Java enum and additional class files

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I was just bit by this behavior and this question showed up when Googling. I thought I’d share the little bit of extra information I found out.

javac 1.5 and 1.6 create an additional synthetic class each time you use a switch on an enum. The class contains a so-called “switch map” which maps enum indices to switch table jump numbers. Importantly, the synthetic class is created for the class in which the switch occurs, not the enum class.

Here’s an example of what gets generated:

EnumClass.java

public enum EnumClass { VALUE1, VALUE2, VALUE3 }

EnumUser.java

public class EnumUser {
    public String getName(EnumClass value) {
        switch (value) {
            case VALUE1: return "value 1";
            // No VALUE2 case.
            case VALUE3: return "value 3";
            default:     return "other";
        }
    }
}

Synthetic EnumUser$1.class

class EnumUser$1 {
    static final int[] $SwitchMap$EnumClass = new int[EnumClass.values().length];

    static {
        $SwitchMap$EnumClass[EnumClass.VALUE1.ordinal()] = 1;
        $SwitchMap$EnumClass[EnumClass.VALUE3.ordinal()] = 2;
    };
}

This switch map is then used to generate an index for a lookupswitch or tableswitch JVM instruction. It converts each enum value into a corresponding index from 1 to [number of switch cases].

EnumUser.class

public java.lang.String getName(EnumClass);
  Code:
   0:   getstatic       #2; //Field EnumUser$1.$SwitchMap$EnumClass:[I
   3:   aload_1
   4:   invokevirtual   #3; //Method EnumClass.ordinal:()I
   7:   iaload
   8:   lookupswitch{ //2
                1: 36;
                2: 39;
                default: 42 }
   36:  ldc     #4; //String value 1
   38:  areturn
   39:  ldc     #5; //String value 3
   41:  areturn
   42:  ldc     #6; //String other
   44:  areturn

tableswitch is used if there are three or more switch cases as it performs a more efficient constant-time lookup vs. lookupswitch‘s linear search. Technically speaking javac could omit this whole business with the synthetic switch map when it uses lookupswitch.

Speculation: I don’t have Eclipse’s compiler on hand to test with but I imagine that it doesn’t bother with a synthetic class and simply uses lookupswitch. Or perhaps it requires more switch cases than the original asker tested with before it “ugprades” to tableswitch.

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