• Pack aspect with aliased component.

    From Blady@p.p11@orange.fr to comp.lang.ada on Sun Mar 2 10:29:28 2025
    From Newsgroup: comp.lang.ada

    Hello,

    With the following AARM example:
    14.e/3 {AI05-0229-1} procedure Q is
    use P1, P2;
    type Array1 is array(Integer range <>) of aliased S1
    with Pack; -- warning: cannot pack aliased
    components (RM 13.2(7))

    GNAT issues the warning in comment above.

    Mentions of aliased in following AARM paragraphs are not so clear for me:
    13.2 Packed Types

    7.1/4 * {AI12-0001-1} Any component of a packed type that is of a
    by-reference type, that is specified as independently
    addressable, or
    that contains an aliased part, shall be aligned according to the
    alignment of its subtype.

    9.c/3 {AI95-00291-02} {AI05-0229-1} Added clarification that the Pack
    aspect can ignore alignment requirements on types that
    don't have
    by-reference or aliased parts. This was always intended,
    but there
    was no wording to that effect.

    What is correct ?
    Why packed type couldn't have aliased components?

    Thanks, Pascal.
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  • From Jeffrey R.Carter@spam.jrcarter.not@spam.acm.org.not to comp.lang.ada on Sun Mar 2 12:33:30 2025
    From Newsgroup: comp.lang.ada

    On 2025-03-02 10:29, Blady wrote:

    With the following AARM example:
    14.e/3          {AI05-0229-1} procedure Q is
                       use P1, P2;
                       type Array1 is array(Integer range <>) of aliased S1
                          with Pack; -- warning: cannot pack aliased components (RM
    13.2(7))

    GNAT issues the warning in comment above.

    Why packed type couldn't have aliased components?

    This is a warning, not an error. The compiler has accepted the declaration and you can use it.

    Remember that Pack is a suggestion to the compiler, not a requirement, and the compiler can ignore it, or pack things less tightly than you might like.

    An aliased component may be accessed through an alias (access value), and that access will not know that the component has been packed, and so access memory belonging to other components as well. For this reason, aliased components cannot be packed.

    You can specify Component_Size for the type; the compiler must either be able to
    make the components that size, or reject the declaration. Specifying a Component_Size for an aliased component that makes the component smaller than a
    stand-alone object of the type will be rejected.
    --
    Jeff Carter
    "I've seen projects fail miserably for blindly
    applying the Agile catechism: we're Agile, we
    don't need to stop and think, we just go ahead
    and code!"
    Bertrand Meyer
    150
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  • From Blady@p.p11@orange.fr to comp.lang.ada on Thu Mar 6 21:52:44 2025
    From Newsgroup: comp.lang.ada

    Le 02/03/2025 à 12:33, Jeffrey R.Carter a écrit :
    On 2025-03-02 10:29, Blady wrote:

    With the following AARM example:
    14.e/3          {AI05-0229-1} procedure Q is
                        use P1, P2;
                        type Array1 is array(Integer range <>) of aliased S1
                           with Pack; -- warning: cannot pack aliased
    components (RM 13.2(7))

    GNAT issues the warning in comment above.

    Why packed type couldn't have aliased components?

    This is a warning, not an error. The compiler has accepted the
    declaration and you can use it.

    Remember that Pack is a suggestion to the compiler, not a requirement,
    and the compiler can ignore it, or pack things less tightly than you
    might like.

    An aliased component may be accessed through an alias (access value),
    and that access will not know that the component has been packed, and so access memory belonging to other components as well. For this reason, aliased components cannot be packed.

    You can specify Component_Size for the type; the compiler must either be able to make the components that size, or reject the declaration.
    Specifying a Component_Size for an aliased component that makes the component smaller than a stand-alone object of the type will be rejected.

    Thanks Jeff, your explanation seems to me clearer than the AARM ;)

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