Ch 4. Memory Management

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Ch 4. Memory Management

• Timothy Budd
• Oregon State University

2
Memory Management

• Java background memory management
• Advantage allowing programmer to concentrate on
  more application specific details
• Disadvantage programmer has little control over
  how memory management is performed.
• C explicit memory management
• Advantagepermitting much more efficient use of
  memory
• Can bloat a program at run-time, or make a
  program very inefficient

3
Common Errors in C

• Using a value before it has been initialized.
• Allocating memory for a value, then not deleting
  it once it is no longer being used.
• Using a value after it has been freed.

4
Memory Model

• C model is much closer to the actual machine
  representation than is Java memory model.
• Permits an efficient implementation at the
  expense of needing increased diligence on the
  part of the programmer.
• Stack-resident - created automatically when a
  procedure is entered or exited.
• Heap-resident - must be explicitly created using
  the new operator.

5
Stack Resident Memory Values

• C
• Both the stack and the heap are internal data
  structures managed by a run-time system.
• Values on a stack are strongly tied to procedure
  entry and exit.
• When a procedure begins execution, a new section
  of the stack is created.
• Java
• only primitive values are truly stack resident.
• objects and arrays are always allocated on the
  heap.

6
Program Example test()

• void test () // Java
• int i
• int a new int 10
• anObject ao new anObject()
• ..

• void test () // C
• int i,
• int a 10
• anOb j e ct ao
• ..

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Drawbacks Using Stack

• Lifetime of stack resident memory values is tied
  to procedure entry exit. Stack resident values
  cease to exist when a procedure returns. An
  attempt to use resident value after deletion will
  typically result in error.
• Size of stack resident memory values must be
  known at compile time, which is when the
  structure of the activation record is laid out.

8
Lifetime Errors

• Once a procedure returns from execution, any
  stack resident values are deleted no longer
  accessible.
• A reference to such a value will no longer be
  valid, although it may for a time appear to work.

9
Program Example readALine()

• Char readALine ()
• char buffer1000 // declare a buffer for
  the line gets(buffer)
• gets(buffer) // read the line
  return buffer
• return buffer // return text of
  line
•  
• String readALine (BufferedInput inp) throws
  IOException
• // create a buffer for the line
• String line inp.readLine()
• return line
•  
• char lineBuffer // global declaration of
  pointer to buffer
• void readALine ()
•  
• char buffertOOO // declare a
  buffer for the line

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Size Errors - Slicing Problem

• Most severe restrictions of stack-based memory
  management positions of values within the
  activation record are determined at compile time.
  
• For primitive values pointers this is a small
  concern.
• For arrays the array bound must be known at
  compile time.
• For objects a limitation on the degree to which
  values can be polymorphic.

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Array Allocations

• Stack resident arrays must have a size that is
  known at compile time.
• Often programmers avoid this problem by
  allocating an array with a size that is purposely
  too large.  
• Rule Never assume that just because an array is
  big, it will always be big enough

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Program Example

• char buffer200 // making array global
  avoids deletion error
• char readALine ()
• gets(buffer) // read the line
• return buffer
•  
• char buffer
• int newSize // newSize is given some value
• . buffer new ChartnewSize // create an
  array of the given size
• .
• delete buffer // delete buffier when no
  longer Being used

• class A
• public
• // constructor
• A () dataOne(2)
• // identification method
• virtual void whoAmI () printf("class A")
• private
• int dataOne
• class B public A
• public
• // constructor
• B () dataTwo(4)
•  
• // identification method
• virtual void whoAmI () printf("class B")
• private

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Slicing Problem

• Java polymorphic - a variable declared as
  maintaining a value of one class can be holding a
  value derived from a child class.
• In both Java and C, it is legal to assign a
  value derived from class B to a variable declared
  as holding an instance of class A.
• A instanceOfA // declare instances of
• B instanceOfB // class A and B
• instanceOfA instanceOfB 
• instaceOfA.whoAmI()

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Slicing Problem

• Rule Static variables are never polymorphic.
• Note carefully that slicing does not occur with
  references or with pointers
• A referenceToA instanceOfB
• referenceToA.whoAmI() // will print
  class B
•   B pointerToB new B()
• A pointerToA pointerToB()
• pointerToA -gt whoAmI() // will print
  class B 
• Slicing only occurs with objects that are stack
  resident C programs make the majority of
  their objects heap resident.

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Heap Resident Memory Values

• Heap resident values are created using the new
  operator.
• Memory for such values resides on the heap, or
  free store, which is a separate part of memory
  from the stack.
• Typically accessed through a pointer, which will
  often reside on the stack.
• Java hides the use of this pointer value, dont
  need be concerned with it.
• In C, pointer declaration is explicitly stated.

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Heap Resident Memory Values

• void test () // Java
• A anA new A ( )
• .
•  
• void test () // C
• A anA new A // note pointer
  declaration
• if (anA 0) ... // handle no
  memory situation
• delete anA

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Recovery of Heap Based Memory

• Java incorporates garbage collection into its
  run-time library the garbage collection system
  monitors the use of dynamically allocated
  variables, and will automatically recover and
  reuse memory that is no longer being accessed.
• In C, leaves this task to the programmer
  dynamically allocated memory must be handed back
  to the heap manager using the delete operator.
  The deletion is performed by simply naming the
  pointer variable.

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Common Error in C

• Forgetting to allocate a heap-resident value, and
  using a pointer as if it were referencing a
  legitimate value.
• Forgetting to hand unused memory back to the heap
  manager.
• Attempting to use memory values after they have
  been handed back to the heap manager.
• Invoking the delete statement on the same value
  more than once, thereby passing the same memory
  value back to the heap manager.

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Match memory allocations and deletions

• Null pointer exception.
• Memory leak an allocation of memory that is
  never recovered - cause the memory requirements
  for the program to increase over time. Eventually
  the heap manager will be unable to service a
  request for further memory, and the program will
  halt.
• Result of an over-zealous attempt to avoid the
  second error.
• Inconsistent state by the heap manager.
• Rule Always match memory allocations and
  deletions

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Simple Techniques to manage heap

• Hide the allocation and release of dynamic memory
  values inside an object.
• Maintaining a reference count that indicates the
  number of pointers to the value. When this count
  is decremented to zero, the value can be
  recovered.

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Encapsulating Memory Management

• String literals in C are very low level
  abstractions.
• A string literal in C is treated as an array of
  character values, and the only permitted
  operations are those common to all arrays.
• The String data type in Java is designed to
  provide a higher level of abstraction.
• A version of this data structure is provided in
  the new Standard Template Library.

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Program Example resize()

• void Stringresize(int size)
• if (buffer O) // no previous allocation
  
• buffer new char1 size
• else if (size gt strlen(buffer))
•   class String
• Public
• String () buffer(0) // constructors
• String (const char right) buffer(0)
• resize(strlen(right)) strcpy(buffer, right)
• String (const String right) buffer(0)
• resize(strlen(right.buffer)) strcpy(buffer,
  right.buffer)

• String () delete buffer // destructor 
• void operator (const String right) //
  assignment
• resize(strlen(right.buffer))
  strcpy(buffer, right.buffer)
• private
• void resize (int size)
• char buffer
• delete buffer // recover old value
• buffer new char1 size

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Destructor in C

• Destructor a preocedure that performs whatever
  housekeeping is necessary before a variable is
  deleted.
• Destructor class is a non-argument procedure with
  a name formed by prepending a tilde before the
  class name.
• Can match all allocations and deletes, ensuring
  no memory leaks will occur.
• delete operator is the function used to actually
  return memory to the heap manger

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finalize in Java

• A finalize method invoked when the value holding
  the method is about to be recovered by the
  garbage collector.
• Cannot make assumptions concerning behavior based
  on the execution of code in a finalize method.

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Execution Tracer

• The class Trace takes as argument a string value.
  The constructor prints a message using the
  strings and the destructor prints a different
  message using the same string
• To trace the flow of function invocations, the
  programmer simply creates a declaration for a
  dummy variable of type Trace in each procedure to
  be traced

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Program Example class Trace

• class Trace
• public
• Trace (string) // constructor and destructor
• trace ()
• private
• string name
• Trace Trace (string t) name(t)
• cout ltlt "Entering " ltlt name ltlt end1
• Trace Trace ()
• count ltlt Exiting ltlt name ltlt end1

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Program Example procedures

• void procedureOne ()
• Trace dummy("Procedure One")
• .
• procedureTwo() // proc one invokes
  proc two
•  
• void procedureTwo ()
• Trace dummy("Procedure Two")
• .
• If (x lt 5)
• Trace dumTrue("x test is true")
• ..
• else
• Trace dumFalse("x test is false")
• ..
• ..

28
Auto_ptr Class

• There is an object that must dynamically allocate
  another memory value in order to perform its
  intended task
• But the lifetime of the dynamic value is tied to
  the lifetime of the original object it exists as
  long as the original objects exists, and should
  be eliminated when the original object ceases to
  exist.
• To simplify the management of memory, the
  standard library implements a useful type named
  auto_ptr.

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Reference Count

• Reference Count the count of the number of
  pointers to a dynamically allocated object.
• Ensure the count is accurate whenever a new
  pointer is added the count is incremented, and
  whenever a pointer is removed the count is
  decremented.

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Reference Count (Table)