# Queries: demand-driven compilation

As described in [Overview of the compiler], the Rust compiler
is still (as of <!-- date-check --> July 2021) transitioning from a
traditional "pass-based" setup to a "demand-driven" system.

The compiler's "query system" is the key to rustc's demand-driven organization.
Instead of entirely independent passes
(parsing, type-checking, etc.), a set of function-like *queries*
compute information about the input source.
For example,
there is a query called `type_of` that, given the [`DefId`] of
some item, will compute the type of that item and return it to you.

[`DefId`]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_span/def_id/struct.DefId.html
[Overview of the compiler]: overview.md#queries

Query execution is *memoized*. The first time you invoke a
query, it will go do the computation, but the next time, the result is returned from a hashtable.
Moreover, query execution fits nicely into
*incremental computation*; the idea is roughly that, when you invoke a
query, the result *may* be returned to you by loading stored data from disk.[^incr-comp-detail]

When we execute a query,
we also discover (at runtime!) what other queries it depends on.
This allows us to construct a **dependency graph** of our crate,
which makes incremental computation sound.

Eventually, we want the entire compiler control-flow to be query driven.
There will effectively be one top-level query (`compile`) that will run compilation on a crate; this
will in turn demand information about that crate, starting from the *end*.

For example:

- The `compile` query might demand to get a list of codegen-units
  (i.e. modules that need to be compiled by LLVM).
- But computing the list of codegen-units would invoke some subquery
  that returns the list of all modules defined in the Rust source.
- That query in turn would invoke something asking for the HIR.
- This keeps going further and further back until we wind up doing the actual parsing.

Although this vision is not fully realized, large sections of the
compiler (for example, generating [MIR]) currently work exactly like this.

[^incr-comp-detail]: The [Incremental compilation in detail] chapter gives a more
in-depth description of what queries are and how they work.
If you intend to write a query of your own, this is a good read.

[Incremental compilation in detail]: queries/incremental-compilation-in-detail.md
[MIR]: mir/index.md

## Invoking queries

Invoking a query is simple.
The [`TyCtxt`] ("type context") struct offers a method for each defined query.
For example, to invoke the `type_of` query, you would just do this:

```rust,ignore
let ty = tcx.type_of(some_def_id);
```

[`TyCtxt`]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/ty/struct.TyCtxt.html

## How the compiler executes a query

So you may be wondering what happens when you invoke a query method.
The answer is that, for each query, the compiler maintains a
cache – if your query has already been executed, then, the answer is
simple: we clone the return value out of the cache and return it
(therefore, you should try to ensure that the return types of queries
are cheaply cloneable; insert an `Rc` if necessary).

### Providers

If, however, the query is *not* in the cache, then the compiler will
call the corresponding **provider** function.
A provider is a function implemented in a specific module and **manually registered** into either
the [`Providers`][providers_struct] struct (for local crate queries) or
the [`ExternProviders`][extern_providers_struct] struct (for external crate queries)
during compiler initialization.
The macro system generates both structs,
which act as function tables for all query implementations, where each
field is a function pointer to the actual provider.

**Note:** Both the `Providers` and `ExternProviders` structs are generated by macros and act as function tables for all query implementations.
They are **not** Rust traits, but plain structs with function pointer fields.

**Providers are defined per-crate.** The compiler maintains,
internally, a table of providers for every crate, at least conceptually.
There are two sets of providers:
- The `Providers` struct for queries about the **local crate** (that is, the one being compiled)
- The `ExternProviders` struct for queries about **external crates** (that is,
dependencies of the local crate)

Note that what determines the crate that a query is targeting is not the *kind* of query, but the *key*.
For example, when you invoke `tcx.type_of(def_id)`, that could be a
local query or an external query, depending on what crate the `def_id`
is referring to (see the [`self::keys::QueryKey`][QueryKey] trait for more information on how that works).

Providers always have the same signature:

```rust,ignore
fn provider<'tcx>(
    tcx: TyCtxt<'tcx>,
    key: QUERY_KEY,
) -> QUERY_RESULT {
    ...
}
```

Providers take two arguments: the `tcx` and the query key.
They return the result of the query.

N.B. Most of the `rustc_*` crates only provide **local
providers**. Almost all **extern providers** wind up going through the
[`rustc_metadata` crate][rustc_metadata], which loads the information from the crate metadata.
But in some cases there are crates that
provide queries for *both* local and external crates, in which case
they define both a `provide` and a `provide_extern` function, through
[`wasm_import_module_map`][wasm_import_module_map], that `rustc_driver` can invoke.

[rustc_metadata]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_metadata/index.html
[wasm_import_module_map]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_codegen_ssa/back/symbol_export/fn.wasm_import_module_map.html

### How providers are set up

When the tcx is created, it is given both the local and external providers by its creator using
the `Providers` struct from `rustc_middle::util`.
This struct contains both the local and external providers:

```rust,ignore
pub struct Providers {
    pub queries: crate::query::Providers,        // Local crate providers
    pub extern_queries: crate::query::ExternProviders,  // External crate providers
    pub hooks: crate::hooks::Providers,
}
```

Each of these provider structs is generated by the macros and contains function pointers for their respective queries.

#### How are providers registered?

The `util::Providers` struct is filled in during compiler initialization, by the `rustc_interface` crate from the `DEFAULT_QUERY_PROVIDERS` static.
The actual provider functions are defined across various `rustc_*` crates (like `rustc_middle`, `rustc_hir_analysis`, etc).

To register providers, each crate exposes a [`provide`][provide_fn] function that looks like this:

[provide_fn]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/hir/fn.provide.html

```rust,ignore
pub fn provide(providers: &mut query::Providers) {
    *providers = query::Providers {
        type_of,
        // ... add more providers here
        ..*providers
    };
}
```

Note that this function accepts `query::Providers` not `util::Providers`.
It is exceedingly rare to need a `provide` function that doesn't just accept `query::Providers`.
If more than the `queries` field of `util::Providers`  is being updated then `util::Providers` can be accepted instead:
```rust,ignore
pub fn provide(providers: &mut rustc_middle::util::Providers) {
    providers.queries.type_of = type_of;
    // ... add more local providers here

    providers.extern_queries.type_of = extern_type_of;
    // ... add more external providers here

    providers.hooks.some_hook = some_hook;
    // ... add more hooks here
}
```

#### Adding a new provider

Suppose you want to add a new query called `fubar`.
This section focuses on wiring up the providers; for how to declare the query itself in the big `rustc_queries!` macro, see [Adding a new query](#adding-a-new-query) below.

In practice you usually:

1. Decide which crate "owns" the query (for example `rustc_hir_analysis`, `rustc_mir_build`, or another `rustc_*` crate).
2. In that crate, look for an existing `provide` function:
    ```rust,ignore
    pub fn provide(providers: &mut query::Providers) {
        // existing assignments
    }
    ```
   If it exists, you will extend it to set the field for your new query.
   If the crate does not yet have a `provide` function, add one and make sure it is included in `DEFAULT_QUERY_PROVIDERS` in the `rustc_interface` crate so that it actually gets called during initialization (see the discussion above).
3. Implement the provider function itself:
    ```rust,ignore
    fn fubar<'tcx>(tcx: TyCtxt<'tcx>, key: LocalDefId) -> Fubar<'tcx> { ... }
    ```
4. Register it in the crate's `provide` function:
    ```rust,ignore
    pub fn provide(providers: &mut query::Providers) {
        *providers = query::Providers {
            fubar,
            ..*providers
        };
    }
    ```

### How queries interact with external crate metadata

When a query is made for an external crate (i.e., a dependency), the query system needs to load the information from that crate's metadata.
This is handled by the [`rustc_metadata` crate][rustc_metadata], which is responsible for decoding and providing the information stored in the `.rmeta` files.

The process works like this:

1. When a query is made, the query system first checks if the `DefId` refers to a local or external crate by checking if `def_id.krate == LOCAL_CRATE`.
   This determines whether to use the local provider from [`Providers`][providers_struct] or the external provider from [`ExternProviders`][extern_providers_struct].

2. For external crates, the query system will look for a provider in the [`ExternProviders`][extern_providers_struct] struct.
   The `rustc_metadata` crate registers these external providers through the `provide_extern` function in `rustc_metadata/src/rmeta/decoder/cstore_impl.rs`.
   Just like:
    ```rust
    pub fn provide_extern(providers: &mut ExternProviders) {
        providers.foo = |tcx, def_id| {
            // Load and decode metadata for external crate
            let cdata = CStore::from_tcx(tcx).get_crate_data(def_id.krate);
            cdata.foo(def_id.index)
        };
        // Register other external providers...
    }
    ```

3. The metadata is stored in a binary format in `.rmeta` files that contains pre-computed information about the external crate, such as types, function signatures, trait implementations, and other information needed by the compiler.
   When an external query is made, the `rustc_metadata` crate:
   - Loads the `.rmeta` file for the external crate
   - Decodes the metadata using the `Decodable` trait
   - Returns the decoded information to the query system

This approach avoids recompiling external crates, allows for faster compilation of dependent crates, and enables incremental compilation to work across crate boundaries.
Here is a simplified example, when you call `tcx.type_of(def_id)` for a type defined in an external crate, the query system will:
1. Detect that the `def_id` refers to an external crate by checking `def_id.krate != LOCAL_CRATE`
2. Call the appropriate provider from `ExternProviders` which was registered by `rustc_metadata`
3. The provider will load and decode the type information from the external crate's metadata
4. Return the decoded type to the caller

This is why most `rustc_*` crates only need to provide local providers - the external providers are handled by the metadata system.
The only exception is when a crate needs to provide special handling for external queries, in which case it would implement both local and external providers.

When we define a new query that should work across crates, it does not automatically become cross-crate just because it is listed in `rustc_queries!`.
You will typically need to:

- Add the query to `rustc_queries!` with appropriate modifiers (for example whether it is cached on disk).
- Implement a local provider in the owning crate and register it via that crate's `provide` function.
- Add an external provider in `rustc_metadata` via `provide_extern`, and ensure the query's result is encoded and decoded in the crate metadata.

An example of introducing such a cross-crate query can be found in commit [`996a185`](https://github.com/rust-lang/rust/commit/996a185) in the `rust-lang/rust` repository.

[rustc_metadata]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_metadata/index.html
[providers_struct]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/queries/struct.Providers.html
[extern_providers_struct]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/queries/struct.ExternProviders.html

---

## Adding a new query

How do you add a new query?
Defining a query takes place in two steps:

1. Declare the query name, its arguments and description.
2. Supply query providers where needed.

To declare the query name and arguments, you simply add an entry to
the big macro invocation in [`compiler/rustc_middle/src/query/mod.rs`][query-mod].
Then you need to add a documentation comment to it with some _internal_ description.
Then, provide the `desc` attribute which contains a _user-facing_ description of the query.
The `desc` attribute is shown to the user in query cycles.

This looks something like:

[query-mod]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/query/index.html

```rust,ignore
rustc_queries! {
    /// Records the type of every item.
    query type_of(key: DefId) -> Ty<'tcx> {
        desc { |tcx| "computing the type of `{}`", tcx.def_path_str(key) }
        cache_on_disk
        separate_provide_extern
    }
    ...
}
```

A query definition has the following form:

```rust,ignore
query type_of(key: DefId) -> Ty<'tcx> { ... }
^^^^^ ^^^^^^^      ^^^^^     ^^^^^^^^   ^^^
|     |            |         |          |
|     |            |         |          query modifiers
|     |            |         result type
|     |            query key type
|     name of query
query keyword
```

Let's go over these elements one by one:

- **Query keyword:** indicates a start of a query definition.
- **Name of query:** the name of the query method (`tcx.type_of(..)`).
  Also used as the name of a struct (`ty::queries::type_of`) that will be generated to represent
  this query.
- **Query key type:** the type of the argument to this query.
  This type must implement the [`ty::query::keys::QueryKey`][QueryKey] trait, which
  defines (for example) how to map it to a crate, and so forth.
- **Result type of query:** the type produced by this query.
  This type should (a) not use `RefCell` or other interior mutability and (b) be
  cheaply cloneable.
  Interning or using `Rc` or `Arc` is recommended for non-trivial data types.[^steal]
- **Query modifiers:** various flags and options that customize how the
  query is processed (mostly with respect to [incremental compilation][incrcomp]).

[QueryKey]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/nightly/nightly-rustc/rustc_middle/query/keys/trait.QueryKey.html
[incrcomp]: queries/incremental-compilation-in-detail.md#query-modifiers

So, to add a query:

- Add an entry to `rustc_queries!` using the format above.
- Link the provider by modifying the appropriate `provide` method;
  or add a new one if needed and ensure that `rustc_driver` is invoking it.

[^steal]: The one exception to those rules is the `ty::steal::Steal` type,
which is used to cheaply modify MIR in place.
See the definition of `Steal` for more details.
New uses of `Steal` should **not** be added without alerting `@rust-lang/compiler`.

## External links

Related design ideas, and tracking issues:

- Design document: [On-demand Rustc incremental design doc]
- Tracking Issue: ["Red/Green" dependency tracking in compiler]

More discussion and issues:

- [GitHub issue #42633]
- [Incremental Compilation Beta]
- [Incremental Compilation Announcement]

[On-demand Rustc incremental design doc]: https://github.com/nikomatsakis/rustc-on-demand-incremental-design-doc/blob/master/0000-rustc-on-demand-and-incremental.md
["Red/Green" dependency tracking in compiler]: https://github.com/rust-lang/rust/issues/42293
[GitHub issue #42633]: https://github.com/rust-lang/rust/issues/42633
[Incremental Compilation Beta]: https://internals.rust-lang.org/t/incremental-compilation-beta/4721
[Incremental Compilation Announcement]: https://blog.rust-lang.org/2016/09/08/incremental.html