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@finalout
@c SMALL BOOK version
@c This edition has been formatted so that you can format and print it in
@c the smallbook format.
@c @smallbook
@c @setchapternewpage odd
@c Set following if you want to document %default-prec and %no-default-prec.
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@copying
This manual (@value{UPDATED}) is for GNU Bison (version @value{VERSION}),
the GNU parser generator.
Copyright @copyright{} 1988--1993, 1995, 1998--2015, 2018--2022 Free
Software Foundation, Inc.
@quotation
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under
the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later
version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant
Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU Manual,'' and with the
Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license is included in the
section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License.''
(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and modify
this GNU manual. Buying copies from the FSF supports it in developing GNU
and promoting software freedom.''
@end quotation
@end copying
@dircategory Software development
@direntry
* bison: (bison). GNU parser generator (Yacc replacement).
@end direntry
@titlepage
@title Bison
@subtitle The Yacc-compatible Parser Generator
@subtitle @value{UPDATED}, Bison Version @value{VERSION}
@author by Charles Donnelly and Richard Stallman
@page
@vskip 0pt plus 1filll
@insertcopying
@sp 2
Published by the Free Software Foundation @*
51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor @*
Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA @*
Printed copies are available from the Free Software Foundation.@*
ISBN 1-882114-44-2
@sp 2
Cover art by Etienne Suvasa.
@end titlepage
@contents
@ifnottex
@node Top
@top Bison
@insertcopying
@end ifnottex
@menu
* Introduction:: What GNU Bison is.
* Conditions:: Conditions for using Bison and its output.
* Copying:: The GNU General Public License says
how you can copy and share Bison.
Tutorial sections:
* Concepts:: Basic concepts for understanding Bison.
* Examples:: Three simple explained examples of using Bison.
Reference sections:
* Grammar File:: Writing Bison declarations and rules.
* Interface:: C-language interface to the parser function @code{yyparse}.
* Algorithm:: How the Bison parser works at run-time.
* Error Recovery:: Writing rules for error recovery.
* Context Dependency:: What to do if your language syntax is too
messy for Bison to handle straightforwardly.
* Debugging:: Understanding or debugging Bison parsers.
* Invocation:: How to run Bison (to produce the parser implementation).
* Other Languages:: Creating C++, D and Java parsers.
* History:: How Bison came to be
* Versioning:: Dealing with Bison versioning
* FAQ:: Frequently Asked Questions
* Table of Symbols:: All the keywords of the Bison language are explained.
* Glossary:: Basic concepts are explained.
* GNU Free Documentation License:: Copying and sharing this manual
* Bibliography:: Publications cited in this manual.
* Index of Terms:: Cross-references to the text.
@detailmenu
--- The Detailed Node Listing ---
The Concepts of Bison
* Language and Grammar:: Languages and context-free grammars,
as mathematical ideas.
* Grammar in Bison:: How we represent grammars for Bison's sake.
* Semantic Values:: Each token or syntactic grouping can have
a semantic value (the value of an integer,
the name of an identifier, etc.).
* Semantic Actions:: Each rule can have an action containing C code.
* GLR Parsers:: Writing parsers for general context-free languages.
* Locations:: Overview of location tracking.
* Bison Parser:: What are Bison's input and output,
how is the output used?
* Stages:: Stages in writing and running Bison grammars.
* Grammar Layout:: Overall structure of a Bison grammar file.
Writing GLR Parsers
* Simple GLR Parsers:: Using GLR parsers on unambiguous grammars.
* Merging GLR Parses:: Using GLR parsers to resolve ambiguities.
* GLR Semantic Actions:: Considerations for semantic values and deferred actions.
* Semantic Predicates:: Controlling a parse with arbitrary computations.
Examples
* RPN Calc:: Reverse Polish Notation Calculator;
a first example with no operator precedence.
* Infix Calc:: Infix (algebraic) notation calculator.
Operator precedence is introduced.
* Simple Error Recovery:: Continuing after syntax errors.
* Location Tracking Calc:: Demonstrating the use of @@@var{n} and @@$.
* Multi-function Calc:: Calculator with memory and trig functions.
It uses multiple data-types for semantic values.
* Exercises:: Ideas for improving the multi-function calculator.
Reverse Polish Notation Calculator
* Rpcalc Declarations:: Prologue (declarations) for rpcalc.
* Rpcalc Rules:: Grammar Rules for rpcalc, with explanation.
* Rpcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
* Rpcalc Main:: The controlling function.
* Rpcalc Error:: The error reporting function.
* Rpcalc Generate:: Running Bison on the grammar file.
* Rpcalc Compile:: Run the C compiler on the output code.
Grammar Rules for @code{rpcalc}
* Rpcalc Input:: Explanation of the @code{input} nonterminal
* Rpcalc Line:: Explanation of the @code{line} nonterminal
* Rpcalc Exp:: Explanation of the @code{exp} nonterminal
Location Tracking Calculator: @code{ltcalc}
* Ltcalc Declarations:: Bison and C declarations for ltcalc.
* Ltcalc Rules:: Grammar rules for ltcalc, with explanations.
* Ltcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
Multi-Function Calculator: @code{mfcalc}
* Mfcalc Declarations:: Bison declarations for multi-function calculator.
* Mfcalc Rules:: Grammar rules for the calculator.
* Mfcalc Symbol Table:: Symbol table management subroutines.
* Mfcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
* Mfcalc Main:: The controlling function.
Bison Grammar Files
* Grammar Outline:: Overall layout of the grammar file.
* Symbols:: Terminal and nonterminal symbols.
* Rules:: How to write grammar rules.
* Semantics:: Semantic values and actions.
* Tracking Locations:: Locations and actions.
* Named References:: Using named references in actions.
* Declarations:: All kinds of Bison declarations are described here.
* Multiple Parsers:: Putting more than one Bison parser in one program.
Outline of a Bison Grammar
* Prologue:: Syntax and usage of the prologue.
* Prologue Alternatives:: Syntax and usage of alternatives to the prologue.
* Bison Declarations:: Syntax and usage of the Bison declarations section.
* Grammar Rules:: Syntax and usage of the grammar rules section.
* Epilogue:: Syntax and usage of the epilogue.
Grammar Rules
* Rules Syntax:: Syntax of the rules.
* Empty Rules:: Symbols that can match the empty string.
* Recursion:: Writing recursive rules.
Defining Language Semantics
* Value Type:: Specifying one data type for all semantic values.
* Multiple Types:: Specifying several alternative data types.
* Type Generation:: Generating the semantic value type.
* Union Decl:: Declaring the set of all semantic value types.
* Structured Value Type:: Providing a structured semantic value type.
* Actions:: An action is the semantic definition of a grammar rule.
* Action Types:: Specifying data types for actions to operate on.
* Midrule Actions:: Most actions go at the end of a rule.
This says when, why and how to use the exceptional
action in the middle of a rule.
Actions in Midrule
* Using Midrule Actions:: Putting an action in the middle of a rule.
* Typed Midrule Actions:: Specifying the semantic type of their values.
* Midrule Action Translation:: How midrule actions are actually processed.
* Midrule Conflicts:: Midrule actions can cause conflicts.
Tracking Locations
* Location Type:: Specifying a data type for locations.
* Actions and Locations:: Using locations in actions.
* Printing Locations:: Defining how locations are printed.
* Location Default Action:: Defining a general way to compute locations.
Bison Declarations
* Require Decl:: Requiring a Bison version.
* Token Decl:: Declaring terminal symbols.
* Precedence Decl:: Declaring terminals with precedence and associativity.
* Type Decl:: Declaring the choice of type for a nonterminal symbol.
* Symbol Decls:: Summary of the Syntax of Symbol Declarations.
* Initial Action Decl:: Code run before parsing starts.
* Destructor Decl:: Declaring how symbols are freed.
* Printer Decl:: Declaring how symbol values are displayed.
* Expect Decl:: Suppressing warnings about parsing conflicts.
* Start Decl:: Specifying the start symbol.
* Pure Decl:: Requesting a reentrant parser.
* Push Decl:: Requesting a push parser.
* Decl Summary:: Table of all Bison declarations.
* %define Summary:: Defining variables to adjust Bison's behavior.
* %code Summary:: Inserting code into the parser source.
Parser C-Language Interface
* Parser Function:: How to call @code{yyparse} and what it returns.
* Push Parser Interface:: How to create, use, and destroy push parsers.
* Lexical:: You must supply a function @code{yylex}
which reads tokens.
* Error Reporting:: Passing error messages to the user.
* Action Features:: Special features for use in actions.
* Internationalization:: How to let the parser speak in the user's
native language.
The Lexical Analyzer Function @code{yylex}
* Calling Convention:: How @code{yyparse} calls @code{yylex}.
* Special Tokens:: Signaling end-of-file and errors to the parser.
* Tokens from Literals:: Finding token kinds from string aliases.
* Token Values:: How @code{yylex} must return the semantic value
of the token it has read.
* Token Locations:: How @code{yylex} must return the text location
(line number, etc.) of the token, if the
actions want that.
* Pure Calling:: How the calling convention differs in a pure parser
(@pxref{Pure Decl}).
Error Reporting
* Error Reporting Function:: You must supply a @code{yyerror} function.
* Syntax Error Reporting Function:: You can supply a @code{yyreport_syntax_error} function.
Parser Internationalization
* Enabling I18n:: Preparing your project to support internationalization.
* Token I18n:: Preparing tokens for internationalization in error messages.
The Bison Parser Algorithm
* Lookahead:: Parser looks one token ahead when deciding what to do.
* Shift/Reduce:: Conflicts: when either shifting or reduction is valid.
* Precedence:: Operator precedence works by resolving conflicts.
* Contextual Precedence:: When an operator's precedence depends on context.
* Parser States:: The parser is a finite-state-machine with stack.
* Reduce/Reduce:: When two rules are applicable in the same situation.
* Mysterious Conflicts:: Conflicts that look unjustified.
* Tuning LR:: How to tune fundamental aspects of LR-based parsing.
* Generalized LR Parsing:: Parsing arbitrary context-free grammars.
* Memory Management:: What happens when memory is exhausted. How to avoid it.
Operator Precedence
* Why Precedence:: An example showing why precedence is needed.
* Using Precedence:: How to specify precedence and associativity.
* Precedence Only:: How to specify precedence only.
* Precedence Examples:: How these features are used in the previous example.
* How Precedence:: How they work.
* Non Operators:: Using precedence for general conflicts.
Tuning LR
* LR Table Construction:: Choose a different construction algorithm.
* Default Reductions:: Disable default reductions.
* LAC:: Correct lookahead sets in the parser states.
* Unreachable States:: Keep unreachable parser states for debugging.
Handling Context Dependencies
* Semantic Tokens:: Token parsing can depend on the semantic context.
* Lexical Tie-ins:: Token parsing can depend on the syntactic context.
* Tie-in Recovery:: Lexical tie-ins have implications for how
error recovery rules must be written.
Debugging Your Parser
* Counterexamples:: Understanding conflicts.
* Understanding:: Understanding the structure of your parser.
* Graphviz:: Getting a visual representation of the parser.
* Xml:: Getting a markup representation of the parser.
* Tracing:: Tracing the execution of your parser.
Tracing Your Parser
* Enabling Traces:: Activating run-time trace support
* Mfcalc Traces:: Extending @code{mfcalc} to support traces
Invoking Bison
* Bison Options:: All the options described in detail,
in alphabetical order by short options.
* Option Cross Key:: Alphabetical list of long options.
* Yacc Library:: Yacc-compatible @code{yylex} and @code{main}.
Bison Options
* Operation Modes:: Options controlling the global behavior of @command{bison}
* Diagnostics:: Options controlling the diagnostics
* Tuning the Parser:: Options changing the generated parsers
* Output Files:: Options controlling the output
Parsers Written In Other Languages
* C++ Parsers:: The interface to generate C++ parser classes
* D Parsers:: The interface to generate D parser classes
* Java Parsers:: The interface to generate Java parser classes
C++ Parsers
* A Simple C++ Example:: A short introduction to C++ parsers
* C++ Bison Interface:: Asking for C++ parser generation
* C++ Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* C++ Semantic Values:: %union vs. C++
* C++ Location Values:: The position and location classes
* C++ Parser Context:: You can supply a @code{report_syntax_error} function.
* C++ Scanner Interface:: Exchanges between yylex and parse
* A Complete C++ Example:: Demonstrating their use
C++ Location Values
* C++ position:: One point in the source file
* C++ location:: Two points in the source file
* Exposing the Location Classes:: Using the Bison location class in your
project
* User Defined Location Type:: Required interface for locations
A Complete C++ Example
* Calc++ --- C++ Calculator:: The specifications
* Calc++ Parsing Driver:: An active parsing context
* Calc++ Parser:: A parser class
* Calc++ Scanner:: A pure C++ Flex scanner
* Calc++ Top Level:: Conducting the band
D Parsers
* D Bison Interface:: Asking for D parser generation
* D Semantic Values:: %token and %nterm vs. D
* D Location Values:: The position and location classes
* D Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* D Parser Context Interface:: Circumstances of a syntax error
* D Scanner Interface:: Specifying the scanner for the parser
* D Action Features:: Special features for use in actions
* D Push Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the push parser
* D Complete Symbols:: Using token constructors
Java Parsers
* Java Bison Interface:: Asking for Java parser generation
* Java Semantic Values:: %token and %nterm vs. Java
* Java Location Values:: The position and location classes
* Java Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* Java Parser Context Interface:: Circumstances of a syntax error
* Java Scanner Interface:: Specifying the scanner for the parser
* Java Action Features:: Special features for use in actions
* Java Push Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the push parser
* Java Differences:: Differences between C/C++ and Java Grammars
* Java Declarations Summary:: List of Bison declarations used with Java
A Brief History of the Greater Ungulates
* Yacc:: The original Yacc
* yacchack:: An obscure early implementation of reentrancy
* Byacc:: Berkeley Yacc
* Bison:: This program
* Other Ungulates:: Similar programs
Bison Version Compatibility
* Versioning:: Dealing with Bison versioning
Frequently Asked Questions
* Memory Exhausted:: Breaking the Stack Limits
* How Can I Reset the Parser:: @code{yyparse} Keeps some State
* Strings are Destroyed:: @code{yylval} Loses Track of Strings
* Implementing Gotos/Loops:: Control Flow in the Calculator
* Multiple start-symbols:: Factoring closely related grammars
* Enabling Relocatability:: Moving Bison/using it through network shares
* Secure? Conform?:: Is Bison POSIX safe?
* I can't build Bison:: Troubleshooting
* Where can I find help?:: Troubleshouting
* Bug Reports:: Troublereporting
* More Languages:: Parsers in C++, Java, and so on
* Beta Testing:: Experimenting development versions
* Mailing Lists:: Meeting other Bison users
Copying This Manual
* GNU Free Documentation License:: Copying and sharing this manual
@end detailmenu
@end menu
@node Introduction
@unnumbered Introduction
@cindex introduction
@dfn{Bison} is a general-purpose parser generator that converts an annotated
context-free grammar into a deterministic LR or generalized LR (GLR) parser
employing LALR(1), IELR(1) or canonical LR(1) parser tables. Once you are
proficient with Bison, you can use it to develop a wide range of language
parsers, from those used in simple desk calculators to complex programming
languages.
Bison is upward compatible with Yacc: all properly-written Yacc grammars
ought to work with Bison with no change. Anyone familiar with Yacc should
be able to use Bison with little trouble. You need to be fluent in C, C++,
D or Java programming in order to use Bison or to understand this manual.
We begin with tutorial chapters that explain the basic concepts of
using Bison and show three explained examples, each building on the
last. If you don't know Bison or Yacc, start by reading these
chapters. Reference chapters follow, which describe specific aspects
of Bison in detail.
Bison was written originally by Robert Corbett. Richard Stallman made
it Yacc-compatible. Wilfred Hansen of Carnegie Mellon University
added multi-character string literals and other features. Since then,
Bison has grown more robust and evolved many other new features thanks
to the hard work of a long list of volunteers. For details, see the
@file{THANKS} and @file{ChangeLog} files included in the Bison
distribution.
This edition corresponds to version @value{VERSION} of Bison.
@node Conditions
@unnumbered Conditions for Using Bison
The distribution terms for Bison-generated parsers permit using the parsers
in nonfree programs. Before Bison version 2.2, these extra permissions
applied only when Bison was generating LALR(1) parsers in C@. And before
Bison version 1.24, Bison-generated parsers could be used only in programs
that were free software.
The other GNU programming tools, such as the GNU C compiler, have never had
such a requirement. They could always be used for nonfree software. The
reason Bison was different was not due to a special policy decision; it
resulted from applying the usual General Public License to all of the Bison
source code.
The main output of the Bison utility---the Bison parser implementation
file---contains a verbatim copy of a sizable piece of Bison, which is the
code for the parser's implementation. (The actions from your grammar are
inserted into this implementation at one point, but most of the rest of the
implementation is not changed.) When we applied the GPL terms to the
skeleton code for the parser's implementation, the effect was to restrict
the use of Bison output to free software.
We didn't change the terms because of sympathy for people who want to make
software proprietary. @strong{Software should be free.} But we concluded
that limiting Bison's use to free software was doing little to encourage
people to make other software free. So we decided to make the practical
conditions for using Bison match the practical conditions for using the
other GNU tools.
This exception applies when Bison is generating code for a parser. You can
tell whether the exception applies to a Bison output file by inspecting the
file for text beginning with ``As a special exception@dots{}''. The text
spells out the exact terms of the exception.
@node Copying
@unnumbered GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
@include gpl-3.0.texi
@node Concepts
@chapter The Concepts of Bison
This chapter introduces many of the basic concepts without which the details
of Bison will not make sense. If you do not already know how to use Bison
or Yacc, we suggest you start by reading this chapter carefully.
@menu
* Language and Grammar:: Languages and context-free grammars,
as mathematical ideas.
* Grammar in Bison:: How we represent grammars for Bison's sake.
* Semantic Values:: Each token or syntactic grouping can have
a semantic value (the value of an integer,
the name of an identifier, etc.).
* Semantic Actions:: Each rule can have an action containing C code.
* GLR Parsers:: Writing parsers for general context-free languages.
* Locations:: Overview of location tracking.
* Bison Parser:: What are Bison's input and output,
how is the output used?
* Stages:: Stages in writing and running Bison grammars.
* Grammar Layout:: Overall structure of a Bison grammar file.
@end menu
@node Language and Grammar
@section Languages and Context-Free Grammars
@cindex context-free grammar
@cindex grammar, context-free
In order for Bison to parse a language, it must be described by a
@dfn{context-free grammar}. This means that you specify one or more
@dfn{syntactic groupings} and give rules for constructing them from their
parts. For example, in the C language, one kind of grouping is called an
`expression'. One rule for making an expression might be, ``An expression
can be made of a minus sign and another expression''. Another would be,
``An expression can be an integer''. As you can see, rules are often
recursive, but there must be at least one rule which leads out of the
recursion.
@cindex BNF
@cindex Backus-Naur form
The most common formal system for presenting such rules for humans to read
is @dfn{Backus-Naur Form} or ``BNF'', which was developed in
order to specify the language Algol 60. Any grammar expressed in
BNF is a context-free grammar. The input to Bison is
essentially machine-readable BNF.
@cindex LALR grammars
@cindex IELR grammars
@cindex LR grammars
There are various important subclasses of context-free grammars. Although
it can handle almost all context-free grammars, Bison is optimized for what
are called LR(1) grammars. In brief, in these grammars, it must be possible
to tell how to parse any portion of an input string with just a single token
of lookahead. For historical reasons, Bison by default is limited by the
additional restrictions of LALR(1), which is hard to explain simply.
@xref{Mysterious Conflicts}, for more information on this. You can escape
these additional restrictions by requesting IELR(1) or canonical LR(1)
parser tables. @xref{LR Table Construction}, to learn how.
@cindex GLR parsing
@cindex generalized LR (GLR) parsing
@cindex ambiguous grammars
@cindex nondeterministic parsing
Parsers for LR(1) grammars are @dfn{deterministic}, meaning
roughly that the next grammar rule to apply at any point in the input is
uniquely determined by the preceding input and a fixed, finite portion
(called a @dfn{lookahead}) of the remaining input. A context-free
grammar can be @dfn{ambiguous}, meaning that there are multiple ways to
apply the grammar rules to get the same inputs. Even unambiguous
grammars can be @dfn{nondeterministic}, meaning that no fixed
lookahead always suffices to determine the next grammar rule to apply.
With the proper declarations, Bison is also able to parse these more
general context-free grammars, using a technique known as GLR
parsing (for Generalized LR). Bison's GLR parsers
are able to handle any context-free grammar for which the number of
possible parses of any given string is finite.
@cindex symbols (abstract)
@cindex token
@cindex syntactic grouping
@cindex grouping, syntactic
In the formal grammatical rules for a language, each kind of syntactic unit
or grouping is named by a @dfn{symbol}. Those which are built by grouping
smaller constructs according to grammatical rules are called
@dfn{nonterminal symbols}; those which can't be subdivided are called
@dfn{terminal symbols} or @dfn{token kinds}. We call a piece of input
corresponding to a single terminal symbol a @dfn{token}, and a piece
corresponding to a single nonterminal symbol a @dfn{grouping}.
We can use the C language as an example of what symbols, terminal and
nonterminal, mean. The tokens of C are identifiers, constants (numeric
and string), and the various keywords, arithmetic operators and
punctuation marks. So the terminal symbols of a grammar for C include
`identifier', `number', `string', plus one symbol for each keyword,
operator or punctuation mark: `if', `return', `const', `static', `int',
`char', `plus-sign', `open-brace', `close-brace', `comma' and many more.
(These tokens can be subdivided into characters, but that is a matter of
lexicography, not grammar.)
Here is a simple C function subdivided into tokens:
@example
int /* @r{keyword `int'} */
square (int x) /* @r{identifier, open-paren, keyword `int',}
@r{identifier, close-paren} */
@{ /* @r{open-brace} */
return x * x; /* @r{keyword `return', identifier, asterisk,}
@r{identifier, semicolon} */
@} /* @r{close-brace} */
@end example
The syntactic groupings of C include the expression, the statement, the
declaration, and the function definition. These are represented in the
grammar of C by nonterminal symbols `expression', `statement',
`declaration' and `function definition'. The full grammar uses dozens of
additional language constructs, each with its own nonterminal symbol, in
order to express the meanings of these four. The example above is a
function definition; it contains one declaration, and one statement. In
the statement, each @samp{x} is an expression and so is @samp{x * x}.
Each nonterminal symbol must have grammatical rules showing how it is made
out of simpler constructs. For example, one kind of C statement is the
@code{return} statement; this would be described with a grammar rule which
reads informally as follows:
@quotation
A `statement' can be made of a `return' keyword, an `expression' and a
`semicolon'.
@end quotation
@noindent
There would be many other rules for `statement', one for each kind of
statement in C.
@cindex start symbol
One nonterminal symbol must be distinguished as the special one which
defines a complete utterance in the language. It is called the @dfn{start
symbol}. In a compiler, this means a complete input program. In the C
language, the nonterminal symbol `sequence of definitions and declarations'
plays this role.
For example, @samp{1 + 2} is a valid C expression---a valid part of a C
program---but it is not valid as an @emph{entire} C program. In the
context-free grammar of C, this follows from the fact that `expression' is
not the start symbol.
The Bison parser reads a sequence of tokens as its input, and groups the
tokens using the grammar rules. If the input is valid, the end result is
that the entire token sequence reduces to a single grouping whose symbol is
the grammar's start symbol. If we use a grammar for C, the entire input
must be a `sequence of definitions and declarations'. If not, the parser
reports a syntax error.
@node Grammar in Bison
@section From Formal Rules to Bison Input
@cindex Bison grammar
@cindex grammar, Bison
@cindex formal grammar
A formal grammar is a mathematical construct. To define the language
for Bison, you must write a file expressing the grammar in Bison syntax:
a @dfn{Bison grammar} file. @xref{Grammar File}.
A nonterminal symbol in the formal grammar is represented in Bison input
as an identifier, like an identifier in C@. By convention, it should be
in lower case, such as @code{expr}, @code{stmt} or @code{declaration}.
The Bison representation for a terminal symbol is also called a @dfn{token
kind}. Token kinds as well can be represented as C-like identifiers. By
convention, these identifiers should be upper case to distinguish them from
nonterminals: for example, @code{INTEGER}, @code{IDENTIFIER}, @code{IF} or
@code{RETURN}. A terminal symbol that stands for a particular keyword in
the language should be named after that keyword converted to upper case.
The terminal symbol @code{error} is reserved for error recovery.
@xref{Symbols}.
A terminal symbol can also be represented as a character literal, just like
a C character constant. You should do this whenever a token is just a
single character (parenthesis, plus-sign, etc.): use that same character in
a literal as the terminal symbol for that token.
A third way to represent a terminal symbol is with a C string constant
containing several characters. @xref{Symbols}, for more information.
The grammar rules also have an expression in Bison syntax. For example,
here is the Bison rule for a C @code{return} statement. The semicolon in
quotes is a literal character token, representing part of the C syntax for
the statement; the naked semicolon, and the colon, are Bison punctuation
used in every rule.
@example
stmt: RETURN expr ';' ;
@end example
@noindent
@xref{Rules}.
@node Semantic Values
@section Semantic Values
@cindex semantic value
@cindex value, semantic
A formal grammar selects tokens only by their classifications: for example,
if a rule mentions the terminal symbol `integer constant', it means that
@emph{any} integer constant is grammatically valid in that position. The
precise value of the constant is irrelevant to how to parse the input: if
@samp{x+4} is grammatical then @samp{x+1} or @samp{x+3989} is equally
grammatical.
But the precise value is very important for what the input means once it is
parsed. A compiler is useless if it fails to distinguish between 4, 1 and
3989 as constants in the program! Therefore, each token in a Bison grammar
has both a token kind and a @dfn{semantic value}. @xref{Semantics}, for
details.
The token kind is a terminal symbol defined in the grammar, such as
@code{INTEGER}, @code{IDENTIFIER} or @code{','}. It tells everything you
need to know to decide where the token may validly appear and how to group
it with other tokens. The grammar rules know nothing about tokens except
their kinds.
The semantic value has all the rest of the information about the
meaning of the token, such as the value of an integer, or the name of an
identifier. (A token such as @code{','} which is just punctuation doesn't
need to have any semantic value.)
For example, an input token might be classified as token kind @code{INTEGER}
and have the semantic value 4. Another input token might have the same
token kind @code{INTEGER} but value 3989. When a grammar rule says that
@code{INTEGER} is allowed, either of these tokens is acceptable because each
is an @code{INTEGER}. When the parser accepts the token, it keeps track of
the token's semantic value.
Each grouping can also have a semantic value as well as its nonterminal
symbol. For example, in a calculator, an expression typically has a
semantic value that is a number. In a compiler for a programming
language, an expression typically has a semantic value that is a tree
structure describing the meaning of the expression.
@node Semantic Actions
@section Semantic Actions
@cindex semantic actions
@cindex actions, semantic
In order to be useful, a program must do more than parse input; it must
also produce some output based on the input. In a Bison grammar, a grammar
rule can have an @dfn{action} made up of C statements. Each time the
parser recognizes a match for that rule, the action is executed.
@xref{Actions}.
Most of the time, the purpose of an action is to compute the semantic value
of the whole construct from the semantic values of its parts. For example,
suppose we have a rule which says an expression can be the sum of two
expressions. When the parser recognizes such a sum, each of the
subexpressions has a semantic value which describes how it was built up.
The action for this rule should create a similar sort of value for the
newly recognized larger expression.
For example, here is a rule that says an expression can be the sum of
two subexpressions:
@example
expr: expr '+' expr @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @} ;
@end example
@noindent
The action says how to produce the semantic value of the sum expression
from the values of the two subexpressions.
@node GLR Parsers
@section Writing GLR Parsers
@cindex GLR parsing
@cindex generalized LR (GLR) parsing
@findex %glr-parser
@cindex conflicts
@cindex shift/reduce conflicts
@cindex reduce/reduce conflicts
In some grammars, Bison's deterministic
LR(1) parsing algorithm cannot decide whether to apply a
certain grammar rule at a given point. That is, it may not be able to
decide (on the basis of the input read so far) which of two possible
reductions (applications of a grammar rule) applies, or whether to apply
a reduction or read more of the input and apply a reduction later in the
input. These are known respectively as @dfn{reduce/reduce} conflicts
(@pxref{Reduce/Reduce}), and @dfn{shift/reduce} conflicts
(@pxref{Shift/Reduce}).
To use a grammar that is not easily modified to be LR(1), a more general
parsing algorithm is sometimes necessary. If you include @code{%glr-parser}
among the Bison declarations in your file (@pxref{Grammar Outline}), the
result is a Generalized LR (GLR) parser. These parsers handle Bison
grammars that contain no unresolved conflicts (i.e., after applying
precedence declarations) identically to deterministic parsers. However,
when faced with unresolved shift/reduce and reduce/reduce conflicts, GLR
parsers use the simple expedient of doing both, effectively cloning the
parser to follow both possibilities. Each of the resulting parsers can
again split, so that at any given time, there can be any number of possible
parses being explored. The parsers proceed in lockstep; that is, all of
them consume (shift) a given input symbol before any of them proceed to the
next. Each of the cloned parsers eventually meets one of two possible
fates: either it runs into a parsing error, in which case it simply
vanishes, or it merges with another parser, because the two of them have
reduced the input to an identical set of symbols.
During the time that there are multiple parsers, semantic actions are
recorded, but not performed. When a parser disappears, its recorded
semantic actions disappear as well, and are never performed. When a
reduction makes two parsers identical, causing them to merge, Bison records
both sets of semantic actions. Whenever the last two parsers merge,
reverting to the single-parser case, Bison resolves all the outstanding
actions either by precedences given to the grammar rules involved, or by
performing both actions, and then calling a designated user-defined function
on the resulting values to produce an arbitrary merged result.
@menu
* Simple GLR Parsers:: Using GLR parsers on unambiguous grammars.
* Merging GLR Parses:: Using GLR parsers to resolve ambiguities.
* GLR Semantic Actions:: Considerations for semantic values and deferred actions.
* Semantic Predicates:: Controlling a parse with arbitrary computations.
@end menu
@node Simple GLR Parsers
@subsection Using GLR on Unambiguous Grammars
@cindex GLR parsing, unambiguous grammars
@cindex generalized LR (GLR) parsing, unambiguous grammars
@findex %glr-parser
@findex %expect-rr
@cindex conflicts
@cindex reduce/reduce conflicts
@cindex shift/reduce conflicts
In the simplest cases, you can use the GLR algorithm
to parse grammars that are unambiguous but fail to be LR(1).
Such grammars typically require more than one symbol of lookahead.
Consider a problem that
arises in the declaration of enumerated and subrange types in the
programming language Pascal. Here are some examples:
@example
type subrange = lo .. hi;
type enum = (a, b, c);
@end example
@noindent
The original language standard allows only numeric literals and constant
identifiers for the subrange bounds (@samp{lo} and @samp{hi}), but Extended
Pascal (ISO/IEC 10206) and many other Pascal implementations allow arbitrary
expressions there. This gives rise to the following situation, containing a
superfluous pair of parentheses:
@example
type subrange = (a) .. b;
@end example
@noindent
Compare this to the following declaration of an enumerated
type with only one value:
@example
type enum = (a);
@end example
@noindent
(These declarations are contrived, but they are syntactically valid, and
more-complicated cases can come up in practical programs.)
These two declarations look identical until the @samp{..} token. With
normal LR(1) one-token lookahead it is not possible to decide between the
two forms when the identifier @samp{a} is parsed. It is, however, desirable
for a parser to decide this, since in the latter case @samp{a} must become a
new identifier to represent the enumeration value, while in the former case
@samp{a} must be evaluated with its current meaning, which may be a constant
or even a function call.
You could parse @samp{(a)} as an ``unspecified identifier in parentheses'',
to be resolved later, but this typically requires substantial contortions in
both semantic actions and large parts of the grammar, where the parentheses
are nested in the recursive rules for expressions.
You might think of using the lexer to distinguish between the two forms by
returning different tokens for currently defined and undefined identifiers.
But if these declarations occur in a local scope, and @samp{a} is defined in
an outer scope, then both forms are possible---either locally redefining
@samp{a}, or using the value of @samp{a} from the outer scope. So this
approach cannot work.
A simple solution to this problem is to declare the parser to use the GLR
algorithm. When the GLR parser reaches the critical state, it merely splits
into two branches and pursues both syntax rules simultaneously. Sooner or
later, one of them runs into a parsing error. If there is a @samp{..} token
before the next @samp{;}, the rule for enumerated types fails since it
cannot accept @samp{..} anywhere; otherwise, the subrange type rule fails
since it requires a @samp{..} token. So one of the branches fails silently,
and the other one continues normally, performing all the intermediate
actions that were postponed during the split.
If the input is syntactically incorrect, both branches fail and the parser
reports a syntax error as usual.
The effect of all this is that the parser seems to ``guess'' the correct
branch to take, or in other words, it seems to use more lookahead than the
underlying LR(1) algorithm actually allows for. In this example, LR(2)
would suffice, but also some cases that are not LR(@math{k}) for any
@math{k} can be handled this way.
In general, a GLR parser can take quadratic or cubic worst-case time, and
the current Bison parser even takes exponential time and space for some
grammars. In practice, this rarely happens, and for many grammars it is
possible to prove that it cannot happen. The present example contains only
one conflict between two rules, and the type-declaration context containing
the conflict cannot be nested. So the number of branches that can exist at
any time is limited by the constant 2, and the parsing time is still linear.
Here is a Bison grammar corresponding to the example above. It
parses a vastly simplified form of Pascal type declarations.
@example
%token TYPE DOTDOT ID
@group
%left '+' '-'
%left '*' '/'
@end group
%%
type_decl: TYPE ID '=' type ';' ;
@group
type:
'(' id_list ')'
| expr DOTDOT expr
;
@end group
@group
id_list:
ID
| id_list ',' ID
;
@end group
@group
expr:
'(' expr ')'
| expr '+' expr
| expr '-' expr
| expr '*' expr
| expr '/' expr
| ID
;
@end group
@end example
When used as a normal LR(1) grammar, Bison correctly complains
about one reduce/reduce conflict. In the conflicting situation the
parser chooses one of the alternatives, arbitrarily the one
declared first. Therefore the following correct input is not
recognized:
@example
type t = (a) .. b;
@end example
The parser can be turned into a GLR parser, while also telling Bison
to be silent about the one known reduce/reduce conflict, by adding
these two declarations to the Bison grammar file (before the first
@samp{%%}):
@example
%glr-parser
%expect-rr 1
@end example
@noindent
No change in the grammar itself is required. Now the parser recognizes all
valid declarations, according to the limited syntax above, transparently.
In fact, the user does not even notice when the parser splits.
So here we have a case where we can use the benefits of GLR, almost without
disadvantages. Even in simple cases like this, however, there are at least
two potential problems to beware. First, always analyze the conflicts
reported by Bison to make sure that GLR splitting is only done where it is
intended. A GLR parser splitting inadvertently may cause problems less
obvious than an LR parser statically choosing the wrong alternative in a
conflict. Second, consider interactions with the lexer (@pxref{Semantic
Tokens}) with great care. Since a split parser consumes tokens without
performing any actions during the split, the lexer cannot obtain information
via parser actions. Some cases of lexer interactions can be eliminated by
using GLR to shift the complications from the lexer to the parser. You must
check the remaining cases for correctness.
In our example, it would be safe for the lexer to return tokens based on
their current meanings in some symbol table, because no new symbols are
defined in the middle of a type declaration. Though it is possible for a
parser to define the enumeration constants as they are parsed, before the
type declaration is completed, it actually makes no difference since they
cannot be used within the same enumerated type declaration.
@node Merging GLR Parses
@subsection Using GLR to Resolve Ambiguities
@cindex GLR parsing, ambiguous grammars
@cindex generalized LR (GLR) parsing, ambiguous grammars
@findex %dprec
@findex %merge
@cindex conflicts
@cindex reduce/reduce conflicts
Let's consider an example, vastly simplified from a C++
grammar.@footnote{The sources of an extended version of this example are
available in C as @file{examples/c/glr}, and in C++ as
@file{examples/c++/glr}.}
@example
%@{
#include <stdio.h>
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
%define api.value.type @{char const *@}
%token TYPENAME ID
%right '='
%left '+'
%glr-parser
%%
prog:
%empty
| prog stmt @{ printf ("\n"); @}
;
stmt:
expr ';' %dprec 1
| decl %dprec 2
;
expr:
ID @{ printf ("%s ", $$); @}
| TYPENAME '(' expr ')'
@{ printf ("%s <cast> ", $1); @}
| expr '+' expr @{ printf ("+ "); @}
| expr '=' expr @{ printf ("= "); @}
;
decl:
TYPENAME declarator ';'
@{ printf ("%s <declare> ", $1); @}
| TYPENAME declarator '=' expr ';'
@{ printf ("%s <init-declare> ", $1); @}
;
declarator:
ID @{ printf ("\"%s\" ", $1); @}
| '(' declarator ')'
;
@end example
@noindent
This models a problematic part of the C++ grammar---the ambiguity between
certain declarations and statements. For example,
@example
T (x) = y+z;
@end example
@noindent
parses as either an @code{expr} or a @code{stmt}
(assuming that @samp{T} is recognized as a @code{TYPENAME} and
@samp{x} as an @code{ID}).
Bison detects this as a reduce/reduce conflict between the rules
@code{expr : ID} and @code{declarator : ID}, which it cannot resolve at the
time it encounters @code{x} in the example above. Since this is a
GLR parser, it therefore splits the problem into two parses, one for
each choice of resolving the reduce/reduce conflict.
Unlike the example from the previous section (@pxref{Simple GLR Parsers}),
however, neither of these parses ``dies,'' because the grammar as it stands is
ambiguous. One of the parsers eventually reduces @code{stmt : expr ';'} and
the other reduces @code{stmt : decl}, after which both parsers are in an
identical state: they've seen @samp{prog stmt} and have the same unprocessed
input remaining. We say that these parses have @dfn{merged.}
At this point, the GLR parser requires a specification in the
grammar of how to choose between the competing parses.
In the example above, the two @code{%dprec}
declarations specify that Bison is to give precedence
to the parse that interprets the example as a
@code{decl}, which implies that @code{x} is a declarator.
The parser therefore prints
@example
"x" y z + T <init-declare>
@end example
The @code{%dprec} declarations only come into play when more than one
parse survives. Consider a different input string for this parser:
@example
T (x) + y;
@end example
@noindent
This is another example of using GLR to parse an unambiguous
construct, as shown in the previous section (@pxref{Simple GLR Parsers}).
Here, there is no ambiguity (this cannot be parsed as a declaration).
However, at the time the Bison parser encounters @code{x}, it does not
have enough information to resolve the reduce/reduce conflict (again,
between @code{x} as an @code{expr} or a @code{declarator}). In this
case, no precedence declaration is used. Again, the parser splits
into two, one assuming that @code{x} is an @code{expr}, and the other
assuming @code{x} is a @code{declarator}. The second of these parsers
then vanishes when it sees @code{+}, and the parser prints
@example
x T <cast> y +
@end example
Suppose that instead of resolving the ambiguity, you wanted to see all
the possibilities. For this purpose, you must merge the semantic
actions of the two possible parsers, rather than choosing one over the
other. To do so, you could change the declaration of @code{stmt} as
follows:
@example
stmt:
expr ';' %merge <stmt_merge>
| decl %merge <stmt_merge>
;
@end example
@noindent
and define the @code{stmt_merge} function as:
@example
static YYSTYPE
stmt_merge (YYSTYPE x0, YYSTYPE x1)
@{
printf ("<OR> ");
return "";
@}
@end example
@noindent
with an accompanying forward declaration
in the C declarations at the beginning of the file:
@example
%@{
static YYSTYPE stmt_merge (YYSTYPE x0, YYSTYPE x1);
%@}
@end example
@noindent
With these declarations, the resulting parser parses the first example
as both an @code{expr} and a @code{decl}, and prints
@example
"x" y z + T <init-declare> x T <cast> y z + = <OR>
@end example
Bison requires that all of the
productions that participate in any particular merge have identical
@samp{%merge} clauses. Otherwise, the ambiguity would be unresolvable,
and the parser will report an error during any parse that results in
the offending merge.
@sp 1
The signature of the merger depends on the type of the symbol. In the
previous example, the merged-to symbol (@code{stmt}) does not have a
specific type, and the merger is
@example
YYSTYPE stmt_merge (YYSTYPE x0, YYSTYPE x1);
@end example
@noindent
However, if @code{stmt} had a declared type, e.g.,
@example
%type <Node *> stmt;
@end example
@noindent
or
@example
@group
%union @{
Node *node;
...
@};
@end group
%type <node> stmt;
@end example
@noindent
then the prototype of the merger must be:
@example
Node *stmt_merge (YYSTYPE x0, YYSTYPE x1);
@end example
@noindent
(This signature might be a mistake originally, and maybe it should have been
@samp{Node *stmt_merge (Node *x0, Node *x1)}. If you have an opinion about
it, please let us know.)
@node GLR Semantic Actions
@subsection GLR Semantic Actions
The nature of GLR parsing and the structure of the generated
parsers give rise to certain restrictions on semantic values and actions.
@subsubsection Deferred semantic actions
@cindex deferred semantic actions
By definition, a deferred semantic action is not performed at the same time as
the associated reduction.
This raises caveats for several Bison features you might use in a semantic
action in a GLR parser.
@vindex yychar
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{yychar}
@vindex yylval
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{yylval}
@vindex yylloc
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{yylloc}
In any semantic action, you can examine @code{yychar} to determine the kind
of the lookahead token present at the time of the associated reduction.
After checking that @code{yychar} is not set to @code{YYEMPTY} or
@code{YYEOF}, you can then examine @code{yylval} and @code{yylloc} to
determine the lookahead token's semantic value and location, if any. In a
nondeferred semantic action, you can also modify any of these variables to
influence syntax analysis. @xref{Lookahead}.
@findex yyclearin
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{yyclearin}
In a deferred semantic action, it's too late to influence syntax analysis.
In this case, @code{yychar}, @code{yylval}, and @code{yylloc} are set to
shallow copies of the values they had at the time of the associated reduction.
For this reason alone, modifying them is dangerous.
Moreover, the result of modifying them is undefined and subject to change with
future versions of Bison.
For example, if a semantic action might be deferred, you should never write it
to invoke @code{yyclearin} (@pxref{Action Features}) or to attempt to free
memory referenced by @code{yylval}.
@subsubsection YYERROR
@findex YYERROR
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{YYERROR}
Another Bison feature requiring special consideration is @code{YYERROR}
(@pxref{Action Features}), which you can invoke in a semantic action to
initiate error recovery.
During deterministic GLR operation, the effect of @code{YYERROR} is
the same as its effect in a deterministic parser.
The effect in a deferred action is similar, but the precise point of the
error is undefined; instead, the parser reverts to deterministic operation,
selecting an unspecified stack on which to continue with a syntax error.
In a semantic predicate (see @ref{Semantic Predicates}) during nondeterministic
parsing, @code{YYERROR} silently prunes
the parse that invoked the test.
@subsubsection Restrictions on semantic values and locations
GLR parsers require that you use POD (Plain Old Data) types for
semantic values and location types when using the generated parsers as
C++ code.
@node Semantic Predicates
@subsection Controlling a Parse with Arbitrary Predicates
@findex %?
@cindex Semantic predicates in GLR parsers
In addition to the @code{%dprec} and @code{%merge} directives,
GLR parsers
allow you to reject parses on the basis of arbitrary computations executed
in user code, without having Bison treat this rejection as an error
if there are alternative parses. For example,
@example
widget:
%?@{ new_syntax @} "widget" id new_args @{ $$ = f($3, $4); @}
| %?@{ !new_syntax @} "widget" id old_args @{ $$ = f($3, $4); @}
;
@end example
@noindent
is one way to allow the same parser to handle two different syntaxes for
widgets. The clause preceded by @code{%?} is treated like an ordinary
midrule action, except that its text is handled as an expression and is always
evaluated immediately (even when in nondeterministic mode). If the
expression yields 0 (false), the clause is treated as a syntax error,
which, in a nondeterministic parser, causes the stack in which it is reduced
to die. In a deterministic parser, it acts like @code{YYERROR}.
As the example shows, predicates otherwise look like semantic actions, and
therefore you must take them into account when determining the numbers
to use for denoting the semantic values of right-hand side symbols.
Predicate actions, however, have no defined value, and may not be given
labels.
There is a subtle difference between semantic predicates and ordinary
actions in nondeterministic mode, since the latter are deferred.
For example, we could try to rewrite the previous example as
@example
widget:
@{ if (!new_syntax) YYERROR; @}
"widget" id new_args @{ $$ = f($3, $4); @}
| @{ if (new_syntax) YYERROR; @}
"widget" id old_args @{ $$ = f($3, $4); @}
;
@end example
@noindent
(reversing the sense of the predicate tests to cause an error when they are
false). However, this
does @emph{not} have the same effect if @code{new_args} and @code{old_args}
have overlapping syntax.
Since the midrule actions testing @code{new_syntax} are deferred,
a GLR parser first encounters the unresolved ambiguous reduction
for cases where @code{new_args} and @code{old_args} recognize the same string
@emph{before} performing the tests of @code{new_syntax}. It therefore
reports an error.
Finally, be careful in writing predicates: deferred actions have not been
evaluated, so that using them in a predicate will have undefined effects.
@node Locations
@section Locations
@cindex location
@cindex textual location
@cindex location, textual
Many applications, like interpreters or compilers, have to produce verbose
and useful error messages. To achieve this, one must be able to keep track of
the @dfn{textual location}, or @dfn{location}, of each syntactic construct.
Bison provides a mechanism for handling these locations.
Each token has a semantic value. In a similar fashion, each token has an
associated location, but the type of locations is the same for all tokens
and groupings. Moreover, the output parser is equipped with a default data
structure for storing locations (@pxref{Tracking Locations}, for more
details).
Like semantic values, locations can be reached in actions using a dedicated
set of constructs. In the example above, the location of the whole grouping
is @code{@@$}, while the locations of the subexpressions are @code{@@1} and
@code{@@3}.
When a rule is matched, a default action is used to compute the semantic value
of its left hand side (@pxref{Actions}). In the same way, another default
action is used for locations. However, the action for locations is general
enough for most cases, meaning there is usually no need to describe for each
rule how @code{@@$} should be formed. When building a new location for a given
grouping, the default behavior of the output parser is to take the beginning
of the first symbol, and the end of the last symbol.
@node Bison Parser
@section Bison Output: the Parser Implementation File
@cindex Bison parser
@cindex Bison utility
@cindex lexical analyzer, purpose
@cindex parser
When you run Bison, you give it a Bison grammar file as input. The
most important output is a C source file that implements a parser for
the language described by the grammar. This parser is called a
@dfn{Bison parser}, and this file is called a @dfn{Bison parser
implementation file}. Keep in mind that the Bison utility and the
Bison parser are two distinct programs: the Bison utility is a program
whose output is the Bison parser implementation file that becomes part
of your program.
The job of the Bison parser is to group tokens into groupings according to
the grammar rules---for example, to build identifiers and operators into
expressions. As it does this, it runs the actions for the grammar rules it
uses.
The tokens come from a function called the @dfn{lexical analyzer} that
you must supply in some fashion (such as by writing it in C). The Bison
parser calls the lexical analyzer each time it wants a new token. It
doesn't know what is ``inside'' the tokens (though their semantic values
may reflect this). Typically the lexical analyzer makes the tokens by
parsing characters of text, but Bison does not depend on this.
@xref{Lexical}.
The Bison parser implementation file is C code which defines a
function named @code{yyparse} which implements that grammar. This
function does not make a complete C program: you must supply some
additional functions. One is the lexical analyzer. Another is an
error-reporting function which the parser calls to report an error.
In addition, a complete C program must start with a function called
@code{main}; you have to provide this, and arrange for it to call
@code{yyparse} or the parser will never run. @xref{Interface}.
Aside from the token kind names and the symbols in the actions you
write, all symbols defined in the Bison parser implementation file
itself begin with @samp{yy} or @samp{YY}. This includes interface
functions such as the lexical analyzer function @code{yylex}, the
error reporting function @code{yyerror} and the parser function
@code{yyparse} itself. This also includes numerous identifiers used
for internal purposes. Therefore, you should avoid using C
identifiers starting with @samp{yy} or @samp{YY} in the Bison grammar
file except for the ones defined in this manual. Also, you should
avoid using the C identifiers @samp{malloc} and @samp{free} for
anything other than their usual meanings.
In some cases the Bison parser implementation file includes system
headers, and in those cases your code should respect the identifiers
reserved by those headers. On some non-GNU hosts, @code{<limits.h>},
@code{<stddef.h>}, @code{<stdint.h>} (if available), and @code{<stdlib.h>}
are included to declare memory allocators and integer types and constants.
@code{<libintl.h>} is included if message translation is in use
(@pxref{Internationalization}). Other system headers may be included
if you define @code{YYDEBUG} (@pxref{Tracing}) or
@code{YYSTACK_USE_ALLOCA} (@pxref{Table of Symbols}) to a nonzero value.
@node Stages
@section Stages in Using Bison
@cindex stages in using Bison
@cindex using Bison
The actual language-design process using Bison, from grammar specification
to a working compiler or interpreter, has these parts:
@enumerate
@item
Formally specify the grammar in a form recognized by Bison
(@pxref{Grammar File}). For each grammatical rule
in the language, describe the action that is to be taken when an
instance of that rule is recognized. The action is described by a
sequence of C statements.
@item
Write a lexical analyzer to process input and pass tokens to the parser.
The lexical analyzer may be written by hand in C (@pxref{Lexical}). It
could also be produced using Lex, but the use of Lex is not discussed in
this manual.
@item
Write a controlling function that calls the Bison-produced parser.
@item
Write error-reporting routines.
@end enumerate
To turn this source code as written into a runnable program, you
must follow these steps:
@enumerate
@item
Run Bison on the grammar to produce the parser.
@item
Compile the code output by Bison, as well as any other source files.
@item
Link the object files to produce the finished product.
@end enumerate
@node Grammar Layout
@section The Overall Layout of a Bison Grammar
@cindex grammar file
@cindex file format
@cindex format of grammar file
@cindex layout of Bison grammar
The input file for the Bison utility is a @dfn{Bison grammar file}. The
general form of a Bison grammar file is as follows:
@example
%@{
@var{Prologue}
%@}
@var{Bison declarations}
%%
@var{Grammar rules}
%%
@var{Epilogue}
@end example
@noindent
The @samp{%%}, @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} are punctuation that appears
in every Bison grammar file to separate the sections.
The prologue may define types and variables used in the actions. You can
also use preprocessor commands to define macros used there, and use
@code{#include} to include header files that do any of these things.
You need to declare the lexical analyzer @code{yylex} and the error
printer @code{yyerror} here, along with any other global identifiers
used by the actions in the grammar rules.
The Bison declarations declare the names of the terminal and nonterminal
symbols, and may also describe operator precedence and the data types of
semantic values of various symbols.
The grammar rules define how to construct each nonterminal symbol from its
parts.
The epilogue can contain any code you want to use. Often the
definitions of functions declared in the prologue go here. In a
simple program, all the rest of the program can go here.
@node Examples
@chapter Examples
@cindex simple examples
@cindex examples, simple
Now we show and explain several sample programs written using Bison: a
Reverse Polish Notation calculator, an algebraic (infix) notation
calculator --- later extended to track ``locations'' ---
and a multi-function calculator. All
produce usable, though limited, interactive desk-top calculators.
These examples are simple, but Bison grammars for real programming
languages are written the same way. You can copy these examples into a
source file to try them.
@sp 1
Bison comes with several examples (including for the different target
languages). If this package is properly installed, you shall find them in
@file{@var{prefix}/share/doc/bison/examples}, where @var{prefix} is the root
of the installation, probably something like @file{/usr/local} or
@file{/usr}.
@menu
* RPN Calc:: Reverse Polish Notation Calculator;
a first example with no operator precedence.
* Infix Calc:: Infix (algebraic) notation calculator.
Operator precedence is introduced.
* Simple Error Recovery:: Continuing after syntax errors.
* Location Tracking Calc:: Demonstrating the use of @@@var{n} and @@$.
* Multi-function Calc:: Calculator with memory and trig functions.
It uses multiple data-types for semantic values.
* Exercises:: Ideas for improving the multi-function calculator.
@end menu
@node RPN Calc
@section Reverse Polish Notation Calculator
@cindex Reverse Polish Notation
@cindex @code{rpcalc}
@cindex calculator, simple
The first example@footnote{The sources of @command{rpcalc} are available as
@file{examples/c/rpcalc}.} is that of a simple double-precision @dfn{Reverse
Polish
Notation} calculator (a calculator using postfix operators). This example
provides a good starting point, since operator precedence is not an issue.
The second example will illustrate how operator precedence is handled.
The source code for this calculator is named @file{rpcalc.y}. The
@samp{.y} extension is a convention used for Bison grammar files.
@menu
* Rpcalc Declarations:: Prologue (declarations) for rpcalc.
* Rpcalc Rules:: Grammar Rules for rpcalc, with explanation.
* Rpcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
* Rpcalc Main:: The controlling function.
* Rpcalc Error:: The error reporting function.
* Rpcalc Generate:: Running Bison on the grammar file.
* Rpcalc Compile:: Run the C compiler on the output code.
@end menu
@node Rpcalc Declarations
@subsection Declarations for @code{rpcalc}
Here are the C and Bison declarations for the Reverse Polish Notation
calculator. As in C, comments are placed between @samp{/*@dots{}*/} or
after @samp{//}.
@ignore
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
/* Parser for rpcalc. -*- C -*-
Copyright (C) 1988-1993, 1995, 1998-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software
Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
/* Reverse Polish Notation calculator. */
@group
%@{
#include <stdio.h>
#include <math.h>
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
@end group
%define api.value.type @{double@}
%token NUM
%% /* Grammar rules and actions follow. */
@end example
The declarations section (@pxref{Prologue}) contains two
preprocessor directives and two forward declarations.
The @code{#include} directive is used to declare the exponentiation
function @code{pow}.
The forward declarations for @code{yylex} and @code{yyerror} are
needed because the C language requires that functions be declared
before they are used. These functions will be defined in the
epilogue, but the parser calls them so they must be declared in the
prologue.
The second section, Bison declarations, provides information to Bison about
the tokens and their types (@pxref{Bison Declarations}).
The @code{%define} directive defines the variable @code{api.value.type},
thus specifying the C data type for semantic values of both tokens and
groupings (@pxref{Value Type}). The Bison
parser will use whatever type @code{api.value.type} is defined as; if you
don't define it, @code{int} is the default. Because we specify
@samp{@{double@}}, each token and each expression has an associated value,
which is a floating point number. C code can use @code{YYSTYPE} to refer to
the value @code{api.value.type}.
Each terminal symbol that is not a single-character literal must be
declared. (Single-character literals normally don't need to be declared.)
In this example, all the arithmetic operators are designated by
single-character literals, so the only terminal symbol that needs to be
declared is @code{NUM}, the token kind for numeric constants.
@node Rpcalc Rules
@subsection Grammar Rules for @code{rpcalc}
Here are the grammar rules for the Reverse Polish Notation calculator.
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
@group
input:
%empty
| input line
;
@end group
@group
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("%.10g\n", $1); @}
;
@end group
@group
exp:
NUM
| exp exp '+' @{ $$ = $1 + $2; @}
| exp exp '-' @{ $$ = $1 - $2; @}
| exp exp '*' @{ $$ = $1 * $2; @}
| exp exp '/' @{ $$ = $1 / $2; @}
| exp exp '^' @{ $$ = pow ($1, $2); @} /* Exponentiation */
| exp 'n' @{ $$ = -$1; @} /* Unary minus */
;
@end group
%%
@end example
The groupings of the rpcalc ``language'' defined here are the expression
(given the name @code{exp}), the line of input (@code{line}), and the
complete input transcript (@code{input}). Each of these nonterminal
symbols has several alternate rules, joined by the vertical bar @samp{|}
which is read as ``or''. The following sections explain what these rules
mean.
The semantics of the language is determined by the actions taken when a
grouping is recognized. The actions are the C code that appears inside
braces. @xref{Actions}.
You must specify these actions in C, but Bison provides the means for
passing semantic values between the rules. In each action, the
pseudo-variable @code{$$} stands for the semantic value for the grouping
that the rule is going to construct. Assigning a value to @code{$$} is the
main job of most actions. The semantic values of the components of the
rule are referred to as @code{$1}, @code{$2}, and so on.
@menu
* Rpcalc Input:: Explanation of the @code{input} nonterminal
* Rpcalc Line:: Explanation of the @code{line} nonterminal
* Rpcalc Exp:: Explanation of the @code{exp} nonterminal
@end menu
@node Rpcalc Input
@subsubsection Explanation of @code{input}
Consider the definition of @code{input}:
@example
input:
%empty
| input line
;
@end example
This definition reads as follows: ``A complete input is either an empty
string, or a complete input followed by an input line''. Notice that
``complete input'' is defined in terms of itself. This definition is said
to be @dfn{left recursive} since @code{input} appears always as the
leftmost symbol in the sequence. @xref{Recursion}.
The first alternative is empty because there are no symbols between the
colon and the first @samp{|}; this means that @code{input} can match an
empty string of input (no tokens). We write the rules this way because it
is legitimate to type @kbd{Ctrl-d} right after you start the calculator.
It's conventional to put an empty alternative first and to use the
(optional) @code{%empty} directive, or to write the comment @samp{/* empty
*/} in it (@pxref{Empty Rules}).
The second alternate rule (@code{input line}) handles all nontrivial input.
It means, ``After reading any number of lines, read one more line if
possible.'' The left recursion makes this rule into a loop. Since the
first alternative matches empty input, the loop can be executed zero or
more times.
The parser function @code{yyparse} continues to process input until a
grammatical error is seen or the lexical analyzer says there are no more
input tokens; we will arrange for the latter to happen at end-of-input.
@node Rpcalc Line
@subsubsection Explanation of @code{line}
Now consider the definition of @code{line}:
@example
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("%.10g\n", $1); @}
;
@end example
The first alternative is a token which is a newline character; this means
that rpcalc accepts a blank line (and ignores it, since there is no
action). The second alternative is an expression followed by a newline.
This is the alternative that makes rpcalc useful. The semantic value of
the @code{exp} grouping is the value of @code{$1} because the @code{exp} in
question is the first symbol in the alternative. The action prints this
value, which is the result of the computation the user asked for.
This action is unusual because it does not assign a value to @code{$$}. As
a consequence, the semantic value associated with the @code{line} is
uninitialized (its value will be unpredictable). This would be a bug if
that value were ever used, but we don't use it: once rpcalc has printed the
value of the user's input line, that value is no longer needed.
@node Rpcalc Exp
@subsubsection Explanation of @code{exp}
The @code{exp} grouping has several rules, one for each kind of expression.
The first rule handles the simplest expressions: those that are just
numbers. The second handles an addition-expression, which looks like two
expressions followed by a plus-sign. The third handles subtraction, and so
on.
@example
exp:
NUM
| exp exp '+' @{ $$ = $1 + $2; @}
| exp exp '-' @{ $$ = $1 - $2; @}
@dots{}
;
@end example
We have used @samp{|} to join all the rules for @code{exp}, but we could
equally well have written them separately:
@example
exp: NUM;
exp: exp exp '+' @{ $$ = $1 + $2; @};
exp: exp exp '-' @{ $$ = $1 - $2; @};
@dots{}
@end example
Most of the rules have actions that compute the value of the expression in
terms of the value of its parts. For example, in the rule for addition,
@code{$1} refers to the first component @code{exp} and @code{$2} refers to
the second one. The third component, @code{'+'}, has no meaningful
associated semantic value, but if it had one you could refer to it as
@code{$3}. The first rule relies on the implicit default action: @samp{@{
$$ = $1; @}}.
When @code{yyparse} recognizes a sum expression using this rule, the sum of
the two subexpressions' values is produced as the value of the entire
expression. @xref{Actions}.
You don't have to give an action for every rule. When a rule has no action,
Bison by default copies the value of @code{$1} into @code{$$}. This is what
happens in the first rule (the one that uses @code{NUM}).
The formatting shown here is the recommended convention, but Bison does not
require it. You can add or change white space as much as you wish. For
example, this:
@example
exp: NUM | exp exp '+' @{$$ = $1 + $2; @} | @dots{} ;
@end example
@noindent
means the same thing as this:
@example
exp:
NUM
| exp exp '+' @{ $$ = $1 + $2; @}
| @dots{}
;
@end example
@noindent
The latter, however, is much more readable.
@node Rpcalc Lexer
@subsection The @code{rpcalc} Lexical Analyzer
@cindex writing a lexical analyzer
@cindex lexical analyzer, writing
The lexical analyzer's job is low-level parsing: converting characters
or sequences of characters into tokens. The Bison parser gets its
tokens by calling the lexical analyzer. @xref{Lexical}.
Only a simple lexical analyzer is needed for the RPN
calculator. This
lexical analyzer skips blanks and tabs, then reads in numbers as
@code{double} and returns them as @code{NUM} tokens. Any other character
that isn't part of a number is a separate token. Note that the token-code
for such a single-character token is the character itself.
The return value of the lexical analyzer function is a numeric code which
represents a token kind. The same text used in Bison rules to stand for
this token kind is also a C expression for the numeric code of the kind.
This works in two ways. If the token kind is a character literal, then its
numeric code is that of the character; you can use the same character
literal in the lexical analyzer to express the number. If the token kind is
an identifier, that identifier is defined by Bison as a C enum whose
definition is the appropriate code. In this example, therefore, @code{NUM}
becomes an enum for @code{yylex} to use.
The semantic value of the token (if it has one) is stored into the global
variable @code{yylval}, which is where the Bison parser will look for it.
(The C data type of @code{yylval} is @code{YYSTYPE}, whose value was defined
at the beginning of the grammar via @samp{%define api.value.type
@{double@}}; @pxref{Rpcalc Declarations}.)
A token kind code of zero is returned if the end-of-input is encountered.
(Bison recognizes any nonpositive value as indicating end-of-input.)
Here is the code for the lexical analyzer:
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
@group
/* The lexical analyzer returns a double floating point
number on the stack and the token NUM, or the numeric code
of the character read if not a number. It skips all blanks
and tabs, and returns 0 for end-of-input. */
#include <ctype.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
@end group
@group
int
yylex (void)
@{
int c = getchar ();
/* Skip white space. */
while (c == ' ' || c == '\t')
c = getchar ();
@end group
@group
/* Process numbers. */
if (c == '.' || isdigit (c))
@{
ungetc (c, stdin);
if (scanf ("%lf", &yylval) != 1)
abort ();
return NUM;
@}
@end group
@group
/* Return end-of-input. */
else if (c == EOF)
return YYEOF;
/* Return a single char. */
else
return c;
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Rpcalc Main
@subsection The Controlling Function
@cindex controlling function
@cindex main function in simple example
In keeping with the spirit of this example, the controlling function is
kept to the bare minimum. The only requirement is that it call
@code{yyparse} to start the process of parsing.
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
@group
int
main (void)
@{
return yyparse ();
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Rpcalc Error
@subsection The Error Reporting Routine
@cindex error reporting routine
When @code{yyparse} detects a syntax error, it calls the error reporting
function @code{yyerror} to print an error message (usually but not
always @code{"syntax error"}). It is up to the programmer to supply
@code{yyerror} (@pxref{Interface}), so
here is the definition we will use:
@comment file: c/rpcalc/rpcalc.y
@example
#include <stdio.h>
@group
/* Called by yyparse on error. */
void
yyerror (char const *s)
@{
fprintf (stderr, "%s\n", s);
@}
@end group
@end example
After @code{yyerror} returns, the Bison parser may recover from the error
and continue parsing if the grammar contains a suitable error rule
(@pxref{Error Recovery}). Otherwise, @code{yyparse} returns nonzero. We
have not written any error rules in this example, so any invalid input will
cause the calculator program to exit. This is not clean behavior for a
real calculator, but it is adequate for the first example.
@node Rpcalc Generate
@subsection Running Bison to Make the Parser
@cindex running Bison (introduction)
Before running Bison to produce a parser, we need to decide how to
arrange all the source code in one or more source files. For such a
simple example, the easiest thing is to put everything in one file,
the grammar file. The definitions of @code{yylex}, @code{yyerror} and
@code{main} go at the end, in the epilogue of the grammar file
(@pxref{Grammar Layout}).
For a large project, you would probably have several source files, and use
@code{make} to arrange to recompile them.
With all the source in the grammar file, you use the following command
to convert it into a parser implementation file:
@example
$ @kbd{bison @var{file}.y}
@end example
@noindent
In this example, the grammar file is called @file{rpcalc.y} (for
``Reverse Polish @sc{calc}ulator''). Bison produces a parser
implementation file named @file{@var{file}.tab.c}, removing the
@samp{.y} from the grammar file name. The parser implementation file
contains the source code for @code{yyparse}. The additional functions
in the grammar file (@code{yylex}, @code{yyerror} and @code{main}) are
copied verbatim to the parser implementation file.
@node Rpcalc Compile
@subsection Compiling the Parser Implementation File
@cindex compiling the parser
Here is how to compile and run the parser implementation file:
@example
@group
# @r{List files in current directory.}
$ @kbd{ls}
rpcalc.tab.c rpcalc.y
@end group
@group
# @r{Compile the Bison parser.}
# @r{@option{-lm} tells compiler to search math library for @code{pow}.}
$ @kbd{cc -lm -o rpcalc rpcalc.tab.c}
@end group
@group
# @r{List files again.}
$ @kbd{ls}
rpcalc rpcalc.tab.c rpcalc.y
@end group
@end example
The file @file{rpcalc} now contains the executable code. Here is an
example session using @code{rpcalc}.
@example
$ @kbd{rpcalc}
@kbd{4 9 +}
@result{} 13
@kbd{3 7 + 3 4 5 *+-}
@result{} -13
@kbd{3 7 + 3 4 5 * + - n} @r{Note the unary minus, @samp{n}}
@result{} 13
@kbd{5 6 / 4 n +}
@result{} -3.166666667
@kbd{3 4 ^} @r{Exponentiation}
@result{} 81
@kbd{^D} @r{End-of-file indicator}
$
@end example
@node Infix Calc
@section Infix Notation Calculator: @code{calc}
@cindex infix notation calculator
@cindex @code{calc}
@cindex calculator, infix notation
We now modify rpcalc to handle infix operators instead of
postfix.@footnote{A similar example, but using an unambiguous grammar rather
than precedence and associativity annotations, is available as
@file{examples/c/calc}.} Infix
notation involves the concept of operator precedence and the need for
parentheses nested to arbitrary depth. Here is the Bison code for
@file{calc.y}, an infix desk-top calculator.
@example
/* Infix notation calculator. */
@group
%@{
#include <math.h>
#include <stdio.h>
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
@end group
@group
/* Bison declarations. */
%define api.value.type @{double@}
%token NUM
%left '-' '+'
%left '*' '/'
%precedence NEG /* negation--unary minus */
%right '^' /* exponentiation */
@end group
%% /* The grammar follows. */
@group
input:
%empty
| input line
;
@end group
@group
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("\t%.10g\n", $1); @}
;
@end group
@group
exp:
NUM
| exp '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
| exp '-' exp @{ $$ = $1 - $3; @}
| exp '*' exp @{ $$ = $1 * $3; @}
| exp '/' exp @{ $$ = $1 / $3; @}
| '-' exp %prec NEG @{ $$ = -$2; @}
| exp '^' exp @{ $$ = pow ($1, $3); @}
| '(' exp ')' @{ $$ = $2; @}
;
@end group
%%
@end example
@noindent
The functions @code{yylex}, @code{yyerror} and @code{main} can be the
same as before.
There are two important new features shown in this code.
In the second section (Bison declarations), @code{%left} declares token
kinds and says they are left-associative operators. The declarations
@code{%left} and @code{%right} (right associativity) take the place of
@code{%token} which is used to declare a token kind name without
associativity/precedence. (These tokens are single-character literals,
which ordinarily don't need to be declared. We declare them here to specify
the associativity/precedence.)
Operator precedence is determined by the line ordering of the
declarations; the higher the line number of the declaration (lower on
the page or screen), the higher the precedence. Hence, exponentiation
has the highest precedence, unary minus (@code{NEG}) is next, followed
by @samp{*} and @samp{/}, and so on. Unary minus is not associative,
only precedence matters (@code{%precedence}. @xref{Precedence}.
The other important new feature is the @code{%prec} in the grammar
section for the unary minus operator. The @code{%prec} simply instructs
Bison that the rule @samp{| '-' exp} has the same precedence as
@code{NEG}---in this case the next-to-highest. @xref{Contextual
Precedence}.
Here is a sample run of @file{calc.y}:
@need 500
@example
$ @kbd{calc}
@kbd{4 + 4.5 - (34/(8*3+-3))}
6.880952381
@kbd{-56 + 2}
-54
@kbd{3 ^ 2}
9
@end example
@node Simple Error Recovery
@section Simple Error Recovery
@cindex error recovery, simple
Up to this point, this manual has not addressed the issue of @dfn{error
recovery}---how to continue parsing after the parser detects a syntax
error. All we have handled is error reporting with @code{yyerror}.
Recall that by default @code{yyparse} returns after calling
@code{yyerror}. This means that an erroneous input line causes the
calculator program to exit. Now we show how to rectify this deficiency.
The Bison language itself includes the reserved word @code{error}, which
may be included in the grammar rules. In the example below it has
been added to one of the alternatives for @code{line}:
@example
@group
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("\t%.10g\n", $1); @}
| error '\n' @{ yyerrok; @}
;
@end group
@end example
This addition to the grammar allows for simple error recovery in the
event of a syntax error. If an expression that cannot be evaluated is
read, the error will be recognized by the third rule for @code{line},
and parsing will continue. (The @code{yyerror} function is still called
upon to print its message as well.) The action executes the statement
@code{yyerrok}, a macro defined automatically by Bison; its meaning is
that error recovery is complete (@pxref{Error Recovery}). Note the
difference between @code{yyerrok} and @code{yyerror}; neither one is a
misprint.
This form of error recovery deals with syntax errors. There are other
kinds of errors; for example, division by zero, which raises an exception
signal that is normally fatal. A real calculator program must handle this
signal and use @code{longjmp} to return to @code{main} and resume parsing
input lines; it would also have to discard the rest of the current line of
input. We won't discuss this issue further because it is not specific to
Bison programs.
@node Location Tracking Calc
@section Location Tracking Calculator: @code{ltcalc}
@cindex location tracking calculator
@cindex @code{ltcalc}
@cindex calculator, location tracking
This example extends the infix notation calculator with location
tracking. This feature will be used to improve the error messages. For
the sake of clarity, this example is a simple integer calculator, since
most of the work needed to use locations will be done in the lexical
analyzer.
@menu
* Ltcalc Declarations:: Bison and C declarations for ltcalc.
* Ltcalc Rules:: Grammar rules for ltcalc, with explanations.
* Ltcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
@end menu
See @ref{Tracking Locations} for details about locations.
@node Ltcalc Declarations
@subsection Declarations for @code{ltcalc}
The C and Bison declarations for the location tracking calculator are
the same as the declarations for the infix notation calculator.
@example
/* Location tracking calculator. */
%@{
#include <math.h>
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
/* Bison declarations. */
%define api.value.type @{int@}
%token NUM
%left '-' '+'
%left '*' '/'
%precedence NEG
%right '^'
%% /* The grammar follows. */
@end example
@noindent
Note there are no declarations specific to locations. Defining a data type
for storing locations is not needed: we will use the type provided by
default (@pxref{Location Type}), which is a four member structure with the
following integer fields: @code{first_line}, @code{first_column},
@code{last_line} and @code{last_column}. By conventions, and in accordance
with the GNU Coding Standards and common practice, the line and column count
both start at 1.
@node Ltcalc Rules
@subsection Grammar Rules for @code{ltcalc}
Whether handling locations or not has no effect on the syntax of your
language. Therefore, grammar rules for this example will be very close
to those of the previous example: we will only modify them to benefit
from the new information.
Here, we will use locations to report divisions by zero, and locate the
wrong expressions or subexpressions.
@example
@group
input:
%empty
| input line
;
@end group
@group
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("%d\n", $1); @}
;
@end group
@group
exp:
NUM
| exp '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
| exp '-' exp @{ $$ = $1 - $3; @}
| exp '*' exp @{ $$ = $1 * $3; @}
@end group
@group
| exp '/' exp
@{
if ($3)
$$ = $1 / $3;
else
@{
$$ = 1;
fprintf (stderr, "%d.%d-%d.%d: division by zero",
@@3.first_line, @@3.first_column,
@@3.last_line, @@3.last_column);
@}
@}
@end group
@group
| '-' exp %prec NEG @{ $$ = -$2; @}
| exp '^' exp @{ $$ = pow ($1, $3); @}
| '(' exp ')' @{ $$ = $2; @}
@end group
@end example
This code shows how to reach locations inside of semantic actions, by
using the pseudo-variables @code{@@@var{n}} for rule components, and the
pseudo-variable @code{@@$} for groupings.
We don't need to assign a value to @code{@@$}: the output parser does it
automatically. By default, before executing the C code of each action,
@code{@@$} is set to range from the beginning of @code{@@1} to the end of
@code{@@@var{n}}, for a rule with @var{n} components. This behavior can be
redefined (@pxref{Location Default Action}), and for very specific rules,
@code{@@$} can be computed by hand.
@node Ltcalc Lexer
@subsection The @code{ltcalc} Lexical Analyzer.
Until now, we relied on Bison's defaults to enable location
tracking. The next step is to rewrite the lexical analyzer, and make it
able to feed the parser with the token locations, as it already does for
semantic values.
To this end, we must take into account every single character of the
input text, to avoid the computed locations of being fuzzy or wrong:
@example
@group
int
yylex (void)
@{
int c;
@end group
@group
/* Skip white space. */
while ((c = getchar ()) == ' ' || c == '\t')
yylloc.last_column += c == '\t' ? 8 - ((yylloc.last_column - 1) & 7) : 1;
@end group
@group
/* Step. */
yylloc.first_line = yylloc.last_line;
yylloc.first_column = yylloc.last_column;
@end group
@group
/* Process numbers. */
if (isdigit (c))
@{
yylval = c - '0';
++yylloc.last_column;
while (isdigit (c = getchar ()))
@{
++yylloc.last_column;
yylval = yylval * 10 + c - '0';
@}
ungetc (c, stdin);
return NUM;
@}
@end group
/* Return end-of-input. */
if (c == EOF)
return YYEOF;
@group
/* Return a single char, and update location. */
if (c == '\n')
@{
++yylloc.last_line;
yylloc.last_column = 0;
@}
else
++yylloc.last_column;
return c;
@}
@end group
@end example
Basically, the lexical analyzer performs the same processing as before: it
skips blanks and tabs, and reads numbers or single-character tokens. In
addition, it updates @code{yylloc}, the global variable (of type
@code{YYLTYPE}) containing the token's location.
Now, each time this function returns a token, the parser has its kind as
well as its semantic value, and its location in the text. The last needed
change is to initialize @code{yylloc}, for example in the controlling
function:
@example
@group
int
main (void)
@{
yylloc.first_line = yylloc.last_line = 1;
yylloc.first_column = yylloc.last_column = 0;
return yyparse ();
@}
@end group
@end example
Remember that computing locations is not a matter of syntax. Every
character must be associated to a location update, whether it is in
valid input, in comments, in literal strings, and so on.
@node Multi-function Calc
@section Multi-Function Calculator: @code{mfcalc}
@cindex multi-function calculator
@cindex @code{mfcalc}
@cindex calculator, multi-function
Now that the basics of Bison have been discussed, it is time to move on to a
more advanced problem.@footnote{The sources of @command{mfcalc} are
available as @file{examples/c/mfcalc}.} The above calculators provided only
five functions, @samp{+}, @samp{-}, @samp{*}, @samp{/} and @samp{^}. It
would be nice to have a calculator that provides other mathematical
functions such as @code{sin}, @code{cos}, etc.
It is easy to add new operators to the infix calculator as long as they are
only single-character literals. The lexical analyzer @code{yylex} passes
back all nonnumeric characters as tokens, so new grammar rules suffice for
adding a new operator. But we want something more flexible: built-in
functions whose syntax has this form:
@example
@var{function_name} (@var{argument})
@end example
@noindent
At the same time, we will add memory to the calculator, by allowing you
to create named variables, store values in them, and use them later.
Here is a sample session with the multi-function calculator:
@example
@group
$ @kbd{mfcalc}
@kbd{pi = 3.141592653589}
@result{} 3.1415926536
@end group
@group
@kbd{sin(pi)}
@result{} 0.0000000000
@end group
@kbd{alpha = beta1 = 2.3}
@result{} 2.3000000000
@kbd{alpha}
@result{} 2.3000000000
@kbd{ln(alpha)}
@result{} 0.8329091229
@kbd{exp(ln(beta1))}
@result{} 2.3000000000
$
@end example
Note that multiple assignment and nested function calls are permitted.
@menu
* Mfcalc Declarations:: Bison declarations for multi-function calculator.
* Mfcalc Rules:: Grammar rules for the calculator.
* Mfcalc Symbol Table:: Symbol table management subroutines.
* Mfcalc Lexer:: The lexical analyzer.
* Mfcalc Main:: The controlling function.
@end menu
@node Mfcalc Declarations
@subsection Declarations for @code{mfcalc}
Here are the C and Bison declarations for the multi-function
calculator.
@ignore
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y
@example
/* Parser for mfcalc. -*- C -*-
Copyright (C) 1988-1993, 1995, 1998-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software
Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
%code top {
/* Portability issues for strdup. */
#ifndef _XOPEN_SOURCE
# define _XOPEN_SOURCE 600
#endif
}
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 1
@example
@group
%@{
#include <stdio.h> /* For printf, etc. */
#include <math.h> /* For pow, used in the grammar. */
#include "calc.h" /* Contains definition of 'symrec'. */
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
@end group
%define api.value.type union /* Generate YYSTYPE from these types: */
%token <double> NUM /* Double precision number. */
%token <symrec*> VAR FUN /* Symbol table pointer: variable/function. */
%nterm <double> exp
@group
%precedence '='
%left '-' '+'
%left '*' '/'
%precedence NEG /* negation--unary minus */
%right '^' /* exponentiation */
@end group
@end example
The above grammar introduces only two new features of the Bison language.
These features allow semantic values to have various data types
(@pxref{Multiple Types}).
The special @code{union} value assigned to the @code{%define} variable
@code{api.value.type} specifies that the symbols are defined with their data
types. Bison will generate an appropriate definition of @code{YYSTYPE} to
store these values.
Since values can now have various types, it is necessary to associate a type
with each grammar symbol whose semantic value is used. These symbols are
@code{NUM}, @code{VAR}, @code{FUN}, and @code{exp}. Their declarations are
augmented with their data type (placed between angle brackets). For
instance, values of @code{NUM} are stored in @code{double}.
The Bison construct @code{%nterm} is used for declaring nonterminal symbols,
just as @code{%token} is used for declaring token kinds. Previously we did
not use @code{%nterm} before because nonterminal symbols are normally
declared implicitly by the rules that define them. But @code{exp} must be
declared explicitly so we can specify its value type. @xref{Type Decl}.
@node Mfcalc Rules
@subsection Grammar Rules for @code{mfcalc}
Here are the grammar rules for the multi-function calculator.
Most of them are copied directly from @code{calc}; three rules,
those which mention @code{VAR} or @code{FUN}, are new.
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
%% /* The grammar follows. */
@group
input:
%empty
| input line
;
@end group
@group
line:
'\n'
| exp '\n' @{ printf ("%.10g\n", $1); @}
| error '\n' @{ yyerrok; @}
;
@end group
@group
exp:
NUM
| VAR @{ $$ = $1->value.var; @}
| VAR '=' exp @{ $$ = $3; $1->value.var = $3; @}
| FUN '(' exp ')' @{ $$ = $1->value.fun ($3); @}
| exp '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
| exp '-' exp @{ $$ = $1 - $3; @}
| exp '*' exp @{ $$ = $1 * $3; @}
| exp '/' exp @{ $$ = $1 / $3; @}
| '-' exp %prec NEG @{ $$ = -$2; @}
| exp '^' exp @{ $$ = pow ($1, $3); @}
| '(' exp ')' @{ $$ = $2; @}
;
@end group
/* End of grammar. */
%%
@end example
@node Mfcalc Symbol Table
@subsection The @code{mfcalc} Symbol Table
@cindex symbol table example
The multi-function calculator requires a symbol table to keep track of the
names and meanings of variables and functions. This doesn't affect the
grammar rules (except for the actions) or the Bison declarations, but it
requires some additional C functions for support.
The symbol table itself consists of a linked list of records. Its
definition, which is kept in the header @file{calc.h}, is as follows. It
provides for either functions or variables to be placed in the table.
@ignore
@comment file: c/mfcalc/calc.h
@example
/* Functions for mfcalc. -*- C -*-
Copyright (C) 1988-1993, 1995, 1998-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software
Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c/mfcalc/calc.h
@example
@group
/* Function type. */
typedef double (func_t) (double);
@end group
@group
/* Data type for links in the chain of symbols. */
struct symrec
@{
char *name; /* name of symbol */
int type; /* type of symbol: either VAR or FUN */
union
@{
double var; /* value of a VAR */
func_t *fun; /* value of a FUN */
@} value;
struct symrec *next; /* link field */
@};
@end group
@group
typedef struct symrec symrec;
/* The symbol table: a chain of 'struct symrec'. */
extern symrec *sym_table;
symrec *putsym (char const *name, int sym_type);
symrec *getsym (char const *name);
@end group
@end example
The new version of @code{main} will call @code{init_table} to initialize
the symbol table:
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
@group
struct init
@{
char const *name;
func_t *fun;
@};
@end group
@group
struct init const funs[] =
@{
@{ "atan", atan @},
@{ "cos", cos @},
@{ "exp", exp @},
@{ "ln", log @},
@{ "sin", sin @},
@{ "sqrt", sqrt @},
@{ 0, 0 @},
@};
@end group
@group
/* The symbol table: a chain of 'struct symrec'. */
symrec *sym_table;
@end group
@group
/* Put functions in table. */
static void
init_table (void)
@end group
@group
@{
for (int i = 0; funs[i].name; i++)
@{
symrec *ptr = putsym (funs[i].name, FUN);
ptr->value.fun = funs[i].fun;
@}
@}
@end group
@end example
By simply editing the initialization list and adding the necessary include
files, you can add additional functions to the calculator.
Two important functions allow look-up and installation of symbols in the
symbol table. The function @code{putsym} is passed a name and the kind
(@code{VAR} or @code{FUN}) of the object to be installed. The object is
linked to the front of the list, and a pointer to the object is returned.
The function @code{getsym} is passed the name of the symbol to look up. If
found, a pointer to that symbol is returned; otherwise zero is returned.
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
@group
/* The mfcalc code assumes that malloc and realloc
always succeed, and that integer calculations
never overflow. Production-quality code should
not make these assumptions. */
#include <assert.h>
#include <stdlib.h> /* malloc, realloc. */
#include <string.h> /* strdup, strlen. */
@end group
@group
symrec *
putsym (char const *name, int sym_type)
@{
symrec *res = (symrec *) malloc (sizeof (symrec));
res->name = strdup (name);
res->type = sym_type;
res->value.var = 0; /* Set value to 0 even if fun. */
res->next = sym_table;
sym_table = res;
return res;
@}
@end group
@group
symrec *
getsym (char const *name)
@{
for (symrec *p = sym_table; p; p = p->next)
if (strcmp (p->name, name) == 0)
return p;
return NULL;
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Mfcalc Lexer
@subsection The @code{mfcalc} Lexer
The function @code{yylex} must now recognize variables, numeric values, and
the single-character arithmetic operators. Strings of alphanumeric
characters with a leading letter are recognized as either variables or
functions depending on what the symbol table says about them.
The string is passed to @code{getsym} for look up in the symbol table. If
the name appears in the table, a pointer to its location and its type
(@code{VAR} or @code{FUN}) is returned to @code{yyparse}. If it is not
already in the table, then it is installed as a @code{VAR} using
@code{putsym}. Again, a pointer and its type (which must be @code{VAR}) is
returned to @code{yyparse}.
No change is needed in the handling of numeric values and arithmetic
operators in @code{yylex}.
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
#include <ctype.h>
#include <stddef.h>
@group
int
yylex (void)
@{
int c = getchar ();
/* Ignore white space, get first nonwhite character. */
while (c == ' ' || c == '\t')
c = getchar ();
if (c == EOF)
return YYEOF;
@end group
@group
/* Char starts a number => parse the number. */
if (c == '.' || isdigit (c))
@{
ungetc (c, stdin);
if (scanf ("%lf", &yylval.NUM) != 1)
abort ();
return NUM;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Bison generated a definition of @code{YYSTYPE} with a member named
@code{NUM} to store value of @code{NUM} symbols.
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
@group
/* Char starts an identifier => read the name. */
if (isalpha (c))
@{
static ptrdiff_t bufsize = 0;
static char *symbuf = 0;
@end group
ptrdiff_t i = 0;
do
@group
@{
/* If buffer is full, make it bigger. */
if (bufsize <= i)
@{
bufsize = 2 * bufsize + 40;
symbuf = realloc (symbuf, (size_t) bufsize);
@}
/* Add this character to the buffer. */
symbuf[i++] = (char) c;
/* Get another character. */
c = getchar ();
@}
@end group
@group
while (isalnum (c));
ungetc (c, stdin);
symbuf[i] = '\0';
@end group
@group
symrec *s = getsym (symbuf);
if (!s)
s = putsym (symbuf, VAR);
yylval.VAR = s; /* or yylval.FUN = s. */
return s->type;
@}
/* Any other character is a token by itself. */
return c;
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Mfcalc Main
@subsection The @code{mfcalc} Main
The error reporting function is unchanged, and the new version of
@code{main} includes a call to @code{init_table} and sets the @code{yydebug}
on user demand (@xref{Tracing}, for details):
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 3
@example
@group
/* Called by yyparse on error. */
void yyerror (char const *s)
@{
fprintf (stderr, "%s\n", s);
@}
@end group
@group
int main (int argc, char const* argv[])
@end group
@group
@{
/* Enable parse traces on option -p. */
if (argc == 2 && strcmp(argv[1], "-p") == 0)
yydebug = 1;
@end group
@group
init_table ();
return yyparse ();
@}
@end group
@end example
This program is both powerful and flexible. You may easily add new
functions, and it is a simple job to modify this code to install
predefined variables such as @code{pi} or @code{e} as well.
@node Exercises
@section Exercises
@cindex exercises
@enumerate
@item
Add some new functions from @file{math.h} to the initialization list.
@item
Add another array that contains constants and their values. Then modify
@code{init_table} to add these constants to the symbol table. It will be
easiest to give the constants type @code{VAR}.
@item
Make the program report an error if the user refers to an uninitialized
variable in any way except to store a value in it.
@end enumerate
@node Grammar File
@chapter Bison Grammar Files
Bison takes as input a context-free grammar specification and produces a
C-language function that recognizes correct instances of the grammar.
The Bison grammar file conventionally has a name ending in @samp{.y}.
@xref{Invocation}.
@menu
* Grammar Outline:: Overall layout of the grammar file.
* Symbols:: Terminal and nonterminal symbols.
* Rules:: How to write grammar rules.
* Semantics:: Semantic values and actions.
* Tracking Locations:: Locations and actions.
* Named References:: Using named references in actions.
* Declarations:: All kinds of Bison declarations are described here.
* Multiple Parsers:: Putting more than one Bison parser in one program.
@end menu
@node Grammar Outline
@section Outline of a Bison Grammar
@cindex comment
@findex // @dots{}
@findex /* @dots{} */
A Bison grammar file has four main sections, shown here with the
appropriate delimiters:
@example
%@{
@var{Prologue}
%@}
@var{Bison declarations}
%%
@var{Grammar rules}
%%
@var{Epilogue}
@end example
Comments enclosed in @samp{/* @dots{} */} may appear in any of the sections.
As a GNU extension, @samp{//} introduces a comment that continues until end
of line.
@menu
* Prologue:: Syntax and usage of the prologue.
* Prologue Alternatives:: Syntax and usage of alternatives to the prologue.
* Bison Declarations:: Syntax and usage of the Bison declarations section.
* Grammar Rules:: Syntax and usage of the grammar rules section.
* Epilogue:: Syntax and usage of the epilogue.
@end menu
@node Prologue
@subsection The prologue
@cindex declarations section
@cindex Prologue
@cindex declarations
The @var{Prologue} section contains macro definitions and declarations of
functions and variables that are used in the actions in the grammar rules.
These are copied to the beginning of the parser implementation file so that
they precede the definition of @code{yyparse}. You can use @samp{#include}
to get the declarations from a header file. If you don't need any C
declarations, you may omit the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} delimiters that
bracket this section.
The @var{Prologue} section is terminated by the first occurrence of
@samp{%@}} that is outside a comment, a string literal, or a character
constant.
You may have more than one @var{Prologue} section, intermixed with the
@var{Bison declarations}. This allows you to have C and Bison declarations
that refer to each other. For example, the @code{%union} declaration may
use types defined in a header file, and you may wish to prototype functions
that take arguments of type @code{YYSTYPE}. This can be done with two
@var{Prologue} blocks, one before and one after the @code{%union}
declaration.
@example
@group
%@{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
#include "ptypes.h"
%@}
@end group
@group
%union @{
long n;
tree t; /* @r{@code{tree} is defined in @file{ptypes.h}.} */
@}
@end group
@group
%@{
static void print_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYSTYPE val);
%@}
@end group
@dots{}
@end example
When in doubt, it is usually safer to put prologue code before all Bison
declarations, rather than after. For example, any definitions of feature
test macros like @code{_GNU_SOURCE} or @code{_POSIX_C_SOURCE} should appear
before all Bison declarations, as feature test macros can affect the
behavior of Bison-generated @code{#include} directives.
@node Prologue Alternatives
@subsection Prologue Alternatives
@cindex Prologue Alternatives
@findex %code
@findex %code requires
@findex %code provides
@findex %code top
The functionality of @var{Prologue} sections can often be subtle and
inflexible. As an alternative, Bison provides a @code{%code} directive with
an explicit qualifier field, which identifies the purpose of the code and
thus the location(s) where Bison should generate it. For C/C++, the
qualifier can be omitted for the default location, or it can be one of
@code{requires}, @code{provides}, @code{top}. @xref{%code Summary}.
Look again at the example of the previous section:
@example
@group
%@{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
#include "ptypes.h"
%@}
@end group
@group
%union @{
long n;
tree t; /* @r{@code{tree} is defined in @file{ptypes.h}.} */
@}
@end group
@group
%@{
static void print_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYSTYPE val);
%@}
@end group
@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
Notice that there are two @var{Prologue} sections here, but there's a subtle
distinction between their functionality. For example, if you decide to
override Bison's default definition for @code{YYLTYPE}, in which
@var{Prologue} section should you write your new
definition?@footnote{However, defining @code{YYLTYPE} via a C macro is not
the recommended way. @xref{Location Type}}
You should
write it in the first since Bison will insert that code into the parser
implementation file @emph{before} the default @code{YYLTYPE} definition. In
which @var{Prologue} section should you prototype an internal function,
@code{trace_token}, that accepts @code{YYLTYPE} and @code{yytoken_kind_t} as
arguments? You should prototype it in the second since Bison will insert
that code @emph{after} the @code{YYLTYPE} and @code{yytoken_kind_t}
definitions.
This distinction in functionality between the two @var{Prologue} sections is
established by the appearance of the @code{%union} between them. This
behavior raises a few questions. First, why should the position of a
@code{%union} affect definitions related to @code{YYLTYPE} and
@code{yytoken_kind_t}? Second, what if there is no @code{%union}? In that
case, the second kind of @var{Prologue} section is not available. This
behavior is not intuitive.
To avoid this subtle @code{%union} dependency, rewrite the example using a
@code{%code top} and an unqualified @code{%code}. Let's go ahead and add
the new @code{YYLTYPE} definition and the @code{trace_token} prototype at
the same time:
@example
%code top @{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
/* WARNING: The following code really belongs
* in a '%code requires'; see below. */
#include "ptypes.h"
#define YYLTYPE YYLTYPE
typedef struct YYLTYPE
@{
int first_line;
int first_column;
int last_line;
int last_column;
char *filename;
@} YYLTYPE;
@}
@group
%union @{
long n;
tree t; /* @r{@code{tree} is defined in @file{ptypes.h}.} */
@}
@end group
@group
%code @{
static void print_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYSTYPE val);
static void trace_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYLTYPE loc);
@}
@end group
@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
In this way, @code{%code top} and the unqualified @code{%code} achieve the
same functionality as the two kinds of @var{Prologue} sections, but it's
always explicit which kind you intend. Moreover, both kinds are always
available even in the absence of @code{%union}.
The @code{%code top} block above logically contains two parts. The first
two lines before the warning need to appear near the top of the parser
implementation file. The first line after the warning is required by
@code{YYSTYPE} and thus also needs to appear in the parser implementation
file. However, if you've instructed Bison to generate a parser header file
(@pxref{Decl Summary}), you probably want that line to appear
before the @code{YYSTYPE} definition in that header file as well. The
@code{YYLTYPE} definition should also appear in the parser header file to
override the default @code{YYLTYPE} definition there.
In other words, in the @code{%code top} block above, all but the first two
lines are dependency code required by the @code{YYSTYPE} and @code{YYLTYPE}
definitions.
Thus, they belong in one or more @code{%code requires}:
@example
@group
%code top @{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
@}
@end group
@group
%code requires @{
#include "ptypes.h"
@}
@end group
@group
%union @{
long n;
tree t; /* @r{@code{tree} is defined in @file{ptypes.h}.} */
@}
@end group
@group
%code requires @{
#define YYLTYPE YYLTYPE
typedef struct YYLTYPE
@{
int first_line;
int first_column;
int last_line;
int last_column;
char *filename;
@} YYLTYPE;
@}
@end group
@group
%code @{
static void print_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYSTYPE val);
static void trace_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYLTYPE loc);
@}
@end group
@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
Now Bison will insert @code{#include "ptypes.h"} and the new @code{YYLTYPE}
definition before the Bison-generated @code{YYSTYPE} and @code{YYLTYPE}
definitions in both the parser implementation file and the parser header
file. (By the same reasoning, @code{%code requires} would also be the
appropriate place to write your own definition for @code{YYSTYPE}.)
When you are writing dependency code for @code{YYSTYPE} and @code{YYLTYPE},
you should prefer @code{%code requires} over @code{%code top} regardless of
whether you instruct Bison to generate a parser header file. When you are
writing code that you need Bison to insert only into the parser
implementation file and that has no special need to appear at the top of
that file, you should prefer the unqualified @code{%code} over @code{%code
top}. These practices will make the purpose of each block of your code
explicit to Bison and to other developers reading your grammar file.
Following these practices, we expect the unqualified @code{%code} and
@code{%code requires} to be the most important of the four @var{Prologue}
alternatives.
At some point while developing your parser, you might decide to provide
@code{trace_token} to modules that are external to your parser. Thus, you
might wish for Bison to insert the prototype into both the parser header
file and the parser implementation file. Since this function is not a
dependency required by @code{YYSTYPE} or @code{YYLTYPE}, it doesn't make
sense to move its prototype to a @code{%code requires}. More importantly,
since it depends upon @code{YYLTYPE} and @code{yytoken_kind_t}, @code{%code
requires} is not sufficient. Instead, move its prototype from the
unqualified @code{%code} to a @code{%code provides}:
@example
@group
%code top @{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
@}
@end group
@group
%code requires @{
#include "ptypes.h"
@}
@end group
@group
%union @{
long n;
tree t; /* @r{@code{tree} is defined in @file{ptypes.h}.} */
@}
@end group
@group
%code requires @{
#define YYLTYPE YYLTYPE
typedef struct YYLTYPE
@{
int first_line;
int first_column;
int last_line;
int last_column;
char *filename;
@} YYLTYPE;
@}
@end group
@group
%code provides @{
void trace_token (yytoken_kind_t token, YYLTYPE loc);
@}
@end group
@group
%code @{
static void print_token (FILE *file, int token, YYSTYPE val);
@}
@end group
@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
Bison will insert the @code{trace_token} prototype into both the parser
header file and the parser implementation file after the definitions for
@code{yytoken_kind_t}, @code{YYLTYPE}, and @code{YYSTYPE}.
The above examples are careful to write directives in an order that reflects
the layout of the generated parser implementation and header files:
@code{%code top}, @code{%code requires}, @code{%code provides}, and then
@code{%code}. While your grammar files may generally be easier to read if
you also follow this order, Bison does not require it. Instead, Bison lets
you choose an organization that makes sense to you.
You may declare any of these directives multiple times in the grammar file.
In that case, Bison concatenates the contained code in declaration order.
This is the only way in which the position of one of these directives within
the grammar file affects its functionality.
The result of the previous two properties is greater flexibility in how you may
organize your grammar file.
For example, you may organize semantic-type-related directives by semantic
type:
@example
@group
%code requires @{ #include "type1.h" @}
%union @{ type1 field1; @}
%destructor @{ type1_free ($$); @} <field1>
%printer @{ type1_print (yyo, $$); @} <field1>
@end group
@group
%code requires @{ #include "type2.h" @}
%union @{ type2 field2; @}
%destructor @{ type2_free ($$); @} <field2>
%printer @{ type2_print (yyo, $$); @} <field2>
@end group
@end example
@noindent
You could even place each of the above directive groups in the rules section of
the grammar file next to the set of rules that uses the associated semantic
type.
(In the rules section, you must terminate each of those directives with a
semicolon.)
And you don't have to worry that some directive (like a @code{%union}) in the
definitions section is going to adversely affect their functionality in some
counter-intuitive manner just because it comes first.
Such an organization is not possible using @var{Prologue} sections.
This section has been concerned with explaining the advantages of the four
@var{Prologue} alternatives over the original Yacc @var{Prologue}.
However, in most cases when using these directives, you shouldn't need to
think about all the low-level ordering issues discussed here.
Instead, you should simply use these directives to label each block of your
code according to its purpose and let Bison handle the ordering.
@code{%code} is the most generic label.
Move code to @code{%code requires}, @code{%code provides}, or @code{%code top}
as needed.
@node Bison Declarations
@subsection The Bison Declarations Section
@cindex Bison declarations (introduction)
@cindex declarations, Bison (introduction)
The @var{Bison declarations} section contains declarations that define
terminal and nonterminal symbols, specify precedence, and so on.
In some simple grammars you may not need any declarations.
@xref{Declarations}.
@node Grammar Rules
@subsection The Grammar Rules Section
@cindex grammar rules section
@cindex rules section for grammar
The @dfn{grammar rules} section contains one or more Bison grammar
rules, and nothing else. @xref{Rules}.
There must always be at least one grammar rule, and the first
@samp{%%} (which precedes the grammar rules) may never be omitted even
if it is the first thing in the file.
@node Epilogue
@subsection The epilogue
@cindex additional C code section
@cindex epilogue
@cindex C code, section for additional
The @var{Epilogue} is copied verbatim to the end of the parser
implementation file, just as the @var{Prologue} is copied to the
beginning. This is the most convenient place to put anything that you
want to have in the parser implementation file but which need not come
before the definition of @code{yyparse}. For example, the definitions
of @code{yylex} and @code{yyerror} often go here. Because C requires
functions to be declared before being used, you often need to declare
functions like @code{yylex} and @code{yyerror} in the Prologue, even
if you define them in the Epilogue. @xref{Interface}.
If the last section is empty, you may omit the @samp{%%} that separates it
from the grammar rules.
The Bison parser itself contains many macros and identifiers whose names
start with @samp{yy} or @samp{YY}, so it is a good idea to avoid using
any such names (except those documented in this manual) in the epilogue
of the grammar file.
@node Symbols
@section Symbols, Terminal and Nonterminal
@cindex nonterminal symbol
@cindex terminal symbol
@cindex token kind
@cindex symbol
@dfn{Symbols} in Bison grammars represent the grammatical classifications
of the language.
A @dfn{terminal symbol} (also known as a @dfn{token kind}) represents a
class of syntactically equivalent tokens. You use the symbol in grammar
rules to mean that a token in that class is allowed. The symbol is
represented in the Bison parser by a numeric code, and the @code{yylex}
function returns a token kind code to indicate what kind of token has been
read. You don't need to know what the code value is; you can use the symbol
to stand for it.
A @dfn{nonterminal symbol} stands for a class of syntactically
equivalent groupings. The symbol name is used in writing grammar rules.
By convention, it should be all lower case.
Symbol names can contain letters, underscores, periods, and non-initial
digits and dashes. Dashes in symbol names are a GNU extension, incompatible
with POSIX Yacc. Periods and dashes make symbol names less convenient to
use with named references, which require brackets around such names
(@pxref{Named References}). Terminal symbols that contain periods or dashes
make little sense: since they are not valid symbols (in most programming
languages) they are not exported as token names.
There are three ways of writing terminal symbols in the grammar:
@itemize @bullet
@item
A @dfn{named token kind} is written with an identifier, like an identifier
in C@. By convention, it should be all upper case. Each such name must be
defined with a Bison declaration such as @code{%token}. @xref{Token Decl}.
@item
@cindex character token
@cindex literal token
@cindex single-character literal
A @dfn{character token kind} (or @dfn{literal character token}) is written
in the grammar using the same syntax used in C for character constants; for
example, @code{'+'} is a character token kind. A character token kind
doesn't need to be declared unless you need to specify its semantic value
data type (@pxref{Value Type}), associativity, or precedence
(@pxref{Precedence}).
By convention, a character token kind is used only to represent a token that
consists of that particular character. Thus, the token kind @code{'+'} is
used to represent the character @samp{+} as a token. Nothing enforces this
convention, but if you depart from it, your program will confuse other
readers.
All the usual escape sequences used in character literals in C can be used
in Bison as well, but you must not use the null character as a character
literal because its numeric code, zero, signifies end-of-input
(@pxref{Calling Convention}). Also, unlike standard C, trigraphs have no
special meaning in Bison character literals, nor is backslash-newline
allowed.
@item
@cindex string token
@cindex literal string token
@cindex multicharacter literal
A @dfn{literal string token} is written like a C string constant; for
example, @code{"<="} is a literal string token. A literal string token
doesn't need to be declared unless you need to specify its semantic
value data type (@pxref{Value Type}), associativity, or precedence
(@pxref{Precedence}).
You can associate the literal string token with a symbolic name as an alias,
using the @code{%token} declaration (@pxref{Token Decl}). If you don't do
that, the lexical analyzer has to retrieve the token code for the literal
string token from the @code{yytname} table (@pxref{Calling Convention}).
@strong{Warning}: literal string tokens do not work in Yacc.
By convention, a literal string token is used only to represent a token
that consists of that particular string. Thus, you should use the token
kind @code{"<="} to represent the string @samp{<=} as a token. Bison
does not enforce this convention, but if you depart from it, people who
read your program will be confused.
All the escape sequences used in string literals in C can be used in
Bison as well, except that you must not use a null character within a
string literal. Also, unlike Standard C, trigraphs have no special
meaning in Bison string literals, nor is backslash-newline allowed. A
literal string token must contain two or more characters; for a token
containing just one character, use a character token (see above).
@end itemize
How you choose to write a terminal symbol has no effect on its
grammatical meaning. That depends only on where it appears in rules and
on when the parser function returns that symbol.
The value returned by @code{yylex} is always one of the terminal
symbols, except that a zero or negative value signifies end-of-input.
Whichever way you write the token kind in the grammar rules, you write
it the same way in the definition of @code{yylex}. The numeric code
for a character token kind is simply the positive numeric code of the
character, so @code{yylex} can use the identical value to generate the
requisite code, though you may need to convert it to @code{unsigned
char} to avoid sign-extension on hosts where @code{char} is signed.
Each named token kind becomes a C macro in the parser implementation
file, so @code{yylex} can use the name to stand for the code. (This
is why periods don't make sense in terminal symbols.) @xref{Calling
Convention}.
If @code{yylex} is defined in a separate file, you need to arrange for the
token-kind definitions to be available there. Use the @option{-d} option
when you run Bison, so that it will write these definitions into a separate
header file @file{@var{name}.tab.h} which you can include in the other
source files that need it. @xref{Invocation}.
If you want to write a grammar that is portable to any Standard C
host, you must use only nonnull character tokens taken from the basic
execution character set of Standard C@. This set consists of the ten
digits, the 52 lower- and upper-case English letters, and the
characters in the following C-language string:
@example
"\a\b\t\n\v\f\r !\"#%&'()*+,-./:;<=>?[\\]^_@{|@}~"
@end example
The @code{yylex} function and Bison must use a consistent character set
and encoding for character tokens. For example, if you run Bison in an
ASCII environment, but then compile and run the resulting
program in an environment that uses an incompatible character set like
EBCDIC, the resulting program may not work because the tables
generated by Bison will assume ASCII numeric values for
character tokens. It is standard practice for software distributions to
contain C source files that were generated by Bison in an
ASCII environment, so installers on platforms that are
incompatible with ASCII must rebuild those files before
compiling them.
The symbol @code{error} is a terminal symbol reserved for error recovery
(@pxref{Error Recovery}); you shouldn't use it for any other purpose.
In particular, @code{yylex} should never return this value. The default
value of the error token is 256, unless you explicitly assigned 256 to
one of your tokens with a @code{%token} declaration.
@node Rules
@section Grammar Rules
A Bison grammar is a list of rules.
@menu
* Rules Syntax:: Syntax of the rules.
* Empty Rules:: Symbols that can match the empty string.
* Recursion:: Writing recursive rules.
@end menu
@node Rules Syntax
@subsection Syntax of Grammar Rules
@cindex rule syntax
@cindex grammar rule syntax
@cindex syntax of grammar rules
A Bison grammar rule has the following general form:
@example
@var{result}: @var{components}@dots{};
@end example
@noindent
where @var{result} is the nonterminal symbol that this rule describes,
and @var{components} are various terminal and nonterminal symbols that
are put together by this rule (@pxref{Symbols}).
For example,
@example
exp: exp '+' exp;
@end example
@noindent
says that two groupings of type @code{exp}, with a @samp{+} token in between,
can be combined into a larger grouping of type @code{exp}.
White space in rules is significant only to separate symbols. You can add
extra white space as you wish.
Scattered among the components can be @var{actions} that determine
the semantics of the rule. An action looks like this:
@example
@{@var{C statements}@}
@end example
@noindent
@cindex braced code
This is an example of @dfn{braced code}, that is, C code surrounded by
braces, much like a compound statement in C@. Braced code can contain
any sequence of C tokens, so long as its braces are balanced. Bison
does not check the braced code for correctness directly; it merely
copies the code to the parser implementation file, where the C
compiler can check it.
Within braced code, the balanced-brace count is not affected by braces
within comments, string literals, or character constants, but it is
affected by the C digraphs @samp{<%} and @samp{%>} that represent
braces. At the top level braced code must be terminated by @samp{@}}
and not by a digraph. Bison does not look for trigraphs, so if braced
code uses trigraphs you should ensure that they do not affect the
nesting of braces or the boundaries of comments, string literals, or
character constants.
Usually there is only one action and it follows the components.
@xref{Actions}.
@findex |
Multiple rules for the same @var{result} can be written separately or can
be joined with the vertical-bar character @samp{|} as follows:
@example
@group
@var{result}:
@var{rule1-components}@dots{}
| @var{rule2-components}@dots{}
@dots{}
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
They are still considered distinct rules even when joined in this way.
@node Empty Rules
@subsection Empty Rules
@cindex empty rule
@cindex rule, empty
@findex %empty
A rule is said to be @dfn{empty} if its right-hand side (@var{components})
is empty. It means that @var{result} in the previous example can match the
empty string. As another example, here is how to define an optional
semicolon:
@example
semicolon.opt: | ";";
@end example
@noindent
It is easy not to see an empty rule, especially when @code{|} is used. The
@code{%empty} directive allows to make explicit that a rule is empty on
purpose:
@example
@group
semicolon.opt:
%empty
| ";"
;
@end group
@end example
Flagging a non-empty rule with @code{%empty} is an error. If run with
@option{-Wempty-rule}, @command{bison} will report empty rules without
@code{%empty}. Using @code{%empty} enables this warning, unless
@option{-Wno-empty-rule} was specified.
The @code{%empty} directive is a Bison extension, it does not work with
Yacc. To remain compatible with POSIX Yacc, it is customary to write a
comment @samp{/* empty */} in each rule with no components:
@example
@group
semicolon.opt:
/* empty */
| ";"
;
@end group
@end example
@node Recursion
@subsection Recursive Rules
@cindex recursive rule
@cindex rule, recursive
A rule is called @dfn{recursive} when its @var{result} nonterminal
appears also on its right hand side. Nearly all Bison grammars need to
use recursion, because that is the only way to define a sequence of any
number of a particular thing. Consider this recursive definition of a
comma-separated sequence of one or more expressions:
@example
@group
expseq1:
exp
| expseq1 ',' exp
;
@end group
@end example
@cindex left recursion
@cindex right recursion
@noindent
Since the recursive use of @code{expseq1} is the leftmost symbol in the
right hand side, we call this @dfn{left recursion}. By contrast, here
the same construct is defined using @dfn{right recursion}:
@example
@group
expseq1:
exp
| exp ',' expseq1
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Any kind of sequence can be defined using either left recursion or right
recursion, but you should always use left recursion, because it can
parse a sequence of any number of elements with bounded stack space.
Right recursion uses up space on the Bison stack in proportion to the
number of elements in the sequence, because all the elements must be
shifted onto the stack before the rule can be applied even once.
@xref{Algorithm}, for further explanation
of this.
@cindex mutual recursion
@dfn{Indirect} or @dfn{mutual} recursion occurs when the result of the
rule does not appear directly on its right hand side, but does appear
in rules for other nonterminals which do appear on its right hand
side.
For example:
@example
@group
expr:
primary
| primary '+' primary
;
@end group
@group
primary:
constant
| '(' expr ')'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
defines two mutually-recursive nonterminals, since each refers to the
other.
@node Semantics
@section Defining Language Semantics
@cindex defining language semantics
@cindex language semantics, defining
The grammar rules for a language determine only the syntax. The semantics
are determined by the semantic values associated with various tokens and
groupings, and by the actions taken when various groupings are recognized.
For example, the calculator calculates properly because the value
associated with each expression is the proper number; it adds properly
because the action for the grouping @w{@samp{@var{x} + @var{y}}} is to add
the numbers associated with @var{x} and @var{y}.
@menu
* Value Type:: Specifying one data type for all semantic values.
* Multiple Types:: Specifying several alternative data types.
* Type Generation:: Generating the semantic value type.
* Union Decl:: Declaring the set of all semantic value types.
* Structured Value Type:: Providing a structured semantic value type.
* Actions:: An action is the semantic definition of a grammar rule.
* Action Types:: Specifying data types for actions to operate on.
* Midrule Actions:: Most actions go at the end of a rule.
This says when, why and how to use the exceptional
action in the middle of a rule.
@end menu
@node Value Type
@subsection Data Types of Semantic Values
@cindex semantic value type
@cindex value type, semantic
@cindex data types of semantic values
@cindex default data type
In a simple program it may be sufficient to use the same data type for
the semantic values of all language constructs. This was true in the
RPN and infix calculator examples (@pxref{RPN Calc}).
Bison normally uses the type @code{int} for semantic values if your program
uses the same data type for all language constructs. To specify some other
type, define the @code{%define} variable @code{api.value.type} like this:
@example
%define api.value.type @{double@}
@end example
@noindent
or
@example
%define api.value.type @{struct semantic_value_type@}
@end example
The value of @code{api.value.type} should be a type name that does not
contain parentheses or square brackets.
Alternatively in C, instead of relying of Bison's @code{%define} support,
you may rely on the C preprocessor and define @code{YYSTYPE} as a macro:
@example
#define YYSTYPE double
@end example
@noindent
This macro definition must go in the prologue of the grammar file
(@pxref{Grammar Outline}). If compatibility with POSIX Yacc matters to you,
use this. Note however that Bison cannot know @code{YYSTYPE}'s value, not
even whether it is defined, so there are services it cannot provide.
Besides this works only for C.
@node Multiple Types
@subsection More Than One Value Type
In most programs, you will need different data types for different kinds
of tokens and groupings. For example, a numeric constant may need type
@code{int} or @code{long}, while a string constant needs type
@code{char *}, and an identifier might need a pointer to an entry in the
symbol table.
To use more than one data type for semantic values in one parser, Bison
requires you to do two things:
@itemize @bullet
@item
Specify the entire collection of possible data types. There are several
options:
@itemize @bullet
@item
let Bison compute the union type from the tags you assign to symbols;
@item
use the @code{%union} Bison declaration (@pxref{Union Decl});
@item
define the @code{%define} variable @code{api.value.type} to be a union type
whose members are the type tags (@pxref{Structured Value Type});
@item
use a @code{typedef} or a @code{#define} to define @code{YYSTYPE} to be a
union type whose member names are the type tags.
@end itemize
@item
Choose one of those types for each symbol (terminal or nonterminal) for
which semantic values are used. This is done for tokens with the
@code{%token} Bison declaration (@pxref{Token Decl}) and
for groupings with the @code{%nterm}/@code{%type} Bison declarations
(@pxref{Type Decl}).
@end itemize
@node Type Generation
@subsection Generating the Semantic Value Type
@cindex declaring value types
@cindex value types, declaring
@findex %define api.value.type union
The special value @code{union} of the @code{%define} variable
@code{api.value.type} instructs Bison that the type tags (used with the
@code{%token}, @code{%nterm} and @code{%type} directives) are genuine types,
not names of members of @code{YYSTYPE}.
For example:
@example
%define api.value.type union
%token <int> INT "integer"
%token <int> 'n'
%nterm <int> expr
%token <char const *> ID "identifier"
@end example
@noindent
generates an appropriate value of @code{YYSTYPE} to support each symbol
type. The name of the member of @code{YYSTYPE} for tokens than have a
declared identifier @var{id} (such as @code{INT} and @code{ID} above, but
not @code{'n'}) is @code{@var{id}}. The other symbols have unspecified
names on which you should not depend; instead, relying on C casts to access
the semantic value with the appropriate type:
@example
/* For an "integer". */
yylval.INT = 42;
return INT;
/* For an 'n', also declared as int. */
*((int*)&yylval) = 42;
return 'n';
/* For an "identifier". */
yylval.ID = "42";
return ID;
@end example
If the @code{%define} variable @code{api.token.prefix} is defined
(@pxref{%define Summary}), then it is also used to prefix
the union member names. For instance, with @samp{%define api.token.prefix
@{TOK_@}}:
@example
/* For an "integer". */
yylval.TOK_INT = 42;
return TOK_INT;
@end example
This Bison extension cannot work if @code{%yacc} (or
@option{-y}/@option{--yacc}) is enabled, as POSIX mandates that Yacc
generate tokens as macros (e.g., @samp{#define INT 258}, or @samp{#define
TOK_INT 258}).
A similar feature is provided for C++ that in addition overcomes C++
limitations (that forbid non-trivial objects to be part of a @code{union}):
@samp{%define api.value.type variant}, see @ref{C++ Variants}.
@node Union Decl
@subsection The Union Declaration
@cindex declaring value types
@cindex value types, declaring
@findex %union
The @code{%union} declaration specifies the entire collection of possible
data types for semantic values. The keyword @code{%union} is followed by
braced code containing the same thing that goes inside a @code{union} in C@.
For example:
@example
@group
%union @{
double val;
symrec *tptr;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
This says that the two alternative types are @code{double} and @code{symrec
*}. They are given names @code{val} and @code{tptr}; these names are used
in the @code{%token}, @code{%nterm} and @code{%type} declarations to pick
one of the types for a terminal or nonterminal symbol (@pxref{Type Decl}).
As an extension to POSIX, a tag is allowed after the @code{%union}. For
example:
@example
@group
%union value @{
double val;
symrec *tptr;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
specifies the union tag @code{value}, so the corresponding C type is
@code{union value}. If you do not specify a tag, it defaults to
@code{YYSTYPE} (@pxref{%define Summary}).
As another extension to POSIX, you may specify multiple @code{%union}
declarations; their contents are concatenated. However, only the first
@code{%union} declaration can specify a tag.
Note that, unlike making a @code{union} declaration in C, you need not write
a semicolon after the closing brace.
@node Structured Value Type
@subsection Providing a Structured Semantic Value Type
@cindex declaring value types
@cindex value types, declaring
@findex %union
Instead of @code{%union}, you can define and use your own union type
@code{YYSTYPE} if your grammar contains at least one @samp{<@var{type}>}
tag. For example, you can put the following into a header file
@file{parser.h}:
@example
@group
union YYSTYPE @{
double val;
symrec *tptr;
@};
@end group
@end example
@noindent
and then your grammar can use the following instead of @code{%union}:
@example
@group
%@{
#include "parser.h"
%@}
%define api.value.type @{union YYSTYPE@}
%nterm <val> expr
%token <tptr> ID
@end group
@end example
Actually, you may also provide a @code{struct} rather that a @code{union},
which may be handy if you want to track information for every symbol (such
as preceding comments).
The type you provide may even be structured and include pointers, in which
case the type tags you provide may be composite, with @samp{.} and @samp{->}
operators.
@node Actions
@subsection Actions
@cindex action
@vindex $$
@vindex $@var{n}
@vindex $@var{name}
@vindex $[@var{name}]
An action accompanies a syntactic rule and contains C code to be executed
each time an instance of that rule is recognized. The task of most actions
is to compute a semantic value for the grouping built by the rule from the
semantic values associated with tokens or smaller groupings.
An action consists of braced code containing C statements, and can be
placed at any position in the rule;
it is executed at that position. Most rules have just one action at the
end of the rule, following all the components. Actions in the middle of
a rule are tricky and used only for special purposes (@pxref{Midrule
Actions}).
The C code in an action can refer to the semantic values of the
components matched by the rule with the construct @code{$@var{n}},
which stands for the value of the @var{n}th component. The semantic
value for the grouping being constructed is @code{$$}. In addition,
the semantic values of symbols can be accessed with the named
references construct @code{$@var{name}} or @code{$[@var{name}]}.
Bison translates both of these constructs into expressions of the
appropriate type when it copies the actions into the parser
implementation file. @code{$$} (or @code{$@var{name}}, when it stands
for the current grouping) is translated to a modifiable lvalue, so it
can be assigned to.
Here is a typical example:
@example
@group
exp:
@dots{}
| exp '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
@end group
@end example
Or, in terms of named references:
@example
@group
exp[result]:
@dots{}
| exp[left] '+' exp[right] @{ $result = $left + $right; @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
This rule constructs an @code{exp} from two smaller @code{exp} groupings
connected by a plus-sign token. In the action, @code{$1} and @code{$3}
(@code{$left} and @code{$right})
refer to the semantic values of the two component @code{exp} groupings,
which are the first and third symbols on the right hand side of the rule.
The sum is stored into @code{$$} (@code{$result}) so that it becomes the
semantic value of
the addition-expression just recognized by the rule. If there were a
useful semantic value associated with the @samp{+} token, it could be
referred to as @code{$2}.
@xref{Named References}, for more information about using the named
references construct.
Note that the vertical-bar character @samp{|} is really a rule
separator, and actions are attached to a single rule. This is a
difference with tools like Flex, for which @samp{|} stands for either
``or'', or ``the same action as that of the next rule''. In the
following example, the action is triggered only when @samp{b} is found:
@example
a-or-b: 'a'|'b' @{ a_or_b_found = 1; @};
@end example
@cindex default action
If you don't specify an action for a rule, Bison supplies a default:
@w{@code{$$ = $1}.} Thus, the value of the first symbol in the rule
becomes the value of the whole rule. Of course, the default action is
valid only if the two data types match. There is no meaningful default
action for an empty rule; every empty rule must have an explicit action
unless the rule's value does not matter.
@code{$@var{n}} with @var{n} zero or negative is allowed for reference
to tokens and groupings on the stack @emph{before} those that match the
current rule. This is a very risky practice, and to use it reliably
you must be certain of the context in which the rule is applied. Here
is a case in which you can use this reliably:
@example
@group
foo:
expr bar '+' expr @{ @dots{} @}
| expr bar '-' expr @{ @dots{} @}
;
@end group
@group
bar:
%empty @{ previous_expr = $0; @}
;
@end group
@end example
As long as @code{bar} is used only in the fashion shown here, @code{$0}
always refers to the @code{expr} which precedes @code{bar} in the
definition of @code{foo}.
@vindex yylval
It is also possible to access the semantic value of the lookahead token, if
any, from a semantic action.
This semantic value is stored in @code{yylval}.
@xref{Action Features}.
@node Action Types
@subsection Data Types of Values in Actions
@cindex action data types
@cindex data types in actions
If you have chosen a single data type for semantic values, the @code{$$}
and @code{$@var{n}} constructs always have that data type.
If you have used @code{%union} to specify a variety of data types, then you
must declare a choice among these types for each terminal or nonterminal
symbol that can have a semantic value. Then each time you use @code{$$} or
@code{$@var{n}}, its data type is determined by which symbol it refers to
in the rule. In this example,
@example
@group
exp:
@dots{}
| exp '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
@code{$1} and @code{$3} refer to instances of @code{exp}, so they all
have the data type declared for the nonterminal symbol @code{exp}. If
@code{$2} were used, it would have the data type declared for the
terminal symbol @code{'+'}, whatever that might be.
Alternatively, you can specify the data type when you refer to the value,
by inserting @samp{<@var{type}>} after the @samp{$} at the beginning of the
reference. For example, if you have defined types as shown here:
@example
@group
%union @{
int itype;
double dtype;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
then you can write @code{$<itype>1} to refer to the first subunit of the
rule as an integer, or @code{$<dtype>1} to refer to it as a double.
@node Midrule Actions
@subsection Actions in Midrule
@cindex actions in midrule
@cindex midrule actions
Occasionally it is useful to put an action in the middle of a rule.
These actions are written just like usual end-of-rule actions, but they
are executed before the parser even recognizes the following components.
@menu
* Using Midrule Actions:: Putting an action in the middle of a rule.
* Typed Midrule Actions:: Specifying the semantic type of their values.
* Midrule Action Translation:: How midrule actions are actually processed.
* Midrule Conflicts:: Midrule actions can cause conflicts.
@end menu
@node Using Midrule Actions
@subsubsection Using Midrule Actions
A midrule action may refer to the components preceding it using
@code{$@var{n}}, but it may not refer to subsequent components because
it is run before they are parsed.
The midrule action itself counts as one of the components of the rule.
This makes a difference when there is another action later in the same rule
(and usually there is another at the end): you have to count the actions
along with the symbols when working out which number @var{n} to use in
@code{$@var{n}}.
The midrule action can also have a semantic value. The action can set
its value with an assignment to @code{$$}, and actions later in the rule
can refer to the value using @code{$@var{n}}. Since there is no symbol
to name the action, there is no way to declare a data type for the value
in advance, so you must use the @samp{$<@dots{}>@var{n}} construct to
specify a data type each time you refer to this value.
There is no way to set the value of the entire rule with a midrule
action, because assignments to @code{$$} do not have that effect. The
only way to set the value for the entire rule is with an ordinary action
at the end of the rule.
Here is an example from a hypothetical compiler, handling a @code{let}
statement that looks like @samp{let (@var{variable}) @var{statement}} and
serves to create a variable named @var{variable} temporarily for the
duration of @var{statement}. To parse this construct, we must put
@var{variable} into the symbol table while @var{statement} is parsed, then
remove it afterward. Here is how it is done:
@example
@group
stmt:
"let" '(' var ')'
@{
$<context>$ = push_context ();
declare_variable ($3);
@}
stmt
@{
$$ = $6;
pop_context ($<context>5);
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
As soon as @samp{let (@var{variable})} has been recognized, the first
action is run. It saves a copy of the current semantic context (the
list of accessible variables) as its semantic value, using alternative
@code{context} in the data-type union. Then it calls
@code{declare_variable} to add the new variable to that list. Once the
first action is finished, the embedded statement @code{stmt} can be
parsed.
Note that the midrule action is component number 5, so the @samp{stmt} is
component number 6. Named references can be used to improve the readability
and maintainability (@pxref{Named References}):
@example
@group
stmt:
"let" '(' var ')'
@{
$<context>let = push_context ();
declare_variable ($3);
@}[let]
stmt
@{
$$ = $6;
pop_context ($<context>let);
@}
@end group
@end example
After the embedded statement is parsed, its semantic value becomes the
value of the entire @code{let}-statement. Then the semantic value from the
earlier action is used to restore the prior list of variables. This
removes the temporary @code{let}-variable from the list so that it won't
appear to exist while the rest of the program is parsed.
Because the types of the semantic values of midrule actions are unknown to
Bison, type-based features (e.g., @samp{%printer}, @samp{%destructor}) do
not work, which could result in memory leaks. They also forbid the use of
the @code{variant} implementation of the @code{api.value.type} in C++
(@pxref{C++ Variants}).
@xref{Typed Midrule Actions}, for one way to address this issue, and
@ref{Midrule Action Translation}, for another: turning mid-action actions
into regular actions.
@node Typed Midrule Actions
@subsubsection Typed Midrule Actions
@findex %destructor
@cindex discarded symbols, midrule actions
@cindex error recovery, midrule actions
In the above example, if the parser initiates error recovery (@pxref{Error
Recovery}) while parsing the tokens in the embedded statement @code{stmt},
it might discard the previous semantic context @code{$<context>5} without
restoring it. Thus, @code{$<context>5} needs a destructor
(@pxref{Destructor Decl}), and Bison needs the
type of the semantic value (@code{context}) to select the right destructor.
As an extension to Yacc's midrule actions, Bison offers a means to type
their semantic value: specify its type tag (@samp{<...>} before the midrule
action.
Consider the previous example, with an untyped midrule action:
@example
@group
stmt:
"let" '(' var ')'
@{
$<context>$ = push_context (); // ***
declare_variable ($3);
@}
stmt
@{
$$ = $6;
pop_context ($<context>5); // ***
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
If instead you write:
@example
@group
stmt:
"let" '(' var ')'
<context>@{ // ***
$$ = push_context (); // ***
declare_variable ($3);
@}
stmt
@{
$$ = $6;
pop_context ($5); // ***
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
then @code{%printer} and @code{%destructor} work properly (no more leaks!),
C++ @code{variant}s can be used, and redundancy is reduced (@code{<context>}
is specified once).
@node Midrule Action Translation
@subsubsection Midrule Action Translation
@vindex $@@@var{n}
@vindex @@@var{n}
Midrule actions are actually transformed into regular rules and actions.
The various reports generated by Bison (textual, graphical, etc., see
@ref{Understanding}) reveal this translation,
best explained by means of an example. The following rule:
@example
exp: @{ a(); @} "b" @{ c(); @} @{ d(); @} "e" @{ f(); @};
@end example
@noindent
is translated into:
@example
$@@1: %empty @{ a(); @};
$@@2: %empty @{ c(); @};
$@@3: %empty @{ d(); @};
exp: $@@1 "b" $@@2 $@@3 "e" @{ f(); @};
@end example
@noindent
with new nonterminal symbols @code{$@@@var{n}}, where @var{n} is a number.
A midrule action is expected to generate a value if it uses @code{$$}, or
the (final) action uses @code{$@var{n}} where @var{n} denote the midrule
action. In that case its nonterminal is rather named @code{@@@var{n}}:
@example
exp: @{ a(); @} "b" @{ $$ = c(); @} @{ d(); @} "e" @{ f = $1; @};
@end example
@noindent
is translated into
@example
@@1: %empty @{ a(); @};
@@2: %empty @{ $$ = c(); @};
$@@3: %empty @{ d(); @};
exp: @@1 "b" @@2 $@@3 "e" @{ f = $1; @}
@end example
There are probably two errors in the above example: the first midrule action
does not generate a value (it does not use @code{$$} although the final
action uses it), and the value of the second one is not used (the final
action does not use @code{$3}). Bison reports these errors when the
@code{midrule-value} warnings are enabled (@pxref{Invocation}):
@example
$ @kbd{bison -Wmidrule-value mid.y}
@group
mid.y:2.6-13: @dwarning{warning}: unset value: $$
2 | exp: @dwarning{@{ a(); @}} "b" @{ $$ = c(); @} @{ d(); @} "e" @{ f = $1; @};
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~}
@end group
@group
mid.y:2.19-31: @dwarning{warning}: unused value: $3
2 | exp: @{ a(); @} "b" @dwarning{@{ $$ = c(); @}} @{ d(); @} "e" @{ f = $1; @};
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~}
@end group
@end example
@sp 1
It is sometimes useful to turn midrule actions into regular actions, e.g.,
to factor them, or to escape from their limitations. For instance, as an
alternative to @emph{typed} midrule action, you may bury the midrule action
inside a nonterminal symbol and to declare a printer and a destructor for
that symbol:
@example
@group
%nterm <context> let
%destructor @{ pop_context ($$); @} let
%printer @{ print_context (yyo, $$); @} let
@end group
%%
@group
stmt:
let stmt
@{
$$ = $2;
pop_context ($let);
@};
@end group
@group
let:
"let" '(' var ')'
@{
$let = push_context ();
declare_variable ($var);
@};
@end group
@end example
@node Midrule Conflicts
@subsubsection Conflicts due to Midrule Actions
Taking action before a rule is completely recognized often leads to
conflicts since the parser must commit to a parse in order to execute the
action. For example, the following two rules, without midrule actions,
can coexist in a working parser because the parser can shift the open-brace
token and look at what follows before deciding whether there is a
declaration or not:
@example
@group
compound:
'@{' declarations statements '@}'
| '@{' statements '@}'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
But when we add a midrule action as follows, the rules become nonfunctional:
@example
@group
compound:
@{ prepare_for_local_variables (); @}
'@{' declarations statements '@}'
@end group
@group
| '@{' statements '@}'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Now the parser is forced to decide whether to run the midrule action
when it has read no farther than the open-brace. In other words, it
must commit to using one rule or the other, without sufficient
information to do it correctly. (The open-brace token is what is called
the @dfn{lookahead} token at this time, since the parser is still
deciding what to do about it. @xref{Lookahead}.)
You might think that you could correct the problem by putting identical
actions into the two rules, like this:
@example
@group
compound:
@{ prepare_for_local_variables (); @}
'@{' declarations statements '@}'
| @{ prepare_for_local_variables (); @}
'@{' statements '@}'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
But this does not help, because Bison does not realize that the two actions
are identical. (Bison never tries to understand the C code in an action.)
If the grammar is such that a declaration can be distinguished from a
statement by the first token (which is true in C), then one solution which
does work is to put the action after the open-brace, like this:
@example
@group
compound:
'@{' @{ prepare_for_local_variables (); @}
declarations statements '@}'
| '@{' statements '@}'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Now the first token of the following declaration or statement,
which would in any case tell Bison which rule to use, can still do so.
Another solution is to bury the action inside a nonterminal symbol which
serves as a subroutine:
@example
@group
subroutine:
%empty @{ prepare_for_local_variables (); @}
;
@end group
@group
compound:
subroutine '@{' declarations statements '@}'
| subroutine '@{' statements '@}'
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Now Bison can execute the action in the rule for @code{subroutine} without
deciding which rule for @code{compound} it will eventually use.
@node Tracking Locations
@section Tracking Locations
@cindex location
@cindex textual location
@cindex location, textual
Though grammar rules and semantic actions are enough to write a fully
functional parser, it can be useful to process some additional information,
especially symbol locations.
The way locations are handled is defined by providing a data type, and
actions to take when rules are matched.
@menu
* Location Type:: Specifying a data type for locations.
* Actions and Locations:: Using locations in actions.
* Printing Locations:: Defining how locations are printed.
* Location Default Action:: Defining a general way to compute locations.
@end menu
@node Location Type
@subsection Data Type of Locations
@cindex data type of locations
@cindex default location type
Defining a data type for locations is much simpler than for semantic values,
since all tokens and groupings always use the same type. The location type
is specified using @samp{%define api.location.type}:
@example
%define api.location.type @{location_t@}
@end example
This defines, in the C generated code, the @code{YYLTYPE} type name. When
@code{YYLTYPE} is not defined, Bison uses a default structure type with four
members:
@example
typedef struct YYLTYPE
@{
int first_line;
int first_column;
int last_line;
int last_column;
@} YYLTYPE;
@end example
In C, you may also specify the type of locations by defining a macro called
@code{YYLTYPE}, just as you can specify the semantic value type by defining
a @code{YYSTYPE} macro (@pxref{Value Type}). However, rather than using
macros, we recommend the @code{api.value.type} and @code{api.location.type}
@code{%define} variables.
Default locations represent a range in the source file(s), but this is not a
requirement. It could be a single point or just a line number, or even more
complex structures.
When the default location type is used, Bison initializes all these fields
to 1 for @code{yylloc} at the beginning of the parsing. To initialize
@code{yylloc} with a custom location type (or to chose a different
initialization), use the @code{%initial-action} directive. @xref{Initial
Action Decl}.
@sp 1
@cindex column
The meaning of ``column'' is deliberately left vague since there are several
options, depending on the use cases.
With multibyte input (say UTF-8), simply counting the number of bytes does
not match character positions on the screen. One needs advanced functions
mapping multibyte characters to their visual width (see for instance
Gnulib's @code{mbswidth} and @code{mbsnwidth} functions). Tabulation
characters probably need a dedicated implementation, to match the ``go to
next multiple of 8'' behavior.
However to quote input in error messages, as @command{bison} does:
@example
@group
1.10-12: @derror{error}: invalid identifier: ‘3.8’
1 | %require @derror{3.8}
| @derror{^~~}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
then byte positions are more handy. So in some cases, tracking both visual
character position @emph{and} byte position is the best option. This is
what @command{bison} does.
@node Actions and Locations
@subsection Actions and Locations
@cindex location actions
@cindex actions, location
@vindex @@$
@vindex @@@var{n}
@vindex @@@var{name}
@vindex @@[@var{name}]
Actions are not only useful for defining language semantics, but also for
describing the behavior of the output parser with locations.
The most obvious way for building locations of syntactic groupings is very
similar to the way semantic values are computed. In a given rule, several
constructs can be used to access the locations of the elements being matched.
The location of the @var{n}th component of the right hand side is
@code{@@@var{n}}, while the location of the left hand side grouping is
@code{@@$}.
In addition, the named references construct @code{@@@var{name}} and
@code{@@[@var{name}]} may also be used to address the symbol locations.
@xref{Named References}, for more information about using the named
references construct.
Here is a basic example using the default data type for locations:
@example
@group
exp:
@dots{}
| exp '/' exp
@{
@@$.first_column = @@1.first_column;
@@$.first_line = @@1.first_line;
@@$.last_column = @@3.last_column;
@@$.last_line = @@3.last_line;
if ($3)
$$ = $1 / $3;
else
@{
$$ = 1;
fprintf (stderr, "%d.%d-%d.%d: division by zero",
@@3.first_line, @@3.first_column,
@@3.last_line, @@3.last_column);
@}
@}
@end group
@end example
As for semantic values, there is a default action for locations that is
run each time a rule is matched. It sets the beginning of @code{@@$} to the
beginning of the first symbol, and the end of @code{@@$} to the end of the
last symbol.
With this default action, the location tracking can be fully automatic. The
example above simply rewrites this way:
@example
@group
exp:
@dots{}
| exp '/' exp
@{
if ($3)
$$ = $1 / $3;
else
@{
$$ = 1;
fprintf (stderr, "%d.%d-%d.%d: division by zero",
@@3.first_line, @@3.first_column,
@@3.last_line, @@3.last_column);
@}
@}
@end group
@end example
@vindex yylloc
It is also possible to access the location of the lookahead token, if any,
from a semantic action.
This location is stored in @code{yylloc}.
@xref{Action Features}.
@node Printing Locations
@subsection Printing Locations
@vindex YYLOCATION_PRINT
When using the default location type, the debug traces report the symbols'
location. The generated parser does so using the @code{YYLOCATION_PRINT}
macro.
@deffn {Macro} YYLOCATION_PRINT (@var{file}, @var{loc})@code{;}
When traces are enabled, print @var{loc} (of type @samp{YYLTYPE const *}) on
@var{file} (of type @samp{FILE *}). Do nothing when traces are disabled, or
if the location type is user defined.
@end deffn
To get locations in the debug traces with your user-defined location types,
define the @code{YYLOCATION_PRINT} macro. For instance:
@example
#define YYLOCATION_PRINT location_print
@end example
@node Location Default Action
@subsection Default Action for Locations
@vindex YYLLOC_DEFAULT
@cindex GLR parsers and @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT}
Actually, actions are not the best place to compute locations. Since
locations are much more general than semantic values, there is room in
the output parser to redefine the default action to take for each
rule. The @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT} macro is invoked each time a rule is
matched, before the associated action is run. It is also invoked
while processing a syntax error, to compute the error's location.
Before reporting an unresolvable syntactic ambiguity, a GLR
parser invokes @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT} recursively to compute the location
of that ambiguity.
Most of the time, this macro is general enough to suppress location
dedicated code from semantic actions.
The @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT} macro takes three parameters. The first one is
the location of the grouping (the result of the computation). When a
rule is matched, the second parameter identifies locations of
all right hand side elements of the rule being matched, and the third
parameter is the size of the rule's right hand side.
When a GLR parser reports an ambiguity, which of multiple candidate
right hand sides it passes to @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT} is undefined.
When processing a syntax error, the second parameter identifies locations
of the symbols that were discarded during error processing, and the third
parameter is the number of discarded symbols.
By default, @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT} is defined this way:
@example
@group
# define YYLLOC_DEFAULT(Cur, Rhs, N) \
do \
if (N) \
@{ \
(Cur).first_line = YYRHSLOC(Rhs, 1).first_line; \
(Cur).first_column = YYRHSLOC(Rhs, 1).first_column; \
(Cur).last_line = YYRHSLOC(Rhs, N).last_line; \
(Cur).last_column = YYRHSLOC(Rhs, N).last_column; \
@} \
else \
@{ \
(Cur).first_line = (Cur).last_line = \
YYRHSLOC(Rhs, 0).last_line; \
(Cur).first_column = (Cur).last_column = \
YYRHSLOC(Rhs, 0).last_column; \
@} \
while (0)
@end group
@end example
@noindent
where @code{YYRHSLOC (rhs, k)} is the location of the @var{k}th symbol
in @var{rhs} when @var{k} is positive, and the location of the symbol
just before the reduction when @var{k} and @var{n} are both zero.
When defining @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT}, you should consider that:
@itemize @bullet
@item
All arguments are free of side-effects. However, only the first one (the
result) should be modified by @code{YYLLOC_DEFAULT}.
@item
For consistency with semantic actions, valid indexes within the
right hand side range from 1 to @var{n}. When @var{n} is zero, only 0 is a
valid index, and it refers to the symbol just before the reduction.
During error processing @var{n} is always positive.
@item
Your macro should parenthesize its arguments, if need be, since the
actual arguments may not be surrounded by parentheses. Also, your
macro should expand to something that can be used as a single
statement when it is followed by a semicolon.
@end itemize
@node Named References
@section Named References
@cindex named references
As described in the preceding sections, the traditional way to refer to any
semantic value or location is a @dfn{positional reference}, which takes the
form @code{$@var{n}}, @code{$$}, @code{@@@var{n}}, and @code{@@$}. However,
such a reference is not very descriptive. Moreover, if you later decide to
insert or remove symbols in the right-hand side of a grammar rule, the need
to renumber such references can be tedious and error-prone.
To avoid these issues, you can also refer to a semantic value or location
using a @dfn{named reference}. First of all, original symbol names may be
used as named references. For example:
@example
@group
invocation: op '(' args ')'
@{ $invocation = new_invocation ($op, $args, @@invocation); @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Positional and named references can be mixed arbitrarily. For example:
@example
@group
invocation: op '(' args ')'
@{ $$ = new_invocation ($op, $args, @@$); @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
However, sometimes regular symbol names are not sufficient due to
ambiguities:
@example
@group
exp: exp '/' exp
@{ $exp = $exp / $exp; @} // $exp is ambiguous.
exp: exp '/' exp
@{ $$ = $1 / $exp; @} // One usage is ambiguous.
exp: exp '/' exp
@{ $$ = $1 / $3; @} // No error.
@end group
@end example
@noindent
When ambiguity occurs, explicitly declared names may be used for values and
locations. Explicit names are declared as a bracketed name after a symbol
appearance in rule definitions. For example:
@example
@group
exp[result]: exp[left] '/' exp[right]
@{ $result = $left / $right; @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
In order to access a semantic value generated by a midrule action, an
explicit name may also be declared by putting a bracketed name after the
closing brace of the midrule action code:
@example
@group
exp[res]: exp[x] '+' @{$left = $x;@}[left] exp[right]
@{ $res = $left + $right; @}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
In references, in order to specify names containing dots and dashes, an explicit
bracketed syntax @code{$[name]} and @code{@@[name]} must be used:
@example
@group
if-stmt: "if" '(' expr ')' "then" then.stmt ';'
@{ $[if-stmt] = new_if_stmt ($expr, $[then.stmt]); @}
@end group
@end example
It often happens that named references are followed by a dot, dash or other
C punctuation marks and operators. By default, Bison will read
@samp{$name.suffix} as a reference to symbol value @code{$name} followed by
@samp{.suffix}, i.e., an access to the @code{suffix} field of the semantic
value. In order to force Bison to recognize @samp{name.suffix} in its
entirety as the name of a semantic value, the bracketed syntax
@samp{$[name.suffix]} must be used.
@node Declarations
@section Bison Declarations
@cindex declarations, Bison
@cindex Bison declarations
The @dfn{Bison declarations} section of a Bison grammar defines the symbols
used in formulating the grammar and the data types of semantic values.
@xref{Symbols}.
All token kind names (but not single-character literal tokens such as
@code{'+'} and @code{'*'}) must be declared. Nonterminal symbols must be
declared if you need to specify which data type to use for the semantic
value (@pxref{Multiple Types}).
The first rule in the grammar file also specifies the start symbol, by
default. If you want some other symbol to be the start symbol, you
must declare it explicitly (@pxref{Language and Grammar}).
@menu
* Require Decl:: Requiring a Bison version.
* Token Decl:: Declaring terminal symbols.
* Precedence Decl:: Declaring terminals with precedence and associativity.
* Type Decl:: Declaring the choice of type for a nonterminal symbol.
* Symbol Decls:: Summary of the Syntax of Symbol Declarations.
* Initial Action Decl:: Code run before parsing starts.
* Destructor Decl:: Declaring how symbols are freed.
* Printer Decl:: Declaring how symbol values are displayed.
* Expect Decl:: Suppressing warnings about parsing conflicts.
* Start Decl:: Specifying the start symbol.
* Pure Decl:: Requesting a reentrant parser.
* Push Decl:: Requesting a push parser.
* Decl Summary:: Table of all Bison declarations.
* %define Summary:: Defining variables to adjust Bison's behavior.
* %code Summary:: Inserting code into the parser source.
@end menu
@node Require Decl
@subsection Require a Version of Bison
@cindex version requirement
@cindex requiring a version of Bison
@findex %require
You may require the minimum version of Bison to process the grammar. If
the requirement is not met, @command{bison} exits with an error (exit
status 63).
@example
%require "@var{version}"
@end example
Some deprecated behaviors are disabled for some required @var{version}:
@table @asis
@item @code{"3.2"} (or better)
The C++ deprecated files @file{position.hh} and @file{stack.hh} are no
longer generated.
@end table
@node Token Decl
@subsection Token Kind Names
@cindex declaring token kind names
@cindex token kind names, declaring
@cindex declaring literal string tokens
@findex %token
The basic way to declare a token kind name (terminal symbol) is as follows:
@example
%token @var{name}
@end example
Bison will convert this into a definition in the parser, so that the
function @code{yylex} (if it is in this file) can use the name @var{name} to
stand for this token kind's code.
Alternatively, you can use @code{%left}, @code{%right}, @code{%precedence},
or @code{%nonassoc} instead of @code{%token}, if you wish to specify
associativity and precedence. @xref{Precedence Decl}. However, for
clarity, we recommend to use these directives only to declare associativity
and precedence, and not to add string aliases, semantic types, etc.
You can explicitly specify the numeric code for a token kind by appending a
nonnegative decimal or hexadecimal integer value in the field immediately
following the token name:
@example
%token NUM 300
%token XNUM 0x12d // a GNU extension
@end example
@noindent
It is generally best, however, to let Bison choose the numeric codes for all
token kinds. Bison will automatically select codes that don't conflict with
each other or with normal characters.
In the event that the stack type is a union, you must augment the
@code{%token} or other token declaration to include the data type
alternative delimited by angle-brackets (@pxref{Multiple Types}).
For example:
@example
@group
%union @{ /* define stack type */
double val;
symrec *tptr;
@}
%token <val> NUM /* define token NUM and its type */
@end group
@end example
You can associate a literal string token with a token kind name by writing
the literal string at the end of a @code{%token} declaration which declares
the name. For example:
@example
%token ARROW "=>"
@end example
@noindent
For example, a grammar for the C language might specify these names with
equivalent literal string tokens:
@example
%token <operator> OR "||"
%token <operator> LE 134 "<="
%left OR "<="
@end example
@noindent
Once you equate the literal string and the token kind name, you can use them
interchangeably in further declarations or the grammar rules. The
@code{yylex} function can use the token name or the literal string to obtain
the token kind code (@pxref{Calling Convention}).
String aliases allow for better error messages using the literal strings
instead of the token names, such as @samp{syntax error, unexpected ||,
expecting number or (} rather than @samp{syntax error, unexpected OR,
expecting NUM or LPAREN}.
String aliases may also be marked for internationalization (@pxref{Token
I18n}):
@example
%token
OR "||"
LPAREN "("
RPAREN ")"
'\n' _("end of line")
<double>
NUM _("number")
@end example
@noindent
would produce in French @samp{erreur de syntaxe, || inattendu, attendait
nombre ou (} rather than @samp{erreur de syntaxe, || inattendu, attendait
number ou (}.
@node Precedence Decl
@subsection Operator Precedence
@cindex precedence declarations
@cindex declaring operator precedence
@cindex operator precedence, declaring
Use the @code{%left}, @code{%right}, @code{%nonassoc}, or @code{%precedence}
declaration to declare a token and specify its precedence and associativity,
all at once. These are called @dfn{precedence declarations}.
@xref{Precedence}, for general information on operator
precedence.
The syntax of a precedence declaration is nearly the same as that of
@code{%token}: either
@example
%left @var{symbols}@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
or
@example
%left <@var{type}> @var{symbols}@dots{}
@end example
And indeed any of these declarations serves the purposes of @code{%token}.
But in addition, they specify the associativity and relative precedence for
all the @var{symbols}:
@itemize @bullet
@item
The associativity of an operator @var{op} determines how repeated uses of
the operator nest: whether @samp{@var{x} @var{op} @var{y} @var{op} @var{z}}
is parsed by grouping @var{x} with @var{y} first or by grouping @var{y} with
@var{z} first. @code{%left} specifies left-associativity (grouping @var{x}
with @var{y} first) and @code{%right} specifies right-associativity
(grouping @var{y} with @var{z} first). @code{%nonassoc} specifies no
associativity, which means that @samp{@var{x} @var{op} @var{y} @var{op}
@var{z}} is considered a syntax error.
@code{%precedence} gives only precedence to the @var{symbols}, and defines
no associativity at all. Use this to define precedence only, and leave any
potential conflict due to associativity enabled.
@item
The precedence of an operator determines how it nests with other operators.
All the tokens declared in a single precedence declaration have equal
precedence and nest together according to their associativity. When two
tokens declared in different precedence declarations associate, the one
declared later has the higher precedence and is grouped first.
@end itemize
For backward compatibility, there is a confusing difference between the
argument lists of @code{%token} and precedence declarations. Only a
@code{%token} can associate a literal string with a token kind name. A
precedence declaration always interprets a literal string as a reference to
a separate token. For example:
@example
%left OR "<=" // Does not declare an alias.
%left OR 134 "<=" 135 // Declares 134 for OR and 135 for "<=".
@end example
@node Type Decl
@subsection Nonterminal Symbols
@cindex declaring value types, nonterminals
@cindex value types, nonterminals, declaring
@findex %nterm
@findex %type
@noindent
When you use @code{%union} to specify multiple value types, you must
declare the value type of each nonterminal symbol for which values are
used. This is done with a @code{%type} declaration, like this:
@example
%type <@var{type}> @var{nonterminal}@dots{}
@end example
@noindent
Here @var{nonterminal} is the name of a nonterminal symbol, and @var{type}
is the name given in the @code{%union} to the alternative that you want
(@pxref{Union Decl}). You can give any number of nonterminal symbols in the
same @code{%type} declaration, if they have the same value type. Use spaces
to separate the symbol names.
While POSIX Yacc allows @code{%type} only for nonterminals, Bison accepts
that this directive be also applied to terminal symbols. To declare
exclusively nonterminal symbols, use the safer @code{%nterm}:
@example
%nterm <@var{type}> @var{nonterminal}@dots{}
@end example
@node Symbol Decls
@subsection Syntax of Symbol Declarations
@findex %left
@findex %nterm
@findex %token
@findex %type
The syntax of the various directives to declare symbols is as follows.
@example
@group
%token @var{tag}? ( (@var{id}|@var{char}) @var{number}? @var{string}? )+ \
( @var{tag} ( (@var{id}|@var{char}) @var{number}? @var{string}? )+ )*
@end group
@group
%left @var{tag}? ( (@var{id}|@var{char}|@var{string}) @var{number}? )+ \
( @var{tag} ( (@var{id}|@var{char}|@var{string}) @var{number}? )+ )*
@end group
@group
%type @var{tag}? (@var{id}|@var{char}|@var{string})+ \
( @var{tag} (@var{id}|@var{char}|@var{string})+ )*
@end group
@group
%nterm @var{tag}? @var{id}+ \
( @var{tag} @var{id}+ )*
@end group
@end example
@noindent
where @var{tag} denotes a type tag such as @samp{<ival>}, @var{id} denotes
an identifier such as @samp{NUM} or @samp{exp}, @var{number} a decimal or hexadecimal
integer such as @samp{300} or @samp{0x12d}, @var{char} a character literal
such as @samp{'+'}, and @var{string} a string literal such as
@samp{"number"}. The postfix quantifiers are @samp{?} (zero or one),
@samp{*} (zero or more) and @samp{+} (one or more).
The directives @code{%precedence}, @code{%right} and @code{%nonassoc} behave
like @code{%left}.
@node Initial Action Decl
@subsection Performing Actions before Parsing
@findex %initial-action
Sometimes your parser needs to perform some initializations before parsing.
The @code{%initial-action} directive allows for such arbitrary code.
@deffn {Directive} %initial-action @{ @var{code} @}
@findex %initial-action
Declare that the braced @var{code} must be invoked before parsing each time
@code{yyparse} is called. The @var{code} may use @code{$$} (or
@code{$<@var{tag}>$}) and @code{@@$} --- initial value and location of the
lookahead --- and the @code{%parse-param}.
@end deffn
For instance, if your locations use a file name, you may use
@example
%parse-param @{ char const *file_name @};
%initial-action
@{
@@$.initialize (file_name);
@};
@end example
@node Destructor Decl
@subsection Freeing Discarded Symbols
@cindex freeing discarded symbols
@findex %destructor
@findex <*>
@findex <>
During error recovery (@pxref{Error Recovery}), symbols already pushed on
the stack and tokens coming from the rest of the file are discarded until
the parser falls on its feet. If the parser runs out of memory, or if it
returns via @code{YYABORT}, @code{YYACCEPT} or @code{YYNOMEM}, all the
symbols on the stack must be discarded. Even if the parser succeeds, it
must discard the start symbol.
When discarded symbols convey heap based information, this memory is
lost. While this behavior can be tolerable for batch parsers, such as
in traditional compilers, it is unacceptable for programs like shells or
protocol implementations that may parse and execute indefinitely.
The @code{%destructor} directive defines code that is called when a
symbol is automatically discarded.
@deffn {Directive} %destructor @{ @var{code} @} @var{symbols}
@findex %destructor
Invoke the braced @var{code} whenever the parser discards one of the
@var{symbols}. Within @var{code}, @code{$$} (or @code{$<@var{tag}>$})
designates the semantic value associated with the discarded symbol, and
@code{@@$} designates its location. The additional parser parameters are
also available (@pxref{Parser Function}).
When a symbol is listed among @var{symbols}, its @code{%destructor} is called a
per-symbol @code{%destructor}.
You may also define a per-type @code{%destructor} by listing a semantic type
tag among @var{symbols}.
In that case, the parser will invoke this @var{code} whenever it discards any
grammar symbol that has that semantic type tag unless that symbol has its own
per-symbol @code{%destructor}.
Finally, you can define two different kinds of default @code{%destructor}s.
You can place each of @code{<*>} and @code{<>} in the @var{symbols} list of
exactly one @code{%destructor} declaration in your grammar file.
The parser will invoke the @var{code} associated with one of these whenever it
discards any user-defined grammar symbol that has no per-symbol and no per-type
@code{%destructor}.
The parser uses the @var{code} for @code{<*>} in the case of such a grammar
symbol for which you have formally declared a semantic type tag (@code{%token},
@code{%nterm}, and @code{%type}
count as such a declaration, but @code{$<tag>$} does not).
The parser uses the @var{code} for @code{<>} in the case of such a grammar
symbol that has no declared semantic type tag.
@end deffn
@noindent
For example:
@example
%union @{ char *string; @}
%token <string> STRING1 STRING2
%nterm <string> string1 string2
%union @{ char character; @}
%token <character> CHR
%nterm <character> chr
%token TAGLESS
%destructor @{ @} <character>
%destructor @{ free ($$); @} <*>
%destructor @{ free ($$); printf ("%d", @@$.first_line); @} STRING1 string1
%destructor @{ printf ("Discarding tagless symbol.\n"); @} <>
@end example
@noindent
guarantees that, when the parser discards any user-defined symbol that has a
semantic type tag other than @code{<character>}, it passes its semantic value
to @code{free} by default.
However, when the parser discards a @code{STRING1} or a @code{string1},
it uses the third @code{%destructor}, which frees it and
prints its line number to @code{stdout} (@code{free} is invoked only once).
Finally, the parser merely prints a message whenever it discards any symbol,
such as @code{TAGLESS}, that has no semantic type tag.
A Bison-generated parser invokes the default @code{%destructor}s only for
user-defined as opposed to Bison-defined symbols.
For example, the parser will not invoke either kind of default
@code{%destructor} for the special Bison-defined symbols @code{$accept},
@code{$undefined}, or @code{$end} (@pxref{Table of Symbols}),
none of which you can reference in your grammar.
It also will not invoke either for the @code{error} token (@pxref{Table of
Symbols}), which is always defined by Bison regardless of whether you
reference it in your grammar.
However, it may invoke one of them for the end token (token 0) if you
redefine it from @code{$end} to, for example, @code{END}:
@example
%token END 0
@end example
@cindex actions in midrule
@cindex midrule actions
Finally, Bison will never invoke a @code{%destructor} for an unreferenced
midrule semantic value (@pxref{Midrule Actions}).
That is, Bison does not consider a midrule to have a semantic value if you
do not reference @code{$$} in the midrule's action or @code{$@var{n}}
(where @var{n} is the right-hand side symbol position of the midrule) in
any later action in that rule. However, if you do reference either, the
Bison-generated parser will invoke the @code{<>} @code{%destructor} whenever
it discards the midrule symbol.
@ignore
@noindent
In the future, it may be possible to redefine the @code{error} token as a
nonterminal that captures the discarded symbols.
In that case, the parser will invoke the default destructor for it as well.
@end ignore
@sp 1
@cindex discarded symbols
@dfn{Discarded symbols} are the following:
@itemize
@item
stacked symbols popped during the first phase of error recovery,
@item
incoming terminals during the second phase of error recovery,
@item
the current lookahead and the entire stack (except the current
right-hand side symbols) when the parser returns immediately, and
@item
the current lookahead and the entire stack (including the current right-hand
side symbols) when the C++ parser (@file{lalr1.cc}) catches an exception in
@code{parse},
@item
the start symbol, when the parser succeeds.
@end itemize
The parser can @dfn{return immediately} because of an explicit call to
@code{YYABORT}, @code{YYACCEPT} or @code{YYNOMEM}, or failed error recovery,
or memory exhaustion.
Right-hand side symbols of a rule that explicitly triggers a syntax
error via @code{YYERROR} are not discarded automatically. As a rule
of thumb, destructors are invoked only when user actions cannot manage
the memory.
@node Printer Decl
@subsection Printing Semantic Values
@cindex printing semantic values
@findex %printer
@findex <*>
@findex <>
When run-time traces are enabled (@pxref{Tracing}),
the parser reports its actions, such as reductions. When a symbol involved
in an action is reported, only its kind is displayed, as the parser cannot
know how semantic values should be formatted.
The @code{%printer} directive defines code that is called when a symbol is
reported. Its syntax is the same as @code{%destructor} (@pxref{Destructor
Decl}).
@deffn {Directive} %printer @{ @var{code} @} @var{symbols}
@findex %printer
@vindex yyo
@c This is the same text as for %destructor.
Invoke the braced @var{code} whenever the parser displays one of the
@var{symbols}. Within @var{code}, @code{yyo} denotes the output stream (a
@code{FILE*} in C, an @code{std::ostream&} in C++, and @code{stdout} in D), @code{$$} (or
@code{$<@var{tag}>$}) designates the semantic value associated with the
symbol, and @code{@@$} its location. The additional parser parameters are
also available (@pxref{Parser Function}).
The @var{symbols} are defined as for @code{%destructor} (@pxref{Destructor
Decl}.): they can be per-type (e.g.,
@samp{<ival>}), per-symbol (e.g., @samp{exp}, @samp{NUM}, @samp{"float"}),
typed per-default (i.e., @samp{<*>}, or untyped per-default (i.e.,
@samp{<>}).
@end deffn
@noindent
For example:
@example
%union @{ char *string; @}
%token <string> STRING1 STRING2
%nterm <string> string1 string2
%union @{ char character; @}
%token <character> CHR
%nterm <character> chr
%token TAGLESS
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "'%c'", $$); @} <character>
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "&%p", $$); @} <*>
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "\"%s\"", $$); @} STRING1 string1
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "<>"); @} <>
@end example
@noindent
guarantees that, when the parser print any symbol that has a semantic type
tag other than @code{<character>}, it display the address of the semantic
value by default. However, when the parser displays a @code{STRING1} or a
@code{string1}, it formats it as a string in double quotes. It performs
only the second @code{%printer} in this case, so it prints only once.
Finally, the parser print @samp{<>} for any symbol, such as @code{TAGLESS},
that has no semantic type tag. @xref{Mfcalc Traces}, for a complete example.
@node Expect Decl
@subsection Suppressing Conflict Warnings
@cindex suppressing conflict warnings
@cindex preventing warnings about conflicts
@cindex warnings, preventing
@cindex conflicts, suppressing warnings of
@findex %expect
@findex %expect-rr
Bison normally warns if there are any conflicts in the grammar
(@pxref{Shift/Reduce}), but most real grammars
have harmless shift/reduce conflicts which are resolved in a predictable
way and would be difficult to eliminate. It is desirable to suppress
the warning about these conflicts unless the number of conflicts
changes. You can do this with the @code{%expect} declaration.
The declaration looks like this:
@example
%expect @var{n}
@end example
Here @var{n} is a decimal integer. The declaration says there should
be @var{n} shift/reduce conflicts and no reduce/reduce conflicts.
Bison reports an error if the number of shift/reduce conflicts differs
from @var{n}, or if there are any reduce/reduce conflicts.
For deterministic parsers, reduce/reduce conflicts are more
serious, and should be eliminated entirely. Bison will always report
reduce/reduce conflicts for these parsers. With GLR
parsers, however, both kinds of conflicts are routine; otherwise,
there would be no need to use GLR parsing. Therefore, it is
also possible to specify an expected number of reduce/reduce conflicts
in GLR parsers, using the declaration:
@example
%expect-rr @var{n}
@end example
You may wish to be more specific in your
specification of expected conflicts. To this end, you can also attach
@code{%expect} and @code{%expect-rr} modifiers to individual rules.
The interpretation of these modifiers differs from their use as
declarations. When attached to rules, they indicate the number of states
in which the rule is involved in a conflict. You will need to consult the
output resulting from @option{-v} to determine appropriate numbers to use.
For example, for the following grammar fragment, the first rule for
@code{empty_dims} appears in two states in which the @samp{[} token is a
lookahead. Having determined that, you can document this fact with an
@code{%expect} modifier as follows:
@example
dims:
empty_dims
| '[' expr ']' dims
;
empty_dims:
%empty %expect 2
| empty_dims '[' ']'
;
@end example
Mid-rule actions generate implicit rules that are also subject to conflicts
(@pxref{Midrule Conflicts}). To attach
an @code{%expect} or @code{%expect-rr} annotation to an implicit
mid-rule action's rule, put it before the action. For example,
@example
%glr-parser
%expect-rr 1
%%
clause:
"condition" %expect-rr 1 @{ value_mode(); @} '(' exprs ')'
| "condition" %expect-rr 1 @{ class_mode(); @} '(' types ')'
;
@end example
@noindent
Here, the appropriate mid-rule action will not be determined until after
the @samp{(} token is shifted. Thus,
the two actions will clash with each other, and we should expect one
reduce/reduce conflict for each.
In general, using @code{%expect} involves these steps:
@itemize @bullet
@item
Compile your grammar without @code{%expect}. Use the @option{-v} option
to get a verbose list of where the conflicts occur. Bison will also
print the number of conflicts.
@item
Check each of the conflicts to make sure that Bison's default
resolution is what you really want. If not, rewrite the grammar and
go back to the beginning.
@item
Add an @code{%expect} declaration, copying the number @var{n} from the
number that Bison printed. With GLR parsers, add an
@code{%expect-rr} declaration as well.
@item
Optionally, count up the number of states in which one or more
conflicted reductions for particular rules appear and add these numbers
to the affected rules as @code{%expect-rr} or @code{%expect} modifiers
as appropriate. Rules that are in conflict appear in the output listing
surrounded by square brackets or, in the case of reduce/reduce conflicts,
as reductions having the same lookahead symbol as a square-bracketed
reduction in the same state.
@end itemize
Now Bison will report an error if you introduce an unexpected conflict,
but will keep silent otherwise.
@node Start Decl
@subsection The Start-Symbol
@cindex declaring the start symbol
@cindex start symbol, declaring
@cindex default start symbol
@findex %start
Bison assumes by default that the start symbol for the grammar is the first
nonterminal specified in the grammar specification section. The programmer
may override this restriction with the @code{%start} declaration as follows:
@example
%start @var{symbol}
@end example
@node Pure Decl
@subsection A Pure (Reentrant) Parser
@cindex reentrant parser
@cindex pure parser
@findex %define api.pure
A @dfn{reentrant} program is one which does not alter in the course of
execution; in other words, it consists entirely of @dfn{pure} (read-only)
code. Reentrancy is important whenever asynchronous execution is possible;
for example, a nonreentrant program may not be safe to call from a signal
handler. In systems with multiple threads of control, a nonreentrant
program must be called only within interlocks.
Normally, Bison generates a parser which is not reentrant. This is
suitable for most uses, and it permits compatibility with Yacc. (The
standard Yacc interfaces are inherently nonreentrant, because they use
statically allocated variables for communication with @code{yylex},
including @code{yylval} and @code{yylloc}.)
Alternatively, you can generate a pure, reentrant parser. The Bison
declaration @samp{%define api.pure} says that you want the parser to be
reentrant. It looks like this:
@example
%define api.pure full
@end example
The result is that the communication variables @code{yylval} and
@code{yylloc} become local variables in @code{yyparse}, and a different
calling convention is used for the lexical analyzer function @code{yylex}.
@xref{Pure Calling}, for the details of this. The variable @code{yynerrs}
becomes local in @code{yyparse} in pull mode but it becomes a member of
@code{yypstate} in push mode. (@pxref{Error Reporting Function}). The
convention for calling @code{yyparse} itself is unchanged.
Whether the parser is pure has nothing to do with the grammar rules.
You can generate either a pure parser or a nonreentrant parser from any
valid grammar.
@node Push Decl
@subsection A Push Parser
@cindex push parser
@cindex push parser
@findex %define api.push-pull
A pull parser is called once and it takes control until all its input
is completely parsed. A push parser, on the other hand, is called
each time a new token is made available.
A push parser is typically useful when the parser is part of a
main event loop in the client's application. This is typically
a requirement of a GUI, when the main event loop needs to be triggered
within a certain time period.
Normally, Bison generates a pull parser.
The following Bison declaration says that you want the parser to be a push
parser (@pxref{%define Summary}):
@example
%define api.push-pull push
@end example
In almost all cases, you want to ensure that your push parser is also
a pure parser (@pxref{Pure Decl}). The only
time you should create an impure push parser is to have backwards
compatibility with the impure Yacc pull mode interface. Unless you know
what you are doing, your declarations should look like this:
@example
%define api.pure full
%define api.push-pull push
@end example
There is a major notable functional difference between the pure push parser
and the impure push parser. It is acceptable for a pure push parser to have
many parser instances, of the same type of parser, in memory at the same time.
An impure push parser should only use one parser at a time.
When a push parser is selected, Bison will generate some new symbols in
the generated parser. @code{yypstate} is a structure that the generated
parser uses to store the parser's state. @code{yypstate_new} is the
function that will create a new parser instance. @code{yypstate_delete}
will free the resources associated with the corresponding parser instance.
Finally, @code{yypush_parse} is the function that should be called whenever a
token is available to provide the parser. A trivial example
of using a pure push parser would look like this:
@example
int status;
yypstate *ps = yypstate_new ();
do @{
status = yypush_parse (ps, yylex (), NULL);
@} while (status == YYPUSH_MORE);
yypstate_delete (ps);
@end example
If the user decided to use an impure push parser, a few things about the
generated parser will change. The @code{yychar} variable becomes a global
variable instead of a local one in the @code{yypush_parse} function. For
this reason, the signature of the @code{yypush_parse} function is changed to
remove the token as a parameter. A nonreentrant push parser example would
thus look like this:
@example
extern int yychar;
int status;
yypstate *ps = yypstate_new ();
do @{
yychar = yylex ();
status = yypush_parse (ps);
@} while (status == YYPUSH_MORE);
yypstate_delete (ps);
@end example
That's it. Notice the next token is put into the global variable @code{yychar}
for use by the next invocation of the @code{yypush_parse} function.
Bison also supports both the push parser interface along with the pull parser
interface in the same generated parser. In order to get this functionality,
you should replace the @samp{%define api.push-pull push} declaration with the
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration. Doing this will create all of
the symbols mentioned earlier along with the two extra symbols, @code{yyparse}
and @code{yypull_parse}. @code{yyparse} can be used exactly as it normally
would be used. However, the user should note that it is implemented in the
generated parser by calling @code{yypull_parse}.
This makes the @code{yyparse} function that is generated with the
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration slower than the normal
@code{yyparse} function. If the user
calls the @code{yypull_parse} function it will parse the rest of the input
stream. It is possible to @code{yypush_parse} tokens to select a subgrammar
and then @code{yypull_parse} the rest of the input stream. If you would like
to switch back and forth between between parsing styles, you would have to
write your own @code{yypull_parse} function that knows when to quit looking
for input. An example of using the @code{yypull_parse} function would look
like this:
@example
yypstate *ps = yypstate_new ();
yypull_parse (ps); /* Will call the lexer */
yypstate_delete (ps);
@end example
Adding the @samp{%define api.pure} declaration does exactly the same thing to
the generated parser with @samp{%define api.push-pull both} as it did for
@samp{%define api.push-pull push}.
@node Decl Summary
@subsection Bison Declaration Summary
@cindex Bison declaration summary
@cindex declaration summary
@cindex summary, Bison declaration
Here is a summary of the declarations used to define a grammar:
@deffn {Directive} %union
Declare the collection of data types that semantic values may have
(@pxref{Union Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %token
Declare a terminal symbol (token kind name) with no precedence
or associativity specified (@pxref{Token Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %right
Declare a terminal symbol (token kind name) that is right-associative
(@pxref{Precedence Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %left
Declare a terminal symbol (token kind name) that is left-associative
(@pxref{Precedence Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %nonassoc
Declare a terminal symbol (token kind name) that is nonassociative
(@pxref{Precedence Decl}).
Using it in a way that would be associative is a syntax error.
@end deffn
@ifset defaultprec
@deffn {Directive} %default-prec
Assign a precedence to rules lacking an explicit @code{%prec} modifier
(@pxref{Contextual Precedence}).
@end deffn
@end ifset
@deffn {Directive} %nterm
Declare the type of semantic values for a nonterminal symbol (@pxref{Type
Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %type
Declare the type of semantic values for a symbol (@pxref{Type Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %start
Specify the grammar's start symbol (@pxref{Start Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %expect
Declare the expected number of shift/reduce conflicts, either overall or
for a given rule
(@pxref{Expect Decl}).
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %expect-rr
Declare the expected number of reduce/reduce conflicts, either overall or
for a given rule
(@pxref{Expect Decl}).
@end deffn
@sp 1
@noindent
In order to change the behavior of @command{bison}, use the following
directives:
@deffn {Directive} %code @{@var{code}@}
@deffnx {Directive} %code @var{qualifier} @{@var{code}@}
@findex %code
Insert @var{code} verbatim into the output parser source at the
default location or at the location specified by @var{qualifier}.
@xref{%code Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %debug
Instrument the parser for traces. Obsoleted by @samp{%define
parse.trace}.
@xref{Tracing}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %define @var{variable}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @var{value}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @{@var{value}@}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} "@var{value}"
Define a variable to adjust Bison's behavior. @xref{%define Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %defines
@deffnx {Directive} %defines @var{defines-file}
Historical name for @code{%header}. @xref{%header,,@code{%header}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %destructor
Specify how the parser should reclaim the memory associated to
discarded symbols. @xref{Destructor Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %file-prefix "@var{prefix}"
Specify a prefix to use for all Bison output file names. The names
are chosen as if the grammar file were named @file{@var{prefix}.y}.
@end deffn
@anchor{%header}
@deffn {Directive} %header
Write a parser header file containing definitions for the token kind names
defined in the grammar as well as a few other declarations. If the parser
implementation file is named @file{@var{name}.c} then the parser header file
is named @file{@var{name}.h}.
For C parsers, the parser header file declares @code{YYSTYPE} unless
@code{YYSTYPE} is already defined as a macro or you have used a
@code{<@var{type}>} tag without using @code{%union}. Therefore, if you are
using a @code{%union} (@pxref{Multiple Types}) with components that require
other definitions, or if you have defined a @code{YYSTYPE} macro or type
definition (@pxref{Value Type}), you need to arrange for these definitions
to be propagated to all modules, e.g., by putting them in a prerequisite
header that is included both by your parser and by any other module that
needs @code{YYSTYPE}.
Unless your parser is pure, the parser header file declares
@code{yylval} as an external variable. @xref{Pure Decl}.
If you have also used locations, the parser header file declares
@code{YYLTYPE} and @code{yylloc} using a protocol similar to that of the
@code{YYSTYPE} macro and @code{yylval}. @xref{Tracking Locations}.
This parser header file is normally essential if you wish to put the
definition of @code{yylex} in a separate source file, because
@code{yylex} typically needs to be able to refer to the
above-mentioned declarations and to the token kind codes. @xref{Token
Values}.
@findex %code requires
@findex %code provides
If you have declared @code{%code requires} or @code{%code provides}, the output
header also contains their code.
@xref{%code Summary}.
@cindex Header guard
The generated header is protected against multiple inclusions with a C
preprocessor guard: @samp{YY_@var{PREFIX}_@var{FILE}_INCLUDED}, where
@var{PREFIX} and @var{FILE} are the prefix (@pxref{Multiple Parsers}) and
generated file name turned uppercase, with each series of non alphanumerical
characters converted to a single underscore.
For instance with @samp{%define api.prefix @{calc@}} and @samp{%header
"lib/parse.h"}, the header will be guarded as follows.
@example
#ifndef YY_CALC_LIB_PARSE_H_INCLUDED
# define YY_CALC_LIB_PARSE_H_INCLUDED
...
#endif /* ! YY_CALC_LIB_PARSE_H_INCLUDED */
@end example
Introduced in Bison 3.8.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %header @var{header-file}
Same as above, but save in the file @file{@var{header-file}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %language "@var{language}"
Specify the programming language for the generated parser. Currently
supported languages include C, C++, D and Java. @var{language} is
case-insensitive.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %locations
Generate the code processing the locations (@pxref{Action Features}). This
mode is enabled as soon as the grammar uses the special @samp{@@@var{n}}
tokens, but if your grammar does not use it, using @samp{%locations} allows
for more accurate syntax error messages.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %name-prefix "@var{prefix}"
Obsoleted by @samp{%define api.prefix @{@var{prefix}@}}. @xref{Multiple
Parsers}. For C++ parsers, see the
@samp{%define api.namespace} documentation in this section.
Rename the external symbols used in the parser so that they start with
@var{prefix} instead of @samp{yy}. The precise list of symbols renamed in C
parsers is @code{yyparse}, @code{yylex}, @code{yyerror}, @code{yynerrs},
@code{yylval}, @code{yychar}, @code{yydebug}, and (if locations are used)
@code{yylloc}. If you use a push parser, @code{yypush_parse},
@code{yypull_parse}, @code{yypstate}, @code{yypstate_new} and
@code{yypstate_delete} will also be renamed. For example, if you use
@samp{%name-prefix "c_"}, the names become @code{c_parse}, @code{c_lex}, and
so on.
Contrary to defining @code{api.prefix}, some symbols are @emph{not} renamed
by @code{%name-prefix}, for instance @code{YYDEBUG}, @code{YYTOKENTYPE},
@code{yytoken_kind_t}, @code{YYSTYPE}, @code{YYLTYPE}.
@end deffn
@ifset defaultprec
@deffn {Directive} %no-default-prec
Do not assign a precedence to rules lacking an explicit @code{%prec}
modifier (@pxref{Contextual Precedence}).
@end deffn
@end ifset
@deffn {Directive} %no-lines
Don't generate any @code{#line} preprocessor commands in the parser
implementation file. Ordinarily Bison writes these commands in the parser
implementation file so that the C compiler and debuggers will associate
errors and object code with your source file (the grammar file). This
directive causes them to associate errors with the parser implementation
file, treating it as an independent source file in its own right.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %output "@var{file}"
Generate the parser implementation in @file{@var{file}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %pure-parser
Deprecated version of @samp{%define api.pure} (@pxref{%define
Summary}), for which Bison is more careful to warn about
unreasonable usage.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %require "@var{version}"
Require version @var{version} or higher of Bison. @xref{Require Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %skeleton "@var{file}"
Specify the skeleton to use.
@c You probably don't need this option unless you are developing Bison.
@c You should use @code{%language} if you want to specify the skeleton for a
@c different language, because it is clearer and because it will always choose the
@c correct skeleton for non-deterministic or push parsers.
If @var{file} does not contain a @code{/}, @var{file} is the name of a skeleton
file in the Bison installation directory.
If it does, @var{file} is an absolute file name or a file name relative to the
directory of the grammar file.
This is similar to how most shells resolve commands.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %token-table
This feature is obsolescent, avoid it in new projects.
Generate an array of token names in the parser implementation file. The
name of the array is @code{yytname}; @code{yytname[@var{i}]} is the name of
the token whose internal Bison token code is @var{i}. The first three
elements of @code{yytname} correspond to the predefined tokens
@code{"$end"}, @code{"error"}, and @code{"$undefined"}; after these come the
symbols defined in the grammar file.
The name in the table includes all the characters needed to represent the
token in Bison. For single-character literals and literal strings, this
includes the surrounding quoting characters and any escape sequences. For
example, the Bison single-character literal @code{'+'} corresponds to a
three-character name, represented in C as @code{"'+'"}; and the Bison
two-character literal string @code{"\\/"} corresponds to a five-character
name, represented in C as @code{"\"\\\\/\""}.
When you specify @code{%token-table}, Bison also generates macro definitions
for macros @code{YYNTOKENS}, @code{YYNNTS}, and @code{YYNRULES}, and
@code{YYNSTATES}:
@table @code
@item YYNTOKENS
The number of terminal symbols, i.e., the highest token code, plus one.
@item YYNNTS
The number of nonterminal symbols.
@item YYNRULES
The number of grammar rules,
@item YYNSTATES
The number of parser states (@pxref{Parser States}).
@end table
Here's code for looking up a multicharacter token in @code{yytname},
assuming that the characters of the token are stored in @code{token_buffer},
and assuming that the token does not contain any characters like @samp{"}
that require escaping.
@example
for (int i = 0; i < YYNTOKENS; i++)
if (yytname[i]
&& yytname[i][0] == '"'
&& ! strncmp (yytname[i] + 1, token_buffer,
strlen (token_buffer))
&& yytname[i][strlen (token_buffer) + 1] == '"'
&& yytname[i][strlen (token_buffer) + 2] == 0)
break;
@end example
This method is discouraged: the primary purpose of string aliases is forging
good error messages, not describing the spelling of keywords. In addition,
looking for the token kind at runtime incurs a (small but noticeable) cost.
Finally, @code{%token-table} is incompatible with the @code{custom} and
@code{detailed} values of the @code{parse.error} @code{%define} variable.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %verbose
Write an extra output file containing verbose descriptions of the parser
states and what is done for each type of lookahead token in that state.
@xref{Understanding}, for more information.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %yacc
Pretend the option @option{--yacc} was given
(@pxref{option-yacc,,@option{--yacc}}), i.e., imitate Yacc, including its
naming conventions. Only makes sense with the @file{yacc.c}
skeleton. @xref{Tuning the Parser}, for more.
Of course, being a Bison extension, @code{%yacc} is somewhat
self-contradictory@dots{}
@end deffn
@node %define Summary
@subsection %define Summary
There are many features of Bison's behavior that can be controlled by
assigning the feature a single value. For historical reasons, some such
features are assigned values by dedicated directives, such as @code{%start},
which assigns the start symbol. However, newer such features are associated
with variables, which are assigned by the @code{%define} directive:
@deffn {Directive} %define @var{variable}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @var{value}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @{@var{value}@}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} "@var{value}"
Define @var{variable} to @var{value}.
The type of the values depend on the syntax. Braces denote value in the
target language (e.g., a namespace, a type, etc.). Keyword values (no
delimiters) denote finite choice (e.g., a variation of a feature). String
values denote remaining cases (e.g., a file name).
It is an error if a @var{variable} is defined by @code{%define} multiple
times, but see @ref{Tuning the Parser,,@option{-D @var{name}[=@var{value}]}}.
@end deffn
The rest of this section summarizes variables and values that @code{%define}
accepts.
Some @var{variable}s take Boolean values. In this case, Bison will complain
if the variable definition does not meet one of the following four
conditions:
@enumerate
@item @code{@var{value}} is @code{true}
@item @code{@var{value}} is omitted (or @code{""} is specified).
This is equivalent to @code{true}.
@item @code{@var{value}} is @code{false}.
@item @var{variable} is never defined.
In this case, Bison selects a default value.
@end enumerate
What @var{variable}s are accepted, as well as their meanings and default
values, depend on the selected target language and/or the parser skeleton
(@pxref{Decl Summary}, @pxref{Decl Summary}).
Unaccepted @var{variable}s produce an error. Some of the accepted
@var{variable}s are described below.
@c ================================================== api.filename.file
@anchor{api-filename-type}
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.filename.type} @{@var{type}@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C++
@item Purpose:
Define the type of file names in Bison's default location and position
types. @xref{Exposing the Location Classes}.
@item Accepted Values:
Any type that is printable (via streams) and comparable (with @code{==} and
@code{!=}).
@item Default Value: @code{const std::string}.
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 2.0 as @code{filename_type} (with @code{std::string} as
default), renamed as @code{api.filename.type} in Bison 3.7 (with @code{const
std::string} as default).
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== api.header.include
@deffn Directive {%define api.header.include} @{"header.h"@}
@deffnx Directive {%define api.header.include} @{<header.h>@}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): C (@file{yacc.c})
@item Purpose: Specify how the generated parser should include the generated header.
Historically, when option @option{-d} or @option{--header} was used,
@command{bison} generated a header and pasted an exact copy of it into the
generated parser implementation file. Since Bison 3.6, it is
@code{#include}d as @samp{"@var{basename}.h"}, instead of duplicated, unless
@var{file} is @samp{y.tab}, see below.
The @code{api.header.include} variable allows to control how the generated
parser @code{#include}s the generated header. For instance:
@example
%define api.header.include @{"parse.h"@}
@end example
@noindent
or
@example
%define api.header.include @{<parser/parse.h>@}
@end example
Using @code{api.header.include} does not change the name of the generated
header, only how it is included.
To work around limitations of Automake's @command{ylwrap} (which runs
@command{bison} with @option{--yacc}), @code{api.header.include} is
@emph{not} predefined when the output file is @file{y.tab.c}. Define it to
avoid the duplication.
@item Accepted Values:
An argument for @code{#include}.
@item Default Value:
@samp{"@var{header-basename}"}, unless the header file is @file{y.tab.h},
where @var{header-basename} is the name of the generated header, without
directory part. For instance with @samp{bison -d calc/parse.y},
@code{api.header.include} defaults to @samp{"parse.h"}, not
@samp{"calc/parse.h"}.
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 3.4. Defaults to @samp{"@var{basename}.h"} since Bison
3.7, unless the header file is @file{y.tab.h}.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.header.include
@c ================================================== api.location.file
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.location.file} "@var{file}"
@deffnx {Directive} {%define api.location.file} @code{none}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C++
@item Purpose:
Define the name of the file in which Bison's default location and position
types are generated. @xref{Exposing the Location Classes}.
@item Accepted Values:
@table @asis
@item @code{none}
If locations are enabled, generate the definition of the @code{position} and
@code{location} classes in the header file if @code{%header}, otherwise in
the parser implementation.
@item "@var{file}"
Generate the definition of the @code{position} and @code{location} classes
in @var{file}. This file name can be relative (to where the parser file is
output) or absolute.
@end table
@item Default Value:
Not applicable if locations are not enabled, or if a user location type is
specified (see @code{api.location.type}). Otherwise, Bison's
@code{location} is generated in @file{location.hh} (@pxref{C++ location}).
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 3.2.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== api.location.file
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.location.include} @{"@var{file}"@}
@deffnx {Directive} {%define api.location.include} @{<@var{file}>@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C++
@item Purpose:
Specify how the generated file that defines the @code{position} and
@code{location} classes is included. This makes sense when the
@code{location} class is exposed to the rest of your application/library in
another directory. @xref{Exposing the Location Classes}.
@item Accepted Values: Argument for @code{#include}.
@item Default Value:
@samp{"@var{dir}/location.hh"} where @var{dir} is the directory part of the
output. For instance @file{src/parse} if
@option{--output=src/parse/parser.cc} was given.
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 3.2.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== api.location.type
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.location.type} @{@var{type}@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C, C++, Java
@item Purpose: Define the location type.
@xref{Location Type}, and @ref{User Defined Location Type}.
@item Accepted Values: String
@item Default Value: none
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 2.7 for C++ and Java, in Bison 3.4 for C. Was
originally named @code{location_type} in Bison 2.5 and 2.6.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== api.namespace
@deffn Directive {%define api.namespace} @{@var{namespace}@}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): C++
@item Purpose: Specify the namespace for the parser class.
For example, if you specify:
@example
%define api.namespace @{foo::bar@}
@end example
Bison uses @code{foo::bar} verbatim in references such as:
@example
foo::bar::parser::value_type
@end example
However, to open a namespace, Bison removes any leading @code{::} and then
splits on any remaining occurrences:
@example
namespace foo @{ namespace bar @{
class position;
class location;
@} @}
@end example
@item Accepted Values:
Any absolute or relative C++ namespace reference without a trailing
@code{"::"}. For example, @code{"foo"} or @code{"::foo::bar"}.
@item Default Value:
@code{yy}, unless you used the obsolete @samp{%name-prefix "@var{prefix}"}
directive.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.namespace
@c ================================================== api.parser.class
@deffn Directive {%define api.parser.class} @{@var{name}@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
C++, Java, D
@item Purpose:
The name of the parser class.
@item Accepted Values:
Any valid identifier.
@item Default Value:
In C++, @code{parser}. In D and Java, @code{YYParser} or
@code{@var{api.prefix}Parser} (@pxref{Java Bison Interface}).
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 3.3 to replace @code{parser_class_name}.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.parser.class
@c ================================================== api.prefix
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.prefix} @{@var{prefix}@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C, C++, Java
@item Purpose: Rename exported symbols.
@xref{Multiple Parsers}.
@item Accepted Values: String
@item Default Value: @code{YY} for Java, @code{yy} otherwise.
@item History:
introduced in Bison 2.6, with its argument in double quotes. Uses braces
since Bison 3.0 (double quotes are still supported for backward
compatibility).
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== api.pure
@deffn Directive {%define api.pure} @var{purity}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C
@item Purpose: Request a pure (reentrant) parser program.
@xref{Pure Decl}.
@item Accepted Values: @code{true}, @code{false}, @code{full}
The value may be omitted: this is equivalent to specifying @code{true}, as is
the case for Boolean values.
When @code{%define api.pure full} is used, the parser is made reentrant. This
changes the signature for @code{yylex} (@pxref{Pure Calling}), and also that of
@code{yyerror} when the tracking of locations has been activated, as shown
below.
The @code{true} value is very similar to the @code{full} value, the only
difference is in the signature of @code{yyerror} on Yacc parsers without
@code{%parse-param}, for historical reasons.
I.e., if @samp{%locations %define api.pure} is passed then the prototypes for
@code{yyerror} are:
@example
void yyerror (char const *msg); // Yacc parsers.
void yyerror (YYLTYPE *locp, char const *msg); // GLR parsers.
@end example
But if @samp{%locations %define api.pure %parse-param @{int *nastiness@}} is
used, then both parsers have the same signature:
@example
void yyerror (YYLTYPE *llocp, int *nastiness, char const *msg);
@end example
(@pxref{Error Reporting Function})
@item Default Value: @code{false}
@item History:
the @code{full} value was introduced in Bison 2.7
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.pure
@c ================================================== api.push-pull
@deffn Directive {%define api.push-pull} @var{kind}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C (deterministic parsers only), D, Java
@item Purpose: Request a pull parser, a push parser, or both.
@xref{Push Decl}.
@item Accepted Values: @code{pull}, @code{push}, @code{both}
@item Default Value: @code{pull}
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.push-pull
@c ================================================== api.symbol.prefix
@deffn Directive {%define api.symbol.prefix} @{@var{prefix}@}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): all
@item Purpose:
Add a prefix to the name of the symbol kinds. For instance
@example
%define api.symbol.prefix @{S_@}
%token FILE for ERROR
%%
start: FILE for ERROR;
@end example
@noindent
generates this definition in C:
@example
/* Symbol kind. */
enum yysymbol_kind_t
@{
S_YYEMPTY = -2, /* No symbol. */
S_YYEOF = 0, /* $end */
S_YYERROR = 1, /* error */
S_YYUNDEF = 2, /* $undefined */
S_FILE = 3, /* FILE */
S_for = 4, /* for */
S_ERROR = 5, /* ERROR */
S_YYACCEPT = 6, /* $accept */
S_start = 7 /* start */
@};
@end example
@item Accepted Values:
Any non empty string. Must be a valid identifier in the target language
(typically a non empty sequence of letters, underscores, and ---not at the
beginning--- digits).
The empty prefix is (generally) invalid:
@itemize
@item
in C it would create collision with the @code{YYERROR} macro, and
potentially token kind definitions and symbol kind definitions would
collide;
@item
unnamed symbols (such as @samp{'+'}) have a name which starts with a digit;
@item
even in languages with scoped enumerations such as Java, an empty prefix is
dangerous: symbol names may collide with the target language keywords, or
with other members of the @code{SymbolKind} class.
@end itemize
@item Default Value:
@code{YYSYMBOL_} in C, @code{S_} in C++ and Java, empty in D.
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.6.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.symbol.prefix
@c ================================================== api.token.constructor
@deffn Directive {%define api.token.constructor}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
C++, D
@item Purpose:
Request that symbols be handled as a whole (type, value, and possibly
location) in the scanner. In the case of C++, it works only when
variant-based semantic values are enabled (@pxref{C++ Variants}), see
@ref{Complete Symbols}, for details. In D, token constructors work with both
@samp{%union} and @samp{%define api.value.type union}.
@item Accepted Values:
Boolean.
@item Default Value:
@code{false}
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.0.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.token.constructor
@c ================================================== api.token.prefix
@anchor{api-token-prefix}
@deffn Directive {%define api.token.prefix} @{@var{prefix}@}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): all
@item Purpose:
Add a prefix to the token names when generating their definition in the
target language. For instance
@example
%define api.token.prefix @{TOK_@}
%token FILE for ERROR
%%
start: FILE for ERROR;
@end example
@noindent
generates the definition of the symbols @code{TOK_FILE}, @code{TOK_for}, and
@code{TOK_ERROR} in the generated source files. In particular, the scanner
must use these prefixed token names, while the grammar itself may still use
the short names (as in the sample rule given above). The generated
informational files (@file{*.output}, @file{*.xml}, @file{*.gv}) are not
modified by this prefix.
Bison also prefixes the generated member names of the semantic value union.
@xref{Type Generation}, for more
details.
See @ref{Calc++ Parser} and @ref{Calc++ Scanner}, for a complete example.
@item Accepted Values:
Any string. Must be a valid identifier prefix in the target language
(typically, a possibly empty sequence of letters, underscores, and ---not at
the beginning--- digits).
@item Default Value:
empty
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.0.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.token.prefix
@c ================================================== api.token.raw
@deffn Directive {%define api.token.raw}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
all
@item Purpose:
The output files normally define the enumeration of the @emph{token kinds}
with Yacc-compatible token codes: sequential numbers starting at 257 except
for single character tokens which stand for themselves (e.g., in ASCII,
@samp{'a'} is numbered 65). The parser however uses @emph{symbol kinds}
which are assigned numbers sequentially starting at 0. Therefore each time
the scanner returns an (external) token kind, it must be mapped to the
(internal) symbol kind.
When @code{api.token.raw} is set, the code of the token kinds are forced to
coincide with the symbol kind. This saves one table lookup per token to map
them from the token kind to the symbol kind, and also saves the generation
of the mapping table. The gain is typically moderate, but in extreme cases
(very simple user actions), a 10% improvement can be observed.
When @code{api.token.raw} is set, the grammar cannot use character literals
(such as @samp{'a'}).
@item Accepted Values: Boolean.
@item Default Value:
@code{true} in D, @code{false} otherwise
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.5. Was initially introduced in Bison 1.25 as
@samp{%raw}, but never worked and was removed in Bison 1.29.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.token.raw
@c ================================================== api.value.automove
@deffn Directive {%define api.value.automove}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
C++
@item Purpose:
Let occurrences of semantic values of the right-hand sides of a rule be
implicitly turned in rvalues. When enabled, a grammar such as:
@example
exp:
"number" @{ $$ = make_number ($1); @}
| exp "+" exp @{ $$ = make_binary (add, $1, $3); @}
| "(" exp ")" @{ $$ = $2; @}
@end example
@noindent
is actually compiled as if you had written:
@example
exp:
"number" @{ $$ = make_number (std::move ($1)); @}
| exp "+" exp @{ $$ = make_binary (add,
std::move ($1),
std::move ($3)); @}
| "(" exp ")" @{ $$ = std::move ($2); @}
@end example
Using a value several times with automove enabled is typically an error.
For instance, instead of:
@example
exp: "twice" exp @{ $$ = make_binary (add, $2, $2); @}
@end example
@noindent
write:
@example
exp: "twice" exp @{ auto v = $2; $$ = make_binary (add, v, v); @}
@end example
@noindent
It is tempting to use @code{std::move} on one of the @code{v}, but the
argument evaluation order in C++ is unspecified.
@item Accepted Values:
Boolean.
@item Default Value:
@code{false}
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.2
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.value.automove
@c ================================================== api.value.type
@deffn Directive {%define api.value.type} @var{support}
@deffnx Directive {%define api.value.type} @{@var{type}@}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
all
@item Purpose:
The type for semantic values.
@item Accepted Values:
@table @asis
@item @samp{@{@}}
This grammar has no semantic value at all. This is not properly supported
yet.
@item @samp{union-directive} (C, C++, D)
The type is defined thanks to the @code{%union} directive. You don't have
to define @code{api.value.type} in that case, using @code{%union} suffices.
@xref{Union Decl}.
For instance:
@example
%define api.value.type union-directive
%union
@{
int ival;
char *sval;
@}
%token <ival> INT "integer"
%token <sval> STR "string"
@end example
@item @samp{union} (C, C++)
The symbols are defined with type names, from which Bison will generate a
@code{union}. For instance:
@example
%define api.value.type union
%token <int> INT "integer"
%token <char *> STR "string"
@end example
Most C++ objects cannot be stored in a @code{union}, use @samp{variant}
instead.
@item @samp{variant} (C++)
This is similar to @code{union}, but special storage techniques are used to
allow any kind of C++ object to be used. For instance:
@example
%define api.value.type variant
%token <int> INT "integer"
%token <std::string> STR "string"
@end example
@xref{C++ Variants}.
@item @samp{@{@var{type}@}}
Use this @var{type} as semantic value.
@example
%code requires
@{
struct my_value
@{
enum
@{
is_int, is_str
@} kind;
union
@{
int ival;
char *sval;
@} u;
@};
@}
%define api.value.type @{struct my_value@}
%token <u.ival> INT "integer"
%token <u.sval> STR "string"
@end example
@end table
@item Default Value:
@itemize @minus
@item
@code{union-directive} if @code{%union} is used, otherwise @dots{}
@item
@code{int} if type tags are used (i.e., @samp{%token <@var{type}>@dots{}} or
@samp{%nterm <@var{type}>@dots{}} is used), otherwise @dots{}
@item
undefined.
@end itemize
@item History:
introduced in Bison 3.0. Was introduced for Java only in 2.3b as
@code{stype}.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.value.type
@c ================================================== api.value.union.name
@deffn Directive {%define api.value.union.name} @var{name}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s):
C
@item Purpose:
The tag of the generated @code{union} (@emph{not} the name of the
@code{typedef}). This variable is set to @code{@var{id}} when @samp{%union
@var{id}} is used. There is no clear reason to give this union a name.
@item Accepted Values:
Any valid identifier.
@item Default Value:
@code{YYSTYPE}.
@item History:
Introduced in Bison 3.0.3.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c api.value.union.name
@c ================================================== lr.default-reduction
@deffn Directive {%define lr.default-reduction} @var{when}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): all
@item Purpose: Specify the kind of states that are permitted to
contain default reductions. @xref{Default Reductions}.
@item Accepted Values: @code{most}, @code{consistent}, @code{accepting}
@item Default Value:
@itemize
@item @code{accepting} if @code{lr.type} is @code{canonical-lr}.
@item @code{most} otherwise.
@end itemize
@item History:
introduced as @code{lr.default-reductions} in 2.5, renamed as
@code{lr.default-reduction} in 3.0.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ============================================ lr.keep-unreachable-state
@deffn Directive {%define lr.keep-unreachable-state}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): all
@item Purpose: Request that Bison allow unreachable parser states to
remain in the parser tables. @xref{Unreachable States}.
@item Accepted Values: Boolean
@item Default Value: @code{false}
@item History:
introduced as @code{lr.keep_unreachable_states} in 2.3b, renamed as
@code{lr.keep-unreachable-states} in 2.5, and as
@code{lr.keep-unreachable-state} in 3.0.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c lr.keep-unreachable-state
@c ================================================== lr.type
@deffn Directive {%define lr.type} @var{type}
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): all
@item Purpose: Specify the type of parser tables within the
LR(1) family. @xref{LR Table Construction}.
@item Accepted Values: @code{lalr}, @code{ielr}, @code{canonical-lr}
@item Default Value: @code{lalr}
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c ================================================== namespace
@deffn Directive %define namespace @{@var{namespace}@}
Obsoleted by @code{api.namespace}
@end deffn
@c namespace
@c ================================================== parse.assert
@deffn Directive {%define parse.assert}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): C, C++
@item Purpose: Issue runtime assertions to catch invalid uses.
In C, some important invariants in the implementation of the parser are
checked when this option is enabled.
In C++, when variants are used (@pxref{C++ Variants}), symbols must be
constructed and destroyed properly. This option checks these constraints
using runtime type information (RTTI). Therefore the generated code cannot
be compiled with RTTI disabled (via compiler options such as
@option{-fno-rtti}).
@item Accepted Values: Boolean
@item Default Value: @code{false}
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c parse.assert
@c ================================================== parse.error
@deffn Directive {%define parse.error} @var{verbosity}
@itemize
@item Languages(s):
all
@item Purpose:
Control the generation of syntax error messages. @xref{Error Reporting}.
@item Accepted Values:
@itemize
@item @code{simple}
Error messages passed to @code{yyerror} are simply @w{@code{"syntax
error"}}.
@item @code{detailed}
Error messages report the unexpected token, and possibly the expected ones.
However, this report can often be incorrect when LAC is not enabled
(@pxref{LAC}). Token name internationalization is supported.
@item @code{verbose}
Similar (but inferior) to @code{detailed}. The D parser does not support this value.
Error messages report the unexpected token, and possibly the expected ones.
However, this report can often be incorrect when LAC is not enabled
(@pxref{LAC}).
Does not support token internationalization. Using non-ASCII characters in
token aliases is not portable.
@item @code{custom}
The user is in charge of generating the syntax error message by defining the
@code{yyreport_syntax_error} function. @xref{Syntax Error Reporting
Function}.
@end itemize
@item Default Value:
@code{simple}
@item History:
introduced in 3.0 with support for @code{simple} and @code{verbose}. Values
@code{custom} and @code{detailed} were introduced in 3.6.
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c parse.error
@c ================================================== parse.lac
@deffn Directive {%define parse.lac} @var{when}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): C/C++ (deterministic parsers only), D and Java.
@item Purpose: Enable LAC (lookahead correction) to improve
syntax error handling. @xref{LAC}.
@item Accepted Values: @code{none}, @code{full}
@item Default Value: @code{none}
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c parse.lac
@c ================================================== parse.trace
@deffn Directive {%define parse.trace}
@itemize
@item Languages(s): C, C++, D, Java
@item Purpose: Require parser instrumentation for tracing.
@xref{Tracing}.
In C/C++, define the macro @code{YYDEBUG} (or @code{@var{prefix}DEBUG} with
@samp{%define api.prefix @{@var{prefix}@}}), see @ref{Multiple Parsers}) to
1 (if it is not already defined) so that the debugging facilities are
compiled.
@item Accepted Values: Boolean
@item Default Value: @code{false}
@end itemize
@end deffn
@c parse.trace
@c ================================================== parser_class_name
@deffn Directive %define parser_class_name @{@var{name}@}
Obsoleted by @code{api.parser.class}
@end deffn
@c parser_class_name
@node %code Summary
@subsection %code Summary
@findex %code
@cindex Prologue
The @code{%code} directive inserts code verbatim into the output
parser source at any of a predefined set of locations. It thus serves
as a flexible and user-friendly alternative to the traditional Yacc
prologue, @code{%@{@var{code}%@}}. This section summarizes the
functionality of @code{%code} for the various target languages
supported by Bison. For a detailed discussion of how to use
@code{%code} in place of @code{%@{@var{code}%@}} for C/C++ and why it
is advantageous to do so, @pxref{Prologue Alternatives}.
@deffn {Directive} %code @{@var{code}@}
This is the unqualified form of the @code{%code} directive. It
inserts @var{code} verbatim at a language-dependent default location
in the parser implementation.
For C/C++, the default location is the parser implementation file
after the usual contents of the parser header file. Thus, the
unqualified form replaces @code{%@{@var{code}%@}} for most purposes.
For D and Java, the default location is inside the parser class.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %code @var{qualifier} @{@var{code}@}
This is the qualified form of the @code{%code} directive.
@var{qualifier} identifies the purpose of @var{code} and thus the
location(s) where Bison should insert it. That is, if you need to
specify location-sensitive @var{code} that does not belong at the
default location selected by the unqualified @code{%code} form, use
this form instead.
@end deffn
For any particular qualifier or for the unqualified form, if there are
multiple occurrences of the @code{%code} directive, Bison concatenates
the specified code in the order in which it appears in the grammar
file.
Not all qualifiers are accepted for all target languages. Unaccepted
qualifiers produce an error. Some of the accepted qualifiers are:
@table @code
@item requires
@findex %code requires
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C, C++
@item Purpose:
This is the best place to write dependency code required for the value and
location types (@code{YYSTYPE} and @code{YYLTYPE} in C). In other words,
it's the best place to define types referenced in @code{%union} directives.
In C, if you use @code{#define} to override Bison's default @code{YYSTYPE}
and @code{YYLTYPE} definitions, then it is also the best place. However you
should rather @code{%define} @code{api.value.type} and
@code{api.location.type}.
@item Location(s):
The parser header file and the parser implementation file before the
Bison-generated definitions of the value and location types (@code{YYSTYPE}
and @code{YYLTYPE} in C).
@end itemize
@item provides
@findex %code provides
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C, C++
@item Purpose: This is the best place to write additional definitions and
declarations that should be provided to other modules.
@item Location(s):
The parser header file and the parser implementation file after the
Bison-generated value and location types (@code{YYSTYPE} and @code{YYLTYPE}
in C), and token definitions.
@end itemize
@item top
@findex %code top
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): C, C++
@item Purpose: The unqualified @code{%code} or @code{%code requires}
should usually be more appropriate than @code{%code top}. However,
occasionally it is necessary to insert code much nearer the top of the
parser implementation file. For example:
@example
%code top @{
#define _GNU_SOURCE
#include <stdio.h>
@}
@end example
@item Location(s): Near the top of the parser implementation file.
@end itemize
@item imports
@findex %code imports
@itemize @bullet
@item Language(s): D, Java
@item Purpose: This is the best place to write Java import directives. D syntax
allows for import statements all throughout the code.
@item Location(s): The parser Java file after any Java package directive and
before any class definitions. The parser D file before any class definitions.
@end itemize
@end table
Though we say the insertion locations are language-dependent, they are
technically skeleton-dependent. Writers of non-standard skeletons
however should choose their locations consistently with the behavior
of the standard Bison skeletons.
@node Multiple Parsers
@section Multiple Parsers in the Same Program
Most programs that use Bison parse only one language and therefore contain
only one Bison parser. But what if you want to parse more than one language
with the same program? Then you need to avoid name conflicts between
different definitions of functions and variables such as @code{yyparse},
@code{yylval}. To use different parsers from the same compilation unit, you
also need to avoid conflicts on types and macros (e.g., @code{YYSTYPE})
exported in the generated header.
The easy way to do this is to define the @code{%define} variable
@code{api.prefix}. With different @code{api.prefix}s it is guaranteed that
headers do not conflict when included together, and that compiled objects
can be linked together too. Specifying @samp{%define api.prefix
@{@var{prefix}@}} (or passing the option @option{-Dapi.prefix=@{@var{prefix}@}}, see
@ref{Invocation}) renames the interface functions and
variables of the Bison parser to start with @var{prefix} instead of
@samp{yy}, and all the macros to start by @var{PREFIX} (i.e., @var{prefix}
upper-cased) instead of @samp{YY}.
The renamed symbols include @code{yyparse}, @code{yylex}, @code{yyerror},
@code{yynerrs}, @code{yylval}, @code{yylloc}, @code{yychar} and
@code{yydebug}. If you use a push parser, @code{yypush_parse},
@code{yypull_parse}, @code{yypstate}, @code{yypstate_new} and
@code{yypstate_delete} will also be renamed. The renamed macros include
@code{YYSTYPE}, @code{YYLTYPE}, and @code{YYDEBUG}, which is treated
specifically --- more about this below.
For example, if you use @samp{%define api.prefix @{c@}}, the names become
@code{cparse}, @code{clex}, @dots{}, @code{CSTYPE}, @code{CLTYPE}, and so
on.
Users of Flex must update the signature of the generated @code{yylex}
function. Since the Flex scanner usually includes the generated header of
the parser (to get the definitions of the tokens, etc.), the most convenient
way is to insert the declaration of @code{yylex} in the @code{provides}
section:
@example
%define api.prefix @{c@}
// Emitted in the header file, after the definition of YYSTYPE.
%code provides
@{
// Tell Flex the expected prototype of yylex.
#define YY_DECL \
int clex (CSTYPE *yylval, CLTYPE *yylloc)
// Declare the scanner.
YY_DECL;
@}
@end example
@sp 1
The @code{%define} variable @code{api.prefix} works in two different ways.
In the implementation file, it works by adding macro definitions to the
beginning of the parser implementation file, defining @code{yyparse} as
@code{@var{prefix}parse}, and so on:
@example
#define YYSTYPE CTYPE
#define yyparse cparse
#define yylval clval
...
YYSTYPE yylval;
int yyparse (void);
@end example
This effectively substitutes one name for the other in the entire parser
implementation file, thus the ``original'' names (@code{yylex},
@code{YYSTYPE}, @dots{}) are also usable in the parser implementation file.
However, in the parser header file, the symbols are defined renamed, for
instance:
@example
extern CSTYPE clval;
int cparse (void);
@end example
The macro @code{YYDEBUG} is commonly used to enable the tracing support in
parsers. To comply with this tradition, when @code{api.prefix} is used,
@code{YYDEBUG} (not renamed) is used as a default value:
@example
/* Debug traces. */
#ifndef CDEBUG
# if defined YYDEBUG
# if YYDEBUG
# define CDEBUG 1
# else
# define CDEBUG 0
# endif
# else
# define CDEBUG 0
# endif
#endif
#if CDEBUG
extern int cdebug;
#endif
@end example
@sp 2
Prior to Bison 2.6, a feature similar to @code{api.prefix} was provided by
the obsolete directive @code{%name-prefix} (@pxref{Table of Symbols}) and
the option @option{--name-prefix} (@pxref{Output Files}).
@node Interface
@chapter Parser C-Language Interface
@cindex C-language interface
@cindex interface
The Bison parser is actually a C function named @code{yyparse}. Here we
describe the interface conventions of @code{yyparse} and the other
functions that it needs to use.
Keep in mind that the parser uses many C identifiers starting with
@samp{yy} and @samp{YY} for internal purposes. If you use such an
identifier (aside from those in this manual) in an action or in epilogue
in the grammar file, you are likely to run into trouble.
@menu
* Parser Function:: How to call @code{yyparse} and what it returns.
* Push Parser Interface:: How to create, use, and destroy push parsers.
* Lexical:: You must supply a function @code{yylex}
which reads tokens.
* Error Reporting:: Passing error messages to the user.
* Action Features:: Special features for use in actions.
* Internationalization:: How to let the parser speak in the user's
native language.
@end menu
@node Parser Function
@section The Parser Function @code{yyparse}
@findex yyparse
You call the function @code{yyparse} to cause parsing to occur. This
function reads tokens, executes actions, and ultimately returns when it
encounters end-of-input or an unrecoverable syntax error. You can also
write an action which directs @code{yyparse} to return immediately
without reading further.
@deftypefun int yyparse (@code{void})
The value returned by @code{yyparse} is 0 if parsing was successful (return
is due to end-of-input).
The value is 1 if parsing failed because of invalid input, i.e., input
that contains a syntax error or that causes @code{YYABORT} to be
invoked.
The value is 2 if parsing failed due to memory exhaustion.
@end deftypefun
In an action, you can cause immediate return from @code{yyparse} by using
these macros:
@defmac YYACCEPT
@findex YYACCEPT
Return immediately with value 0 (to report success).
@end defmac
@defmac YYABORT
@findex YYABORT
Return immediately with value 1 (to report failure).
@end defmac
@defmac YYNOMEM
@findex YYNOMEM
Return immediately with value 2 (to report memory exhaustion).
@end defmac
If you use a reentrant parser, you can optionally pass additional
parameter information to it in a reentrant way. To do so, use the
declaration @code{%parse-param}:
@deffn {Directive} %parse-param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
@findex %parse-param
Declare that one or more
@var{argument-declaration} are additional @code{yyparse} arguments.
The @var{argument-declaration} is used when declaring
functions or prototypes. The last identifier in
@var{argument-declaration} must be the argument name.
@end deffn
Here's an example. Write this in the parser:
@example
%parse-param @{int *nastiness@} @{int *randomness@}
@end example
@noindent
Then call the parser like this:
@example
@{
int nastiness, randomness;
@dots{} /* @r{Store proper data in @code{nastiness} and @code{randomness}.} */
value = yyparse (&nastiness, &randomness);
@dots{}
@}
@end example
@noindent
In the grammar actions, use expressions like this to refer to the data:
@example
exp: @dots{} @{ @dots{}; *randomness += 1; @dots{} @}
@end example
@noindent
Using the following:
@example
%parse-param @{int *randomness@}
@end example
Results in these signatures:
@example
void yyerror (int *randomness, const char *msg);
int yyparse (int *randomness);
@end example
@noindent
Or, if both @code{%define api.pure full} (or just @code{%define api.pure})
and @code{%locations} are used:
@example
void yyerror (YYLTYPE *llocp, int *randomness, const char *msg);
int yyparse (int *randomness);
@end example
@node Push Parser Interface
@section Push Parser Interface
@findex yypstate_new
You call the function @code{yypstate_new} to create a new parser instance.
This function is available if either the @samp{%define api.push-pull push}
or @samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration is used. @xref{Push Decl}.
@anchor{yypstate_new}
@deftypefun {yypstate*} yypstate_new (@code{void})
Return a valid parser instance if there is memory available, 0 otherwise.
In impure mode, it will also return 0 if a parser instance is currently
allocated.
@end deftypefun
@findex yypstate_delete
You call the function @code{yypstate_delete} to delete a parser instance.
function is available if either the @samp{%define api.push-pull push} or
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration is used.
@xref{Push Decl}.
@anchor{yypstate_delete}
@deftypefun void yypstate_delete (@code{yypstate *}@var{yyps})
Reclaim the memory associated with a parser instance. After this call, you
should no longer attempt to use the parser instance.
@end deftypefun
@findex yypush_parse
You call the function @code{yypush_parse} to parse a single token. This
function is available if either the @samp{%define api.push-pull push} or
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration is used. @xref{Push Decl}.
@anchor{yypush_parse}
@deftypefun int yypush_parse (@code{yypstate *}@var{yyps})
The value returned by @code{yypush_parse} is the same as for @code{yyparse}
with the following exception: it returns @code{YYPUSH_MORE} if more input is
required to finish parsing the grammar.
After @code{yypush_parse} returned, the instance may be consulted. For
instance check @code{yynerrs} to see whether there were (possibly recovered)
syntax errors.
After @code{yypush_parse} returns a status other than @code{YYPUSH_MORE},
the parser instance @code{yyps} may be reused for a new parse.
@end deftypefun
The fact that the parser state is reusable even after an error simplifies
reuse. For example, a calculator application which parses each input line
as an expression can just keep reusing the same @code{yyps} even if an input
was invalid.
You call the function @code{yypull_parse} to parse the rest of the input
stream. This function is available if the @samp{%define api.push-pull both}
declaration is used. @xref{Push Decl}.
@anchor{yypull_parse}
@deftypefun int yypull_parse (@code{yypstate *}@var{yyps})
The value returned by @code{yypull_parse} is the same as for @code{yyparse}.
The parser instance @code{yyps} may be reused for new parses.
@end deftypefun
@deftypefun int yypstate_expected_tokens (@code{const yypstate *}yyps, @code{yysymbol_kind_t} @var{argv}@code{[]}, @code{int} @var{argc})
Fill @var{argv} with the expected tokens, which never includes
@code{YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY}, @code{YYSYMBOL_YYerror}, or
@code{YYSYMBOL_YYUNDEF}.
Never put more than @var{argc} elements into @var{argv}, and on success
return the number of tokens stored in @var{argv}. If there are more
expected tokens than @var{argc}, fill @var{argv} up to @var{argc} and return
0. If there are no expected tokens, also return 0, but set @code{argv[0]}
to @code{YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY}.
When LAC is enabled, may return a negative number on errors,
such as @code{YYENOMEM} on memory exhaustion.
If @var{argv} is null, return the size needed to store all the possible
values, which is always less than @code{YYNTOKENS}.
@end deftypefun
@node Lexical
@section The Lexical Analyzer Function @code{yylex}
@findex yylex
@cindex lexical analyzer
The @dfn{lexical analyzer} function, @code{yylex}, recognizes tokens from
the input stream and returns them to the parser. Bison does not create
this function automatically; you must write it so that @code{yyparse} can
call it. The function is sometimes referred to as a lexical scanner.
In simple programs, @code{yylex} is often defined at the end of the Bison
grammar file. If @code{yylex} is defined in a separate source file, you
need to arrange for the token-kind definitions to be available there. To do
this, use the @option{-d} option when you run Bison, so that it will write
these definitions into the separate parser header file,
@file{@var{name}.tab.h}, which you can include in the other source files
that need it. @xref{Invocation}.
@menu
* Calling Convention:: How @code{yyparse} calls @code{yylex}.
* Special Tokens:: Signaling end-of-file and errors to the parser.
* Tokens from Literals:: Finding token kinds from string aliases.
* Token Values:: How @code{yylex} must return the semantic value
of the token it has read.
* Token Locations:: How @code{yylex} must return the text location
(line number, etc.) of the token, if the
actions want that.
* Pure Calling:: How the calling convention differs in a pure parser
(@pxref{Pure Decl}).
@end menu
@node Calling Convention
@subsection Calling Convention for @code{yylex}
The value that @code{yylex} returns must be the positive numeric code for
the kind of token it has just found; a zero or negative value signifies
end-of-input.
When a token kind is referred to in the grammar rules by a name, that name
in the parser implementation file becomes an enumerator of the enum
@code{yytoken_kind_t} whose definition is the proper numeric code for that
token kind. So @code{yylex} should use the name to indicate that type.
@xref{Symbols}.
When a token is referred to in the grammar rules by a character literal, the
numeric code for that character is also the code for the token kind. So
@code{yylex} can simply return that character code, possibly converted to
@code{unsigned char} to avoid sign-extension. The null character must not
be used this way, because its code is zero and that signifies end-of-input.
A simple program might use the following declaration:
@example
%code provides @{
int yylex (void);
@}
@end example
@noindent
and the following definition, either in the grammar file itself or in some
other module that has @code{#include "y.tab.h"}:
@example
#include <stdio.h>
int
yylex (void)
@{
for (;;)
@{
int c = getchar ();
if (c == EOF)
return YYEOF; /* Report end-of-input. */
if (c == '+' || c == '-')
return c; /* Assume token kind for '+' is '+'. */
if ('0' <= c && c <= '9')
@{
yylval = c - '0';
while ('0' <= (c = getchar ()) && c <= '9')
yylval = yylval * 10 + (c - '0');
ungetc (c, stdin);
return INT; /* Return the kind of the token. */
@}
@dots{}
@}
@}
@end example
@noindent
This interface has been designed so that the output from the @code{lex}
utility can be used without change as the definition of @code{yylex}.
@node Special Tokens
@subsection Special Tokens
In addition to the user defined tokens, Bison generates a few special tokens
that @code{yylex} may return.
@findex YYEOF
The @code{YYEOF} token denotes the end of file, and signals to the parser
that there is nothing left afterwards. @xref{Calling Convention}, for an
example.
@findex YYUNDEF
Returning @code{YYUNDEF} tells the parser that some lexical error was found.
It will emit an error message about an ``invalid token'', and enter
error-recovery (@pxref{Error Recovery}). Returning an unknown token kind
results in the exact same behavior.
@findex YYerror
Returning @code{YYerror} requires the parser to enter error-recovery
@emph{without} emitting an error message. This way the lexical analyzer can
produce an accurate error messages about the invalid input (something the
parser cannot do), and yet benefit from the error-recovery features of the
parser.
@example
int
yylex (void)
@{
@dots{}
switch (c)
@{
@dots{}
case '0': case '1': case '2': case '3': case '4':
case '5': case '6': case '7': case '8': case '9':
@dots{}
return TOK_NUM;
@dots{}
case EOF:
return YYEOF;
default:
yyerror ("syntax error: invalid character: %c", c);
return YYerror;
@}
@}
@end example
@node Tokens from Literals
@subsection Finding Tokens by String Literals
If the grammar uses literal string tokens, there are two ways that
@code{yylex} can determine the token kind codes for them:
@itemize @bullet
@item
If the grammar defines symbolic token names as aliases for the literal
string tokens, @code{yylex} can use these symbolic names like all others.
In this case, the use of the literal string tokens in the grammar file has
no effect on @code{yylex}.
This is the preferred approach.
@item
@code{yylex} can search for the multicharacter token in the @code{yytname}
table. This method is discouraged: the primary purpose of string aliases is
forging good error messages, not describing the spelling of keywords. In
addition, looking for the token kind at runtime incurs a (small but
noticeable) cost.
The @code{yytname} table is generated only if you use the
@code{%token-table} declaration. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@end itemize
@node Token Values
@subsection Semantic Values of Tokens
@vindex yylval
In an ordinary (nonreentrant) parser, the semantic value of the token must
be stored into the global variable @code{yylval}. When you are using just
one data type for semantic values, @code{yylval} has that type. Thus, if
the type is @code{int} (the default), you might write this in @code{yylex}:
@example
@group
@dots{}
yylval = value; /* Put value onto Bison stack. */
return INT; /* Return the kind of the token. */
@dots{}
@end group
@end example
When you are using multiple data types, @code{yylval}'s type is a union made
from the @code{%union} declaration (@pxref{Union Decl}). So when you store
a token's value, you must use the proper member of the union. If the
@code{%union} declaration looks like this:
@example
@group
%union @{
int intval;
double val;
symrec *tptr;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
then the code in @code{yylex} might look like this:
@example
@group
@dots{}
yylval.intval = value; /* Put value onto Bison stack. */
return INT; /* Return the kind of the token. */
@dots{}
@end group
@end example
@node Token Locations
@subsection Textual Locations of Tokens
@vindex yylloc
If you are using the @samp{@@@var{n}}-feature (@pxref{Tracking Locations})
in actions to keep track of the textual locations of tokens and groupings,
then you must provide this information in @code{yylex}. The function
@code{yyparse} expects to find the textual location of a token just parsed
in the global variable @code{yylloc}. So @code{yylex} must store the proper
data in that variable.
By default, the value of @code{yylloc} is a structure and you need only
initialize the members that are going to be used by the actions. The
four members are called @code{first_line}, @code{first_column},
@code{last_line} and @code{last_column}. Note that the use of this
feature makes the parser noticeably slower.
@tindex YYLTYPE
The data type of @code{yylloc} has the name @code{YYLTYPE}.
@node Pure Calling
@subsection Calling Conventions for Pure Parsers
When you use the Bison declaration @code{%define api.pure full} to request a
pure, reentrant parser, the global communication variables @code{yylval} and
@code{yylloc} cannot be used. (@xref{Pure Decl}.) In such parsers the two
global variables are replaced by pointers passed as arguments to
@code{yylex}. You must declare them as shown here, and pass the information
back by storing it through those pointers.
@example
int
yylex (YYSTYPE *lvalp, YYLTYPE *llocp)
@{
@dots{}
*lvalp = value; /* Put value onto Bison stack. */
return INT; /* Return the kind of the token. */
@dots{}
@}
@end example
If the grammar file does not use the @samp{@@} constructs to refer to
textual locations, then the type @code{YYLTYPE} will not be defined. In
this case, omit the second argument; @code{yylex} will be called with
only one argument.
If you wish to pass additional arguments to @code{yylex}, use
@code{%lex-param} just like @code{%parse-param} (@pxref{Parser
Function}). To pass additional arguments to both @code{yylex} and
@code{yyparse}, use @code{%param}.
@deffn {Directive} %lex-param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
@findex %lex-param
Specify that @var{argument-declaration} are additional @code{yylex} argument
declarations. You may pass one or more such declarations, which is
equivalent to repeating @code{%lex-param}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
@findex %param
Specify that @var{argument-declaration} are additional
@code{yylex}/@code{yyparse} argument declaration. This is equivalent to
@samp{%lex-param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{} %parse-param
@{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}}. You may pass one or more
declarations, which is equivalent to repeating @code{%param}.
@end deffn
@noindent
For instance:
@example
%lex-param @{scanner_mode *mode@}
%parse-param @{parser_mode *mode@}
%param @{environment_type *env@}
@end example
@noindent
results in the following signatures:
@example
int yylex (scanner_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
int yyparse (parser_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
@end example
If @samp{%define api.pure full} is added:
@example
int yylex (YYSTYPE *lvalp, scanner_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
int yyparse (parser_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
@end example
@noindent
and finally, if both @samp{%define api.pure full} and @code{%locations} are
used:
@example
int yylex (YYSTYPE *lvalp, YYLTYPE *llocp,
scanner_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
int yyparse (parser_mode *mode, environment_type *env);
@end example
@node Error Reporting
@section Error Reporting
During its execution the parser may have error messages to pass to the user,
such as syntax error, or memory exhaustion. How this message is delivered
to the user must be specified by the developer.
@menu
* Error Reporting Function:: You must supply a @code{yyerror} function.
* Syntax Error Reporting Function:: You can supply a @code{yyreport_syntax_error} function.
@end menu
@node Error Reporting Function
@subsection The Error Reporting Function @code{yyerror}
@cindex error reporting function
@findex yyerror
@cindex parse error
@cindex syntax error
The Bison parser detects a @dfn{syntax error} (or @dfn{parse error})
whenever it reads a token which cannot satisfy any syntax rule. An
action in the grammar can also explicitly proclaim an error, using the
macro @code{YYERROR} (@pxref{Action Features}).
The Bison parser expects to report the error by calling an error
reporting function named @code{yyerror}, which you must supply. It is
called by @code{yyparse} whenever a syntax error is found, and it
receives one argument. For a syntax error, the string is normally
@w{@code{"syntax error"}}.
@findex %define parse.error detailed
@findex %define parse.error verbose
If you invoke @samp{%define parse.error detailed} (or @samp{custom}) in the
Bison declarations section (@pxref{Bison Declarations}), then Bison provides
a more verbose and specific error message string instead of just plain
@w{@code{"syntax error"}}. However, that message sometimes contains
incorrect information if LAC is not enabled (@pxref{LAC}).
The parser can detect one other kind of error: memory exhaustion. This
can happen when the input contains constructions that are very deeply
nested. It isn't likely you will encounter this, since the Bison
parser normally extends its stack automatically up to a very large limit. But
if memory is exhausted, @code{yyparse} calls @code{yyerror} in the usual
fashion, except that the argument string is @w{@code{"memory exhausted"}}.
In some cases diagnostics like @w{@code{"syntax error"}} are
translated automatically from English to some other language before
they are passed to @code{yyerror}. @xref{Internationalization}.
A simple program might use the following declaration:
@example
%code provides @{
void yyerror (char const *);
@}
@end example
@noindent
and the following definition, either in the grammar file itself or in some
other module that has @code{#include "y.tab.h"}:
@example
@group
#include <stdio.h>
void
yyerror (char const *s)
@{
@end group
@group
fprintf (stderr, "%s\n", s);
@}
@end group
@end example
After @code{yyerror} returns to @code{yyparse}, the latter will attempt
error recovery if you have written suitable error recovery grammar rules
(@pxref{Error Recovery}). If recovery is impossible, @code{yyparse} will
immediately return 1.
Obviously, in location tracking pure parsers, @code{yyerror} should have
an access to the current location. With @code{%define api.pure}, this is
indeed the case for the GLR parsers, but not for the Yacc parser, for
historical reasons, and this is the why @code{%define api.pure full} should be
preferred over @code{%define api.pure}.
When @code{%locations %define api.pure full} is used, @code{yyerror} has the
following signature:
@example
void yyerror (YYLTYPE *locp, char const *msg);
@end example
@noindent
The prototypes are only indications of how the code produced by Bison
uses @code{yyerror}. Bison-generated code always ignores the returned
value, so @code{yyerror} can return any type, including @code{void}.
Also, @code{yyerror} can be a variadic function; that is why the
message is always passed last.
Traditionally @code{yyerror} returns an @code{int} that is always
ignored, but this is purely for historical reasons, and @code{void} is
preferable since it more accurately describes the return type for
@code{yyerror}.
@vindex yynerrs
The variable @code{yynerrs} contains the number of syntax errors
reported so far. Normally this variable is global; but if you
request a pure parser (@pxref{Pure Decl})
then it is a local variable which only the actions can access.
@node Syntax Error Reporting Function
@subsection The Syntax Error Reporting Function @code{yyreport_syntax_error}
@findex %define parse.error custom
If you invoke @samp{%define parse.error custom} (@pxref{Bison
Declarations}), then the parser no longer passes syntax error messages to
@code{yyerror}, rather it delegates that task to the user by calling the
@code{yyreport_syntax_error} function.
The following functions and types are ``@code{static}'': they are defined in
the implementation file (@file{*.c}) and available only from there. They
are meant to be used from the grammar's epilogue.
@deftypefun {static int} yyreport_syntax_error (@code{const yypcontext_t *}@var{ctx})
Report a syntax error to the user. Return 0 on success, @code{YYENOMEM} on
memory exhaustion. Whether it uses @code{yyerror} is up to the user.
@end deftypefun
Use the following types and functions to build the error message.
@deffn {Type} yypcontext_t
An opaque type that captures the circumstances of the syntax error.
@end deffn
@deffn {Type} yysymbol_kind_t
An enum of all the grammar symbols, tokens and nonterminals. Its
enumerators are forged from the symbol names:
@example
enum yysymbol_kind_t
@{
YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY = -2, /* No symbol. */
YYSYMBOL_YYEOF = 0, /* "end of file" */
YYSYMBOL_YYerror = 1, /* error */
YYSYMBOL_YYUNDEF = 2, /* "invalid token" */
YYSYMBOL_PLUS = 3, /* "+" */
YYSYMBOL_MINUS = 4, /* "-" */
[...]
YYSYMBOL_VAR = 14, /* "variable" */
YYSYMBOL_NEG = 15, /* NEG */
YYSYMBOL_YYACCEPT = 16, /* $accept */
YYSYMBOL_exp = 17, /* exp */
YYSYMBOL_input = 18 /* input */
@};
typedef enum yysymbol_kind_t yysymbol_kind_t;
@end example
@end deffn
@deftypefun {static yysymbol_kind_t} yypcontext_token (@code{const yypcontext_t *}@var{ctx})
The ``unexpected'' token: the symbol kind of the lookahead token that caused
the syntax error. Returns @code{YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY} if there is no lookahead.
@end deftypefun
@deftypefun {static YYLTYPE *} yypcontext_location (@code{const yypcontext_t *}@var{ctx})
The location of the syntax error (that of the unexpected token).
@end deftypefun
@deftypefun {static int} yypcontext_expected_tokens (@code{const yypcontext_t *}ctx, @code{yysymbol_kind_t} @var{argv}@code{[]}, @code{int} @var{argc})
Fill @var{argv} with the expected tokens, which never includes
@code{YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY}, @code{YYSYMBOL_YYerror}, or
@code{YYSYMBOL_YYUNDEF}.
Never put more than @var{argc} elements into @var{argv}, and on success
return the number of tokens stored in @var{argv}. If there are more
expected tokens than @var{argc}, fill @var{argv} up to @var{argc} and return
0. If there are no expected tokens, also return 0, but set @code{argv[0]}
to @code{YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY}.
When LAC is enabled, may return a negative number on errors,
such as @code{YYENOMEM} on memory exhaustion.
If @var{argv} is null, return the size needed to store all the possible
values, which is always less than @code{YYNTOKENS}.
@end deftypefun
@deftypefun {static const char *} yysymbol_name (@code{symbol_kind_t} @var{symbol})
The name of the symbol whose kind is @var{symbol}, possibly translated.
@end deftypefun
A custom syntax error function looks as follows. This implementation is
inappropriate for internationalization, see the @file{c/bistromathic}
example for a better alternative.
@example
static int
yyreport_syntax_error (const yypcontext_t *ctx)
@{
int res = 0;
YYLOCATION_PRINT (stderr, *yypcontext_location (ctx));
fprintf (stderr, ": syntax error");
// Report the tokens expected at this point.
@{
enum @{ TOKENMAX = 5 @};
yysymbol_kind_t expected[TOKENMAX];
int n = yypcontext_expected_tokens (ctx, expected, TOKENMAX);
if (n < 0)
// Forward errors to yyparse.
res = n;
else
for (int i = 0; i < n; ++i)
fprintf (stderr, "%s %s",
i == 0 ? ": expected" : " or", yysymbol_name (expected[i]));
@}
// Report the unexpected token.
@{
yysymbol_kind_t lookahead = yypcontext_token (ctx);
if (lookahead != YYSYMBOL_YYEMPTY)
fprintf (stderr, " before %s", yysymbol_name (lookahead));
@}
fprintf (stderr, "\n");
return res;
@}
@end example
You still must provide a @code{yyerror} function, used for instance to
report memory exhaustion.
@node Action Features
@section Special Features for Use in Actions
@cindex summary, action features
@cindex action features summary
Here is a table of Bison constructs, variables and macros that are useful in
actions.
@deffn {Variable} $$
Acts like a variable that contains the semantic value for the
grouping made by the current rule. @xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $@var{n}
Acts like a variable that contains the semantic value for the
@var{n}th component of the current rule. @xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $<@var{typealt}>$
Like @code{$$} but specifies alternative @var{typealt} in the union
specified by the @code{%union} declaration. @xref{Action Types}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $<@var{typealt}>@var{n}
Like @code{$@var{n}} but specifies alternative @var{typealt} in the
union specified by the @code{%union} declaration.
@xref{Action Types}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYABORT @code{;}
Return immediately from @code{yyparse}, indicating failure.
@xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYACCEPT @code{;}
Return immediately from @code{yyparse}, indicating success.
@xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYBACKUP (@var{token}, @var{value})@code{;}
@findex YYBACKUP
Unshift a token. This macro is allowed only for rules that reduce
a single value, and only when there is no lookahead token.
It is also disallowed in GLR parsers.
It installs a lookahead token with token kind @var{token} and
semantic value @var{value}; then it discards the value that was
going to be reduced by this rule.
If the macro is used when it is not valid, such as when there is
a lookahead token already, then it reports a syntax error with
a message @samp{cannot back up} and performs ordinary error
recovery.
In either case, the rest of the action is not executed.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} YYEMPTY
Value stored in @code{yychar} when there is no lookahead token.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} YYEOF
Value stored in @code{yychar} when the lookahead is the end of the input
stream.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYERROR @code{;}
Cause an immediate syntax error. This statement initiates error
recovery just as if the parser itself had detected an error; however, it
does not call @code{yyerror}, and does not print any message. If you
want to print an error message, call @code{yyerror} explicitly before
the @samp{YYERROR;} statement. @xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYNOMEM @code{;}
Return immediately from @code{yyparse}, indicating memory exhaustion.
@xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYRECOVERING
@findex YYRECOVERING
The expression @code{YYRECOVERING ()} yields 1 when the parser
is recovering from a syntax error, and 0 otherwise.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yychar
Variable containing either the lookahead token, or @code{YYEOF} when the
lookahead is the end of the input stream, or @code{YYEMPTY} when no lookahead
has been performed so the next token is not yet known.
Do not modify @code{yychar} in a deferred semantic action (@pxref{GLR Semantic
Actions}).
@xref{Lookahead}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} yyclearin @code{;}
Discard the current lookahead token. This is useful primarily in
error rules.
Do not invoke @code{yyclearin} in a deferred semantic action (@pxref{GLR
Semantic Actions}).
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} yyerrok @code{;}
Resume generating error messages immediately for subsequent syntax
errors. This is useful primarily in error rules.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yylloc
Variable containing the lookahead token location when @code{yychar} is not set
to @code{YYEMPTY} or @code{YYEOF}.
Do not modify @code{yylloc} in a deferred semantic action (@pxref{GLR Semantic
Actions}).
@xref{Actions and Locations}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yylval
Variable containing the lookahead token semantic value when @code{yychar} is
not set to @code{YYEMPTY} or @code{YYEOF}.
Do not modify @code{yylval} in a deferred semantic action (@pxref{GLR Semantic
Actions}).
@xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} @@$
Acts like a structure variable containing information on the textual
location of the grouping made by the current rule. @xref{Tracking
Locations}.
@c Check if those paragraphs are still useful or not.
@c @example
@c struct @{
@c int first_line, last_line;
@c int first_column, last_column;
@c @};
@c @end example
@c Thus, to get the starting line number of the third component, you would
@c use @samp{@@3.first_line}.
@c In order for the members of this structure to contain valid information,
@c you must make @code{yylex} supply this information about each token.
@c If you need only certain members, then @code{yylex} need only fill in
@c those members.
@c The use of this feature makes the parser noticeably slower.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} @@@var{n}
@findex @@@var{n}
Acts like a structure variable containing information on the textual
location of the @var{n}th component of the current rule. @xref{Tracking
Locations}.
@end deffn
@node Internationalization
@section Parser Internationalization
@cindex internationalization
@cindex i18n
@cindex NLS
@cindex gettext
@cindex bison-po
A Bison-generated parser can print diagnostics, including error and
tracing messages. By default, they appear in English. However, Bison
also supports outputting diagnostics in the user's native language. To
make this work, the user should set the usual environment variables.
@xref{Users, , The User's View, gettext, GNU @code{gettext} utilities}.
For example, the shell command @samp{export LC_ALL=fr_CA.UTF-8} might
set the user's locale to French Canadian using the UTF-8
encoding. The exact set of available locales depends on the user's
installation.
@menu
* Enabling I18n:: Preparing your project to support internationalization.
* Token I18n:: Preparing tokens for internationalization in error messages.
@end menu
@node Enabling I18n
@subsection Enabling Internationalization
The maintainer of a package that uses a Bison-generated parser enables
the internationalization of the parser's output through the following
steps. Here we assume a package that uses GNU Autoconf and
GNU Automake.
@enumerate
@item
@cindex bison-i18n.m4
Into the directory containing the GNU Autoconf macros used
by the package ---often called @file{m4}--- copy the
@file{bison-i18n.m4} file installed by Bison under
@samp{share/aclocal/bison-i18n.m4} in Bison's installation directory.
For example:
@example
cp /usr/local/share/aclocal/bison-i18n.m4 m4/bison-i18n.m4
@end example
@item
@findex BISON_I18N
@vindex BISON_LOCALEDIR
@vindex YYENABLE_NLS
In the top-level @file{configure.ac}, after the @code{AM_GNU_GETTEXT}
invocation, add an invocation of @code{BISON_I18N}. This macro is
defined in the file @file{bison-i18n.m4} that you copied earlier. It
causes @code{configure} to find the value of the
@code{BISON_LOCALEDIR} variable, and it defines the source-language
symbol @code{YYENABLE_NLS} to enable translations in the
Bison-generated parser.
@item
In the @code{main} function of your program, designate the directory
containing Bison's runtime message catalog, through a call to
@samp{bindtextdomain} with domain name @samp{bison-runtime}.
For example:
@example
bindtextdomain ("bison-runtime", BISON_LOCALEDIR);
@end example
Typically this appears after any other call @code{bindtextdomain
(PACKAGE, LOCALEDIR)} that your package already has. Here we rely on
@samp{BISON_LOCALEDIR} to be defined as a string through the
@file{Makefile}.
@item
In the @file{Makefile.am} that controls the compilation of the @code{main}
function, make @samp{BISON_LOCALEDIR} available as a C preprocessor macro,
either in @samp{DEFS} or in @samp{AM_CPPFLAGS}. For example:
@example
DEFS = @@DEFS@@ -DBISON_LOCALEDIR='"$(BISON_LOCALEDIR)"'
@end example
or:
@example
AM_CPPFLAGS = -DBISON_LOCALEDIR='"$(BISON_LOCALEDIR)"'
@end example
@item
Finally, invoke the command @command{autoreconf} to generate the build
infrastructure.
@end enumerate
@node Token I18n
@subsection Token Internationalization
When the @code{%define} variable @code{parse.error} is set to @code{custom}
or @code{detailed}, token aliases can be internationalized:
@example
%token
'\n' _("end of line")
<double>
NUM _("number")
<symrec*>
FUN _("function")
VAR _("variable")
@end example
The remainder of the grammar may freely use either the token symbol
(@code{FUN}) or its alias (@code{"function"}), but not with the
internationalization marker (@code{_("function")}).
If at least one token alias is internationalized, then the generated parser
will use both @code{N_} and @code{_}, that must be defined
(@pxref{Programmers, , The Programmer’s View, gettext, GNU @code{gettext}
utilities}). They are used only on string aliases marked for translation.
In other words, even if your catalog features a translation for
``function'', then with
@example
%token
<symrec*>
FUN "function"
VAR _("variable")
@end example
@noindent
``function'' will appear untranslated in debug traces and error messages.
Unless defined by the user, the end-of-file token, @code{YYEOF}, is provided
``end of file'' as an alias. It is also internationalized if the user
internationalized tokens. To map it to another string, use:
@example
%token END 0 _("end of input")
@end example
@node Algorithm
@chapter The Bison Parser Algorithm
@cindex Bison parser algorithm
@cindex algorithm of parser
@cindex shifting
@cindex reduction
@cindex parser stack
@cindex stack, parser
As Bison reads tokens, it pushes them onto a stack along with their
semantic values. The stack is called the @dfn{parser stack}. Pushing a
token is traditionally called @dfn{shifting}.
For example, suppose the infix calculator has read @samp{1 + 5 *}, with a
@samp{3} to come. The stack will have four elements, one for each token
that was shifted.
But the stack does not always have an element for each token read. When
the last @var{n} tokens and groupings shifted match the components of a
grammar rule, they can be combined according to that rule. This is called
@dfn{reduction}. Those tokens and groupings are replaced on the stack by a
single grouping whose symbol is the result (left hand side) of that rule.
Running the rule's action is part of the process of reduction, because this
is what computes the semantic value of the resulting grouping.
For example, if the infix calculator's parser stack contains this:
@example
1 + 5 * 3
@end example
@noindent
and the next input token is a newline character, then the last three
elements can be reduced to 15 via the rule:
@example
expr: expr '*' expr;
@end example
@noindent
Then the stack contains just these three elements:
@example
1 + 15
@end example
@noindent
At this point, another reduction can be made, resulting in the single value
16. Then the newline token can be shifted.
The parser tries, by shifts and reductions, to reduce the entire input down
to a single grouping whose symbol is the grammar's start-symbol
(@pxref{Language and Grammar}).
This kind of parser is known in the literature as a bottom-up parser.
@menu
* Lookahead:: Parser looks one token ahead when deciding what to do.
* Shift/Reduce:: Conflicts: when either shifting or reduction is valid.
* Precedence:: Operator precedence works by resolving conflicts.
* Contextual Precedence:: When an operator's precedence depends on context.
* Parser States:: The parser is a finite-state-machine with stack.
* Reduce/Reduce:: When two rules are applicable in the same situation.
* Mysterious Conflicts:: Conflicts that look unjustified.
* Tuning LR:: How to tune fundamental aspects of LR-based parsing.
* Generalized LR Parsing:: Parsing arbitrary context-free grammars.
* Memory Management:: What happens when memory is exhausted. How to avoid it.
@end menu
@node Lookahead
@section Lookahead Tokens
@cindex lookahead token
The Bison parser does @emph{not} always reduce immediately as soon as the
last @var{n} tokens and groupings match a rule. This is because such a
simple strategy is inadequate to handle most languages. Instead, when a
reduction is possible, the parser sometimes ``looks ahead'' at the next
token in order to decide what to do.
When a token is read, it is not immediately shifted; first it becomes the
@dfn{lookahead token}, which is not on the stack. Now the parser can
perform one or more reductions of tokens and groupings on the stack, while
the lookahead token remains off to the side. When no more reductions
should take place, the lookahead token is shifted onto the stack. This
does not mean that all possible reductions have been done; depending on the
token kind of the lookahead token, some rules may choose to delay their
application.
Here is a simple case where lookahead is needed. These three rules define
expressions which contain binary addition operators and postfix unary
factorial operators (@samp{!}), and allow parentheses for grouping.
@example
@group
expr:
term '+' expr
| term
;
@end group
@group
term:
'(' expr ')'
| term '!'
| "number"
;
@end group
@end example
Suppose that the tokens @w{@samp{1 + 2}} have been read and shifted; what
should be done? If the following token is @samp{)}, then the first three
tokens must be reduced to form an @code{expr}. This is the only valid
course, because shifting the @samp{)} would produce a sequence of symbols
@w{@code{term ')'}}, and no rule allows this.
If the following token is @samp{!}, then it must be shifted immediately so
that @w{@samp{2 !}} can be reduced to make a @code{term}. If instead the
parser were to reduce before shifting, @w{@samp{1 + 2}} would become an
@code{expr}. It would then be impossible to shift the @samp{!} because
doing so would produce on the stack the sequence of symbols @code{expr
'!'}. No rule allows that sequence.
@vindex yychar
@vindex yylval
@vindex yylloc
The lookahead token is stored in the variable @code{yychar}. Its semantic
value and location, if any, are stored in the variables @code{yylval} and
@code{yylloc}. @xref{Action Features}.
@node Shift/Reduce
@section Shift/Reduce Conflicts
@cindex conflicts
@cindex shift/reduce conflicts
@cindex dangling @code{else}
@cindex @code{else}, dangling
Suppose we are parsing a language which has if-then and if-then-else
statements, with a pair of rules like this:
@example
@group
if_stmt:
"if" expr "then" stmt
| "if" expr "then" stmt "else" stmt
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Here @code{"if"}, @code{"then"} and @code{"else"} are terminal symbols for
specific keyword tokens.
When the @code{"else"} token is read and becomes the lookahead token, the
contents of the stack (assuming the input is valid) are just right for
reduction by the first rule. But it is also legitimate to shift the
@code{"else"}, because that would lead to eventual reduction by the second
rule.
This situation, where either a shift or a reduction would be valid, is
called a @dfn{shift/reduce conflict}. Bison is designed to resolve
these conflicts by choosing to shift, unless otherwise directed by
operator precedence declarations. To see the reason for this, let's
contrast it with the other alternative.
Since the parser prefers to shift the @code{"else"}, the result is to attach
the else-clause to the innermost if-statement, making these two inputs
equivalent:
@example
if x then if y then win; else lose;
if x then do; if y then win; else lose; end;
@end example
But if the parser chose to reduce when possible rather than shift, the
result would be to attach the else-clause to the outermost if-statement,
making these two inputs equivalent:
@example
if x then if y then win; else lose;
if x then do; if y then win; end; else lose;
@end example
The conflict exists because the grammar as written is ambiguous: either
parsing of the simple nested if-statement is legitimate. The established
convention is that these ambiguities are resolved by attaching the
else-clause to the innermost if-statement; this is what Bison accomplishes
by choosing to shift rather than reduce. (It would ideally be cleaner to
write an unambiguous grammar, but that is very hard to do in this case.)
This particular ambiguity was first encountered in the specifications of
Algol 60 and is called the ``dangling @code{else}'' ambiguity.
To assist the grammar author in understanding the nature of each conflict,
Bison can be asked to generate ``counterexamples''. In the present case it
actually even proves that the grammar is ambiguous by exhibiting a string
with two different parses:
@macro danglingElseCex
@group
@ifnottex
Example: @yellow{"if" expr "then"} @blue{"if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @blue{"else" stmt}
Shift derivation
@yellow{if_stmt}
@yellow{↳ 3: "if" expr "then"} @green{stmt}
@green{↳ 2:} @blue{if_stmt}
@blue{↳ 4: "if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @blue{"else" stmt}
Example: @yellow{"if" expr "then"} @blue{"if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @yellow{"else" stmt}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{if_stmt}
@yellow{↳ 4: "if" expr "then"} @green{stmt} @yellow{"else" stmt}
@green{↳ 2:} @blue{if_stmt}
@blue{↳ 3: "if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•}
@end ifnottex
@iftex
Example: @yellow{"if" expr "then"} @blue{"if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @blue{"else" stmt}
Shift derivation
@yellow{if_stmt}
@yellow{@arrow{} 3: "if" expr "then"} @green{stmt}
@green{@arrow{} 2:} @blue{if_stmt}
@blue{@arrow{} 4: "if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @blue{"else" stmt}
Example: @yellow{"if" expr "then"} @blue{"if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•} @yellow{"else" stmt}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{if_stmt}
@yellow{@arrow{} 4: "if" expr "then"} @green{stmt} @yellow{"else" stmt}
@green{@arrow{} 2:} @blue{if_stmt}
@blue{@arrow{} 3: "if" expr "then" stmt} @red{•}
@end iftex
@end group
@end macro
@example
@danglingElseCex
@end example
@noindent
@xref{Counterexamples}, for more details.
@sp 1
To avoid warnings from Bison about predictable, @emph{legitimate} shift/reduce
conflicts, you can use the @code{%expect @var{n}} declaration.
There will be no warning as long as the number of shift/reduce conflicts
is exactly @var{n}, and Bison will report an error if there is a
different number.
@xref{Expect Decl}. However, we don't
recommend the use of @code{%expect} (except @samp{%expect 0}!), as an equal
number of conflicts does not mean that they are the @emph{same}. When
possible, you should rather use precedence directives to @emph{fix} the
conflicts explicitly (@pxref{Non Operators}).
The definition of @code{if_stmt} above is solely to blame for the
conflict, but the conflict does not actually appear without additional
rules. Here is a complete Bison grammar file that actually manifests
the conflict:
@example
%%
@group
stmt:
expr
| if_stmt
;
@end group
@group
if_stmt:
"if" expr "then" stmt
| "if" expr "then" stmt "else" stmt
;
@end group
expr:
"identifier"
;
@end example
@node Precedence
@section Operator Precedence
@cindex operator precedence
@cindex precedence of operators
Another situation where shift/reduce conflicts appear is in arithmetic
expressions. Here shifting is not always the preferred resolution; the
Bison declarations for operator precedence allow you to specify when to
shift and when to reduce.
@menu
* Why Precedence:: An example showing why precedence is needed.
* Using Precedence:: How to specify precedence and associativity.
* Precedence Only:: How to specify precedence only.
* Precedence Examples:: How these features are used in the previous example.
* How Precedence:: How they work.
* Non Operators:: Using precedence for general conflicts.
@end menu
@node Why Precedence
@subsection When Precedence is Needed
Consider the following ambiguous grammar fragment (ambiguous because the
input @w{@samp{1 - 2 * 3}} can be parsed in two different ways):
@example
@group
expr:
expr '-' expr
| expr '*' expr
| expr '<' expr
| '(' expr ')'
@dots{}
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Suppose the parser has seen the tokens @samp{1}, @samp{-} and @samp{2};
should it reduce them via the rule for the subtraction operator? It
depends on the next token. Of course, if the next token is @samp{)}, we
must reduce; shifting is invalid because no single rule can reduce the
token sequence @w{@samp{- 2 )}} or anything starting with that. But if
the next token is @samp{*} or @samp{<}, we have a choice: either
shifting or reduction would allow the parse to complete, but with
different results.
To decide which one Bison should do, we must consider the results. If
the next operator token @var{op} is shifted, then it must be reduced
first in order to permit another opportunity to reduce the difference.
The result is (in effect) @w{@samp{1 - (2 @var{op} 3)}}. On the other
hand, if the subtraction is reduced before shifting @var{op}, the result
is @w{@samp{(1 - 2) @var{op} 3}}. Clearly, then, the choice of shift or
reduce should depend on the relative precedence of the operators
@samp{-} and @var{op}: @samp{*} should be shifted first, but not
@samp{<}.
@cindex associativity
What about input such as @w{@samp{1 - 2 - 5}}; should this be
@w{@samp{(1 - 2) - 5}} or should it be @w{@samp{1 - (2 - 5)}}? For most
operators we prefer the former, which is called @dfn{left association}.
The latter alternative, @dfn{right association}, is desirable for
assignment operators. The choice of left or right association is a
matter of whether the parser chooses to shift or reduce when the stack
contains @w{@samp{1 - 2}} and the lookahead token is @samp{-}: shifting
makes right-associativity.
@node Using Precedence
@subsection Specifying Operator Precedence
@findex %left
@findex %nonassoc
@findex %precedence
@findex %right
Bison allows you to specify these choices with the operator precedence
declarations @code{%left} and @code{%right}. Each such declaration
contains a list of tokens, which are operators whose precedence and
associativity is being declared. The @code{%left} declaration makes all
those operators left-associative and the @code{%right} declaration makes
them right-associative. A third alternative is @code{%nonassoc}, which
declares that it is a syntax error to find the same operator twice ``in a
row''.
The last alternative, @code{%precedence}, allows to define only
precedence and no associativity at all. As a result, any
associativity-related conflict that remains will be reported as an
compile-time error. The directive @code{%nonassoc} creates run-time
error: using the operator in a associative way is a syntax error. The
directive @code{%precedence} creates compile-time errors: an operator
@emph{can} be involved in an associativity-related conflict, contrary to
what expected the grammar author.
The relative precedence of different operators is controlled by the
order in which they are declared. The first precedence/associativity
declaration in the file declares the operators whose
precedence is lowest, the next such declaration declares the operators
whose precedence is a little higher, and so on.
@node Precedence Only
@subsection Specifying Precedence Only
@findex %precedence
Since POSIX Yacc defines only @code{%left}, @code{%right}, and
@code{%nonassoc}, which all defines precedence and associativity, little
attention is paid to the fact that precedence cannot be defined without
defining associativity. Yet, sometimes, when trying to solve a
conflict, precedence suffices. In such a case, using @code{%left},
@code{%right}, or @code{%nonassoc} might hide future (associativity
related) conflicts that would remain hidden.
The dangling @code{else} ambiguity (@pxref{Shift/Reduce}) can be solved
explicitly. This shift/reduce conflicts occurs in the following situation,
where the period denotes the current parsing state:
@example
if @var{e1} then if @var{e2} then @var{s1} • else @var{s2}
@end example
The conflict involves the reduction of the rule @samp{IF expr THEN
stmt}, which precedence is by default that of its last token
(@code{THEN}), and the shifting of the token @code{ELSE}. The usual
disambiguation (attach the @code{else} to the closest @code{if}),
shifting must be preferred, i.e., the precedence of @code{ELSE} must be
higher than that of @code{THEN}. But neither is expected to be involved
in an associativity related conflict, which can be specified as follows.
@example
%precedence THEN
%precedence ELSE
@end example
The unary-minus is another typical example where associativity is usually
over-specified, see @ref{Infix Calc}. The @code{%left} directive is
traditionally used to declare the precedence of @code{NEG}, which is more
than needed since it also defines its associativity. While this is harmless
in the traditional example, who knows how @code{NEG} might be used in future
evolutions of the grammar@dots{}
@node Precedence Examples
@subsection Precedence Examples
In our example, we would want the following declarations:
@example
%left '<'
%left '-'
%left '*'
@end example
In a more complete example, which supports other operators as well, we
would declare them in groups of equal precedence. For example, @code{'+'} is
declared with @code{'-'}:
@example
%left '<' '>' '=' "!=" "<=" ">="
%left '+' '-'
%left '*' '/'
@end example
@node How Precedence
@subsection How Precedence Works
The first effect of the precedence declarations is to assign precedence
levels to the terminal symbols declared. The second effect is to assign
precedence levels to certain rules: each rule gets its precedence from
the last terminal symbol mentioned in the components. (You can also
specify explicitly the precedence of a rule. @xref{Contextual
Precedence}.)
Finally, the resolution of conflicts works by comparing the precedence
of the rule being considered with that of the lookahead token. If the
token's precedence is higher, the choice is to shift. If the rule's
precedence is higher, the choice is to reduce. If they have equal
precedence, the choice is made based on the associativity of that
precedence level. The verbose output file made by @option{-v}
(@pxref{Invocation}) says how each conflict was
resolved.
Not all rules and not all tokens have precedence. If either the rule or
the lookahead token has no precedence, then the default is to shift.
@node Non Operators
@subsection Using Precedence For Non Operators
Using properly precedence and associativity directives can help fixing
shift/reduce conflicts that do not involve arithmetic-like operators. For
instance, the ``dangling @code{else}'' problem (@pxref{Shift/Reduce}) can be
solved elegantly in two different ways.
In the present case, the conflict is between the token @code{"else"} willing
to be shifted, and the rule @samp{if_stmt: "if" expr "then" stmt}, asking
for reduction. By default, the precedence of a rule is that of its last
token, here @code{"then"}, so the conflict will be solved appropriately
by giving @code{"else"} a precedence higher than that of @code{"then"}, for
instance as follows:
@example
@group
%precedence "then"
%precedence "else"
@end group
@end example
Alternatively, you may give both tokens the same precedence, in which case
associativity is used to solve the conflict. To preserve the shift action,
use right associativity:
@example
%right "then" "else"
@end example
Neither solution is perfect however. Since Bison does not provide, so far,
``scoped'' precedence, both force you to declare the precedence
of these keywords with respect to the other operators your grammar.
Therefore, instead of being warned about new conflicts you would be unaware
of (e.g., a shift/reduce conflict due to @samp{if test then 1 else 2 + 3}
being ambiguous: @samp{if test then 1 else (2 + 3)} or @samp{(if test then 1
else 2) + 3}?), the conflict will be already ``fixed''.
@node Contextual Precedence
@section Context-Dependent Precedence
@cindex context-dependent precedence
@cindex unary operator precedence
@cindex precedence, context-dependent
@cindex precedence, unary operator
@findex %prec
Often the precedence of an operator depends on the context. This sounds
outlandish at first, but it is really very common. For example, a minus
sign typically has a very high precedence as a unary operator, and a
somewhat lower precedence (lower than multiplication) as a binary operator.
The Bison precedence declarations
can only be used once for a given token; so a token has
only one precedence declared in this way. For context-dependent
precedence, you need to use an additional mechanism: the @code{%prec}
modifier for rules.
The @code{%prec} modifier declares the precedence of a particular rule by
specifying a terminal symbol whose precedence should be used for that rule.
It's not necessary for that symbol to appear otherwise in the rule. The
modifier's syntax is:
@example
%prec @var{terminal-symbol}
@end example
@noindent
and it is written after the components of the rule. Its effect is to
assign the rule the precedence of @var{terminal-symbol}, overriding
the precedence that would be deduced for it in the ordinary way. The
altered rule precedence then affects how conflicts involving that rule
are resolved (@pxref{Precedence}).
Here is how @code{%prec} solves the problem of unary minus. First, declare
a precedence for a fictitious terminal symbol named @code{UMINUS}. There
are no tokens of this type, but the symbol serves to stand for its
precedence:
@example
@dots{}
%left '+' '-'
%left '*'
%left UMINUS
@end example
Now the precedence of @code{UMINUS} can be used in specific rules:
@example
@group
exp:
@dots{}
| exp '-' exp
@dots{}
| '-' exp %prec UMINUS
@end group
@end example
@ifset defaultprec
If you forget to append @code{%prec UMINUS} to the rule for unary
minus, Bison silently assumes that minus has its usual precedence.
This kind of problem can be tricky to debug, since one typically
discovers the mistake only by testing the code.
The @code{%no-default-prec;} declaration makes it easier to discover
this kind of problem systematically. It causes rules that lack a
@code{%prec} modifier to have no precedence, even if the last terminal
symbol mentioned in their components has a declared precedence.
If @code{%no-default-prec;} is in effect, you must specify @code{%prec}
for all rules that participate in precedence conflict resolution.
Then you will see any shift/reduce conflict until you tell Bison how
to resolve it, either by changing your grammar or by adding an
explicit precedence. This will probably add declarations to the
grammar, but it helps to protect against incorrect rule precedences.
The effect of @code{%no-default-prec;} can be reversed by giving
@code{%default-prec;}, which is the default.
@end ifset
@node Parser States
@section Parser States
@cindex finite-state machine
@cindex parser state
@cindex state (of parser)
The function @code{yyparse} is implemented using a finite-state machine.
The values pushed on the parser stack are not simply token kind codes; they
represent the entire sequence of terminal and nonterminal symbols at or
near the top of the stack. The current state collects all the information
about previous input which is relevant to deciding what to do next.
Each time a lookahead token is read, the current parser state together with
the kind of lookahead token are looked up in a table. This table entry can
say, ``Shift the lookahead token.'' In this case, it also specifies the new
parser state, which is pushed onto the top of the parser stack. Or it can
say, ``Reduce using rule number @var{n}.'' This means that a certain number
of tokens or groupings are taken off the top of the stack, and replaced by
one grouping. In other words, that number of states are popped from the
stack, and one new state is pushed.
There is one other alternative: the table can say that the lookahead token
is erroneous in the current state. This causes error processing to begin
(@pxref{Error Recovery}).
@node Reduce/Reduce
@section Reduce/Reduce Conflicts
@cindex reduce/reduce conflict
@cindex conflicts, reduce/reduce
A reduce/reduce conflict occurs if there are two or more rules that apply
to the same sequence of input. This usually indicates a serious error
in the grammar.
For example, here is an erroneous attempt to define a sequence
of zero or more @code{word} groupings.
@example
@group
sequence:
%empty @{ printf ("empty sequence\n"); @}
| maybeword
| sequence word @{ printf ("added word %s\n", $2); @}
;
@end group
@group
maybeword:
%empty @{ printf ("empty maybeword\n"); @}
| word @{ printf ("single word %s\n", $1); @}
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
The error is an ambiguity: as counterexample generation would demonstrate
(@pxref{Counterexamples}), there is more than one way to parse a single
@code{word} into a @code{sequence}. It could be reduced to a
@code{maybeword} and then into a @code{sequence} via the second rule.
Alternatively, nothing-at-all could be reduced into a @code{sequence}
via the first rule, and this could be combined with the @code{word}
using the third rule for @code{sequence}.
There is also more than one way to reduce nothing-at-all into a
@code{sequence}. This can be done directly via the first rule,
or indirectly via @code{maybeword} and then the second rule.
You might think that this is a distinction without a difference, because it
does not change whether any particular input is valid or not. But it does
affect which actions are run. One parsing order runs the second rule's
action; the other runs the first rule's action and the third rule's action.
In this example, the output of the program changes.
Bison resolves a reduce/reduce conflict by choosing to use the rule that
appears first in the grammar, but it is very risky to rely on this. Every
reduce/reduce conflict must be studied and usually eliminated. Here is the
proper way to define @code{sequence}:
@example
@group
sequence:
%empty @{ printf ("empty sequence\n"); @}
| sequence word @{ printf ("added word %s\n", $2); @}
;
@end group
@end example
Here is another common error that yields a reduce/reduce conflict:
@example
@group
sequence:
%empty
| sequence words
| sequence redirects
;
@end group
@group
words:
%empty
| words word
;
@end group
@group
redirects:
%empty
| redirects redirect
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
The intention here is to define a sequence which can contain either
@code{word} or @code{redirect} groupings. The individual definitions of
@code{sequence}, @code{words} and @code{redirects} are error-free, but the
three together make a subtle ambiguity: even an empty input can be parsed
in infinitely many ways!
Consider: nothing-at-all could be a @code{words}. Or it could be two
@code{words} in a row, or three, or any number. It could equally well be a
@code{redirects}, or two, or any number. Or it could be a @code{words}
followed by three @code{redirects} and another @code{words}. And so on.
Here are two ways to correct these rules. First, to make it a single level
of sequence:
@example
sequence:
%empty
| sequence word
| sequence redirect
;
@end example
Second, to prevent either a @code{words} or a @code{redirects}
from being empty:
@example
@group
sequence:
%empty
| sequence words
| sequence redirects
;
@end group
@group
words:
word
| words word
;
@end group
@group
redirects:
redirect
| redirects redirect
;
@end group
@end example
Yet this proposal introduces another kind of ambiguity! The input
@samp{word word} can be parsed as a single @code{words} composed of two
@samp{word}s, or as two one-@code{word} @code{words} (and likewise for
@code{redirect}/@code{redirects}). However this ambiguity is now a
shift/reduce conflict, and therefore it can now be addressed with precedence
directives.
To simplify the matter, we will proceed with @code{word} and @code{redirect}
being tokens: @code{"word"} and @code{"redirect"}.
To prefer the longest @code{words}, the conflict between the token
@code{"word"} and the rule @samp{sequence: sequence words} must be resolved
as a shift. To this end, we use the same techniques as exposed above, see
@ref{Non Operators}. One solution
relies on precedences: use @code{%prec} to give a lower precedence to the
rule:
@example
%precedence "word"
%precedence "sequence"
%%
@group
sequence:
%empty
| sequence word %prec "sequence"
| sequence redirect %prec "sequence"
;
@end group
@group
words:
word
| words "word"
;
@end group
@end example
Another solution relies on associativity: provide both the token and the
rule with the same precedence, but make them right-associative:
@example
%right "word" "redirect"
%%
@group
sequence:
%empty
| sequence word %prec "word"
| sequence redirect %prec "redirect"
;
@end group
@end example
@node Mysterious Conflicts
@section Mysterious Conflicts
@cindex Mysterious Conflicts
Sometimes reduce/reduce conflicts can occur that don't look warranted.
Here is an example:
@example
@group
%%
def: param_spec return_spec ',';
param_spec:
type
| name_list ':' type
;
@end group
@group
return_spec:
type
| name ':' type
;
@end group
type: "id";
@group
name: "id";
name_list:
name
| name ',' name_list
;
@end group
@end example
It would seem that this grammar can be parsed with only a single token of
lookahead: when a @code{param_spec} is being read, an @code{"id"} is a
@code{name} if a comma or colon follows, or a @code{type} if another
@code{"id"} follows. In other words, this grammar is LR(1). Yet Bison
finds one reduce/reduce conflict, for which counterexample generation
(@pxref{Counterexamples}) would find a @emph{nonunifying} example.
@cindex LR
@cindex LALR
This is because Bison does not handle all LR(1) grammars @emph{by default},
for historical reasons.
In this grammar, two contexts, that after an @code{"id"} at the beginning
of a @code{param_spec} and likewise at the beginning of a
@code{return_spec}, are similar enough that Bison assumes they are the
same.
They appear similar because the same set of rules would be
active---the rule for reducing to a @code{name} and that for reducing to
a @code{type}. Bison is unable to determine at that stage of processing
that the rules would require different lookahead tokens in the two
contexts, so it makes a single parser state for them both. Combining
the two contexts causes a conflict later. In parser terminology, this
occurrence means that the grammar is not LALR(1).
@cindex IELR
@cindex canonical LR
For many practical grammars (specifically those that fall into the non-LR(1)
class), the limitations of LALR(1) result in difficulties beyond just
mysterious reduce/reduce conflicts. The best way to fix all these problems
is to select a different parser table construction algorithm. Either
IELR(1) or canonical LR(1) would suffice, but the former is more efficient
and easier to debug during development. @xref{LR Table Construction}, for
details.
If you instead wish to work around LALR(1)'s limitations, you
can often fix a mysterious conflict by identifying the two parser states
that are being confused, and adding something to make them look
distinct. In the above example, adding one rule to
@code{return_spec} as follows makes the problem go away:
@example
@group
@dots{}
return_spec:
type
| name ':' type
| "id" "bogus" /* This rule is never used. */
;
@end group
@end example
This corrects the problem because it introduces the possibility of an
additional active rule in the context after the @code{"id"} at the beginning of
@code{return_spec}. This rule is not active in the corresponding context
in a @code{param_spec}, so the two contexts receive distinct parser states.
As long as the token @code{"bogus"} is never generated by @code{yylex},
the added rule cannot alter the way actual input is parsed.
In this particular example, there is another way to solve the problem:
rewrite the rule for @code{return_spec} to use @code{"id"} directly
instead of via @code{name}. This also causes the two confusing
contexts to have different sets of active rules, because the one for
@code{return_spec} activates the altered rule for @code{return_spec}
rather than the one for @code{name}.
@example
@group
param_spec:
type
| name_list ':' type
;
@end group
@group
return_spec:
type
| "id" ':' type
;
@end group
@end example
For a more detailed exposition of LALR(1) parsers and parser generators, see
@tcite{DeRemer 1982}.
@node Tuning LR
@section Tuning LR
The default behavior of Bison's LR-based parsers is chosen mostly for
historical reasons, but that behavior is often not robust. For example, in
the previous section, we discussed the mysterious conflicts that can be
produced by LALR(1), Bison's default parser table construction algorithm.
Another example is Bison's @code{%define parse.error verbose} directive,
which instructs the generated parser to produce verbose syntax error
messages, which can sometimes contain incorrect information.
In this section, we explore several modern features of Bison that allow you
to tune fundamental aspects of the generated LR-based parsers. Some of
these features easily eliminate shortcomings like those mentioned above.
Others can be helpful purely for understanding your parser.
@menu
* LR Table Construction:: Choose a different construction algorithm.
* Default Reductions:: Disable default reductions.
* LAC:: Correct lookahead sets in the parser states.
* Unreachable States:: Keep unreachable parser states for debugging.
@end menu
@node LR Table Construction
@subsection LR Table Construction
@cindex Mysterious Conflict
@cindex LALR
@cindex IELR
@cindex canonical LR
@findex %define lr.type
For historical reasons, Bison constructs LALR(1) parser tables by default.
However, LALR does not possess the full language-recognition power of LR.
As a result, the behavior of parsers employing LALR parser tables is often
mysterious. We presented a simple example of this effect in @ref{Mysterious
Conflicts}.
As we also demonstrated in that example, the traditional approach to
eliminating such mysterious behavior is to restructure the grammar.
Unfortunately, doing so correctly is often difficult. Moreover, merely
discovering that LALR causes mysterious behavior in your parser can be
difficult as well.
Fortunately, Bison provides an easy way to eliminate the possibility of such
mysterious behavior altogether. You simply need to activate a more powerful
parser table construction algorithm by using the @code{%define lr.type}
directive.
@deffn {Directive} {%define lr.type} @var{type}
Specify the type of parser tables within the LR(1) family. The accepted
values for @var{type} are:
@itemize
@item @code{lalr} (default)
@item @code{ielr}
@item @code{canonical-lr}
@end itemize
@end deffn
For example, to activate IELR, you might add the following directive to you
grammar file:
@example
%define lr.type ielr
@end example
@noindent For the example in @ref{Mysterious Conflicts}, the mysterious
conflict is then eliminated, so there is no need to invest time in
comprehending the conflict or restructuring the grammar to fix it. If,
during future development, the grammar evolves such that all mysterious
behavior would have disappeared using just LALR, you need not fear that
continuing to use IELR will result in unnecessarily large parser tables.
That is, IELR generates LALR tables when LALR (using a deterministic parsing
algorithm) is sufficient to support the full language-recognition power of
LR. Thus, by enabling IELR at the start of grammar development, you can
safely and completely eliminate the need to consider LALR's shortcomings.
While IELR is almost always preferable, there are circumstances where LALR
or the canonical LR parser tables described by Knuth @pcite{Knuth 1965} can
be useful. Here we summarize the relative advantages of each parser table
construction algorithm within Bison:
@itemize
@item LALR
There are at least two scenarios where LALR can be worthwhile:
@itemize
@item GLR without static conflict resolution.
@cindex GLR with LALR
When employing GLR parsers (@pxref{GLR Parsers}), if you do not resolve any
conflicts statically (for example, with @code{%left} or @code{%precedence}),
then
the parser explores all potential parses of any given input. In this case,
the choice of parser table construction algorithm is guaranteed not to alter
the language accepted by the parser. LALR parser tables are the smallest
parser tables Bison can currently construct, so they may then be preferable.
Nevertheless, once you begin to resolve conflicts statically, GLR behaves
more like a deterministic parser in the syntactic contexts where those
conflicts appear, and so either IELR or canonical LR can then be helpful to
avoid LALR's mysterious behavior.
@item Malformed grammars.
Occasionally during development, an especially malformed grammar with a
major recurring flaw may severely impede the IELR or canonical LR parser
table construction algorithm. LALR can be a quick way to construct parser
tables in order to investigate such problems while ignoring the more subtle
differences from IELR and canonical LR.
@end itemize
@item IELR
IELR (Inadequacy Elimination LR) is a minimal LR algorithm. That is, given
any grammar (LR or non-LR), parsers using IELR or canonical LR parser tables
always accept exactly the same set of sentences. However, like LALR, IELR
merges parser states during parser table construction so that the number of
parser states is often an order of magnitude less than for canonical LR.
More importantly, because canonical LR's extra parser states may contain
duplicate conflicts in the case of non-LR grammars, the number of conflicts
for IELR is often an order of magnitude less as well. This effect can
significantly reduce the complexity of developing a grammar.
@item Canonical LR
@cindex delayed syntax error detection
@cindex LAC
@findex %nonassoc
While inefficient, canonical LR parser tables can be an interesting means to
explore a grammar because they possess a property that IELR and LALR tables
do not. That is, if @code{%nonassoc} is not used and default reductions are
left disabled (@pxref{Default Reductions}), then, for every left context of
every canonical LR state, the set of tokens accepted by that state is
guaranteed to be the exact set of tokens that is syntactically acceptable in
that left context. It might then seem that an advantage of canonical LR
parsers in production is that, under the above constraints, they are
guaranteed to detect a syntax error as soon as possible without performing
any unnecessary reductions. However, IELR parsers that use LAC are also
able to achieve this behavior without sacrificing @code{%nonassoc} or
default reductions. For details and a few caveats of LAC, @pxref{LAC}.
@end itemize
For a more detailed exposition of the mysterious behavior in LALR parsers
and the benefits of IELR, see @tcite{Denny 2008}, and @tcite{Denny 2010
November}.
@node Default Reductions
@subsection Default Reductions
@cindex default reductions
@findex %define lr.default-reduction
@findex %nonassoc
After parser table construction, Bison identifies the reduction with the
largest lookahead set in each parser state. To reduce the size of the
parser state, traditional Bison behavior is to remove that lookahead set and
to assign that reduction to be the default parser action. Such a reduction
is known as a @dfn{default reduction}.
Default reductions affect more than the size of the parser tables. They
also affect the behavior of the parser:
@itemize
@item Delayed @code{yylex} invocations.
@cindex delayed yylex invocations
@cindex consistent states
@cindex defaulted states
A @dfn{consistent state} is a state that has only one possible parser
action. If that action is a reduction and is encoded as a default
reduction, then that consistent state is called a @dfn{defaulted state}.
Upon reaching a defaulted state, a Bison-generated parser does not bother to
invoke @code{yylex} to fetch the next token before performing the reduction.
In other words, whether default reductions are enabled in consistent states
determines how soon a Bison-generated parser invokes @code{yylex} for a
token: immediately when it @emph{reaches} that token in the input or when it
eventually @emph{needs} that token as a lookahead to determine the next
parser action. Traditionally, default reductions are enabled, and so the
parser exhibits the latter behavior.
The presence of defaulted states is an important consideration when
designing @code{yylex} and the grammar file. That is, if the behavior of
@code{yylex} can influence or be influenced by the semantic actions
associated with the reductions in defaulted states, then the delay of the
next @code{yylex} invocation until after those reductions is significant.
For example, the semantic actions might pop a scope stack that @code{yylex}
uses to determine what token to return. Thus, the delay might be necessary
to ensure that @code{yylex} does not look up the next token in a scope that
should already be considered closed.
@item Delayed syntax error detection.
@cindex delayed syntax error detection
When the parser fetches a new token by invoking @code{yylex}, it checks
whether there is an action for that token in the current parser state. The
parser detects a syntax error if and only if either (1) there is no action
for that token or (2) the action for that token is the error action (due to
the use of @code{%nonassoc}). However, if there is a default reduction in
that state (which might or might not be a defaulted state), then it is
impossible for condition 1 to exist. That is, all tokens have an action.
Thus, the parser sometimes fails to detect the syntax error until it reaches
a later state.
@cindex LAC
@c If there's an infinite loop, default reductions can prevent an incorrect
@c sentence from being rejected.
While default reductions never cause the parser to accept syntactically
incorrect sentences, the delay of syntax error detection can have unexpected
effects on the behavior of the parser. However, the delay can be caused
anyway by parser state merging and the use of @code{%nonassoc}, and it can
be fixed by another Bison feature, LAC. We discuss the effects of delayed
syntax error detection and LAC more in the next section (@pxref{LAC}).
@end itemize
For canonical LR, the only default reduction that Bison enables by default
is the accept action, which appears only in the accepting state, which has
no other action and is thus a defaulted state. However, the default accept
action does not delay any @code{yylex} invocation or syntax error detection
because the accept action ends the parse.
For LALR and IELR, Bison enables default reductions in nearly all states by
default. There are only two exceptions. First, states that have a shift
action on the @code{error} token do not have default reductions because
delayed syntax error detection could then prevent the @code{error} token
from ever being shifted in that state. However, parser state merging can
cause the same effect anyway, and LAC fixes it in both cases, so future
versions of Bison might drop this exception when LAC is activated. Second,
GLR parsers do not record the default reduction as the action on a lookahead
token for which there is a conflict. The correct action in this case is to
split the parse instead.
To adjust which states have default reductions enabled, use the
@code{%define lr.default-reduction} directive.
@deffn {Directive} {%define lr.default-reduction} @var{where}
Specify the kind of states that are permitted to contain default reductions.
The accepted values of @var{where} are:
@itemize
@item @code{most} (default for LALR and IELR)
@item @code{consistent}
@item @code{accepting} (default for canonical LR)
@end itemize
@end deffn
@node LAC
@subsection LAC
@findex %define parse.lac
@cindex LAC
@cindex lookahead correction
Canonical LR, IELR, and LALR can suffer from a couple of problems upon
encountering a syntax error. First, the parser might perform additional
parser stack reductions before discovering the syntax error. Such
reductions can perform user semantic actions that are unexpected because
they are based on an invalid token, and they cause error recovery to begin
in a different syntactic context than the one in which the invalid token was
encountered. Second, when verbose error messages are enabled (@pxref{Error
Reporting}), the expected token list in the syntax error message can both
contain invalid tokens and omit valid tokens.
The culprits for the above problems are @code{%nonassoc}, default reductions
in inconsistent states (@pxref{Default Reductions}), and parser state
merging. Because IELR and LALR merge parser states, they suffer the most.
Canonical LR can suffer only if @code{%nonassoc} is used or if default
reductions are enabled for inconsistent states.
LAC (Lookahead Correction) is a new mechanism within the parsing algorithm
that solves these problems for canonical LR, IELR, and LALR without
sacrificing @code{%nonassoc}, default reductions, or state merging. You can
enable LAC with the @code{%define parse.lac} directive.
@deffn {Directive} {%define parse.lac} @var{value}
Enable LAC to improve syntax error handling.
@itemize
@item @code{none} (default)
@item @code{full}
@end itemize
This feature is currently only available for deterministic parsers in C and C++.
@end deffn
Conceptually, the LAC mechanism is straight-forward. Whenever the parser
fetches a new token from the scanner so that it can determine the next
parser action, it immediately suspends normal parsing and performs an
exploratory parse using a temporary copy of the normal parser state stack.
During this exploratory parse, the parser does not perform user semantic
actions. If the exploratory parse reaches a shift action, normal parsing
then resumes on the normal parser stacks. If the exploratory parse reaches
an error instead, the parser reports a syntax error. If verbose syntax
error messages are enabled, the parser must then discover the list of
expected tokens, so it performs a separate exploratory parse for each token
in the grammar.
There is one subtlety about the use of LAC. That is, when in a consistent
parser state with a default reduction, the parser will not attempt to fetch
a token from the scanner because no lookahead is needed to determine the
next parser action. Thus, whether default reductions are enabled in
consistent states (@pxref{Default Reductions}) affects how soon the parser
detects a syntax error: immediately when it @emph{reaches} an erroneous
token or when it eventually @emph{needs} that token as a lookahead to
determine the next parser action. The latter behavior is probably more
intuitive, so Bison currently provides no way to achieve the former behavior
while default reductions are enabled in consistent states.
Thus, when LAC is in use, for some fixed decision of whether to enable
default reductions in consistent states, canonical LR and IELR behave almost
exactly the same for both syntactically acceptable and syntactically
unacceptable input. While LALR still does not support the full
language-recognition power of canonical LR and IELR, LAC at least enables
LALR's syntax error handling to correctly reflect LALR's
language-recognition power.
There are a few caveats to consider when using LAC:
@itemize
@item Infinite parsing loops.
IELR plus LAC does have one shortcoming relative to canonical LR. Some
parsers generated by Bison can loop infinitely. LAC does not fix infinite
parsing loops that occur between encountering a syntax error and detecting
it, but enabling canonical LR or disabling default reductions sometimes
does.
@item Verbose error message limitations.
Because of internationalization considerations, Bison-generated parsers
limit the size of the expected token list they are willing to report in a
verbose syntax error message. If the number of expected tokens exceeds that
limit, the list is simply dropped from the message. Enabling LAC can
increase the size of the list and thus cause the parser to drop it. Of
course, dropping the list is better than reporting an incorrect list.
@item Performance.
Because LAC requires many parse actions to be performed twice, it can have a
performance penalty. However, not all parse actions must be performed
twice. Specifically, during a series of default reductions in consistent
states and shift actions, the parser never has to initiate an exploratory
parse. Moreover, the most time-consuming tasks in a parse are often the
file I/O, the lexical analysis performed by the scanner, and the user's
semantic actions, but none of these are performed during the exploratory
parse. Finally, the base of the temporary stack used during an exploratory
parse is a pointer into the normal parser state stack so that the stack is
never physically copied. In our experience, the performance penalty of LAC
has proved insignificant for practical grammars.
@end itemize
While the LAC algorithm shares techniques that have been recognized in the
parser community for years, for the publication that introduces LAC, see
@tcite{Denny 2010 May}.
@node Unreachable States
@subsection Unreachable States
@findex %define lr.keep-unreachable-state
@cindex unreachable states
If there exists no sequence of transitions from the parser's start state to
some state @var{s}, then Bison considers @var{s} to be an @dfn{unreachable
state}. A state can become unreachable during conflict resolution if Bison
disables a shift action leading to it from a predecessor state.
By default, Bison removes unreachable states from the parser after conflict
resolution because they are useless in the generated parser. However,
keeping unreachable states is sometimes useful when trying to understand the
relationship between the parser and the grammar.
@deffn {Directive} {%define lr.keep-unreachable-state} @var{value}
Request that Bison allow unreachable states to remain in the parser tables.
@var{value} must be a Boolean. The default is @code{false}.
@end deffn
There are a few caveats to consider:
@itemize @bullet
@item Missing or extraneous warnings.
Unreachable states may contain conflicts and may use rules not used in any
other state. Thus, keeping unreachable states may induce warnings that are
irrelevant to your parser's behavior, and it may eliminate warnings that are
relevant. Of course, the change in warnings may actually be relevant to a
parser table analysis that wants to keep unreachable states, so this
behavior will likely remain in future Bison releases.
@item Other useless states.
While Bison is able to remove unreachable states, it is not guaranteed to
remove other kinds of useless states. Specifically, when Bison disables
reduce actions during conflict resolution, some goto actions may become
useless, and thus some additional states may become useless. If Bison were
to compute which goto actions were useless and then disable those actions,
it could identify such states as unreachable and then remove those states.
However, Bison does not compute which goto actions are useless.
@end itemize
@node Generalized LR Parsing
@section Generalized LR (GLR) Parsing
@cindex GLR parsing
@cindex generalized LR (GLR) parsing
@cindex ambiguous grammars
@cindex nondeterministic parsing
Bison produces @emph{deterministic} parsers that choose uniquely
when to reduce and which reduction to apply
based on a summary of the preceding input and on one extra token of lookahead.
As a result, normal Bison handles a proper subset of the family of
context-free languages.
Ambiguous grammars, since they have strings with more than one possible
sequence of reductions cannot have deterministic parsers in this sense.
The same is true of languages that require more than one symbol of
lookahead, since the parser lacks the information necessary to make a
decision at the point it must be made in a shift/reduce parser.
Finally, as previously mentioned (@pxref{Mysterious Conflicts}),
there are languages where Bison's default choice of how to
summarize the input seen so far loses necessary information.
When you use the @samp{%glr-parser} declaration in your grammar file,
Bison generates a parser that uses a different algorithm, called
Generalized LR (or GLR). A Bison GLR
parser uses the same basic
algorithm for parsing as an ordinary Bison parser, but behaves
differently in cases where there is a shift/reduce conflict that has not
been resolved by precedence rules (@pxref{Precedence}) or a
reduce/reduce conflict. When a GLR parser encounters such a
situation, it
effectively @emph{splits} into a several parsers, one for each possible
shift or reduction. These parsers then proceed as usual, consuming
tokens in lock-step. Some of the stacks may encounter other conflicts
and split further, with the result that instead of a sequence of states,
a Bison GLR parsing stack is what is in effect a tree of states.
In effect, each stack represents a guess as to what the proper parse
is. Additional input may indicate that a guess was wrong, in which case
the appropriate stack silently disappears. Otherwise, the semantics
actions generated in each stack are saved, rather than being executed
immediately. When a stack disappears, its saved semantic actions never
get executed. When a reduction causes two stacks to become equivalent,
their sets of semantic actions are both saved with the state that
results from the reduction. We say that two stacks are equivalent
when they both represent the same sequence of states,
and each pair of corresponding states represents a
grammar symbol that produces the same segment of the input token
stream.
Whenever the parser makes a transition from having multiple
states to having one, it reverts to the normal deterministic parsing
algorithm, after resolving and executing the saved-up actions.
At this transition, some of the states on the stack will have semantic
values that are sets (actually multisets) of possible actions. The
parser tries to pick one of the actions by first finding one whose rule
has the highest dynamic precedence, as set by the @samp{%dprec}
declaration. Otherwise, if the alternative actions are not ordered by
precedence, but there the same merging function is declared for both
rules by the @samp{%merge} declaration,
Bison resolves and evaluates both and then calls the merge function on
the result. Otherwise, it reports an ambiguity.
It is possible to use a data structure for the GLR parsing tree that
permits the processing of any LR(1) grammar in linear time (in the
size of the input), any unambiguous (not necessarily
LR(1)) grammar in
quadratic worst-case time, and any general (possibly ambiguous)
context-free grammar in cubic worst-case time. However, Bison currently
uses a simpler data structure that requires time proportional to the
length of the input times the maximum number of stacks required for any
prefix of the input. Thus, really ambiguous or nondeterministic
grammars can require exponential time and space to process. Such badly
behaving examples, however, are not generally of practical interest.
Usually, nondeterminism in a grammar is local---the parser is ``in
doubt'' only for a few tokens at a time. Therefore, the current data
structure should generally be adequate. On LR(1) portions of a
grammar, in particular, it is only slightly slower than with the
deterministic LR(1) Bison parser.
For a more detailed exposition of GLR parsers, see @tcite{Scott 2000}.
@node Memory Management
@section Memory Management, and How to Avoid Memory Exhaustion
@cindex memory exhaustion
@cindex memory management
@cindex stack overflow
@cindex parser stack overflow
@cindex overflow of parser stack
The Bison parser stack can run out of memory if too many tokens are shifted and
not reduced. When this happens, the parser function @code{yyparse}
calls @code{yyerror} and then returns 2.
Because Bison parsers have growing stacks, hitting the upper limit
usually results from using a right recursion instead of a left
recursion, see @ref{Recursion}.
@vindex YYMAXDEPTH
By defining the macro @code{YYMAXDEPTH}, you can control how deep the
parser stack can become before memory is exhausted. Define the
macro with a value that is an integer. This value is the maximum number
of tokens that can be shifted (and not reduced) before overflow.
The stack space allowed is not necessarily allocated. If you specify a
large value for @code{YYMAXDEPTH}, the parser normally allocates a small
stack at first, and then makes it bigger by stages as needed. This
increasing allocation happens automatically and silently. Therefore,
you do not need to make @code{YYMAXDEPTH} painfully small merely to save
space for ordinary inputs that do not need much stack.
However, do not allow @code{YYMAXDEPTH} to be a value so large that
arithmetic overflow could occur when calculating the size of the stack
space. Also, do not allow @code{YYMAXDEPTH} to be less than
@code{YYINITDEPTH}.
@cindex default stack limit
The default value of @code{YYMAXDEPTH}, if you do not define it, is
10000.
@vindex YYINITDEPTH
You can control how much stack is allocated initially by defining the
macro @code{YYINITDEPTH} to a positive integer. For the deterministic
parser in C, this value must be a compile-time constant
unless you are assuming C99 or some other target language or compiler
that allows variable-length arrays. The default is 200.
Do not allow @code{YYINITDEPTH} to be greater than @code{YYMAXDEPTH}.
You can generate a deterministic parser containing C++ user code from the
default (C) skeleton, as well as from the C++ skeleton (@pxref{C++
Parsers}). However, if you do use the default skeleton and want to allow
the parsing stack to grow, be careful not to use semantic types or location
types that require non-trivial copy constructors. The C skeleton bypasses
these constructors when copying data to new, larger stacks.
@node Error Recovery
@chapter Error Recovery
@cindex error recovery
@cindex recovery from errors
It is not usually acceptable to have a program terminate on a syntax
error. For example, a compiler should recover sufficiently to parse the
rest of the input file and check it for errors; a calculator should accept
another expression.
In a simple interactive command parser where each input is one line, it may
be sufficient to allow @code{yyparse} to return 1 on error and have the
caller ignore the rest of the input line when that happens (and then call
@code{yyparse} again). But this is inadequate for a compiler, because it
forgets all the syntactic context leading up to the error. A syntax error
deep within a function in the compiler input should not cause the compiler
to treat the following line like the beginning of a source file.
@findex error
You can define how to recover from a syntax error by writing rules to
recognize the special token @code{error}. This is a terminal symbol that
is always defined (you need not declare it) and reserved for error
handling. The Bison parser generates an @code{error} token whenever a
syntax error happens; if you have provided a rule to recognize this token
in the current context, the parse can continue.
For example:
@example
stmts:
%empty
| stmts '\n'
| stmts exp '\n'
| stmts error '\n'
@end example
The fourth rule in this example says that an error followed by a newline
makes a valid addition to any @code{stmts}.
What happens if a syntax error occurs in the middle of an @code{exp}? The
error recovery rule, interpreted strictly, applies to the precise sequence
of a @code{stmts}, an @code{error} and a newline. If an error occurs in
the middle of an @code{exp}, there will probably be some additional tokens
and subexpressions on the stack after the last @code{stmts}, and there
will be tokens to read before the next newline. So the rule is not
applicable in the ordinary way.
But Bison can force the situation to fit the rule, by discarding part of the
semantic context and part of the input. First it discards states and
objects from the stack until it gets back to a state in which the
@code{error} token is acceptable. (This means that the subexpressions
already parsed are discarded, back to the last complete @code{stmts}.) At
this point the @code{error} token can be shifted. Then, if the old
lookahead token is not acceptable to be shifted next, the parser reads
tokens and discards them until it finds a token which is acceptable. In
this example, Bison reads and discards input until the next newline so that
the fourth rule can apply. Note that discarded symbols are possible sources
of memory leaks, see @ref{Destructor Decl}, for a means to reclaim this
memory.
The choice of error rules in the grammar is a choice of strategies for
error recovery. A simple and useful strategy is simply to skip the rest of
the current input line or current statement if an error is detected:
@example
stmt: error ';' /* On error, skip until ';' is read. */
@end example
It is also useful to recover to the matching close-delimiter of an
opening-delimiter that has already been parsed. Otherwise the
close-delimiter will probably appear to be unmatched, and generate another,
spurious error message:
@example
primary:
'(' expr ')'
| '(' error ')'
@dots{}
;
@end example
Error recovery strategies are necessarily guesses. When they guess wrong,
one syntax error often leads to another. In the above example, the error
recovery rule guesses that an error is due to bad input within one
@code{stmt}. Suppose that instead a spurious semicolon is inserted in the
middle of a valid @code{stmt}. After the error recovery rule recovers from
the first error, another syntax error will be found straight away, since the
text following the spurious semicolon is also an invalid @code{stmt}.
To prevent an outpouring of error messages, the parser will output no error
message for another syntax error that happens shortly after the first; only
after three consecutive input tokens have been successfully shifted will
error messages resume.
Note that rules which accept the @code{error} token may have actions, just
as any other rules can.
@findex yyerrok
You can make error messages resume immediately by using the macro
@code{yyerrok} in an action. If you do this in the error rule's action, no
error messages will be suppressed. This macro requires no arguments;
@samp{yyerrok;} is a valid C statement.
@findex yyclearin
The previous lookahead token is reanalyzed immediately after an error. If
this is unacceptable, then the macro @code{yyclearin} may be used to clear
this token. Write the statement @samp{yyclearin;} in the error rule's
action.
@xref{Action Features}.
For example, suppose that on a syntax error, an error handling routine is
called that advances the input stream to some point where parsing should
once again commence. The next symbol returned by the lexical scanner is
probably correct. The previous lookahead token ought to be discarded
with @samp{yyclearin;}.
@vindex YYRECOVERING
The expression @code{YYRECOVERING ()} yields 1 when the parser
is recovering from a syntax error, and 0 otherwise.
Syntax error diagnostics are suppressed while recovering from a syntax
error.
@node Context Dependency
@chapter Handling Context Dependencies
The Bison paradigm is to parse tokens first, then group them into larger
syntactic units. In many languages, the meaning of a token is affected by
its context. Although this violates the Bison paradigm, certain techniques
(known as @dfn{kludges}) may enable you to write Bison parsers for such
languages.
@menu
* Semantic Tokens:: Token parsing can depend on the semantic context.
* Lexical Tie-ins:: Token parsing can depend on the syntactic context.
* Tie-in Recovery:: Lexical tie-ins have implications for how
error recovery rules must be written.
@end menu
(Actually, ``kludge'' means any technique that gets its job done but is
neither clean nor robust.)
@node Semantic Tokens
@section Semantic Info in Token Kinds
The C language has a context dependency: the way an identifier is used
depends on what its current meaning is. For example, consider this:
@example
foo (x);
@end example
This looks like a function call statement, but if @code{foo} is a typedef
name, then this is actually a declaration of @code{x}. How can a Bison
parser for C decide how to parse this input?
The method used in GNU C is to have two different token kinds,
@code{IDENTIFIER} and @code{TYPENAME}. When @code{yylex} finds an
identifier, it looks up the current declaration of the identifier in order
to decide which token kind to return: @code{TYPENAME} if the identifier is
declared as a typedef, @code{IDENTIFIER} otherwise.
The grammar rules can then express the context dependency by the choice of
token kind to recognize. @code{IDENTIFIER} is accepted as an expression,
but @code{TYPENAME} is not. @code{TYPENAME} can start a declaration, but
@code{IDENTIFIER} cannot. In contexts where the meaning of the identifier
is @emph{not} significant, such as in declarations that can shadow a
typedef name, either @code{TYPENAME} or @code{IDENTIFIER} is
accepted---there is one rule for each of the two token kinds.
This technique is simple to use if the decision of which kinds of
identifiers to allow is made at a place close to where the identifier is
parsed. But in C this is not always so: C allows a declaration to
redeclare a typedef name provided an explicit type has been specified
earlier:
@example
typedef int foo, bar;
int baz (void)
@group
@{
static bar (bar); /* @r{redeclare @code{bar} as static variable} */
extern foo foo (foo); /* @r{redeclare @code{foo} as function} */
return foo (bar);
@}
@end group
@end example
Unfortunately, the name being declared is separated from the declaration
construct itself by a complicated syntactic structure---the ``declarator''.
As a result, part of the Bison parser for C needs to be duplicated, with
all the nonterminal names changed: once for parsing a declaration in
which a typedef name can be redefined, and once for parsing a
declaration in which that can't be done. Here is a part of the
duplication, with actions omitted for brevity:
@example
@group
initdcl:
declarator maybeasm '=' init
| declarator maybeasm
;
@end group
@group
notype_initdcl:
notype_declarator maybeasm '=' init
| notype_declarator maybeasm
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Here @code{initdcl} can redeclare a typedef name, but @code{notype_initdcl}
cannot. The distinction between @code{declarator} and
@code{notype_declarator} is the same sort of thing.
There is some similarity between this technique and a lexical tie-in
(described next), in that information which alters the lexical analysis is
changed during parsing by other parts of the program. The difference is
here the information is global, and is used for other purposes in the
program. A true lexical tie-in has a special-purpose flag controlled by
the syntactic context.
@node Lexical Tie-ins
@section Lexical Tie-ins
@cindex lexical tie-in
One way to handle context-dependency is the @dfn{lexical tie-in}: a flag
which is set by Bison actions, whose purpose is to alter the way tokens are
parsed.
For example, suppose we have a language vaguely like C, but with a special
construct @samp{hex (@var{hex-expr})}. After the keyword @code{hex} comes
an expression in parentheses in which all integers are hexadecimal. In
particular, the token @samp{a1b} must be treated as an integer rather than
as an identifier if it appears in that context. Here is how you can do it:
@example
@group
%@{
int hexflag;
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (char const *);
%@}
%%
@dots{}
@end group
@group
expr:
IDENTIFIER
| constant
| HEX '(' @{ hexflag = 1; @}
expr ')' @{ hexflag = 0; $$ = $4; @}
| expr '+' expr @{ $$ = make_sum ($1, $3); @}
@dots{}
;
@end group
@group
constant:
INTEGER
| STRING
;
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Here we assume that @code{yylex} looks at the value of @code{hexflag}; when
it is nonzero, all integers are parsed in hexadecimal, and tokens starting
with letters are parsed as integers if possible.
The declaration of @code{hexflag} shown in the prologue of the grammar file
is needed to make it accessible to the actions (@pxref{Prologue}). You must
also write the code in @code{yylex} to obey the flag.
@node Tie-in Recovery
@section Lexical Tie-ins and Error Recovery
Lexical tie-ins make strict demands on any error recovery rules you have.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
The reason for this is that the purpose of an error recovery rule is to
abort the parsing of one construct and resume in some larger construct.
For example, in C-like languages, a typical error recovery rule is to skip
tokens until the next semicolon, and then start a new statement, like this:
@example
stmt:
expr ';'
| IF '(' expr ')' stmt @{ @dots{} @}
@dots{}
| error ';' @{ hexflag = 0; @}
;
@end example
If there is a syntax error in the middle of a @samp{hex (@var{expr})}
construct, this error rule will apply, and then the action for the
completed @samp{hex (@var{expr})} will never run. So @code{hexflag} would
remain set for the entire rest of the input, or until the next @code{hex}
keyword, causing identifiers to be misinterpreted as integers.
To avoid this problem the error recovery rule itself clears @code{hexflag}.
There may also be an error recovery rule that works within expressions.
For example, there could be a rule which applies within parentheses
and skips to the close-parenthesis:
@example
@group
expr:
@dots{}
| '(' expr ')' @{ $$ = $2; @}
| '(' error ')'
@dots{}
@end group
@end example
If this rule acts within the @code{hex} construct, it is not going to abort
that construct (since it applies to an inner level of parentheses within
the construct). Therefore, it should not clear the flag: the rest of
the @code{hex} construct should be parsed with the flag still in effect.
What if there is an error recovery rule which might abort out of the
@code{hex} construct or might not, depending on circumstances? There is no
way you can write the action to determine whether a @code{hex} construct is
being aborted or not. So if you are using a lexical tie-in, you had better
make sure your error recovery rules are not of this kind. Each rule must
be such that you can be sure that it always will, or always won't, have to
clear the flag.
@c ================================================== Debugging Your Parser
@node Debugging
@chapter Debugging Your Parser
Developing a parser can be a challenge, especially if you don't understand
the algorithm (@pxref{Algorithm}). This chapter explains how to understand
and debug a parser.
The most frequent issue users face is solving their conflicts. To fix them,
the first step is understanding how they arise in a given grammar. This is
made much easier by automated generation of counterexamples, cover in the
first section (@pxref{Counterexamples}).
In most cases though, looking at the structure of the automaton is still
needed. The following sections explain how to generate and read the
detailed structural description of the automaton. There are several formats
available:
@itemize @minus
@item
as text, see @ref{Understanding};
@item
as a graph, see @ref{Graphviz};
@item
or as a markup report that can be turned, for instance, into HTML, see
@ref{Xml}.
@end itemize
The last section focuses on the dynamic part of the parser: how to enable
and understand the parser run-time traces (@pxref{Tracing}).
@menu
* Counterexamples:: Understanding conflicts.
* Understanding:: Understanding the structure of your parser.
* Graphviz:: Getting a visual representation of the parser.
* Xml:: Getting a markup representation of the parser.
* Tracing:: Tracing the execution of your parser.
@end menu
@node Counterexamples
@section Generation of Counterexamples
@cindex cex
@cindex counterexamples
@cindex conflict counterexamples
Solving conflicts is probably the most delicate part of the design of an LR
parser, as demonstrated by the number of sections devoted to them in this
very documentation. To solve a conflict, one must understand it: when does
it occur? Is it because of a flaw in the grammar? Is it rather because
LR(1) cannot cope with this grammar?
One difficulty is that conflicts occur in the @emph{automaton}, and it can
be tricky to relate them to issues in the @emph{grammar} itself. With
experience and patience, analysis of the detailed description of the
automaton (@pxref{Understanding}) allows one to find example strings that
reach these conflicts.
That task is made much easier thanks to the generation of counterexamples,
initially developed by Chinawat Isradisaikul and Andrew Myers
@pcite{Isradisaikul 2015}.
As a first example, see the grammar of @ref{Shift/Reduce}, which features
one shift/reduce conflict:
@c see doc/else.y
@example
$ @kbd{bison else.y}
else.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 shift/reduce conflict [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-sr}]
else.y: @dnotice{note}: rerun with option '-Wcounterexamples' to generate conflict counterexamples
@end example
@noindent
Let's rerun @command{bison} with the option
@option{-Wcex}/@option{-Wcounterexamples}@inlinefmt{info, (the following
output is actually in color)}:
@example
else.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 shift/reduce conflict [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-sr}]
else.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token "else" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
@danglingElseCex
@end example
This shows two different derivations for one single expression, which proves
that the grammar is ambiguous.
@sp 1
As a more delicate example, consider the example grammar of
@ref{Reduce/Reduce}, which features a reduce/reduce conflict:
@c doc/sequence.y
@example
%%
sequence:
%empty
| maybeword
| sequence "word"
;
maybeword:
%empty
| "word"
;
@end example
Bison generates the following counterexamples:
@example
@group
$ @kbd{bison -Wcex sequence.y}
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 shift/reduce conflict [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-sr}]
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: 2 reduce/reduce conflicts [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-rr}]
@end group
@ifnottex
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•} @green{"word"}
Shift derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{↳ 5:} @red{•} @green{"word"}
Example: @red{•} @yellow{"word"}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 3:} @green{sequence} @yellow{"word"}
@green{↳ 1:} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: reduce/reduce conflict on tokens $end, "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•}
First reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 1:} @red{•}
Example: @red{•}
Second reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{↳ 4:} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•} @green{"word"}
Shift derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{↳ 5:} @red{•} @green{"word"}
Example: @red{•} @yellow{"word"}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{↳ 3:} @green{sequence} @yellow{"word"}
@green{↳ 2:} @blue{maybeword}
@blue{↳ 4:} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y:8.3-45: @dwarning{warning}: rule useless in parser due to conflicts [@dwarning{-Wother}]
8 | @dwarning{%empty @{ printf ("empty maybeword\n"); @}}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
@end group
@end ifnottex
@iftex
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•} @green{"word"}
Shift derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{@arrow{} 5:} @red{•} @green{"word"}
Example: @red{•} @yellow{"word"}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 3:} @green{sequence} @yellow{"word"}
@green{@arrow{} 1:} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: reduce/reduce conflict on tokens $end, "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•}
First reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 1:} @red{•}
Example: @red{•}
Second reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{@arrow{}: 4} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token "word" [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
Example: @red{•} @green{"word"}
Shift derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 2:} @green{maybeword}
@green{@arrow{} 5:} @red{•} @green{"word"}
Example: @red{•} @yellow{"word"}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{sequence}
@yellow{@arrow{} 3:} @green{sequence} @yellow{"word"}
@green{@arrow{} 2:} @blue{maybeword}
@blue{@arrow{} 4:} @red{•}
@end group
@group
sequence.y:8.3-45: @dwarning{warning}: rule useless in parser due to conflicts [@dwarning{-Wother}]
8 | @dwarning{%empty @{ printf ("empty maybeword\n"); @}}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
@end group
@end iftex
@end example
Each of these three conflicts, again, prove that the grammar is ambiguous.
For instance, the second conflict (the reduce/reduce one) shows that the
grammar accepts the empty input in two different ways.
@sp 1
Sometimes, the search will not find an example that can be derived in two
ways. In these cases, counterexample generation will provide two examples
that are the same up until the dot. Most notably, this will happen when
your grammar requires a stronger parser (more lookahead, LR instead of
LALR). The following example isn't LR(1):
@c doc/ids.y
@example
%token ID
%%
s: a ID
a: expr
expr: %empty | expr ID ','
@end example
@command{bison} reports:
@example
ids.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 shift/reduce conflict [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-sr}]
ids.y: @dwarning{warning}: shift/reduce conflict on token ID [@dwarning{-Wcounterexamples}]
@ifnottex
@group
First example: @purple{expr} @red{•} @purple{ID ','} @green{ID} @yellow{$end}
Shift derivation
@yellow{$accept}
@yellow{↳ 0:} @green{s} @yellow{$end}
@green{↳ 1:} @blue{a} @green{ID}
@blue{↳ 2:} @purple{expr}
@purple{↳ 4: expr} @red{•} @purple{ID ','}
Second example: @blue{expr} @red{•} @green{ID} @yellow{$end}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{$accept}
@yellow{↳ 0:} @green{s} @yellow{$end}
@green{↳ 1:} @blue{a} @green{ID}
@blue{↳ 2: expr} @red{•}
@end group
@group
ids.y:4.4-7: @dwarning{warning}: rule useless in parser due to conflicts [@dwarning{-Wother}]
4 | a: expr
| ^~~~
@end group
@end ifnottex
@iftex
@group
First example: @purple{expr} @red{•} @purple{ID ','} @green{ID} @yellow{$end}
Shift derivation
@yellow{$accept}
@yellow{@arrow{} 0:} @green{s} @yellow{$end}
@green{@arrow{} 1:} @blue{a} @green{ID}
@blue{@arrow{} 2:} @purple{expr}
@purple{@arrow{} 4: expr} @red{•} @purple{ID ','}
Second example: @blue{expr} @red{•} @green{ID} @yellow{$end}
Reduce derivation
@yellow{$accept}
@yellow{@arrow{} 0:} @green{s} @yellow{$end}
@green{@arrow{} 1:} @blue{a} @green{ID}
@blue{@arrow{} 2: expr} @red{•}
@end group
@group
ids.y:4.4-7: @dwarning{warning}: rule useless in parser due to conflicts [@dwarning{-Wother}]
4 | a: expr
| ^~~~
@end group
@end iftex
@end example
This conflict is caused by the parser not having enough information to know
the difference between these two examples. The parser would need an
additional lookahead token to know whether or not a comma follows the
@code{ID} after @code{expr}. These types of conflicts tend to be more
difficult to fix, and usually need a rework of the grammar. In this case,
it can be fixed by changing around the recursion: @code{expr: ID | ',' expr
ID}.
Alternatively, you might also want to consider using a GLR parser
(@pxref{GLR Parsers}).
@sp 1
On occasions, it is useful to look at counterexamples @emph{in situ}: with
the automaton report (@xref{Understanding}, in particular @ref{state-8,,
State 8}).
@node Understanding
@section Understanding Your Parser
Bison parsers are @dfn{shift/reduce automata} (@pxref{Algorithm}). In some
cases (much more frequent than one would hope), looking at this automaton is
required to tune or simply fix a parser.
The textual file is generated when the options @option{--report} or
@option{--verbose} are specified, see @ref{Invocation}. Its name is made by
removing @samp{.tab.c} or @samp{.c} from the parser implementation file
name, and adding @samp{.output} instead. Therefore, if the grammar file is
@file{foo.y}, then the parser implementation file is called @file{foo.tab.c}
by default. As a consequence, the verbose output file is called
@file{foo.output}.
The following grammar file, @file{calc.y}, will be used in the sequel:
@c doc/calc.y
@example
@group
%union
@{
int ival;
const char *sval;
@}
@end group
@group
%token <ival> NUM
%nterm <ival> exp
@end group
@group
%token <sval> STR
%nterm <sval> useless
@end group
@group
%left '+' '-'
%left '*'
@end group
%%
@group
exp:
exp '+' exp
| exp '-' exp
| exp '*' exp
| exp '/' exp
| NUM
;
@end group
useless: STR;
%%
@end example
@command{bison} reports:
@smallexample
calc.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 nonterminal useless in grammar [@dwarning{-Wother}]
calc.y: @dwarning{warning}: 1 rule useless in grammar [@dwarning{-Wother}]
calc.y:19.1-7: @dwarning{warning}: nonterminal useless in grammar: useless [@dwarning{-Wother}]
19 | @dwarning{useless: STR;}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~}
calc.y: @dwarning{warning}: 7 shift/reduce conflicts [@dwarning{-Wconflicts-sr}]
calc.y: @dnotice{note}: rerun with option '-Wcounterexamples' to generate conflict counterexamples
@end smallexample
Going back to the calc example, when given @option{--report=state},
in addition to @file{calc.tab.c}, it creates a file @file{calc.output}
with contents detailed below. The order of the output and the exact
presentation might vary, but the interpretation is the same.
@noindent
@cindex token, useless
@cindex useless token
@cindex nonterminal, useless
@cindex useless nonterminal
@cindex rule, useless
@cindex useless rule
The first section reports useless tokens, nonterminals and rules. Useless
nonterminals and rules are removed in order to produce a smaller parser, but
useless tokens are preserved, since they might be used by the scanner (note
the difference between ``useless'' and ``unused'' below):
@example
Nonterminals useless in grammar
useless
Terminals unused in grammar
STR
Rules useless in grammar
6 useless: STR
@end example
@noindent
The next section lists states that still have conflicts.
@example
State 8 conflicts: 1 shift/reduce
State 9 conflicts: 1 shift/reduce
State 10 conflicts: 1 shift/reduce
State 11 conflicts: 4 shift/reduce
@end example
@noindent
Then Bison reproduces the exact grammar it used:
@example
Grammar
0 $accept: exp $end
1 exp: exp '+' exp
2 | exp '-' exp
3 | exp '*' exp
4 | exp '/' exp
5 | NUM
@end example
@noindent
and reports the uses of the symbols:
@example
@group
Terminals, with rules where they appear
$end (0) 0
'*' (42) 3
'+' (43) 1
'-' (45) 2
'/' (47) 4
error (256)
NUM <ival> (258) 5
STR <sval> (259)
@end group
@group
Nonterminals, with rules where they appear
$accept (9)
on left: 0
exp <ival> (10)
on left: 1 2 3 4 5
on right: 0 1 2 3 4
@end group
@end example
@noindent
@cindex item
@cindex dotted rule
@cindex rule, dotted
Bison then proceeds onto the automaton itself, describing each state with
its set of @dfn{items}, also known as @dfn{dotted rules}. Each item is a
production rule together with a point (@samp{.}) marking the location of the
input cursor.
@example
State 0
0 $accept: • exp $end
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 2
@end example
This reads as follows: ``state 0 corresponds to being at the very
beginning of the parsing, in the initial rule, right before the start
symbol (here, @code{exp}). When the parser returns to this state right
after having reduced a rule that produced an @code{exp}, the control
flow jumps to state 2. If there is no such transition on a nonterminal
symbol, and the lookahead is a @code{NUM}, then this token is shifted onto
the parse stack, and the control flow jumps to state 1. Any other
lookahead triggers a syntax error.''
@cindex core, item set
@cindex item set core
@cindex kernel, item set
@cindex item set core
Even though the only active rule in state 0 seems to be rule 0, the
report lists @code{NUM} as a lookahead token because @code{NUM} can be
at the beginning of any rule deriving an @code{exp}. By default Bison
reports the so-called @dfn{core} or @dfn{kernel} of the item set, but if
you want to see more detail you can invoke @command{bison} with
@option{--report=itemset} to list the derived items as well:
@example
State 0
0 $accept: • exp $end
1 exp: • exp '+' exp
2 | • exp '-' exp
3 | • exp '*' exp
4 | • exp '/' exp
5 | • NUM
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 2
@end example
@noindent
In the state 1@dots{}
@example
State 1
5 exp: NUM •
$default reduce using rule 5 (exp)
@end example
@noindent
the rule 5, @samp{exp: NUM;}, is completed. Whatever the lookahead token
(@samp{$default}), the parser will reduce it. If it was coming from State
0, then, after this reduction it will return to state 0, and will jump to
state 2 (@samp{exp: go to state 2}).
@example
State 2
0 $accept: exp • $end
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
2 | exp • '-' exp
3 | exp • '*' exp
4 | exp • '/' exp
$end shift, and go to state 3
'+' shift, and go to state 4
'-' shift, and go to state 5
'*' shift, and go to state 6
'/' shift, and go to state 7
@end example
@noindent
In state 2, the automaton can only shift a symbol. For instance, because of
the item @samp{exp: exp • '+' exp}, if the lookahead is @samp{+} it is
shifted onto the parse stack, and the automaton jumps to state 4,
corresponding to the item @samp{exp: exp '+' • exp}. Since there is no
default action, any lookahead not listed triggers a syntax error.
@cindex accepting state
The state 3 is named the @dfn{final state}, or the @dfn{accepting
state}:
@example
State 3
0 $accept: exp $end •
$default accept
@end example
@noindent
the initial rule is completed (the start symbol and the end-of-input were
read), the parsing exits successfully.
The interpretation of states 4 to 7 is straightforward, and is left to
the reader.
@example
State 4
1 exp: exp '+' • exp
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 8
State 5
2 exp: exp '-' • exp
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 9
State 6
3 exp: exp '*' • exp
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 10
State 7
4 exp: exp '/' • exp
NUM shift, and go to state 1
exp go to state 11
@end example
@anchor{state-8}
As was announced in beginning of the report, @samp{State 8 conflicts:
1 shift/reduce}:
@example
State 8
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
1 | exp '+' exp •
2 | exp • '-' exp
3 | exp • '*' exp
4 | exp • '/' exp
'*' shift, and go to state 6
'/' shift, and go to state 7
'/' [reduce using rule 1 (exp)]
$default reduce using rule 1 (exp)
@end example
Indeed, there are two actions associated to the lookahead @samp{/}:
either shifting (and going to state 7), or reducing rule 1. The
conflict means that either the grammar is ambiguous, or the parser lacks
information to make the right decision. Indeed the grammar is
ambiguous, as, since we did not specify the precedence of @samp{/}, the
sentence @samp{NUM + NUM / NUM} can be parsed as @samp{NUM + (NUM /
NUM)}, which corresponds to shifting @samp{/}, or as @samp{(NUM + NUM) /
NUM}, which corresponds to reducing rule 1.
Because in deterministic parsing a single decision can be made, Bison
arbitrarily chose to disable the reduction, see @ref{Shift/Reduce}.
Discarded actions are reported between square brackets.
Note that all the previous states had a single possible action: either
shifting the next token and going to the corresponding state, or
reducing a single rule. In the other cases, i.e., when shifting
@emph{and} reducing is possible or when @emph{several} reductions are
possible, the lookahead is required to select the action. State 8 is
one such state: if the lookahead is @samp{*} or @samp{/} then the action
is shifting, otherwise the action is reducing rule 1. In other words,
the first two items, corresponding to rule 1, are not eligible when the
lookahead token is @samp{*}, since we specified that @samp{*} has higher
precedence than @samp{+}. More generally, some items are eligible only
with some set of possible lookahead tokens. When run with
@option{--report=lookahead}, Bison specifies these lookahead tokens:
@example
State 8
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
1 | exp '+' exp • [$end, '+', '-', '/']
2 | exp • '-' exp
3 | exp • '*' exp
4 | exp • '/' exp
'*' shift, and go to state 6
'/' shift, and go to state 7
'/' [reduce using rule 1 (exp)]
$default reduce using rule 1 (exp)
@end example
Note however that while @samp{NUM + NUM / NUM} is ambiguous (which results in
the conflicts on @samp{/}), @samp{NUM + NUM * NUM} is not: the conflict was
solved thanks to associativity and precedence directives. If invoked with
@option{--report=solved}, Bison includes information about the solved
conflicts in the report:
@example
Conflict between rule 1 and token '+' resolved as reduce (%left '+').
Conflict between rule 1 and token '-' resolved as reduce (%left '-').
Conflict between rule 1 and token '*' resolved as shift ('+' < '*').
@end example
When given @option{--report=counterexamples}, @command{bison} will generate
counterexamples within the report, augmented with the corresponding items
(@pxref{Counterexamples}).
@ifnottex
@example
shift/reduce conflict on token '/':
1 exp: exp '+' exp •
4 exp: exp • '/' exp
@group
Example: exp '+' exp • '/' exp
Shift derivation
exp
↳ 1: exp '+' exp
↳ 4: exp • '/' exp
Example: exp '+' exp • '/' exp
Reduce derivation
exp
↳ 4: exp '/' exp
↳ 1: exp '+' exp •
@end group
@end example
@end ifnottex
@iftex
@example
shift/reduce conflict on token '/':
1 exp: exp '+' exp •
4 exp: exp • '/' exp
@group
Example: exp '+' exp • '/' exp
Shift derivation
exp
@arrow{} 1: exp '+' exp
@arrow{} 4: exp • '/' exp
Example: exp '+' exp • '/' exp
Reduce derivation
exp
@arrow{} 4: exp '/' exp
@arrow{} 1: exp '+' exp •
@end group
@end example
@end iftex
This shows two separate derivations in the grammar for the same @code{exp}:
@samp{e1 + e2 / e3}. The derivations show how your rules would parse the
given example. Here, the first derivation completes a reduction when seeing
@samp{/}, causing @samp{e1 + e2} to be grouped as an @code{exp}. The second
derivation shifts on @samp{/}, resulting in @samp{e2 / e3} being grouped as
an @code{exp}. Therefore, it is easy to see that adding
precedence/associativity directives would fix this conflict.
The remaining states are similar:
@example
@group
State 9
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
2 | exp • '-' exp
2 | exp '-' exp •
3 | exp • '*' exp
4 | exp • '/' exp
'*' shift, and go to state 6
'/' shift, and go to state 7
'/' [reduce using rule 2 (exp)]
$default reduce using rule 2 (exp)
@end group
@group
State 10
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
2 | exp • '-' exp
3 | exp • '*' exp
3 | exp '*' exp •
4 | exp • '/' exp
'/' shift, and go to state 7
'/' [reduce using rule 3 (exp)]
$default reduce using rule 3 (exp)
@end group
@group
State 11
1 exp: exp • '+' exp
2 | exp • '-' exp
3 | exp • '*' exp
4 | exp • '/' exp
4 | exp '/' exp •
'+' shift, and go to state 4
'-' shift, and go to state 5
'*' shift, and go to state 6
'/' shift, and go to state 7
'+' [reduce using rule 4 (exp)]
'-' [reduce using rule 4 (exp)]
'*' [reduce using rule 4 (exp)]
'/' [reduce using rule 4 (exp)]
$default reduce using rule 4 (exp)
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Observe that state 11 contains conflicts not only due to the lack of
precedence of @samp{/} with respect to @samp{+}, @samp{-}, and @samp{*}, but
also because the associativity of @samp{/} is not specified.
Bison may also produce an HTML version of this output, via an XML file and
XSLT processing (@pxref{Xml}).
@c ================================================= Graphical Representation
@node Graphviz
@section Visualizing Your Parser
@cindex dot
As another means to gain better understanding of the shift/reduce
automaton corresponding to the Bison parser, a DOT file can be generated. Note
that debugging a real grammar with this is tedious at best, and impractical
most of the times, because the generated files are huge (the generation of
a PDF or PNG file from it will take very long, and more often than not it will
fail due to memory exhaustion). This option was rather designed for beginners,
to help them understand LR parsers.
This file is generated when the @option{--graph} option is specified
(@pxref{Invocation}). Its name is made by removing
@samp{.tab.c} or @samp{.c} from the parser implementation file name, and
adding @samp{.gv} instead. If the grammar file is @file{foo.y}, the
Graphviz output file is called @file{foo.gv}. A DOT file may also be
produced via an XML file and XSLT processing (@pxref{Xml}).
The following grammar file, @file{rr.y}, will be used in the sequel:
@example
%%
@group
exp: a ";" | b ".";
a: "0";
b: "0";
@end group
@end example
The graphical output
@ifnotinfo
(see @ref{fig:graph})
@end ifnotinfo
is very similar to the textual one, and as such it is easier understood by
making direct comparisons between them. @xref{Debugging}, for a detailed
analysis of the textual report.
@ifnotinfo
@float Figure,fig:graph
@center @image{figs/example, 430pt,,,.svg}
@caption{A graphical rendering of the parser.}
@end float
@end ifnotinfo
@subheading Graphical Representation of States
The items (dotted rules) for each state are grouped together in graph nodes.
Their numbering is the same as in the verbose file. See the following
points, about transitions, for examples
When invoked with @option{--report=lookaheads}, the lookahead tokens, when
needed, are shown next to the relevant rule between square brackets as a
comma separated list. This is the case in the figure for the representation of
reductions, below.
@sp 1
The transitions are represented as directed edges between the current and
the target states.
@subheading Graphical Representation of Shifts
Shifts are shown as solid arrows, labeled with the lookahead token for that
shift. The following describes a reduction in the @file{rr.output} file:
@example
@group
State 3
1 exp: a • ";"
";" shift, and go to state 6
@end group
@end example
A Graphviz rendering of this portion of the graph could be:
@center @image{figs/example-shift, 100pt,,,.svg}
@subheading Graphical Representation of Reductions
Reductions are shown as solid arrows, leading to a diamond-shaped node
bearing the number of the reduction rule. The arrow is labeled with the
appropriate comma separated lookahead tokens. If the reduction is the default
action for the given state, there is no such label.
This is how reductions are represented in the verbose file @file{rr.output}:
@example
State 1
3 a: "0" • [";"]
4 b: "0" • ["."]
"." reduce using rule 4 (b)
$default reduce using rule 3 (a)
@end example
A Graphviz rendering of this portion of the graph could be:
@center @image{figs/example-reduce, 120pt,,,.svg}
When unresolved conflicts are present, because in deterministic parsing
a single decision can be made, Bison can arbitrarily choose to disable a
reduction, see @ref{Shift/Reduce}. Discarded actions
are distinguished by a red filling color on these nodes, just like how they are
reported between square brackets in the verbose file.
The reduction corresponding to the rule number 0 is the acceptation
state. It is shown as a blue diamond, labeled ``Acc''.
@subheading Graphical Representation of Gotos
The @samp{go to} jump transitions are represented as dotted lines bearing
the name of the rule being jumped to.
@c ================================================= XML
@node Xml
@section Visualizing your parser in multiple formats
@cindex xml
Bison supports two major report formats: textual output
(@pxref{Understanding}) when invoked
with option @option{--verbose}, and DOT
(@pxref{Graphviz}) when invoked with
option @option{--graph}. However,
another alternative is to output an XML file that may then be, with
@command{xsltproc}, rendered as either a raw text format equivalent to the
verbose file, or as an HTML version of the same file, with clickable
transitions, or even as a DOT. The @file{.output} and DOT files obtained via
XSLT have no difference whatsoever with those obtained by invoking
@command{bison} with options @option{--verbose} or @option{--graph}.
The XML file is generated when the options @option{-x} or
@option{--xml[=FILE]} are specified, see @ref{Invocation}.
If not specified, its name is made by removing @samp{.tab.c} or @samp{.c}
from the parser implementation file name, and adding @samp{.xml} instead.
For instance, if the grammar file is @file{foo.y}, the default XML output
file is @file{foo.xml}.
Bison ships with a @file{data/xslt} directory, containing XSL Transformation
files to apply to the XML file. Their names are non-ambiguous:
@table @file
@item xml2dot.xsl
Used to output a copy of the DOT visualization of the automaton.
@item xml2text.xsl
Used to output a copy of the @samp{.output} file.
@item xml2xhtml.xsl
Used to output an xhtml enhancement of the @samp{.output} file.
@end table
Sample usage (requires @command{xsltproc}):
@example
$ @kbd{bison -x gr.y}
@group
$ @kbd{bison --print-datadir}
/usr/local/share/bison
@end group
$ @kbd{xsltproc /usr/local/share/bison/xslt/xml2xhtml.xsl gr.xml >gr.html}
@end example
@c ================================================= Tracing
@node Tracing
@section Tracing Your Parser
@findex yydebug
@cindex debugging
@cindex tracing the parser
When a Bison grammar compiles properly but parses ``incorrectly'', the
@code{yydebug} parser-trace feature helps figuring out why.
@menu
* Enabling Traces:: Activating run-time trace support
* Mfcalc Traces:: Extending @code{mfcalc} to support traces
@end menu
@node Enabling Traces
@subsection Enabling Traces
There are several means to enable compilation of trace facilities, in
decreasing order of preference:
@table @asis
@item the variable @samp{parse.trace}
@findex %define parse.trace
Add the @samp{%define parse.trace} directive (@pxref{%define
Summary}), or pass the @option{-Dparse.trace} option
(@pxref{Tuning the Parser}). This is a Bison extension. Unless POSIX and
Yacc portability matter to you, this is the preferred solution.
@item the option @option{-t} (POSIX Yacc compliant)
@itemx the option @option{--debug} (Bison extension)
Use the @option{-t} option when you run Bison (@pxref{Invocation}). With
@samp{%define api.prefix @{c@}}, it defines @code{CDEBUG} to 1, otherwise it
defines @code{YYDEBUG} to 1.
@item the directive @samp{%debug} (deprecated)
@findex %debug
Add the @code{%debug} directive (@pxref{Decl Summary}). This Bison
extension is maintained for backward compatibility; use @code{%define
parse.trace} instead.
@item the macro @code{YYDEBUG} (C/C++ only)
@findex YYDEBUG
Define the macro @code{YYDEBUG} to a nonzero value when you compile the
parser. This is compliant with POSIX Yacc. You could use
@option{-DYYDEBUG=1} as a compiler option or you could put @samp{#define
YYDEBUG 1} in the prologue of the grammar file (@pxref{Prologue}).
If the @code{%define} variable @code{api.prefix} is used (@pxref{Multiple
Parsers}), for instance @samp{%define
api.prefix @{c@}}, then if @code{CDEBUG} is defined, its value controls the
tracing feature (enabled if and only if nonzero); otherwise tracing is
enabled if and only if @code{YYDEBUG} is nonzero.
In C++, where POSIX compliance makes no sense, avoid this option, and prefer
@samp{%define parse.trace}. If you @code{#define} the @code{YYDEBUG} macro
at the wrong place (e.g., in @samp{%code top} instead of @samp{%code
require}), the parser class will have two different definitions, thus
leading to ODR violations and happy debugging times.
@end table
We suggest that you always enable the trace option so that debugging is
always possible.
@findex YYFPRINTF
In C the trace facility outputs messages with macro calls of the form
@code{YYFPRINTF (stderr, @var{format}, @var{args})} where @var{format} and
@var{args} are the usual @code{printf} format and variadic arguments. If
you define @code{YYDEBUG} to a nonzero value but do not define
@code{YYFPRINTF}, @code{<stdio.h>} is automatically included and
@code{YYFPRINTF} is defined to @code{fprintf}.
Once you have compiled the program with trace facilities, the way to request
a trace is to store a nonzero value in the variable @code{yydebug}. You can
do this by making the C code do it (in @code{main}, perhaps), or you can
alter the value with a C debugger.
Each step taken by the parser when @code{yydebug} is nonzero produces a line
or two of trace information, written on @code{stderr}. The trace messages
tell you these things:
@itemize @bullet
@item
Each time the parser calls @code{yylex}, what kind of token was read.
@item
Each time a token is shifted, the depth and complete contents of the state
stack (@pxref{Parser States}).
@item
Each time a rule is reduced, which rule it is, and the complete contents of
the state stack afterward.
@end itemize
To make sense of this information, it helps to refer to the automaton
description file (@pxref{Understanding}). This
file shows the meaning of each state in terms of positions in various rules,
and also what each state will do with each possible input token. As you
read the successive trace messages, you can see that the parser is
functioning according to its specification in the listing file. Eventually
you will arrive at the place where something undesirable happens, and you
will see which parts of the grammar are to blame.
The parser implementation file is a C/C++/D/Java program and you can use
debuggers on it, but it's not easy to interpret what it is doing. The
parser function is a finite-state machine interpreter, and aside from the
actions it executes the same code over and over. Only the values of
variables show where in the grammar it is working.
@node Mfcalc Traces
@subsection Enabling Debug Traces for @code{mfcalc}
The debugging information normally gives the token kind of each token read,
but not its semantic value. The @code{%printer} directive allows specify
how semantic values are reported, see @ref{Printer Decl}.
As a demonstration of @code{%printer}, consider the multi-function
calculator, @code{mfcalc} (@pxref{Multi-function Calc}). To enable run-time
traces, and semantic value reports, insert the following directives in its
prologue:
@comment file: c/mfcalc/mfcalc.y: 2
@example
/* Generate the parser description file. */
%verbose
/* Enable run-time traces (yydebug). */
%define parse.trace
/* Formatting semantic values. */
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "%s", $$->name); @} VAR;
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "%s()", $$->name); @} FUN;
%printer @{ fprintf (yyo, "%g", $$); @} <double>;
@end example
The @code{%define} directive instructs Bison to generate run-time trace
support. Then, activation of these traces is controlled at run-time by the
@code{yydebug} variable, which is disabled by default. Because these traces
will refer to the ``states'' of the parser, it is helpful to ask for the
creation of a description of that parser; this is the purpose of (admittedly
ill-named) @code{%verbose} directive.
The set of @code{%printer} directives demonstrates how to format the
semantic value in the traces. Note that the specification can be done
either on the symbol type (e.g., @code{VAR} or @code{FUN}), or on the type
tag: since @code{<double>} is the type for both @code{NUM} and @code{exp},
this printer will be used for them.
Here is a sample of the information provided by run-time traces. The traces
are sent onto standard error.
@example
$ @kbd{echo 'sin(1-1)' | ./mfcalc -p}
Starting parse
Entering state 0
Reducing stack by rule 1 (line 34):
-> $$ = nterm input ()
Stack now 0
Entering state 1
@end example
@noindent
This first batch shows a specific feature of this grammar: the first rule
(which is in line 34 of @file{mfcalc.y} can be reduced without even having
to look for the first token. The resulting left-hand symbol (@code{$$}) is
a valueless (@samp{()}) @code{input} nonterminal (@code{nterm}).
Then the parser calls the scanner.
@example
Reading a token
Next token is token FUN (sin())
Shifting token FUN (sin())
Entering state 6
@end example
@noindent
That token (@code{token}) is a function (@code{FUN}) whose value is
@samp{sin} as formatted per our @code{%printer} specification: @samp{sin()}.
The parser stores (@code{Shifting}) that token, and others, until it can do
something about it.
@example
Reading a token
Next token is token '(' ()
Shifting token '(' ()
Entering state 14
Reading a token
Next token is token NUM (1.000000)
Shifting token NUM (1.000000)
Entering state 4
Reducing stack by rule 6 (line 44):
$1 = token NUM (1.000000)
-> $$ = nterm exp (1.000000)
Stack now 0 1 6 14
Entering state 24
@end example
@noindent
The previous reduction demonstrates the @code{%printer} directive for
@code{<double>}: both the token @code{NUM} and the resulting nonterminal
@code{exp} have @samp{1} as value.
@example
Reading a token
Next token is token '-' ()
Shifting token '-' ()
Entering state 17
Reading a token
Next token is token NUM (1.000000)
Shifting token NUM (1.000000)
Entering state 4
Reducing stack by rule 6 (line 44):
$1 = token NUM (1.000000)
-> $$ = nterm exp (1.000000)
Stack now 0 1 6 14 24 17
Entering state 26
Reading a token
Next token is token ')' ()
Reducing stack by rule 11 (line 49):
$1 = nterm exp (1.000000)
$2 = token '-' ()
$3 = nterm exp (1.000000)
-> $$ = nterm exp (0.000000)
Stack now 0 1 6 14
Entering state 24
@end example
@noindent
The rule for the subtraction was just reduced. The parser is about to
discover the end of the call to @code{sin}.
@example
Next token is token ')' ()
Shifting token ')' ()
Entering state 31
Reducing stack by rule 9 (line 47):
$1 = token FUN (sin())
$2 = token '(' ()
$3 = nterm exp (0.000000)
$4 = token ')' ()
-> $$ = nterm exp (0.000000)
Stack now 0 1
Entering state 11
@end example
@noindent
Finally, the end-of-line allow the parser to complete the computation, and
display its result.
@example
Reading a token
Next token is token '\n' ()
Shifting token '\n' ()
Entering state 22
Reducing stack by rule 4 (line 40):
$1 = nterm exp (0.000000)
$2 = token '\n' ()
@result{} 0
-> $$ = nterm line ()
Stack now 0 1
Entering state 10
Reducing stack by rule 2 (line 35):
$1 = nterm input ()
$2 = nterm line ()
-> $$ = nterm input ()
Stack now 0
Entering state 1
@end example
The parser has returned into state 1, in which it is waiting for the next
expression to evaluate, or for the end-of-file token, which causes the
completion of the parsing.
@example
Reading a token
Now at end of input.
Shifting token $end ()
Entering state 2
Stack now 0 1 2
Cleanup: popping token $end ()
Cleanup: popping nterm input ()
@end example
@c ================================================= Invoking Bison
@node Invocation
@chapter Invoking Bison
@cindex invoking Bison
@cindex Bison invocation
@cindex options for invoking Bison
The usual way to invoke Bison is as follows:
@example
$ @kbd{bison @var{file}}
@end example
Here @var{file} is the grammar file name, which usually ends in @samp{.y}.
The parser implementation file's name is made by replacing the @samp{.y}
with @samp{.tab.c} and removing any leading directory. Thus, the
@samp{bison foo.y} file name yields @file{foo.tab.c}, and the @samp{bison
hack/foo.y} file name yields @file{foo.tab.c}. It's also possible, in case
you are writing C++ code instead of C in your grammar file, to name it
@file{foo.ypp} or @file{foo.y++}. Then, the output files will take an
extension like the given one as input (respectively @file{foo.tab.cpp} and
@file{foo.tab.c++}). This feature takes effect with all options that
manipulate file names like @option{-o} or @option{-d}.
For example:
@example
$ @kbd{bison -d @var{file.yxx}}
@end example
@noindent
will produce @file{file.tab.cxx} and @file{file.tab.hxx}, and
@example
$ @kbd{bison -d -o @var{output.c++} @var{file.y}}
@end example
@noindent
will produce @file{output.c++} and @file{output.h++}.
For compatibility with POSIX, the standard Bison distribution also contains
a shell script called @command{yacc} that invokes Bison with the @option{-y}
option.
@sp 1
The exit status of @command{bison} is:
@table @asis
@item 0 (success)
when there were no errors. Warnings, which are diagnostics about dubious
constructs, do not change the exit status, unless they are turned into
errors (@pxref{Werror,,@option{-Werror}}).
@item 1 (failure)
when there were errors. No file was generated (except the reports generated
by @option{--verbose}, etc.). In particular, the output files that possibly
existed were not changed.
@item 63 (mismatch)
when @command{bison} does not meet the version requirements of the grammar
file. @xref{Require Decl}. No file was generated or changed.
@end table
@menu
* Bison Options:: All the options described in detail,
in alphabetical order by short options.
* Option Cross Key:: Alphabetical list of long options.
* Yacc Library:: Yacc-compatible @code{yylex} and @code{main}.
@end menu
@node Bison Options
@section Bison Options
Bison supports both traditional single-letter options and mnemonic long
option names. Long option names are indicated with @option{--} instead of
@option{-}. Abbreviations for option names are allowed as long as they
are unique. When a long option takes an argument, like
@option{--file-prefix}, connect the option name and the argument with
@samp{=}.
Here is a list of options that can be used with Bison. It is followed by a
cross key alphabetized by long option.
@menu
* Operation Modes:: Options controlling the global behavior of @command{bison}
* Diagnostics:: Options controlling the diagnostics
* Tuning the Parser:: Options changing the generated parsers
* Output Files:: Options controlling the output
@end menu
@node Operation Modes
@subsection Operation Modes
Options controlling the global behavior of @command{bison}.
@c Please, keep this ordered as in 'bison --help'.
@table @option
@item -h
@itemx --help
Print a summary of the command-line options to Bison and exit.
@item -V
@itemx --version
Print the version number of Bison and exit.
@item --print-localedir
Print the name of the directory containing locale-dependent data.
@item --print-datadir
Print the name of the directory containing skeletons, CSS and XSLT.
@item -u
@item --update
Update the grammar file (remove duplicates, update deprecated directives,
etc.) and exit (i.e., do not generate any of the output files). Leaves a
backup of the original file with a @code{~} appended. For instance:
@example
@group
$ @kbd{cat foo.y}
%error-verbose
%define parse.error verbose
%%
exp:;
@end group
@group
$ @kbd{bison -u foo.y}
foo.y:1.1-14: @dwarning{warning}: deprecated directive, use '%define parse.error verbose' [@dwarning{-Wdeprecated}]
1 | @dwarning{%error-verbose}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
foo.y:2.1-27: @dwarning{warning}: %define variable 'parse.error' redefined [@dwarning{-Wother}]
2 | @dwarning{%define parse.error verbose}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
foo.y:1.1-14: previous definition
1 | @dnotice{%error-verbose}
| @dnotice{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
bison: file 'foo.y' was updated (backup: 'foo.y~')
@end group
@group
$ @kbd{cat foo.y}
%define parse.error verbose
%%
exp:;
@end group
@end example
See the documentation of @option{--feature=fixit} below for more details.
@item -f [@var{feature}]
@itemx --feature[=@var{feature}]
Activate miscellaneous @var{feature}s. @var{Feature} can be one of:
@table @code
@item caret
@itemx diagnostics-show-caret
Show caret errors, in a manner similar to GCC's
@option{-fdiagnostics-show-caret}, or Clang's
@option{-fcaret-diagnostics}. The location provided with the message is used
to quote the corresponding line of the source file, underlining the
important part of it with carets (@samp{^}). Here is an example, using the
following file @file{in.y}:
@example
%nterm <ival> exp
%%
exp: exp '+' exp @{ $exp = $1 + $2; @};
@end example
When invoked with @option{-fcaret} (or nothing), Bison will report:
@example
@group
in.y:3.20-23: @derror{error}: ambiguous reference: '$exp'
3 | exp: exp '+' exp @{ @derror{$exp} = $1 + $2; @};
| @derror{^~~~}
@end group
@group
in.y:3.1-3: refers to: $exp at $$
3 | @dnotice{exp}: exp '+' exp @{ $exp = $1 + $2; @};
| @dnotice{^~~}
@end group
@group
in.y:3.6-8: refers to: $exp at $1
3 | exp: @dnotice{exp} '+' exp @{ $exp = $1 + $2; @};
| @dnotice{^~~}
@end group
@group
in.y:3.14-16: refers to: $exp at $3
3 | exp: exp '+' @dnotice{exp} @{ $exp = $1 + $2; @};
| @dnotice{^~~}
@end group
@group
in.y:3.32-33: @derror{error}: $2 of 'exp' has no declared type
3 | exp: exp '+' exp @{ $exp = $1 + @derror{$2}; @};
| @derror{^~}
@end group
@end example
Whereas, when invoked with @option{-fno-caret}, Bison will only report:
@example
@group
in.y:3.20-23: @derror{error}: ambiguous reference: '$exp'
in.y:3.1-3: refers to: $exp at $$
in.y:3.6-8: refers to: $exp at $1
in.y:3.14-16: refers to: $exp at $3
in.y:3.32-33: @derror{error}: $2 of 'exp' has no declared type
@end group
@end example
This option is activated by default.
@item fixit
@itemx diagnostics-parseable-fixits
Show machine-readable fixes, in a manner similar to GCC's and Clang's
@option{-fdiagnostics-parseable-fixits}.
Fix-its are generated for duplicate directives:
@example
@group
$ @kbd{cat foo.y}
%define api.prefix @{foo@}
%define api.prefix @{bar@}
%%
exp:;
@end group
@group
$ @kbd{bison -ffixit foo.y}
foo.y:2.1-24: @derror{error}: %define variable 'api.prefix' redefined
2 | @derror{%define api.prefix @{bar@}}
| @derror{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
foo.y:1.1-24: previous definition
1 | @dnotice{%define api.prefix @{foo@}}
| @dnotice{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
fix-it:"foo.y":@{2:1-2:25@}:""
foo.y: @dwarning{warning}: fix-its can be applied. Rerun with option '--update'. [@dwarning{-Wother}]
@end group
@end example
They are also generated to update deprecated directives, unless
@option{-Wno-deprecated} was given:
@example
@group
$ @kbd{cat /tmp/foo.yy}
%error-verbose
%name-prefix "foo"
%%
exp:;
@end group
@group
$ @kbd{bison foo.y}
foo.y:1.1-14: @dwarning{warning}: deprecated directive, use '%define parse.error verbose' [@dwarning{-Wdeprecated}]
1 | @dwarning{%error-verbose}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
foo.y:2.1-18: @dwarning{warning}: deprecated directive, use '%define api.prefix @{foo@}' [@dwarning{-Wdeprecated}]
2 | @dwarning{%name-prefix "foo"}
| @dwarning{^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}
foo.y: @dwarning{warning}: fix-its can be applied. Rerun with option '--update'. [@dwarning{-Wother}]
@end group
@end example
The fix-its are applied by @command{bison} itself when given the option
@option{-u}/@option{--update}. See its documentation above.
@item syntax-only
Do not generate the output files. The name of this feature is somewhat
misleading as more than just checking the syntax is done: every stage is run
(including checking for conflicts for instance), except the generation of
the output files.
@end table
@end table
@node Diagnostics
@subsection Diagnostics
Options controlling the diagnostics.
@c Please, keep this ordered as in 'bison --help'.
@table @code
@item -W [@var{category}]
@itemx --warnings[=@var{category}]
Output warnings falling in @var{category}. @var{category} can be one
of:
@table @code
@item @anchor{Wconflicts-sr}conflicts-sr
@itemx @anchor{Wconflicts-rr}conflicts-rr
S/R and R/R conflicts. These warnings are enabled by default. However, if
the @code{%expect} or @code{%expect-rr} directive is specified, an
unexpected number of conflicts is an error, and an expected number of
conflicts is not reported, so @option{-W} and @option{--warning} then have
no effect on the conflict report.
@item @anchor{Wcounterexamples}counterexamples
@itemx cex
Provide counterexamples for conflicts. @xref{Counterexamples}.
Counterexamples take time to compute. The option @option{-Wcex} should be
used by the developer when working on the grammar; it hardly makes sense to
use it in a CI.
@item @anchor{Wdangling-alias}dangling-alias
Report string literals that are not bound to a token symbol.
String literals, which allow for better error messages, are (too) liberally
accepted by Bison, which might result in silent errors. For instance
@example
%type <exVal> cond "condition"
@end example
@noindent
does not define ``condition'' as a string alias to @code{cond}---nonterminal
symbols do not have string aliases. It is rather equivalent to
@example
%nterm <exVal> cond
%token <exVal> "condition"
@end example
@noindent
i.e., it gives the @samp{"condition"} token the type @code{exVal}.
Also, because string aliases do not need to be defined, typos such as
@samp{"baz"} instead of @samp{"bar"} will be not reported.
The option @option{-Wdangling-alias} catches these situations. On
@example
%token BAR "bar"
%type <ival> foo "foo"
%%
foo: "baz" @{@}
@end example
@noindent
@samp{bison -Wdangling-alias} reports
@example
@dwarning{warning}: string literal not attached to a symbol
| %type <ival> foo @dwarning{"foo"}
| @dwarning{^~~~~}
@dwarning{warning}: string literal not attached to a symbol
| foo: @dwarning{"baz"} @{@}
| @dwarning{^~~~~}
@end example
@item @anchor{Wdeprecated}deprecated
Deprecated constructs whose support will be removed in future versions of
Bison.
@item @anchor{Wempty-rule}empty-rule
Empty rules without @code{%empty}. @xref{Empty Rules}. Disabled by
default, but enabled by uses of @code{%empty}, unless
@option{-Wno-empty-rule} was specified.
@item @anchor{Wmidrule-values}midrule-values
Warn about midrule values that are set but not used within any of the actions
of the parent rule.
For example, warn about unused @code{$2} in:
@example
exp: '1' @{ $$ = 1; @} '+' exp @{ $$ = $1 + $4; @};
@end example
Also warn about midrule values that are used but not set.
For example, warn about unset @code{$$} in the midrule action in:
@example
exp: '1' @{ $1 = 1; @} '+' exp @{ $$ = $2 + $4; @};
@end example
These warnings are not enabled by default since they sometimes prove to
be false alarms in existing grammars employing the Yacc constructs
@code{$0} or @code{$-@var{n}} (where @var{n} is some positive integer).
@item @anchor{Wprecedence}precedence
Useless precedence and associativity directives. Disabled by default.
Consider for instance the following grammar:
@example
@group
%nonassoc "="
%left "+"
%left "*"
%precedence "("
@end group
%%
@group
stmt:
exp
| "var" "=" exp
;
@end group
@group
exp:
exp "+" exp
| exp "*" "number"
| "(" exp ")"
| "number"
;
@end group
@end example
Bison reports:
@c cannot leave the location and the [-Wprecedence] for lack of
@c width in PDF.
@example
@group
@dwarning{warning}: useless precedence and associativity for "="
| %nonassoc @dwarning{"="}
| @dwarning{^~~}
@end group
@group
@dwarning{warning}: useless associativity for "*", use %precedence
| %left @dwarning{"*"}
| @dwarning{^~~}
@end group
@group
@dwarning{warning}: useless precedence for "("
| %precedence @dwarning{"("}
| @dwarning{^~~}
@end group
@end example
One would get the exact same parser with the following directives instead:
@example
@group
%left "+"
%precedence "*"
@end group
@end example
@item @anchor{Wyacc}yacc
Incompatibilities with POSIX Yacc.
@item @anchor{Wother}other
All warnings not categorized above. These warnings are enabled by default.
This category is provided merely for the sake of completeness. Future
releases of Bison may move warnings from this category to new, more specific
categories.
@item @anchor{Wall}all
All the warnings except @code{counterexamples}, @code{dangling-alias} and
@code{yacc}.
@item @anchor{Wnone}none
Turn off all the warnings.
@item error
See @option{-Werror}, below.
@end table
A category can be turned off by prefixing its name with @samp{no-}. For
instance, @option{-Wno-yacc} will hide the warnings about
POSIX Yacc incompatibilities.
@item @anchor{Werror}-Werror
Turn enabled warnings for every @var{category} into errors, unless they are
explicitly disabled by @option{-Wno-error=@var{category}}.
@item -Werror=@var{category}
Enable warnings falling in @var{category}, and treat them as errors.
@var{category} is the same as for @option{--warnings}, with the exception that
it may not be prefixed with @samp{no-} (see above).
Note that the precedence of the @samp{=} and @samp{,} operators is such that
the following commands are @emph{not} equivalent, as the first will not treat
S/R conflicts as errors.
@example
$ @kbd{bison -Werror=yacc,conflicts-sr input.y}
$ @kbd{bison -Werror=yacc,error=conflicts-sr input.y}
@end example
@item -Wno-error
Do not turn enabled warnings for every @var{category} into errors, unless
they are explicitly enabled by @option{-Werror=@var{category}}.
@item -Wno-error=@var{category}
Deactivate the error treatment for this @var{category}. However, the warning
itself won't be disabled, or enabled, by this option.
@item --color
Equivalent to @option{--color=always}.
@item --color=@var{when}
Control whether diagnostics are colorized, depending on @var{when}:
@table @code
@item always
@itemx yes
Enable colorized diagnostics.
@item never
@itemx no
Disable colorized diagnostics.
@item auto @r{(default)}
@itemx tty
Diagnostics will be colorized if the output device is a tty, i.e. when the
output goes directly to a text screen or terminal emulator window.
@end table
@item --style=@var{file}
Specifies the CSS style @var{file} to use when colorizing. It has an effect
only when the @option{--color} option is effective. The
@file{bison-default.css} file provide a good example from which to define
your own style file. See the documentation of libtextstyle for more
details.
@end table
@node Tuning the Parser
@subsection Tuning the Parser
Options changing the generated parsers.
@c Please, keep this ordered as in 'bison --help'.
@table @option
@item -t
@itemx --debug
In the parser implementation file, define the macro @code{YYDEBUG} to 1 if
it is not already defined, so that the debugging facilities are compiled.
@xref{Tracing}.
@item -D @var{name}[=@var{value}]
@itemx --define=@var{name}[=@var{value}]
@itemx -F @var{name}[=@var{value}]
@itemx --force-define=@var{name}[=@var{value}]
Each of these is equivalent to @samp{%define @var{name} @var{value}}
(@pxref{%define Summary}). Note that the delimiters are part of
@var{value}: @option{-Dapi.value.type=union},
@option{-Dapi.value.type=@{union@}} and @option{-Dapi.value.type="union"}
correspond to @samp{%define api.value.type union}, @samp{%define
api.value.type @{union@}} and @samp{%define api.value.type "union"}.
Bison processes multiple definitions for the same @var{name} as follows:
@itemize
@item
Bison quietly ignores all command-line definitions for @var{name} except
the last.
@item
If that command-line definition is specified by a @option{-D} or
@option{--define}, Bison reports an error for any @code{%define} definition
for @var{name}.
@item
If that command-line definition is specified by a @option{-F} or
@option{--force-define} instead, Bison quietly ignores all @code{%define}
definitions for @var{name}.
@item
Otherwise, Bison reports an error if there are multiple @code{%define}
definitions for @var{name}.
@end itemize
You should avoid using @option{-F} and @option{--force-define} in your
make files unless you are confident that it is safe to quietly ignore
any conflicting @code{%define} that may be added to the grammar file.
@item -L @var{language}
@itemx --language=@var{language}
Specify the programming language for the generated parser, as if
@code{%language} was specified (@pxref{Decl Summary}). Currently supported
languages include C, C++, D and Java. @var{language} is case-insensitive.
@item --locations
Pretend that @code{%locations} was specified. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@item -p @var{prefix}
@itemx --name-prefix=@var{prefix}
Pretend that @code{%name-prefix "@var{prefix}"} was specified (@pxref{Decl
Summary}). The option @option{-p} is specified by POSIX. When POSIX
compatibility is not a requirement, @option{-Dapi.prefix=@var{prefix}} is a
better option (@pxref{Multiple Parsers}).
@item -l
@itemx --no-lines
Don't put any @code{#line} preprocessor commands in the parser
implementation file. Ordinarily Bison puts them in the parser
implementation file so that the C compiler and debuggers will
associate errors with your source file, the grammar file. This option
causes them to associate errors with the parser implementation file,
treating it as an independent source file in its own right.
@item -S @var{file}
@itemx --skeleton=@var{file}
Specify the skeleton to use, similar to @code{%skeleton}
(@pxref{Decl Summary}).
@c You probably don't need this option unless you are developing Bison.
@c You should use @option{--language} if you want to specify the skeleton for a
@c different language, because it is clearer and because it will always
@c choose the correct skeleton for non-deterministic or push parsers.
If @var{file} does not contain a @code{/}, @var{file} is the name of a skeleton
file in the Bison installation directory.
If it does, @var{file} is an absolute file name or a file name relative to the
current working directory.
This is similar to how most shells resolve commands.
@item -k
@itemx --token-table
Pretend that @code{%token-table} was specified. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@item -y
@itemx @anchor{option-yacc} --yacc
Act more like the traditional @command{yacc} command:
@itemize
@item
Generate different diagnostics (it implies @option{-Wyacc}).
@item
Generate @code{#define} statements in addition to an @code{enum} to
associate token codes with token kind names.
@item
If the @code{POSIXLY_CORRECT} environment variable is defined, generate
prototypes for @code{yyerror} and @code{yylex}@footnote{See
@url{https://austingroupbugs.net/view.php?id=1388#c5220}.} (since Bison
3.8):
@example
int yylex (void);
void yyerror (const char *);
@end example
As a Bison extension, additional arguments required by @code{%pure-parser},
@code{%locations}, @code{%lex-param} and @code{%parse-param} are taken into
account. You may disable @code{yyerror}'s prototype with @samp{#define
yyerror yyerror} (as specified by POSIX), or with @samp{#define
YYERROR_IS_DECLARED} (a Bison extension). Likewise for @code{yylex}.
@item
Imitate Yacc's output file name conventions, so that the parser
implementation file is called @file{y.tab.c}, and the other outputs are
called @file{y.output} and @file{y.tab.h}. Do not use @option{--yacc} just
to change the output file names since it also triggers all the
aforementioned behavior changes; rather use @samp{-o y.tab.c}.
@end itemize
The @option{-y}/@option{--yacc} option is intended for use with traditional
Yacc grammars. This option only makes sense for the default C skeleton,
@file{yacc.c}. If your grammar uses Bison extensions Bison cannot be
Yacc-compatible, even if this option is specified.
Thus, the following shell script can substitute for Yacc, and the Bison
distribution contains such a @command{yacc} script for compatibility with
POSIX:
@example
#! /bin/sh
bison -y "$@@"
@end example
@end table
@node Output Files
@subsection Output Files
Options controlling the output.
@c Please, keep this ordered as in 'bison --help'.
@table @option
@item -H [@var{file}]
@itemx --header=[@var{file}]
Pretend that @code{%header} was specified, i.e., write an extra output file
containing definitions for the token kind names defined in the grammar, as
well as a few other declarations. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@item --defines[=@var{file}]
Historical name for option @option{--header} before Bison 3.8.
@item -d
This is the same as @option{--header} except @option{-d} does not accept a
@var{file} argument since POSIX Yacc requires that @option{-d} can be
bundled with other short options.
@item -b @var{file-prefix}
@itemx --file-prefix=@var{prefix}
Pretend that @code{%file-prefix} was specified, i.e., specify prefix to use
for all Bison output file names. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@item -r @var{things}
@itemx --report=@var{things}
Write an extra output file containing verbose description of the comma
separated list of @var{things} among:
@table @code
@item state
Description of the grammar, conflicts (resolved and unresolved), and
parser's automaton.
@item itemset
Implies @code{state} and augments the description of the automaton with
the full set of items for each state, instead of its core only.
@item lookahead
Implies @code{state} and augments the description of the automaton with
each rule's lookahead set.
@item solved
Implies @code{state}. Explain how conflicts were solved thanks to
precedence and associativity directives.
@item counterexamples
@itemx cex
Look for counterexamples for the conflicts. @xref{Counterexamples}.
Counterexamples take time to compute. The option @option{-rcex} should be
used by the developer when working on the grammar; it hardly makes sense to
use it in a CI.
@item all
Enable all the items.
@item none
Do not generate the report.
@end table
@item --report-file=@var{file}
Specify the @var{file} for the verbose description.
@item -v
@itemx --verbose
Pretend that @code{%verbose} was specified, i.e., write an extra output
file containing verbose descriptions of the grammar and
parser. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@item -o @var{file}
@itemx --output=@var{file}
Specify the @var{file} for the parser implementation file.
The names of the other output files are constructed from @var{file} as
described under the @option{-v} and @option{-d} options.
@item -g [@var{file}]
@itemx --graph[=@var{file}]
Output a graphical representation of the parser's automaton computed by
Bison, in @uref{https://www.graphviz.org/, Graphviz}
@uref{https://www.graphviz.org/doc/info/lang.html, DOT} format.
@code{@var{file}} is optional. If omitted and the grammar file is
@file{foo.y}, the output file will be @file{foo.gv}.
@item -x [@var{file}]
@itemx --xml[=@var{file}]
Output an XML report of the parser's automaton computed by Bison.
@code{@var{file}} is optional.
If omitted and the grammar file is @file{foo.y}, the output file will be
@file{foo.xml}.
@item -M @var{old}=@var{new}
@itemx --file-prefix-map=@var{old}=@var{new}
Replace prefix @var{old} with @var{new} when writing file paths in output
files.
@end table
@node Option Cross Key
@section Option Cross Key
Here is a list of options, alphabetized by long option, to help you find
the corresponding short option and directive.
@multitable {@option{--force-define=@var{name}[=@var{value}]}} {@option{-F @var{name}[=@var{value}]}} {@code{%nondeterministic-parser}}
@headitem Long Option @tab Short Option @tab Bison Directive
@include cross-options.texi
@end multitable
@node Yacc Library
@section Yacc Library
The Yacc library contains default implementations of the @code{yyerror} and
@code{main} functions. These default implementations are normally not
useful, but POSIX requires them. To use the Yacc library, link your program
with the @option{-ly} option. Note that Bison's implementation of the Yacc
library is distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License
(@pxref{Copying}).
If you use the Yacc library's @code{yyerror} function, you should declare
@code{yyerror} as follows:
@example
int yyerror (char const *);
@end example
@noindent
The @code{int} value returned by this @code{yyerror} is ignored.
The implementation of Yacc library's @code{main} function is:
@example
int main (void)
@{
setlocale (LC_ALL, "");
return yyparse ();
@}
@end example
@noindent
so if you use it, the internationalization support is enabled (e.g., error
messages are translated), and your @code{yyparse} function should have the
following type signature:
@example
int yyparse (void);
@end example
@c ================================================= C++ Bison
@node Other Languages
@chapter Parsers Written In Other Languages
In addition to C, Bison can generate parsers in C++, D and Java. This chapter
is devoted to these languages. The reader is expected to understand how
Bison works; read the introductory chapters first if you don't.
@menu
* C++ Parsers:: The interface to generate C++ parser classes
* D Parsers:: The interface to generate D parser classes
* Java Parsers:: The interface to generate Java parser classes
@end menu
@node C++ Parsers
@section C++ Parsers
The Bison parser in C++ is an object, an instance of the class
@code{yy::parser}.
@menu
* A Simple C++ Example:: A short introduction to C++ parsers
* C++ Bison Interface:: Asking for C++ parser generation
* C++ Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* C++ Semantic Values:: %union vs. C++
* C++ Location Values:: The position and location classes
* C++ Parser Context:: You can supply a @code{report_syntax_error} function.
* C++ Scanner Interface:: Exchanges between yylex and parse
* A Complete C++ Example:: Demonstrating their use
@end menu
@node A Simple C++ Example
@subsection A Simple C++ Example
This tutorial about C++ parsers is based on a simple, self contained
example.@footnote{The sources of this example are available as
@file{examples/c++/simple.yy}.} The following sections are the reference
manual for Bison with C++, the last one showing a fully blown example
(@pxref{A Complete C++ Example}).
To look nicer, our example will be in C++14. It is not required: Bison
supports the original C++98 standard.
A Bison file has three parts. In the first part, the prologue, we start by
making sure we run a version of Bison which is recent enough, and that we
generate C++.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
/* Simple variant-based parser. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
%require "3.2"
%language "c++"
@end example
Let's dive directly into the middle part: the grammar. Our input is a
simple list of strings, that we display once the parsing is done.
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 2
@example
%%
@group
result:
list @{ std::cout << $1 << '\n'; @}
;
@end group
%nterm <std::vector<std::string>> list;
@group
list:
%empty @{ /* Generates an empty string list */ @}
| list item @{ $$ = $1; $$.push_back ($2); @}
;
@end group
@end example
We used a vector of strings as a semantic value! To use genuine C++ objects
as semantic values---not just PODs---we cannot rely on the union that Bison
uses by default to store them, we need @emph{variants} (@pxref{C++
Variants}):
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
%define api.value.type variant
@end example
Obviously, the rule for @code{result} needs to print a vector of strings.
In the prologue, we add:
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
%code
@{
// Print a list of strings.
auto
operator<< (std::ostream& o, const std::vector<std::string>& ss)
-> std::ostream&
@{
o << '@{';
const char *sep = "";
@group
for (const auto& s: ss)
@{
o << sep << s;
sep = ", ";
@}
@end group
return o << '@}';
@}
@}
@end example
@noindent
You may want to move it into the @code{yy} namespace to avoid leaking it in
your default namespace. We recommend that you keep the actions simple, and
move details into auxiliary functions, as we did with @code{operator<<}.
Our list of strings will be built from two types of items: numbers and
strings:
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 2
@example
%nterm <std::string> item;
%token <std::string> TEXT;
%token <int> NUMBER;
@group
item:
TEXT
| NUMBER @{ $$ = std::to_string ($1); @}
;
@end group
@end example
In the case of @code{TEXT}, the implicit default action applies: @w{@code{$$
= $1}.}
@sp 1
Our scanner deserves some attention. The traditional interface of
@code{yylex} is not type safe: since the token kind and the token value are
not correlated, you may return a @code{NUMBER} with a string as semantic
value. To avoid this, we use @emph{token constructors} (@pxref{Complete
Symbols}). This directive:
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
%define api.token.constructor
@end example
@noindent
requests that Bison generates the functions @code{make_TEXT} and
@code{make_NUMBER}, but also @code{make_YYEOF}, for the end of input.
Everything is in place for our scanner:
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 1
@example
%code
@{
namespace yy
@{
// Return the next token.
auto yylex () -> parser::symbol_type
@{
static int count = 0;
switch (int stage = count++)
@{
@group
case 0:
return parser::make_TEXT ("I have three numbers for you.");
@end group
@group
case 1: case 2: case 3:
return parser::make_NUMBER (stage);
@end group
@group
case 4:
return parser::make_TEXT ("And that's all!");
@end group
@group
default:
return parser::make_YYEOF ();
@end group
@}
@}
@}
@}
@end example
In the epilogue, the third part of a Bison grammar file, we leave simple
details: the error reporting function, and the main function.
@comment file: c++/simple.yy: 3
@example
%%
namespace yy
@{
// Report an error to the user.
auto parser::error (const std::string& msg) -> void
@{
std::cerr << msg << '\n';
@}
@}
int main ()
@{
yy::parser parse;
return parse ();
@}
@end example
Compile, and run!
@example
$ @kbd{bison simple.yy -o simple.cc}
$ @kbd{g++ -std=c++14 simple.cc -o simple}
@group
$ @kbd{./simple}
@{I have three numbers for you., 1, 2, 3, And that's all!@}
@end group
@end example
@node C++ Bison Interface
@subsection C++ Bison Interface
@c - %skeleton "lalr1.cc"
@c - Always pure
@c - initial action
The C++ deterministic parser is selected using the skeleton directive,
@samp{%skeleton "lalr1.cc"}. @xref{Decl Summary}.
When run, @command{bison} will create several entities in the @samp{yy}
namespace.
@findex %define api.namespace
Use the @samp{%define api.namespace} directive to change the namespace name,
see @ref{%define Summary}. The various classes are generated
in the following files:
@table @file
@item @var{file}.hh
(Assuming the extension of the grammar file was @samp{.yy}.) The
declaration of the C++ parser class and auxiliary types. By default, this
file is not generated (@pxref{Decl Summary}).
@item @var{file}.cc
The implementation of the C++ parser class. The basename and extension of
these two files (@file{@var{file}.hh} and @file{@var{file}.cc}) follow the
same rules as with regular C parsers (@pxref{Invocation}).
@item location.hh
Generated when both @code{%header} and @code{%locations} are enabled, this
file contains the definition of the classes @code{position} and
@code{location}, used for location tracking. It is not generated if
@samp{%define api.location.file none} is specified, or if user defined
locations are used. @xref{C++ Location Values}.
@item position.hh
@itemx stack.hh
Useless legacy files. To get rid of then, use @samp{%require "3.2"} or
newer.
@end table
All these files are documented using Doxygen; run @command{doxygen} for a
complete and accurate documentation.
@node C++ Parser Interface
@subsection C++ Parser Interface
The output files @file{@var{file}.hh} and @file{@var{file}.cc} declare and
define the parser class in the namespace @code{yy}. The class name defaults
to @code{parser}, but may be changed using @samp{%define api.parser.class
@{@var{name}@}}. The interface of this class is detailed below. It can be
extended using the @code{%parse-param} feature: its semantics is slightly
changed since it describes an additional member of the parser class, and an
additional argument for its constructor.
@defcv {Type} {parser} {token}
A structure that contains (only) the @code{token_kind_type} enumeration,
which defines the tokens. To refer to the token @code{FOO}, use
@code{yy::parser::token::FOO}. The scanner can use @samp{typedef
yy::parser::token token;} to ``import'' the token enumeration (@pxref{Calc++
Scanner}).
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {parser} {token_kind_type}
An enumeration of the token kinds. Its enumerators are forged from the
token names, with a possible token prefix
(@pxref{api-token-prefix,,@code{api.token.prefix}}):
@example
/// Token kinds.
struct token
@{
enum token_kind_type
@{
YYEMPTY = -2, // No token.
YYEOF = 0, // "end of file"
YYerror = 256, // error
YYUNDEF = 257, // "invalid token"
PLUS = 258, // "+"
MINUS = 259, // "-"
[...]
VAR = 271, // "variable"
NEG = 272 // NEG
@};
@};
/// Token kind, as returned by yylex.
typedef token::token_kind_type token_kind_type;
@end example
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {parser} {value_type}
The types for semantic values. @xref{C++ Semantic Values}.
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {parser} {location_type}
The type of locations, if location tracking is enabled. @xref{C++ Location
Values}.
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {parser} {syntax_error}
This class derives from @code{std::runtime_error}. Throw instances of it
from the scanner or from the actions to raise parse errors. This is
equivalent with first invoking @code{error} to report the location and
message of the syntax error, and then to invoke @code{YYERROR} to enter the
error-recovery mode. But contrary to @code{YYERROR} which can only be
invoked from user actions (i.e., written in the action itself), the
exception can be thrown from functions invoked from the user action.
@end defcv
@deftypeop {Constructor} {parser} {} parser ()
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {parser} {} parser (@var{type1} @var{arg1}, ...)
Build a new parser object. There are no arguments, unless
@samp{%parse-param @{@var{type1} @var{arg1}@}} was used.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {syntax_error} {} syntax_error (@code{const location_type&} @var{l}, @code{const std::string&} @var{m})
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {syntax_error} {} syntax_error (@code{const std::string&} @var{m})
Instantiate a syntax-error exception.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {parser} {int} operator() ()
@deftypemethodx {parser} {int} parse ()
Run the syntactic analysis, and return 0 on success, 1 otherwise. Both
routines are equivalent, @code{operator()} being more C++ish.
@cindex exceptions
The whole function is wrapped in a @code{try}/@code{catch} block, so that
when an exception is thrown, the @code{%destructor}s are called to release
the lookahead symbol, and the symbols pushed on the stack.
Exception related code in the generated parser is protected by CPP guards
(@code{#if}) and disabled when exceptions are not supported (i.e., passing
@option{-fno-exceptions} to the C++ compiler).
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {parser} {std::ostream&} debug_stream ()
@deftypemethodx {parser} {void} set_debug_stream (@code{std::ostream&} @var{o})
Get or set the stream used for tracing the parsing. It defaults to
@code{std::cerr}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {parser} {debug_level_type} debug_level ()
@deftypemethodx {parser} {void} set_debug_level (debug_level_type @var{l})
Get or set the tracing level (an integral). Currently its value is either
0, no trace, or nonzero, full tracing.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {parser} {void} error (@code{const location_type&} @var{l}, @code{const std::string&} @var{m})
@deftypemethodx {parser} {void} error (@code{const std::string&} @var{m})
The definition for this member function must be supplied by the user: the
parser uses it to report a parser error occurring at @var{l}, described by
@var{m}. If location tracking is not enabled, the second signature is used.
@end deftypemethod
@node C++ Semantic Values
@subsection C++ Semantic Values
Bison supports two different means to handle semantic values in C++. One is
alike the C interface, and relies on unions. As C++ practitioners know,
unions are inconvenient in C++, therefore another approach is provided,
based on variants.
@menu
* C++ Unions:: Semantic values cannot be objects
* C++ Variants:: Using objects as semantic values
@end menu
@node C++ Unions
@subsubsection C++ Unions
The @code{%union} directive works as for C, see @ref{Union Decl}. In
particular it produces a genuine @code{union}, which have a few specific
features in C++.
@itemize @minus
@item
The value type is @code{yy::parser::value_type}, not @code{YYSTYPE}.
@item
Non POD (Plain Old Data) types cannot be used. C++98 forbids any instance
of classes with constructors in unions: only @emph{pointers} to such objects
are allowed. C++11 relaxed this constraints, but at the cost of safety.
@end itemize
Because objects have to be stored via pointers, memory is not
reclaimed automatically: using the @code{%destructor} directive is the
only means to avoid leaks. @xref{Destructor Decl}.
@node C++ Variants
@subsubsection C++ Variants
Bison provides a @emph{variant} based implementation of semantic values for
C++. This alleviates all the limitations reported in the previous section,
and in particular, object types can be used without pointers.
To enable variant-based semantic values, set the @code{%define} variable
@code{api.value.type} to @code{variant} (@pxref{%define Summary}). Then
@code{%union} is ignored; instead of using the name of the fields of the
@code{%union} to ``type'' the symbols, use genuine types.
For instance, instead of:
@example
%union
@{
int ival;
std::string* sval;
@}
%token <ival> NUMBER;
%token <sval> STRING;
@end example
@noindent
write:
@example
%token <int> NUMBER;
%token <std::string> STRING;
@end example
@code{STRING} is no longer a pointer, which should fairly simplify the user
actions in the grammar and in the scanner (in particular the memory
management).
Since C++ features destructors, and since it is customary to specialize
@code{operator<<} to support uniform printing of values, variants also
typically simplify Bison printers and destructors.
Variants are stricter than unions. When based on unions, you may play any
dirty game with @code{yylval}, say storing an @code{int}, reading a
@code{char*}, and then storing a @code{double} in it. This is no longer
possible with variants: they must be initialized, then assigned to, and
eventually, destroyed. As a matter of fact, Bison variants forbid the use
of alternative types such as @samp{$<int>2} or @samp{$<std::string>$}, even
in midrule actions. It is mandatory to use typed midrule actions
(@pxref{Typed Midrule Actions}).
@deftypemethod {value_type} {T&} {emplace<T>} ()
@deftypemethodx {value_type} {T&} {emplace<T>} (@code{const T&} @var{t})
Available in C++98/C++03 only. Default construct/copy-construct from
@var{t}. Return a reference to where the actual value may be stored.
Requires that the variant was not initialized yet.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {value_type} {T&} {emplace<T, U>} (@code{U&&...} @var{u})
Available in C++11 and later only. Build a variant of type @code{T} from
the variadic forwarding references @var{u...}.
@end deftypemethod
@strong{Warning}: We do not use Boost.Variant, for two reasons. First, it
appeared unacceptable to require Boost on the user's machine (i.e., the
machine on which the generated parser will be compiled, not the machine on
which @command{bison} was run). Second, for each possible semantic value,
Boost.Variant not only stores the value, but also a tag specifying its
type. But the parser already ``knows'' the type of the semantic value, so
that would be duplicating the information.
We do not use C++17's @code{std::variant} either: we want to support all the
C++ standards, and of course @code{std::variant} also stores a tag to record
the current type.
Therefore we developed light-weight variants whose type tag is external (so
they are really like @code{unions} for C++ actually). There is a number of
limitations in (the current implementation of) variants:
@itemize
@item
Alignment must be enforced: values should be aligned in memory according to
the most demanding type. Computing the smallest alignment possible requires
meta-programming techniques that are not currently implemented in Bison, and
therefore, since, as far as we know, @code{double} is the most demanding
type on all platforms, alignments are enforced for @code{double} whatever
types are actually used. This may waste space in some cases.
@item
There might be portability issues we are not aware of.
@end itemize
As far as we know, these limitations @emph{can} be alleviated. All it takes
is some time and/or some talented C++ hacker willing to contribute to Bison.
@node C++ Location Values
@subsection C++ Location Values
When the directive @code{%locations} is used, the C++ parser supports
location tracking, see @ref{Tracking Locations}.
By default, two auxiliary classes define a @code{position}, a single point
in a file, and a @code{location}, a range composed of a pair of
@code{position}s (possibly spanning several files). If the @code{%define}
variable @code{api.location.type} is defined, then these classes will not be
generated, and the user defined type will be used.
@menu
* C++ position:: One point in the source file
* C++ location:: Two points in the source file
* Exposing the Location Classes:: Using the Bison location class in your
project
* User Defined Location Type:: Required interface for locations
@end menu
@node C++ position
@subsubsection C++ @code{position}
@defcv {Type} {position} {filename_type}
The base type for file names. Defaults to @code{const std::string}.
@xref{api-filename-type,,@code{api.filename.type}}, to change its definition.
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {position} {counter_type}
The type used to store line and column numbers. Defined as @code{int}.
@end defcv
@deftypeop {Constructor} {position} {} position (@code{filename_type*} @var{file} = nullptr, @code{counter_type} @var{line} = 1, @code{counter_type} @var{col} = 1)
Create a @code{position} denoting a given point. Note that @code{file} is
not reclaimed when the @code{position} is destroyed: memory managed must be
handled elsewhere.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {position} {void} initialize (@code{filename_type*} @var{file} = nullptr, @code{counter_type} @var{line} = 1, @code{counter_type} @var{col} = 1)
Reset the position to the given values.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypeivar {position} {filename_type*} file
The name of the file. It will always be handled as a pointer, the parser
will never duplicate nor deallocate it.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypeivar {position} {counter_type} line
The line, starting at 1.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypemethod {position} {void} lines (@code{counter_type} @var{height} = 1)
If @var{height} is not null, advance by @var{height} lines, resetting the
column number. The resulting line number cannot be less than 1.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypeivar {position} {counter_type} column
The column, starting at 1.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypemethod {position} {void} columns (@code{counter_type} @var{width} = 1)
Advance by @var{width} columns, without changing the line number. The
resulting column number cannot be less than 1.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {position} {position&} operator+= (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {position} {position} operator+ (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {position} {position&} operator-= (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {position} {position} operator- (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
Various forms of syntactic sugar for @code{columns}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {position} {bool} operator== (@code{const position&} @var{that})
@deftypemethodx {position} {bool} operator!= (@code{const position&} @var{that})
Whether @code{*this} and @code{that} denote equal/different positions.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypefun {std::ostream&} operator<< (@code{std::ostream&} @var{o}, @code{const position&} @var{p})
Report @var{p} on @var{o} like this:
@samp{@var{file}:@var{line}.@var{column}}, or
@samp{@var{line}.@var{column}} if @var{file} is null.
@end deftypefun
@node C++ location
@subsubsection C++ @code{location}
@deftypeop {Constructor} {location} {} location (@code{const position&} @var{begin}, @code{const position&} @var{end})
Create a @code{Location} from the endpoints of the range.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {location} {} location (@code{const position&} @var{pos} = position())
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {location} {} location (@code{filename_type*} @var{file}, @code{counter_type} @var{line}, @code{counter_type} @var{col})
Create a @code{Location} denoting an empty range located at a given point.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {location} {void} initialize (@code{filename_type*} @var{file} = nullptr, @code{counter_type} @var{line} = 1, @code{counter_type} @var{col} = 1)
Reset the location to an empty range at the given values.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypeivar {location} {position} begin
@deftypeivarx {location} {position} end
The first, inclusive, position of the range, and the first beyond.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypemethod {location} {void} columns (@code{counter_type} @var{width} = 1)
@deftypemethodx {location} {void} lines (@code{counter_type} @var{height} = 1)
Forwarded to the @code{end} position.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {location} {location} operator+ (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {location} {location} operator+= (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {location} {location} operator- (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
@deftypemethodx {location} {location} operator-= (@code{counter_type} @var{width})
Various forms of syntactic sugar for @code{columns}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {location} {location} operator+ (@code{const location&} @var{end})
@deftypemethodx {location} {location} operator+= (@code{const location&} @var{end})
Join two locations: starts at the position of the first one, and ends at the
position of the second.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {location} {void} step ()
Move @code{begin} onto @code{end}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {location} {bool} operator== (@code{const location&} @var{that})
@deftypemethodx {location} {bool} operator!= (@code{const location&} @var{that})
Whether @code{*this} and @code{that} denote equal/different ranges of
positions.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypefun {std::ostream&} operator<< (@code{std::ostream&} @var{o}, @code{const location&} @var{p})
Report @var{p} on @var{o}, taking care of special cases such as: no
@code{filename} defined, or equal filename/line or column.
@end deftypefun
@node Exposing the Location Classes
@subsubsection Exposing the Location Classes
When both @code{%header} and @code{%locations} are enabled, Bison generates
an additional file: @file{location.hh}. If you don't use locations outside
of the parser, you may avoid its creation with @samp{%define
api.location.file none}.
However this file is useful if, for instance, your parser builds an abstract
syntax tree decorated with locations: you may use Bison's @code{location}
type independently of Bison's parser. You may name the file differently,
e.g., @samp{%define api.location.file "include/ast/location.hh"}: this name
can have directory components, or even be absolute. The way the location
file is included is controlled by @code{api.location.include}.
This way it is possible to have several parsers share the same location
file.
For instance, in @file{src/foo/parser.yy}, generate the
@file{include/ast/loc.hh} file:
@example
// src/foo/parser.yy
%locations
%define api.namespace @{foo@}
%define api.location.file "include/ast/loc.hh"
%define api.location.include @{<ast/loc.hh>@}
@end example
@noindent
and use it in @file{src/bar/parser.yy}:
@example
// src/bar/parser.yy
%locations
%define api.namespace @{bar@}
%code requires @{#include <ast/loc.hh>@}
%define api.location.type @{bar::location@}
@end example
Absolute file names are supported; it is safe in your @file{Makefile} to
pass the flag
@option{-Dapi.location.file='"$(top_srcdir)/include/ast/loc.hh"'} to
@command{bison} for @file{src/foo/parser.yy}. The generated file will not
have references to this absolute path, thanks to @samp{%define
api.location.include @{<ast/loc.hh>@}}. Adding @samp{-I
$(top_srcdir)/include} to your @code{CPPFLAGS} will suffice for the compiler
to find @file{ast/loc.hh}.
@node User Defined Location Type
@subsubsection User Defined Location Type
@findex %define api.location.type
Instead of using the built-in types you may use the @code{%define} variable
@code{api.location.type} to specify your own type:
@example
%define api.location.type @{@var{LocationType}@}
@end example
The requirements over your @var{LocationType} are:
@itemize
@item
it must be copyable;
@item
in order to compute the (default) value of @code{@@$} in a reduction, the
parser basically runs
@example
@@$.begin = @@1.begin;
@@$.end = @@@var{N}.end; // The location of last right-hand side symbol.
@end example
@noindent
so there must be copyable @code{begin} and @code{end} members;
@item
alternatively you may redefine the computation of the default location, in
which case these members are not required (@pxref{Location Default Action});
@item
if traces are enabled, then there must exist an @samp{std::ostream&
operator<< (std::ostream& o, const @var{LocationType}& s)} function.
@end itemize
@sp 1
In programs with several C++ parsers, you may also use the @code{%define}
variable @code{api.location.type} to share a common set of built-in
definitions for @code{position} and @code{location}. For instance, one
parser @file{master/parser.yy} might use:
@example
%header
%locations
%define api.namespace @{master::@}
@end example
@noindent
to generate the @file{master/position.hh} and @file{master/location.hh}
files, reused by other parsers as follows:
@example
%define api.location.type @{master::location@}
%code requires @{ #include <master/location.hh> @}
@end example
@node C++ Parser Context
@subsection C++ Parser Context
When @samp{%define parse.error custom} is used (@pxref{Syntax Error
Reporting Function}), the user must define the following function.
@deftypemethod {parser} {void} report_syntax_error (@code{const context_type&}@var{ctx}) @code{const}
Report a syntax error to the user. Whether it uses @code{yyerror} is up to
the user.
@end deftypemethod
Use the following types and functions to build the error message.
@defcv {Type} {parser} {context}
A type that captures the circumstances of the syntax error.
@end defcv
@defcv {Type} {parser} {symbol_kind_type}
An enum of all the grammar symbols, tokens and nonterminals. Its
enumerators are forged from the symbol names:
@example
struct symbol_kind
@{
enum symbol_kind_type
@{
S_YYEMPTY = -2, // No symbol.
S_YYEOF = 0, // "end of file"
S_YYERROR = 1, // error
S_YYUNDEF = 2, // "invalid token"
S_PLUS = 3, // "+"
S_MINUS = 4, // "-"
[...]
S_VAR = 14, // "variable"
S_NEG = 15, // NEG
S_YYACCEPT = 16, // $accept
S_exp = 17, // exp
S_input = 18 // input
@};
@};
typedef symbol_kind::symbol_kind_t symbol_kind_type;
@end example
@end defcv
@deftypemethod {context} {const symbol_type&} lookahead () @code{const}
The ``unexpected'' token: the lookahead that caused the syntax error.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {context} {symbol_kind_type} token () @code{const}
The symbol kind of the lookahead token that caused the syntax error. Returns
@code{symbol_kind::S_YYEMPTY} if there is no lookahead.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {context} {const location&} location () @code{const}
The location of the syntax error (that of the lookahead).
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {context} int expected_tokens (@code{symbol_kind_type} @var{argv}@code{[]}, @code{int} @var{argc}) @code{const}
Fill @var{argv} with the expected tokens, which never includes
@code{symbol_kind::S_YYEMPTY}, @code{symbol_kind::S_YYERROR}, or
@code{symbol_kind::S_YYUNDEF}.
Never put more than @var{argc} elements into @var{argv}, and on success
return the number of tokens stored in @var{argv}. If there are more
expected tokens than @var{argc}, fill @var{argv} up to @var{argc} and return
0. If there are no expected tokens, also return 0, but set @code{argv[0]}
to @code{symbol_kind::S_YYEMPTY}.
If @var{argv} is null, return the size needed to store all the possible
values, which is always less than @code{YYNTOKENS}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {parser} {const char *} symbol_name (@code{symbol_kind_t} @var{symbol}) @code{const}
The name of the symbol whose kind is @var{symbol}, possibly translated.
Returns a @code{std::string} when @code{parse.error} is @code{verbose}.
@end deftypemethod
A custom syntax error function looks as follows. This implementation is
inappropriate for internationalization, see the @file{c/bistromathic}
example for a better alternative.
@example
void
yy::parser::report_syntax_error (const context& ctx)
@{
int res = 0;
std::cerr << ctx.location () << ": syntax error";
// Report the tokens expected at this point.
@{
enum @{ TOKENMAX = 5 @};
symbol_kind_type expected[TOKENMAX];
int n = ctx.expected_tokens (ctx, expected, TOKENMAX);
for (int i = 0; i < n; ++i)
std::cerr << i == 0 ? ": expected " : " or "
<< symbol_name (expected[i]);
@}
// Report the unexpected token.
@{
symbol_kind_type lookahead = ctx.token ();
if (lookahead != symbol_kind::S_YYEMPTY)
std::cerr << " before " << symbol_name (lookahead));
@}
std::cerr << '\n';
@}
@end example
You still must provide a @code{yyerror} function, used for instance to
report memory exhaustion.
@node C++ Scanner Interface
@subsection C++ Scanner Interface
@c - prefix for yylex.
@c - Pure interface to yylex
@c - %lex-param
The parser invokes the scanner by calling @code{yylex}. Contrary to C
parsers, C++ parsers are always pure: there is no point in using the
@samp{%define api.pure} directive. The actual interface with @code{yylex}
depends whether you use unions, or variants.
@menu
* Split Symbols:: Passing symbols as two/three components
* Complete Symbols:: Making symbols a whole
@end menu
@node Split Symbols
@subsubsection Split Symbols
The generated parser expects @code{yylex} to have the following prototype.
@deftypefun {int} yylex (@code{value_type*} @var{yylval}, @code{location_type*} @var{yylloc}, @var{type1} @var{arg1}, @dots{})
@deftypefunx {int} yylex (@code{value_type*} @var{yylval}, @var{type1} @var{arg1}, @dots{})
Return the next token. Its kind is the return value, its semantic value and
location (if enabled) being @var{yylval} and @var{yylloc}. Invocations of
@samp{%lex-param @{@var{type1} @var{arg1}@}} yield additional arguments.
@end deftypefun
Note that when using variants, the interface for @code{yylex} is the same,
but @code{yylval} is handled differently.
Regular union-based code in Lex scanner typically looks like:
@example
[0-9]+ @{
yylval->ival = text_to_int (yytext);
return yy::parser::token::INTEGER;
@}
[a-z]+ @{
yylval->sval = new std::string (yytext);
return yy::parser::token::IDENTIFIER;
@}
@end example
Using variants, @code{yylval} is already constructed, but it is not
initialized. So the code would look like:
@example
[0-9]+ @{
yylval->emplace<int> () = text_to_int (yytext);
return yy::parser::token::INTEGER;
@}
[a-z]+ @{
yylval->emplace<std::string> () = yytext;
return yy::parser::token::IDENTIFIER;
@}
@end example
@noindent
or
@example
[0-9]+ @{
yylval->emplace (text_to_int (yytext));
return yy::parser::token::INTEGER;
@}
[a-z]+ @{
yylval->emplace (yytext);
return yy::parser::token::IDENTIFIER;
@}
@end example
@node Complete Symbols
@subsubsection Complete Symbols
With both @code{%define api.value.type variant} and @code{%define
api.token.constructor}, the parser defines the type @code{symbol_type}, and
expects @code{yylex} to have the following prototype.
@deftypefun {parser::symbol_type} yylex ()
@deftypefunx {parser::symbol_type} yylex (@var{type1} @var{arg1}, @dots{})
Return a @emph{complete} symbol, aggregating its type (i.e., the traditional
value returned by @code{yylex}), its semantic value, and possibly its
location. Invocations of @samp{%lex-param @{@var{type1} @var{arg1}@}} yield
additional arguments.
@end deftypefun
@defcv {Type} {parser} {symbol_type}
A ``complete symbol'', that binds together its kind, value and (when
applicable) location.
@end defcv
@deftypemethod {symbol_type} {symbol_kind_type} kind () @code{const}
The kind of this symbol.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {symbol_type} {const char *} name () @code{const}
The name of the kind of this symbol.
Returns a @code{std::string} when @code{parse.error} is @code{verbose}.
@end deftypemethod
@sp 1
For each token kind, Bison generates named constructors as follows.
@deftypeop {Constructor} {parser::symbol_type} {} {symbol_type} (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{const @var{value_type}&} @var{value}, @code{const location_type&} @var{location})
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {parser::symbol_type} {} {symbol_type} (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{const location_type&} @var{location})
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {parser::symbol_type} {} {symbol_type} (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{const @var{value_type}&} @var{value})
@deftypeopx {Constructor} {parser::symbol_type} {} {symbol_type} (@code{int} @var{token})
Build a complete terminal symbol for the token kind @var{token} (including
the @code{api.token.prefix}), whose semantic value, if it has one, is
@var{value} of adequate @var{value_type}. Pass the @var{location} iff
location tracking is enabled.
Consistency between @var{token} and @var{value_type} is checked via an
@code{assert}.
@end deftypeop
For instance, given the following declarations:
@example
%define api.token.prefix @{TOK_@}
%token <std::string> IDENTIFIER;
%token <int> INTEGER;
%token ':';
@end example
@noindent
you may use these constructors:
@example
symbol_type (int token, const std::string&, const location_type&);
symbol_type (int token, const int&, const location_type&);
symbol_type (int token, const location_type&);
@end example
Correct matching between token kinds and value types is checked via
@code{assert}; for instance, @samp{symbol_type (ID, 42)} would abort. Named
constructors are preferable (see below), as they offer better type safety
(for instance @samp{make_ID (42)} would not even compile), but symbol_type
constructors may help when token kinds are discovered at run-time, e.g.,
@example
@group
[a-z]+ @{
if (auto i = lookup_keyword (yytext))
return yy::parser::symbol_type (i, loc);
else
return yy::parser::make_ID (yytext, loc);
@}
@end group
@end example
@sp 1
Note that it is possible to generate and compile type incorrect code
(e.g. @samp{symbol_type (':', yytext, loc)}). It will fail at run time,
provided the assertions are enabled (i.e., @option{-DNDEBUG} was not passed
to the compiler). Bison supports an alternative that guarantees that type
incorrect code will not even compile. Indeed, it generates @emph{named
constructors} as follows.
@deftypemethod {parser} {symbol_type} {make_@var{token}} (@code{const @var{value_type}&} @var{value}, @code{const location_type&} @var{location})
@deftypemethodx {parser} {symbol_type} {make_@var{token}} (@code{const location_type&} @var{location})
@deftypemethodx {parser} {symbol_type} {make_@var{token}} (@code{const @var{value_type}&} @var{value})
@deftypemethodx {parser} {symbol_type} {make_@var{token}} ()
Build a complete terminal symbol for the token kind @var{token} (not
including the @code{api.token.prefix}), whose semantic value, if it has one,
is @var{value} of adequate @var{value_type}. Pass the @var{location} iff
location tracking is enabled.
@end deftypemethod
For instance, given the following declarations:
@example
%define api.token.prefix @{TOK_@}
%token <std::string> IDENTIFIER;
%token <int> INTEGER;
%token COLON;
%token EOF 0;
@end example
@noindent
Bison generates:
@example
symbol_type make_IDENTIFIER (const std::string&, const location_type&);
symbol_type make_INTEGER (const int&, const location_type&);
symbol_type make_COLON (const location_type&);
symbol_type make_EOF (const location_type&);
@end example
@noindent
which should be used in a scanner as follows.
@example
[a-z]+ return yy::parser::make_IDENTIFIER (yytext, loc);
[0-9]+ return yy::parser::make_INTEGER (text_to_int (yytext), loc);
":" return yy::parser::make_COLON (loc);
<<EOF>> return yy::parser::make_EOF (loc);
@end example
Tokens that do not have an identifier are not accessible: you cannot simply
use characters such as @code{':'}, they must be declared with @code{%token},
including the end-of-file token.
@node A Complete C++ Example
@subsection A Complete C++ Example
This section demonstrates the use of a C++ parser with a simple but complete
example. This example should be available on your system, ready to compile,
in the directory @file{examples/c++/calc++}. It focuses on
the use of Bison, therefore the design of the various C++ classes is very
naive: no accessors, no encapsulation of members etc. We will use a Lex
scanner, and more precisely, a Flex scanner, to demonstrate the various
interactions. A hand-written scanner is actually easier to interface with.
@menu
* Calc++ --- C++ Calculator:: The specifications
* Calc++ Parsing Driver:: An active parsing context
* Calc++ Parser:: A parser class
* Calc++ Scanner:: A pure C++ Flex scanner
* Calc++ Top Level:: Conducting the band
@end menu
@node Calc++ --- C++ Calculator
@subsubsection Calc++ --- C++ Calculator
Of course the grammar is dedicated to arithmetic, a single expression,
possibly preceded by variable assignments. An environment containing
possibly predefined variables such as @code{one} and @code{two}, is
exchanged with the parser. An example of valid input follows.
@example
three := 3
seven := one + two * three
seven * seven
@end example
@node Calc++ Parsing Driver
@subsubsection Calc++ Parsing Driver
@c - An env
@c - A place to store error messages
@c - A place for the result
To support a pure interface with the parser (and the scanner) the technique
of the ``parsing context'' is convenient: a structure containing all the
data to exchange. Since, in addition to simply launch the parsing, there
are several auxiliary tasks to execute (open the file for scanning,
instantiate the parser etc.), we recommend transforming the simple parsing
context structure into a fully blown @dfn{parsing driver} class.
The declaration of this driver class, in @file{driver.hh}, is as follows.
The first part includes the CPP guard and imports the required standard
library components, and the declaration of the parser class.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
/* Driver for calc++. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2005-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
#ifndef DRIVER_HH
# define DRIVER_HH
# include <string>
# include <map>
# include "parser.hh"
@end example
@noindent
Then comes the declaration of the scanning function. Flex expects the
signature of @code{yylex} to be defined in the macro @code{YY_DECL}, and the
C++ parser expects it to be declared. We can factor both as follows.
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
// Give Flex the prototype of yylex we want ...
# define YY_DECL \
yy::parser::symbol_type yylex (driver& drv)
// ... and declare it for the parser's sake.
YY_DECL;
@end example
@noindent
The @code{driver} class is then declared with its most obvious members.
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
// Conducting the whole scanning and parsing of Calc++.
class driver
@{
public:
driver ();
std::map<std::string, int> variables;
int result;
@end example
@noindent
The main routine is of course calling the parser.
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
// Run the parser on file F. Return 0 on success.
int parse (const std::string& f);
// The name of the file being parsed.
std::string file;
// Whether to generate parser debug traces.
bool trace_parsing;
@end example
@noindent
To encapsulate the coordination with the Flex scanner, it is useful to have
member functions to open and close the scanning phase.
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.hh
@example
// Handling the scanner.
void scan_begin ();
void scan_end ();
// Whether to generate scanner debug traces.
bool trace_scanning;
// The token's location used by the scanner.
yy::location location;
@};
#endif // ! DRIVER_HH
@end example
The implementation of the driver (@file{driver.cc}) is straightforward.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.cc
@example
/* Driver for calc++. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2005-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.cc
@example
#include "driver.hh"
#include "parser.hh"
@group
driver::driver ()
: trace_parsing (false), trace_scanning (false)
@{
variables["one"] = 1;
variables["two"] = 2;
@}
@end group
@end example
The @code{parse} member function deserves some attention.
@comment file: c++/calc++/driver.cc
@example
@group
int
driver::parse (const std::string &f)
@{
file = f;
location.initialize (&file);
scan_begin ();
yy::parser parse (*this);
parse.set_debug_level (trace_parsing);
int res = parse ();
scan_end ();
return res;
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Calc++ Parser
@subsubsection Calc++ Parser
The grammar file @file{parser.yy} starts by asking for the C++ deterministic
parser skeleton, the creation of the parser header file. Because the C++
skeleton changed several times, it is safer to require the version you
designed the grammar for.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
/* Parser for calc++. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2005-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%skeleton "lalr1.cc" // -*- C++ -*-
%require "@value{VERSION}"
%header
@end example
@noindent
@findex %define api.token.raw
Because our scanner returns only genuine tokens and never simple characters
(i.e., it returns @samp{PLUS}, not @samp{'+'}), we can avoid conversions.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%define api.token.raw
@end example
@noindent
@findex %define api.token.constructor
@findex %define api.value.type variant
This example uses genuine C++ objects as semantic values, therefore, we
require the variant-based storage of semantic values. To make sure we
properly use it, we enable assertions. To fully benefit from type-safety
and more natural definition of ``symbol'', we enable
@code{api.token.constructor}.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%define api.token.constructor
%define api.value.type variant
%define parse.assert
@end example
@noindent
@findex %code requires
Then come the declarations/inclusions needed by the semantic values.
Because the parser uses the parsing driver and reciprocally, both would like
to include the header of the other, which is, of course, insane. This
mutual dependency will be broken using forward declarations. Because the
driver's header needs detailed knowledge about the parser class (in
particular its inner types), it is the parser's header which will use a
forward declaration of the driver. @xref{%code Summary}.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
@group
%code requires @{
# include <string>
class driver;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
The driver is passed by reference to the parser and to the scanner.
This provides a simple but effective pure interface, not relying on
global variables.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
// The parsing context.
%param @{ driver& drv @}
@end example
@noindent
Then we request location tracking.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%locations
@end example
@noindent
Use the following two directives to enable parser tracing and detailed error
messages. However, detailed error messages can contain incorrect
information if lookahead correction is not enabled (@pxref{LAC}).
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%define parse.trace
%define parse.error detailed
%define parse.lac full
@end example
@noindent
@findex %code
The code between @samp{%code @{} and @samp{@}} is output in the @file{*.cc}
file; it needs detailed knowledge about the driver.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
@group
%code @{
# include "driver.hh"
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
User friendly names are provided for each symbol. To avoid name clashes in
the generated files (@pxref{Calc++ Scanner}), prefix tokens with @code{TOK_}
(@pxref{%define Summary}).
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%define api.token.prefix @{TOK_@}
%token
ASSIGN ":="
MINUS "-"
PLUS "+"
STAR "*"
SLASH "/"
LPAREN "("
RPAREN ")"
;
@end example
@noindent
Since we use variant-based semantic values, @code{%union} is not used, and
@code{%token}, @code{%nterm} and @code{%type} expect genuine types, not type
tags.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%token <std::string> IDENTIFIER "identifier"
%token <int> NUMBER "number"
%nterm <int> exp
@end example
@noindent
No @code{%destructor} is needed to enable memory deallocation during error
recovery; the memory, for strings for instance, will be reclaimed by the
regular destructors. All the values are printed using their
@code{operator<<} (@pxref{Printer Decl}).
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%printer @{ yyo << $$; @} <*>;
@end example
@noindent
The grammar itself is straightforward (@pxref{Location Tracking Calc}).
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
%%
%start unit;
unit: assignments exp @{ drv.result = $2; @};
assignments:
%empty @{@}
| assignments assignment @{@};
assignment:
"identifier" ":=" exp @{ drv.variables[$1] = $3; @};
%left "+" "-";
%left "*" "/";
exp:
"number"
| "identifier" @{ $$ = drv.variables[$1]; @}
| exp "+" exp @{ $$ = $1 + $3; @}
| exp "-" exp @{ $$ = $1 - $3; @}
| exp "*" exp @{ $$ = $1 * $3; @}
| exp "/" exp @{ $$ = $1 / $3; @}
| "(" exp ")" @{ $$ = $2; @}
%%
@end example
@noindent
Finally the @code{error} member function reports the errors.
@comment file: c++/calc++/parser.yy
@example
void
yy::parser::error (const location_type& l, const std::string& m)
@{
std::cerr << l << ": " << m << '\n';
@}
@end example
@node Calc++ Scanner
@subsubsection Calc++ Scanner
In addition to standard headers, the Flex scanner includes the driver's,
then the parser's to get the set of defined tokens.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
/* Scanner for calc++. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2005-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
%@{ /* -*- C++ -*- */
# include <cerrno>
# include <climits>
# include <cstdlib>
# include <cstring> // strerror
# include <string>
# include "driver.hh"
# include "parser.hh"
%@}
@end example
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
%@{
#if defined __clang__
# define CLANG_VERSION (__clang_major__ * 100 + __clang_minor__)
#endif
// Clang and ICC like to pretend they are GCC.
#if defined __GNUC__ && !defined __clang__ && !defined __ICC
# define GCC_VERSION (__GNUC__ * 100 + __GNUC_MINOR__)
#endif
// Pacify warnings in yy_init_buffer (observed with Flex 2.6.4)
// and GCC 6.4.0, 7.3.0 with -O3.
#if defined GCC_VERSION && 600 <= GCC_VERSION
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wnull-dereference"
#endif
// This example uses Flex's C back end, yet compiles it as C++.
// So expect warnings about C style casts and NULL.
#if defined CLANG_VERSION && 500 <= CLANG_VERSION
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wold-style-cast"
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wzero-as-null-pointer-constant"
#elif defined GCC_VERSION && 407 <= GCC_VERSION
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wold-style-cast"
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wzero-as-null-pointer-constant"
#endif
#define FLEX_VERSION (YY_FLEX_MAJOR_VERSION * 100 + YY_FLEX_MINOR_VERSION)
// Old versions of Flex (2.5.35) generate an incomplete documentation comment.
//
// In file included from src/scan-code-c.c:3:
// src/scan-code.c:2198:21: error: empty paragraph passed to '@param' command
// [-Werror,-Wdocumentation]
// * @param line_number
// ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^
// 1 error generated.
#if FLEX_VERSION < 206 && defined CLANG_VERSION
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wdocumentation"
#endif
// Old versions of Flex (2.5.35) use 'register'. Warnings introduced in
// GCC 7 and Clang 6.
#if FLEX_VERSION < 206
# if defined CLANG_VERSION && 600 <= CLANG_VERSION
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wdeprecated-register"
# elif defined GCC_VERSION && 700 <= GCC_VERSION
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wregister"
# endif
#endif
#if FLEX_VERSION < 206
# if defined CLANG_VERSION
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wconversion"
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wdocumentation"
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wshorten-64-to-32"
# pragma clang diagnostic ignored "-Wsign-conversion"
# elif defined GCC_VERSION
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wconversion"
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wsign-conversion"
# endif
#endif
// Flex 2.6.4, GCC 9
// warning: useless cast to type 'int' [-Wuseless-cast]
// 1361 | YY_CURRENT_BUFFER_LVALUE->yy_buf_size = (int) (new_size - 2);
// | ^
#if defined GCC_VERSION && 900 <= GCC_VERSION
# pragma GCC diagnostic ignored "-Wuseless-cast"
#endif
%@}
@end example
@end ignore
@noindent
Since our calculator has no @code{#include}-like feature, we don't need
@code{yywrap}. We don't need the @code{unput} and @code{input} functions
either, and we parse an actual file, this is not an interactive session with
the user. Finally, we enable scanner tracing.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
%option noyywrap nounput noinput batch debug
@end example
@noindent
The following function will be handy to convert a string denoting a number
into a @code{NUMBER} token.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
%@{
// A number symbol corresponding to the value in S.
yy::parser::symbol_type
make_NUMBER (const std::string &s, const yy::parser::location_type& loc);
%@}
@end example
@noindent
Abbreviations allow for more readable rules.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
id [a-zA-Z][a-zA-Z_0-9]*
int [0-9]+
blank [ \t\r]
@end example
@noindent
The following paragraph suffices to track locations accurately. Each time
@code{yylex} is invoked, the begin position is moved onto the end position.
Then when a pattern is matched, its width is added to the end column. When
matching ends of lines, the end cursor is adjusted, and each time blanks are
matched, the begin cursor is moved onto the end cursor to effectively ignore
the blanks preceding tokens. Comments would be treated equally.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
@group
%@{
// Take 8-space tabulations into account.
void add_columns (yy::location& loc, const char *buf, int bufsize)
@{
for (int i = 0; i < bufsize; ++i)
loc.columns (buf[i] == '\t' ? 8 - ((loc.end.column - 1) & 7) : 1);
@}
// Code run each time a pattern is matched.
#define YY_USER_ACTION add_columns (loc, yytext, yyleng);
%@}
@end group
%%
@group
%@{
// A handy shortcut to the location held by the driver.
yy::location& loc = drv.location;
// Code run each time yylex is called.
loc.step ();
%@}
@end group
@{blank@}+ loc.step ();
\n+ loc.lines (yyleng); loc.step ();
@end example
@noindent
The rules are simple. The driver is used to report errors.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
"-" return yy::parser::make_MINUS (loc);
"+" return yy::parser::make_PLUS (loc);
"*" return yy::parser::make_STAR (loc);
"/" return yy::parser::make_SLASH (loc);
"(" return yy::parser::make_LPAREN (loc);
")" return yy::parser::make_RPAREN (loc);
":=" return yy::parser::make_ASSIGN (loc);
@{int@} return make_NUMBER (yytext, loc);
@{id@} return yy::parser::make_IDENTIFIER (yytext, loc);
@group
. @{
throw yy::parser::syntax_error
(loc, "invalid character: " + std::string(yytext));
@}
@end group
<<EOF>> return yy::parser::make_YYEOF (loc);
%%
@end example
@noindent
You should keep your rules simple, both in the parser and in the scanner.
Throwing from the auxiliary functions is then very handy to report errors.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
@group
yy::parser::symbol_type
make_NUMBER (const std::string &s, const yy::parser::location_type& loc)
@{
errno = 0;
long n = strtol (s.c_str(), NULL, 10);
if (! (INT_MIN <= n && n <= INT_MAX && errno != ERANGE))
throw yy::parser::syntax_error (loc, "integer is out of range: " + s);
return yy::parser::make_NUMBER ((int) n, loc);
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
Finally, because the scanner-related driver's member-functions depend
on the scanner's data, it is simpler to implement them in this file.
@comment file: c++/calc++/scanner.ll
@example
@group
void
driver::scan_begin ()
@{
yy_flex_debug = trace_scanning;
if (file.empty () || file == "-")
yyin = stdin;
else if (!(yyin = fopen (file.c_str (), "r")))
@{
std::cerr << "cannot open " << file << ": " << strerror (errno) << '\n';
exit (EXIT_FAILURE);
@}
@}
@end group
@group
void
driver::scan_end ()
@{
fclose (yyin);
@}
@end group
@end example
@node Calc++ Top Level
@subsubsection Calc++ Top Level
The top level file, @file{calc++.cc}, poses no problem.
@ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/calc++.cc
@example
/* Main for calc++. -*- C++ -*-
Copyright (C) 2005-2015, 2018-2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This file is part of Bison, the GNU Compiler Compiler.
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. */
@end example
@end ignore
@comment file: c++/calc++/calc++.cc
@example
#include <iostream>
#include "driver.hh"
@group
int
main (int argc, char *argv[])
@{
int res = 0;
driver drv;
for (int i = 1; i < argc; ++i)
if (argv[i] == std::string ("-p"))
drv.trace_parsing = true;
else if (argv[i] == std::string ("-s"))
drv.trace_scanning = true;
else if (!drv.parse (argv[i]))
std::cout << drv.result << '\n';
else
res = 1;
return res;
@}
@end group
@end example
@node D Parsers
@section D Parsers
@menu
* D Bison Interface:: Asking for D parser generation
* D Semantic Values:: %token and %nterm vs. D
* D Location Values:: The position and location classes
* D Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* D Parser Context Interface:: Circumstances of a syntax error
* D Scanner Interface:: Specifying the scanner for the parser
* D Action Features:: Special features for use in actions
* D Push Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the push parser
* D Complete Symbols:: Using token constructors
@end menu
@node D Bison Interface
@subsection D Bison Interface
@c - %language "D"
The D parser skeletons are selected using the @code{%language "D"}
directive or the @option{-L D}/@option{--language=D} option.
@c FIXME: Documented bug.
When generating a D parser, @samp{bison @var{basename}.y} will create a
single D source file named @file{@var{basename}.d} containing the
parser implementation. Using a grammar file without a @file{.y} suffix is
currently broken. The basename of the parser implementation file can be
changed by the @code{%file-prefix} directive or the
@option{-b}/@option{--file-prefix} option. The entire parser implementation
file name can be changed by the @code{%output} directive or the
@option{-o}/@option{--output} option. The parser implementation file
contains a single class for the parser.
You can create documentation for generated parsers using Ddoc.
GLR parsers are currently unsupported in D. Do not use the
@code{glr-parser} directive.
No header file can be generated for D parsers. Do not use the
@code{%header} directive or the @option{-d}/@option{--header} options.
@node D Semantic Values
@subsection D Semantic Values
Semantic types are handled by @code{%union} and @samp{%define api.value.type
union}, similar to C/C++ parsers. In the latter case, the union of the
values is handled by the backend. In D, unions can hold classes, structs,
etc., so this directive is more similar to @samp{%define api.value.type
variant} from C++.
D parsers do not support @code{%destructor}, since the language
adopts garbage collection. The parser will try to hold references
to semantic values for as little time as needed.
D parsers support @code{%printer}. An example for the output of type
@code{int}, where @code{yyo} is the parser's debug output:
@example
%printer @{ yyo.write($$); @} <int>
@end example
@node D Location Values
@subsection D Location Values
@c - %locations
@c - class Position
@c - class Location
When the directive @code{%locations} is used, the D parser supports location
tracking, see @ref{Tracking Locations}. The position and the location
structures are provided.
@deftypeivar {Location} {Position} begin
@deftypeivarx {Location} {Position} end
The first, inclusive, position of the range, and the first beyond.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypeop {Constructor} {Location} {} this(@code{Position} @var{loc})
Create a @code{Location} denoting an empty range located at a given point.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {Location} {} this(@code{Position} @var{begin}, @code{Position} @var{end})
Create a @code{Location} from the endpoints of the range.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {Location} {string} toString()
The range represented by the location as a string.
@end deftypemethod
@node D Parser Interface
@subsection D Parser Interface
The name of the generated parser class defaults to @code{YYParser}. The
@code{YY} prefix may be changed using the @samp{%define api.prefix}.
Alternatively, use @samp{%define api.parser.class @{@var{name}@}} to give a
custom name to the class. The interface of this class is detailed below.
By default, the parser class has public visibility. To add modifiers to the
parser class, @code{%define} @code{api.parser.public},
@code{api.parser.abstract} and/or @code{api.parser.final}.
The superclass and the implemented interfaces of the parser class can be
specified with the @samp{%define api.parser.extends} and @samp{%define
api.parser.implements} directives.
The parser class defines an interface, @code{Lexer} (@pxref{D Scanner
Interface}). Other than this interface and the members described in the
interface below, all the other members and fields are preceded with a
@code{yy} or @code{YY} prefix to avoid clashes with user code.
The parser class can be extended using the @code{%parse-param}
directive. Each occurrence of the directive will add a by default public
field to the parser class, and an argument to its constructor, which
initializes them automatically.
@deftypeop {Constructor} {YYParser} {} this(@var{lex_param}, @dots{}, @var{parse_param}, @dots{})
Build a new parser object with embedded @samp{%code lexer}. There are no
parameters, unless @code{%param}s and/or @code{%parse-param}s and/or
@code{%lex-param}s are used.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {YYParser} {} this(@code{Lexer} @var{lexer}, @var{parse_param}, @dots{})
Build a new parser object using the specified scanner. There are no
additional parameters unless @code{%param}s and/or @code{%parse-param}s are
used.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} parse()
Run the syntactic analysis, and return @code{true} on success,
@code{false} otherwise.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} getErrorVerbose()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setErrorVerbose(boolean @var{verbose})
Get or set the option to produce verbose error messages. These are only
available with @samp{%define parse.error detailed},
which also turns on verbose error messages.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {void} yyerror(@code{string} @var{msg})
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} yyerror(@code{Location} @var{loc}, @code{string} @var{msg})
Print an error message using the @code{yyerror} method of the scanner
instance in use. The @code{Location} and @code{Position} parameters are
available only if location tracking is active.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} recovering()
During the syntactic analysis, return @code{true} if recovering
from a syntax error.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {File} getDebugStream()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setDebugStream(@code{File} @var{o})
Get or set the stream used for tracing the parsing. It defaults to
@code{stderr}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {int} getDebugLevel()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setDebugLevel(@code{int} @var{l})
Get or set the tracing level. Currently its value is either 0, no trace,
or nonzero, full tracing.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypecv {Constant} {YYParser} {string} {bisonVersion}
@deftypecvx {Constant} {YYParser} {string} {bisonSkeleton}
Identify the Bison version and skeleton used to generate this parser.
@end deftypecv
The internationalization in D is very similar to the one in C. The D
parser uses @code{dgettext} for translating Bison messages.
To enable internationalization, compile using @samp{-version ENABLE_NLS
-version YYENABLE_NLS} and import @code{bindtextdomain} and
@code{textdomain} from C:
@example
extern(C) char* bindtextdomain(const char* domainname, const char* dirname);
extern(C) char* textdomain(const char* domainname);
@end example
The main function should load the translation catalogs, similarly to the
@file{c/bistromathic} example:
@example
int main()
@{
import core.stdc.locale;
// Set up internationalization.
setlocale(LC_ALL, "");
// Use Bison's standard translation catalog for error messages
// (the generated messages).
bindtextdomain("bison-runtime", BISON_LOCALEDIR);
// For the translation catalog of your own project, use the
// name of your project.
bindtextdomain("bison", LOCALEDIR);
textdomain("bison");
// usual main content
...
@}
@end example
For user message translations, the user must implement the @samp{string
_(const char* @var{msg})} function. It is recommended to use
@code{gettext}:
@example
%code imports @{
static if (!is(typeof(_)))
@{
version(ENABLE_NLS)
@{
extern(C) char* gettext(const char*);
string _(const char* s)
@{
return to!string(gettext(s));
@}
@}
@}
static if (!is(typeof(_)))
@{
pragma(inline, true)
string _(string msg) @{ return msg; @}
@}
@}
@end example
@node D Parser Context Interface
@subsection D Parser Context Interface
The parser context provides information to build error reports when you
invoke @samp{%define parse.error custom}.
@defcv {Type} {YYParser} {SymbolKind}
A struct containing an enum of all the grammar symbols, tokens and
nonterminals. Its enumerators are forged from the symbol names. Use
@samp{void toString(W)(W sink)} to get the symbol names.
@end defcv
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {YYParser.SymbolKind} getToken()
The kind of the lookahead. Return @code{null} iff there is no lookahead.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {YYParser.Location} getLocation()
The location of the lookahead.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {int} getExpectedTokens(@code{YYParser.SymbolKind[]} @var{argv}, @code{int} @var{argc})
Fill @var{argv} with the expected tokens, which never includes
@code{SymbolKind.YYERROR}, or @code{SymbolKind.YYUNDEF}.
Never put more than @var{argc} elements into @var{argv}, and on success
return the number of tokens stored in @var{argv}. If there are more
expected tokens than @var{argc}, fill @var{argv} up to @var{argc} and return
0. If there are no expected tokens, also return 0, but set @code{argv[0]}
to @code{null}.
If @var{argv} is null, return the size needed to store all the possible
values, which is always less than @code{YYNTOKENS}.
@end deftypemethod
@node D Scanner Interface
@subsection D Scanner Interface
@c - %code lexer
@c - %lex-param
@c - Lexer interface
There are two possible ways to interface a Bison-generated D parser
with a scanner: the scanner may be defined by @code{%code lexer}, or
defined elsewhere. In either case, the scanner has to implement the
@code{Lexer} inner interface of the parser class. This interface also
contains constants for all user-defined token names and the predefined
@code{YYEOF} token.
In the first case, the body of the scanner class is placed in
@code{%code lexer} blocks. If you want to pass parameters from the
parser constructor to the scanner constructor, specify them with
@code{%lex-param}; they are passed before @code{%parse-param}s to the
constructor.
In the second case, the scanner has to implement the @code{Lexer} interface,
which is defined within the parser class (e.g., @code{YYParser.Lexer}).
The constructor of the parser object will then accept an object
implementing the interface; @code{%lex-param} is not used in this
case.
In both cases, the scanner has to implement the following methods.
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {void} yyerror(@code{Location} @var{loc}, @code{string} @var{msg})
This method is defined by the user to emit an error message. The first
parameter is omitted if location tracking is not active.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {Symbol} yylex()
Return the next token. The return value is of type @code{Symbol}, which
binds together the kind, the semantic value and the location.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {void} reportSyntaxError(@code{YYParser.Context} @var{ctx})
If you invoke @samp{%define parse.error custom} (@pxref{Bison
Declarations}), then the parser no longer passes syntax error messages to
@code{yyerror}, rather it delegates that task to the user by calling the
@code{reportSyntaxError} function.
Whether it uses @code{yyerror} is up to the user.
Here is an example of a reporting function (@pxref{D Parser Context
Interface}).
@example
public void reportSyntaxError(YYParser.Context ctx)
@{
stderr.write(ctx.getLocation(), ": syntax error");
// Report the expected tokens.
@{
immutable int TOKENMAX = 5;
YYParser.SymbolKind[] arg = new YYParser.SymbolKind[TOKENMAX];
int n = ctx.getExpectedTokens(arg, TOKENMAX);
if (n < TOKENMAX)
for (int i = 0; i < n; ++i)
stderr.write((i == 0 ? ": expected " : " or "), arg[i]);
@}
// Report the unexpected token which triggered the error.
@{
YYParser.SymbolKind lookahead = ctx.getToken();
stderr.writeln(" before ", lookahead);
@}
@}
@end example
@noindent
This implementation is inappropriate for internationalization, see
the @file{c/bistromathic} example for a better alternative.
@end deftypemethod
@node D Action Features
@subsection Special Features for Use in D Actions
Here is a table of Bison constructs, variables and functions that are useful in
actions.
@deffn {Variable} $$
Acts like a variable that contains the semantic value for the
grouping made by the current rule. @xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $@var{n}
Acts like a variable that contains the semantic value for the
@var{n}th component of the current rule. @xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yyerrok
Resume generating error messages immediately for subsequent syntax
errors. This is useful primarily in error rules.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@node D Push Parser Interface
@subsection D Push Parser Interface
@c - define push_parse
@findex %define api.push-pull
Normally, Bison generates a pull parser for D.
The following Bison declaration says that you want the parser to be a push
parser (@pxref{%define Summary}):
@example
%define api.push-pull push
@end example
Most of the discussion about the D pull Parser Interface, (@pxref{D
Parser Interface}) applies to the push parser interface as well.
When generating a push parser, the method @code{pushParse} is created with
the following signature:
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {int} pushParse (@code{Symbol} @var{sym})
@end deftypemethod
The primary difference with respect to a pull parser is that the parser
method @code{pushParse} is invoked repeatedly to parse each token. This
function is available if either the @samp{%define api.push-pull push} or
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration is used (@pxref{%define
Summary}).
The value returned by the @code{pushParse} method is one of the following:
@code{ACCEPT}, @code{ABORT}, or @code{PUSH_MORE}. This new value,
@code{PUSH_MORE}, may be returned if more input is required to finish
parsing the input.
If @code{api.push-pull} is defined as @code{both}, then the generated parser
class will also implement the @code{parse} method. This method's body is a
loop that repeatedly invokes the scanner and then passes the values obtained
from the scanner to the @code{pushParse} method.
@node D Complete Symbols
@subsection D Complete Symbols
To build return values for @code{yylex}, call the @code{Symbol} method of
the same name as the token kind reported, and adding the parameters for
value and location if necessary. These methods generate compile-time errors
if the parameters are inconsistent. Token constructors work with both
@code{%union} and @samp{%define api.value.type union}.
The order of the parameters is the same as for the @code{Symbol}
constructor. An example for the token kind @code{NUM}, which has value
@code{ival} and with location tracking activated:
@example
Symbol.NUM(ival, location);
@end example
@node Java Parsers
@section Java Parsers
@menu
* Java Bison Interface:: Asking for Java parser generation
* Java Semantic Values:: %token and %nterm vs. Java
* Java Location Values:: The position and location classes
* Java Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the parser
* Java Parser Context Interface:: Circumstances of a syntax error
* Java Scanner Interface:: Specifying the scanner for the parser
* Java Action Features:: Special features for use in actions
* Java Push Parser Interface:: Instantiating and running the push parser
* Java Differences:: Differences between C/C++ and Java Grammars
* Java Declarations Summary:: List of Bison declarations used with Java
@end menu
@node Java Bison Interface
@subsection Java Bison Interface
@c - %language "Java"
The Java parser skeletons are selected using the @code{%language "Java"}
directive or the @option{-L java}/@option{--language=java} option.
@c FIXME: Documented bug.
When generating a Java parser, @samp{bison @var{basename}.y} will create a
single Java source file named @file{@var{basename}.java} containing the
parser implementation. Using a grammar file without a @file{.y} suffix is
currently broken. The basename of the parser implementation file can be
changed by the @code{%file-prefix} directive or the
@option{-b}/@option{--file-prefix} option. The entire parser implementation
file name can be changed by the @code{%output} directive or the
@option{-o}/@option{--output} option. The parser implementation file
contains a single class for the parser.
You can create documentation for generated parsers using Javadoc.
Contrary to C parsers, Java parsers do not use global variables; the state
of the parser is always local to an instance of the parser class.
Therefore, all Java parsers are ``pure'', and the @code{%define api.pure}
directive does nothing when used in Java.
GLR parsers are currently unsupported in Java. Do not use the
@code{glr-parser} directive.
No header file can be generated for Java parsers. Do not use the
@code{%header} directive or the @option{-d}/@option{-H}/@option{--header}
options.
@c FIXME: Possible code change.
Currently, support for tracing is always compiled in. Thus the
@samp{%define parse.trace} and @samp{%token-table} directives and the
@option{-t}/@option{--debug} and @option{-k}/@option{--token-table} options
have no effect. This may change in the future to eliminate unused code in
the generated parser, so use @samp{%define parse.trace} explicitly if
needed. Also, in the future the @code{%token-table} directive might enable
a public interface to access the token names and codes.
Getting a ``code too large'' error from the Java compiler means the code hit
the 64KB bytecode per method limitation of the Java class file. Try
reducing the amount of code in actions and static initializers; otherwise,
report a bug so that the parser skeleton will be improved.
@node Java Semantic Values
@subsection Java Semantic Values
There is no @code{%union} directive in Java parsers. Instead, the semantic
values' types (class names) should be specified in the @code{%nterm} or
@code{%token} directive:
@example
%nterm <Expression> expr assignment_expr term factor
%nterm <Integer> number
@end example
By default, the semantic stack is declared to have @code{Object} members,
which means that the class types you specify can be of any class.
To improve the type safety of the parser, you can declare the common
superclass of all the semantic values using the @samp{%define api.value.type}
directive. For example, after the following declaration:
@example
%define api.value.type @{ASTNode@}
@end example
@noindent
any @code{%token}, @code{%nterm} or @code{%type} specifying a semantic type
which is not a subclass of @code{ASTNode}, will cause a compile-time error.
@c FIXME: Documented bug.
Types used in the directives may be qualified with a package name.
Primitive data types are accepted for Java version 1.5 or later. Note
that in this case the autoboxing feature of Java 1.5 will be used.
Generic types may not be used; this is due to a limitation in the
implementation of Bison, and may change in future releases.
Java parsers do not support @code{%destructor}, since the language
adopts garbage collection. The parser will try to hold references
to semantic values for as little time as needed.
Java parsers do not support @code{%printer}, as @code{toString()}
can be used to print the semantic values. This however may change
(in a backwards-compatible way) in future versions of Bison.
@node Java Location Values
@subsection Java Location Values
@c - %locations
@c - class Position
@c - class Location
When the directive @code{%locations} is used, the Java parser supports
location tracking, see @ref{Tracking Locations}. An auxiliary user-defined
class defines a @dfn{position}, a single point in a file; Bison itself
defines a class representing a @dfn{location}, a range composed of a pair of
positions (possibly spanning several files). The location class is an inner
class of the parser; the name is @code{Location} by default, and may also be
renamed using @code{%define api.location.type @{@var{class-name}@}}.
The location class treats the position as a completely opaque value.
By default, the class name is @code{Position}, but this can be changed
with @code{%define api.position.type @{@var{class-name}@}}. This class must
be supplied by the user.
@deftypeivar {Location} {Position} begin
@deftypeivarx {Location} {Position} end
The first, inclusive, position of the range, and the first beyond.
@end deftypeivar
@deftypeop {Constructor} {Location} {} Location (@code{Position} @var{loc})
Create a @code{Location} denoting an empty range located at a given point.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {Location} {} Location (@code{Position} @var{begin}, @code{Position} @var{end})
Create a @code{Location} from the endpoints of the range.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {Location} {String} toString ()
Prints the range represented by the location. For this to work
properly, the position class should override the @code{equals} and
@code{toString} methods appropriately.
@end deftypemethod
@node Java Parser Interface
@subsection Java Parser Interface
The name of the generated parser class defaults to @code{YYParser}. The
@code{YY} prefix may be changed using the @samp{%define api.prefix}.
Alternatively, use @samp{%define api.parser.class @{@var{name}@}} to give a
custom name to the class. The interface of this class is detailed below.
By default, the parser class has package visibility. A declaration
@samp{%define api.parser.public} will change to public visibility. Remember
that, according to the Java language specification, the name of the
@file{.java} file should match the name of the class in this case.
Similarly, you can use @code{api.parser.abstract}, @code{api.parser.final}
and @code{api.parser.strictfp} with the @code{%define} declaration to add
other modifiers to the parser class. A single @samp{%define
api.parser.annotations @{@var{annotations}@}} directive can be used to add
any number of annotations to the parser class.
The Java package name of the parser class can be specified using the
@samp{%define package} directive. The superclass and the implemented
interfaces of the parser class can be specified with the @code{%define
api.parser.extends} and @samp{%define api.parser.implements} directives.
The parser class defines an inner class, @code{Location}, that is used
for location tracking (see @ref{Java Location Values}), and a inner
interface, @code{Lexer} (see @ref{Java Scanner Interface}). Other than
these inner class/interface, and the members described in the interface
below, all the other members and fields are preceded with a @code{yy} or
@code{YY} prefix to avoid clashes with user code.
The parser class can be extended using the @code{%parse-param}
directive. Each occurrence of the directive will add a @code{protected
final} field to the parser class, and an argument to its constructor,
which initializes them automatically.
@deftypeop {Constructor} {YYParser} {} YYParser (@var{lex_param}, @dots{}, @var{parse_param}, @dots{})
Build a new parser object with embedded @code{%code lexer}. There are
no parameters, unless @code{%param}s and/or @code{%parse-param}s and/or
@code{%lex-param}s are used.
Use @code{%code init} for code added to the start of the constructor
body. This is especially useful to initialize superclasses. Use
@samp{%define init_throws} to specify any uncaught exceptions.
@end deftypeop
@deftypeop {Constructor} {YYParser} {} YYParser (@code{Lexer} @var{lexer}, @var{parse_param}, @dots{})
Build a new parser object using the specified scanner. There are no
additional parameters unless @code{%param}s and/or @code{%parse-param}s are
used.
If the scanner is defined by @code{%code lexer}, this constructor is
declared @code{protected} and is called automatically with a scanner
created with the correct @code{%param}s and/or @code{%lex-param}s.
Use @code{%code init} for code added to the start of the constructor
body. This is especially useful to initialize superclasses. Use
@samp{%define init_throws} to specify any uncaught exceptions.
@end deftypeop
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} parse ()
Run the syntactic analysis, and return @code{true} on success,
@code{false} otherwise.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} getErrorVerbose ()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setErrorVerbose (boolean @var{verbose})
Get or set the option to produce verbose error messages. These are only
available with @samp{%define parse.error detailed} (or @samp{verbose}),
which also turns on verbose error messages.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {void} yyerror (@code{String} @var{msg})
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} yyerror (@code{Position} @var{pos}, @code{String} @var{msg})
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} yyerror (@code{Location} @var{loc}, @code{String} @var{msg})
Print an error message using the @code{yyerror} method of the scanner
instance in use. The @code{Location} and @code{Position} parameters are
available only if location tracking is active.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {boolean} recovering ()
During the syntactic analysis, return @code{true} if recovering
from a syntax error.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {java.io.PrintStream} getDebugStream ()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setDebugStream (@code{java.io.PrintStream} @var{o})
Get or set the stream used for tracing the parsing. It defaults to
@code{System.err}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {int} getDebugLevel ()
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} setDebugLevel (@code{int} @var{l})
Get or set the tracing level. Currently its value is either 0, no trace,
or nonzero, full tracing.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypecv {Constant} {YYParser} {String} {bisonVersion}
@deftypecvx {Constant} {YYParser} {String} {bisonSkeleton}
Identify the Bison version and skeleton used to generate this parser.
@end deftypecv
If you enabled token internationalization (@pxref{Token I18n}), you must
provide the parser with the following function:
@deftypecv {Static Method} {YYParser} {String} {i18n} (@code{string} @var{s})
Return the translation of @var{s} in the user's language. As an example:
@example
%code @{
static ResourceBundle myResources
= ResourceBundle.getBundle("domain-name");
static final String i18n(String s) @{
return myResources.getString(s);
@}
@}
@end example
@end deftypecv
@node Java Parser Context Interface
@subsection Java Parser Context Interface
The parser context provides information to build error reports when you
invoke @samp{%define parse.error custom}.
@defcv {Type} {YYParser} {SymbolKind}
An enum of all the grammar symbols, tokens and nonterminals. Its
enumerators are forged from the symbol names:
@example
public enum SymbolKind
@{
S_YYEOF(0), /* "end of file" */
S_YYERROR(1), /* error */
S_YYUNDEF(2), /* "invalid token" */
S_BANG(3), /* "!" */
S_PLUS(4), /* "+" */
S_MINUS(5), /* "-" */
[...]
S_NUM(13), /* "number" */
S_NEG(14), /* NEG */
S_YYACCEPT(15), /* $accept */
S_input(16), /* input */
S_line(17); /* line */
@};
@end example
@end defcv
@deftypemethod {YYParser.SymbolKind} {String} getName ()
The name of this symbol, possibly translated.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {YYParser.SymbolKind} getToken ()
The kind of the lookahead. Return @code{null} iff there is no lookahead.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {YYParser.Location} getLocation ()
The location of the lookahead.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {YYParser.Context} {int} getExpectedTokens (@code{YYParser.SymbolKind[]} @var{argv}, @code{int} @var{argc})
Fill @var{argv} with the expected tokens, which never includes
@code{SymbolKind.S_YYERROR}, or @code{SymbolKind.S_YYUNDEF}.
Never put more than @var{argc} elements into @var{argv}, and on success
return the number of tokens stored in @var{argv}. If there are more
expected tokens than @var{argc}, fill @var{argv} up to @var{argc} and return
0. If there are no expected tokens, also return 0, but set @code{argv[0]}
to @code{null}.
If @var{argv} is null, return the size needed to store all the possible
values, which is always less than @code{YYNTOKENS}.
@end deftypemethod
@node Java Scanner Interface
@subsection Java Scanner Interface
@c - %code lexer
@c - %lex-param
@c - Lexer interface
There are two possible ways to interface a Bison-generated Java parser
with a scanner: the scanner may be defined by @code{%code lexer}, or
defined elsewhere. In either case, the scanner has to implement the
@code{Lexer} inner interface of the parser class. This interface also
contains constants for all user-defined token names and the predefined
@code{YYEOF} token.
In the first case, the body of the scanner class is placed in
@code{%code lexer} blocks. If you want to pass parameters from the
parser constructor to the scanner constructor, specify them with
@code{%lex-param}; they are passed before @code{%parse-param}s to the
constructor.
In the second case, the scanner has to implement the @code{Lexer} interface,
which is defined within the parser class (e.g., @code{YYParser.Lexer}).
The constructor of the parser object will then accept an object
implementing the interface; @code{%lex-param} is not used in this
case.
In both cases, the scanner has to implement the following methods.
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {void} yyerror (@code{Location} @var{loc}, @code{String} @var{msg})
This method is defined by the user to emit an error message. The first
parameter is omitted if location tracking is not active. Its type can be
changed using @code{%define api.location.type @{@var{class-name}@}}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {int} yylex ()
Return the next token. Its type is the return value, its semantic value and
location are saved and returned by the their methods in the interface. Not
needed for push-only parsers.
Use @samp{%define lex_throws} to specify any uncaught exceptions.
Default is @code{java.io.IOException}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {Position} getStartPos ()
@deftypemethodx {Lexer} {Position} getEndPos ()
Return respectively the first position of the last token that @code{yylex}
returned, and the first position beyond it. These methods are not needed
unless location tracking and pull parsing are active.
They should return new objects for each call, to avoid that all the symbol
share the same Position boundaries.
The return type can be changed using @code{%define api.position.type
@{@var{class-name}@}}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {Object} getLVal ()
Return the semantic value of the last token that yylex returned. Not needed
for push-only parsers.
The return type can be changed using @samp{%define api.value.type
@{@var{class-name}@}}.
@end deftypemethod
@deftypemethod {Lexer} {void} reportSyntaxError (@code{YYParser.Context} @var{ctx})
If you invoke @samp{%define parse.error custom} (@pxref{Bison
Declarations}), then the parser no longer passes syntax error messages to
@code{yyerror}, rather it delegates that task to the user by calling the
@code{reportSyntaxError} function.
Whether it uses @code{yyerror} is up to the user.
Here is an example of a reporting function (@pxref{Java Parser Context
Interface}).
@example
public void reportSyntaxError(YYParser.Context ctx) @{
System.err.print(ctx.getLocation() + ": syntax error");
// Report the expected tokens.
@{
final int TOKENMAX = 5;
YYParser.SymbolKind[] arg = new YYParser.SymbolKind[TOKENMAX];
int n = ctx.getExpectedTokens(arg, TOKENMAX);
for (int i = 0; i < n; ++i)
System.err.print((i == 0 ? ": expected " : " or ")
+ arg[i].getName());
@}
// Report the unexpected token which triggered the error.
@{
YYParser.SymbolKind lookahead = ctx.getToken();
if (lookahead != null)
System.err.print(" before " + lookahead.getName());
@}
System.err.println("");
@}
@end example
@noindent
This implementation is inappropriate for internationalization, see the
@file{c/bistromathic} example for a better alternative.
@end deftypemethod
@node Java Action Features
@subsection Special Features for Use in Java Actions
The following special constructs can be uses in Java actions.
Other analogous C action features are currently unavailable for Java.
Use @samp{%define throws} to specify any uncaught exceptions from parser
actions, and initial actions specified by @code{%initial-action}.
@defvar $@var{n}
The semantic value for the @var{n}th component of the current rule.
This may not be assigned to.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end defvar
@defvar $<@var{typealt}>@var{n}
Like @code{$@var{n}} but specifies a alternative type @var{typealt}.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end defvar
@defvar $$
The semantic value for the grouping made by the current rule. As a
value, this is in the base type (@code{Object} or as specified by
@samp{%define api.value.type}) as in not cast to the declared subtype because
casts are not allowed on the left-hand side of Java assignments.
Use an explicit Java cast if the correct subtype is needed.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end defvar
@defvar $<@var{typealt}>$
Same as @code{$$} since Java always allow assigning to the base type.
Perhaps we should use this and @code{$<>$} for the value and @code{$$}
for setting the value but there is currently no easy way to distinguish
these constructs.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end defvar
@defvar @@@var{n}
The location information of the @var{n}th component of the current rule.
This may not be assigned to.
@xref{Java Location Values}.
@end defvar
@defvar @@$
The location information of the grouping made by the current rule.
@xref{Java Location Values}.
@end defvar
@deftypefn {Statement} return YYABORT @code{;}
Return immediately from the parser, indicating failure.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deftypefn
@deftypefn {Statement} return YYACCEPT @code{;}
Return immediately from the parser, indicating success.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deftypefn
@deftypefn {Statement} {return} YYERROR @code{;}
Start error recovery (without printing an error message).
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deftypefn
@deftypefn {Function} {boolean} recovering ()
Return whether error recovery is being done. In this state, the parser
reads token until it reaches a known state, and then restarts normal
operation.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deftypefn
@deftypefn {Function} {void} yyerror (@code{String} @var{msg})
@deftypefnx {Function} {void} yyerror (@code{Position} @var{loc}, @code{String} @var{msg})
@deftypefnx {Function} {void} yyerror (@code{Location} @var{loc}, @code{String} @var{msg})
Print an error message using the @code{yyerror} method of the scanner
instance in use. The @code{Location} and @code{Position} parameters are
available only if location tracking is active.
@end deftypefn
@node Java Push Parser Interface
@subsection Java Push Parser Interface
@c - define push_parse
@findex %define api.push-pull
Normally, Bison generates a pull parser for Java.
The following Bison declaration says that you want the parser to be a push
parser (@pxref{%define Summary}):
@example
%define api.push-pull push
@end example
Most of the discussion about the Java pull Parser Interface, (@pxref{Java
Parser Interface}) applies to the push parser interface as well.
When generating a push parser, the method @code{push_parse} is created with
the following signature (depending on if locations are enabled).
@deftypemethod {YYParser} {void} push_parse (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{Object} @var{yylval})
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} push_parse (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{Object} @var{yylval}, @code{Location} @var{yyloc})
@deftypemethodx {YYParser} {void} push_parse (@code{int} @var{token}, @code{Object} @var{yylval}, @code{Position} @var{yypos})
@end deftypemethod
The primary difference with respect to a pull parser is that the parser
method @code{push_parse} is invoked repeatedly to parse each token. This
function is available if either the @samp{%define api.push-pull push} or
@samp{%define api.push-pull both} declaration is used (@pxref{%define
Summary}). The @code{Location} and @code{Position} parameters are available
only if location tracking is active.
The value returned by the @code{push_parse} method is one of the following:
0 (success), 1 (abort), 2 (memory exhaustion), or @code{YYPUSH_MORE}. This
new value, @code{YYPUSH_MORE}, may be returned if more input is required to
finish parsing the grammar.
If @code{api.push-pull} is defined as @code{both}, then the generated parser
class will also implement the @code{parse} method. This method's body is a
loop that repeatedly invokes the scanner and then passes the values obtained
from the scanner to the @code{push_parse} method.
There is one additional complication. Technically, the push parser does not
need to know about the scanner (i.e. an object implementing the
@code{YYParser.Lexer} interface), but it does need access to the
@code{yyerror} method. Currently, the @code{yyerror} method is defined in
the @code{YYParser.Lexer} interface. Hence, an implementation of that
interface is still required in order to provide an implementation of
@code{yyerror}. The current approach (and subject to change) is to require
the @code{YYParser} constructor to be given an object implementing the
@code{YYParser.Lexer} interface. This object need only implement the
@code{yyerror} method; the other methods can be stubbed since they will
never be invoked. The simplest way to do this is to add a trivial scanner
implementation to your grammar file using whatever implementation of
@code{yyerror} is desired. The following code sample shows a simple way to
accomplish this.
@example
%code lexer
@{
public Object getLVal () @{return null;@}
public int yylex () @{return 0;@}
public void yyerror (String s) @{System.err.println(s);@}
@}
@end example
@node Java Differences
@subsection Differences between C/C++ and Java Grammars
The different structure of the Java language forces several differences
between C/C++ grammars, and grammars designed for Java parsers. This
section summarizes these differences.
@itemize
@item
Java has no a preprocessor, so obviously the @code{YYERROR},
@code{YYACCEPT}, @code{YYABORT} symbols (@pxref{Table of Symbols}) cannot be
macros. Instead, they should be preceded by @code{return} when they appear
in an action. The actual definition of these symbols is opaque to the Bison
grammar, and it might change in the future. The only meaningful operation
that you can do, is to return them. @xref{Java Action Features}.
Note that of these three symbols, only @code{YYACCEPT} and
@code{YYABORT} will cause a return from the @code{yyparse}
method@footnote{Java parsers include the actions in a separate
method than @code{yyparse} in order to have an intuitive syntax that
corresponds to these C macros.}.
@item
Java lacks unions, so @code{%union} has no effect. Instead, semantic
values have a common base type: @code{Object} or as specified by
@samp{%define api.value.type}. Angle brackets on @code{%token}, @code{type},
@code{$@var{n}} and @code{$$} specify subtypes rather than fields of
an union. The type of @code{$$}, even with angle brackets, is the base
type since Java casts are not allow on the left-hand side of assignments.
Also, @code{$@var{n}} and @code{@@@var{n}} are not allowed on the
left-hand side of assignments. @xref{Java Semantic Values}, and
@ref{Java Action Features}.
@item
The prologue declarations have a different meaning than in C/C++ code.
@table @asis
@item @code{%code imports}
blocks are placed at the beginning of the Java source code. They may
include copyright notices. For a @code{package} declarations, use
@samp{%define api.package} instead.
@item unqualified @code{%code}
blocks are placed inside the parser class.
@item @code{%code lexer}
blocks, if specified, should include the implementation of the
scanner. If there is no such block, the scanner can be any class
that implements the appropriate interface (@pxref{Java Scanner
Interface}).
@end table
Other @code{%code} blocks are not supported in Java parsers.
In particular, @code{%@{ @dots{} %@}} blocks should not be used
and may give an error in future versions of Bison.
The epilogue has the same meaning as in C/C++ code and it can
be used to define other classes used by the parser @emph{outside}
the parser class.
@end itemize
@node Java Declarations Summary
@subsection Java Declarations Summary
This summary only include declarations specific to Java or have special
meaning when used in a Java parser.
@deffn {Directive} {%language "Java"}
Generate a Java class for the parser.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %lex-param @{@var{type} @var{name}@}
A parameter for the lexer class defined by @code{%code lexer}
@emph{only}, added as parameters to the lexer constructor and the parser
constructor that @emph{creates} a lexer. Default is none.
@xref{Java Scanner Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %parse-param @{@var{type} @var{name}@}
A parameter for the parser class added as parameters to constructor(s)
and as fields initialized by the constructor(s). Default is none.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %token <@var{type}> @var{token} @dots{}
Declare tokens. Note that the angle brackets enclose a Java @emph{type}.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %nterm <@var{type}> @var{nonterminal} @dots{}
Declare the type of nonterminals. Note that the angle brackets enclose
a Java @emph{type}.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %code @{ @var{code} @dots{} @}
Code appended to the inside of the parser class.
@xref{Java Differences}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%code imports} @{ @var{code} @dots{} @}
Code inserted just after the @code{package} declaration.
@xref{Java Differences}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%code init} @{ @var{code} @dots{} @}
Code inserted at the beginning of the parser constructor body.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%code lexer} @{ @var{code} @dots{} @}
Code added to the body of a inner lexer class within the parser class.
@xref{Java Scanner Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %% @var{code} @dots{}
Code (after the second @code{%%}) appended to the end of the file,
@emph{outside} the parser class.
@xref{Java Differences}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %@{ @var{code} @dots{} %@}
Not supported. Use @code{%code imports} instead.
@xref{Java Differences}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.prefix} @{@var{prefix}@}
The prefix of the parser class name @code{@var{prefix}Parser} if
@samp{%define api.parser.class} is not used. Default is @code{YY}.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.abstract}
Whether the parser class is declared @code{abstract}. Default is false.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.annotations} @{@var{annotations}@}
The Java annotations for the parser class. Default is none.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.class} @{@var{name}@}
The name of the parser class. Default is @code{YYParser} or
@code{@var{api.prefix}Parser}. @xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.extends} @{@var{superclass}@}
The superclass of the parser class. Default is none.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.final}
Whether the parser class is declared @code{final}. Default is false.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.implements} @{@var{interfaces}@}
The implemented interfaces of the parser class, a comma-separated list.
Default is none.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.public}
Whether the parser class is declared @code{public}. Default is false.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.parser.strictfp}
Whether the parser class is declared @code{strictfp}. Default is false.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define init_throws} @{@var{exceptions}@}
The exceptions thrown by @code{%code init} from the parser class
constructor. Default is none.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define lex_throws} @{@var{exceptions}@}
The exceptions thrown by the @code{yylex} method of the lexer, a
comma-separated list. Default is @code{java.io.IOException}.
@xref{Java Scanner Interface}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.location.type} @{@var{class}@}
The name of the class used for locations (a range between two
positions). This class is generated as an inner class of the parser
class by @command{bison}. Default is @code{Location}.
Formerly named @code{location_type}.
@xref{Java Location Values}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.package} @{@var{package}@}
The package to put the parser class in. Default is none.
@xref{Java Bison Interface}.
Renamed from @code{package} in Bison 3.7.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.position.type} @{@var{class}@}
The name of the class used for positions. This class must be supplied by
the user. Default is @code{Position}.
Formerly named @code{position_type}.
@xref{Java Location Values}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define api.value.type} @{@var{class}@}
The base type of semantic values. Default is @code{Object}.
@xref{Java Semantic Values}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} {%define throws} @{@var{exceptions}@}
The exceptions thrown by user-supplied parser actions and
@code{%initial-action}, a comma-separated list. Default is none.
@xref{Java Parser Interface}.
@end deffn
@c ================================================= History
@node History
@chapter A Brief History of the Greater Ungulates
@cindex history
@cindex ungulates
@menu
* Yacc:: The original Yacc
* yacchack:: An obscure early implementation of reentrancy
* Byacc:: Berkeley Yacc
* Bison:: This program
* Other Ungulates:: Similar programs
@end menu
@node Yacc
@section The ancestral Yacc
Bison originated as a workalike of a program called Yacc --- Yet Another
Compiler Compiler.@footnote{Because of the acronym, the name is sometimes
given as ``YACC'', but Johnson used ``Yacc'' in the descriptive paper
included in the
@url{https://s3.amazonaws.com/plan9-bell-labs/7thEdMan/v7vol2b.pdf, Version
7 Unix Manual}.} Yacc was written at Bell Labs as part of the very early
development of Unix; one of its first uses was to develop the original
Portable C Compiler, pcc. The same person, Steven C. Johnson, wrote Yacc and
the original pcc.
According to the author
@footnote{@url{https://lists.gnu.org/r/bison-patches/2019-02/msg00061.html}},
Yacc was first invented in 1971 and reached a form recognizably similar to
the C version in 1973. Johnson published @cite{A Portable Compiler: Theory
and Practice} @pcite{Johnson 1978}.
Yacc was not itself originally written in C but in its predecessor language,
B. This goes far to explain its odd interface, which exposes a large number
of global variables rather than bundling them into a C struct. All other
Yacc-like programs are descended from the C port of Yacc.
Yacc, through both its deployment in pcc and as a standalone tool for
generating other parsers, helped drive the early spread of Unix. Yacc
itself, however, passed out of use after around 1990 when workalikes
with less restrictive licenses and more features became available.
Original Yacc became generally available when Caldera released the sources
of old versions of Unix up to V7 and 32V in 2002. By that time it had been
long superseded in practical use by Bison even on Yacc's native Unix
variants.
@node yacchack
@section yacchack
@cindex yacchack
One of the deficiencies of original Yacc was its inability to produce
reentrant parsers. This was first remedied by a set of drop-in
modifications called ``yacchack'', published by Eric S. Raymond on USENET
around 1983. This code was quickly forgotten when zoo and Berkeley Yacc
became available a few years later.
@node Byacc
@section Berkeley Yacc
@cindex byacc
Berkeley Yacc was originated in 1985 by Robert Corbett @pcite{Corbett
1984}. It was originally named ``zoo'', but by October 1989 it became
known as Berkeley Yacc or byacc.
Berkeley Yacc had three advantages over the ancestral Yacc: it generated
faster parsers, it could generate reentrant parsers, and the source code was
released to the public domain rather than being under an AT&T proprietary
license. The better performance came from implementing techniques from
DeRemer and Penello's seminal paper on LALR parsing @pcite{DeRemer 1982}.
Use of byacc spread rapidly due to its public domain license. However, once
Bison became available, byacc itself passed out of general use.
@node Bison
@section Bison
@cindex zoo
Robert Corbett actually wrote two (closely related) LALR parsers in 1985,
both using the DeRemer/Penello techniques. One was ``zoo'', the other was
``Byson''. In 1987 Richard Stallman began working on Byson; the name changed
to Bison and the interface became Yacc-compatible.
The main visible difference between Yacc and Byson/Bison at the time of
Byson's first release is that Byson supported the @code{@@@var{n}} construct
(giving access to the starting and ending line number and character number
associated with any of the symbols in the current rule).
There was also the command @samp{%expect @var{n}} which said not to mention the
conflicts if there are @var{n} shift/reduce conflicts and no reduce/reduce
conflicts. In more recent versions of Bison, @code{%expect} and its
@code{%expect-rr} variant for reduce/reduce conflicts can be applied to
individual rules.
Later versions of Bison added many more new features.
Bison error reporting has been improved in various ways. Notably. ancestral
Yacc and Byson did not have carets in error messages.
Compared to Yacc Bison uses a faster but less space-efficient encoding for
the parse tables @pcite{Corbett 1984}, and more modern techniques for
generating the lookahead sets @pcite{DeRemer 1982}. This approach is the
standard one since then.
(It has also been plausibly alleged the differences in the algorithms stem
mainly from the horrible kludges that Johnson had to perpetrate to make
the original Yacc fit in a PDP-11.)
Named references, semantic predicates, @code{%locations},
@code{%glr-parser}, @code{%printer}, %destructor, dumps to DOT,
@code{%parse-param}, @code{%lex-param}, and dumps to XSLT, LAC, and IELR(1)
generation are new in Bison.
Bison also has many features to support C++ that were not present in the
ancestral Yacc or Byson.
Bison obsolesced all previous Yacc variants and workalikes generating C by
1995.
@node Other Ungulates
@section Other Ungulates
The Yacc concept has frequently been ported to other languages. Some of the
early ports are extinct along with the languages that hosted them; others
have been superseded by parser skeletons shipped with Bison.
However, independent implementations persist. One of the best-known
still in use is David Beazley's ``PLY'' (Python Lex-Yacc) for
Python. Another is goyacc, supporting the Go language. An ``ocamlyacc''
is shipped as part of the Ocaml compiler suite.
@c ================================================= Version Compatibility
@node Versioning
@chapter Bison Version Compatibility: Best Practices
@cindex version
@cindex compatibility
Bison provides a Yacc compatibility mode in which it strives to conform with
the POSIX standard. Grammar files which are written to the POSIX standard, and
do not take advantage of any of the special capabilities of Bison, should
work with many versions of Bison without modification.
All other features of Bison are particular to Bison, and are changing. Bison
is actively maintained and continuously evolving. It should come as no
surprise that an older version of Bison will not accept Bison source code which
uses newer features that do no not exist at all in the older Bison.
Regrettably, in spite of reasonable effort to maintain compatibility, the
reverse situation may also occur: it may happen that code developed using an
older version of Bison does not build with a newer version of Bison without
modifications.
Because Bison is a code generation tool, it is possible to retain its output
and distribute that to the users of the program. The users are then not
required to have Bison installed at all, only an implementation of the
programming language, such as C, which is required for processing the generated
output.
It is the output of Bison that is intended to be of the utmost portability.
So, that is to say, whereas the Bison grammar source code may have a dependency
on specific versions of Bison, the generated parser from any version of Bison
should work with with a large number of implementations of C, or whatever
language is applicable.
The recommended best practice for using Bison (in the context of software that
is distributed in source code form) is to ship the generated parser to the
downstream users. Only those downstream users who engage in active development
of the program who need to make changes to the grammar file need to have Bison
installed at all, and those users can install the specific version of Bison
which is required.
Following this recommended practice also makes it possible to use a more recent
Bison than what is available to users through operating system distributions,
thereby taking advantage of the latest techniques that Bison allows.
Some features of Bison have been, or are being adopted into other Yacc-like
programs. Therefore it might seem that is a good idea to write grammar code
which targets multiple implementations, similarly to the way C programs are
often written to target multiple compilers and language versions. Other than
the Yacc subset described by POSIX, the Bison language is not rigorously
standardized. When a Bison feature is adopted by another parser generator, it
may be initially compatible with that version of Bison on which it was based,
but the compatibility may degrade going forward. Developers who strive to make
their Bison code simultaneously compatible with other parser generators are
encouraged to nevertheless use specific versions of all generators, and still
follow the recommended practice of shipping generated output. For example,
a project can internally maintain compatibility with multiple generators,
and choose the output of a particular one to ship to the users. Or else,
the project could ship all of the outputs, arranging for a way for the user
to specify which one is used to build the program.
@c ================================================= FAQ
@node FAQ
@chapter Frequently Asked Questions
@cindex frequently asked questions
@cindex questions
Several questions about Bison come up occasionally. Here some of them
are addressed.
@menu
* Memory Exhausted:: Breaking the Stack Limits
* How Can I Reset the Parser:: @code{yyparse} Keeps some State
* Strings are Destroyed:: @code{yylval} Loses Track of Strings
* Implementing Gotos/Loops:: Control Flow in the Calculator
* Multiple start-symbols:: Factoring closely related grammars
* Secure? Conform?:: Is Bison POSIX safe?
* Enabling Relocatability:: Moving Bison/using it through network shares
* I can't build Bison:: Troubleshooting
* Where can I find help?:: Troubleshouting
* Bug Reports:: Troublereporting
* More Languages:: Parsers in C++, Java, and so on
* Beta Testing:: Experimenting development versions
* Mailing Lists:: Meeting other Bison users
@end menu
@node Memory Exhausted
@section Memory Exhausted
@quotation
My parser returns with error with a @samp{memory exhausted}
message. What can I do?
@end quotation
This question is already addressed elsewhere, see @ref{Recursion}.
@node How Can I Reset the Parser
@section How Can I Reset the Parser
The following phenomenon has several symptoms, resulting in the
following typical questions:
@quotation
I invoke @code{yyparse} several times, and on correct input it works
properly; but when a parse error is found, all the other calls fail
too. How can I reset the error flag of @code{yyparse}?
@end quotation
@noindent
or
@quotation
My parser includes support for an @samp{#include}-like feature, in which
case I run @code{yyparse} from @code{yyparse}. This fails although I did
specify @samp{%define api.pure full}.
@end quotation
These problems typically come not from Bison itself, but from
Lex-generated scanners. Because these scanners use large buffers for
speed, they might not notice a change of input file. As a
demonstration, consider the following source file,
@file{first-line.l}:
@example
@group
%@{
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
%@}
@end group
%%
.*\n ECHO; return 1;
%%
@group
int
yyparse (char const *file)
@{
yyin = fopen (file, "r");
if (!yyin)
@{
perror ("fopen");
exit (EXIT_FAILURE);
@}
@end group
@group
/* One token only. */
yylex ();
if (fclose (yyin) != 0)
@{
perror ("fclose");
exit (EXIT_FAILURE);
@}
return 0;
@}
@end group
@group
int
main (void)
@{
yyparse ("input");
yyparse ("input");
return 0;
@}
@end group
@end example
@noindent
If the file @file{input} contains
@example
input:1: Hello,
input:2: World!
@end example
@noindent
then instead of getting the first line twice, you get:
@example
$ @kbd{flex -ofirst-line.c first-line.l}
$ @kbd{gcc -ofirst-line first-line.c -ll}
$ @kbd{./first-line}
input:1: Hello,
input:2: World!
@end example
Therefore, whenever you change @code{yyin}, you must tell the
Lex-generated scanner to discard its current buffer and switch to the
new one. This depends upon your implementation of Lex; see its
documentation for more. For Flex, it suffices to call
@samp{YY_FLUSH_BUFFER} after each change to @code{yyin}. If your
Flex-generated scanner needs to read from several input streams to
handle features like include files, you might consider using Flex
functions like @samp{yy_switch_to_buffer} that manipulate multiple
input buffers.
If your Flex-generated scanner uses start conditions (@pxref{Start
conditions, , Start conditions, flex, The Flex Manual}), you might
also want to reset the scanner's state, i.e., go back to the initial
start condition, through a call to @samp{BEGIN (0)}.
@node Strings are Destroyed
@section Strings are Destroyed
@quotation
My parser seems to destroy old strings, or maybe it loses track of
them. Instead of reporting @samp{"foo", "bar"}, it reports
@samp{"bar", "bar"}, or even @samp{"foo\nbar", "bar"}.
@end quotation
This error is probably the single most frequent ``bug report'' sent to
Bison lists, but is only concerned with a misunderstanding of the role
of the scanner. Consider the following Lex code:
@example
@group
%@{
#include <stdio.h>
char *yylval = NULL;
%@}
@end group
@group
%%
.* yylval = yytext; return 1;
\n continue;
%%
@end group
@group
int
main ()
@{
/* Similar to using $1, $2 in a Bison action. */
char *fst = (yylex (), yylval);
char *snd = (yylex (), yylval);
printf ("\"%s\", \"%s\"\n", fst, snd);
return 0;
@}
@end group
@end example
If you compile and run this code, you get:
@example
$ @kbd{flex -osplit-lines.c split-lines.l}
$ @kbd{gcc -osplit-lines split-lines.c -ll}
$ @kbd{printf 'one\ntwo\n' | ./split-lines}
"one
two", "two"
@end example
@noindent
this is because @code{yytext} is a buffer provided for @emph{reading}
in the action, but if you want to keep it, you have to duplicate it
(e.g., using @code{strdup}). Note that the output may depend on how
your implementation of Lex handles @code{yytext}. For instance, when
given the Lex compatibility option @option{-l} (which triggers the
option @samp{%array}) Flex generates a different behavior:
@example
$ @kbd{flex -l -osplit-lines.c split-lines.l}
$ @kbd{gcc -osplit-lines split-lines.c -ll}
$ @kbd{printf 'one\ntwo\n' | ./split-lines}
"two", "two"
@end example
@node Implementing Gotos/Loops
@section Implementing Gotos/Loops
@quotation
My simple calculator supports variables, assignments, and functions,
but how can I implement gotos, or loops?
@end quotation
Although very pedagogical, the examples included in the document blur
the distinction to make between the parser---whose job is to recover
the structure of a text and to transmit it to subsequent modules of
the program---and the processing (such as the execution) of this
structure. This works well with so called straight line programs,
i.e., precisely those that have a straightforward execution model:
execute simple instructions one after the others.
@cindex abstract syntax tree
@cindex AST
If you want a richer model, you will probably need to use the parser
to construct a tree that does represent the structure it has
recovered; this tree is usually called the @dfn{abstract syntax tree},
or @dfn{AST} for short. Then, walking through this tree,
traversing it in various ways, will enable treatments such as its
execution or its translation, which will result in an interpreter or a
compiler.
This topic is way beyond the scope of this manual, and the reader is
invited to consult the dedicated literature.
@node Multiple start-symbols
@section Multiple start-symbols
@quotation
I have several closely related grammars, and I would like to share their
implementations. In fact, I could use a single grammar but with multiple
entry points.
@end quotation
Bison does not support multiple start-symbols, but there is a very simple
means to simulate them. If @code{foo} and @code{bar} are the two pseudo
start-symbols, then introduce two new tokens, say @code{START_FOO} and
@code{START_BAR}, and use them as switches from the real start-symbol:
@example
%token START_FOO START_BAR;
%start start;
start:
START_FOO foo
| START_BAR bar;
@end example
These tokens prevent the introduction of new conflicts. As far as the
parser goes, that is all that is needed.
Now the difficult part is ensuring that the scanner will send these tokens
first. If your scanner is hand-written, that should be straightforward. If
your scanner is generated by Lex, them there is simple means to do it:
recall that anything between @samp{%@{ ... %@}} after the first @code{%%} is
copied verbatim in the top of the generated @code{yylex} function. Make
sure a variable @code{start_token} is available in the scanner (e.g., a
global variable or using @code{%lex-param} etc.), and use the following:
@example
/* @r{Prologue.} */
%%
%@{
if (start_token)
@{
int t = start_token;
start_token = 0;
return t;
@}
%@}
/* @r{The rules.} */
@end example
@node Secure? Conform?
@section Secure? Conform?
@quotation
Is Bison secure? Does it conform to POSIX?
@end quotation
If you're looking for a guarantee or certification, we don't provide it.
However, Bison is intended to be a reliable program that conforms to the
POSIX specification for Yacc. If you run into problems, please send us a
bug report.
@include relocatable.texi
@node I can't build Bison
@section I can't build Bison
@quotation
I can't build Bison because @command{make} complains that
@code{msgfmt} is not found.
What should I do?
@end quotation
Like most GNU packages with internationalization support, that feature
is turned on by default. If you have problems building in the @file{po}
subdirectory, it indicates that your system's internationalization
support is lacking. You can re-configure Bison with
@option{--disable-nls} to turn off this support, or you can install GNU
gettext from @url{https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/gettext/} and re-configure
Bison. See the file @file{ABOUT-NLS} for more information.
@quotation
I can't build Bison because my C compiler is too old.
@end quotation
Except for GLR parsers (which require C99), the C code that Bison generates
requires only C89 or later. However, Bison itself requires common C99
features such as declarations after statements. Bison's @code{configure}
script attempts to enable C99 (or later) support on compilers that default
to pre-C99. If your compiler lacks these C99 features entirely, GCC may
well be a better choice; or you can try upgrading to your compiler's latest
version.
@node Where can I find help?
@section Where can I find help?
@quotation
I'm having trouble using Bison. Where can I find help?
@end quotation
First, read this fine manual. Beyond that, you can send mail to
@email{help-bison@@gnu.org}. This mailing list is intended to be
populated with people who are willing to answer questions about using
and installing Bison. Please keep in mind that (most of) the people on
the list have aspects of their lives which are not related to Bison (!),
so you may not receive an answer to your question right away. This can
be frustrating, but please try not to honk them off; remember that any
help they provide is purely voluntary and out of the kindness of their
hearts.
@node Bug Reports
@section Bug Reports
@quotation
I found a bug. What should I include in the bug report?
@end quotation
Before sending a bug report, make sure you are using the latest
version. Check @url{https://ftp.gnu.org/pub/gnu/bison/} or one of its
mirrors. Be sure to include the version number in your bug report. If
the bug is present in the latest version but not in a previous version,
try to determine the most recent version which did not contain the bug.
If the bug is parser-related, you should include the smallest grammar
you can which demonstrates the bug. The grammar file should also be
complete (i.e., I should be able to run it through Bison without having
to edit or add anything). The smaller and simpler the grammar, the
easier it will be to fix the bug.
Include information about your compilation environment, including your
operating system's name and version and your compiler's name and
version. If you have trouble compiling, you should also include a
transcript of the build session, starting with the invocation of
@code{configure}. Depending on the nature of the bug, you may be asked to
send additional files as well (such as @file{config.h} or @file{config.cache}).
Patches are most welcome, but not required. That is, do not hesitate to
send a bug report just because you cannot provide a fix.
Send bug reports to @email{bug-bison@@gnu.org}.
@node More Languages
@section More Languages
@quotation
Will Bison ever have C++ and Java support? How about @var{insert your
favorite language here}?
@end quotation
C++, D and Java are supported. We'd love to add other languages;
contributions are welcome.
@node Beta Testing
@section Beta Testing
@quotation
What is involved in being a beta tester?
@end quotation
It's not terribly involved. Basically, you would download a test
release, compile it, and use it to build and run a parser or two. After
that, you would submit either a bug report or a message saying that
everything is okay. It is important to report successes as well as
failures because test releases eventually become mainstream releases,
but only if they are adequately tested. If no one tests, development is
essentially halted.
Beta testers are particularly needed for operating systems to which the
developers do not have easy access. They currently have easy access to
recent GNU/Linux and Solaris versions. Reports about other operating
systems are especially welcome.
@node Mailing Lists
@section Mailing Lists
@quotation
How do I join the help-bison and bug-bison mailing lists?
@end quotation
See @url{https://lists.gnu.org/}.
@c ================================================= Table of Symbols
@node Table of Symbols
@appendix Bison Symbols
@cindex Bison symbols, table of
@cindex symbols in Bison, table of
@deffn {Variable} @@$
In an action, the location of the left-hand side of the rule.
@xref{Tracking Locations}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} @@@var{n}
@deffnx {Symbol} @@@var{n}
In an action, the location of the @var{n}-th symbol of the right-hand side
of the rule. @xref{Tracking Locations}.
In a grammar, the Bison-generated nonterminal symbol for a midrule action
with a semantic value. @xref{Midrule Action Translation}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} @@@var{name}
@deffnx {Variable} @@[@var{name}]
In an action, the location of a symbol addressed by @var{name}.
@xref{Tracking Locations}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Symbol} $@@@var{n}
In a grammar, the Bison-generated nonterminal symbol for a midrule action
with no semantics value. @xref{Midrule Action Translation}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $$
In an action, the semantic value of the left-hand side of the rule.
@xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $@var{n}
In an action, the semantic value of the @var{n}-th symbol of the
right-hand side of the rule. @xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} $@var{name}
@deffnx {Variable} $[@var{name}]
In an action, the semantic value of a symbol addressed by @var{name}.
@xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Delimiter} %%
Delimiter used to separate the grammar rule section from the
Bison declarations section or the epilogue.
@xref{Grammar Layout}.
@end deffn
@c Don't insert spaces, or check the DVI output.
@deffn {Delimiter} %@{@var{code}%@}
All code listed between @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} is copied verbatim
to the parser implementation file. Such code forms the prologue of
the grammar file. @xref{Grammar Outline}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %?@{@var{expression}@}
Predicate actions. This is a type of action clause that may appear in
rules. The expression is evaluated, and if false, causes a syntax error. In
GLR parsers during nondeterministic operation,
this silently causes an alternative parse to die. During deterministic
operation, it is the same as the effect of YYERROR.
@xref{Semantic Predicates}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Construct} /* @dots{} */
@deffnx {Construct} // @dots{}
Comments, as in C/C++.
@end deffn
@deffn {Delimiter} :
Separates a rule's result from its components. @xref{Rules}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Delimiter} ;
Terminates a rule. @xref{Rules}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Delimiter} |
Separates alternate rules for the same result nonterminal.
@xref{Rules}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} <*>
Used to define a default tagged @code{%destructor} or default tagged
@code{%printer}.
@xref{Destructor Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} <>
Used to define a default tagless @code{%destructor} or default tagless
@code{%printer}.
@xref{Destructor Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Symbol} $accept
The predefined nonterminal whose only rule is @samp{$accept: @var{start}
$end}, where @var{start} is the start symbol. @xref{Start Decl}. It cannot
be used in the grammar.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %code @{@var{code}@}
@deffnx {Directive} %code @var{qualifier} @{@var{code}@}
Insert @var{code} verbatim into the output parser source at the
default location or at the location specified by @var{qualifier}.
@xref{%code Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %debug
Equip the parser for debugging. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@ifset defaultprec
@deffn {Directive} %default-prec
Assign a precedence to rules that lack an explicit @samp{%prec}
modifier. @xref{Contextual Precedence}.
@end deffn
@end ifset
@deffn {Directive} %define @var{variable}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @var{value}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} @{@var{value}@}
@deffnx {Directive} %define @var{variable} "@var{value}"
Define a variable to adjust Bison's behavior. @xref{%define Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %defines
@deffnx {Directive} %defines @var{defines-file}
Historical name for @code{%header}.
@xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %destructor
Specify how the parser should reclaim the memory associated to
discarded symbols. @xref{Destructor Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %dprec
Bison declaration to assign a precedence to a rule that is used at parse
time to resolve reduce/reduce conflicts. @xref{GLR Parsers}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %empty
Bison declaration to declare make explicit that a rule has an empty
right-hand side. @xref{Empty Rules}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Symbol} $end
The predefined token marking the end of the token stream. It cannot be
used in the grammar.
@end deffn
@deffn {Symbol} error
A token name reserved for error recovery. This token may be used in
grammar rules so as to allow the Bison parser to recognize an error in
the grammar without halting the process. In effect, a sentence
containing an error may be recognized as valid. On a syntax error, the
token @code{error} becomes the current lookahead token. Actions
corresponding to @code{error} are then executed, and the lookahead
token is reset to the token that originally caused the violation.
@xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %error-verbose
An obsolete directive standing for @samp{%define parse.error verbose}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %file-prefix "@var{prefix}"
Bison declaration to set the prefix of the output files. @xref{Decl
Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %glr-parser
Bison declaration to produce a GLR parser. @xref{GLR
Parsers}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %header
Bison declaration to create a parser header file, which is usually
meant for the scanner. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %header @var{header-file}
Same as above, but save in the file @var{header-file}.
@xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %initial-action
Run user code before parsing. @xref{Initial Action Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %language
Specify the programming language for the generated parser.
@xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %left
Bison declaration to assign precedence and left associativity to token(s).
@xref{Precedence Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %lex-param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
Bison declaration to specifying additional arguments that
@code{yylex} should accept. @xref{Pure Calling}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %merge
Bison declaration to assign a merging function to a rule. If there is a
reduce/reduce conflict with a rule having the same merging function, the
function is applied to the two semantic values to get a single result.
@xref{GLR Parsers}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %name-prefix "@var{prefix}"
Obsoleted by the @code{%define} variable @code{api.prefix} (@pxref{Multiple
Parsers}).
Rename the external symbols (variables and functions) used in the parser so
that they start with @var{prefix} instead of @samp{yy}. Contrary to
@code{api.prefix}, do no rename types and macros.
The precise list of symbols renamed in C parsers is @code{yyparse},
@code{yylex}, @code{yyerror}, @code{yynerrs}, @code{yylval}, @code{yychar},
@code{yydebug}, and (if locations are used) @code{yylloc}. If you use a
push parser, @code{yypush_parse}, @code{yypull_parse}, @code{yypstate},
@code{yypstate_new} and @code{yypstate_delete} will also be renamed. For
example, if you use @samp{%name-prefix "c_"}, the names become
@code{c_parse}, @code{c_lex}, and so on. For C++ parsers, see the
@code{%define api.namespace} documentation in this section.
@end deffn
@ifset defaultprec
@deffn {Directive} %no-default-prec
Do not assign a precedence to rules that lack an explicit @samp{%prec}
modifier. @xref{Contextual Precedence}.
@end deffn
@end ifset
@deffn {Directive} %no-lines
Bison declaration to avoid generating @code{#line} directives in the
parser implementation file. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %nonassoc
Bison declaration to assign precedence and nonassociativity to token(s).
@xref{Precedence Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %nterm
Bison declaration to declare nonterminals. @xref{Type Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %output "@var{file}"
Bison declaration to set the name of the parser implementation file.
@xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
Bison declaration to specify additional arguments that both
@code{yylex} and @code{yyparse} should accept. @xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %parse-param @{@var{argument-declaration}@} @dots{}
Bison declaration to specify additional arguments that @code{yyparse}
should accept. @xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %prec
Bison declaration to assign a precedence to a specific rule.
@xref{Contextual Precedence}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %precedence
Bison declaration to assign precedence to token(s), but no associativity
@xref{Precedence Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %pure-parser
Deprecated version of @samp{%define api.pure} (@pxref{%define
Summary}), for which Bison is more careful to warn about
unreasonable usage.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %require "@var{version}"
Require version @var{version} or higher of Bison. @xref{Require Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %right
Bison declaration to assign precedence and right associativity to token(s).
@xref{Precedence Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %skeleton
Specify the skeleton to use; usually for development.
@xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %start
Bison declaration to specify the start symbol. @xref{Start Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %token
Bison declaration to declare token(s) without specifying precedence.
@xref{Token Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %token-table
Bison declaration to include a token name table in the parser implementation
file. @xref{Decl Summary}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %type
Bison declaration to declare symbol value types. @xref{Type Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Symbol} $undefined
The predefined token onto which all undefined values returned by
@code{yylex} are mapped. It cannot be used in the grammar, rather, use
@code{error}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Directive} %union
Bison declaration to specify several possible data types for semantic
values. @xref{Union Decl}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYABORT
Macro to pretend that an unrecoverable syntax error has occurred, by making
@code{yyparse} return 1 immediately. The error reporting function
@code{yyerror} is not called. @xref{Parser Function}.
For Java parsers, this functionality is invoked using @code{return YYABORT;}
instead.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYACCEPT
Macro to pretend that a complete utterance of the language has been
read, by making @code{yyparse} return 0 immediately.
@xref{Parser Function}.
For Java parsers, this functionality is invoked using @code{return YYACCEPT;}
instead.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYBACKUP
Macro to discard a value from the parser stack and fake a lookahead
token. @xref{Action Features}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYBISON
The version of Bison as an integer, for instance 30704 for version 3.7.4.
Defined in @file{yacc.c} only. Before version 3.7.4, @code{YYBISON} was
defined to 1.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yychar
External integer variable that contains the integer value of the
lookahead token. (In a pure parser, it is a local variable within
@code{yyparse}.) Error-recovery rule actions may examine this variable.
@xref{Action Features}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yyclearin
Macro used in error-recovery rule actions. It clears the previous
lookahead token. @xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYDEBUG
Macro to define to equip the parser with tracing code. @xref{Tracing}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yydebug
External integer variable set to zero by default. If @code{yydebug}
is given a nonzero value, the parser will output information on input
symbols and parser action. @xref{Tracing}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} YYEMPTY
The pseudo token kind when there is no lookahead token.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} YYEOF
The token kind denoting is the end of the input stream.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} yyerrok
Macro to cause parser to recover immediately to its normal mode
after a syntax error. @xref{Error Recovery}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYERROR
Cause an immediate syntax error. This statement initiates error
recovery just as if the parser itself had detected an error; however, it
does not call @code{yyerror}, and does not print any message. If you
want to print an error message, call @code{yyerror} explicitly before
the @samp{YYERROR;} statement. @xref{Error Recovery}.
For Java parsers, this functionality is invoked using @code{return YYERROR;}
instead.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yyerror
User-supplied function to be called by @code{yyparse} on error.
@xref{Error Reporting Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYFPRINTF
Macro used to output run-time traces in C.
@xref{Enabling Traces}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYINITDEPTH
Macro for specifying the initial size of the parser stack.
@xref{Memory Management}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yylex
User-supplied lexical analyzer function, called with no arguments to get
the next token. @xref{Lexical}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yylloc
External variable in which @code{yylex} should place the line and column
numbers associated with a token. (In a pure parser, it is a local
variable within @code{yyparse}, and its address is passed to
@code{yylex}.)
You can ignore this variable if you don't use the @samp{@@} feature in the
grammar actions.
@xref{Token Locations}.
In semantic actions, it stores the location of the lookahead token.
@xref{Actions and Locations}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Type} YYLTYPE
Data type of @code{yylloc}. By default in C, a structure with four members
(start/end line/column). @xref{Location Type}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yylval
External variable in which @code{yylex} should place the semantic
value associated with a token. (In a pure parser, it is a local
variable within @code{yyparse}, and its address is passed to
@code{yylex}.)
@xref{Token Values}.
In semantic actions, it stores the semantic value of the lookahead token.
@xref{Actions}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYMAXDEPTH
Macro for specifying the maximum size of the parser stack. @xref{Memory
Management}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Variable} yynerrs
Global variable which Bison increments each time it reports a syntax error.
(In a pure parser, it is a local variable within @code{yyparse}. In a
pure push parser, it is a member of @code{yypstate}.)
@xref{Error Reporting Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYNOMEM
Macro to pretend that memory is exhausted, by making @code{yyparse} return 2
immediately. The error reporting function @code{yyerror} is called.
@xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yyparse
The parser function produced by Bison; call this function to start
parsing. @xref{Parser Function}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yypstate_delete
The function to delete a parser instance, produced by Bison in push mode;
call this function to delete the memory associated with a parser.
@xref{yypstate_delete,,@code{yypstate_delete}}. Does nothing when called
with a null pointer.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yypstate_new
The function to create a parser instance, produced by Bison in push mode;
call this function to create a new parser.
@xref{yypstate_new,,@code{yypstate_new}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yypull_parse
The parser function produced by Bison in push mode; call this function to
parse the rest of the input stream.
@xref{yypull_parse,,@code{yypull_parse}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Function} yypush_parse
The parser function produced by Bison in push mode; call this function to
parse a single token.
@xref{yypush_parse,,@code{yypush_parse}}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYRECOVERING
The expression @code{YYRECOVERING ()} yields 1 when the parser
is recovering from a syntax error, and 0 otherwise.
@xref{Action Features}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Macro} YYSTACK_USE_ALLOCA
Macro used to control the use of @code{alloca} when the
deterministic parser in C needs to extend its stacks. If defined to 0,
the parser will use @code{malloc} to extend its stacks and memory exhaustion
occurs if @code{malloc} fails (@pxref{Memory Management}). If defined to
1, the parser will use @code{alloca}. Values other than 0 and 1 are
reserved for future Bison extensions. If not defined,
@code{YYSTACK_USE_ALLOCA} defaults to 0.
In the all-too-common case where your code may run on a host with a
limited stack and with unreliable stack-overflow checking, you should
set @code{YYMAXDEPTH} to a value that cannot possibly result in
unchecked stack overflow on any of your target hosts when
@code{alloca} is called. You can inspect the code that Bison
generates in order to determine the proper numeric values. This will
require some expertise in low-level implementation details.
@end deffn
@deffn {Type} YYSTYPE
In C, data type of semantic values; @code{int} by default.
Deprecated in favor of the @code{%define} variable @code{api.value.type}.
@xref{Value Type}.
@end deffn
@deffn {Type} yysymbol_kind_t
An enum of all the symbols, tokens and nonterminals, of the grammar.
@xref{Syntax Error Reporting Function}. The symbol kinds are used
internally by the parser, and should not be confused with the token kinds:
the symbol kind of a terminal symbol is not equal to its token kind! (Unless
@samp{%define api.token.raw} was used.)
@end deffn
@deffn {Type} yytoken_kind_t
An enum of all the @dfn{token kinds} declared with @code{%token}
(@pxref{Token Decl}). These are the return values for @code{yylex}. They
should not be confused with the @emph{symbol kinds}, used internally by the
parser.
@end deffn
@deffn {Value} YYUNDEF
The token kind denoting an unknown token.
@end deffn
@node Glossary
@appendix Glossary
@cindex glossary
@table @asis
@item Accepting state
A state whose only action is the accept action.
The accepting state is thus a consistent state.
@xref{Understanding}.
@item Backus-Naur Form (BNF; also called ``Backus Normal Form'')
Formal method of specifying context-free grammars originally proposed
by John Backus, and slightly improved by Peter Naur in his 1960-01-02
committee document contributing to what became the Algol 60 report.
@xref{Language and Grammar}.
@item Consistent state
A state containing only one possible action. @xref{Default Reductions}.
@item Context-free grammars
Grammars specified as rules that can be applied regardless of context.
Thus, if there is a rule which says that an integer can be used as an
expression, integers are allowed @emph{anywhere} an expression is
permitted. @xref{Language and Grammar}.
@item Counterexample
A sequence of tokens and/or nonterminals, with one dot, that demonstrates a
conflict. The dot marks the place where the conflict occurs.
@cindex unifying counterexample
@cindex counterexample, unifying
@cindex nonunifying counterexample
@cindex counterexample, nonunifying
A @emph{unifying} counterexample is a single string that has two different
parses; its existence proves that the grammar is ambiguous. When a unifying
counterexample cannot be found in reasonable time, a @emph{nonunifying}
counterexample is built: @emph{two} different string sharing the prefix up
to the dot.
@xref{Counterexamples}
@item Default reduction
The reduction that a parser should perform if the current parser state
contains no other action for the lookahead token. In permitted parser
states, Bison declares the reduction with the largest lookahead set to be
the default reduction and removes that lookahead set. @xref{Default
Reductions}.
@item Defaulted state
A consistent state with a default reduction. @xref{Default Reductions}.
@item Dynamic allocation
Allocation of memory that occurs during execution, rather than at
compile time or on entry to a function.
@item Empty string
Analogous to the empty set in set theory, the empty string is a
character string of length zero.
@item Finite-state stack machine
A ``machine'' that has discrete states in which it is said to exist at
each instant in time. As input to the machine is processed, the
machine moves from state to state as specified by the logic of the
machine. In the case of the parser, the input is the language being
parsed, and the states correspond to various stages in the grammar
rules. @xref{Algorithm}.
@item Generalized LR (GLR)
A parsing algorithm that can handle all context-free grammars, including those
that are not LR(1). It resolves situations that Bison's
deterministic parsing
algorithm cannot by effectively splitting off multiple parsers, trying all
possible parsers, and discarding those that fail in the light of additional
right context. @xref{Generalized LR Parsing}.
@item Grouping
A language construct that is (in general) grammatically divisible;
for example, `expression' or `declaration' in C@.
@xref{Language and Grammar}.
@item IELR(1) (Inadequacy Elimination LR(1))
A minimal LR(1) parser table construction algorithm. That is, given any
context-free grammar, IELR(1) generates parser tables with the full
language-recognition power of canonical LR(1) but with nearly the same
number of parser states as LALR(1). This reduction in parser states is
often an order of magnitude. More importantly, because canonical LR(1)'s
extra parser states may contain duplicate conflicts in the case of non-LR(1)
grammars, the number of conflicts for IELR(1) is often an order of magnitude
less as well. This can significantly reduce the complexity of developing a
grammar. @xref{LR Table Construction}.
@item Infix operator
An arithmetic operator that is placed between the operands on which it
performs some operation.
@item Input stream
A continuous flow of data between devices or programs.
@item Kind
``Token'' and ``symbol'' are each overloaded to mean either a grammar symbol
(kind) or all parse info (kind, value, location) associated with occurrences
of that grammar symbol from the input. To disambiguate,
@itemize
@item
we use ``token kind'' and ``symbol kind'' to mean both grammar symbols and
the values that represent them in a base programming language (C, C++,
etc.). The names of the types of these values are typically
@code{token_kind_t}, or @code{token_kind_type}, or @code{TokenKind},
depending on the programming language.
@item
we use ``token'' and ``symbol'' without the word ``kind'' to mean parsed
occurrences, and we append the word ``type'' to refer to the types that
represent them in a base programming language.
@end itemize
In summary: When you see ``kind'', interpret ``symbol'' or ``token'' to mean
a @emph{grammar symbol}. When you don't see ``kind'' (including when you
see ``type''), interpret ``symbol'' or ``token'' to mean a @emph{parsed
symbol}.
@item LAC (Lookahead Correction)
A parsing mechanism that fixes the problem of delayed syntax error
detection, which is caused by LR state merging, default reductions, and the
use of @code{%nonassoc}. Delayed syntax error detection results in
unexpected semantic actions, initiation of error recovery in the wrong
syntactic context, and an incorrect list of expected tokens in a verbose
syntax error message. @xref{LAC}.
@item Language construct
One of the typical usage schemas of the language. For example, one of
the constructs of the C language is the @code{if} statement.
@xref{Language and Grammar}.
@item Left associativity
Operators having left associativity are analyzed from left to right:
@samp{a+b+c} first computes @samp{a+b} and then combines with
@samp{c}. @xref{Precedence}.
@item Left recursion
A rule whose result symbol is also its first component symbol; for
example, @samp{expseq1 : expseq1 ',' exp;}. @xref{Recursion}.
@item Left-to-right parsing
Parsing a sentence of a language by analyzing it token by token from
left to right. @xref{Algorithm}.
@item Lexical analyzer (scanner)
A function that reads an input stream and returns tokens one by one.
@xref{Lexical}.
@item Lexical tie-in
A flag, set by actions in the grammar rules, which alters the way
tokens are parsed. @xref{Lexical Tie-ins}.
@item Literal string token
A token which consists of two or more fixed characters. @xref{Symbols}.
@item Lookahead token
A token already read but not yet shifted. @xref{Lookahead}.
@item LALR(1)
The class of context-free grammars that Bison (like most other parser
generators) can handle by default; a subset of LR(1).
@xref{Mysterious Conflicts}.
@item LR(1)
The class of context-free grammars in which at most one token of
lookahead is needed to disambiguate the parsing of any piece of input.
@item Nonterminal symbol
A grammar symbol standing for a grammatical construct that can
be expressed through rules in terms of smaller constructs; in other
words, a construct that is not a token. @xref{Symbols}.
@item Parser
A function that recognizes valid sentences of a language by analyzing
the syntax structure of a set of tokens passed to it from a lexical
analyzer.
@item Postfix operator
An arithmetic operator that is placed after the operands upon which it
performs some operation.
@item Reduction
Replacing a string of nonterminals and/or terminals with a single
nonterminal, according to a grammar rule. @xref{Algorithm}.
@item Reentrant
A reentrant subprogram is a subprogram which can be in invoked any
number of times in parallel, without interference between the various
invocations. @xref{Pure Decl}.
@item Reverse Polish Notation
A language in which all operators are postfix operators.
@item Right recursion
A rule whose result symbol is also its last component symbol; for
example, @samp{expseq1: exp ',' expseq1;}. @xref{Recursion}.
@item Semantics
In computer languages, the semantics are specified by the actions
taken for each instance of the language, i.e., the meaning of
each statement. @xref{Semantics}.
@item Shift
A parser is said to shift when it makes the choice of analyzing
further input from the stream rather than reducing immediately some
already-recognized rule. @xref{Algorithm}.
@item Single-character literal
A single character that is recognized and interpreted as is.
@xref{Grammar in Bison}.
@item Start symbol
The nonterminal symbol that stands for a complete valid utterance in
the language being parsed. The start symbol is usually listed as the
first nonterminal symbol in a language specification.
@xref{Start Decl}.
@item Symbol kind
A (finite) enumeration of the grammar symbols, as processed by the parser.
@xref{Symbols}.
@item Symbol table
A data structure where symbol names and associated data are stored during
parsing to allow for recognition and use of existing information in repeated
uses of a symbol. @xref{Multi-function Calc}.
@item Syntax error
An error encountered during parsing of an input stream due to invalid
syntax. @xref{Error Recovery}.
@item Terminal symbol
A grammar symbol that has no rules in the grammar and therefore is
grammatically indivisible. The piece of text it represents is a token.
@xref{Language and Grammar}.
@item Token
A basic, grammatically indivisible unit of a language. The symbol that
describes a token in the grammar is a terminal symbol. The input of the
Bison parser is a stream of tokens which comes from the lexical analyzer.
@xref{Symbols}.
@item Token kind
A (finite) enumeration of the grammar terminals, as discriminated by the
scanner. @xref{Symbols}.
@item Unreachable state
A parser state to which there does not exist a sequence of transitions from
the parser's start state. A state can become unreachable during conflict
resolution. @xref{Unreachable States}.
@end table
@node GNU Free Documentation License
@appendix GNU Free Documentation License
@include fdl.texi
@node Bibliography
@unnumbered Bibliography
@c Please follow the following canvas to add more references.
@c And keep sorted alphabetically.
@table @asis
@anchor{Corbett 1984}
@item [Corbett 1984]
@c author
Robert Paul Corbett,
@c title
Static Semantics in Compiler Error Recovery
@c in
Ph.D. Dissertation, Report No. UCB/CSD 85/251,
@c where
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Compute Science
Division, University of California, Berkeley, California
@c when
(June 1985).
@c url
@uref{https://digicoll.lib.berkeley.edu/record/135875}
@anchor{Denny 2008}
@item [Denny 2008]
Joel E. Denny and Brian A. Malloy, IELR(1): Practical LR(1) Parser Tables
for Non-LR(1) Grammars with Conflict Resolution, in @cite{Proceedings of the
2008 ACM Symposium on Applied Computing} (SAC'08), ACM, New York, NY, USA,
pp.@: 240--245. @uref{https://dx.doi.org/10.1145/1363686.1363747}
@anchor{Denny 2010 May}
@item [Denny 2010 May]
Joel E. Denny, PSLR(1): Pseudo-Scannerless Minimal LR(1) for the
Deterministic Parsing of Composite Languages, Ph.D. Dissertation, Clemson
University, Clemson, SC, USA (May 2010).
@uref{https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/519/}
@anchor{Denny 2010 November}
@item [Denny 2010 November]
Joel E. Denny and Brian A. Malloy, The IELR(1) Algorithm for Generating
Minimal LR(1) Parser Tables for Non-LR(1) Grammars with Conflict Resolution,
in @cite{Science of Computer Programming}, Vol.@: 75, Issue 11 (November
2010), pp.@: 943--979. @uref{https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scico.2009.08.001}
@anchor{DeRemer 1982}
@item [DeRemer 1982]
Frank DeRemer and Thomas Pennello, Efficient Computation of LALR(1)
Look-Ahead Sets, in @cite{ACM Transactions on Programming Languages and
Systems}, Vol.@: 4, No.@: 4 (October 1982), pp.@:
615--649. @uref{https://dx.doi.org/10.1145/69622.357187}
@anchor{Isradisaikul 2015}
@item [Isradisaikul 2015]
Chinawat Isradisaikul, Andrew Myers,
Finding Counterexamples from Parsing Conflicts,
in @cite{Proceedings of the 36th ACM SIGPLAN Conference on
Programming Language Design and Implementation} (PLDI '15),
ACM, pp.@: 555--564.
@uref{https://www.cs.cornell.edu/andru/papers/cupex/cupex.pdf}
@anchor{Johnson 1978}
@item [Johnson 1978]
Steven C. Johnson,
A portable compiler: theory and practice,
in @cite{Proceedings of the 5th ACM SIGACT-SIGPLAN symposium on
Principles of programming languages} (POPL '78),
pp.@: 97--104.
@uref{https://dx.doi.org/10.1145/512760.512771}.
@anchor{Knuth 1965}
@item [Knuth 1965]
Donald E. Knuth, On the Translation of Languages from Left to Right, in
@cite{Information and Control}, Vol.@: 8, Issue 6 (December 1965), pp.@:
607--639. @uref{https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0019-9958(65)90426-2}
@anchor{Scott 2000}
@item [Scott 2000]
Elizabeth Scott, Adrian Johnstone, and Shamsa Sadaf Hussain,
@cite{Tomita-Style Generalised LR Parsers}, Royal Holloway, University of
London, Department of Computer Science, TR-00-12 (December 2000).
@uref{https://www.cs.rhul.ac.uk/research/languages/publications/tomita_style_1.ps}
@end table
@node Index of Terms
@unnumbered Index of Terms
@printindex cp
@bye
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@c LocalWords: ifinfo smallbook shorttitlepage titlepage GPL FIXME iftex FSF's
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@c LocalWords: ifnottex yyparse detailmenu GLR RPN Calc var Decls Rpcalc multi
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@c LocalWords: ungetc stdin scanf sc calc ulator ls lm cc NEG prec yyerrok rr
@c LocalWords: longjmp fprintf stderr yylloc YYLTYPE cos ln Stallman Destructor
@c LocalWords: symrec val tptr FUN func struct sym enum IEC syntaxes Byacc
@c LocalWords: fun putsym getsym arith funs atan ptr malloc sizeof Lex pcc
@c LocalWords: strlen strcpy fctn strcmp isalpha symbuf realloc isalnum DOTDOT
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@c LocalWords: yytokentype destructor multicharacter nonnull EBCDIC nterm LR's
@c LocalWords: lvalue nonnegative XNUM CHR chr TAGLESS tagless stdout api TOK
@c LocalWords: destructors Reentrancy nonreentrant subgrammar nonassociative Ph
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@c LocalWords: superclasses boolean getErrorVerbose setErrorVerbose deftypecv
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@c LocalWords: deftypefunx pragma Wnull dereference Wdocumentation elif ish
@c LocalWords: Wdeprecated Wregister noinput yyloc yypos PODs sstream Wsign
@c LocalWords: typename emplace Wconversion Wshorten yacchack reentrancy ou
@c LocalWords: Relocatability exprs fixit Wyacc parseable fixits ffixit svg
@c LocalWords: DNDEBUG cstring Wzero workalike POPL workalikes byacc UCB
@c LocalWords: Penello's Penello Byson Byson's Corbett's CSD TOPLAS PDP cex
@c LocalWords: Beazley's goyacc ocamlyacc SIGACT SIGPLAN colorWarning exVal
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@c LocalWords: colorOff maincolor inlineraw darkviolet darkcyan dwarning
@c LocalWords: dnotice copyable stdint ptrdiff bufsize yyreport invariants
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@c LocalWords: Wdangling yytoken erreur syntaxe inattendu attendait nombre
@c LocalWords: YYUNDEF SymbolKind yypcontext YYENOMEM TOKENMAX getBundle
@c LocalWords: ResourceBundle myResources getString getName getToken ylwrap
@c LocalWords: getLocation getExpectedTokens reportSyntaxError bistromathic
@c LocalWords: TokenKind Automake's rtti Wcounterexamples Chinawat PLDI buf
@c LocalWords: Isradisaikul tcite pcite rgbGreen colorGreen rgbYellow Wcex
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@c LocalWords: nonunifying YYNOMEM Wuseless dgettext textdomain domainname
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@c LocalWords: pushParse
@c Local Variables:
@c ispell-dictionary: "american"
@c fill-column: 76
@c End: