% TODO % - definite typechecker/compiler implies it only looks at the % installed unit database, not TRUE \documentclass{article} \usepackage{pifont} \usepackage{graphicx} %[pdftex] OR [dvips] \usepackage{fullpage} \usepackage{wrapfig} \usepackage{float} \usepackage{titling} \usepackage{hyperref} \usepackage{tikz} \usepackage{color} \usepackage{footnote} \usepackage{float} \usepackage{algpseudocode} \usepackage{bigfoot} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{framed} % Alter some LaTeX defaults for better treatment of figures: % See p.105 of "TeX Unbound" for suggested values. % See pp. 199-200 of Lamport's "LaTeX" book for details. % General parameters, for ALL pages: \renewcommand{\topfraction}{0.9} % max fraction of floats at top \renewcommand{\bottomfraction}{0.8} % max fraction of floats at bottom % Parameters for TEXT pages (not float pages): \setcounter{topnumber}{2} \setcounter{bottomnumber}{2} \setcounter{totalnumber}{4} % 2 may work better \setcounter{dbltopnumber}{2} % for 2-column pages \renewcommand{\dbltopfraction}{0.9} % fit big float above 2-col. text \renewcommand{\textfraction}{0.07} % allow minimal text w. figs % Parameters for FLOAT pages (not text pages): \renewcommand{\floatpagefraction}{0.7} % require fuller float pages % N.B.: floatpagefraction MUST be less than topfraction !! \renewcommand{\dblfloatpagefraction}{0.7} % require fuller float pages % remember to use [htp] or [htpb] for placement \newcommand{\I}[1]{\ensuremath{\mathit{#1}}} \newcommand{\optionrule}{\noindent\rule{1.0\textwidth}{0.75pt}} \newenvironment{aside} {\begin{figure}\def\FrameCommand{\hspace{2em}} \MakeFramed{\advance\hsize-\width}\optionrule\small} {\par\vskip-\smallskipamount\optionrule\endMakeFramed\end{figure}} \setlength{\droptitle}{-6em} \newcommand{\Red}[1]{{\color{red} #1}} \title{The Backpack algorithm} \begin{document} \maketitle \noindent Backpack introduces the \emph{Backpack language}, which is used to define \emph{Backpack units} that provide some modules given implementations for some signatures. A Backpack unit can be immediately typechecked and elaborated into core; at some later point, each unit may then be compiled one or more times with different instantiations of its requirements. A unit is typechecked against the indefinite unit database (and the installed unit database, for units that have no requirements) in three steps: \begin{enumerate} \item The \textbf{dependency solver} computes the module and unit dependency structure of the declarations in a unit. Specifically, it produces (1) the set of \I{ModuleName}s which are required by the unit, (2) a directed acyclic graph labeled by \I{Module} of the modules and signatures of the unit, and (3) a directed (and acyclic, for now) graph labeled by \I{UnitId} of the includes of the unit. \item The \textbf{shaper} takes each module/signature in the DAG and computes its \I{Shape}, i.e., the list of \I{AvailInfo}s which are provided/required by each module/signature (respectively). This step is interleaved with the next step. \item The \textbf{type checker} takes each module/signature in the DAG (annotated with its shape) and type checks it. Cabal will save these type checking results in the indefinite unit database under the \I{ComponentId} associated with this unit. \end{enumerate} At some later point in time, a unit may be compiled against the installed unit database, if the user specifies a mapping which instantiates the requirements of a unit (a mapping from \I{ModuleName}s to \I{Module}s): \begin{enumerate} \item The \textbf{dependency solver} operates as before, but it also is responsible for computing the full set of \I{InstalledUnitId}s which must be compiled before this unit can be compiled, and compiling them. \item The \textbf{shaper} is not needed. (ToDo: except for recursive module loops.) \item The \textbf{type checker and compiler} takes each module/signature in the DAG, and typechecks and compiles the unit. Cabal will save the type checking results and object code to the installed unit database under the \I{InstalledUnitId} associated with this (instantiated) unit. \end{enumerate} \Red{ToDo: Rewrite this for added clarity} \newpage \section{Front-end syntax} \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} p,q,r && \mbox{Component names} \\ m,n && \mbox{Module names} \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Units}} \\ \I{unit} & ::= & \verb|unit|\; p\; [\I{provreq}]\; \verb|where {| d_1 \verb|;| \ldots \verb|;| d_n \verb|}| \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Declarations}} \\ d & ::= & \verb|module|\; m \; [exports]\; \verb|where|\; \I{body} \\ & | & \verb|signature|\; m \; [exports]\; \verb|where|\; \I{body} \\ & | & \verb|include|\; p \; [provreq] \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Provides/requires specification}} \\ \I{provreq} & ::= & \verb|(| \, \I{rns} \, \verb|)| \; [ \verb|requires(|\, \I{rns} \, \verb|)| ] \\ \I{rns} & ::= & \I{rn}_0 \verb|,| \, \ldots \verb|,| \, \I{rn}_n [\verb|,|] & \mbox{Renamings} \\ \I{rn} & ::= & m\; \verb|as| \; n & \mbox{Renaming} \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Haskell code}} \\ \I{exports} & & \mbox{A Haskell module export list} \\ \I{body} & & \mbox{A Haskell module body} \\ \end{array} $$ \caption{Syntax of Backpack} \label{fig:syntax} \end{figure} A (slightly simplified) syntax of Backpack is given in Figure~\ref{fig:syntax}. \newpage \section{Unit databases and the unit renamer} \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Identifiers}} \\ \I{ComponentId} & ::= & \mbox{Opaque unique identifier} \\ \I{UnitId} & ::= & \I{ComponentId} \verb|(|\, \I{HoleMap}\, \verb|)| \\ & | & \verb|hole| \\ \I{HoleMap} & ::= & \I{ModuleName}\; \verb|->|\; \I{Module}\; \verb|,|\, \ldots \\ \I{Module} & ::= & \I{UnitId} \verb|:| \I{ModuleName} \\ \I{InstalledUnitId} & ::= & \I{UnitId} \quad \mbox{(with no occurrences of \texttt{hole})} \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Unit databases}} \\ \I{ComponentDb} & ::= & \I{ComponentId} \; \verb|->| \; \I{ComponentRecord} \verb|,|\, \ldots \\ \I{InstalledUnitDb} & ::= & \I{InstalledUnitId} \; \verb|->| \; \I{InstalledUnitRecord} \verb|,|\, \ldots \\ \end{array} $$ \caption{Unit identification} \label{fig:ids} \end{figure} \subsection{The component and unit database} To install a package so that it is available when other packages are compiled, we must record it in some sort of database (which the compiler will query later). The obvious design for such a database is for it to record \emph{installed packages}, each of which has a collection of object files and interfaces from a compilation. However, with Backpack, we have to refine this picture in two ways: \begin{enumerate} \item A package is always a unit of distribution: something that has single authorship and is uploaded to Hackage. It would seriously hamper modular programming in the small, however, if you always had to create a new package to abstract over some requirements. So we say that a package can define multiple \emph{components}. The \emph{component database} records typechecked components. \item In Backpack, it may not be possible to \emph{compile} a component at install time: it may depend on some (as yet) unspecified holes. A component that is compiled to a specific instantiation is called a \emph{unit}. Thus, we maintain a second \emph{installed unit database} which records compiled units; the \emph{component database} contains typechecked-only components. (In practice, these two database are stored together, as components with no holes live both in the component database and the installed unit database.) \end{enumerate} % Thus, there are four closely related types of identifier to be aware of: \begin{description} \item[Component IDs] A component ID uniquely represents a component in a Cabal package, including the name and version of the containing package, the transitive dependencies of the component, and even the build information for the component. This ID is opaque to GHC and selected by Cabal (although GHC may take a component ID and suffix it with a unit name to derive a new component ID.) Component IDs identity entries in the \textbf{component database}, which contains the results of typechecking a component, but no actual object code. However, it does contain the elaborated source, so that it can be built into actual code when the requirement is filled. \item[Unit ID] A unit ID is a component ID augmented with a \I{HoleMap}, which says how the requirements of the component are instantiated. Every component ID induces a unit ID, where each requirement is filled with a fictitious unit \verb|hole|: when we typecheck a component for the component database, it is as if we are ``compiling'' it instantiated with holes. Units instantiated with holes are never installed; they are strictly for type-checking (although we could generate code for them, which could be linked if the \verb|hole| symbols are rewritten to their true destinations). \item[Installed unit IDs] An installed unit ID is a unit ID which has no \verb|hole|s; it identifies a unit that can be compiled. The \textbf{installed unit database} caches the compilation results of these units, so that if a unit is compiled multiple times with the same instantiation, this code can be reused. (This database most closely resembles the existing installed package database with GHC today.) \end{description} \subsection{The unit renamer} The unit renamer is responsible for transforming component names in a Backpack file into \I{ComponentId}s, so that they can be uniquely identified in the component database. Given a base \I{ComponentId} of the library component we are compiling (\I{ThisComponentId}) and a mapping from $p$ to \I{ComponentId} (\I{ComponentNameMap}), we rename as follows: \begin{itemize} \item Every unit declaration $\verb|unit|\; p$ is renamed to $\I{ThisComponentId}\, \verb|-|\, p$. \item Every unit include $\verb|include|\; p$ is renamed to $\I{ThisComponentId}\, \verb|-|\, p$ if $p$ was declared in the Backpack file; otherwise it is renamed according to \I{ComponentNameMap}. \end{itemize} The \I{ComponentNameMap} is entirely user specified, so there is a great deal of flexibility on how it can be created, but the convention we expect to be used by Cabal is that a component name $p$ corresponds to the same-named unit in a \emph{package} named $p$. Packages that don't use Backpack only have one component, the library component, which has the same name as package. \paragraph{Notational conventions} In the rest of this document, when it is unambiguous, we will use $p$, $q$ and $r$ interchangeably with \I{ComponentId}, as after unit renaming, there are no occurrences of component names. \newpage \section{Dependency solver} \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} \tilde{d} & ::= & \verb|module|\; Module \; [exports]\; \verb|where|\; \I{body} \\ & | & \verb|signature|\; \I{Module} \; [exports]\; \verb|where|\; \I{body} \\ & | & \verb|merge|\; \I{Module} \\ & | & \verb|include|\; \I{UnitId} \\ \I{ComponentRecord}^{\mathsf{dep}} & ::= & \verb|provides:|\; m\; \verb|->|\; \I{Module}\verb|,|\, \ldots\\ & & \verb|requires:|\; m\verb|,|\, \ldots \end{array} $$ \caption{Resolved declarations} \label{fig:resolved} \end{figure} The dependency solver computes the unfilled requirements of a component, a dependency DAG on the modules/signatures in the component, and a dependency DAG on the includes in the component. We assume every referenced $p$ in the component must be recorded in the component database, such that we can look up $\I{ComponentRecord}^{\mathsf{dep}}$. \paragraph{Computing unfilled requirements} The unfilled requirements are $R-P$, where $R$ and $P$ are sets of module names computed from the declarations in the following manner: \begin{itemize} \item $\verb|include|\; p$: union the (domain of the) provisions with $P$ and the requirements with $R$. \item $\verb|module|\; m$: add $m$ to $P$. \item $\verb|signature|\; m$: add $m$ to $R$. \end{itemize} \paragraph{Declaration dependency graph} We define a graph where the nodes are as described in Figure~\ref{fig:resolved}: there is a node per for each module and signature, as well as an extra ``merge'' node for every unfilled requirement, which merges the interfaces of a local signature and any requirements brought in from includes. % Each node is identified by the tuple $\left(\I{Module}, \I{IsSource?}\right)$, where the \I{Module} of a declaration $m$ in component $p$ is \verb|p(H):m|, where $H$ maps each unfilled requirement $n$ to \verb|hole:n|, and \I{IsSource?} is true only for signatures. The edges of the directed graph signify a ``depends on'' relation, and are defined as follows: \begin{itemize} \item A module/signature $m$ depends on a module/signature merge $n$ if $m$ imports $n$. \item A module/signature $m$ depends on a signature $n$ if $m$ \verb|{-# SOURCE #-}| imports $n$. \item A module/signature merge $m$ depends on a local signature $m$ (if it exists). \end{itemize} % If the resulting graph has a cycle, this is an error. \paragraph{Include dependency graph} We define an dependency graph between includes, where an $\verb|include|\; p$ depends on $\verb|include|\; q$ if, for some module name $m$, $p$ requires $m$ and $q$ provides $m$. If there is a cyclic, then there is cross-component mutual recursion: for now, this is an error. Assuming an acyclic graph, we can compute the \I{UnitId} of each key as follows. Initialize $\Gamma$, a substitution from holes to \I{Module}, to the identity substitution. For each $\verb|include|\; p$ in topological order, define its \I{UnitId} to be $p$ with the mapping $\Gamma$ with its domain restricted to the requirements of $p$. Then, for each provision $m\; \verb|->|\; \I{Module}$, update $\Gamma$ so that $\Gamma(m) = \operatorname{subst} (\Gamma, \I{Module})$ (where $\operatorname{subst}$ recursively applies the substitution $\Gamma$ in \I{Module}). During compilation, the include dependency graph is useful for determining a compilation order for included units. \newpage \section{Requirement calculation} \Red{to write} \newpage \section{Shaping pass} \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} \I{Shape} & ::= & \verb|provides:|\; m \; \verb|->|\; \I{Module}\; \I{ModShape} \verb|;|\; \ldots \\ & & \verb|requires:| \; m \; \verb|->|\; \textcolor{white}{\I{Module}}\; \I{ModShape} \verb|;|\; \ldots \\ \I{ModShape} & ::= & \I{AvailInfo}_0 \verb|,|\, \ldots \verb|,|\, \I{AvailInfo}_n \\ \I{AvailInfo} & ::= & \I{Name} & \mbox{Plain identifiers} \\ & | & \I{Name} \, \verb|{| \, \I{Name}_0\verb|,| \, \ldots\verb|,| \, \I{Name}_n \, \verb|}| & \mbox{Type constructors} \\ \I{Name} & ::= & \I{Module} \verb|.| \I{OccName} \\ \I{OccName} & & \mbox{Unqualified name in a namespace} \\ \I{ComponentRecord}^{\mathsf{shape}} & ::= & \I{Shape} \end{array} $$ \caption{Shaping} \label{fig:shaping} \end{figure} The shaping pass computes the export \I{AvailInfo}s for each node in the dependency graph; collectively, these form the \I{Shape} of the unit described in Figure~\ref{fig:shaping}. Equivalently, the \I{Shape} of unit specifies what a unit requires and provides at the Haskell declaration level. An \I{AvailInfo} names a Haskell declaration that may be exported. It may be a plain identifier \I{Name}, or it may be a type constructor, in which case it has children \I{Name}s representing the names of the data constructors, record selectors, etc. This level of hierarchy makes it possible to use ellipses in an import list, e.g. \verb|TyCon(..)|, to selectively import just the logical children of a type constructor. Children names have the invariant that they have the same \I{Module} as the parent name. In a \I{ModShape}/export list, the \I{OccName}s of the plain identifier \I{AvailInfo}s and the \emph{children} of type constructor are unique (although the top-level \I{Name}s may not have unique \I{OccName}s). The compilation of every node is associated with a ``shape context'', which represents the modules which are transitively depended upon. Let the environment shape context is the merge of the shapes of all includes; to shape a node: \begin{enumerate} \item Merge the environment shape contexts with the shape contexts of all direct dependencies, resulting in the initial shape context. \item Rename the module/signature according to the initial shape context, getting a \I{ModShape}. Importantly, when renaming the signature \verb|M|, any declarations defined in the signature are assigned a \I{Name}s with the \I{Module} \verb|hole:M| (rather than a \I{Module} based on the current unit $p$). \item Merge this \I{ModShape} into the initial shape context (modules go in provisions while signatures go in provisions), the result defining the shape context of this node. \end{enumerate} We now elaborate on these steps in more detail. \subsection{Shapes of includes} Given an \verb|include p (X) requires (Y)|, we can look up the shape for $p$ from the indefinite package database. However, an include can also rename provisions and requires (where $X$, $Y$ are partial maps from module name to module name), which requires transforms the shape in the following way: \begin{itemize} \item For each original provision $m\; \verb|->|\; \ldots$, provide $X (m)\; \verb|->|\; \ldots$ if $X (m)$ is defined. \item For each original requirement $m\; \verb|->|\; \ldots$, require $Y (m)\; \verb|->|\; \ldots$ if $Y (m)$ is defined, and $m$ if it is not. (Non-mentioned requirements are always passed through). \item For each requirement renaming from \verb|M| to \verb|N| in $Y$, substitute all occurrences of \verb|hole:M| to \verb|hole:N| in the \I{ModShape} of all provisions and requirements. \end{itemize} \subsection{Shape merging} Before specifying the how to merge shapes algorithm, we must define some subprocedures for unifying and merging lower-level entities such as \I{AvailInfo}s and \I{Name}s, which produce \I{Name} substitution that are applied to shapes. \begin{description} \item[Unify two \textit{Name}s] (produces a \I{Name} and a \I{Name} substitution) \\ Error if the names do not have matching \I{OccName}s. Error if neither name is a hole name. Otherwise, without loss of generality let $m$ be the hole name and $n$ the other name, return $n$ and the substitution of $m$ to $n$. \item[Merge two sets of \textit{Name}s] (produces a set of \I{Name}s and a \I{Name} substitution) \\ Let two \I{Name}s be related if they have the same \I{OccName}. Union the two sets, unifying related names. \item[Unify two \textit{AvailInfo}s] (produces an \I{AvailInfo} and a \I{Name} substitution) \\ If both \I{AvailInfo}s are simply a \I{Name}, unify the two \I{Name}s. If both \I{AvailInfo}s are $\I{Name}\, \verb|{|\, \I{Name}_0\verb|,|\, \ldots\verb|,|\, \I{Name}_n\, \verb|}|$, unify the top-level \I{Name}, apply the substitution to both \I{AvailInfo}s, and return the unified \I{Name} with the union of the child names of the substituted \I{AvailInfo}s. Otherwise, error. \item[Merge two sets of \textit{AvailInfo}s] (produces a set of \I{AvailInfo}s and a \I{Name} substitution) \\ Let two \I{AvailInfo}s be related if they both are of the form \I{Name} and have matching \I{OccName}s, or if they both are of the form $\I{Name}\, \verb|{|\, \I{Name}_0\verb|,|\, \ldots\verb|,|\, \I{Name}_n\, \verb|}|$ and there exists a child name in each which have matching \I{OccName}s. Union the two sets, unifying related \I{AvailInfo}s. \item[Apply a name substitution on an \textit{AvailInfo}] (produces an \I{AvailInfo}) \\ Substitute the top-level \I{Name}, which induces a substitution from \I{Module} to $\I{Module}'$. Apply this module substitution to each child \I{Name} in the \I{AvailInfo}. \end{description} % Shape merging takes two units with inputs (requirements) and outputs (provisions) and ``wires'' them up so that outputs feed into inputs. To merge the shape of $p$ with the shape of $q$: \begin{enumerate} \item \emph{Fill every requirement of $q$ with provided modules from $p$.} For each requirement $M$ of $q$ that is provided by $p$, substitute each \I{Module} occurrence of \verb|hole:M| with the provided $p\verb|(|M\verb|)|$ (however, do \textbf{NOT} substitute the top-level \I{Module} in a \I{Name}s), merge the \I{AvailInfo}s and apply the resulting \I{Name} substitution, and remove the requirement from $q$. If the \I{AvailInfo}s of the provision are not a superset of the required \I{AvailInfo}s, error. \item If mutual recursion is supported, \emph{fill every requirement of $p$ with provided modules from $q$.} \item \emph{Merge leftover requirements.} For each requirement $M$ of $q$ that is not provided by $p$ but required by $p$, and let the new requirement be the merge of \I{AvailInfo}s, applying the resulting \I{Name} substitution. \item \emph{Add provisions of $q$.} Union the provisions of $p$ and $q$, (lazily) erroring if there is a duplicate that doesn't have the same \I{Module}. \end{enumerate} \newpage \section{Indefinite type checker} \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} \I{ComponentRecord} & ::= & \I{ModIface}_0 \verb|;|\, \ldots\verb|;|\, \I{ModIface}_n \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Module interface}} \\ \I{ModIface} & ::= & \verb|module| \; \I{Module} \; \verb|(| \I{mi\_exports} \verb|)| \; \verb|where| \\ & & \qquad \I{mi\_decls} \\ & & \qquad \I{mi\_insts} \\ & & \qquad \I{dep\_orphs} \\ \I{mi\_exports} & ::= & \I{AvailInfo}_0 \verb|,|\, \ldots \verb|,|\, \I{AvailInfo}_n & \mbox{Export list} \\ \I{mi\_decls} & ::= & \I{IfaceDecl}_0 \verb|;|\, \ldots \verb|;|\, \I{IfaceDecl}_n & \mbox{Defined declarations} \\ \I{mi\_insts} & ::= & \I{IfaceClsInst}_0 \verb|;|\, \ldots \verb|;|\, \I{IfaceClsInst}_n & \mbox{Defined instances} \\ \I{dep\_orphs} & ::= & \I{Module}_0 \verb|;|\, \ldots \verb|;|\, \I{Module}_n & \mbox{Transitive orphan dependencies} \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Interface declarations}} \\ \I{IfaceDecl} & ::= & \I{OccName} \; \verb|::| \; \I{IfaceId} \\ & | & \verb|data| \; \I{OccName} \; \verb|=| \;\ \I{IfaceData} \\ & | & \ldots \\ \I{IfaceClsInst} & & \mbox{A type-class instance} \\ \I{IfaceId} & & \mbox{Interface of top-level binder} \\ \I{IfaceData} & & \mbox{Interface of type constructor} \\ \end{array} $$ \caption{Module interfaces in GHC} \label{fig:typecheck} \end{figure} \Red{This needs updating.} In general terms, type checking an indefinite unit (a unit with holes) involves calculating, for every module, a \I{ModIface} representing the type/interface of the module in question (which is serialized to disk). The general form of these interface files are described in Figure~\ref{fig:typecheck}; notably, the interfaces \I{IfaceId}, \I{IfaceData}, etc. contain \I{Name} references, which must be resolved by looking up a \I{ModIface} corresponding to the \I{Module} associated with the \I{Name}. (We will say more about this lookup process shortly.) For example, given: \begin{verbatim} unit p where signature H where data T module A(S, T) where import H data S = S T \end{verbatim} % the \I{PkgType} is: \begin{verbatim} module hole:H (hole:H.T) where data T -- abstract type constructor module THIS:A (THIS:A.S, hole:H.T) where data S = S hole:H.T -- where THIS = p(H -> hole:H) \end{verbatim} % However, while it is true that the \I{ModIface} is the final result of type checking, we actually are conflating two distinct concepts: the user-visible notion of a \I{ModuleName}, which, when imported, brings some \I{Name}s into scope (or could trigger a deprecation warning, or pull in some orphan instances\ldots), versus the actual declarations, which, while recorded in the \I{ModIface}, have an independent existence: even if a declaration is not visible for an import, we may internally refer to its \I{Name}, and need to look it up to find out type information. (A simple case when this can occur is if a module exports a function with type \verb|T -> T|, but doesn't export \verb|T|). \begin{figure}[htpb] $$ \begin{array}{rcll} \I{ModDetails} & ::= & \langle\I{md\_types} \verb|;|\; \I{md\_insts}\rangle \\ \I{md\_types} & ::= & \I{TyThing}_0 \verb|,|\, \ldots\verb|,|\, \I{TyThing}_n \\ \I{md\_insts} & ::= & \I{ClsInst}_0 \verb|,|\, \ldots\verb|,|\, \I{ClsInst}_n \\[1em] \multicolumn{3}{l}{\mbox{\bf Type-checked declarations}} \\ \I{TyThing} & & \mbox{Type-checked thing with a \I{Name}} \\ \I{ClsInst} & & \mbox{Type-checked type class instance} \\ \end{array} $$ \caption{Semantic objects in GHC} \label{fig:typecheck-more} \end{figure} Thus, a \I{ModIface} can be type-checked into a \I{ModDetails}, described in Figure~\ref{fig:typecheck-more}. Notice that a \I{ModDetails} is just a bag of type-checkable entities which GHC knows about. We define the \emph{external package state (EPT)} to simply be the union of the \I{ModDetails} of all external modules. Type checking is a delicate balancing act between module interfaces and our semantic objects. A \I{ModIface} may get type-checked multiple times with different hole instantiations to provide multiple \I{ModDetails}. Furthermore complicating matters is that GHC does this resolution \emph{lazily}: a \I{ModIface} is only converted to a \I{ModDetails} when we are looking up the type of a \I{Name} that is described by the interface; thus, unlike usual theoretical treatments of type checking, we can't eagerly go ahead and perform substitutions on \I{ModIface}s when they get included. In a separate compiler like GHC, there are two primary functions we must provide: \paragraph{\textit{ModuleName} to \textit{ModIface}} Given a \I{ModuleName} which was explicitly imported by a user, we must produce a \I{ModIface} that, among other things, specifies what \I{Name}s are brought into scope. This is used by the renamer to resolve plain references to identifiers to real \I{Name}s. (By the way, if shaping produced renamed trees, it would not be necessary to do this step!) \paragraph{\textit{Module} to \textit{ModDetails}/EPT} Given a \I{Module} which may be a part of a \I{Name}, we must be able to type check it into a \I{ModDetails} (usually by reading and typechecking the \I{ModIface} associated with the \I{Module}, but this process is involved). This is used by the type checker to find out type information on things. \\ There are two points in the type checker where these capabilities are exercised: \paragraph{Source-level imports} When a user explicitly imports a module, the \textit{ModuleName} is mapped to a \textit{ModIface} to find out what exports are brought into scope (\I{mi\_exports}) and what orphan instances must be loaded (\I{dep\_orphs}). Additionally, the \textit{Module} is loaded to the EPT to bring instances from the module into scope. \paragraph{Internal name lookup} During type checking, we may have a \I{Name} for which we need type information (\I{TyThing}). If it's not already in the EPT, we type check and load into the EPT the \I{ModDetails} of the \I{Module} in the \I{Name}, and then check the EPT again. (\verb|importDecl|) \subsection{\textit{ModuleName} to \textit{ModIface}} In all cases, the \I{mi\_exports} can be calculated directly from the shaping process, which specifies exactly for each \I{ModuleName} in scope what will be brought into scope. \paragraph{Modules} Modules are straightforward, as for any \I{Module} there is only one possibly \I{ModIface} associated with it (the \I{ModIface} for when we type-checked the (unique) \verb|module| declaration.) \paragraph{Signatures} For signatures, there may be multiple \I{ModIface}s associated with a \I{ModuleName} in scope, e.g. in this situation: \begin{verbatim} unit p where signature S where data A unit q where include p signature S where data B module M where import S \end{verbatim} % Each literal \verb|signature| has a \I{ModIface} associated with it; and the import of \verb|S| in \verb|M|, we want to see the \emph{merged} \I{ModIface}s. We can determine the \I{mi\_exports} from the shape, but we also need to pull in orphan instances for each signature, and produce a warning for each deprecated signature. \begin{aside} \textbf{Does hiding a signature hide its orphans.} Suppose that we have extended Backpack to allow hiding signatures from import. \begin{verbatim} unit p requires (H) where -- H is hidden from import module A where instance Eq (a -> b) where -- orphan signature H {-# DEPRECATED "Don't use me" #-} where import A unit q where include p signature H where data T module M where import H -- warn deprecated? instance Eq (a -> b) -- overlap? \end{verbatim} It is probably the most consistent to not pull in orphan instances and not give the deprecated warning: this corresponds to merging visible \I{ModIface}s, and ignoring invisible ones. \end{aside} \subsection{\textit{Module} to \textit{ModDetails}} \paragraph{Modules} For modules, we have a \I{Module} of the form $\I{p}\verb|(|m\; \verb|->|\; \I{Module}\verb|,|\, \ldots\verb|)|$, and we also have a unique \I{ModIface}, where each hole instantiation is $\verb|hole:|m$. To generate the \I{ModDetails} associated with the specific instantiation, we have to type-check the \I{ModIface} with the following adjustments: \begin{enumerate} \item Perform a \I{Module} substitution according to the instantiation of the \I{ModIface}'s \I{Module}. (NB: we \emph{do} substitute \verb|hole:A.x| to \verb|hole:B.x| if we instantiated \verb|A -> hole:B|, \emph{unlike} the disjoint substitutions applied by shaping.) \item Perform a \I{Name} substitution as follows: for any name with a unit key that is a $\verb|hole|$, substitute with the recorded \I{Name} in the requirements of the shape. Otherwise, look up the (unique) \I{ModIface} for the \I{Module}, and substitute with the corresponding \I{Name} in the \I{mi\_exports}. \end{enumerate} \paragraph{Signatures} For signatures, we have a \I{Module} of the form $\verb|hole:|m$. Unlike modules, there are multiple \I{ModIface}s associated with a hole. We distinguish each separate \I{ModIface} by considering the full \I{UnitId} it was defined in, e.g. \verb|p(A -> hole:C, B -> q():B)|; call this the hole's \emph{defining unit key}; the set of \I{ModIface}s for a hole and their defining unit keys can easily be calculated during shaping. To generate the \I{ModDetails} associated with a hole, we type-check each \I{ModIface}, with the following adjustments: \begin{enumerate} \item Perform a \I{Module} substitution according to the instantiation of the defining unit key. (NB: This may rename the hole itself!) \item Perform a \I{Name} substitution as follows, in the same manner as would be done in the case of modules. \item When these \I{ModDetails} are merged into the EPT, some merging of duplicate types may occur; a type may be defined multiple times, in which case we check that each definition is compatible with the previous ones. A concrete type is always compatible with an abstract type. \end{enumerate} \paragraph{Invariants} When we perform \I{Name} substitutions, we must be sure that we can always find out the correct \I{Name} to substitute to. This isn't obviously true, consider: \begin{verbatim} unit p where signature S(foo) where data T foo :: T module M(bar) where import S bar = foo unit q where module A(T(..)) where data T = T foo = T module S(foo) where import A include p module A where import M ... bar ... \end{verbatim} % When we type check \verb|p|, we get the \I{ModIface}s: \begin{verbatim} module hole:S(hole:S.foo) where data T foo :: hole:S.T module THIS:M(THIS:M.bar) where bar :: hole:S.T \end{verbatim} % Now, when we type check \verb|A|, we pull on the \I{Name} \verb|p(S -> q():S):M.bar|, which means we have to type check the \I{ModIface} for \verb|p(S -> q():S):M|. The un-substituted type of \verb|bar| has a reference to \verb|hole:S.T|; this should be substituted to \verb|q():S.T|. But how do we discover this? We know that \verb|hole:S| was instantiated to \verb|q():S|, so we might try and look for \verb|q():S.T|. However, this \I{Name} does not exist because the \verb|module S| reexports the selector from \verb|A|! Nor can we consult the (unique) \I{ModIface} for the module, as it doesn't reexport the relevant type. The conclusion, then, is that a module written this way should be disallowed. Specifically, the correctness condition for a signature is this: \emph{Any \I{Name} mentioned in the \I{ModIface} of a signature must either be from an external module, or be exported by the signature}. \newpage \section{Installation} This section defines the syntax for the file-system format of the \I{ComponentDb}. Like entries in the installed unit database, an entry is a sequence of fields with values. Indefinite unit entries share some entries in common with entries in the installed unit database: \begin{description} \item[\texttt{component-id:}] \I{ComponentId} \newline The unique identifier of an installed package. This combined with \texttt{unit-name} uniquely identifies an entry in the installed unit database. \item[\texttt{exposed:}] \verb|True| or \verb|False| \newline Whether or not this unit is exposed, i.e. it is available for \verb|include| under its \verb|unit-name| (this is used to compute the default \I{ComponentNameMap} when GHC is called by itself). \item[\texttt{import-dirs:}] \I{FilePath} \newline Where interface files for this unit can be found. (NB: these interface files are templates, which contain references to holes which we can substitute.) (There's exactly one.) \item[\texttt{exposed-modules:}] \I{ModuleName} or \I{ModuleName} \texttt{from} \I{Module} $\ldots$ \newline The set of exposed modules from this unit, including reexports from other units. \item[\texttt{other-modules:}] \I{ModuleName} $\ldots$ \newline Non-exposed modules; there is an interface for each of these in the import-dirs. (Redundant, but useful for error reporting.) \end{description} % As well as all non-essential, Cabal-specific metadata; e.g. \texttt{name}, \texttt{version}, \ldots (\texttt{data-dir} and \texttt{haddock} probably) Here are new entries for indefinite units: \begin{description} \item[\texttt{requires:}] \I{ModuleName} \ldots \newline The set of module names which are requirements of this unit. (Installed units instead record \texttt{instantiated-with}, which specifies how each requirement was instantiated.) Every requirement has an interface in the import-dirs. \item[\texttt{source-dir:}] \I{FilePath} \newline The path to the original source of the package. \item[\texttt{setup-executable:}] \I{FilePath} \newline The path to the \texttt{Setup} executable as described by the Cabal specification which is capable of building and installing the package using \texttt{./Setup instantiate} (this is a new command which lets us program how the requirements of the indefinite unit should be filled), \texttt{./Setup build}, \texttt{./Setup copy} and \texttt{./Setup register}. \item[\texttt{package-config:}] \I{FilePath} \newline The path to the package configuration saved when the indefinite unit was installed. This should contain all of the relevant configuration information necessary to build a package, except how its requirements are instantiated. \end{description} % The string representation of \I{Module} is worth remarking upon. In this specification, \I{Module} is a recursive data structure. For installed packages, it is acceptable to flatten \I{Module} into a hash representing the \I{UnitId} and the \I{ModuleName}, as the \I{UnitId} is an \I{InstalledUnitId} which has an entry in the database. However, this is unacceptable for indefinite units, because we don't have an entry per \I{UnitId}. So, for \I{UnitId}s in the indefinite unit database, the full tree is written out, subject to this syntax: \begin{verbatim} Module ::= UnitId ":" ModuleName UnitId ::= InstalledPackageId [ "/" UnitName "(" HoleMap ")" ] | "hole" HoleMap ::= ModuleName "->" Module "," ... \end{verbatim} \section{Appendix: Shaping} This section clarifies some subtle aspects about shaping. \subsection{\textit{OccName} is implied by \textit{Name}} In Haskell, the following is not valid syntax: \begin{verbatim} import A (foobar as baz) \end{verbatim} In particular, a \I{Name} which is in scope will always have the same \I{OccName} (even if it may be qualified.) You might imagine relaxing this restriction so that declarations can be used under different \I{OccName}s; in such a world, we need a different definition of shape: \begin{verbatim} Shape ::= provided: ModuleName -> Module { OccName -> Name } required: ModuleName -> { OccName -> Name } \end{verbatim} Presently, however, such an \I{OccName} annotation would be redundant: it can be inferred from the \I{Name}. \subsection{Holes of a unit are a mapping, not a set.} Why can't the \I{UnitId} just record a set of \I{Module}s, e.g. $\I{UnitId}\;::= \; p \; \verb|{| \; \I{Module} \; \verb|}|$? Consider: \begin{verbatim} unit p (A) requires (H1, H2) where signature H1(T) where data T signature H2(T) where data T module A(A(..)) where import qualified H1 import qualified H2 data A = A H1.T H2.T unit q (A12, A21) where module I1(T) where data T = T Int module I2(T) where data T = T Bool include p (A as A12) requires (H1 as I1, H2 as I2) include p (A as A21) requires (H1 as I2, H2 as I1) \end{verbatim} With a mapping, the first instance of \verb|p| has key \verb|p(H1 -> q():I1, H2 -> q():I2)| while the second instance has key \verb|p(H1 -> q():I2, H2 -> q():I1)|; with a set, both would have the key \verb|p{q():I1, q():I2}| and be indistinguishable. \subsection{Signatures can require a specific entity.} With requirements like \verb|A -> { hole:A.T, hole:A.foo }|, why not specify it as \verb|A -> { T, foo }|, e.g., \verb|required: { ModuleName -> { OccName } }|? Consider: \begin{verbatim} unit p () requires (A, B) where signature A(T) where data T signature B(T) where import T \end{verbatim} The requirements of this unit specify that \verb|A.T| $=$ \verb|B.T|; this can be expressed with \I{Name}s as \begin{verbatim} A -> { hole:A.T } B -> { hole:A.T } \end{verbatim} But, without \I{Name}s, the sharing constraint is impossible: \verb|A -> { T }; B -> { T }|. (NB: \verb|A| and \verb|B| could be filled with different modules, they just have to both export the same \verb|T|.) \subsection{The \textit{Name} of a value is used to avoid ambiguous identifier errors.} We state that two types are equal when their \I{Name}s are the same; however, for values, it is less clear why we care. But consider this example: \begin{verbatim} unit p (A) requires (H1, H2) where signature H1(x) where x :: Int signature H2(x) where import H1(x) module A(y) where import H1 import H2 y = x \end{verbatim} The reference to \verb|x| in \verb|A| is unambiguous, because it is known that \verb|x| from \verb|H1| and \verb|x| from \verb|H2| are the same (have the same \I{Name}.) If they were not the same, it would be ambiguous and should cause an error. Knowing the \I{Name} of a value distinguishes between these two cases. \subsection{Holes are linear} Requirements do not record what \I{Module} represents the identity of a requirement, which means that it's not possible to assert that hole \verb|A| and hole \verb|B| should be implemented with the same module, as might occur with aliasing: \begin{verbatim} signature A where signature B where alias A = B \end{verbatim} % The benefit of this restriction is that when a requirement is filled, it is obvious that this is the only requirement that is filled: you won't magically cause some other requirements to be filled. The downside is it's not possible to write a unit which looks for an interface it is looking for in one of $n$ names, accepting any name as an acceptable linkage. If aliasing was allowed, we'd need a separate physical shaping context, to make sure multiple mentions of the same hole were consistent. \subsection{A unit does not ``provide'' its signatures} We enforce the invariant that a provision is always (syntactically) a \verb|module| and a requirement is always a \verb|signature|. This means that if you have a requirement and a provision of the same name, the requirement can \emph{always} be filled with the provision. The alternate design, where a unit both requires and provides its signatures, makes it unclear if a provision will actually fill a signature. Consider this example, where a signature is required and exposed: \begin{verbatim} unit a-sigs (A) requires (A) where -- *** signature A where data T unit a-user (B) requires (A) where signature A where data T x :: T module B where ... unit p where include a-sigs include a-user \end{verbatim} % When we consider merging in the shape of \verb|a-user|, does the \verb|A| provided by \verb|a-sigs| fill in the \verb|A| requirement in \verb|a-user|? It \emph{should not}, since \verb|a-sigs| does not actually provide enough declarations to satisfy \verb|a-user|'s requirement: the intended semantics \emph{merges} the requirements of \verb|a-sigs| and \verb|a-user|. What about this example? \begin{verbatim} unit a-sigs (M as A) requires (H as A) where signature H(T) where data T module M(T) where import H(T) \end{verbatim} % We rightly should error, since the provision is a module. And in this situation: \begin{verbatim} unit a-sigs (H as A) requires (H) where signature H(T) where data T \end{verbatim} % The requirements should be merged, but should the merged requirement be under the name \verb|H| or \verb|A|? It may still be possible to use the \verb|(A) requires (A)| syntax to indicate exposed signatures, but this would be a mere syntactic alternative to \verb|() requires (exposed A)|. \subsection{Signature visibility, and defaulting} The simplest formulation of requirements is to have them always be importable. One proposed enhancement, however, is to allow some requirements to be ``non-importable''; that is, they are not visible to people who include packages. One simple way of modeling this is to associate each required module with a flag indicating whether or not it is importable or not. Then, we might imagine that an explicit export list could be used to toggle whether or not a requirement is visible or not. However, when an export list is absent, we have to pick a default visibility for a signature. If we use the same behavior as with modules, a strange situation can occur: \begin{verbatim} unit p where -- S is visible signature S where x :: True unit q where -- use defaulting include p signature S where y :: True module M where import S z = x && y -- OK unit r where include q module N where import S z = y -- OK z = x -- ??? \end{verbatim} % Absent the second signature declaration in \verb|q|, \verb|S.x| clearly should not be visible in \verb|N|. However, what ought to occur when this signature declaration is added? One interpretation is to say that only some (but not all) declarations are provided (\verb|S.x| remains invisible); another interpretation is that adding \verb|S| is enough to treat the signature as ``in-line'', and all declarations are now provided (\verb|S.x| is visible). The latter interpretation avoids having to keep track of providedness per declarations, and means that you can always express defaulting behavior by writing an explicit provides declaration on the unit. However, it has the odd behavior of making empty signatures semantically meaningful: \begin{verbatim} unit q where include p signature S where \end{verbatim} % % SPJ: This would be too complicated (if there's yet a third way) This is pretty complicated, so signature visibility is not currently planned to be implemented. \subsection{Tricky \textit{AvailInfo} merging scenarios} \paragraph{Merging when type constructors are not in scope} \begin{verbatim} signature A1(foo) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } signature A2(bar) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } \end{verbatim} % If we merge \verb|A1| and \verb|A2|, are we supposed to conclude that the types \verb|A1.A| and \verb|A2.A| (not in scope!) are the same? The answer is no! Consider these implementations: \begin{verbatim} module A1(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } module A2(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } module A(foo, bar) where import A1(foo) import A2(bar) \end{verbatim} Here, \verb|module A1| implements \verb|signature A1|, \verb|module A2| implements \verb|signature A2|, and \verb|module A| implements \verb|signature A1| and \verb|signature A2| individually and should certainly implement their merge. This is why we cannot simply merge type constructors based on the \I{OccName} of their top-level type; merging only occurs between in-scope identifiers. \paragraph{Does merging a selector merge the type constructor?} \begin{verbatim} signature A1(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } signature A2(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } signature A2(foo) where import A1(foo) \end{verbatim} % Does the last signature, which is written in the style of a sharing constraint on \verb|foo|, also cause \verb|bar| and the type and constructor \verb|A| to be unified? Because a merge of a child name results in a substitution on the parent name, the answer is yes. \paragraph{Incomplete data declarations} \begin{verbatim} signature A1(A(foo)) where data A = A { foo :: Int } signature A2(A(bar)) where data A = A { bar :: Bool } \end{verbatim} % Should \verb|A1| and \verb|A2| merge? If yes, this would imply that data definitions in signatures could only be \emph{partial} specifications of their true data types. This seems complicated, which suggests this should not be supported; however, in fact, this sort of definition, while disallowed during type checking, should be \emph{allowed} during shaping. The reason that the shape we abscribe to the signatures \verb|A1| and \verb|A2| are equivalent to the shapes for these which should merge: \begin{verbatim} signature A1(A(foo)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } signature A2(A(bar)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } \end{verbatim} \subsection{Subtyping record selectors as functions} \begin{verbatim} signature H(A, foo) where data A foo :: A -> Int module M(A, foo) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } \end{verbatim} % Does \verb|M| successfully fill \verb|H|? If so, it means that anywhere a signature requests a function \verb|foo|, we can instead validly provide a record selector. This capability seems quite attractive, although in practice record selectors rarely seem to be abstracted this way: one reason is that \verb|M.foo| still \emph{is} a record selector, and can be used to modify a record. (Many library authors find this surprising!) Nor does this seem to be an insurmountable instance of the avoidance problem: as a workaround, \verb|H| can equivalently be written as: \begin{verbatim} signature H(foo) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } \end{verbatim} % However, you might not like this, as the otherwise irrelevant \verb|bar| must be mentioned in the definition. In any case, actually implementing this `subtyping' is quite complicated, because we can no longer assume that every child name is associated with a parent name. The technical difficulty is that we now need to unify a plain identifier \I{AvailInfo} (from the signature) with a type constructor \I{AvailInfo} (from a module.) It is not clear what this should mean. Consider this situation: \begin{verbatim} unit p where signature H(A, foo, bar) where data A foo :: A -> Int bar :: A -> Bool module X(A, foo) where import H unit q where include p signature H(bar) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } module Y where import X(A(..)) -- ??? \end{verbatim} Should the wildcard import on \verb|X| be allowed? This question is equivalent to whether or not shaping discovers whether or not a function is a record selector and propagates this information elsewhere. If the wildcard is not allowed, here is another situation: \begin{verbatim} unit p where -- define without record selectors signature X1(A, foo) where data A foo :: A -> Int module M1(A, foo) where import X1 unit q where -- define with record selectors (X1s unify) signature X1(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } signature X2(A(..)) where data A = A { foo :: Int, bar :: Bool } -- export some record selectors signature Y1(bar) where import X1 signature Y2(bar) where import X2 unit r where include p include q -- sharing constraint signature Y2(bar) where import Y1(bar) -- the payload module Test where import M1(foo) import X2(foo) ... foo ... -- conflict? \end{verbatim} Without the sharing constraint, the \verb|foo|s from \verb|M1| and \verb|X2| should conflict. With it, however, we should conclude that the \verb|foo|s are the same, even though the \verb|foo| from \verb|M1| is \emph{not} considered a child of \verb|A|, and even though in the sharing constraint we \emph{only} unified \verb|bar| (and its parent \verb|A|). To know that \verb|foo| from \verb|M1| should also be unified, we have to know a bit more about \verb|A| when the sharing constraint performs unification; however, the \I{AvailInfo} will only tell us about what is in-scope, which is \emph{not} enough information. \subsection{Some examples} \subsubsection{A simple example} In the following set of units: \begin{verbatim} unit p(M) requires (A) where signature A(T) where data T module M(T, S) where import A(T) data S = S T unit q where module A where data T = T include p \end{verbatim} When we \verb|include p|, we need to merge the partial shape of \verb|q| (with just provides \verb|A|) with the shape of \verb|p|. Here is each step of the merging process: \begin{verbatim} shape 1 shape 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (initial shapes) provides: A -> THIS:A { q():A.T } M -> p(A -> hole:A) { hole:A.T, p(A -> hole:A).S } requires: (nothing) A -> { hole:A.T } (after filling requirements) provides: A -> THIS:A { q():A.T } M -> p(A -> THIS:A) { q():A.T, p(A -> THIS:A).S } requires: (nothing) (nothing) (after adding provides) provides: A -> THIS:A { q():A.T } M -> p(A -> THIS:A) { q():A.T, p(A -> THIS:A).S } requires: (nothing) \end{verbatim} Notice that we substituted \verb|hole:A| with \verb|THIS:A|, but \verb|hole:A.T| with \verb|q():A.T|. \subsubsection{Requirements merging can affect provisions} When a merge results in a substitution, we substitute over both requirements and provisions: \begin{verbatim} signature H(T) where data T module A(T) where import H(T) module B(T) where data T = T -- provides: A -> THIS:A { hole:H.T } -- B -> THIS:B { THIS:B.T } -- requires: H -> { hole:H.T } signature H(T, f) where import B(T) f :: a -> a -- provides: A -> THIS:A { THIS:B.T } -- UPDATED -- B -> THIS:B { THIS:B.T } -- requires: H -> { THIS:B.T, hole:H.f } -- UPDATED \end{verbatim} \subsubsection{Sharing constraints} Suppose you have two signature which both independently define a type, and you would like to assert that these two types are the same. In the ML world, such a constraint is known as a sharing constraint. Sharing constraints can be encoded in Backpacks via clever use of reexports; they are also an instructive example for signature merging. \begin{verbatim} signature A(T) where data T signature B(T) where data T -- requires: A -> { hole:A.T } B -> { hole:B.T } -- the sharing constraint! signature A(T) where import B(T) -- (shape to merge) -- requires: A -> { hole:B.T } -- (after merge) -- requires: A -> { hole:A.T } -- B -> { hole:A.T } \end{verbatim} % \Red{I'm pretty sure any choice of \textit{Name} is OK, since the subsequent substitution will make it alpha-equivalent.} \subsection{Export declarations} If an explicit export declaration is given, the final shape is the computed shape, minus any provisions not mentioned in the list, with the appropriate renaming applied to provisions and requirements. (Requirements are implicitly passed through if they are not named.) If no explicit export declaration is given, the final shape is the computed shape, including only provisions which were defined in the declarations of the unit. \section{Cabal} % \I{InstalledUnitId} & ::= & \I{ComponentId} \verb|(| \, m \; \verb|->| \; \I{Module} \verb|,|\, \ldots\, \verb|)| & \mbox{Also known as \I{UnitId}} \\ % \I{Module} & ::= & \I{InstalledUnitId} \verb|:| m \\ \paragraph{Indefinite versus installed units} The purpose of an \I{ComponentId} is to uniquely identify the results of \textbf{typechecking} an indefinite unit; whereas an \I{InstalledUnitId} uniquely identifies the results of \textbf{compiling} a unit with all its holes filled. Thus, an \I{InstalledUnitId} also records a \emph{hole mapping} which specifies how each hole was filled. If an \I{InstalledUnitId} is only partially filled, we may refer to it as a \I{UnitId} (as these are never installed.) \paragraph{Units versus packages} Cabal packages are: \begin{itemize} \item The unit of distribution \item The unit that Hackage handles \item The unit of versioning \item The unit of ownership (who maintains it etc) \end{itemize} Backpack units are the building blocks of modular development; there may be multiple units per a Cabal package. While in theory Cabal could do sophisticated things with multiple units in a package, we expect Cabal to pick a distinguished unit (with the same unit name $p$ as the package) which serves as the publically visible unit. %\newpage \end{document} % chktex 16