pcre2/doc/pcre2test.1

.TH PCRE2TEST 1 "13 April 2015" "PCRE 10.20"
.SH NAME
pcre2test - a program for testing Perl-compatible regular expressions.
.SH SYNOPSIS
.rs
.sp
.B pcre2test "[options] [input file [output file]]"
.sp
\fBpcre2test\fP is a test program for the PCRE2 regular expression libraries,
but it can also be used for experimenting with regular expressions. This
document describes the features of the test program; for details of the regular
expressions themselves, see the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2pattern\fP
.\"
documentation. For details of the PCRE2 library function calls and their
options, see the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2api\fP
.\"
documentation.
.P
The input for \fBpcre2test\fP is a sequence of regular expression patterns and
subject strings to be matched. There are also command lines for setting
defaults and controlling some special actions. The output shows the result of
each match attempt. Modifiers on external or internal command lines, the
patterns, and the subject lines specify PCRE2 function options, control how the
subject is processed, and what output is produced.
.P
As the original fairly simple PCRE library evolved, it acquired many different
features, and as a result, the original \fBpcretest\fP program ended up with a
lot of options in a messy, arcane syntax, for testing all the features. The
move to the new PCRE2 API provided an opportunity to re-implement the test
program as \fBpcre2test\fP, with a cleaner modifier syntax. Nevertheless, there
are still many obscure modifiers, some of which are specifically designed for
use in conjunction with the test script and data files that are distributed as
part of PCRE2. All the modifiers are documented here, some without much
justification, but many of them are unlikely to be of use except when testing
the libraries.
.
.
.SH "PCRE2's 8-BIT, 16-BIT AND 32-BIT LIBRARIES"
.rs
.sp
Different versions of the PCRE2 library can be built to support character
strings that are encoded in 8-bit, 16-bit, or 32-bit code units. One, two, or
all three of these libraries may be simultaneously installed. The
\fBpcre2test\fP program can be used to test all the libraries. However, its own
input and output are always in 8-bit format. When testing the 16-bit or 32-bit
libraries, patterns and subject strings are converted to 16- or 32-bit format
before being passed to the library functions. Results are converted back to
8-bit code units for output.
.P
In the rest of this document, the names of library functions and structures
are given in generic form, for example, \fBpcre_compile()\fP. The actual
names used in the libraries have a suffix _8, _16, or _32, as appropriate.
.
.
.SH "INPUT ENCODING"
.rs
.sp
Input to \fBpcre2test\fP is processed line by line, either by calling the C
library's \fBfgets()\fP function, or via the \fBlibreadline\fP library (see
below). The input is processed using using C's string functions, so must not
contain binary zeroes, even though in Unix-like environments, \fBfgets()\fP
treats any bytes other than newline as data characters. In some Windows
environments character 26 (hex 1A) causes an immediate end of file, and no
further data is read. 
.P
For maximum portability, therefore, it is safest to avoid non-printing
characters in \fBpcre2test\fP input files. There is a facility for specifying a
pattern's characters as hexadecimal pairs, thus making it possible to include
binary zeroes in a pattern for testing purposes. Subject lines are processed
for backslash escapes, which makes it possible to include any data value.
.
.
.SH "COMMAND LINE OPTIONS"
.rs
.TP 10
\fB-8\fP
If the 8-bit library has been built, this option causes it to be used (this is
the default). If the 8-bit library has not been built, this option causes an
error.
.TP 10
\fB-16\fP
If the 16-bit library has been built, this option causes it to be used. If only
the 16-bit library has been built, this is the default. If the 16-bit library
has not been built, this option causes an error.
.TP 10
\fB-32\fP
If the 32-bit library has been built, this option causes it to be used. If only
the 32-bit library has been built, this is the default. If the 32-bit library
has not been built, this option causes an error.
.TP 10
\fB-b\fP
Behave as if each pattern has the \fB/fullbincode\fP modifier; the full
internal binary form of the pattern is output after compilation.
.TP 10
\fB-C\fP
Output the version number of the PCRE2 library, and all available information
about the optional features that are included, and then exit with zero exit
code. All other options are ignored.
.TP 10
\fB-C\fP \fIoption\fP
Output information about a specific build-time option, then exit. This
functionality is intended for use in scripts such as \fBRunTest\fP. The
following options output the value and set the exit code as indicated:
.sp
  ebcdic-nl  the code for LF (= NL) in an EBCDIC environment:
               0x15 or 0x25
               0 if used in an ASCII environment
               exit code is always 0
  linksize   the configured internal link size (2, 3, or 4)
               exit code is set to the link size
  newline    the default newline setting:
               CR, LF, CRLF, ANYCRLF, or ANY
               exit code is always 0
  bsr        the default setting for what \eR matches:
               ANYCRLF or ANY
               exit code is always 0
.sp
The following options output 1 for true or 0 for false, and set the exit code
to the same value:
.sp
  ebcdic     compiled for an EBCDIC environment
  jit        just-in-time support is available
  pcre2-16   the 16-bit library was built
  pcre2-32   the 32-bit library was built
  pcre2-8    the 8-bit library was built
  unicode    Unicode support is available
.sp
If an unknown option is given, an error message is output; the exit code is 0.
.TP 10
\fB-d\fP
Behave as if each pattern has the \fBdebug\fP modifier; the internal
form and information about the compiled pattern is output after compilation;
\fB-d\fP is equivalent to \fB-b -i\fP.
.TP 10
\fB-dfa\fP
Behave as if each subject line has the \fBdfa\fP modifier; matching is done
using the \fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP function instead of the default
\fBpcre2_match()\fP.
.TP 10
\fB-help\fP
Output a brief summary these options and then exit.
.TP 10
\fB-i\fP
Behave as if each pattern has the \fB/info\fP modifier; information about the
compiled pattern is given after compilation.
.TP 10
\fB-jit\fP
Behave as if each pattern line has the \fBjit\fP modifier; after successful
compilation, each pattern is passed to the just-in-time compiler, if available.
.TP 10
\fB-pattern\fB \fImodifier-list\fP
Behave as if each pattern line contains the given modifiers.
.TP 10
\fB-q\fP
Do not output the version number of \fBpcre2test\fP at the start of execution.
.TP 10
\fB-S\fP \fIsize\fP
On Unix-like systems, set the size of the run-time stack to \fIsize\fP
megabytes.
.TP 10
\fB-subject\fP \fImodifier-list\fP
Behave as if each subject line contains the given modifiers.
.TP 10
\fB-t\fP
Run each compile and match many times with a timer, and output the resulting
times per compile or match. When JIT is used, separate times are given for the
initial compile and the JIT compile. You can control the number of iterations
that are used for timing by following \fB-t\fP with a number (as a separate
item on the command line). For example, "-t 1000" iterates 1000 times. The
default is to iterate 500,000 times.
.TP 10
\fB-tm\fP
This is like \fB-t\fP except that it times only the matching phase, not the
compile phase.
.TP 10
\fB-T\fP \fB-TM\fP
These behave like \fB-t\fP and \fB-tm\fP, but in addition, at the end of a run,
the total times for all compiles and matches are output.
.TP 10
\fB-version\fP
Output the PCRE2 version number and then exit.
.
.
.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.rs
.sp
If \fBpcre2test\fP is given two filename arguments, it reads from the first and
writes to the second. If the first name is "-", input is taken from the
standard input. If \fBpcre2test\fP is given only one argument, it reads from
that file and writes to stdout. Otherwise, it reads from stdin and writes to
stdout.
.P
When \fBpcre2test\fP is built, a configuration option can specify that it
should be linked with the \fBlibreadline\fP or \fBlibedit\fP library. When this
is done, if the input is from a terminal, it is read using the \fBreadline()\fP
function. This provides line-editing and history facilities. The output from
the \fB-help\fP option states whether or not \fBreadline()\fP will be used.
.P
The program handles any number of tests, each of which consists of a set of
input lines. Each set starts with a regular expression pattern, followed by any
number of subject lines to be matched against that pattern. In between sets of
test data, command lines that begin with # may appear. This file format, with
some restrictions, can also be processed by the \fBperltest.sh\fP script that
is distributed with PCRE2 as a means of checking that the behaviour of PCRE2
and Perl is the same.
.P
When the input is a terminal, \fBpcre2test\fP prompts for each line of input,
using "re>" to prompt for regular expression patterns, and "data>" to prompt
for subject lines. Command lines starting with # can be entered only in
response to the "re>" prompt.
.P
Each subject line is matched separately and independently. If you want to do
multi-line matches, you have to use the \en escape sequence (or \er or \er\en,
etc., depending on the newline setting) in a single line of input to encode the
newline sequences. There is no limit on the length of subject lines; the input
buffer is automatically extended if it is too small. There is a replication
feature that makes it possible to generate long subject lines without having to
supply them explicitly.
.P
An empty line or the end of the file signals the end of the subject lines for a
test, at which point a new pattern or command line is expected if there is
still input to be read.
.
.
.SH "COMMAND LINES"
.rs
.sp
In between sets of test data, a line that begins with # is interpreted as a
command line. If the first character is followed by white space or an
exclamation mark, the line is treated as a comment, and ignored. Otherwise, the
following commands are recognized:
.sp
  #forbid_utf
.sp
Subsequent patterns automatically have the PCRE2_NEVER_UTF and PCRE2_NEVER_UCP
options set, which locks out the use of UTF and Unicode property features. This
is a trigger guard that is used in test files to ensure that UTF or Unicode
property tests are not accidentally added to files that are used when Unicode
support is not included in the library. This effect can also be obtained by the
use of \fB#pattern\fP; the difference is that \fB#forbid_utf\fP cannot be
unset, and the automatic options are not displayed in pattern information, to
avoid cluttering up test output.
.sp
  #load <filename>
.sp
This command is used to load a set of precompiled patterns from a file, as
described in the section entitled "Saving and restoring compiled patterns"
.\" HTML <a href="#saverestore">
.\" </a>
below.
.\"
.sp
  #pattern <modifier-list>
.sp
This command sets a default modifier list that applies to all subsequent
patterns. Modifiers on a pattern can change these settings.
.sp
  #perltest
.sp
The appearance of this line causes all subsequent modifier settings to be
checked for compatibility with the \fBperltest.sh\fP script, which is used to
confirm that Perl gives the same results as PCRE2. Also, apart from comment
lines, none of the other command lines are permitted, because they and many
of the modifiers are specific to \fBpcre2test\fP, and should not be used in
test files that are also processed by \fBperltest.sh\fP. The \fB#perltest\fP
command helps detect tests that are accidentally put in the wrong file.
.sp
  #pop [<modifiers>]
.sp
This command is used to manipulate the stack of compiled patterns, as described
in the section entitled "Saving and restoring compiled patterns"
.\" HTML <a href="#saverestore">
.\" </a>
below.
.\"
.sp
  #save <filename>
.sp
This command is used to save a set of compiled patterns to a file, as described
in the section entitled "Saving and restoring compiled patterns"
.\" HTML <a href="#saverestore">
.\" </a>
below.
.\"
.sp
  #subject <modifier-list>
.sp
This command sets a default modifier list that applies to all subsequent
subject lines. Modifiers on a subject line can change these settings.
.
.
.SH "MODIFIER SYNTAX"
.rs
.sp
Modifier lists are used with both pattern and subject lines. Items in a list
are separated by commas and optional white space. Some modifiers may be given
for both patterns and subject lines, whereas others are valid for one or the
other only. Each modifier has a long name, for example "anchored", and some of
them must be followed by an equals sign and a value, for example, "offset=12".
Modifiers that do not take values may be preceded by a minus sign to turn off a
previous setting.
.P
A few of the more common modifiers can also be specified as single letters, for
example "i" for "caseless". In documentation, following the Perl convention,
these are written with a slash ("the /i modifier") for clarity. Abbreviated
modifiers must all be concatenated in the first item of a modifier list. If the
first item is not recognized as a long modifier name, it is interpreted as a
sequence of these abbreviations. For example:
.sp
  /abc/ig,newline=cr,jit=3
.sp
This is a pattern line whose modifier list starts with two one-letter modifiers
(/i and /g). The lower-case abbreviated modifiers are the same as used in Perl.
.
.
.SH "PATTERN SYNTAX"
.rs
.sp
A pattern line must start with one of the following characters (common symbols,
excluding pattern meta-characters):
.sp
  / ! " ' ` - = _ : ; , % & @ ~
.sp
This is interpreted as the pattern's delimiter. A regular expression may be
continued over several input lines, in which case the newline characters are
included within it. It is possible to include the delimiter within the pattern
by escaping it with a backslash, for example
.sp
  /abc\e/def/
.sp
If you do this, the escape and the delimiter form part of the pattern, but
since the delimiters are all non-alphanumeric, this does not affect its
interpretation. If the terminating delimiter is immediately followed by a
backslash, for example,
.sp
  /abc/\e
.sp
then a backslash is added to the end of the pattern. This is done to provide a
way of testing the error condition that arises if a pattern finishes with a
backslash, because
.sp
  /abc\e/
.sp
is interpreted as the first line of a pattern that starts with "abc/", causing
pcre2test to read the next line as a continuation of the regular expression.
.P
A pattern can be followed by a modifier list (details below).
.
.
.SH "SUBJECT LINE SYNTAX"
.rs
.sp
Before each subject line is passed to \fBpcre2_match()\fP or
\fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP, leading and trailing white space is removed, and the
line is scanned for backslash escapes. The following provide a means of
encoding non-printing characters in a visible way:
.sp
  \ea         alarm (BEL, \ex07)
  \eb         backspace (\ex08)
  \ee         escape (\ex27)
  \ef         form feed (\ex0c)
  \en         newline (\ex0a)
  \er         carriage return (\ex0d)
  \et         tab (\ex09)
  \ev         vertical tab (\ex0b)
  \ennn       octal character (up to 3 octal digits); always
               a byte unless > 255 in UTF-8 or 16-bit or 32-bit mode
  \eo{dd...}  octal character (any number of octal digits}
  \exhh       hexadecimal byte (up to 2 hex digits)
  \ex{hh...}  hexadecimal character (any number of hex digits)
.sp
The use of \ex{hh...} is not dependent on the use of the \fButf\fP modifier on
the pattern. It is recognized always. There may be any number of hexadecimal
digits inside the braces; invalid values provoke error messages.
.P
Note that \exhh specifies one byte rather than one character in UTF-8 mode;
this makes it possible to construct invalid UTF-8 sequences for testing
purposes. On the other hand, \ex{hh} is interpreted as a UTF-8 character in
UTF-8 mode, generating more than one byte if the value is greater than 127.
When testing the 8-bit library not in UTF-8 mode, \ex{hh} generates one byte
for values less than 256, and causes an error for greater values.
.P
In UTF-16 mode, all 4-digit \ex{hhhh} values are accepted. This makes it
possible to construct invalid UTF-16 sequences for testing purposes.
.P
In UTF-32 mode, all 4- to 8-digit \ex{...} values are accepted. This makes it
possible to construct invalid UTF-32 sequences for testing purposes.
.P
There is a special backslash sequence that specifies replication of one or more
characters:
.sp
  \e[<characters>]{<count>}
.sp
This makes it possible to test long strings without having to provide them as
part of the file. For example:
.sp
  \e[abc]{4}
.sp
is converted to "abcabcabcabc". This feature does not support nesting. To
include a closing square bracket in the characters, code it as \ex5D.
.P
A backslash followed by an equals sign marks the end of the subject string and
the start of a modifier list. For example:
.sp
  abc\e=notbol,notempty
.sp
A backslash followed by any other non-alphanumeric character just escapes that
character. A backslash followed by anything else causes an error. However, if
the very last character in the line is a backslash (and there is no modifier
list), it is ignored. This gives a way of passing an empty line as data, since
a real empty line terminates the data input.
.
.
.SH "PATTERN MODIFIERS"
.rs
.sp
There are three types of modifier that can appear in pattern lines, two of
which may also be used in a \fB#pattern\fP command. A pattern's modifier list
can add to or override default modifiers that were set by a previous
\fB#pattern\fP command.
.
.
.\" HTML <a name="optionmodifiers"></a>
.SS "Setting compilation options"
.rs
.sp
The following modifiers set options for \fBpcre2_compile()\fP. The most common
ones have single-letter abbreviations. See
.\" HREF
\fBpcreapi\fP
.\"
for a description of their effects.
.sp
      allow_empty_class         set PCRE2_ALLOW_EMPTY_CLASS
      alt_bsux                  set PCRE2_ALT_BSUX
      anchored                  set PCRE2_ANCHORED
      auto_callout              set PCRE2_AUTO_CALLOUT
  /i  caseless                  set PCRE2_CASELESS
      dollar_endonly            set PCRE2_DOLLAR_ENDONLY
  /s  dotall                    set PCRE2_DOTALL
      dupnames                  set PCRE2_DUPNAMES
  /x  extended                  set PCRE2_EXTENDED
      firstline                 set PCRE2_FIRSTLINE
      match_unset_backref       set PCRE2_MATCH_UNSET_BACKREF
  /m  multiline                 set PCRE2_MULTILINE
      never_backslash_c         set PCRE2_NEVER_BACKSLASH_C 
      never_ucp                 set PCRE2_NEVER_UCP
      never_utf                 set PCRE2_NEVER_UTF
      no_auto_capture           set PCRE2_NO_AUTO_CAPTURE
      no_auto_possess           set PCRE2_NO_AUTO_POSSESS
      no_dotstar_anchor         set PCRE2_NO_DOTSTAR_ANCHOR
      no_start_optimize         set PCRE2_NO_START_OPTIMIZE
      no_utf_check              set PCRE2_NO_UTF_CHECK
      ucp                       set PCRE2_UCP
      ungreedy                  set PCRE2_UNGREEDY
      utf                       set PCRE2_UTF
.sp
As well as turning on the PCRE2_UTF option, the \fButf\fP modifier causes all
non-printing characters in output strings to be printed using the \ex{hh...}
notation. Otherwise, those less than 0x100 are output in hex without the curly
brackets.
.
.
.\" HTML <a name="controlmodifiers"></a>
.SS "Setting compilation controls"
.rs
.sp
The following modifiers affect the compilation process or request information
about the pattern:
.sp
      bsr=[anycrlf|unicode]     specify \eR handling
  /B  bincode                   show binary code without lengths
      callout_info              show callout information 
      debug                     same as info,fullbincode
      fullbincode               show binary code with lengths
  /I  info                      show info about compiled pattern
      hex                       pattern is coded in hexadecimal
      jit[=<number>]            use JIT
      jitfast                   use JIT fast path
      jitverify                 verify JIT use
      locale=<name>             use this locale
      memory                    show memory used
      newline=<type>            set newline type
      parens_nest_limit=<n>     set maximum parentheses depth
      posix                     use the POSIX API
      push                      push compiled pattern onto the stack
      stackguard=<number>       test the stackguard feature
      tables=[0|1|2]            select internal tables
.sp
The effects of these modifiers are described in the following sections.
.
.
.SS "Newline and \eR handling"
.rs
.sp
The \fBbsr\fP modifier specifies what \eR in a pattern should match. If it is
set to "anycrlf", \eR matches CR, LF, or CRLF only. If it is set to "unicode",
\eR matches any Unicode newline sequence. The default is specified when PCRE2
is built, with the default default being Unicode.
.P
The \fBnewline\fP modifier specifies which characters are to be interpreted as
newlines, both in the pattern and in subject lines. The type must be one of CR,
LF, CRLF, ANYCRLF, or ANY (in upper or lower case).
.
.
.SS "Information about a pattern"
.rs
.sp
The \fBdebug\fP modifier is a shorthand for \fBinfo,fullbincode\fP, requesting
all available information.
.P
The \fBbincode\fP modifier causes a representation of the compiled code to be
output after compilation. This information does not contain length and offset
values, which ensures that the same output is generated for different internal
link sizes and different code unit widths. By using \fBbincode\fP, the same
regression tests can be used in different environments.
.P
The \fBfullbincode\fP modifier, by contrast, \fIdoes\fP include length and
offset values. This is used in a few special tests that run only for specific
code unit widths and link sizes, and is also useful for one-off tests.
.P
The \fBinfo\fP modifier requests information about the compiled pattern
(whether it is anchored, has a fixed first character, and so on). The
information is obtained from the \fBpcre2_pattern_info()\fP function. Here are
some typical examples:
.sp
    re> /(?i)(^a|^b)/m,info
  Capturing subpattern count = 1
  Compile options: multiline
  Overall options: caseless multiline
  First code unit at start or follows newline
  Subject length lower bound = 1
.sp
    re> /(?i)abc/info
  Capturing subpattern count = 0
  Compile options: <none>
  Overall options: caseless
  First code unit = 'a' (caseless)
  Last code unit = 'c' (caseless)
  Subject length lower bound = 3
.sp
"Compile options" are those specified by modifiers; "overall options" have
added options that are taken or deduced from the pattern. If both sets of
options are the same, just a single "options" line is output; if there are no
options, the line is omitted. "First code unit" is where any match must start;
if there is more than one they are listed as "starting code units". "Last code
unit" is the last literal code unit that must be present in any match. This is
not necessarily the last character. These lines are omitted if no starting or
ending code units are recorded.
.P
The \fBcallout_info\fP modifier requests information about all the callouts in 
the pattern. A list of them is output at the end of any other information that 
is requested. For each callout, either its number or string is given, followed 
by the item that follows it in the pattern.
.
.
.SS "Specifying a pattern in hex"
.rs
.sp
The \fBhex\fP modifier specifies that the characters of the pattern are to be
interpreted as pairs of hexadecimal digits. White space is permitted between
pairs. For example:
.sp
  /ab 32 59/hex
.sp
This feature is provided as a way of creating patterns that contain binary zero
and other non-printing characters. By default, \fBpcre2test\fP passes patterns
as zero-terminated strings to \fBpcre2_compile()\fP, giving the length as
PCRE2_ZERO_TERMINATED. However, for patterns specified in hexadecimal, the
actual length of the pattern is passed.
.
.
.SS "JIT compilation"
.rs
.sp
The \fB/jit\fP modifier may optionally be followed by an equals sign and a
number in the range 0 to 7:
.sp
  0  disable JIT
  1  use JIT for normal match only
  2  use JIT for soft partial match only
  3  use JIT for normal match and soft partial match
  4  use JIT for hard partial match only
  6  use JIT for soft and hard partial match
  7  all three modes
.sp
If no number is given, 7 is assumed. If JIT compilation is successful, the
compiled JIT code will automatically be used when \fBpcre2_match()\fP is run
for the appropriate type of match, except when incompatible run-time options
are specified. For more details, see the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2jit\fP
.\"
documentation. See also the \fBjitstack\fP modifier below for a way of
setting the size of the JIT stack.
.P
If the \fBjitfast\fP modifier is specified, matching is done using the JIT
"fast path" interface, \fBpcre2_jit_match()\fP, which skips some of the sanity
checks that are done by \fBpcre2_match()\fP, and of course does not work when
JIT is not supported. If \fBjitfast\fP is specified without \fBjit\fP, jit=7 is
assumed.
.P
If the \fBjitverify\fP modifier is specified, information about the compiled
pattern shows whether JIT compilation was or was not successful. If
\fBjitverify\fP is specified without \fBjit\fP, jit=7 is assumed. If JIT
compilation is successful when \fBjitverify\fP is set, the text "(JIT)" is
added to the first output line after a match or non match when JIT-compiled
code was actually used in the match.
.
.
.SS "Setting a locale"
.rs
.sp
The \fB/locale\fP modifier must specify the name of a locale, for example:
.sp
  /pattern/locale=fr_FR
.sp
The given locale is set, \fBpcre2_maketables()\fP is called to build a set of
character tables for the locale, and this is then passed to
\fBpcre2_compile()\fP when compiling the regular expression. The same tables
are used when matching the following subject lines. The \fB/locale\fP modifier
applies only to the pattern on which it appears, but can be given in a
\fB#pattern\fP command if a default is needed. Setting a locale and alternate
character tables are mutually exclusive.
.
.
.SS "Showing pattern memory"
.rs
.sp
The \fB/memory\fP modifier causes the size in bytes of the memory used to hold
the compiled pattern to be output. This does not include the size of the
\fBpcre2_code\fP block; it is just the actual compiled data. If the pattern is
subsequently passed to the JIT compiler, the size of the JIT compiled code is
also output. Here is an example:
.sp
    re> /a(b)c/jit,memory
  Memory allocation (code space): 21
  Memory allocation (JIT code): 1910
.sp
.
.
.SS "Limiting nested parentheses"
.rs
.sp
The \fBparens_nest_limit\fP modifier sets a limit on the depth of nested
parentheses in a pattern. Breaching the limit causes a compilation error.
The default for the library is set when PCRE2 is built, but \fBpcre2test\fP
sets its own default of 220, which is required for running the standard test
suite.
.
.
.SS "Using the POSIX wrapper API"
.rs
.sp
The \fB/posix\fP modifier causes \fBpcre2test\fP to call PCRE2 via the POSIX
wrapper API rather than its native API. This supports only the 8-bit library.
When the POSIX API is being used, the following pattern modifiers set options
for the \fBregcomp()\fP function:
.sp
  caseless           REG_ICASE
  multiline          REG_NEWLINE
  no_auto_capture    REG_NOSUB
  dotall             REG_DOTALL     )
  ungreedy           REG_UNGREEDY   ) These options are not part of
  ucp                REG_UCP        )   the POSIX standard
  utf                REG_UTF8       )
.sp
The \fBaftertext\fP and \fBallaftertext\fP subject modifiers work as described
below. All other modifiers cause an error.
.
.
.SS "Testing the stack guard feature"
.rs
.sp
The \fB/stackguard\fP modifier is used to test the use of
\fBpcre2_set_compile_recursion_guard()\fP, a function that is provided to
enable stack availability to be checked during compilation (see the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2api\fP
.\"
documentation for details). If the number specified by the modifier is greater
than zero, \fBpcre2_set_compile_recursion_guard()\fP is called to set up
callback from \fBpcre2_compile()\fP to a local function. The argument it
receives is the current nesting parenthesis depth; if this is greater than the
value given by the modifier, non-zero is returned, causing the compilation to
be aborted.
.
.
.SS "Using alternative character tables"
.rs
.sp
The value specified for the \fB/tables\fP modifier must be one of the digits 0,
1, or 2. It causes a specific set of built-in character tables to be passed to
\fBpcre2_compile()\fP. This is used in the PCRE2 tests to check behaviour with
different character tables. The digit specifies the tables as follows:
.sp
  0   do not pass any special character tables
  1   the default ASCII tables, as distributed in
        pcre2_chartables.c.dist
  2   a set of tables defining ISO 8859 characters
.sp
In table 2, some characters whose codes are greater than 128 are identified as
letters, digits, spaces, etc. Setting alternate character tables and a locale
are mutually exclusive.
.
.
.SS "Setting certain match controls"
.rs
.sp
The following modifiers are really subject modifiers, and are described below.
However, they may be included in a pattern's modifier list, in which case they
are applied to every subject line that is processed with that pattern. They do
not affect the compilation process.
.sp
      aftertext           show text after match
      allaftertext        show text after captures
      allcaptures         show all captures
      allusedtext         show all consulted text
  /g  global              global matching
      mark                show mark values
      replace=<string>    specify a replacement string
      startchar           show starting character when relevant
.sp
These modifiers may not appear in a \fB#pattern\fP command. If you want them as
defaults, set them in a \fB#subject\fP command.
.
.
.SS "Saving a compiled pattern"
.rs
.sp
When a pattern with the \fBpush\fP modifier is successfully compiled, it is
pushed onto a stack of compiled patterns, and \fBpcre2test\fP expects the next
line to contain a new pattern (or a command) instead of a subject line. This
facility is used when saving compiled patterns to a file, as described in the
section entitled "Saving and restoring compiled patterns"
.\" HTML <a href="#saverestore">
.\" </a>
below.
.\"
The \fBpush\fP modifier is incompatible with compilation modifiers such as
\fBglobal\fP that act at match time. Any that are specified are ignored, with a
warning message, except for \fBreplace\fP, which causes an error. Note that,
\fBjitverify\fP, which is allowed, does not carry through to any subsequent
matching that uses this pattern.
.
.
.SH "SUBJECT MODIFIERS"
.rs
.sp
The modifiers that can appear in subject lines and the \fB#subject\fP
command are of two types.
.
.
.SS "Setting match options"
.rs
.sp
The following modifiers set options for \fBpcre2_match()\fP or
\fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP. See
.\" HREF
\fBpcreapi\fP
.\"
for a description of their effects.
.sp
      anchored                  set PCRE2_ANCHORED
      dfa_restart               set PCRE2_DFA_RESTART
      dfa_shortest              set PCRE2_DFA_SHORTEST
      no_utf_check              set PCRE2_NO_UTF_CHECK
      notbol                    set PCRE2_NOTBOL
      notempty                  set PCRE2_NOTEMPTY
      notempty_atstart          set PCRE2_NOTEMPTY_ATSTART
      noteol                    set PCRE2_NOTEOL
      partial_hard (or ph)      set PCRE2_PARTIAL_HARD
      partial_soft (or ps)      set PCRE2_PARTIAL_SOFT
.sp
The partial matching modifiers are provided with abbreviations because they
appear frequently in tests.
.P
If the \fB/posix\fP modifier was present on the pattern, causing the POSIX
wrapper API to be used, the only option-setting modifiers that have any effect
are \fBnotbol\fP, \fBnotempty\fP, and \fBnoteol\fP, causing REG_NOTBOL,
REG_NOTEMPTY, and REG_NOTEOL, respectively, to be passed to \fBregexec()\fP.
Any other modifiers cause an error.
.
.
.SS "Setting match controls"
.rs
.sp
The following modifiers affect the matching process or request additional
information. Some of them may also be specified on a pattern line (see above),
in which case they apply to every subject line that is matched against that
pattern.
.sp
      aftertext                 show text after match
      allaftertext              show text after captures
      allcaptures               show all captures
      allusedtext               show all consulted text (non-JIT only)
      altglobal                 alternative global matching
      callout_capture           show captures at callout time
      callout_data=<n>          set a value to pass via callouts
      callout_fail=<n>[:<m>]    control callout failure
      callout_none              do not supply a callout function
      copy=<number or name>     copy captured substring
      dfa                       use \fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP
      find_limits               find match and recursion limits
      get=<number or name>      extract captured substring
      getall                    extract all captured substrings
  /g  global                    global matching
      jitstack=<n>              set size of JIT stack
      mark                      show mark values
      match_limit=>n>           set a match limit
      memory                    show memory usage
      offset=<n>                set starting offset
      ovector=<n>               set size of output vector
      recursion_limit=<n>       set a recursion limit
      replace=<string>          specify a replacement string
      startchar                 show startchar when relevant
      zero_terminate            pass the subject as zero-terminated
.sp
The effects of these modifiers are described in the following sections.
.
.
.SS "Showing more text"
.rs
.sp
The \fBaftertext\fP modifier requests that as well as outputting the part of
the subject string that matched the entire pattern, \fBpcre2test\fP should in
addition output the remainder of the subject string. This is useful for tests
where the subject contains multiple copies of the same substring. The
\fBallaftertext\fP modifier requests the same action for captured substrings as
well as the main matched substring. In each case the remainder is output on the
following line with a plus character following the capture number.
.P
The \fBallusedtext\fP modifier requests that all the text that was consulted
during a successful pattern match by the interpreter should be shown. This
feature is not supported for JIT matching, and if requested with JIT it is
ignored (with a warning message). Setting this modifier affects the output if
there is a lookbehind at the start of a match, or a lookahead at the end, or if
\eK is used in the pattern. Characters that precede or follow the start and end
of the actual match are indicated in the output by '<' or '>' characters
underneath them. Here is an example:
.sp
    re> /(?<=pqr)abc(?=xyz)/
  data> 123pqrabcxyz456\e=allusedtext
   0: pqrabcxyz
      <<<   >>>
.sp
This shows that the matched string is "abc", with the preceding and following
strings "pqr" and "xyz" having been consulted during the match (when processing
the assertions).
.P
The \fBstartchar\fP modifier requests that the starting character for the match
be indicated, if it is different to the start of the matched string. The only
time when this occurs is when \eK has been processed as part of the match. In
this situation, the output for the matched string is displayed from the
starting character instead of from the match point, with circumflex characters
under the earlier characters. For example:
.sp
    re> /abc\eKxyz/
  data> abcxyz\e=startchar
   0: abcxyz
      ^^^
.sp
Unlike \fBallusedtext\fP, the \fBstartchar\fP modifier can be used with JIT.
However, these two modifiers are mutually exclusive.
.
.
.SS "Showing the value of all capture groups"
.rs
.sp
The \fBallcaptures\fP modifier requests that the values of all potential
captured parentheses be output after a match. By default, only those up to the
highest one actually used in the match are output (corresponding to the return
code from \fBpcre2_match()\fP). Groups that did not take part in the match
are output as "<unset>".
.
.
.SS "Testing callouts"
.rs
.sp
A callout function is supplied when \fBpcre2test\fP calls the library matching
functions, unless \fBcallout_none\fP is specified. If \fBcallout_capture\fP is
set, the current captured groups are output when a callout occurs.
.P
The \fBcallout_fail\fP modifier can be given one or two numbers. If there is
only one number, 1 is returned instead of 0 when a callout of that number is
reached. If two numbers are given, 1 is returned when callout <n> is reached
for the <m>th time. Note that callouts with string arguments are always given
the number zero. See "Callouts" below for a description of the output when a
callout it taken.
.P
The \fBcallout_data\fP modifier can be given an unsigned or a negative number.
This is set as the "user data" that is passed to the matching function, and
passed back when the callout function is invoked. Any value other than zero is
used as a return from \fBpcre2test\fP's callout function.
.
.
.SS "Finding all matches in a string"
.rs
.sp
Searching for all possible matches within a subject can be requested by the
\fBglobal\fP or \fB/altglobal\fP modifier. After finding a match, the matching
function is called again to search the remainder of the subject. The difference
between \fBglobal\fP and \fBaltglobal\fP is that the former uses the
\fIstart_offset\fP argument to \fBpcre2_match()\fP or \fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP
to start searching at a new point within the entire string (which is what Perl
does), whereas the latter passes over a shortened subject. This makes a
difference to the matching process if the pattern begins with a lookbehind
assertion (including \eb or \eB).
.P
If an empty string is matched, the next match is done with the
PCRE2_NOTEMPTY_ATSTART and PCRE2_ANCHORED flags set, in order to search for
another, non-empty, match at the same point in the subject. If this match
fails, the start offset is advanced, and the normal match is retried. This
imitates the way Perl handles such cases when using the \fB/g\fP modifier or
the \fBsplit()\fP function. Normally, the start offset is advanced by one
character, but if the newline convention recognizes CRLF as a newline, and the
current character is CR followed by LF, an advance of two characters occurs.
.
.
.SS "Testing substring extraction functions"
.rs
.sp
The \fBcopy\fP and \fBget\fP modifiers can be used to test the
\fBpcre2_substring_copy_xxx()\fP and \fBpcre2_substring_get_xxx()\fP functions.
They can be given more than once, and each can specify a group name or number,
for example:
.sp
   abcd\e=copy=1,copy=3,get=G1
.sp
If the \fB#subject\fP command is used to set default copy and/or get lists,
these can be unset by specifying a negative number to cancel all numbered
groups and an empty name to cancel all named groups.
.P
The \fBgetall\fP modifier tests \fBpcre2_substring_list_get()\fP, which
extracts all captured substrings.
.P
If the subject line is successfully matched, the substrings extracted by the
convenience functions are output with C, G, or L after the string number
instead of a colon. This is in addition to the normal full list. The string
length (that is, the return from the extraction function) is given in
parentheses after each substring, followed by the name when the extraction was
by name.
.
.
.SS "Testing the substitution function"
.rs
.sp
If the \fBreplace\fP modifier is set, the \fBpcre2_substitute()\fP function is
called instead of one of the matching functions. Unlike subject strings,
\fBpcre2test\fP does not process replacement strings for escape sequences. In
UTF mode, a replacement string is checked to see if it is a valid UTF-8 string.
If so, it is correctly converted to a UTF string of the appropriate code unit
width. If it is not a valid UTF-8 string, the individual code units are copied
directly. This provides a means of passing an invalid UTF-8 string for testing
purposes.
.P
If the \fBglobal\fP modifier is set, PCRE2_SUBSTITUTE_GLOBAL is passed to
\fBpcre2_substitute()\fP. After a successful substitution, the modified string
is output, preceded by the number of replacements. This may be zero if there
were no matches. Here is a simple example of a substitution test:
.sp
  /abc/replace=xxx
      =abc=abc=
   1: =xxx=abc=
      =abc=abc=\e=global
   2: =xxx=xxx=
.sp
Subject and replacement strings should be kept relatively short for
substitution tests, as fixed-size buffers are used. To make it easy to test for
buffer overflow, if the replacement string starts with a number in square
brackets, that number is passed to \fBpcre2_substitute()\fP as the size of the
output buffer, with the replacement string starting at the next character. Here
is an example that tests the edge case:
.sp
  /abc/
      123abc123\e=replace=[10]XYZ
   1: 123XYZ123
      123abc123\e=replace=[9]XYZ
  Failed: error -47: no more memory
.sp
A replacement string is ignored with POSIX and DFA matching. Specifying partial
matching provokes an error return ("bad option value") from
\fBpcre2_substitute()\fP.
.
.
.SS "Setting the JIT stack size"
.rs
.sp
The \fBjitstack\fP modifier provides a way of setting the maximum stack size
that is used by the just-in-time optimization code. It is ignored if JIT
optimization is not being used. The value is a number of kilobytes. Providing a
stack that is larger than the default 32K is necessary only for very
complicated patterns.
.
.
.SS "Setting match and recursion limits"
.rs
.sp
The \fBmatch_limit\fP and \fBrecursion_limit\fP modifiers set the appropriate
limits in the match context. These values are ignored when the
\fBfind_limits\fP modifier is specified.
.
.
.SS "Finding minimum limits"
.rs
.sp
If the \fBfind_limits\fP modifier is present, \fBpcre2test\fP calls
\fBpcre2_match()\fP several times, setting different values in the match
context via \fBpcre2_set_match_limit()\fP and \fBpcre2_set_recursion_limit()\fP
until it finds the minimum values for each parameter that allow
\fBpcre2_match()\fP to complete without error.
.P
If JIT is being used, only the match limit is relevant. If DFA matching is
being used, neither limit is relevant, and this modifier is ignored (with a
warning message).
.P
The \fImatch_limit\fP number is a measure of the amount of backtracking
that takes place, and learning the minimum value can be instructive. For most
simple matches, the number is quite small, but for patterns with very large
numbers of matching possibilities, it can become large very quickly with
increasing length of subject string. The \fImatch_limit_recursion\fP number is
a measure of how much stack (or, if PCRE2 is compiled with NO_RECURSE, how much
heap) memory is needed to complete the match attempt.
.
.
.SS "Showing MARK names"
.rs
.sp
.P
The \fBmark\fP modifier causes the names from backtracking control verbs that
are returned from calls to \fBpcre2_match()\fP to be displayed. If a mark is
returned for a match, non-match, or partial match, \fBpcre2test\fP shows it.
For a match, it is on a line by itself, tagged with "MK:". Otherwise, it
is added to the non-match message.
.
.
.SS "Showing memory usage"
.rs
.sp
The \fBmemory\fP modifier causes \fBpcre2test\fP to log all memory allocation
and freeing calls that occur during a match operation.
.
.
.SS "Setting a starting offset"
.rs
.sp
The \fBoffset\fP modifier sets an offset in the subject string at which
matching starts. Its value is a number of code units, not characters.
.
.
.SS "Setting the size of the output vector"
.rs
.sp
The \fBovector\fP modifier applies only to the subject line in which it
appears, though of course it can also be used to set a default in a
\fB#subject\fP command. It specifies the number of pairs of offsets that are
available for storing matching information. The default is 15.
.P
A value of zero is useful when testing the POSIX API because it causes
\fBregexec()\fP to be called with a NULL capture vector. When not testing the
POSIX API, a value of zero is used to cause
\fBpcre2_match_data_create_from_pattern()\fP to be called, in order to create a
match block of exactly the right size for the pattern. (It is not possible to
create a match block with a zero-length ovector; there is always at least one
pair of offsets.)
.
.
.SS "Passing the subject as zero-terminated"
.rs
.sp
By default, the subject string is passed to a native API matching function with
its correct length. In order to test the facility for passing a zero-terminated
string, the \fBzero_terminate\fP modifier is provided. It causes the length to
be passed as PCRE2_ZERO_TERMINATED. (When matching via the POSIX interface,
this modifier has no effect, as there is no facility for passing a length.)
.P
When testing \fBpcre2_substitute()\fP, this modifier also has the effect of
passing the replacement string as zero-terminated.
.
.
.SH "THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION"
.rs
.sp
By default, \fBpcre2test\fP uses the standard PCRE2 matching function,
\fBpcre2_match()\fP to match each subject line. PCRE2 also supports an
alternative matching function, \fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP, which operates in a
different way, and has some restrictions. The differences between the two
functions are described in the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2matching\fP
.\"
documentation.
.P
If the \fBdfa\fP modifier is set, the alternative matching function is used.
This function finds all possible matches at a given point in the subject. If,
however, the \fBdfa_shortest\fP modifier is set, processing stops after the
first match is found. This is always the shortest possible match.
.
.
.SH "DEFAULT OUTPUT FROM pcre2test"
.rs
.sp
This section describes the output when the normal matching function,
\fBpcre2_match()\fP, is being used.
.P
When a match succeeds, \fBpcre2test\fP outputs the list of captured substrings,
starting with number 0 for the string that matched the whole pattern.
Otherwise, it outputs "No match" when the return is PCRE2_ERROR_NOMATCH, or
"Partial match:" followed by the partially matching substring when the
return is PCRE2_ERROR_PARTIAL. (Note that this is the
entire substring that was inspected during the partial match; it may include
characters before the actual match start if a lookbehind assertion, \eK, \eb,
or \eB was involved.)
.P
For any other return, \fBpcre2test\fP outputs the PCRE2 negative error number
and a short descriptive phrase. If the error is a failed UTF string check, the
code unit offset of the start of the failing character is also output. Here is
an example of an interactive \fBpcre2test\fP run.
.sp
  $ pcre2test
  PCRE2 version 9.00 2014-05-10
.sp
    re> /^abc(\ed+)/
  data> abc123
   0: abc123
   1: 123
  data> xyz
  No match
.sp
Unset capturing substrings that are not followed by one that is set are not
shown by \fBpcre2test\fP unless the \fBallcaptures\fP modifier is specified. In
the following example, there are two capturing substrings, but when the first
data line is matched, the second, unset substring is not shown. An "internal"
unset substring is shown as "<unset>", as for the second data line.
.sp
    re> /(a)|(b)/
  data> a
   0: a
   1: a
  data> b
   0: b
   1: <unset>
   2: b
.sp
If the strings contain any non-printing characters, they are output as \exhh
escapes if the value is less than 256 and UTF mode is not set. Otherwise they
are output as \ex{hh...} escapes. See below for the definition of non-printing
characters. If the \fB/aftertext\fP modifier is set, the output for substring
0 is followed by the the rest of the subject string, identified by "0+" like
this:
.sp
    re> /cat/aftertext
  data> cataract
   0: cat
   0+ aract
.sp
If global matching is requested, the results of successive matching attempts
are output in sequence, like this:
.sp
    re> /\eBi(\ew\ew)/g
  data> Mississippi
   0: iss
   1: ss
   0: iss
   1: ss
   0: ipp
   1: pp
.sp
"No match" is output only if the first match attempt fails. Here is an example
of a failure message (the offset 4 that is specified by the \fBoffset\fP
modifier is past the end of the subject string):
.sp
    re> /xyz/
  data> xyz\e=offset=4
  Error -24 (bad offset value)
.P
Note that whereas patterns can be continued over several lines (a plain ">"
prompt is used for continuations), subject lines may not. However newlines can
be included in a subject by means of the \en escape (or \er, \er\en, etc.,
depending on the newline sequence setting).
.
.
.
.SH "OUTPUT FROM THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION"
.rs
.sp
When the alternative matching function, \fBpcre2_dfa_match()\fP, is used, the
output consists of a list of all the matches that start at the first point in
the subject where there is at least one match. For example:
.sp
    re> /(tang|tangerine|tan)/
  data> yellow tangerine\e=dfa
   0: tangerine
   1: tang
   2: tan
.sp
Using the normal matching function on this data finds only "tang". The
longest matching string is always given first (and numbered zero). After a
PCRE2_ERROR_PARTIAL return, the output is "Partial match:", followed by the
partially matching substring. Note that this is the entire substring that was
inspected during the partial match; it may include characters before the actual
match start if a lookbehind assertion, \eb, or \eB was involved. (\eK is not
supported for DFA matching.)
.P
If global matching is requested, the search for further matches resumes
at the end of the longest match. For example:
.sp
    re> /(tang|tangerine|tan)/g
  data> yellow tangerine and tangy sultana\e=dfa
   0: tangerine
   1: tang
   2: tan
   0: tang
   1: tan
   0: tan
.sp
The alternative matching function does not support substring capture, so the
modifiers that are concerned with captured substrings are not relevant.
.
.
.SH "RESTARTING AFTER A PARTIAL MATCH"
.rs
.sp
When the alternative matching function has given the PCRE2_ERROR_PARTIAL
return, indicating that the subject partially matched the pattern, you can
restart the match with additional subject data by means of the
\fBdfa_restart\fP modifier. For example:
.sp
    re> /^\ed?\ed(jan|feb|mar|apr|may|jun|jul|aug|sep|oct|nov|dec)\ed\ed$/
  data> 23ja\e=P,dfa
  Partial match: 23ja
  data> n05\e=dfa,dfa_restart
   0: n05
.sp
For further information about partial matching, see the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2partial\fP
.\"
documentation.
.
.
.SH CALLOUTS
.rs
.sp
If the pattern contains any callout requests, \fBpcre2test\fP's callout
function is called during matching unless \fBcallout_none\fP is specified.
This works with both matching functions.
.P
The callout function in \fBpcre2test\fP returns zero (carry on matching) by
default, but you can use a \fBcallout_fail\fP modifier in a subject line (as
described above) to change this and other parameters of the callout.
.P
Inserting callouts can be helpful when using \fBpcre2test\fP to check
complicated regular expressions. For further information about callouts, see
the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2callout\fP
.\"
documentation.
.P
The output for callouts with numerical arguments and those with string
arguments is slightly different.
.
.
.SS "Callouts with numerical arguments"
.rs
.sp
By default, the callout function displays the callout number, the start and
current positions in the subject text at the callout time, and the next pattern
item to be tested. For example:
.sp
  --->pqrabcdef
    0    ^  ^     \ed
.sp
This output indicates that callout number 0 occurred for a match attempt
starting at the fourth character of the subject string, when the pointer was at
the seventh character, and when the next pattern item was \ed. Just
one circumflex is output if the start and current positions are the same.
.P
Callouts numbered 255 are assumed to be automatic callouts, inserted as a
result of the \fB/auto_callout\fP pattern modifier. In this case, instead of
showing the callout number, the offset in the pattern, preceded by a plus, is
output. For example:
.sp
    re> /\ed?[A-E]\e*/auto_callout
  data> E*
  --->E*
   +0 ^      \ed?
   +3 ^      [A-E]
   +8 ^^     \e*
  +10 ^ ^
   0: E*
.sp
If a pattern contains (*MARK) items, an additional line is output whenever
a change of latest mark is passed to the callout function. For example:
.sp
    re> /a(*MARK:X)bc/auto_callout
  data> abc
  --->abc
   +0 ^       a
   +1 ^^      (*MARK:X)
  +10 ^^      b
  Latest Mark: X
  +11 ^ ^     c
  +12 ^  ^
   0: abc
.sp
The mark changes between matching "a" and "b", but stays the same for the rest
of the match, so nothing more is output. If, as a result of backtracking, the
mark reverts to being unset, the text "<unset>" is output.
.
.
.SS "Callouts with string arguments"
.rs
.sp
The output for a callout with a string argument is similar, except that instead
of outputting a callout number before the position indicators, the callout
string and its offset in the pattern string are output before the reflection of
the subject string, and the subject string is reflected for each callout. For
example:
.sp
    re> /^ab(?C'first')cd(?C"second")ef/
  data> abcdefg
  Callout (7): 'first'
  --->abcdefg
      ^ ^         c
  Callout (20): "second"
  --->abcdefg
      ^   ^       e
   0: abcdef
.sp
.
.
.
.SH "NON-PRINTING CHARACTERS"
.rs
.sp
When \fBpcre2test\fP is outputting text in the compiled version of a pattern,
bytes other than 32-126 are always treated as non-printing characters and are
therefore shown as hex escapes.
.P
When \fBpcre2test\fP is outputting text that is a matched part of a subject
string, it behaves in the same way, unless a different locale has been set for
the pattern (using the \fB/locale\fP modifier). In this case, the
\fBisprint()\fP function is used to distinguish printing and non-printing
characters.
.
.
.
.\" HTML <a name="saverestore"></a>
.SH "SAVING AND RESTORING COMPILED PATTERNS"
.rs
.sp
It is possible to save compiled patterns on disc or elsewhere, and reload them
later, subject to a number of restrictions. JIT data cannot be saved. The host
on which the patterns are reloaded must be running the same version of PCRE2,
with the same code unit width, and must also have the same endianness, pointer
width and PCRE2_SIZE type. Before compiled patterns can be saved they must be
serialized, that is, converted to a stream of bytes. A single byte stream may
contain any number of compiled patterns, but they must all use the same
character tables. A single copy of the tables is included in the byte stream
(its size is 1088 bytes).
.P
The functions whose names begin with \fBpcre2_serialize_\fP are used
for serializing and de-serializing. They are described in the
.\" HREF
\fBpcre2serialize\fP
.\"
documentation. In this section we describe the features of \fBpcre2test\fP that
can be used to test these functions.
.P
When a pattern with \fBpush\fP modifier is successfully compiled, it is pushed
onto a stack of compiled patterns, and \fBpcre2test\fP expects the next line to
contain a new pattern (or command) instead of a subject line. By this means, a
number of patterns can be compiled and retained. The \fBpush\fP modifier is
incompatible with \fBposix\fP, and control modifiers that act at match time are
ignored (with a message). The \fBjitverify\fP modifier applies only at compile
time. The command
.sp
  #save <filename>
.sp
causes all the stacked patterns to be serialized and the result written to the
named file. Afterwards, all the stacked patterns are freed. The command
.sp
  #load <filename>
.sp
reads the data in the file, and then arranges for it to be de-serialized, with
the resulting compiled patterns added to the pattern stack. The pattern on the
top of the stack can be retrieved by the #pop command, which must be followed
by lines of subjects that are to be matched with the pattern, terminated as
usual by an empty line or end of file. This command may be followed by a
modifier list containing only
.\" HTML <a href="#controlmodifiers">
.\" </a>
control modifiers
.\"
that act after a pattern has been compiled. In particular, \fBhex\fP,
\fBposix\fP, and \fBpush\fP are not allowed, nor are any
.\" HTML <a href="#optionmodifiers">
.\" </a>
option-setting modifiers.
.\"
The JIT modifiers are, however permitted. Here is an example that saves and
reloads two patterns.
.sp
  /abc/push
  /xyz/push
  #save tempfile
  #load tempfile
  #pop info
  xyz
.sp
  #pop jit,bincode
  abc
.sp
If \fBjitverify\fP is used with #pop, it does not automatically imply
\fBjit\fP, which is different behaviour from when it is used on a pattern.
.
.
.
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.rs
.sp
\fBpcre2\fP(3), \fBpcre2api\fP(3), \fBpcre2callout\fP(3),
\fBpcre2jit\fP, \fBpcre2matching\fP(3), \fBpcre2partial\fP(d),
\fBpcre2pattern\fP(3), \fBpcre2serialize\fP(3).
.
.
.SH AUTHOR
.rs
.sp
.nf
Philip Hazel
University Computing Service
Cambridge, England.
.fi
.
.
.SH REVISION
.rs
.sp
.nf
Last updated: 13 April 2015
Copyright (c) 1997-2015 University of Cambridge.
.fi