jdk.dynalink.linker (Java SE 10 & JDK 10 )
Keywords: jdk.dynalink.linker package

Module jdk.dynalink

# Package jdk.dynalink.linker

Contains interfaces and classes needed by language runtimes to implement their own language-specific object models and type conversions. The main entry point is the `GuardingDynamicLinker` interface. It needs to be implemented in order to provide linking for the runtime's own object model. A language runtime can have more than one guarding dynamic linker implementation. When a runtime is configuring Dynalink for itself, it will normally set these guarding linkers as the prioritized linkers in its `DynamicLinkerFactory` (and maybe some of them as fallback linkers, for e.g. handling "method not found" and similar errors in a language-specific manner if no other linker managed to handle the operation.)

A language runtime that wishes to make at least some of its linkers available to other language runtimes for interoperability will need to use a `GuardingDynamicLinkerExporter`.

Most language runtimes will be able to implement their own linking logic by implementing `TypeBasedGuardingDynamicLinker` instead of `GuardingDynamicLinker`; it allows for faster type-based linking dispatch.

Language runtimes that allow type conversions other than those provided by Java will need to have their guarding dynamic linker (or linkers) also implement the `GuardingTypeConverterFactory` interface to provide the logic for these conversions.

Since:
  9

- Interface Summary
  Interface | Description
  --- | ---
  ConversionComparator | Optional interface to be implemented by `GuardingTypeConverterFactory` implementers.
  GuardedInvocationTransformer | Interface for objects that are used to transform one guarded invocation into another one.
  GuardingDynamicLinker | The base interface for language-specific dynamic linkers.
  GuardingTypeConverterFactory | Optional interface that can be implemented by `GuardingDynamicLinker` implementations to provide language-specific type conversion capabilities.
  LinkerServices | Interface for services provided to `GuardingDynamicLinker` instances by the `DynamicLinker` that owns them.
  LinkRequest | Represents a request to link a particular invocation at a particular call site.
  MethodHandleTransformer | A generic interface describing operations that transform method handles.
  MethodTypeConversionStrategy | Interface for objects representing a strategy for converting a method handle to a new type.
  TypeBasedGuardingDynamicLinker | A guarding dynamic linker that can determine whether it can link the call site solely based on the type of the first argument at linking invocation time.

- Class Summary
  Class | Description
  --- | ---
  GuardedInvocation | Represents a conditionally valid method handle.
  GuardingDynamicLinkerExporter | A class acting as a supplier of guarding dynamic linkers that can be automatically loaded by other language runtimes.

- Enum Summary
  Enum | Description
  --- | ---
  ConversionComparator.Comparison | Enumeration of possible outcomes of comparing one conversion to another.