bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Michael Heerdegen]

Hello,

this kind of issue has been seen and was discussed (without a solution)
already some time ago.  Now I see an incarnation of it using the
emacs-24 branch.

I did the following (using my setup, but that probably doesn't matter):
I had a living process started from Emacs, and I hit C-x C-c.  I get his
error:

Debugger entered--Lisp error: (invalid-function with-current-buffer-window)
  with-current-buffer-window(#<buffer *Process List*> nil [lotsa byte code] nil)
  save-buffers-kill-emacs(nil)
  save-buffers-kill-terminal(nil)
  call-interactively(save-buffers-kill-terminal nil nil)
  command-execute(save-buffers-kill-terminal)

(I have removed the actual byte code).

`with-current-buffer-window' is a macro - which was defined in this
moment, of course.  When I load the source file of
save-buffers-kill-emacs, files.el, the problem is immediately fixed.
When I load the compiled files.elc again, it is there again.

What other users already had experienced was something similar: they got
an error like

    Invalid function: some-macro

where `some-macro' was a defined and well working macro.

I have an idea of what causes this: when you compile some file using a
certain macro that is not (yet) defined, and you load the resulting byte
code, and define the macro just after that, you get the same error
message.  For example, load the byte compiled code of this test file:

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
(defun test (x)
  (unknown-macro (+ x 1)))

'(defmacro unknown-macro (&rest body) `(progn ,@body))
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

Now evaluate the defmacro form, and try M-: (test 1).  You get

    test: Invalid function: unknown-macro

If you eval the defun (uncompiled), the error doesn't happen.

(disassemble 'save-buffers-kill-emacs) looks here like this:

...
65	constant  with-current-buffer-window
66	constant  get-buffer-create
67	constant  "*Process List*"
68	call	  1
...

so `with-current-buffer-window' at least was not expanded while byte
compiling the source file while building.

So I think there are two problems here:

1.  While building, the compilation of file.el has to cope with an
undefined macro, which is not good (i.e., a dependency problem).

2.  Compiled code using not yet defined macros doesn't behave "as
expected".


Thanks,

Michael




In GNU Emacs 24.3.50.1 (x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu, GTK+ Version 3.10.7)
 of 2014-03-25 on drachen
Windowing system distributor `The X.Org Foundation', version 11.0.11500000
System Description:	Debian GNU/Linux testing (jessie)

Important settings:
  value of $LC_ALL: de_DE.utf8
  value of $LC_COLLATE: C
  value of $LC_TIME: C
  value of $LANG: de_DE.utf8
  locale-coding-system: utf-8-unix

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Stefan Monnier]

> --8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
> (defun test (x)
>   (unknown-macro (+ x 1)))

> (defmacro unknown-macro (&rest body) `(progn ,@body))
> --8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

Right, such code is incorrect and we do not intend to support it.


        Stefan

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Glenn Morris]

Michael Heerdegen wrote:

> (disassemble 'save-buffers-kill-emacs) looks here like this:
>
> ...
> 65	constant  with-current-buffer-window
> 66	constant  get-buffer-create
> 67	constant  "*Process List*"
> 68	call	  1
> ...
>
> so `with-current-buffer-window' at least was not expanded while byte
> compiling the source file while building.

Then perhaps your build is broken. I have no idea how such a thing is
possible, since loadup.el loads "window" before it loads "files".

> 1.  While building, the compilation of file.el has to cope with an
> undefined macro, which is not good (i.e., a dependency problem).

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Stefan Monnier]

> Then perhaps your build is broken. I have no idea how such a thing is
> possible, since loadup.el loads "window" before it loads "files".

You'll get that if you compile files.el with an Emacs that dates back to
before that macro was added to window.el.

E.g.

   bzr update -r <older>
   make
   bzr update
   rm lisp/files.elc
   make

could get you there.  "make bootstrap" should fix it for you, tho.


        Stefan

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Michael Heerdegen]

Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> writes:

> > --8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
> > (defun test (x)
> >   (unknown-macro (+ x 1)))
>
> > (defmacro unknown-macro (&rest body) `(progn ,@body))
> > --8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---
>
> Right, such code is incorrect and we do not intend to support it.

Ok, that makes sense.  And the "invalid function" error is a good pointer to
dependency problems anyway.

Michael.

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Glenn Morris]

So, no bug here then.

bug#17123: 24.3.50; C-x C-c -> Invalid function: with-current-buffer-window

[Michael Heerdegen]

Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> writes:

> You'll get that if you compile files.el with an Emacs that dates back to
> before that macro was added to window.el.
>
> E.g.
>
>    bzr update -r <older>
>    make
>    bzr update
>    rm lisp/files.elc
>    make
>
> could get you there.  "make bootstrap" should fix it for you, tho.

You are perfectly right!  To test the emacs-24 branch, I had removed all
untracked files, but didn't "make bootstrap".  And of course after
rebuilding orderly, the error was gone.  So, sorry for the noise, and
thanks for clarifying!  Please close.


Many thanks,

Michael.