Common Object Structures
************************

There are a large number of structures which are used in the
definition of object types for Python.  This section describes these
structures and how they are used.


Base object types and macros
============================

All Python objects ultimately share a small number of fields at the
beginning of the object’s representation in memory.  These are
represented by the "PyObject" and "PyVarObject" types, which are
defined, in turn, by the expansions of some macros also used, whether
directly or indirectly, in the definition of all other Python objects.

type PyObject
    * Part of the Limited API. (Only some members are part of the
   stable ABI.)*

   All object types are extensions of this type.  This is a type which
   contains the information Python needs to treat a pointer to an
   object as an object.  In a normal “release” build, it contains only
   the object’s reference count and a pointer to the corresponding
   type object. Nothing is actually declared to be a "PyObject", but
   every pointer to a Python object can be cast to a PyObject*.
   Access to the members must be done by using the macros "Py_REFCNT"
   and "Py_TYPE".

type PyVarObject
    * Part of the Limited API. (Only some members are part of the
   stable ABI.)*

   This is an extension of "PyObject" that adds the "ob_size" field.
   This is only used for objects that have some notion of *length*.
   This type does not often appear in the Python/C API. Access to the
   members must be done by using the macros "Py_REFCNT", "Py_TYPE",
   and "Py_SIZE".

PyObject_HEAD

   This is a macro used when declaring new types which represent
   objects without a varying length.  The PyObject_HEAD macro expands
   to:

      PyObject ob_base;

   See documentation of "PyObject" above.

PyObject_VAR_HEAD

   This is a macro used when declaring new types which represent
   objects with a length that varies from instance to instance. The
   PyObject_VAR_HEAD macro expands to:

      PyVarObject ob_base;

   See documentation of "PyVarObject" above.

int Py_Is(PyObject *x, PyObject *y)
    * Part of the Stable ABI since version 3.10.*

   Test if the *x* object is the *y* object, the same as "x is y" in
   Python.

   New in version 3.10.

int Py_IsNone(PyObject *x)
    * Part of the Stable ABI since version 3.10.*

   Test if an object is the "None" singleton, the same as "x is None"
   in Python.

   New in version 3.10.

int Py_IsTrue(PyObject *x)
    * Part of the Stable ABI since version 3.10.*

   Test if an object is the "True" singleton, the same as "x is True"
   in Python.

   New in version 3.10.

int Py_IsFalse(PyObject *x)
    * Part of the Stable ABI since version 3.10.*

   Test if an object is the "False" singleton, the same as "x is
   False" in Python.

   New in version 3.10.

PyTypeObject *Py_TYPE(PyObject *o)

   Get the type of the Python object *o*.

   Return a *borrowed reference*.

   Use the "Py_SET_TYPE()" function to set an object type.

   Changed in version 3.11: "Py_TYPE()" is changed to an inline static
   function. The parameter type is no longer const PyObject*.

int Py_IS_TYPE(PyObject *o, PyTypeObject *type)

   Return non-zero if the object *o* type is *type*. Return zero
   otherwise. Equivalent to: "Py_TYPE(o) == type".

   New in version 3.9.

void Py_SET_TYPE(PyObject *o, PyTypeObject *type)

   Set the object *o* type to *type*.

   New in version 3.9.

Py_ssize_t Py_REFCNT(PyObject *o)

   Get the reference count of the Python object *o*.

   Use the "Py_SET_REFCNT()" function to set an object reference
   count.

   Changed in version 3.11: The parameter type is no longer const
   PyObject*.

   Changed in version 3.10: "Py_REFCNT()" is changed to the inline
   static function.

void Py_SET_REFCNT(PyObject *o, Py_ssize_t refcnt)

   Set the object *o* reference counter to *refcnt*.

   New in version 3.9.

Py_ssize_t Py_SIZE(PyVarObject *o)

   Get the size of the Python object *o*.

   Use the "Py_SET_SIZE()" function to set an object size.

   Changed in version 3.11: "Py_SIZE()" is changed to an inline static
   function. The parameter type is no longer const PyVarObject*.

void Py_SET_SIZE(PyVarObject *o, Py_ssize_t size)

   Set the object *o* size to *size*.

   New in version 3.9.

PyObject_HEAD_INIT(type)

   This is a macro which expands to initialization values for a new
   "PyObject" type.  This macro expands to:

      _PyObject_EXTRA_INIT
      1, type,

PyVarObject_HEAD_INIT(type, size)

   This is a macro which expands to initialization values for a new
   "PyVarObject" type, including the "ob_size" field. This macro
   expands to:

      _PyObject_EXTRA_INIT
      1, type, size,


Implementing functions and methods
==================================

type PyCFunction
    * Part of the Stable ABI.*

   Type of the functions used to implement most Python callables in C.
   Functions of this type take two PyObject* parameters and return one
   such value.  If the return value is "NULL", an exception shall have
   been set.  If not "NULL", the return value is interpreted as the
   return value of the function as exposed in Python.  The function
   must return a new reference.

   The function signature is:

      PyObject *PyCFunction(PyObject *self,
                            PyObject *args);

type PyCFunctionWithKeywords
    * Part of the Stable ABI.*

   Type of the functions used to implement Python callables in C with
   signature "METH_VARARGS | METH_KEYWORDS". The function signature
   is:

      PyObject *PyCFunctionWithKeywords(PyObject *self,
                                        PyObject *args,
                                        PyObject *kwargs);

type _PyCFunctionFast

   Type of the functions used to implement Python callables in C with
   signature "METH_FASTCALL". The function signature is:

      PyObject *_PyCFunctionFast(PyObject *self,
                                 PyObject *const *args,
                                 Py_ssize_t nargs);

type _PyCFunctionFastWithKeywords

   Type of the functions used to implement Python callables in C with
   signature "METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS". The function signature
   is:

      PyObject *_PyCFunctionFastWithKeywords(PyObject *self,
                                             PyObject *const *args,
                                             Py_ssize_t nargs,
                                             PyObject *kwnames);

type PyCMethod

   Type of the functions used to implement Python callables in C with
   signature "METH_METHOD | METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS". The
   function signature is:

      PyObject *PyCMethod(PyObject *self,
                          PyTypeObject *defining_class,
                          PyObject *const *args,
                          Py_ssize_t nargs,
                          PyObject *kwnames)

   New in version 3.9.

type PyMethodDef
    * Part of the Stable ABI (including all members).*

   Structure used to describe a method of an extension type.  This
   structure has four fields:

   const char *ml_name

      name of the method

   PyCFunction ml_meth

      pointer to the C implementation

   int ml_flags

      flags bits indicating how the call should be constructed

   const char *ml_doc

      points to the contents of the docstring

The "ml_meth" is a C function pointer.  The functions may be of
different types, but they always return PyObject*.  If the function is
not of the "PyCFunction", the compiler will require a cast in the
method table. Even though "PyCFunction" defines the first parameter as
PyObject*, it is common that the method implementation uses the
specific C type of the *self* object.

The "ml_flags" field is a bitfield which can include the following
flags. The individual flags indicate either a calling convention or a
binding convention.

There are these calling conventions:

METH_VARARGS

   This is the typical calling convention, where the methods have the
   type "PyCFunction". The function expects two PyObject* values. The
   first one is the *self* object for methods; for module functions,
   it is the module object.  The second parameter (often called
   *args*) is a tuple object representing all arguments. This
   parameter is typically processed using "PyArg_ParseTuple()" or
   "PyArg_UnpackTuple()".

METH_VARARGS | METH_KEYWORDS

   Methods with these flags must be of type "PyCFunctionWithKeywords".
   The function expects three parameters: *self*, *args*, *kwargs*
   where *kwargs* is a dictionary of all the keyword arguments or
   possibly "NULL" if there are no keyword arguments.  The parameters
   are typically processed using "PyArg_ParseTupleAndKeywords()".

METH_FASTCALL

   Fast calling convention supporting only positional arguments. The
   methods have the type "_PyCFunctionFast". The first parameter is
   *self*, the second parameter is a C array of PyObject* values
   indicating the arguments and the third parameter is the number of
   arguments (the length of the array).

   New in version 3.7.

   Changed in version 3.10: "METH_FASTCALL" is now part of the stable
   ABI.

METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS

   Extension of "METH_FASTCALL" supporting also keyword arguments,
   with methods of type "_PyCFunctionFastWithKeywords". Keyword
   arguments are passed the same way as in the vectorcall protocol:
   there is an additional fourth PyObject* parameter which is a tuple
   representing the names of the keyword arguments (which are
   guaranteed to be strings) or possibly "NULL" if there are no
   keywords.  The values of the keyword arguments are stored in the
   *args* array, after the positional arguments.

   New in version 3.7.

METH_METHOD | METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS

   Extension of "METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS" supporting the
   *defining class*, that is, the class that contains the method in
   question. The defining class might be a superclass of
   "Py_TYPE(self)".

   The method needs to be of type "PyCMethod", the same as for
   "METH_FASTCALL | METH_KEYWORDS" with "defining_class" argument
   added after "self".

   New in version 3.9.

METH_NOARGS

   Methods without parameters don’t need to check whether arguments
   are given if they are listed with the "METH_NOARGS" flag.  They
   need to be of type "PyCFunction".  The first parameter is typically
   named *self* and will hold a reference to the module or object
   instance.  In all cases the second parameter will be "NULL".

   The function must have 2 parameters. Since the second parameter is
   unused, "Py_UNUSED" can be used to prevent a compiler warning.

METH_O

   Methods with a single object argument can be listed with the
   "METH_O" flag, instead of invoking "PyArg_ParseTuple()" with a
   ""O"" argument. They have the type "PyCFunction", with the *self*
   parameter, and a PyObject* parameter representing the single
   argument.

These two constants are not used to indicate the calling convention
but the binding when use with methods of classes.  These may not be
used for functions defined for modules.  At most one of these flags
may be set for any given method.

METH_CLASS

   The method will be passed the type object as the first parameter
   rather than an instance of the type.  This is used to create *class
   methods*, similar to what is created when using the "classmethod()"
   built-in function.

METH_STATIC

   The method will be passed "NULL" as the first parameter rather than
   an instance of the type.  This is used to create *static methods*,
   similar to what is created when using the "staticmethod()" built-in
   function.

One other constant controls whether a method is loaded in place of
another definition with the same method name.

METH_COEXIST

   The method will be loaded in place of existing definitions.
   Without *METH_COEXIST*, the default is to skip repeated
   definitions.  Since slot wrappers are loaded before the method
   table, the existence of a *sq_contains* slot, for example, would
   generate a wrapped method named "__contains__()" and preclude the
   loading of a corresponding PyCFunction with the same name.  With
   the flag defined, the PyCFunction will be loaded in place of the
   wrapper object and will co-exist with the slot.  This is helpful
   because calls to PyCFunctions are optimized more than wrapper
   object calls.


Accessing attributes of extension types
=======================================

type PyMemberDef
    * Part of the Stable ABI (including all members).*

   Structure which describes an attribute of a type which corresponds
   to a C struct member.  Its fields are:

   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+
   | Field              | C Type          | Meaning                         |
   |====================|=================|=================================|
   | "name"             | const char *    | name of the member              |
   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+
   | "type"             | int             | the type of the member in the C |
   |                    |                 | struct                          |
   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+
   | "offset"           | Py_ssize_t      | the offset in bytes that the    |
   |                    |                 | member is located on the type’s |
   |                    |                 | object struct                   |
   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+
   | "flags"            | int             | flag bits indicating if the     |
   |                    |                 | field should be read-only or    |
   |                    |                 | writable                        |
   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+
   | "doc"              | const char *    | points to the contents of the   |
   |                    |                 | docstring                       |
   +--------------------+-----------------+---------------------------------+

   "type" can be one of many "T_" macros corresponding to various C
   types.  When the member is accessed in Python, it will be converted
   to the equivalent Python type.

   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | Macro name      | C type             |
   |=================|====================|
   | T_SHORT         | short              |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_INT           | int                |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_LONG          | long               |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_FLOAT         | float              |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_DOUBLE        | double             |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_STRING        | const char *       |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_OBJECT        | PyObject *         |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_OBJECT_EX     | PyObject *         |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_CHAR          | char               |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_BYTE          | char               |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_UBYTE         | unsigned char      |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_UINT          | unsigned int       |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_USHORT        | unsigned short     |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_ULONG         | unsigned long      |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_BOOL          | char               |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_LONGLONG      | long long          |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_ULONGLONG     | unsigned long long |
   +-----------------+--------------------+
   | T_PYSSIZET      | Py_ssize_t         |
   +-----------------+--------------------+

   "T_OBJECT" and "T_OBJECT_EX" differ in that "T_OBJECT" returns
   "None" if the member is "NULL" and "T_OBJECT_EX" raises an
   "AttributeError".  Try to use "T_OBJECT_EX" over "T_OBJECT" because
   "T_OBJECT_EX" handles use of the "del" statement on that attribute
   more correctly than "T_OBJECT".

   "flags" can be "0" for write and read access or "READONLY" for
   read-only access.  Using "T_STRING" for "type" implies "READONLY".
   "T_STRING" data is interpreted as UTF-8. Only "T_OBJECT" and
   "T_OBJECT_EX" members can be deleted.  (They are set to "NULL").

   Heap allocated types (created using "PyType_FromSpec()" or
   similar), "PyMemberDef" may contain definitions for the special
   members "__dictoffset__", "__weaklistoffset__" and
   "__vectorcalloffset__", corresponding to "tp_dictoffset",
   "tp_weaklistoffset" and "tp_vectorcall_offset" in type objects.
   These must be defined with "T_PYSSIZET" and "READONLY", for
   example:

      static PyMemberDef spam_type_members[] = {
          {"__dictoffset__", T_PYSSIZET, offsetof(Spam_object, dict), READONLY},
          {NULL}  /* Sentinel */
      };

PyObject *PyMember_GetOne(const char *obj_addr, struct PyMemberDef *m)

   Get an attribute belonging to the object at address *obj_addr*.
   The attribute is described by "PyMemberDef" *m*.  Returns "NULL" on
   error.

int PyMember_SetOne(char *obj_addr, struct PyMemberDef *m, PyObject *o)

   Set an attribute belonging to the object at address *obj_addr* to
   object *o*. The attribute to set is described by "PyMemberDef" *m*.
   Returns "0" if successful and a negative value on failure.

type PyGetSetDef
    * Part of the Stable ABI (including all members).*

   Structure to define property-like access for a type. See also
   description of the "PyTypeObject.tp_getset" slot.

   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+
   | Field         | C Type             | Meaning                             |
   |===============|====================|=====================================|
   | name          | const char *       | attribute name                      |
   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+
   | get           | getter             | C function to get the attribute     |
   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+
   | set           | setter             | optional C function to set or       |
   |               |                    | delete the attribute, if omitted    |
   |               |                    | the attribute is readonly           |
   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+
   | doc           | const char *       | optional docstring                  |
   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+
   | closure       | void *             | optional function pointer,          |
   |               |                    | providing additional data for       |
   |               |                    | getter and setter                   |
   +---------------+--------------------+-------------------------------------+

   The "get" function takes one PyObject* parameter (the instance) and
   a function pointer (the associated "closure"):

      typedef PyObject *(*getter)(PyObject *, void *);

   It should return a new reference on success or "NULL" with a set
   exception on failure.

   "set" functions take two PyObject* parameters (the instance and the
   value to be set) and a function pointer (the associated "closure"):

      typedef int (*setter)(PyObject *, PyObject *, void *);

   In case the attribute should be deleted the second parameter is
   "NULL". Should return "0" on success or "-1" with a set exception
   on failure.
