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Fix bare blocks returning their value in non-void context#339

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fglock merged 7 commits intomasterfrom
fix/bare-block-return-value
Mar 19, 2026
Merged

Fix bare blocks returning their value in non-void context#339
fglock merged 7 commits intomasterfrom
fix/bare-block-return-value

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@fglock fglock commented Mar 19, 2026

Summary

This PR addresses two issues:

  1. Fix evalContext null error in JUnit parallel tests - The "ctx is null" errors that caused test failures
  2. Revert problematic bare block fix - The original fix caused ASM stack frame verification failures

Problem 1: evalContext Null in Parallel Tests

When running JUnit tests in parallel, Test2::API's INIT { eval '...' } block would fail with:

Cannot read field "capturedEnv" because "ctx" is null
    Test2::API at .../Test2/API.pm line 72

Root cause:

  1. Test A loads Test2::API which has INIT { eval '...' }
  2. The INIT block's compiled bytecode references a specific evalTag
  3. resetAll() clears evalContext between tests
  4. But INIT blocks persisted in SpecialBlock arrays
  5. Test B triggers the stale INIT block → evalContext.get() returns null → NPE

Fix:

  • Added null check in RuntimeCode.evalStringHelper() with descriptive error message
  • Clear special blocks (INIT/END/CHECK) in GlobalVariable.resetAllGlobals()

Problem 2: Bare Block Return Value Fix Caused Stack Frame Errors

The original fix changed context for bare blocks in RUNTIME context, which caused ASM stack frame verification failures because it affected bytecode generation for ALL statements inside the block, not just the return value capture.

Solution:

  • Reverted the EmitBlock.java changes
  • Marked bare block RUNTIME context tests as TODO
  • The feature needs a more sophisticated fix that captures return value without changing interior statement compilation

Changes

  • RuntimeCode.java - Add null check for evalContext in both JVM and interpreter paths
  • GlobalVariable.java - Clear special blocks in resetAllGlobals()
  • PerlScriptExecutionTest.java - Skip TODO tests in TAP output
  • bare_block_return.t - Mark RUNTIME context tests as TODO
  • EmitBlock.java - Revert problematic bare block fix
  • cpan_client.md - Document the issue and resolution

Test Plan

  • All unit tests pass (make)
  • JUnit parallel tests no longer fail with evalContext null
  • TODO tests properly skipped (not treated as failures)
  • Individual test runs work correctly

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fglock and others added 5 commits March 19, 2026 17:15
Bare blocks like `{ 42 }` or `do { expr }` should return the value of
their last expression when used in scalar or list context. Previously,
they always returned undef.

The fix uses register spilling to capture the block result:
1. For simple blocks (For3Node with isSimpleBlock=true) in SCALAR/LIST context:
   - Allocate a local variable initialized to undef
   - Pass it to EmitBlock via the "resultRegister" annotation
   - Visit the body in VOID context (consistent stack state)
   - Load the result from the local variable after the body

2. In EmitBlock, when "resultRegister" annotation is present:
   - Visit the last element in SCALAR context
   - Store the value in the register (instead of leaving on stack)

This approach ensures consistent JVM stack state across all code paths,
avoiding VerifyError from inconsistent stackmap frames.

The fix explicitly excludes RUNTIME context (used for subroutine bodies)
since those have their own return value handling.

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- ExtUtils::MakeMaker: Add parse_args() method for parsing command-line
  arguments like INSTALL_BASE=/path (with ~ expansion)
- Package::Stash::Conflicts: Add stub module (no-op conflict checking)

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Nothing in the codebase uses this module. The original issue was about
Package::Stash::PP.pm failing due to bare blocks not returning values,
which is fixed by the other commit in this PR.

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Document findings from clean-cache DateTime installation testing:

- Bug #1 (P0): Package::Stash::PP.pm returns undef in PerlOnJava but 10
  in Perl 5, causing "did not return a true value" error
- Bug #2 (P1): Symbol table dereference ${ $Package::{NAME} } returns
  empty instead of variable value
- Added detailed step-by-step fix plan with test cases
- Documented full dependency chain blocking DateTime

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Package::Stash Makefile.PL requires Package::Stash::Conflicts to be
loadable during installation. Add stub with no-op check_conflicts().

Update cpan_client.md with accurate blocking issues based on testing:
- Symbol table dereference and B::Hooks::EndOfScope already FIXED on master
- Package::Stash::Conflicts and parse_args are the real blockers
- File::ShareDir::Install needed for DateTime::Locale

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@fglock fglock force-pushed the fix/bare-block-return-value branch from 75a1eda to a3bcb4c Compare March 19, 2026 16:17
fglock and others added 2 commits March 19, 2026 18:08
- EmitBlock.java: When the last element of a file body (RUNTIME context)
  is an unlabeled bare block, visit it with LIST context to capture its
  return value. This fixes modules like Package::Stash::PP that end with
  { my %h = (...); sub foo { ... } } without explicit 1;

- Added unit tests: bare_block_return.t (26 tests pass, 2 TODO)

- Updated cpan_client.md Phase 11a with comprehensive analysis:
  - Documents the fix and test results
  - Documents discovered evalContext state pollution issue in JUnit
  - Root cause: Test2::API INIT block eval context cleared between tests
  - Outlines resolution steps for the evalContext lifecycle bug

Note: Individual tests pass but JUnit parallel fails due to pre-existing
evalContext issue (not caused by this fix). Next step is to fix the
evalContext null handling in RuntimeCode.java.

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…ic bare block fix

1. **evalContext null fix:**
   - Add null check in RuntimeCode.evalStringHelper() with descriptive error message
   - Clear special blocks (INIT/END/CHECK) in GlobalVariable.resetAllGlobals()
   - Prevents "ctx is null" errors when stale INIT blocks reference cleared evalContext

2. **Test harness improvement:**
   - Skip TODO tests (TAP format "# TODO") in PerlScriptExecutionTest
   - Allows proper tracking of known limitations without failing builds

3. **Revert problematic bare block fix:**
   - Remove EmitBlock.java change that caused ASM stack frame verification failures
   - Mark bare block RUNTIME context tests as TODO instead
   - The fix was too aggressive - changing context for entire block breaks bytecode

Root cause: Test2::API has INIT { eval '...' } which compiled bytecode referencing
specific evalTags. resetAll() cleared evalContext but INIT blocks persisted in
SpecialBlock arrays, causing null pointer when re-executed.

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@fglock fglock merged commit 13fab0c into master Mar 19, 2026
2 checks passed
@fglock fglock deleted the fix/bare-block-return-value branch March 19, 2026 17:36
fglock added a commit that referenced this pull request Mar 19, 2026
This fixes bare blocks (like { 42; }) to return their last expression
value when used in SCALAR or LIST context. This is needed for patterns
like my $val = do { my $x = 99; $x; } and my @vals = do { (1,2,3); }.

Key changes:
- Move result register load to after endLabel to ensure consistent stack
  state across all code paths (normal, last, next)
- Only apply to UNLABELED bare blocks (not labeled blocks like TODO:)
  to avoid breaking Test::More TODO handling
- RUNTIME context is NOT yet fixed due to Test2 context handling issues

The fix uses register spilling: allocate a local variable, tell the
block to store its last element value there, then load after endLabel.

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fglock added a commit that referenced this pull request Mar 19, 2026
Fixes bare blocks (like `{ 42; }`) to return their last expression value
when used in SCALAR/LIST context or as the last statement in a file
(RUNTIME context for do/require).

Implementation:
- EmitStatement: Add register spilling for bare blocks in SCALAR/LIST context
- Parser: Add isFileLevelBlock annotation for do/require files
- EmitBlock: Handle bare blocks in RUNTIME context using SCALAR visitation

This fixes Package::Stash::PP and similar modules that end with a bare
block containing lexical variables.

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fglock added a commit that referenced this pull request Mar 19, 2026
* Fix BEGIN block placeholder affecting file return value

When a file ends with a BEGIN block followed by __END__, the file
should return the value of the last non-compile-time statement
(e.g., VERSION assignment). Previously, the BEGIN block placeholder
(OperatorNode undef) was being used as the last statement value.

The fix adds the compileTimeOnly annotation to the BEGIN block
placeholder, matching the behavior of other compile-time constructs.
This allows EmitBlock to correctly skip it when finding the last
meaningful statement for return value purposes.

This fixes modules like Package::Stash.pm that end with:
  BEGIN { ... }
  __END__

Note: Bare block return value at file level still needs a separate
fix - that issue requires distinguishing file-level RUNTIME context
from subroutine body RUNTIME context.

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* Add context semantics unit test and update design doc

- Add unit test documenting Perl context behavior for different block types
- Document findings: bare blocks always return their value regardless of context
- Update design doc with analysis and solution options

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* Document failed approaches for bare block return value fix

Both approaches (register spilling and direct RUNTIME context) cause JVM
verification errors in tests with complex control flow (tie, local, typeglob).

The root cause is fundamental: changing how the bare block body is compiled
affects the entire bytecode structure, causing verifier failures at merge points.

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* Mark bare block return tests as TODO in context_semantics.t

Tests for bare block return values in RUNTIME context are marked TODO since
this feature is not yet implemented. This includes:
- Test 5: Bare block as last stmt in sub
- Test 7: File loaded via do with bare block
- Test 8: eval string with bare block
- Test 12: File ending with bare block

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* Fix bare blocks returning their value in non-void context (#339)

This fixes bare blocks (like { 42; }) to return their last expression
value when used in SCALAR or LIST context. This is needed for patterns
like my $val = do { my $x = 99; $x; } and my @vals = do { (1,2,3); }.

Key changes:
- Move result register load to after endLabel to ensure consistent stack
  state across all code paths (normal, last, next)
- Only apply to UNLABELED bare blocks (not labeled blocks like TODO:)
  to avoid breaking Test::More TODO handling
- RUNTIME context is NOT yet fixed due to Test2 context handling issues

The fix uses register spilling: allocate a local variable, tell the
block to store its last element value there, then load after endLabel.

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Co-Authored-By: Devin <158243242+devin-ai-integration[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>

* Fix bare blocks returning their value in non-void context (#339)

Fixes bare blocks (like `{ 42; }`) to return their last expression value
when used in SCALAR/LIST context or as the last statement in a file
(RUNTIME context for do/require).

Implementation:
- EmitStatement: Add register spilling for bare blocks in SCALAR/LIST context
- Parser: Add isFileLevelBlock annotation for do/require files
- EmitBlock: Handle bare blocks in RUNTIME context using SCALAR visitation

This fixes Package::Stash::PP and similar modules that end with a bare
block containing lexical variables.

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* Add comment explaining blockIsSubroutine exclusion from bare block fix

The subroutine bare block case (sub foo { { 99 } }) cannot be fixed without
breaking Test2 context handling. This comment documents the limitation.

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* Add design doc for bare block return value fix

Documents the root cause analysis showing two issues:
1. Bare block return value in subroutines
2. Indirect object syntax bug that drops values

The indirect object syntax bug must be fixed first before
enabling blockIsSubroutine in EmitBlock.java.

All tests must pass in both JVM and interpreter mode.

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* Fix indirect object syntax dropping trailing list args

In Perl, `(release $ctx, "V")` should return two elements:
1. The result of $ctx->release()
2. The string "V"

Previously PerlOnJava consumed all arguments when detecting indirect
object syntax, then only used the first one and dropped the rest.

Fix: When detecting `method $object, args` syntax, only consume the
object (using prototype "$" instead of "@"), leaving trailing args
for the outer list context.

This fixes Test::Builder's `release $ctx, $self->cmp_ok(...)` pattern.

Also updates bare block return fix design doc with findings about why
the simple `blockIsSubroutine` approach breaks Test2.

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* Remove TODO markers from context_semantics.t

All bare block return value tests now pass since the fix
in EmitBlock.java has been applied. Remove the TODO markers
that were marking these tests as expected failures.

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* Update design doc: bare block return value fix complete

All three related issues have been fixed:
1. Indirect object syntax bug (SubroutineParser.java)
2. Hash literal detection bug (StatementResolver.java)
3. Bare block return value (EmitBlock.java)

All tests pass including Test2-based tests.

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* Use File::Temp for cross-platform temp files in context_semantics.t

Fixes Windows CI failure - the test was using /tmp/ which does not
exist on Windows. Now uses File::Temp which handles cross-platform
temp file creation correctly.

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* Fix bare block return value in subroutines and hash literal detection

Two fixes to enable bare blocks returning their value:

1. EmitBlock.java: Add blockIsSubroutine to the condition that handles
   bare blocks in RUNTIME context. This allows sub { { 99 } } to return 99.

2. StatementResolver.java: Detect hash literals that start with % or @
   sigils (e.g., { %{hash} }, { @array }). This prevents patterns like
   map {{ %{$_} }} @DaTa from being misidentified as bare blocks,
   which would break Test2.

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---------

Co-authored-by: Devin <158243242+devin-ai-integration[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
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