[rust-101.git] / src / part06.rs

// Rust-101, Part 06: Copy, Lifetimes
// ==================================

// We continue to work on our `BigInt`, so we start by importing what we already established.
use part05::BigInt;

// With `BigInt` being about numbers, we should be able to write a version of `vec_min`
// that computes the minimum of a list of `BigInt`. We start by writing `min` for
// `BigInt`. Now our assumption of having no trailing zeros comes in handy!
impl BigInt {
    fn min_try1(self, other: Self) -> Self {
        // Just to be sure, we first check that both operands actually satisfy our invariant. `debug_assert!` is a
        // macro that checks that its argument (must be of type `bool`) is `true`, and panics otherwise. It gets
        // removed in release builds, which you do with `cargo build --release`.
        debug_assert!(self.test_invariant() && other.test_invariant());
        // If the lengths of the two numbers differ, we already know which is larger.
        if self.data.len() < other.data.len() {
            self
        } else if self.data.len() > other.data.len() {
            other
        } else {
            // **Exercise 06.1**: Fill in this code.
            unimplemented!()
        }
    }
}

// Now we can write `vec_min`. In order to make it type-check, we have to write it as follows.
fn vec_min(v: &Vec<BigInt>) -> Option<BigInt> {
    let mut min: Option<BigInt> = None;
    for e in v {
        min = Some(match min {
            None => e.clone(),
            Some(n) => e.clone().min_try1(n)
        });
    }
    min
}
// Now, what's happening here? Why do we have to write `clone()`, and why did we not
// have to write that in our previous version?
// 
// The answer is already hidden in the type of `vec_min`: `v` is just borrowed, but
// the Option<BigInt> that it returns is *owned*. We can't just return one of the elements of `v`,
// as that would mean that it is no longer in the vector! In our code, this comes up when we update
// the intermediate variable `min`, which also has type `Option<BigInt>`. If you replace `e.clone()`
// in the `None` arm with `*e`, Rust will complain "Cannot move out of borrowed content". That's because
// `e` is a `&BigInt`. Assigning `min = Some(*e)` works just like a function call: Ownership of the
// underlying data is transferred from where `e` borrows from to `min`. But that's not allowed, since
// we just borrowed `e`, so we cannot empty it! We can, however, call `clone()` on it. Then we own
// the copy that was created, and hence we can store it in `min`.<br/>
// Of course, making such a full copy is expensive, so we'd like to avoid it. We'll some to that in the next part.

// ## `Copy` types
// But before we go there, I should answer the second question I brought up above: Why did our old `vec_min` work?
// We stored the minimal `i32` locally without cloning, and Rust did not complain. That's because there isn't
// really much of an "ownership" when it comes to types like `i32` or `bool`: If you move the value from one
// place to another, then both instance are "complete". We also say the value has been *duplicated*. This is in
// stark contrast to types like `Vec<i32>`, where moving the value results in both the old and the new vector to
// point to the same underlying buffer. We don't have two vectors, there's no duplication.
//
// Rust calls types that can be freely duplicated `Copy` types. `Copy` is another trait, and it is implemented for
// types like `i32` and `bool`. Remember how we defined the trait `Minimum` by writing `trait Minimum : Copy { ...`?
// This tells Rust that every type that implements `Minimum` must also implement `Copy`, and that's why the compiler
// accepted our generic `vec_min` in part 02. `Copy` is the first *marker trait* that we encounter: It does not provide
// any methods, but makes a promise about the behavior of the type - in this case, being duplicable.

// If you try to implement `Copy` for `BigInt`, you will notice that Rust
// does not let you do that. A type can only be `Copy` if all its elements
// are `Copy`, and that's not the case for `BigInt`. However, we can make
// `SomethingOrNothing<T>` copy if `T` is `Copy`.
use part02::{SomethingOrNothing,Something,Nothing};
impl<T: Copy> Copy for SomethingOrNothing<T>{}
// Again, Rust can generate implementations of `Copy` automatically. If
// you add `#[derive(Copy,Clone)]` right before the definition of `SomethingOrNothing`,
// both `Copy` and `Clone` will automatically be implemented.

// ## An operational perspective
// Instead of looking at what happens "at the surface" (i.e., visible in Rust), one can also explain
// ownership passing and how `Copy` and `Clone` fit by looking at what happens on the machine.<br/>
// When Rust code is executed, passing a value (like `i32` or `Vec<i32>`) to a function will always
// result in a shallow copy being performed: Rust just copies the bytes representing that value, and
// considers itself done. That's just like the default copy constructor in C++. Rust, however, will
// consider this a destructive operation: After copying the bytes elsewhere, the original value must
// no longer be used. After all, the two could not share a pointer! If, however, you mark a type `Copy`,
// then Rust will *not* consider a move destructive, and just like in C++, the old and new value
// can happily coexist. Now, Rust does not allow to to overload the copy constructor. This means that
// passing a value around will always be a fast operation, no allocation or any other kind of heap access
// will happen. In the situations where you would write a copy constructor in C++ (and hence
// incur a hidden cost on every copy of this type), you'd have the type *not* implement `Copy`, but only
// `Clone`. This makes the cost explicit.

// ## Lifetimes
// To fix the performance problems of `vec_min`, we need to avoid using `clone()`. We'd like
// the return value to not be owned (remember that this was the source of our need for cloning), but *borrowed*.

// This is demonstrated by the function `head` that borrows the first element of a vector if it is non-empty.
// The type of the function says that it will either return nothing, or it will return a borrowed `T`.
// We can then borrow the first element of `v` and use it to construct the return value.
fn head<T>(v: &Vec<T>) -> Option<&T> {
    if v.len() > 0 {
        Some(&v[0])
    } else {
        None
    }
}

// Now, coming back to `head` - here, we are returning a pointer to the first element. But doesn't
// that mean that callers have to be careful? Imagine `head` would be a C++ function, and we would
// write the following code.
/*
  int foo(std::vector<int> v) {
    int *first = head(v);
    v.push_back(42);
    return *first;
  }
*/
// This is very much like our very first motivating example for ownership, at the beginning of part 04.
// But this time, the bug is hidden behind the call to `head`. How does Rust solve this? If we translate
// the code above to Rust, it doesn't compile, so clearly we are good - but how and why?
// (Notice that have to explicitly assert using `unwrap` that `first` is not `None`, whereas the C++ code
// above would silently dereference a `NULL`-pointer. But that's another point.)
fn rust_foo(mut v: Vec<i32>) -> i32 {
    let first: Option<&i32> = head(&v);
    /* v.push(42); */
    *first.unwrap()
}

// To give the answer to this question, we have to talk about the *lifetime* of a borrow. The point is, saying that
// you borrowed your friend a `Vec<i32>`, or a book, is not good enough, unless you also agree on *how long*
// your friend can borrow. After all, you need to know when you can rely on owning your data (or book) again.
// 
// Every borrow in Rust has an associated lifetime. The full type of `head` reads as follows:
// `fn<'a, T>(&'a Vec<T>) -> Option<&'a T>`. Here, `'a` is a *lifetime variable*, which represents how long the vector has
// been borrowed. The function type expresses that argument and return value have *the same lifetime*.
// 
// When analyzing the code of `rust_foo`, Rust has to assign a lifetime to `first`. It will choose the scope
// where `first` is valid, which is the entire rest of the function. Because `head` ties the lifetime of its
// argument and return value together, this means that `&v` also has to borrow `v` for the entire duration of
// the function. So when we try to borrow `v` mutable for `push`, Rust complains that the two borrows (the one
// for `head`, and the one for `push`) overlap. Lucky us! Rust caught our mistake and made sure we don't crash the program.
// 
// So, to sum this up: Lifetimes enable Rust to reason about *how long* a pointer has been borrowed. We can thus
// safely write functions like `head`, that return pointers into data they got as argument, and make sure they
// are used correctly, *while looking only at the function type*. At no point in our analysis of `rust_foo` did
// we have to look *into* `head`. That's, of course, crucial if we want to separate library code from application code.
// Most of the time, we don't have to explicitly add lifetimes to function types. This is thanks to *lifetimes elision*,
// where Rust will automatically insert lifetimes we did not specify, following some [simple, well-documented rules](http://doc.rust-lang.org/stable/book/lifetimes.html#lifetime-elision).

// [index](main.html) | [previous](part05.html) | [next](part07.html)