Lowers Term::ReuseAs { source, body=Term::Ctor } under
--alloc=rc to a runtime refcount-1 dispatch. At the reuse-as
site:
%hdr_ptr = getelementptr i8, ptr %src, i64 -8
%refcnt = load i64, ptr %hdr_ptr
%is_one = icmp eq i64 %refcnt, 1
br i1 %is_one, label %reuse, label %fresh
The reuse arm overwrites the source's box in place: stores the
new tag at offset 0 and the new field values at offsets 8, 16,
... — no malloc, no outer drop. The fresh arm allocates a brand-
new box via ailang_rc_alloc, stores tag and fields, then shallow-
dec's the source. Both arms phi-join to the same `ptr` result.
Other allocators (gc, bump) keep 18d.1's identity behaviour
unchanged.
Static shape compatibility is enforced by a new pre-codegen
pass crates/ailang-check/src/reuse_shape.rs. It tracks the
path-resolved ctor of every let-bound and pattern-matched
binder, then checks each Term::ReuseAs site against the body's
ctor. Mismatches emit reuse-as-shape-mismatch with stable
ctx.reason sub-codes (field-count-mismatch, field-type-mismatch,
indeterminate-source-ctor, cross-module-body-ctor, ctor-not-in-
module) and a drop-the-wrapper SuggestedRewrite. Build fails on
mismatch — the structured diagnostic tells the author whether
to fix the shapes or remove the hint.
Field-cleanup design — deliberate scope cut:
The reuse arm does NOT dec the old pointer-typed field values
before overwriting them. Doing so on the canonical fixture
`(reuse-as xs (Cons (+h 1) (map_inc t)))` causes use-after-free:
the recursive map_inc(t) returns t's in-place-rewritten box, so
the "new tail" being stored is the same pointer as the "old
tail". A dec-old-then-store-new schedule would dec the box (to
zero, free), then store the freed pointer.
The root cause is upstream: 18c.4 doesn't yet null-out pattern-
moved field slots, so codegen can't statically distinguish
"old field still owned" from "already moved out". The chosen
trade-off: skip the field dec entirely; pattern-wildcarded
fields (rare in shipping fixtures) leak; pattern-moved fields
are the body's responsibility (consistent with the 18c.4 leak
baseline — Own params still leak today). 18d.2 ships zero
regression vs 18c.4, plus the perf win on the alloc + outer
cascade. Closing the leak is the move-aware-pattern story
queued for 18d.3 / 18e.
Tests:
- e2e reuse_as_demo_under_rc_uses_inplace_rewrite — runs
examples/reuse_as_demo.ail.json under --alloc=rc, asserts
stdout 9 and locks in the IR shape (icmp eq i64 ..., 1; the
reuse arm has no @ailang_rc_alloc call).
- workspace reuse_as_shape_mismatch_is_reported_on_cons_to_nil
— happy negative for the new diagnostic.
- 3 unit tests in reuse_shape::tests covering same-ctor-clean,
cons-to-nil-reject, and indeterminate-source-ctor-reject.
Test deltas: e2e 56, ailang-check unit 46 -> 49 (+3), workspace
9 -> 10 (+1). cargo test --workspace green. Hand-verified
--alloc=rc binary on reuse_as_demo: stdout 9, exit 0.
Brummel
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