Method And Systems For Invoking An Advice Operation Associated With A Joinpoint

• US 20090249021A1
• Filed: 03/26/2008
• Published: 10/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2008
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: Scenera Technologies LLC (Scenera Research LLC)
• Original Assignee: Scenera Technologies LLC (Scenera Research LLC)
• Inventors: Morris, Robert P.
• Application Number:
  US12/055,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20090249021A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/316 Aspect-oriented programming techniques

Abstract

Methods and systems are described for invoking an advice operation associated with a joinpoint. In one embodiment, the method includes identifying, based on a pointcut specification included in an aspect specification, a joinpoint in a machine code program component. The joinpoint includes a machine code instruction. The method further includes identifying, based on an advice specification included in the aspect specification, an advice operation included in a machine code program component. The method still further includes detecting an access to the machine code instruction in the joinpoint for execution by a processor. The method also includes invoking the advice operation in association with detecting the access to the machine code instruction.

Claims

1. A method for invoking an advice operation associated with a joinpoint, the method comprising:

identifying, based on a pointcut specification included in an aspect specification, a joinpoint in a machine code program component, the joinpoint including a machine code instruction;

identifying, based on an advice specification included in the aspect specification, an advice operation included in a machine code program component;

detecting an access to the machine code instruction in the joinpoint for execution by a processor; and

invoking the advice operation in association with detecting the access to the machine code instruction.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the pointcut specification conforms to a schema for specifying a pointcut specification for determining a joinpoint included in a machine code program component generated from source code written in any of a plurality of programming languages.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the aspect specification is specified in a first programming language and the machine code program component is generated from source code in a second programming language.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the machine code program component including the joinpoint is generated in a first machine code language for execution on a first processor and a machine code program component including the advice operation is generated in a second machine code language for execution on a second processor.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the aspect specification includes a matching criterion for identifying a joinpoint, the matching criterion based on at least one of an attribute of an addressable entity, an attribute of a relationship between a plurality of addressable entities, and an execution environment attribute.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the joinpoint is identified in a first instance of an addressable entity and wherein the joinpoint is not identified in a second instance of the addressable entity.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising associating aspect information with a processor memory location including the machine code instruction based on the aspect specification.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the processor memory location is identified by a processor virtual memory address included in at least one of a structured processor memory address space, a non-sequential processor memory address space, and a sequential processor memory address space.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein claim 7 wherein a portion of the processor memory including the processor memory location is marked for detecting the access.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the advice specification conforms to a schema for advice specifications for identifying an advice operation included in a machine code program component generated from source code written in any of a plurality of programming languages.

11. A system for invoking an advice operation associated with a joinpoint, the system comprising:

means for identifying, based on a pointcut specification included in an aspect specification, a joinpoint in a machine code program component, the joinpoint including a machine code instruction;

means for identifying, based on an advice specification included in the aspect specification, an advice operation included in a machine code program component;

means for detecting an access to the machine code instruction in the joinpoint for execution by a processor; and

means for invoking the advice operation in association with detecting the access to the machine code instruction.

12. A system for invoking an advice operation associated with a joinpoint, the system comprising:

an aspect binder component configured for identifying, based on a pointcut specification included in an aspect specification, a joinpoint in a machine code program component, the joinpoint including a machine code instruction;

the aspect binder component configured for identifying, based on an advice specification included in the aspect specification, an advice operation included in a machine code program component;

an access detector component configured for detecting an access to the machine code instruction in the joinpoint for execution by a processor, and configured for invoking the advice operation in association with detecting the access to the machine code instruction.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the pointcut specification conforms to a schema for specifying a pointcut specification for determining a joinpoint included in a machine code program component generated from source code written in any of a plurality of programming languages.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein the aspect specification is specified in a first programming language and the machine code program component is generated from source code in a second programming language.

15. The system of claim 12 wherein the machine code program component including the joinpoint is generated in a first machine code language for execution on a first processor and a machine code program component including the advice operation is generated in a second machine code language for execution on a second processor.

16. The system of claim 12 wherein the aspect binder component is configured for identifying a joinpoint based on a matching criterion included in the aspect specification, wherein the matching criterion based on at least one of an attribute of an addressable entity, an attribute of a relationship between a plurality of addressable entities, and an execution environment attribute.

17. The system of claim 12 wherein the aspect binder component is configured for identifying the joinpoint in a first instance of an addressable entity and for not identifying the joinpoint in a second instance of the addressable entity.

18. The system of claim 12 further comprising a memory management system component configured for associating aspect information with a processor memory location including the machine code instruction based on the aspect specification.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the memory management system component component is configured for identifying the processor memory location by a virtual processor memory address included in at least one of a structured processor memory address space, a non-sequential processor memory address space, and a sequential processor memory address space.

20. The system of claim 12 wherein the access detector component is configured for marking a portion of the processor memory including the processor memory location for detecting the access.

21. The system of claim 12 wherein the advice specification conforms to a schema for advice specifications for identifying an advice operation included in a machine code program component generated from source code written in any of a plurality of programming languages.

22. A computer readable medium embodying a computer program, executable by a machine, for invoking an advice operation associated with a joinpoint, the computer program comprising executable instructions for:

identifying, based on a pointcut specification included in an aspect specification, a joinpoint in a machine code program component, the joinpoint including a machine code instruction;

identifying, based on an advice specification included in the aspect specification, an advice operation included in a machine code program component;

detecting an access to the machine code instruction in the joinpoint for execution by a processor; and

invoking the advice operation in association with detecting the access to the machine code instruction.