freeacs/freeacs

Even if it is technically possible, Restricted Identifiers should not be used as identifiers. This is only possible for compatibility reasons, using it in Java code is confusing and should be avoided.

Note that this applies to any version of Java, including the one where these identifiers are not yet restricted, to avoid future confusion.

This rule reports an issue when restricted identifiers:

• var
• yield
• record

are used as identifiers.

Noncompliant Code Example

var var = "var"; // Noncompliant: compiles but this code is confusing
var = "what is this?";

int yield(int i) { // Noncompliant
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0); // This is a yield from switch expression, not a recursive call.
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String record = "record"; // Noncompliant

Compliant Solution

var myVariable = "var";

int minusOne(int i) {
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0);
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String myRecord = "record";

See

• JLS16, 3.8: Identifiers

A long parameter list can indicate that a new structure should be created to wrap the numerous parameters or that the function is doing too many things.

Noncompliant Code Example

With a maximum number of 4 parameters:

public void doSomething(int param1, int param2, int param3, String param4, long param5) {
...
}

Compliant Solution

public void doSomething(int param1, int param2, int param3, String param4) {
...
}

Exceptions

Methods annotated with :

• Spring's @RequestMapping (and related shortcut annotations, like @GetRequest)
• JAX-RS API annotations (like @javax.ws.rs.GET)
• Bean constructor injection with @org.springframework.beans.factory.annotation.Autowired
• CDI constructor injection with @javax.inject.Inject
• @com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonCreator

may have a lot of parameters, encapsulation being possible. Such methods are therefore ignored.

It's confusing to have a class member with the same name (case differences aside) as its enclosing class. This is particularly so when you consider the common practice of naming a class instance for the class itself.

Best practice dictates that any field or member with the same name as the enclosing class be renamed to be more descriptive of the particular aspect of the class it represents or holds.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class Foo {
  private String foo;

  public String getFoo() { }
}

Foo foo = new Foo();
foo.getFoo() // what does this return?

Compliant Solution

public class Foo {
  private String name;

  public String getName() { }
}

//...

Foo foo = new Foo();
foo.getName()

Exceptions

When the type of the field is the containing class and that field is static, no issue is raised to allow singletons named like the type.

public class Foo {
  ...
  private static Foo foo;
  public Foo getInstance() {
    if(foo==null) {
      foo = new Foo();
    }
    return foo;
  }
  ...
}

Many consider clone and Cloneable broken in Java, largely because the rules for overriding clone are tricky and difficult to get right, according to Joshua Bloch:

Object's clone method is very tricky. It's based on field copies, and it's "extra-linguistic." It creates an object without calling a constructor. There are no guarantees that it preserves the invariants established by the constructors. There have been lots of bugs over the years, both in and outside Sun, stemming from the fact that if you just call super.clone repeatedly up the chain until you have cloned an object, you have a shallow copy of the object. The clone generally shares state with the object being cloned. If that state is mutable, you don't have two independent objects. If you modify one, the other changes as well. And all of a sudden, you get random behavior.

A copy constructor or copy factory should be used instead.

This rule raises an issue when clone is overridden, whether or not Cloneable is implemented.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  // ...

  public Object clone() { // Noncompliant
    //...
  }
}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  // ...

  MyClass (MyClass source) {
    //...
  }
}

See

• Copy Constructor versus Cloning

See Also

• {rule:java:S2157} - "Cloneables" should implement "clone"
• {rule:java:S1182} - Classes that override "clone" should be "Cloneable" and call "super.clone()"

Even if it is technically possible, Restricted Identifiers should not be used as identifiers. This is only possible for compatibility reasons, using it in Java code is confusing and should be avoided.

Note that this applies to any version of Java, including the one where these identifiers are not yet restricted, to avoid future confusion.

This rule reports an issue when restricted identifiers:

• var
• yield
• record

are used as identifiers.

Noncompliant Code Example

var var = "var"; // Noncompliant: compiles but this code is confusing
var = "what is this?";

int yield(int i) { // Noncompliant
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0); // This is a yield from switch expression, not a recursive call.
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String record = "record"; // Noncompliant

Compliant Solution

var myVariable = "var";

int minusOne(int i) {
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0);
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String myRecord = "record";

See

• JLS16, 3.8: Identifiers

Many consider clone and Cloneable broken in Java, largely because the rules for overriding clone are tricky and difficult to get right, according to Joshua Bloch:

Object's clone method is very tricky. It's based on field copies, and it's "extra-linguistic." It creates an object without calling a constructor. There are no guarantees that it preserves the invariants established by the constructors. There have been lots of bugs over the years, both in and outside Sun, stemming from the fact that if you just call super.clone repeatedly up the chain until you have cloned an object, you have a shallow copy of the object. The clone generally shares state with the object being cloned. If that state is mutable, you don't have two independent objects. If you modify one, the other changes as well. And all of a sudden, you get random behavior.

A copy constructor or copy factory should be used instead.

This rule raises an issue when clone is overridden, whether or not Cloneable is implemented.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  // ...

  public Object clone() { // Noncompliant
    //...
  }
}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  // ...

  MyClass (MyClass source) {
    //...
  }
}

See

• Copy Constructor versus Cloning

See Also

• {rule:java:S2157} - "Cloneables" should implement "clone"
• {rule:java:S1182} - Classes that override "clone" should be "Cloneable" and call "super.clone()"

Using such generic exceptions as Error, RuntimeException, Throwable, and Exception prevents calling methods from handling true, system-generated exceptions differently than application-generated errors.

Noncompliant Code Example

public void foo(String bar) throws Throwable {  // Noncompliant
  throw new RuntimeException("My Message");     // Noncompliant
}

Compliant Solution

public void foo(String bar) {
  throw new MyOwnRuntimeException("My Message");
}

Exceptions

Generic exceptions in the signatures of overriding methods are ignored, because overriding method has to follow signature of the throw declaration in the superclass. The issue will be raised on superclass declaration of the method (or won't be raised at all if superclass is not part of the analysis).

@Override
public void myMethod() throws Exception {...}

Generic exceptions are also ignored in the signatures of methods that make calls to methods that throw generic exceptions.

public void myOtherMethod throws Exception {
  doTheThing();  // this method throws Exception
}

See

• MITRE, CWE-397 - Declaration of Throws for Generic Exception
• CERT, ERR07-J. - Do not throw RuntimeException, Exception, or Throwable

Duplicated string literals make the process of refactoring error-prone, since you must be sure to update all occurrences.

On the other hand, constants can be referenced from many places, but only need to be updated in a single place.

Noncompliant Code Example

With the default threshold of 3:

public void run() {
  prepare("action1");                              // Noncompliant - "action1" is duplicated 3 times
  execute("action1");
  release("action1");
}

@SuppressWarning("all")                            // Compliant - annotations are excluded
private void method1() { /* ... */ }
@SuppressWarning("all")
private void method2() { /* ... */ }

public String method3(String a) {
  System.out.println("'" + a + "'");               // Compliant - literal "'" has less than 5 characters and is excluded
  return "";                                       // Compliant - literal "" has less than 5 characters and is excluded
}

Compliant Solution

private static final String ACTION_1 = "action1";  // Compliant

public void run() {
  prepare(ACTION_1);                               // Compliant
  execute(ACTION_1);
  release(ACTION_1);
}

Exceptions

To prevent generating some false-positives, literals having less than 5 characters are excluded.

Utility classes, which are collections of static members, are not meant to be instantiated. Even abstract utility classes, which can be extended, should not have public constructors.

Java adds an implicit public constructor to every class which does not define at least one explicitly. Hence, at least one non-public constructor should be defined.

Noncompliant Code Example

class StringUtils { // Noncompliant

  public static String concatenate(String s1, String s2) {
    return s1 + s2;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

class StringUtils { // Compliant

  private StringUtils() {
    throw new IllegalStateException("Utility class");
  }

  public static String concatenate(String s1, String s2) {
    return s1 + s2;
  }

}

Exceptions

When class contains public static void main(String[] args) method it is not considered as utility class and will be ignored by this rule.

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.

InterruptedExceptions should never be ignored in the code, and simply logging the exception counts in this case as "ignoring". The throwing of the InterruptedException clears the interrupted state of the Thread, so if the exception is not handled properly the fact that the thread was interrupted will be lost. Instead, InterruptedExceptions should either be rethrown - immediately or after cleaning up the method's state - or the thread should be re-interrupted by calling Thread.interrupt() even if this is supposed to be a single-threaded application. Any other course of action risks delaying thread shutdown and loses the information that the thread was interrupted - probably without finishing its task.

Similarly, the ThreadDeath exception should also be propagated. According to its JavaDoc:

If ThreadDeath is caught by a method, it is important that it be rethrown so that the thread actually dies.

Noncompliant Code Example

public void run () {
  try {
    while (true) {
      // do stuff
    }
  }catch (InterruptedException e) { // Noncompliant; logging is not enough
    LOGGER.log(Level.WARN, "Interrupted!", e);
  }
}

Compliant Solution

public void run () {
  try {
    while (true) {
      // do stuff
    }
  }catch (InterruptedException e) {
    LOGGER.log(Level.WARN, "Interrupted!", e);
    // Restore interrupted state...
    Thread.currentThread().interrupt();
  }
}

See

• MITRE, CWE-391 - Unchecked Error Condition
• Dealing with InterruptedException

Cognitive Complexity is a measure of how hard the control flow of a method is to understand. Methods with high Cognitive Complexity will be difficult to maintain.

See

• Cognitive Complexity

Even if it is technically possible, Restricted Identifiers should not be used as identifiers. This is only possible for compatibility reasons, using it in Java code is confusing and should be avoided.

Note that this applies to any version of Java, including the one where these identifiers are not yet restricted, to avoid future confusion.

This rule reports an issue when restricted identifiers:

• var
• yield
• record

are used as identifiers.

Noncompliant Code Example

var var = "var"; // Noncompliant: compiles but this code is confusing
var = "what is this?";

int yield(int i) { // Noncompliant
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0); // This is a yield from switch expression, not a recursive call.
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String record = "record"; // Noncompliant

Compliant Solution

var myVariable = "var";

int minusOne(int i) {
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0);
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String myRecord = "record";

See

• JLS16, 3.8: Identifiers

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.

Even if it is technically possible, Restricted Identifiers should not be used as identifiers. This is only possible for compatibility reasons, using it in Java code is confusing and should be avoided.

Note that this applies to any version of Java, including the one where these identifiers are not yet restricted, to avoid future confusion.

This rule reports an issue when restricted identifiers:

• var
• yield
• record

are used as identifiers.

Noncompliant Code Example

var var = "var"; // Noncompliant: compiles but this code is confusing
var = "what is this?";

int yield(int i) { // Noncompliant
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0); // This is a yield from switch expression, not a recursive call.
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String record = "record"; // Noncompliant

Compliant Solution

var myVariable = "var";

int minusOne(int i) {
  return switch (i) {
    case 1: yield(0);
    default: yield(i-1);
  };
}

String myRecord = "record";

See

• JLS16, 3.8: Identifiers

Duplicated string literals make the process of refactoring error-prone, since you must be sure to update all occurrences.

On the other hand, constants can be referenced from many places, but only need to be updated in a single place.

Noncompliant Code Example

With the default threshold of 3:

public void run() {
  prepare("action1");                              // Noncompliant - "action1" is duplicated 3 times
  execute("action1");
  release("action1");
}

@SuppressWarning("all")                            // Compliant - annotations are excluded
private void method1() { /* ... */ }
@SuppressWarning("all")
private void method2() { /* ... */ }

public String method3(String a) {
  System.out.println("'" + a + "'");               // Compliant - literal "'" has less than 5 characters and is excluded
  return "";                                       // Compliant - literal "" has less than 5 characters and is excluded
}

Compliant Solution

private static final String ACTION_1 = "action1";  // Compliant

public void run() {
  prepare(ACTION_1);                               // Compliant
  execute(ACTION_1);
  release(ACTION_1);
}

Exceptions

To prevent generating some false-positives, literals having less than 5 characters are excluded.

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.

If a private field is declared but not used in the program, it can be considered dead code and should therefore be removed. This will improve maintainability because developers will not wonder what the variable is used for.

Note that this rule does not take reflection into account, which means that issues will be raised on private fields that are only accessed using the reflection API.

Noncompliant Code Example

public class MyClass {
  private int foo = 42;

  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }

}

Compliant Solution

public class MyClass {
  public int compute(int a) {
    return a * 42;
  }
}

Exceptions

The Java serialization runtime associates with each serializable class a version number, called serialVersionUID, which is used during deserialization to verify that the sender and receiver of a serialized object have loaded classes for that object that are compatible with respect to serialization.

A serializable class can declare its own serialVersionUID explicitly by declaring a field named serialVersionUID that must be static, final, and of type long. By definition those serialVersionUID fields should not be reported by this rule:

public class MyClass implements java.io.Serializable {
  private static final long serialVersionUID = 42L;
}

Moreover, this rule doesn't raise any issue on annotated fields.