 Working with HVs
258 To create an HV, you use the following routine:
262 Once the HV has been created, the following operations are possible on HVs:
264 SV** hv_store(HV*, char* key, U32 klen, SV* val, U32 hash);
265 SV** hv_fetch(HV*, char* key, U32 klen, I32 lval);
267 The C<klen> parameter is the length of the key being passed in (Note that
268 you cannot pass 0 in as a value of C<klen> to tell Perl to measure the
269 length of the key). The C<val> argument contains the SV pointer to the
270 scalar being stored, and C<hash> is the precomputed hash value (zero if
271 you want C<hv_store> to calculate it for you). The C<lval> parameter
272 indicates whether this fetch is actually a part of a store operation, in
273 which case a new undefined value will be added to the HV with the supplied
274 key and C<hv_fetch> will return as if the value had already existed.
276 Remember that C<hv_store> and C<hv_fetch> return C<SV**>'s and not just
277 C<SV*>. To access the scalar value, you must first dereference the return
278 value. However, you should check to make sure that the return value is
279 not NULL before dereferencing it.
281 These two functions check if a hash table entry exists, and deletes it.
283 bool hv_exists(HV*, char* key, U32 klen);
284 SV* hv_delete(HV*, char* key, U32 klen, I32 flags);
286 If C<flags> does not include the C<G_DISCARD> flag then C<hv_delete> will
287 create and return a mortal copy of the deleted value.
289 And more miscellaneous functions:
294 Like their AV counterparts, C<hv_clear> deletes all the entries in the hash
295 table but does not actually delete the hash table. The C<hv_undef> deletes
296 both the entries and the hash table itself.
298 Perl keeps the actual data in linked list of structures with a typedef of HE.
299 These contain the actual key and value pointers (plus extra administrative
300 overhead). The key is a string pointer; the value is an C<SV*>. However,
301 once you have an C<HE*>, to get the actual key and value, use the routines
304 I32 hv_iterinit(HV*);
305 /* Prepares starting point to traverse hash table */
306 HE* hv_iternext(HV*);
307 /* Get the next entry, and return a pointer to a
308 structure that has both the key and value */
309 char* hv_iterkey(HE* entry, I32* retlen);
310 /* Get the key from an HE structure and also return
311 the length of the key string */
312 SV* hv_iterval(HV*, HE* entry);
313 /* Return a SV pointer to the value of the HE
315 SV* hv_iternextsv(HV*, char** key, I32* retlen);
316 /* This convenience routine combines hv_iternext,
317 hv_iterkey, and hv_iterval. The key and retlen
318 arguments are return values for the key and its
319 length. The value is returned in the SV* argument */
321 If you know the name of a hash variable, you can get a pointer to its HV
322 by using the following:
324 HV* perl_get_hv("package::varname", FALSE);
326 This returns NULL if the variable does not exist.
328 The hash algorithm is defined in the C<PERL_HASH(hash, key, klen)> macro:
334 hash = hash * 33 + *s++;
336 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
337 information on how to use the hash access functions on tied hashes.
339 =head2 Hash API Extensions
341 Beginning with version 5.004, the following functions are also supported:
343 HE* hv_fetch_ent (HV* tb, SV* key, I32 lval, U32 hash);
344 HE* hv_store_ent (HV* tb, SV* key, SV* val, U32 hash);
346 bool hv_exists_ent (HV* tb, SV* key, U32 hash);
347 SV* hv_delete_ent (HV* tb, SV* key, I32 flags, U32 hash);
349 SV* hv_iterkeysv (HE* entry);
351 Note that these functions take C<SV*> keys, which simplifies writing
352 of extension code that deals with hash structures. These functions
353 also allow passing of C<SV*> keys to C<tie> functions without forcing
354 you to stringify the keys (unlike the previous set of functions).
356 They also return and accept whole hash entries (C<HE*>), making their
357 use more efficient (since the hash number for a particular string
358 doesn't have to be recomputed every time). See L<API LISTING> later in
359 this document for detailed descriptions.
361 The following macros must always be used to access the contents of hash
362 entries. Note that the arguments to these macros must be simple
363 variables, since they may get evaluated more than once. See
364 L<API LISTING> later in this document for detailed descriptions of these
367 HePV(HE* he, STRLEN len)
371 HeSVKEY_force(HE* he)
372 HeSVKEY_set(HE* he, SV* sv)
374 These two lower level macros are defined, but must only be used when
375 dealing with keys that are not C<SV*>s:
380 Note that both C<hv_store> and C<hv_store_ent> do not increment the
381 reference count of the stored C<val>, which is the caller's responsibility.
382 If these functions return a NULL value, the caller will usually have to
383 decrement the reference count of C<val> to avoid a memory leak.
387 References are a special type of scalar that point to other data types
388 (including references).
390 To create a reference, use either of the following functions:
392 SV* newRV_inc((SV*) thing);
393 SV* newRV_noinc((SV*) thing);
395 The C<thing> argument can be any of an C<SV*>, C<AV*>, or C<HV*>. The
396 functions are identical except that C<newRV_inc> increments the reference
397 count of the C<thing>, while C<newRV_noinc> does not. For historical
398 reasons, C<newRV> is a synonym for C<newRV_inc>.
400 Once you have a reference, you can use the following macro to dereference
405 then call the appropriate routines, casting the returned C<SV*> to either an
406 C<AV*> or C<HV*>, if required.
408 To determine if an SV is a reference, you can use the following macro:
412 To discover what type of value the reference refers to, use the following
413 macro and then check the return value.
417 The most useful types that will be returned are:
426 SVt_PVGV Glob (possible a file handle)
427 SVt_PVMG Blessed or Magical Scalar
429 See the sv.h header file for more details.
431 =head2 Blessed References and Class Objects
433 References are also used to support object-oriented programming. In the
434 OO lexicon, an object is simply a reference that has been blessed into a
435 package (or class). Once blessed, the programmer may now use the reference
436 to access the various methods in the class.
438 A reference can be blessed into a package with the following function:
440 SV* sv_bless(SV* sv, HV* stash);
442 The C<sv> argument must be a reference. The C<stash> argument specifies
443 which class the reference will belong to. See
444 L<Stashes and Globs> for information on converting class names into stashes.
446 /* Still under construction */
448 Upgrades rv to reference if not already one. Creates new SV for rv to
449 point to. If C<classname> is non-null, the SV is blessed into the specified
450 class. SV is returned.
452 SV* newSVrv(SV* rv, char* classname);
454 Copies integer or double into an SV whose reference is C<rv>. SV is blessed
455 if C<classname> is non-null.
457 SV* sv_setref_iv(SV* rv, char* classname, IV iv);
458 SV* sv_setref_nv(SV* rv, char* classname, NV iv);
460 Copies the pointer value (I<the address, not the string!>) into an SV whose
461 reference is rv. SV is blessed if C<classname> is non-null.
463 SV* sv_setref_pv(SV* rv, char* classname, PV iv);
465 Copies string into an SV whose reference is C<rv>. Set length to 0 to let
466 Perl calculate the string length. SV is blessed if C<classname> is non-null.
468 SV* sv_setref_pvn(SV* rv, char* classname, PV iv, int length);
470 int sv_isa(SV* sv, char* name);
471 int sv_isobject(SV* sv);
473 =head2 Creating New Variables
475 To create a new Perl variable with an undef value which can be accessed from
476 your Perl script, use the following routines, depending on the variable type.
478 SV* perl_get_sv("package::varname", TRUE);
479 AV* perl_get_av("package::varname", TRUE);
480 HV* perl_get_hv("package::varname", TRUE);
482 Notice the use of TRUE as the second parameter. The new variable can now
483 be set, using the routines appropriate to the data type.
485 There are additional macros whose values may be bitwise OR'ed with the
486 C<TRUE> argument to enable certain extra features. Those bits are:
488 GV_ADDMULTI Marks the variable as multiply defined, thus preventing the
489 "Name <varname> used only once: possible typo" warning.
490 GV_ADDWARN Issues the warning "Had to create <varname> unexpectedly" if
491 the variable did not exist before the function was called.
493 If you do not specify a package name, the variable is created in the current
496 =head2 Reference Counts and Mortality
498 Perl uses an reference count-driven garbage collection mechanism. SVs,
499 AVs, or HVs (xV for short in the following) start their life with a
500 reference count of 1. If the reference count of an xV ever drops to 0,
501 then it will be destroyed and its memory made available for reuse.
503 This normally doesn't happen at the Perl level unless a variable is
504 undef'ed or the last variable holding a reference to it is changed or
505 overwritten. At the internal level, however, reference counts can be
506 manipulated with the following macros:
508 int SvREFCNT(SV* sv);
509 SV* SvREFCNT_inc(SV* sv);
510 void SvREFCNT_dec(SV* sv);
512 However, there is one other function which manipulates the reference
513 count of its argument. The C<newRV_inc> function, you will recall,
514 creates a reference to the specified argument. As a side effect,
515 it increments the argument's reference count. If this is not what
516 you want, use C<newRV_noinc> instead.
518 For example, imagine you want to return a reference from an XSUB function.
519 Inside the XSUB routine, you create an SV which initially has a reference
520 count of one. Then you call C<newRV_inc>, passing it the just-created SV.
521 This returns the reference as a new SV, but the reference count of the
522 SV you passed to C<newRV_inc> has been incremented to two. Now you
523 return the reference from the XSUB routine and forget about the SV.
524 But Perl hasn't! Whenever the returned reference is destroyed, the
525 reference count of the original SV is decreased to one and nothing happens.
526 The SV will hang around without any way to access it until Perl itself
527 terminates. This is a memory leak.
529 The correct procedure, then, is to use C<newRV_noinc> instead of
530 C<newRV_inc>. Then, if and when the last reference is destroyed,
531 the reference count of the SV will go to zero and it will be destroyed,
532 stopping any memory leak.
534 There are some convenience functions available that can help with the
535 destruction of xVs. These functions introduce the concept of "mortality".
536 An xV that is mortal has had its reference count marked to be decremented,
537 but not actually decremented, until "a short time later". Generally the
538 term "short time later" means a single Perl statement, such as a call to
539 an XSUB function. The actual determinant for when mortal xVs have their
540 reference count decremented depends on two macros, SAVETMPS and FREETMPS.
541 See L<perlcall> and L<perlxs> for more details on these macros.
543 "Mortalization" then is at its simplest a deferred C<SvREFCNT_dec>.
544 However, if you mortalize a variable twice, the reference count will
545 later be decremented twice.
547 You should be careful about creating mortal variables. Strange things
548 can happen if you make the same value mortal within multiple contexts,
549 or if you make a variable mortal multiple times.
551 To create a mortal variable, use the functions:
555 SV* sv_mortalcopy(SV*)
557 The first call creates a mortal SV, the second converts an existing
558 SV to a mortal SV (and thus defers a call to C<SvREFCNT_dec>), and the
559 third creates a mortal copy of an existing SV.
561 The mortal routines are not just for SVs -- AVs and HVs can be
562 made mortal by passing their address (type-casted to C<SV*>) to the
563 C<sv_2mortal> or C<sv_mortalcopy> routines.
565 =head2 Stashes and Globs
567 A "stash" is a hash that contains all of the different objects that
568 are contained within a package. Each key of the stash is a symbol
569 name (shared by all the different types of objects that have the same
570 name), and each value in the hash table is a GV (Glob Value). This GV
571 in turn contains references to the various objects of that name,
572 including (but not limited to) the following:
582 There is a single stash called "defstash" that holds the items that exist
583 in the "main" package. To get at the items in other packages, append the
584 string "::" to the package name. The items in the "Foo" package are in
585 the stash "Foo::" in defstash. The items in the "Bar::Baz" package are
586 in the stash "Baz::" in "Bar::"'s stash.
588 To get the stash pointer for a particular package, use the function:
590 HV* gv_stashpv(char* name, I32 create)
591 HV* gv_stashsv(SV*, I32 create)
593 The first function takes a literal string, the second uses the string stored
594 in the SV. Remember that a stash is just a hash table, so you get back an
595 C<HV*>. The C<create> flag will create a new package if it is set.
597 The name that C<gv_stash*v> wants is the name of the package whose symbol table
598 you want. The default package is called C<main>. If you have multiply nested
599 packages, pass their names to C<gv_stash*v>, separated by C<::> as in the Perl
602 Alternately, if you have an SV that is a blessed reference, you can find
603 out the stash pointer by using:
605 HV* SvSTASH(SvRV(SV*));
607 then use the following to get the package name itself:
609 char* HvNAME(HV* stash);
611 If you need to bless or re-bless an object you can use the following
614 SV* sv_bless(SV*, HV* stash)
616 where the first argument, an C<SV*>, must be a reference, and the second
617 argument is a stash. The returned C<SV*> can now be used in the same way
620 For more information on references and blessings, consult L<perlref>.
622 =head2 Double-Typed SVs
624 Scalar variables normally contain only one type of value, an integer,
625 double, pointer, or reference. Perl will automatically convert the
626 actual scalar data from the stored type into the requested type.
628 Some scalar variables contain more than one type of scalar data. For
629 example, the variable C<$!> contains either the numeric value of C<errno>
630 or its string equivalent from either C<strerror> or C<sys_errlist[]>.
632 To force multiple data values into an SV, you must do two things: use the
633 C<sv_set*v> routines to add the additional scalar type, then set a flag
634 so that Perl will believe it contains more than one type of data. The
635 four macros to set the flags are:
642 The particular macro you must use depends on which C<sv_set*v> routine
643 you called first. This is because every C<sv_set*v> routine turns on
644 only the bit for the particular type of data being set, and turns off
647 For example, to create a new Perl variable called "dberror" that contains
648 both the numeric and descriptive string error values, you could use the
652 extern char *dberror_list;
654 SV* sv = perl_get_sv("dberror", TRUE);
655 sv_setiv(sv, (IV) dberror);
656 sv_setpv(sv, dberror_list[dberror]);
659 If the order of C<sv_setiv> and C<sv_setpv> had been reversed, then the
660 macro C<SvPOK_on> would need to be called instead of C<SvIOK_on>.
662 =head2 Magic Variables
664 [This section still under construction. Ignore everything here. Post no
665 bills. Everything not permitted is forbidden.]
667 Any SV may be magical, that is, it has special features that a normal
668 SV does not have. These features are stored in the SV structure in a
669 linked list of C<struct magic>'s, typedef'ed to C<MAGIC>.
682 Note this is current as of patchlevel 0, and could change at any time.
684 =head2 Assigning Magic
686 Perl adds magic to an SV using the sv_magic function:
688 void sv_magic(SV* sv, SV* obj, int how, char* name, I32 namlen);
690 The C<sv> argument is a pointer to the SV that is to acquire a new magical
693 If C<sv> is not already magical, Perl uses the C<SvUPGRADE> macro to
694 set the C<SVt_PVMG> flag for the C<sv>. Perl then continues by adding
695 it to the beginning of the linked list of magical features. Any prior
696 entry of the same type of magic is deleted. Note that this can be
697 overridden, and multiple instances of the same type of magic can be
698 associated with an SV.
700 The C<name> and C<namlen> arguments are used to associate a string with
701 the magic, typically the name of a variable. C<namlen> is stored in the
702 C<mg_len> field and if C<name> is non-null and C<namlen> >= 0 a malloc'd
703 copy of the name is stored in C<mg_ptr> field.
705 The sv_magic function uses C<how> to determine which, if any, predefined
706 "Magic Virtual Table" should be assigned to the C<mg_virtual> field.
707 See the "Magic Virtual Table" section below. The C<how> argument is also
708 stored in the C<mg_type> field.
710 The C<obj> argument is stored in the C<mg_obj> field of the C<MAGIC>
711 structure. If it is not the same as the C<sv> argument, the reference
712 count of the C<obj> object is incremented. If it is the same, or if
713 the C<how> argument is "#", or if it is a NULL pointer, then C<obj> is
714 merely stored, without the reference count being incremented.
716 There is also a function to add magic to an C<HV>:
718 void hv_magic(HV *hv, GV *gv, int how);
720 This simply calls C<sv_magic> and coerces the C<gv> argument into an C<SV>.
722 To remove the magic from an SV, call the function sv_unmagic:
724 void sv_unmagic(SV *sv, int type);
726 The C<type> argument should be equal to the C<how> value when the C<SV>
727 was initially made magical.
729 =head2 Magic Virtual Tables
731 The C<mg_virtual> field in the C<MAGIC> structure is a pointer to a
732 C<MGVTBL>, which is a structure of function pointers and stands for
733 "Magic Virtual Table" to handle the various operations that might be
734 applied to that variable.
736 The C<MGVTBL> has five pointers to the following routine types:
738 int (*svt_get)(SV* sv, MAGIC* mg);
739 int (*svt_set)(SV* sv, MAGIC* mg);
740 U32 (*svt_len)(SV* sv, MAGIC* mg);
741 int (*svt_clear)(SV* sv, MAGIC* mg);
742 int (*svt_free)(SV* sv, MAGIC* mg);
744 This MGVTBL structure is set at compile-time in C<perl.h> and there are
745 currently 19 types (or 21 with overloading turned on). These different
746 structures contain pointers to various routines that perform additional
747 actions depending on which function is being called.
749 Function pointer Action taken
750 ---------------- ------------
751 svt_get Do something after the value of the SV is retrieved.
752 svt_set Do something after the SV is assigned a value.
753 svt_len Report on the SV's length.
754 svt_clear Clear something the SV represents.
755 svt_free Free any extra storage associated with the SV.
757 For instance, the MGVTBL structure called C<vtbl_sv> (which corresponds
758 to an C<mg_type> of '\0') contains:
760 { magic_get, magic_set, magic_len, 0, 0 }
762 Thus, when an SV is determined to be magical and of type '\0', if a get
763 operation is being performed, the routine C<magic_get> is called. All
764 the various routines for the various magical types begin with C<magic_>.
766 The current kinds of Magic Virtual Tables are:
768 mg_type MGVTBL Type of magic
769 ------- ------ ----------------------------
770 \0 vtbl_sv Special scalar variable
771 A vtbl_amagic %OVERLOAD hash
772 a vtbl_amagicelem %OVERLOAD hash element
773 c (none) Holds overload table (AMT) on stash
774 B vtbl_bm Boyer-Moore (fast string search)
776 e vtbl_envelem %ENV hash element
777 f vtbl_fm Formline ('compiled' format)
778 g vtbl_mglob m//g target / study()ed string
779 I vtbl_isa @ISA array
780 i vtbl_isaelem @ISA array element
781 k vtbl_nkeys scalar(keys()) lvalue
782 L (none) Debugger %_<filename
783 l vtbl_dbline Debugger %_<filename element
784 o vtbl_collxfrm Locale transformation
785 P vtbl_pack Tied array or hash
786 p vtbl_packelem Tied array or hash element
787 q vtbl_packelem Tied scalar or handle
789 s vtbl_sigelem %SIG hash element
790 t vtbl_taint Taintedness
791 U vtbl_uvar Available for use by extensions
792 v vtbl_vec vec() lvalue
793 x vtbl_substr substr() lvalue
794 y vtbl_defelem Shadow "foreach" iterator variable /
795 smart parameter vivification
796 * vtbl_glob GV (typeglob)
797 # vtbl_arylen Array length ($#ary)
798 . vtbl_pos pos() lvalue
799 ~ (none) Available for use by extensions
801 When an uppercase and lowercase letter both exist in the table, then the
802 uppercase letter is used to represent some kind of composite type (a list
803 or a hash), and the lowercase letter is used to represent an element of
806 The '~' and 'U' magic types are defined specifically for use by
807 extensions and will not be used by perl itself. Extensions can use
808 '~' magic to 'attach' private information to variables (typically
809 objects). This is especially useful because there is no way for
810 normal perl code to corrupt this private information (unlike using
811 extra elements of a hash object).
813 Similarly, 'U' magic can be used much like tie() to call a C function
814 any time a scalar's value is used or changed. The C<MAGIC>'s
815 C<mg_ptr> field points to a C<ufuncs> structure:
818 I32 (*uf_val)(IV, SV*);
819 I32 (*uf_set)(IV, SV*);
823 When the SV is read from or written to, the C<uf_val> or C<uf_set>
824 function will be called with C<uf_index> as the first arg and a
825 pointer to the SV as the second.
827 Note that because multiple extensions may be using '~' or 'U' magic,
828 it is important for extensions to take extra care to avoid conflict.
829 Typically only using the magic on objects blessed into the same class
830 as the extension is sufficient. For '~' magic, it may also be
831 appropriate to add an I32 'signature' at the top of the private data
836 MAGIC* mg_find(SV*, int type); /* Finds the magic pointer of that type */
838 This routine returns a pointer to the C<MAGIC> structure stored in the SV.
839 If the SV does not have that magical feature, C<NULL> is returned. Also,
840 if the SV is not of type SVt_PVMG, Perl may core dump.
842 int mg_copy(SV* sv, SV* nsv, char* key, STRLEN klen);
844 This routine checks to see what types of magic C<sv> has. If the mg_type
845 field is an uppercase letter, then the mg_obj is copied to C<nsv>, but
846 the mg_type field is changed to be the lowercase letter.
848 =head2 Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays
850 Tied hashes and arrays are magical beasts of the 'P' magic type.
852 WARNING: As of the 5.004 release, proper usage of the array and hash
853 access functions requires understanding a few caveats. Some
854 of these caveats are actually considered bugs in the API, to be fixed
855 in later releases, and are bracketed with [MAYCHANGE] below. If
856 you find yourself actually applying such information in this section, be
857 aware that the behavior may change in the future, umm, without warning.
859 The C<av_store> function, when given a tied array argument, merely
860 copies the magic of the array onto the value to be "stored", using
861 C<mg_copy>. It may also return NULL, indicating that the value did not
862 actually need to be stored in the array. [MAYCHANGE] After a call to
863 C<av_store> on a tied array, the caller will usually need to call
864 C<mg_set(val)> to actually invoke the perl level "STORE" method on the
865 TIEARRAY object. If C<av_store> did return NULL, a call to
866 C<SvREFCNT_dec(val)> will also be usually necessary to avoid a memory
869 The previous paragraph is applicable verbatim to tied hash access using the
870 C<hv_store> and C<hv_store_ent> functions as well.
872 C<av_fetch> and the corresponding hash functions C<hv_fetch> and
873 C<hv_fetch_ent> actually return an undefined mortal value whose magic
874 has been initialized using C<mg_copy>. Note the value so returned does not
875 need to be deallocated, as it is already mortal. [MAYCHANGE] But you will
876 need to call C<mg_get()> on the returned value in order to actually invoke
877 the perl level "FETCH" method on the underlying TIE object. Similarly,
878 you may also call C<mg_set()> on the return value after possibly assigning
879 a suitable value to it using C<sv_setsv>, which will invoke the "STORE"
880 method on the TIE object. [/MAYCHANGE]
883 In other words, the array or hash fetch/store functions don't really
884 fetch and store actual values in the case of tied arrays and hashes. They
885 merely call C<mg_copy> to attach magic to the values that were meant to be
886 "stored" or "fetched". Later calls to C<mg_get> and C<mg_set> actually
887 do the job of invoking the TIE methods on the underlying objects. Thus
888 the magic mechanism currently implements a kind of lazy access to arrays
891 Currently (as of perl version 5.004), use of the hash and array access
892 functions requires the user to be aware of whether they are operating on
893 "normal" hashes and arrays, or on their tied variants. The API may be
894 changed to provide more transparent access to both tied and normal data
895 types in future versions.
898 You would do well to understand that the TIEARRAY and TIEHASH interfaces
899 are mere sugar to invoke some perl method calls while using the uniform hash
900 and array syntax. The use of this sugar imposes some overhead (typically
901 about two to four extra opcodes per FETCH/STORE operation, in addition to
902 the creation of all the mortal variables required to invoke the methods).
903 This overhead will be comparatively small if the TIE methods are themselves
904 substantial, but if they are only a few statements long, the overhead
905 will not be insignificant.
907 =head2 Localizing changes
909 Perl has a very handy construction
916 This construction is I<approximately> equivalent to
925 The biggest difference is that the first construction would
926 reinstate the initial value of $var, irrespective of how control exits
927 the block: C<goto>, C<return>, C<die>/C<eval> etc. It is a little bit
928 more efficient as well.
930 There is a way to achieve a similar task from C via Perl API: create a
931 I<pseudo-block>, and arrange for some changes to be automatically
932 undone at the end of it, either explicit, or via a non-local exit (via
933 die()). A I<block>-like construct is created by a pair of
934 C<ENTER>/C<LEAVE> macros (see L<perlcall/EXAMPLE/"Returning a
935 Scalar">). Such a construct may be created specially for some
936 important localized task, or an existing one (like boundaries of
937 enclosing Perl subroutine/block, or an existing pair for freeing TMPs)
938 may be used. (In the second case the overhead of additional
939 localization must be almost negligible.) Note that any XSUB is
940 automatically enclosed in an C<ENTER>/C<LEAVE> pair.
942 Inside such a I<pseudo-block> the following service is available:
946 =item C<SAVEINT(int i)>
948 =item C<SAVEIV(IV i)>
950 =item C<SAVEI32(I32 i)>
952 =item C<SAVELONG(long i)>
954 These macros arrange things to restore the value of integer variable
955 C<i> at the end of enclosing I<pseudo-block>.
961 These macros arrange things to restore the value of pointers C<s> and
962 C<p>. C<s> must be a pointer of a type which survives conversion to
963 C<SV*> and back, C<p> should be able to survive conversion to C<char*>
966 =item C<SAVEFREESV(SV *sv)>
968 The refcount of C<sv> would be decremented at the end of
969 I<pseudo-block>. This is similar to C<sv_2mortal>, which should (?) be
972 =item C<SAVEFREEOP(OP *op)>
974 The C<OP *> is op_free()ed at the end of I<pseudo-block>.
976 =item C<SAVEFREEPV(p)>
978 The chunk of memory which is pointed to by C<p> is Safefree()ed at the
979 end of I<pseudo-block>.
981 =item C<SAVECLEARSV(SV *sv)>
983 Clears a slot in the current scratchpad which corresponds to C<sv> at
984 the end of I<pseudo-block>.
986 =item C<SAVEDELETE(HV *hv, char *key, I32 length)>
988 The key C<key> of C<hv> is deleted at the end of I<pseudo-block>. The
989 string pointed to by C<key> is Safefree()ed. If one has a I<key> in
990 short-lived storage, the corresponding string may be reallocated like
993 SAVEDELETE(defstash, savepv(tmpbuf), strlen(tmpbuf));
995 =item C<SAVEDESTRUCTOR(f,p)>
997 At the end of I<pseudo-block> the function C<f> is called with the
998 only argument (of type C<void*>) C<p>.
1000 =item C<SAVESTACK_POS()>
1002 The current offset on the Perl internal stack (cf. C<SP>) is restored
1003 at the end of I<pseudo-block>.
1007 The following API list contains functions, thus one needs to
1008 provide pointers to the modifiable data explicitly (either C pointers,
1009 or Perlish C<GV *>s). Where the above macros take C<int>, a similar
1010 function takes C<int *>.
1014 =item C<SV* save_scalar(GV *gv)>
1016 Equivalent to Perl code C<local $gv>.
1018 =item C<AV* save_ary(GV *gv)>
1020 =item C<HV* save_hash(GV *gv)>
1022 Similar to C<save_scalar>, but localize C<@gv> and C<%gv>.
1024 =item C<void save_item(SV *item)>
1026 Duplicates the current value of C<SV>, on the exit from the current
1027 C<ENTER>/C<LEAVE> I<pseudo-block> will restore the value of C<SV>
1028 using the stored value.
1030 =item C<void save_list(SV **sarg, I32 maxsarg)>
1032 A variant of C<save_item> which takes multiple arguments via an array
1033 C<sarg> of C<SV*> of length C<maxsarg>.
1035 =item C<SV* save_svref(SV **sptr)>
1037 Similar to C<save_scalar>, but will reinstate a C<SV *>.
1039 =item C<void save_aptr(AV **aptr)>
1041 =item C<void save_hptr(HV **hptr)>
1043 Similar to C<save_svref>, but localize C<AV *> and C<HV *>.
1047 The C<Alias> module implements localization of the basic types within the
1048 I<caller's scope>. People who are interested in how to localize things in
1049 the containing scope should take a look there too.
1053 =head2 XSUBs and the Argument Stack
1055 The XSUB mechanism is a simple way for Perl programs to access C subroutines.
1056 An XSUB routine will have a stack that contains the arguments from the Perl
1057 program, and a way to map from the Perl data structures to a C equivalent.
1059 The stack arguments are accessible through the C<ST(n)> macro, which returns
1060 the C<n>'th stack argument. Argument 0 is the first argument passed in the
1061 Perl subroutine call. These arguments are C<SV*>, and can be used anywhere
1064 Most of the time, output from the C routine can be handled through use of
1065 the RETVAL and OUTPUT directives. However, there are some cases where the
1066 argument stack is not already long enough to handle all the return values.
1067 An example is the POSIX tzname() call, which takes no arguments, but returns
1068 two, the local time zone's standard and summer time abbreviations.
1070 To handle this situation, the PPCODE directive is used and the stack is
1071 extended using the macro:
1075 where C<sp> is the stack pointer, and C<num> is the number of elements the
1076 stack should be extended by.
1078 Now that there is room on the stack, values can be pushed on it using the
1079 macros to push IVs, doubles, strings, and SV pointers respectively:
1086 And now the Perl program calling C<tzname>, the two values will be assigned
1089 ($standard_abbrev, $summer_abbrev) = POSIX::tzname;
1091 An alternate (and possibly simpler) method to pushing values on the stack is
1099 These macros automatically adjust the stack for you, if needed. Thus, you
1100 do not need to call C<EXTEND> to extend the stack.
1102 For more information, consult L<perlxs> and L<perlxstut>.
1104 =head2 Calling Perl Routines from within C Programs
1106 There are four routines that can be used to call a Perl subroutine from
1107 within a C program. These four are:
1109 I32 perl_call_sv(SV*, I32);
1110 I32 perl_call_pv(char*, I32);
1111 I32 perl_call_method(char*, I32);
1112 I32 perl_call_argv(char*, I32, register char**);
1114 The routine most often used is C<perl_call_sv>. The C<SV*> argument
1115 contains either the name of the Perl subroutine to be called, or a
1116 reference to the subroutine. The second argument consists of flags
1117 that control the context in which the subroutine is called, whether
1118 or not the subroutine is being passed arguments, how errors should be
1119 trapped, and how to treat return values.
1121 All four routines return the number of arguments that the subroutine returned
1124 When using any of these routines (except C<perl_call_argv>), the programmer
1125 must manipulate the Perl stack. These include the following macros and
1139 For a detailed description of calling conventions from C to Perl,
1140 consult L<perlcall>.
1142 =head2 Memory Allocation
1144 It is suggested that you use the version of malloc that is distributed
1145 with Perl. It keeps pools of various sizes of unallocated memory in
1146 order to satisfy allocation requests more quickly. However, on some
1147 platforms, it may cause spurious malloc or free errors.
1149 New(x, pointer, number, type);
1150 Newc(x, pointer, number, type, cast);
1151 Newz(x, pointer, number, type);
1153 These three macros are used to initially allocate memory.
1155 The first argument C<x> was a "magic cookie" that was used to keep track
1156 of who called the macro, to help when debugging memory problems. However,
1157 the current code makes no use of this feature (most Perl developers now
1158 use run-time memory checkers), so this argument can be any number.
1160 The second argument C<pointer> should be the name of a variable that will
1161 point to the newly allocated memory.
1163 The third and fourth arguments C<number> and C<type> specify how many of
1164 the specified type of data structure should be allocated. The argument
1165 C<type> is passed to C<sizeof>. The final argument to C<Newc>, C<cast>,
1166 should be used if the C<pointer> argument is different from the C<type>
1169 Unlike the C<New> and C<Newc> macros, the C<Newz> macro calls C<memzero>
1170 to zero out all the newly allocated memory.
1172 Renew(pointer, number, type);
1173 Renewc(pointer, number, type, cast);
1176 These three macros are used to change a memory buffer size or to free a
1177 piece of memory no longer needed. The arguments to C<Renew> and C<Renewc>
1178 match those of C<New> and C<Newc> with the exception of not needing the
1179 "magic cookie" argument.
1181 Move(source, dest, number, type);
1182 Copy(source, dest, number, type);
1183 Zero(dest, number, type);
1185 These three macros are used to move, copy, or zero out previously allocated
1186 memory. The C<source> and C<dest> arguments point to the source and
1187 destination starting points. Perl will move, copy, or zero out C<number>
1188 instances of the size of the C<type> data structure (using the C<sizeof>
1193 The most recent development releases of Perl has been experimenting with
1194 removing Perl's dependency on the "normal" standard I/O suite and allowing
1195 other stdio implementations to be used. This involves creating a new
1196 abstraction layer that then calls whichever implementation of stdio Perl
1197 was compiled with. All XSUBs should now use the functions in the PerlIO
1198 abstraction layer and not make any assumptions about what kind of stdio
1201 For a complete description of the PerlIO abstraction, consult L<perlapio>.
1203 =head2 Putting a C value on Perl stack
1205 A lot of opcodes (this is an elementary operation in the internal perl
1206 stack machine) put an SV* on the stack. However, as an optimization
1207 the corresponding SV is (usually) not recreated each time. The opcodes
1208 reuse specially assigned SVs (I<target>s) which are (as a corollary)
1209 not constantly freed/created.
1211 Each of the targets is created only once (but see
1212 L<Scratchpads and recursion> below), and when an opcode needs to put
1213 an integer, a double, or a string on stack, it just sets the
1214 corresponding parts of its I<target> and puts the I<target> on stack.
1216 The macro to put this target on stack is C<PUSHTARG>, and it is
1217 directly used in some opcodes, as well as indirectly in zillions of
1218 others, which use it via C<(X)PUSH[pni]>.
1222 The question remains on when the SVs which are I<target>s for opcodes
1223 are created. The answer is that they are created when the current unit --
1224 a subroutine or a file (for opcodes for statements outside of
1225 subroutines) -- is compiled. During this time a special anonymous Perl
1226 array is created, which is called a scratchpad for the current
1229 A scratchpad keeps SVs which are lexicals for the current unit and are
1230 targets for opcodes. One can deduce that an SV lives on a scratchpad
1231 by looking on its flags: lexicals have C<SVs_PADMY> set, and
1232 I<target>s have C<SVs_PADTMP> set.
1234 The correspondence between OPs and I<target>s is not 1-to-1. Different
1235 OPs in the compile tree of the unit can use the same target, if this
1236 would not conflict with the expected life of the temporary.
1238 =head2 Scratchpads and recursion
1240 In fact it is not 100% true that a compiled unit contains a pointer to
1241 the scratchpad AV. In fact it contains a pointer to an AV of
1242 (initially) one element, and this element is the scratchpad AV. Why do
1243 we need an extra level of indirection?
1245 The answer is B<recursion>, and maybe (sometime soon) B<threads>. Both
1246 these can create several execution pointers going into the same
1247 subroutine. For the subroutine-child not write over the temporaries
1248 for the subroutine-parent (lifespan of which covers the call to the
1249 child), the parent and the child should have different
1250 scratchpads. (I<And> the lexicals should be separate anyway!)
1252 So each subroutine is born with an array of scratchpads (of length 1).
1253 On each entry to the subroutine it is checked that the current
1254 depth of the recursion is not more than the length of this array, and
1255 if it is, new scratchpad is created and pushed into the array.
1257 The I<target>s on this scratchpad are C<undef>s, but they are already
1258 marked with correct flags.
1260 =head1 Compiled code
1264 Here we describe the internal form your code is converted to by
1265 Perl. Start with a simple example:
1269 This is converted to a tree similar to this one:
1277 (but slightly more complicated). This tree reflect the way Perl
1278 parsed your code, but has nothing to do with the execution order.
1279 There is an additional "thread" going through the nodes of the tree
1280 which shows the order of execution of the nodes. In our simplified
1281 example above it looks like:
1283 $b ---> $c ---> + ---> $a ---> assign-to
1285 But with the actual compile tree for C<$a = $b + $c> it is different:
1286 some nodes I<optimized away>. As a corollary, though the actual tree
1287 contains more nodes than our simplified example, the execution order
1288 is the same as in our example.
1290 =head2 Examining the tree
1292 If you have your perl compiled for debugging (usually done with C<-D
1293 optimize=-g> on C<Configure> command line), you may examine the
1294 compiled tree by specifying C<-Dx> on the Perl command line. The
1295 output takes several lines per node, and for C<$b+$c> it looks like
1300 FLAGS = (SCALAR,KIDS)
1302 TYPE = null ===> (4)
1304 FLAGS = (SCALAR,KIDS)
1306 3 TYPE = gvsv ===> 4
1312 TYPE = null ===> (5)
1314 FLAGS = (SCALAR,KIDS)
1316 4 TYPE = gvsv ===> 5
1322 This tree has 5 nodes (one per C<TYPE> specifier), only 3 of them are
1323 not optimized away (one per number in the left column). The immediate
1324 children of the given node correspond to C<{}> pairs on the same level
1325 of indentation, thus this listing corresponds to the tree:
1333 The execution order is indicated by C<===E<gt>> marks, thus it is C<3
1334 4 5 6> (node C<6> is not included into above listing), i.e.,
1335 C<gvsv gvsv add whatever>.
1337 =head2 Compile pass 1: check routines
1339 The tree is created by the I<pseudo-compiler> while yacc code feeds it
1340 the constructions it recognizes. Since yacc works bottom-up, so does
1341 the first pass of perl compilation.
1343 What makes this pass interesting for perl developers is that some
1344 optimization may be performed on this pass. This is optimization by
1345 so-called I<check routines>. The correspondence between node names
1346 and corresponding check routines is described in F<opcode.pl> (do not
1347 forget to run C<make regen_headers> if you modify this file).
1349 A check routine is called when the node is fully constructed except
1350 for the execution-order thread. Since at this time there is no
1351 back-links to the currently constructed node, one can do most any
1352 operation to the top-level node, including freeing it and/or creating
1353 new nodes above/below it.
1355 The check routine returns the node which should be inserted into the
1356 tree (if the top-level node was not modified, check routine returns
1359 By convention, check routines have names C<ck_*>. They are usually
1360 called from C<new*OP> subroutines (or C<convert>) (which in turn are
1361 called from F<perly.y>).
1363 =head2 Compile pass 1a: constant folding
1365 Immediately after the check routine is called the returned node is
1366 checked for being compile-time executable. If it is (the value is
1367 judged to be constant) it is immediately executed, and a I<constant>
1368 node with the "return value" of the corresponding subtree is
1369 substituted instead. The subtree is deleted.
1371 If constant folding was not performed, the execution-order thread is
1374 =head2 Compile pass 2: context propagation
1376 When a context for a part of compile tree is known, it is propagated
1377 down through the tree. Aat this time the context can have 5 values
1378 (instead of 2 for runtime context): void, boolean, scalar, list, and
1379 lvalue. In contrast with the pass 1 this pass is processed from top
1380 to bottom: a node's context determines the context for its children.
1382 Additional context-dependent optimizations are performed at this time.
1383 Since at this moment the compile tree contains back-references (via
1384 "thread" pointers), nodes cannot be free()d now. To allow
1385 optimized-away nodes at this stage, such nodes are null()ified instead
1386 of free()ing (i.e. their type is changed to OP_NULL).
1388 =head2 Compile pass 3: peephole optimization
1390 After the compile tree for a subroutine (or for an C<eval> or a file)
1391 is created, an additional pass over the code is performed. This pass
1392 is neither top-down or bottom-up, but in the execution order (with
1393 additional compilications for conditionals). These optimizations are
1394 done in the subroutine peep(). Optimizations performed at this stage
1395 are subject to the same restrictions as in the pass 2.
1399 This is a listing of functions, macros, flags, and variables that may be
1400 useful to extension writers or that may be found while reading other
1411 Clears an array, making it empty. Does not free the memory used by the
1414 void av_clear _((AV* ar));
1418 Pre-extend an array. The C<key> is the index to which the array should be
1421 void av_extend _((AV* ar, I32 key));
1425 Returns the SV at the specified index in the array. The C<key> is the
1426 index. If C<lval> is set then the fetch will be part of a store. Check
1427 that the return value is non-null before dereferencing it to a C<SV*>.
1429 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1430 information on how to use this function on tied arrays.
1432 SV** av_fetch _((AV* ar, I32 key, I32 lval));
1436 Returns the highest index in the array. Returns -1 if the array is empty.
1438 I32 av_len _((AV* ar));
1442 Creates a new AV and populates it with a list of SVs. The SVs are copied
1443 into the array, so they may be freed after the call to av_make. The new AV
1444 will have a reference count of 1.
1446 AV* av_make _((I32 size, SV** svp));
1450 Pops an SV off the end of the array. Returns C<&sv_undef> if the array is
1453 SV* av_pop _((AV* ar));
1457 Pushes an SV onto the end of the array. The array will grow automatically
1458 to accommodate the addition.
1460 void av_push _((AV* ar, SV* val));
1464 Shifts an SV off the beginning of the array.
1466 SV* av_shift _((AV* ar));
1470 Stores an SV in an array. The array index is specified as C<key>. The
1471 return value will be NULL if the operation failed or if the value did not
1472 need to be actually stored within the array (as in the case of tied arrays).
1473 Otherwise it can be dereferenced to get the original C<SV*>. Note that the
1474 caller is responsible for suitably incrementing the reference count of C<val>
1475 before the call, and decrementing it if the function returned NULL.
1477 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1478 information on how to use this function on tied arrays.
1480 SV** av_store _((AV* ar, I32 key, SV* val));
1484 Undefines the array. Frees the memory used by the array itself.
1486 void av_undef _((AV* ar));
1490 Unshift the given number of C<undef> values onto the beginning of the
1491 array. The array will grow automatically to accommodate the addition.
1492 You must then use C<av_store> to assign values to these new elements.
1494 void av_unshift _((AV* ar, I32 num));
1498 Variable which is setup by C<xsubpp> to indicate the class name for a C++ XS
1499 constructor. This is always a C<char*>. See C<THIS> and
1500 L<perlxs/"Using XS With C++">.
1504 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<memcpy> function. The C<s> is the
1505 source, C<d> is the destination, C<n> is the number of items, and C<t> is
1506 the type. May fail on overlapping copies. See also C<Move>.
1508 (void) Copy( s, d, n, t );
1512 This is the XSUB-writer's interface to Perl's C<die> function. Use this
1513 function the same way you use the C C<printf> function. See C<warn>.
1517 Returns the stash of the CV.
1519 HV * CvSTASH( SV* sv )
1523 When Perl is run in debugging mode, with the B<-d> switch, this SV is a
1524 boolean which indicates whether subs are being single-stepped.
1525 Single-stepping is automatically turned on after every step. This is the C
1526 variable which corresponds to Perl's $DB::single variable. See C<DBsub>.
1530 When Perl is run in debugging mode, with the B<-d> switch, this GV contains
1531 the SV which holds the name of the sub being debugged. This is the C
1532 variable which corresponds to Perl's $DB::sub variable. See C<DBsingle>.
1533 The sub name can be found by
1535 SvPV( GvSV( DBsub ), na )
1539 Trace variable used when Perl is run in debugging mode, with the B<-d>
1540 switch. This is the C variable which corresponds to Perl's $DB::trace
1541 variable. See C<DBsingle>.
1545 Declare a stack marker variable, C<mark>, for the XSUB. See C<MARK> and
1550 Saves the original stack mark for the XSUB. See C<ORIGMARK>.
1554 The C variable which corresponds to Perl's $^W warning variable.
1558 Declares a stack pointer variable, C<sp>, for the XSUB. See C<SP>.
1562 Sets up stack and mark pointers for an XSUB, calling dSP and dMARK. This is
1563 usually handled automatically by C<xsubpp>. Declares the C<items> variable
1564 to indicate the number of items on the stack.
1568 Sets up the C<ix> variable for an XSUB which has aliases. This is usually
1569 handled automatically by C<xsubpp>.
1573 Opening bracket on a callback. See C<LEAVE> and L<perlcall>.
1579 Used to extend the argument stack for an XSUB's return values.
1581 EXTEND( sp, int x );
1585 Closing bracket for temporaries on a callback. See C<SAVETMPS> and
1592 Used to indicate array context. See C<GIMME_V>, C<GIMME> and L<perlcall>.
1596 Indicates that arguments returned from a callback should be discarded. See
1601 Used to force a Perl C<eval> wrapper around a callback. See L<perlcall>.
1605 A backward-compatible version of C<GIMME_V> which can only return
1606 C<G_SCALAR> or C<G_ARRAY>; in a void context, it returns C<G_SCALAR>.
1610 The XSUB-writer's equivalent to Perl's C<wantarray>. Returns
1611 C<G_VOID>, C<G_SCALAR> or C<G_ARRAY> for void, scalar or array
1612 context, respectively.
1616 Indicates that no arguments are being sent to a callback. See L<perlcall>.
1620 Used to indicate scalar context. See C<GIMME_V>, C<GIMME>, and L<perlcall>.
1624 Used to indicate void context. See C<GIMME_V> and L<perlcall>.
1628 Returns the glob with the given C<name> and a defined subroutine or
1629 C<NULL>. The glob lives in the given C<stash>, or in the stashes
1630 accessable via @ISA and @<UNIVERSAL>.
1632 The argument C<level> should be either 0 or -1. If C<level==0>, as a
1633 side-effect creates a glob with the given C<name> in the given
1634 C<stash> which in the case of success contains an alias for the
1635 subroutine, and sets up caching info for this glob. Similarly for all
1636 the searched stashes.
1638 This function grants C<"SUPER"> token as a postfix of the stash name.
1640 The GV returned from C<gv_fetchmeth> may be a method cache entry,
1641 which is not visible to Perl code. So when calling C<perl_call_sv>,
1642 you should not use the GV directly; instead, you should use the
1643 method's CV, which can be obtained from the GV with the C<GvCV> macro.
1645 GV* gv_fetchmeth _((HV* stash, char* name, STRLEN len, I32 level));
1647 =item gv_fetchmethod
1649 =item gv_fetchmethod_autoload
1651 Returns the glob which contains the subroutine to call to invoke the
1652 method on the C<stash>. In fact in the presense of autoloading this may
1653 be the glob for "AUTOLOAD". In this case the corresponding variable
1654 $AUTOLOAD is already setup.
1656 The third parameter of C<gv_fetchmethod_autoload> determines whether AUTOLOAD
1657 lookup is performed if the given method is not present: non-zero means
1658 yes, look for AUTOLOAD; zero means no, don't look for AUTOLOAD. Calling
1659 C<gv_fetchmethod> is equivalent to calling C<gv_fetchmethod_autoload> with a
1660 non-zero C<autoload> parameter.
1662 These functions grant C<"SUPER"> token as a prefix of the method name.
1664 Note that if you want to keep the returned glob for a long time, you
1665 need to check for it being "AUTOLOAD", since at the later time the call
1666 may load a different subroutine due to $AUTOLOAD changing its value.
1667 Use the glob created via a side effect to do this.
1669 These functions have the same side-effects and as C<gv_fetchmeth> with
1670 C<level==0>. C<name> should be writable if contains C<':'> or C<'\''>.
1671 The warning against passing the GV returned by C<gv_fetchmeth> to
1672 C<perl_call_sv> apply equally to these functions.
1674 GV* gv_fetchmethod _((HV* stash, char* name));
1675 GV* gv_fetchmethod_autoload _((HV* stash, char* name,
1680 Returns a pointer to the stash for a specified package. If C<create> is set
1681 then the package will be created if it does not already exist. If C<create>
1682 is not set and the package does not exist then NULL is returned.
1684 HV* gv_stashpv _((char* name, I32 create));
1688 Returns a pointer to the stash for a specified package. See C<gv_stashpv>.
1690 HV* gv_stashsv _((SV* sv, I32 create));
1694 Return the SV from the GV.
1698 This flag, used in the length slot of hash entries and magic
1699 structures, specifies the structure contains a C<SV*> pointer where a
1700 C<char*> pointer is to be expected. (For information only--not to be used).
1704 Returns the computed hash (type C<U32>) stored in the hash entry.
1710 Returns the actual pointer stored in the key slot of the hash entry.
1711 The pointer may be either C<char*> or C<SV*>, depending on the value of
1712 C<HeKLEN()>. Can be assigned to. The C<HePV()> or C<HeSVKEY()> macros
1713 are usually preferable for finding the value of a key.
1719 If this is negative, and amounts to C<HEf_SVKEY>, it indicates the entry
1720 holds an C<SV*> key. Otherwise, holds the actual length of the key.
1721 Can be assigned to. The C<HePV()> macro is usually preferable for finding
1728 Returns the key slot of the hash entry as a C<char*> value, doing any
1729 necessary dereferencing of possibly C<SV*> keys. The length of
1730 the string is placed in C<len> (this is a macro, so do I<not> use
1731 C<&len>). If you do not care about what the length of the key is,
1732 you may use the global variable C<na>. Remember though, that hash
1733 keys in perl are free to contain embedded nulls, so using C<strlen()>
1734 or similar is not a good way to find the length of hash keys.
1735 This is very similar to the C<SvPV()> macro described elsewhere in
1738 HePV(HE* he, STRLEN len)
1742 Returns the key as an C<SV*>, or C<Nullsv> if the hash entry
1743 does not contain an C<SV*> key.
1749 Returns the key as an C<SV*>. Will create and return a temporary
1750 mortal C<SV*> if the hash entry contains only a C<char*> key.
1752 HeSVKEY_force(HE* he)
1756 Sets the key to a given C<SV*>, taking care to set the appropriate flags
1757 to indicate the presence of an C<SV*> key, and returns the same C<SV*>.
1759 HeSVKEY_set(HE* he, SV* sv)
1763 Returns the value slot (type C<SV*>) stored in the hash entry.
1769 Clears a hash, making it empty.
1771 void hv_clear _((HV* tb));
1773 =item hv_delayfree_ent
1775 Releases a hash entry, such as while iterating though the hash, but
1776 delays actual freeing of key and value until the end of the current
1777 statement (or thereabouts) with C<sv_2mortal>. See C<hv_iternext>
1780 void hv_delayfree_ent _((HV* hv, HE* entry));
1784 Deletes a key/value pair in the hash. The value SV is removed from the hash
1785 and returned to the caller. The C<klen> is the length of the key. The
1786 C<flags> value will normally be zero; if set to G_DISCARD then NULL will be
1789 SV* hv_delete _((HV* tb, char* key, U32 klen, I32 flags));
1793 Deletes a key/value pair in the hash. The value SV is removed from the hash
1794 and returned to the caller. The C<flags> value will normally be zero; if set
1795 to G_DISCARD then NULL will be returned. C<hash> can be a valid precomputed
1796 hash value, or 0 to ask for it to be computed.
1798 SV* hv_delete_ent _((HV* tb, SV* key, I32 flags, U32 hash));
1802 Returns a boolean indicating whether the specified hash key exists. The
1803 C<klen> is the length of the key.
1805 bool hv_exists _((HV* tb, char* key, U32 klen));
1809 Returns a boolean indicating whether the specified hash key exists. C<hash>
1810 can be a valid precomputed hash value, or 0 to ask for it to be computed.
1812 bool hv_exists_ent _((HV* tb, SV* key, U32 hash));
1816 Returns the SV which corresponds to the specified key in the hash. The
1817 C<klen> is the length of the key. If C<lval> is set then the fetch will be
1818 part of a store. Check that the return value is non-null before
1819 dereferencing it to a C<SV*>.
1821 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1822 information on how to use this function on tied hashes.
1824 SV** hv_fetch _((HV* tb, char* key, U32 klen, I32 lval));
1828 Returns the hash entry which corresponds to the specified key in the hash.
1829 C<hash> must be a valid precomputed hash number for the given C<key>, or
1830 0 if you want the function to compute it. IF C<lval> is set then the
1831 fetch will be part of a store. Make sure the return value is non-null
1832 before accessing it. The return value when C<tb> is a tied hash
1833 is a pointer to a static location, so be sure to make a copy of the
1834 structure if you need to store it somewhere.
1836 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1837 information on how to use this function on tied hashes.
1839 HE* hv_fetch_ent _((HV* tb, SV* key, I32 lval, U32 hash));
1843 Releases a hash entry, such as while iterating though the hash. See
1844 C<hv_iternext> and C<hv_delayfree_ent>.
1846 void hv_free_ent _((HV* hv, HE* entry));
1850 Prepares a starting point to traverse a hash table.
1852 I32 hv_iterinit _((HV* tb));
1856 Returns the key from the current position of the hash iterator. See
1859 char* hv_iterkey _((HE* entry, I32* retlen));
1863 Returns the key as an C<SV*> from the current position of the hash
1864 iterator. The return value will always be a mortal copy of the
1865 key. Also see C<hv_iterinit>.
1867 SV* hv_iterkeysv _((HE* entry));
1871 Returns entries from a hash iterator. See C<hv_iterinit>.
1873 HE* hv_iternext _((HV* tb));
1877 Performs an C<hv_iternext>, C<hv_iterkey>, and C<hv_iterval> in one
1880 SV * hv_iternextsv _((HV* hv, char** key, I32* retlen));
1884 Returns the value from the current position of the hash iterator. See
1887 SV* hv_iterval _((HV* tb, HE* entry));
1891 Adds magic to a hash. See C<sv_magic>.
1893 void hv_magic _((HV* hv, GV* gv, int how));
1897 Returns the package name of a stash. See C<SvSTASH>, C<CvSTASH>.
1899 char *HvNAME (HV* stash)
1903 Stores an SV in a hash. The hash key is specified as C<key> and C<klen> is
1904 the length of the key. The C<hash> parameter is the precomputed hash
1905 value; if it is zero then Perl will compute it. The return value will be
1906 NULL if the operation failed or if the value did not need to be actually
1907 stored within the hash (as in the case of tied hashes). Otherwise it can
1908 be dereferenced to get the original C<SV*>. Note that the caller is
1909 responsible for suitably incrementing the reference count of C<val>
1910 before the call, and decrementing it if the function returned NULL.
1912 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1913 information on how to use this function on tied hashes.
1915 SV** hv_store _((HV* tb, char* key, U32 klen, SV* val, U32 hash));
1919 Stores C<val> in a hash. The hash key is specified as C<key>. The C<hash>
1920 parameter is the precomputed hash value; if it is zero then Perl will
1921 compute it. The return value is the new hash entry so created. It will be
1922 NULL if the operation failed or if the value did not need to be actually
1923 stored within the hash (as in the case of tied hashes). Otherwise the
1924 contents of the return value can be accessed using the C<He???> macros
1925 described here. Note that the caller is responsible for suitably
1926 incrementing the reference count of C<val> before the call, and decrementing
1927 it if the function returned NULL.
1929 See L<Understanding the Magic of Tied Hashes and Arrays> for more
1930 information on how to use this function on tied hashes.
1932 HE* hv_store_ent _((HV* tb, SV* key, SV* val, U32 hash));
1938 void hv_undef _((HV* tb));
1942 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is an ascii alphanumeric
1945 int isALNUM (char c)
1949 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is an ascii alphabetic
1952 int isALPHA (char c)
1956 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is an ascii digit.
1958 int isDIGIT (char c)
1962 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is a lowercase character.
1964 int isLOWER (char c)
1968 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is whitespace.
1970 int isSPACE (char c)
1974 Returns a boolean indicating whether the C C<char> is an uppercase character.
1976 int isUPPER (char c)
1980 Variable which is setup by C<xsubpp> to indicate the number of items on the
1981 stack. See L<perlxs/"Variable-length Parameter Lists">.
1985 Variable which is setup by C<xsubpp> to indicate which of an XSUB's aliases
1986 was used to invoke it. See L<perlxs/"The ALIAS: Keyword">.
1990 Closing bracket on a callback. See C<ENTER> and L<perlcall>.
1996 Stack marker variable for the XSUB. See C<dMARK>.
2000 Clear something magical that the SV represents. See C<sv_magic>.
2002 int mg_clear _((SV* sv));
2006 Copies the magic from one SV to another. See C<sv_magic>.
2008 int mg_copy _((SV *, SV *, char *, STRLEN));
2012 Finds the magic pointer for type matching the SV. See C<sv_magic>.
2014 MAGIC* mg_find _((SV* sv, int type));
2018 Free any magic storage used by the SV. See C<sv_magic>.
2020 int mg_free _((SV* sv));
2024 Do magic after a value is retrieved from the SV. See C<sv_magic>.
2026 int mg_get _((SV* sv));
2030 Report on the SV's length. See C<sv_magic>.
2032 U32 mg_len _((SV* sv));
2036 Turns on the magical status of an SV. See C<sv_magic>.
2038 void mg_magical _((SV* sv));
2042 Do magic after a value is assigned to the SV. See C<sv_magic>.
2044 int mg_set _((SV* sv));
2048 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<memmove> function. The C<s> is the
2049 source, C<d> is the destination, C<n> is the number of items, and C<t> is
2050 the type. Can do overlapping moves. See also C<Copy>.
2052 (void) Move( s, d, n, t );
2056 A variable which may be used with C<SvPV> to tell Perl to calculate the
2061 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<malloc> function.
2063 void * New( x, void *ptr, int size, type )
2067 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<malloc> function, with cast.
2069 void * Newc( x, void *ptr, int size, type, cast )
2073 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<malloc> function. The allocated
2074 memory is zeroed with C<memzero>.
2076 void * Newz( x, void *ptr, int size, type )
2080 Creates a new AV. The reference count is set to 1.
2082 AV* newAV _((void));
2086 Creates a new HV. The reference count is set to 1.
2088 HV* newHV _((void));
2092 Creates an RV wrapper for an SV. The reference count for the original SV is
2095 SV* newRV_inc _((SV* ref));
2097 For historical reasons, "newRV" is a synonym for "newRV_inc".
2101 Creates an RV wrapper for an SV. The reference count for the original
2102 SV is B<not> incremented.
2104 SV* newRV_noinc _((SV* ref));
2108 Creates a new SV. The C<len> parameter indicates the number of bytes of
2109 preallocated string space the SV should have. The reference count for the
2112 SV* newSV _((STRLEN len));
2116 Creates a new SV and copies an integer into it. The reference count for the
2119 SV* newSViv _((IV i));
2123 Creates a new SV and copies a double into it. The reference count for the
2126 SV* newSVnv _((NV i));
2130 Creates a new SV and copies a string into it. The reference count for the
2131 SV is set to 1. If C<len> is zero then Perl will compute the length.
2133 SV* newSVpv _((char* s, STRLEN len));
2137 Creates a new SV for the RV, C<rv>, to point to. If C<rv> is not an RV then
2138 it will be upgraded to one. If C<classname> is non-null then the new SV will
2139 be blessed in the specified package. The new SV is returned and its
2140 reference count is 1.
2142 SV* newSVrv _((SV* rv, char* classname));
2146 Creates a new SV which is an exact duplicate of the original SV.
2148 SV* newSVsv _((SV* old));
2152 Used by C<xsubpp> to hook up XSUBs as Perl subs.
2156 Used by C<xsubpp> to hook up XSUBs as Perl subs. Adds Perl prototypes to
2165 Null character pointer.
2181 The original stack mark for the XSUB. See C<dORIGMARK>.
2185 Allocates a new Perl interpreter. See L<perlembed>.
2187 =item perl_call_argv
2189 Performs a callback to the specified Perl sub. See L<perlcall>.
2191 I32 perl_call_argv _((char* subname, I32 flags, char** argv));
2193 =item perl_call_method
2195 Performs a callback to the specified Perl method. The blessed object must
2196 be on the stack. See L<perlcall>.
2198 I32 perl_call_method _((char* methname, I32 flags));
2202 Performs a callback to the specified Perl sub. See L<perlcall>.
2204 I32 perl_call_pv _((char* subname, I32 flags));
2208 Performs a callback to the Perl sub whose name is in the SV. See
2211 I32 perl_call_sv _((SV* sv, I32 flags));
2213 =item perl_construct
2215 Initializes a new Perl interpreter. See L<perlembed>.
2219 Shuts down a Perl interpreter. See L<perlembed>.
2223 Tells Perl to C<eval> the string in the SV.
2225 I32 perl_eval_sv _((SV* sv, I32 flags));
2229 Tells Perl to C<eval> the given string and return an SV* result.
2231 SV* perl_eval_pv _((char* p, I32 croak_on_error));
2235 Releases a Perl interpreter. See L<perlembed>.
2239 Returns the AV of the specified Perl array. If C<create> is set and the
2240 Perl variable does not exist then it will be created. If C<create> is not
2241 set and the variable does not exist then NULL is returned.
2243 AV* perl_get_av _((char* name, I32 create));
2247 Returns the CV of the specified Perl sub. If C<create> is set and the Perl
2248 variable does not exist then it will be created. If C<create> is not
2249 set and the variable does not exist then NULL is returned.
2251 CV* perl_get_cv _((char* name, I32 create));
2255 Returns the HV of the specified Perl hash. If C<create> is set and the Perl
2256 variable does not exist then it will be created. If C<create> is not
2257 set and the variable does not exist then NULL is returned.
2259 HV* perl_get_hv _((char* name, I32 create));
2263 Returns the SV of the specified Perl scalar. If C<create> is set and the
2264 Perl variable does not exist then it will be created. If C<create> is not
2265 set and the variable does not exist then NULL is returned.
2267 SV* perl_get_sv _((char* name, I32 create));
2271 Tells a Perl interpreter to parse a Perl script. See L<perlembed>.
2273 =item perl_require_pv
2275 Tells Perl to C<require> a module.
2277 void perl_require_pv _((char* pv));
2281 Tells a Perl interpreter to run. See L<perlembed>.
2285 Pops an integer off the stack.
2291 Pops a long off the stack.
2297 Pops a string off the stack.
2303 Pops a double off the stack.
2309 Pops an SV off the stack.
2315 Opening bracket for arguments on a callback. See C<PUTBACK> and L<perlcall>.
2321 Push an integer onto the stack. The stack must have room for this element.
2328 Push a double onto the stack. The stack must have room for this element.
2335 Push a string onto the stack. The stack must have room for this element.
2336 The C<len> indicates the length of the string. See C<XPUSHp>.
2338 PUSHp(char *c, int len )
2342 Push an SV onto the stack. The stack must have room for this element. See
2349 Closing bracket for XSUB arguments. This is usually handled by C<xsubpp>.
2350 See C<PUSHMARK> and L<perlcall> for other uses.
2356 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<realloc> function.
2358 void * Renew( void *ptr, int size, type )
2362 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<realloc> function, with cast.
2364 void * Renewc( void *ptr, int size, type, cast )
2368 Variable which is setup by C<xsubpp> to hold the return value for an XSUB.
2369 This is always the proper type for the XSUB.
2370 See L<perlxs/"The RETVAL Variable">.
2374 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<free> function.
2378 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<malloc> function.
2382 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<realloc> function.
2386 Copy a string to a safe spot. This does not use an SV.
2388 char* savepv _((char* sv));
2392 Copy a string to a safe spot. The C<len> indicates number of bytes to
2393 copy. This does not use an SV.
2395 char* savepvn _((char* sv, I32 len));
2399 Opening bracket for temporaries on a callback. See C<FREETMPS> and
2406 Stack pointer. This is usually handled by C<xsubpp>. See C<dSP> and
2411 Refetch the stack pointer. Used after a callback. See L<perlcall>.
2417 Used to access elements on the XSUB's stack.
2423 Test two strings to see if they are equal. Returns true or false.
2425 int strEQ( char *s1, char *s2 )
2429 Test two strings to see if the first, C<s1>, is greater than or equal to the
2430 second, C<s2>. Returns true or false.
2432 int strGE( char *s1, char *s2 )
2436 Test two strings to see if the first, C<s1>, is greater than the second,
2437 C<s2>. Returns true or false.
2439 int strGT( char *s1, char *s2 )
2443 Test two strings to see if the first, C<s1>, is less than or equal to the
2444 second, C<s2>. Returns true or false.
2446 int strLE( char *s1, char *s2 )
2450 Test two strings to see if the first, C<s1>, is less than the second,
2451 C<s2>. Returns true or false.
2453 int strLT( char *s1, char *s2 )
2457 Test two strings to see if they are different. Returns true or false.
2459 int strNE( char *s1, char *s2 )
2463 Test two strings to see if they are equal. The C<len> parameter indicates
2464 the number of bytes to compare. Returns true or false.
2466 int strnEQ( char *s1, char *s2 )
2470 Test two strings to see if they are different. The C<len> parameter
2471 indicates the number of bytes to compare. Returns true or false.
2473 int strnNE( char *s1, char *s2, int len )
2477 Marks an SV as mortal. The SV will be destroyed when the current context
2480 SV* sv_2mortal _((SV* sv));
2484 Blesses an SV into a specified package. The SV must be an RV. The package
2485 must be designated by its stash (see C<gv_stashpv()>). The reference count
2486 of the SV is unaffected.
2488 SV* sv_bless _((SV* sv, HV* stash));
2492 Concatenates the string onto the end of the string which is in the SV.
2494 void sv_catpv _((SV* sv, char* ptr));
2498 Concatenates the string onto the end of the string which is in the SV. The
2499 C<len> indicates number of bytes to copy.
2501 void sv_catpvn _((SV* sv, char* ptr, STRLEN len));
2505 Processes its arguments like C<sprintf> and appends the formatted output
2508 void sv_catpvf _((SV* sv, const char* pat, ...));
2512 Concatenates the string from SV C<ssv> onto the end of the string in SV
2515 void sv_catsv _((SV* dsv, SV* ssv));
2519 Compares the strings in two SVs. Returns -1, 0, or 1 indicating whether the
2520 string in C<sv1> is less than, equal to, or greater than the string in
2523 I32 sv_cmp _((SV* sv1, SV* sv2));
2527 Returns the length of the string which is in the SV. See C<SvLEN>.
2533 Set the length of the string which is in the SV. See C<SvCUR>.
2535 SvCUR_set (SV* sv, int val )
2539 Auto-decrement of the value in the SV.
2541 void sv_dec _((SV* sv));
2545 Returns a pointer to the last character in the string which is in the SV.
2546 See C<SvCUR>. Access the character as
2552 Returns a boolean indicating whether the strings in the two SVs are
2555 I32 sv_eq _((SV* sv1, SV* sv2));
2559 Expands the character buffer in the SV. Calls C<sv_grow> to perform the
2560 expansion if necessary. Returns a pointer to the character buffer.
2562 char * SvGROW( SV* sv, int len )
2566 Expands the character buffer in the SV. This will use C<sv_unref> and will
2567 upgrade the SV to C<SVt_PV>. Returns a pointer to the character buffer.
2572 Auto-increment of the value in the SV.
2574 void sv_inc _((SV* sv));
2578 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains an integer.
2584 Unsets the IV status of an SV.
2590 Tells an SV that it is an integer.
2596 Tells an SV that it is an integer and disables all other OK bits.
2602 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains an integer. Checks the
2603 B<private> setting. Use C<SvIOK>.
2609 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV is blessed into the specified
2610 class. This does not know how to check for subtype, so it doesn't work in
2611 an inheritance relationship.
2613 int sv_isa _((SV* sv, char* name));
2617 Returns the integer which is in the SV.
2623 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV is an RV pointing to a blessed
2624 object. If the SV is not an RV, or if the object is not blessed, then this
2627 int sv_isobject _((SV* sv));
2631 Returns the integer which is stored in the SV.
2637 Returns the size of the string buffer in the SV. See C<SvCUR>.
2643 Returns the length of the string in the SV. Use C<SvCUR>.
2645 STRLEN sv_len _((SV* sv));
2649 Adds magic to an SV.
2651 void sv_magic _((SV* sv, SV* obj, int how, char* name, I32 namlen));
2655 Creates a new SV which is a copy of the original SV. The new SV is marked
2658 SV* sv_mortalcopy _((SV* oldsv));
2662 Returns a boolean indicating whether the value is an SV.
2668 Creates a new SV which is mortal. The reference count of the SV is set to 1.
2670 SV* sv_newmortal _((void));
2674 This is the C<false> SV. See C<sv_yes>. Always refer to this as C<&sv_no>.
2678 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a number, integer or
2685 Unsets the NV/IV status of an SV.
2691 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a number, integer or
2692 double. Checks the B<private> setting. Use C<SvNIOK>.
2694 int SvNIOKp (SV* SV)
2698 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a double.
2704 Unsets the NV status of an SV.
2710 Tells an SV that it is a double.
2716 Tells an SV that it is a double and disables all other OK bits.
2722 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a double. Checks the
2723 B<private> setting. Use C<SvNOK>.
2729 Returns the double which is stored in the SV.
2731 double SvNV (SV* sv);
2735 Returns the double which is stored in the SV.
2737 double SvNVX (SV* sv);
2741 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a character string.
2747 Unsets the PV status of an SV.
2753 Tells an SV that it is a string.
2759 Tells an SV that it is a string and disables all other OK bits.
2765 Returns a boolean indicating whether the SV contains a character string.
2766 Checks the B<private> setting. Use C<SvPOK>.
2772 Returns a pointer to the string in the SV, or a stringified form of the SV
2773 if the SV does not contain a string. If C<len> is C<na> then Perl will
2774 handle the length on its own.
2776 char * SvPV (SV* sv, int len )
2780 Returns a pointer to the string in the SV. The SV must contain a string.
2782 char * SvPVX (SV* sv)
2786 Returns the value of the object's reference count.
2788 int SvREFCNT (SV* sv);
2792 Decrements the reference count of the given SV.
2794 void SvREFCNT_dec (SV* sv)
2798 Increments the reference count of the given SV.
2800 void SvREFCNT_inc (SV* sv)
2804 Tests if the SV is an RV.
2810 Unsets the RV status of an SV.
2816 Tells an SV that it is an RV.
2822 Dereferences an RV to return the SV.
2828 Copies an integer into the given SV.
2830 void sv_setiv _((SV* sv, IV num));
2834 Copies a double into the given SV.
2836 void sv_setnv _((SV* sv, double num));
2840 Copies a string into an SV. The string must be null-terminated.
2842 void sv_setpv _((SV* sv, char* ptr));
2846 Copies a string into an SV. The C<len> parameter indicates the number of
2849 void sv_setpvn _((SV* sv, char* ptr, STRLEN len));
2853 Processes its arguments like C<sprintf> and sets an SV to the formatted
2856 void sv_setpvf _((SV* sv, const char* pat, ...));
2860 Copies an integer into a new SV, optionally blessing the SV. The C<rv>
2861 argument will be upgraded to an RV. That RV will be modified to point to
2862 the new SV. The C<classname> argument indicates the package for the
2863 blessing. Set C<classname> to C<Nullch> to avoid the blessing. The new SV
2864 will be returned and will have a reference count of 1.
2866 SV* sv_setref_iv _((SV *rv, char *classname, IV iv));
2870 Copies a double into a new SV, optionally blessing the SV. The C<rv>
2871 argument will be upgraded to an RV. That RV will be modified to point to
2872 the new SV. The C<classname> argument indicates the package for the
2873 blessing. Set C<classname> to C<Nullch> to avoid the blessing. The new SV
2874 will be returned and will have a reference count of 1.
2876 SV* sv_setref_nv _((SV *rv, char *classname, double nv));
2880 Copies a pointer into a new SV, optionally blessing the SV. The C<rv>
2881 argument will be upgraded to an RV. That RV will be modified to point to
2882 the new SV. If the C<pv> argument is NULL then C<sv_undef> will be placed
2883 into the SV. The C<classname> argument indicates the package for the
2884 blessing. Set C<classname> to C<Nullch> to avoid the blessing. The new SV
2885 will be returned and will have a reference count of 1.
2887 SV* sv_setref_pv _((SV *rv, char *classname, void* pv));
2889 Do not use with integral Perl types such as HV, AV, SV, CV, because those
2890 objects will become corrupted by the pointer copy process.
2892 Note that C<sv_setref_pvn> copies the string while this copies the pointer.
2896 Copies a string into a new SV, optionally blessing the SV. The length of the
2897 string must be specified with C<n>. The C<rv> argument will be upgraded to
2898 an RV. That RV will be modified to point to the new SV. The C<classname>
2899 argument indicates the package for the blessing. Set C<classname> to
2900 C<Nullch> to avoid the blessing. The new SV will be returned and will have
2901 a reference count of 1.
2903 SV* sv_setref_pvn _((SV *rv, char *classname, char* pv, I32 n));
2905 Note that C<sv_setref_pv> copies the pointer while this copies the string.
2909 Copies the contents of the source SV C<ssv> into the destination SV C<dsv>.
2910 The source SV may be destroyed if it is mortal.
2912 void sv_setsv _((SV* dsv, SV* ssv));
2916 Returns the stash of the SV.
2918 HV * SvSTASH (SV* sv)
2922 Integer type flag for scalars. See C<svtype>.
2926 Pointer type flag for scalars. See C<svtype>.
2930 Type flag for arrays. See C<svtype>.
2934 Type flag for code refs. See C<svtype>.
2938 Type flag for hashes. See C<svtype>.
2942 Type flag for blessed scalars. See C<svtype>.
2946 Double type flag for scalars. See C<svtype>.
2950 Returns a boolean indicating whether Perl would evaluate the SV as true or
2951 false, defined or undefined.
2957 Returns the type of the SV. See C<svtype>.
2959 svtype SvTYPE (SV* sv)
2963 An enum of flags for Perl types. These are found in the file B<sv.h> in the
2964 C<svtype> enum. Test these flags with the C<SvTYPE> macro.
2968 Used to upgrade an SV to a more complex form. Uses C<sv_upgrade> to perform
2969 the upgrade if necessary. See C<svtype>.
2971 bool SvUPGRADE _((SV* sv, svtype mt));
2975 Upgrade an SV to a more complex form. Use C<SvUPGRADE>. See C<svtype>.
2979 This is the C<undef> SV. Always refer to this as C<&sv_undef>.
2983 Unsets the RV status of the SV, and decrements the reference count of
2984 whatever was being referenced by the RV. This can almost be thought of
2985 as a reversal of C<newSVrv>. See C<SvROK_off>.
2987 void sv_unref _((SV* sv));
2991 Tells an SV to use C<ptr> to find its string value. Normally the string is
2992 stored inside the SV but sv_usepvn allows the SV to use an outside string.
2993 The C<ptr> should point to memory that was allocated by C<malloc>. The
2994 string length, C<len>, must be supplied. This function will realloc the
2995 memory pointed to by C<ptr>, so that pointer should not be freed or used by
2996 the programmer after giving it to sv_usepvn.
2998 void sv_usepvn _((SV* sv, char* ptr, STRLEN len));
3002 This is the C<true> SV. See C<sv_no>. Always refer to this as C<&sv_yes>.
3006 Variable which is setup by C<xsubpp> to designate the object in a C++ XSUB.
3007 This is always the proper type for the C++ object. See C<CLASS> and
3008 L<perlxs/"Using XS With C++">.
3012 Converts the specified character to lowercase.
3014 int toLOWER (char c)
3018 Converts the specified character to uppercase.
3020 int toUPPER (char c)
3024 This is the XSUB-writer's interface to Perl's C<warn> function. Use this
3025 function the same way you use the C C<printf> function. See C<croak()>.
3029 Push an integer onto the stack, extending the stack if necessary. See
3036 Push a double onto the stack, extending the stack if necessary. See
3043 Push a string onto the stack, extending the stack if necessary. The C<len>
3044 indicates the length of the string. See C<PUSHp>.
3046 XPUSHp(char *c, int len)
3050 Push an SV onto the stack, extending the stack if necessary. See C<PUSHs>.
3056 Macro to declare an XSUB and its C parameter list. This is handled by
3061 Return from XSUB, indicating number of items on the stack. This is usually
3062 handled by C<xsubpp>.
3066 =item XSRETURN_EMPTY
3068 Return an empty list from an XSUB immediately.
3074 Return an integer from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mIV>.
3080 Return C<&sv_no> from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mNO>.
3086 Return an double from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mNV>.
3092 Return a copy of a string from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mPV>.
3094 XSRETURN_PV(char *v);
3096 =item XSRETURN_UNDEF
3098 Return C<&sv_undef> from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mUNDEF>.
3104 Return C<&sv_yes> from an XSUB immediately. Uses C<XST_mYES>.
3110 Place an integer into the specified position C<i> on the stack. The value is
3111 stored in a new mortal SV.
3113 XST_mIV( int i, IV v );
3117 Place a double into the specified position C<i> on the stack. The value is
3118 stored in a new mortal SV.
3120 XST_mNV( int i, NV v );
3124 Place C<&sv_no> into the specified position C<i> on the stack.
3130 Place a copy of a string into the specified position C<i> on the stack. The
3131 value is stored in a new mortal SV.
3133 XST_mPV( int i, char *v );
3137 Place C<&sv_undef> into the specified position C<i> on the stack.
3139 XST_mUNDEF( int i );
3143 Place C<&sv_yes> into the specified position C<i> on the stack.
3149 The version identifier for an XS module. This is usually handled
3150 automatically by C<ExtUtils::MakeMaker>. See C<XS_VERSION_BOOTCHECK>.
3152 =item XS_VERSION_BOOTCHECK
3154 Macro to verify that a PM module's $VERSION variable matches the XS module's
3155 C<XS_VERSION> variable. This is usually handled automatically by
3156 C<xsubpp>. See L<perlxs/"The VERSIONCHECK: Keyword">.
3160 The XSUB-writer's interface to the C C<memzero> function. The C<d> is the
3161 destination, C<n> is the number of items, and C<t> is the type.
3163 (void) Zero( d, n, t );
3169 Jeff Okamoto <F<okamoto@corp.hp.com>>
3171 With lots of help and suggestions from Dean Roehrich, Malcolm Beattie,
3172 Andreas Koenig, Paul Hudson, Ilya Zakharevich, Paul Marquess, Neil
3173 Bowers, Matthew Green, Tim Bunce, Spider Boardman, Ulrich Pfeifer, and
3176 API Listing by Dean Roehrich <F<roehrich@cray.com>>.
3180 Version 31.8: 1997/5/17