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1@c -*-texinfo-*-
2@c This is part of the GNU Emacs Lisp Reference Manual.
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3@c Copyright (C) 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004,
4@c 2005 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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5@c See the file elisp.texi for copying conditions.
6@setfilename ../info/advising
7@node Advising Functions, Debugging, Byte Compilation, Top
8@chapter Advising Emacs Lisp Functions
9@cindex advising functions
10
8389b33f 11 The @dfn{advice} feature lets you add to the existing definition of
0e15f9b4 12a function, by @dfn{advising the function}. This is a cleaner method
8389b33f 13for a library to customize functions defined within Emacs---cleaner
a9f0a989 14than redefining the whole function.
b933f645 15
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16@cindex piece of advice
17 Each function can have multiple @dfn{pieces of advice}, separately
9012a201 18defined. Each defined piece of advice can be @dfn{enabled} or
8389b33f 19@dfn{disabled} explicitly. All the enabled pieces of advice for any given
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20function actually take effect when you @dfn{activate} advice for that
21function, or when you define or redefine the function. Note that
22enabling a piece of advice and activating advice for a function
23are not the same thing.
b933f645 24
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25 @strong{Usage Note:} Advice is useful for altering the behavior of
26existing calls to an existing function. If you want the new behavior
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27for new calls, or for key bindings, you should define a new function
28(or a new command) which uses the existing function.
29
30 @strong{Usage note:} Advising a function can cause confusion in
31debugging, since people who debug calls to the original function may
32not notice that it has been modified with advice. Therefore, if you
33have the possibility to change the code of that function (or ask
34someone to do so) to run a hook, please solve the problem that way.
35Advice should be reserved for the cases where you cannot get the
36function changed.
37
38 In particular, this means that a file in Emacs should not put advice
39on a function in Emacs. There are currently a few exceptions to this
40convention, but we aim to correct them.
a9f0a989 41
b933f645 42@menu
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43* Simple Advice:: A simple example to explain the basics of advice.
44* Defining Advice:: Detailed description of @code{defadvice}.
1911e6e5 45* Around-Advice:: Wrapping advice around a function's definition.
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46* Computed Advice:: ...is to @code{defadvice} as @code{fset} is to @code{defun}.
47* Activation of Advice:: Advice doesn't do anything until you activate it.
48* Enabling Advice:: You can enable or disable each piece of advice.
49* Preactivation:: Preactivation is a way of speeding up the
50 loading of compiled advice.
1911e6e5 51* Argument Access in Advice:: How advice can access the function's arguments.
7a010076 52* Advising Primitives:: Accessing arguments when advising a primitive.
a9f0a989 53* Combined Definition:: How advice is implemented.
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54@end menu
55
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56@node Simple Advice
57@section A Simple Advice Example
58
59 The command @code{next-line} moves point down vertically one or more
60lines; it is the standard binding of @kbd{C-n}. When used on the last
61line of the buffer, this command inserts a newline to create a line to
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62move to if @code{next-line-add-newlines} is non-@code{nil} (its default
63is @code{nil}.)
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64
65 Suppose you wanted to add a similar feature to @code{previous-line},
66which would insert a new line at the beginning of the buffer for the
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67command to move to (when @code{next-line-add-newlines} is
68non-@code{nil}). How could you do this?
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69
70 You could do it by redefining the whole function, but that is not
71modular. The advice feature provides a cleaner alternative: you can
72effectively add your code to the existing function definition, without
73actually changing or even seeing that definition. Here is how to do
74this:
75
76@example
77(defadvice previous-line (before next-line-at-end (arg))
78 "Insert an empty line when moving up from the top line."
79 (if (and next-line-add-newlines (= arg 1)
80 (save-excursion (beginning-of-line) (bobp)))
81 (progn
82 (beginning-of-line)
83 (newline))))
84@end example
85
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86 This expression defines a @dfn{piece of advice} for the function
87@code{previous-line}. This piece of advice is named
88@code{next-line-at-end}, and the symbol @code{before} says that it is
89@dfn{before-advice} which should run before the regular definition of
90@code{previous-line}. @code{(arg)} specifies how the advice code can
91refer to the function's arguments.
92
93 When this piece of advice runs, it creates an additional line, in the
94situation where that is appropriate, but does not move point to that
95line. This is the correct way to write the advice, because the normal
96definition will run afterward and will move back to the newly inserted
97line.
98
99 Defining the advice doesn't immediately change the function
100@code{previous-line}. That happens when you @dfn{activate} the advice,
101like this:
102
103@example
104(ad-activate 'previous-line)
105@end example
106
107@noindent
108This is what actually begins to use the advice that has been defined so
109far for the function @code{previous-line}. Henceforth, whenever that
110function is run, whether invoked by the user with @kbd{C-p} or
111@kbd{M-x}, or called from Lisp, it runs the advice first, and its
112regular definition second.
113
114 This example illustrates before-advice, which is one @dfn{class} of
115advice: it runs before the function's base definition. There are two
116other advice classes: @dfn{after-advice}, which runs after the base
117definition, and @dfn{around-advice}, which lets you specify an
118expression to wrap around the invocation of the base definition.
119
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120@node Defining Advice
121@section Defining Advice
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122@cindex defining advice
123@cindex advice, defining
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124
125 To define a piece of advice, use the macro @code{defadvice}. A call
126to @code{defadvice} has the following syntax, which is based on the
1911e6e5 127syntax of @code{defun} and @code{defmacro}, but adds more:
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128
129@findex defadvice
130@example
131(defadvice @var{function} (@var{class} @var{name}
132 @r{[}@var{position}@r{]} @r{[}@var{arglist}@r{]}
133 @var{flags}...)
134 @r{[}@var{documentation-string}@r{]}
135 @r{[}@var{interactive-form}@r{]}
136 @var{body-forms}...)
137@end example
138
139@noindent
140Here, @var{function} is the name of the function (or macro or special
141form) to be advised. From now on, we will write just ``function'' when
142describing the entity being advised, but this always includes macros and
143special forms.
144
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145 In place of the argument list in an ordinary definition, an advice
146definition calls for several different pieces of information.
147
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148@cindex class of advice
149@cindex before-advice
150@cindex after-advice
151@cindex around-advice
152@var{class} specifies the @dfn{class} of the advice---one of @code{before},
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153@code{after}, or @code{around}. Before-advice runs before the function
154itself; after-advice runs after the function itself; around-advice is
155wrapped around the execution of the function itself. After-advice and
156around-advice can override the return value by setting
157@code{ad-return-value}.
158
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159@defvar ad-return-value
160While advice is executing, after the function's original definition has
161been executed, this variable holds its return value, which will
162ultimately be returned to the caller after finishing all the advice.
163After-advice and around-advice can arrange to return some other value
164by storing it in this variable.
165@end defvar
b933f645 166
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167The argument @var{name} is the name of the advice, a non-@code{nil}
168symbol. The advice name uniquely identifies one piece of advice, within all
169the pieces of advice in a particular class for a particular
170@var{function}. The name allows you to refer to the piece of
171advice---to redefine it, or to enable or disable it.
172
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173The optional @var{position} specifies where, in the current list of
174advice of the specified @var{class}, this new advice should be placed.
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175It should be either @code{first}, @code{last} or a number that specifies
176a zero-based position (@code{first} is equivalent to 0). If no position
177is specified, the default is @code{first}. Position values outside the
178range of existing positions in this class are mapped to the beginning or
179the end of the range, whichever is closer. The @var{position} value is
180ignored when redefining an existing piece of advice.
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181
182The optional @var{arglist} can be used to define the argument list for
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183the sake of advice. This becomes the argument list of the combined
184definition that is generated in order to run the advice (@pxref{Combined
185Definition}). Therefore, the advice expressions can use the argument
186variables in this list to access argument values.
187
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188The argument list used in advice need not be the same as the argument
189list used in the original function, but must be compatible with it, so
190that it can handle the ways the function is actually called. If two
191pieces of advice for a function both specify an argument list, they must
192specify the same argument list.
b933f645 193
8241495d 194@xref{Argument Access in Advice}, for more information about argument
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195lists and advice, and a more flexible way for advice to access the
196arguments.
8241495d 197
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198The remaining elements, @var{flags}, are symbols that specify further
199information about how to use this piece of advice. Here are the valid
200symbols and their meanings:
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201
202@table @code
203@item activate
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204Activate the advice for @var{function} now. Changes in a function's
205advice always take effect the next time you activate advice for the
206function; this flag says to do so, for @var{function}, immediately after
207defining this piece of advice.
208
209@cindex forward advice
9012a201 210This flag has no immediate effect if @var{function} itself is not defined yet (a
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211situation known as @dfn{forward advice}), because it is impossible to
212activate an undefined function's advice. However, defining
213@var{function} will automatically activate its advice.
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214
215@item protect
216Protect this piece of advice against non-local exits and errors in
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217preceding code and advice. Protecting advice places it as a cleanup in
218an @code{unwind-protect} form, so that it will execute even if the
a9f0a989 219previous code gets an error or uses @code{throw}. @xref{Cleanups}.
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220
221@item compile
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222Compile the combined definition that is used to run the advice. This
223flag is ignored unless @code{activate} is also specified.
224@xref{Combined Definition}.
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225
226@item disable
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227Initially disable this piece of advice, so that it will not be used
228unless subsequently explicitly enabled. @xref{Enabling Advice}.
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229
230@item preactivate
231Activate advice for @var{function} when this @code{defadvice} is
232compiled or macroexpanded. This generates a compiled advised definition
233according to the current advice state, which will be used during
8241495d 234activation if appropriate. @xref{Preactivation}.
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235
236This is useful only if this @code{defadvice} is byte-compiled.
237@end table
238
239The optional @var{documentation-string} serves to document this piece of
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240advice. When advice is active for @var{function}, the documentation for
241@var{function} (as returned by @code{documentation}) combines the
242documentation strings of all the advice for @var{function} with the
243documentation string of its original function definition.
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244
245The optional @var{interactive-form} form can be supplied to change the
246interactive behavior of the original function. If more than one piece
247of advice has an @var{interactive-form}, then the first one (the one
248with the smallest position) found among all the advice takes precedence.
249
250The possibly empty list of @var{body-forms} specifies the body of the
251advice. The body of an advice can access or change the arguments, the
252return value, the binding environment, and perform any other kind of
253side effect.
254
255@strong{Warning:} When you advise a macro, keep in mind that macros are
256expanded when a program is compiled, not when a compiled program is run.
257All subroutines used by the advice need to be available when the byte
258compiler expands the macro.
259
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260@deffn Command ad-unadvise function
261This command deletes the advice from @var{function}.
262@end deffn
263
264@deffn Command ad-unadvise-all
265This command deletes all pieces of advice from all functions.
266@end deffn
267
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268@node Around-Advice
269@section Around-Advice
270
271 Around-advice lets you ``wrap'' a Lisp expression ``around'' the
272original function definition. You specify where the original function
273definition should go by means of the special symbol @code{ad-do-it}.
274Where this symbol occurs inside the around-advice body, it is replaced
275with a @code{progn} containing the forms of the surrounded code. Here
276is an example:
277
278@example
279(defadvice foo (around foo-around)
280 "Ignore case in `foo'."
281 (let ((case-fold-search t))
282 ad-do-it))
283@end example
284
285@noindent
286Its effect is to make sure that case is ignored in
287searches when the original definition of @code{foo} is run.
288
289@defvar ad-do-it
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290This is not really a variable, rather a place-holder that looks like a
291variable. You use it in around-advice to specify the place to run the
292function's original definition and other ``earlier'' around-advice.
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293@end defvar
294
295If the around-advice does not use @code{ad-do-it}, then it does not run
296the original function definition. This provides a way to override the
297original definition completely. (It also overrides lower-positioned
298pieces of around-advice).
299
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300If the around-advice uses @code{ad-do-it} more than once, the original
301definition is run at each place. In this way, around-advice can execute
302the original definition (and lower-positioned pieces of around-advice)
303several times. Another way to do that is by using @code{ad-do-it}
304inside of a loop.
305
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306@node Computed Advice
307@section Computed Advice
308
309The macro @code{defadvice} resembles @code{defun} in that the code for
310the advice, and all other information about it, are explicitly stated in
311the source code. You can also create advice whose details are computed,
312using the function @code{ad-add-advice}.
313
314@defun ad-add-advice function advice class position
315Calling @code{ad-add-advice} adds @var{advice} as a piece of advice to
316@var{function} in class @var{class}. The argument @var{advice} has
317this form:
318
319@example
320(@var{name} @var{protected} @var{enabled} @var{definition})
321@end example
322
323Here @var{protected} and @var{enabled} are flags, and @var{definition}
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324is the expression that says what the advice should do. If @var{enabled}
325is @code{nil}, this piece of advice is initially disabled
326(@pxref{Enabling Advice}).
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327
328If @var{function} already has one or more pieces of advice in the
329specified @var{class}, then @var{position} specifies where in the list
330to put the new piece of advice. The value of @var{position} can either
331be @code{first}, @code{last}, or a number (counting from 0 at the
332beginning of the list). Numbers outside the range are mapped to the
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333beginning or the end of the range, whichever is closer. The
334@var{position} value is ignored when redefining an existing piece of
335advice.
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336
337If @var{function} already has a piece of @var{advice} with the same
338name, then the position argument is ignored and the old advice is
339replaced with the new one.
340@end defun
341
342@node Activation of Advice
343@section Activation of Advice
344@cindex activating advice
1911e6e5 345@cindex advice, activating
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346
347By default, advice does not take effect when you define it---only when
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348you @dfn{activate} advice for the function that was advised. However,
349the advice will be activated automatically if you define or redefine
350the function later. You can request the activation of advice for a
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351function when you define the advice, by specifying the @code{activate}
352flag in the @code{defadvice}. But normally you activate the advice
353for a function by calling the function @code{ad-activate} or one of
354the other activation commands listed below.
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355
356Separating the activation of advice from the act of defining it permits
357you to add several pieces of advice to one function efficiently, without
358redefining the function over and over as each advice is added. More
359importantly, it permits defining advice for a function before that
360function is actually defined.
361
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362When a function's advice is first activated, the function's original
363definition is saved, and all enabled pieces of advice for that function
364are combined with the original definition to make a new definition.
365(Pieces of advice that are currently disabled are not used; see
366@ref{Enabling Advice}.) This definition is installed, and optionally
367byte-compiled as well, depending on conditions described below.
b933f645 368
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369In all of the commands to activate advice, if @var{compile} is
370@code{t} (or anything but @code{nil} or a negative number), the
371command also compiles the combined definition which implements the
372advice. If it is @code{nil} or a negative number, what happens
373depends on @code{ad-default-compilation-action} as described below.
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374
375@deffn Command ad-activate function &optional compile
8241495d 376This command activates all the advice defined for @var{function}.
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377@end deffn
378
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379 Activating advice does nothing if @var{function}'s advice is already
380active. But if there is new advice, added since the previous time you
381activated advice for @var{function}, it activates the new advice.
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382
383@deffn Command ad-deactivate function
384This command deactivates the advice for @var{function}.
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385@cindex deactivating advice
386@cindex advice, deactivating
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387@end deffn
388
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389@deffn Command ad-update function &optional compile
390This command activates the advice for @var{function}
391if its advice is already activated. This is useful
392if you change the advice.
393@end deffn
394
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395@deffn Command ad-activate-all &optional compile
396This command activates the advice for all functions.
397@end deffn
398
399@deffn Command ad-deactivate-all
400This command deactivates the advice for all functions.
401@end deffn
402
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403@deffn Command ad-update-all &optional compile
404This command activates the advice for all functions
405whose advice is already activated. This is useful
406if you change the advice of some functions.
407@end deffn
408
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409@deffn Command ad-activate-regexp regexp &optional compile
410This command activates all pieces of advice whose names match
411@var{regexp}. More precisely, it activates all advice for any function
412which has at least one piece of advice that matches @var{regexp}.
413@end deffn
414
415@deffn Command ad-deactivate-regexp regexp
1911e6e5 416This command deactivates all pieces of advice whose names match
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417@var{regexp}. More precisely, it deactivates all advice for any
418function which has at least one piece of advice that matches
419@var{regexp}.
420@end deffn
421
422@deffn Command ad-update-regexp regexp &optional compile
423This command activates pieces of advice whose names match @var{regexp},
a9f0a989 424but only those for functions whose advice is already activated.
1911e6e5 425@cindex reactivating advice
b933f645 426
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427Reactivating a function's advice is useful for putting into effect all
428the changes that have been made in its advice (including enabling and
429disabling specific pieces of advice; @pxref{Enabling Advice}) since the
430last time it was activated.
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431@end deffn
432
433@deffn Command ad-start-advice
a9f0a989 434Turn on automatic advice activation when a function is defined or
20853e2f 435redefined. This is the default mode.
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436@end deffn
437
438@deffn Command ad-stop-advice
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439Turn off automatic advice activation when a function is defined or
440redefined.
441@end deffn
442
443@defopt ad-default-compilation-action
444This variable controls whether to compile the combined definition
445that results from activating advice for a function.
41982e72 446
080a57ba 447A value of @code{always} specifies to compile unconditionally.
f91f2dcc 448A value of @code{never} specifies never compile the advice.
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449
450A value of @code{maybe} specifies to compile if the byte-compiler is
451already loaded. A value of @code{like-original} specifies to compile
080a57ba 452the advice if the original definition of the advised function is
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453compiled or a built-in function.
454
455This variable takes effect only if the @var{compile} argument of
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456@code{ad-activate} (or any of the above functions) did not force
457compilation.
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458@end defopt
459
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460 If the advised definition was constructed during ``preactivation''
461(@pxref{Preactivation}), then that definition must already be compiled,
462because it was constructed during byte-compilation of the file that
463contained the @code{defadvice} with the @code{preactivate} flag.
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464
465@node Enabling Advice
466@section Enabling and Disabling Advice
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467@cindex enabling advice
468@cindex advice, enabling and disabling
469@cindex disabling advice
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470
471 Each piece of advice has a flag that says whether it is enabled or
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472not. By enabling or disabling a piece of advice, you can turn it on
473and off without having to undefine and redefine it. For example, here is
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474how to disable a particular piece of advice named @code{my-advice} for
475the function @code{foo}:
476
477@example
478(ad-disable-advice 'foo 'before 'my-advice)
479@end example
480
1911e6e5 481 This function by itself only changes the enable flag for a piece of
a9f0a989 482advice. To make the change take effect in the advised definition, you
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483must activate the advice for @code{foo} again:
484
485@example
486(ad-activate 'foo)
487@end example
488
489@deffn Command ad-disable-advice function class name
490This command disables the piece of advice named @var{name} in class
491@var{class} on @var{function}.
492@end deffn
493
494@deffn Command ad-enable-advice function class name
495This command enables the piece of advice named @var{name} in class
496@var{class} on @var{function}.
497@end deffn
498
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499 You can also disable many pieces of advice at once, for various
500functions, using a regular expression. As always, the changes take real
501effect only when you next reactivate advice for the functions in
502question.
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503
504@deffn Command ad-disable-regexp regexp
505This command disables all pieces of advice whose names match
506@var{regexp}, in all classes, on all functions.
507@end deffn
508
509@deffn Command ad-enable-regexp regexp
510This command enables all pieces of advice whose names match
511@var{regexp}, in all classes, on all functions.
512@end deffn
513
514@node Preactivation
515@section Preactivation
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516@cindex preactivating advice
517@cindex advice, preactivating
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518
519 Constructing a combined definition to execute advice is moderately
520expensive. When a library advises many functions, this can make loading
521the library slow. In that case, you can use @dfn{preactivation} to
522construct suitable combined definitions in advance.
523
524 To use preactivation, specify the @code{preactivate} flag when you
525define the advice with @code{defadvice}. This @code{defadvice} call
526creates a combined definition which embodies this piece of advice
527(whether enabled or not) plus any other currently enabled advice for the
528same function, and the function's own definition. If the
529@code{defadvice} is compiled, that compiles the combined definition
530also.
531
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532 When the function's advice is subsequently activated, if the enabled
533advice for the function matches what was used to make this combined
534definition, then the existing combined definition is used, thus avoiding
535the need to construct one. Thus, preactivation never causes wrong
b933f645 536results---but it may fail to do any good, if the enabled advice at the
a9f0a989 537time of activation doesn't match what was used for preactivation.
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538
539 Here are some symptoms that can indicate that a preactivation did not
540work properly, because of a mismatch.
541
542@itemize @bullet
543@item
544Activation of the advised
545function takes longer than usual.
546@item
547The byte-compiler gets
548loaded while an advised function gets activated.
549@item
550@code{byte-compile} is included in the value of @code{features} even
551though you did not ever explicitly use the byte-compiler.
552@end itemize
553
554Compiled preactivated advice works properly even if the function itself
555is not defined until later; however, the function needs to be defined
556when you @emph{compile} the preactivated advice.
557
558There is no elegant way to find out why preactivated advice is not being
559used. What you can do is to trace the function
560@code{ad-cache-id-verification-code} (with the function
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561@code{trace-function-background}) before the advised function's advice
562is activated. After activation, check the value returned by
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563@code{ad-cache-id-verification-code} for that function: @code{verified}
564means that the preactivated advice was used, while other values give
565some information about why they were considered inappropriate.
566
567 @strong{Warning:} There is one known case that can make preactivation
568fail, in that a preconstructed combined definition is used even though
569it fails to match the current state of advice. This can happen when two
570packages define different pieces of advice with the same name, in the
571same class, for the same function. But you should avoid that anyway.
572
573@node Argument Access in Advice
574@section Argument Access in Advice
575
576 The simplest way to access the arguments of an advised function in the
577body of a piece of advice is to use the same names that the function
578definition uses. To do this, you need to know the names of the argument
579variables of the original function.
580
581 While this simple method is sufficient in many cases, it has a
582disadvantage: it is not robust, because it hard-codes the argument names
583into the advice. If the definition of the original function changes,
584the advice might break.
585
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586 Another method is to specify an argument list in the advice itself.
587This avoids the need to know the original function definition's argument
588names, but it has a limitation: all the advice on any particular
589function must use the same argument list, because the argument list
590actually used for all the advice comes from the first piece of advice
591for that function.
592
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593 A more robust method is to use macros that are translated into the
594proper access forms at activation time, i.e., when constructing the
595advised definition. Access macros access actual arguments by position
1911e6e5 596regardless of how these actual arguments get distributed onto the
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597argument variables of a function. This is robust because in Emacs Lisp
598the meaning of an argument is strictly determined by its position in the
599argument list.
600
601@defmac ad-get-arg position
602This returns the actual argument that was supplied at @var{position}.
603@end defmac
604
605@defmac ad-get-args position
606This returns the list of actual arguments supplied starting at
607@var{position}.
608@end defmac
609
610@defmac ad-set-arg position value
611This sets the value of the actual argument at @var{position} to
612@var{value}
613@end defmac
614
615@defmac ad-set-args position value-list
616This sets the list of actual arguments starting at @var{position} to
617@var{value-list}.
618@end defmac
619
620 Now an example. Suppose the function @code{foo} is defined as
621
622@example
623(defun foo (x y &optional z &rest r) ...)
624@end example
625
626@noindent
627and is then called with
628
629@example
630(foo 0 1 2 3 4 5 6)
631@end example
632
633@noindent
634which means that @var{x} is 0, @var{y} is 1, @var{z} is 2 and @var{r} is
635@code{(3 4 5 6)} within the body of @code{foo}. Here is what
636@code{ad-get-arg} and @code{ad-get-args} return in this case:
637
638@example
639(ad-get-arg 0) @result{} 0
640(ad-get-arg 1) @result{} 1
641(ad-get-arg 2) @result{} 2
642(ad-get-arg 3) @result{} 3
643(ad-get-args 2) @result{} (2 3 4 5 6)
644(ad-get-args 4) @result{} (4 5 6)
645@end example
646
647 Setting arguments also makes sense in this example:
648
649@example
650(ad-set-arg 5 "five")
651@end example
652
653@noindent
654has the effect of changing the sixth argument to @code{"five"}. If this
655happens in advice executed before the body of @code{foo} is run, then
656@var{r} will be @code{(3 4 "five" 6)} within that body.
657
658 Here is an example of setting a tail of the argument list:
659
660@example
661(ad-set-args 0 '(5 4 3 2 1 0))
662@end example
663
664@noindent
665If this happens in advice executed before the body of @code{foo} is run,
666then within that body, @var{x} will be 5, @var{y} will be 4, @var{z}
667will be 3, and @var{r} will be @code{(2 1 0)} inside the body of
668@code{foo}.
669
670 These argument constructs are not really implemented as Lisp macros.
671Instead they are implemented specially by the advice mechanism.
672
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673@node Advising Primitives
674@section Advising Primitives
675
676 Advising a primitive function (also called a ``subr'') is risky.
677Some primitive functions are used by the advice mechanism; advising
678them could cause an infinite recursion. Also, many primitive
679functions are called directly from C code. Calls to the primitive
680from Lisp code will take note of the advice, but calls from C code
681will ignore the advice.
682
683When the advice facility constructs the combined definition, it needs
684to know the argument list of the original function. This is not
685always possible for primitive functions. When advice cannot determine
686the argument list, it uses @code{(&rest ad-subr-args)}, which always
687works but is inefficient because it constructs a list of the argument
688values. You can use @code{ad-define-subr-args} to declare the proper
689argument names for a primitive function:
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690
691@defun ad-define-subr-args function arglist
692This function specifies that @var{arglist} should be used as the
693argument list for function @var{function}.
694@end defun
695
696For example,
697
698@example
699(ad-define-subr-args 'fset '(sym newdef))
700@end example
701
702@noindent
703specifies the argument list for the function @code{fset}.
704
705@node Combined Definition
706@section The Combined Definition
707
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708 Suppose that a function has @var{n} pieces of before-advice
709(numbered from 0 through @var{n}@minus{}1), @var{m} pieces of
710around-advice and @var{k} pieces of after-advice. Assuming no piece
711of advice is protected, the combined definition produced to implement
712the advice for a function looks like this:
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713
714@example
715(lambda @var{arglist}
716 @r{[} @r{[}@var{advised-docstring}@r{]} @r{[}(interactive ...)@r{]} @r{]}
717 (let (ad-return-value)
718 @r{before-0-body-form}...
719 ....
e5446586 720 @r{before-@var{n}@minus{}1-body-form}...
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721 @r{around-0-body-form}...
722 @r{around-1-body-form}...
723 ....
e5446586 724 @r{around-@var{m}@minus{}1-body-form}...
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725 (setq ad-return-value
726 @r{apply original definition to @var{arglist}})
e5446586 727 @r{end-of-around-@var{m}@minus{}1-body-form}...
b933f645 728 ....
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729 @r{end-of-around-1-body-form}...
730 @r{end-of-around-0-body-form}...
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731 @r{after-0-body-form}...
732 ....
e5446586 733 @r{after-@var{k}@minus{}1-body-form}...
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734 ad-return-value))
735@end example
736
737Macros are redefined as macros, which means adding @code{macro} to
738the beginning of the combined definition.
739
740The interactive form is present if the original function or some piece
741of advice specifies one. When an interactive primitive function is
59a53efd 742advised, advice uses a special method: it calls the primitive with
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743@code{call-interactively} so that it will read its own arguments.
744In this case, the advice cannot access the arguments.
745
746The body forms of the various advice in each class are assembled
747according to their specified order. The forms of around-advice @var{l}
748are included in one of the forms of around-advice @var{l} @minus{} 1.
749
177c0ea7 750The innermost part of the around advice onion is
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751
752@display
753apply original definition to @var{arglist}
754@end display
755
756@noindent
757whose form depends on the type of the original function. The variable
758@code{ad-return-value} is set to whatever this returns. The variable is
759visible to all pieces of advice, which can access and modify it before
760it is actually returned from the advised function.
761
762The semantic structure of advised functions that contain protected
763pieces of advice is the same. The only difference is that
764@code{unwind-protect} forms ensure that the protected advice gets
765executed even if some previous piece of advice had an error or a
766non-local exit. If any around-advice is protected, then the whole
767around-advice onion is protected as a result.
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768
769@ignore
770 arch-tag: 80c135c2-f1c3-4f8d-aa85-f8d8770d307f
771@end ignore