Summary - Compiler internals
- Dart course
- Expert
- Lesson 12/47
- 5 min
Combine pipeline, AST and Kernel to write a compiler summary.
Summary: Compiler internals
In this group we covered Dart compiler internals: the compilation pipeline runs source through stages, the AST is the semantic tree of the code, Kernel is the platform-independent IR.
Code generation turns Kernel into target code, and dartaotruntime runs AOT-compiled programs. In this summary you will write a class that combines all of these concepts.
Practice Summary: A CompilationStep class
Define a CompilationStep class with final String input; final String output; CompilationStep(this.input, this.output); field and constructor. Add a String describe() => '$input → $output'; method. In main create final s = CompilationStep('AST', 'Kernel');; print with print(s.describe());.
Starter code
void main() {
// define a CompilationStep class (input, output; describe)
// create a CompilationStep; print describe()
}Sample solution
class CompilationStep {
final String input;
final String output;
CompilationStep(this.input, this.output);
String describe() => '$input → $output';
}
void main() {
final s = CompilationStep('AST', 'Kernel');
print(s.describe());
}Expected output
AST → Kernel
Questions and answers
Review the lesson questions together with their answers. To test yourself, solve the lesson interactively.
1 What is one of the core compilation pipeline stages?
- Parsing to AST Correct answer
- Only UI render
- Only garbage collection
- Only package install
Explanation: parsing to AST is a core pipeline stage.
2 Match the compiler parts
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
Pipeline |
Stage flow |
AST |
Semantic tree |
Kernel |
Intermediate |
Backend |
Code generation |
3 A backend name
final backend = '____';
print(backend);final backend = 'dart2js';
print(backend);Explanation: dart2js is the backend that produces JavaScript.