Develop Reference

JNI and constructors

I have a compiled library that I need to use in a project. To keep it short, it's a library for interacting with a specific piece of hardware. What I have is .a and .dll library files, for linux and windows respectively, and a bunch of C++ .h headers with all the public functions and classes described there.
The problem is that the project needs to be in Java, so I need to write a JNI wrapper for this library, and honestly, I've never done that. But that's ok, I'm down to learn the thing.
I've read up a bunch of documentation online, and I figured out passing variables, creating java objects from native code, etc.
What I can't figure out, is how to work with native constructors using JNI? I have no idea what the source code of these constructors are, I only have the headers like this:
namespace RFDevice {
class RFDEVICE_API RFEthernetDetector
{
public:
//-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
// FUNCTION RFEthernetDetector::RFEthernetDetector
/// \brief Default constructor of RFEthernetDetector object.
///
/// \return void : N/A
//-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
RFEthernetDetector();
RFEthernetDetector(const WORD wCustomPortNumber);
So basically if I was to write my program in C++ (which I can't), I would do something like
RFEthernetDetector ethernetDetector = new RFEthernerDetector(somePort);
and then work with that object. But... How do I do this in Java using JNI?
I don't understand how am I supposed to create a native method for constructor, that would call the constructor from my .a library, and then have some way of working with that specific object? I know how to create java objects from native code - but the thing is I don't have any information about internal structure of the RFEthernetDetector class - only some of it's public fields and public methods.
And I can't seem to find the right articles on the net to help me out. How do I do that?
Update: A bit further clarification.
I create a .java wrapper class like this:
public class RFEthernetDetector
{
public RFEthernetDetector(int portNumber)
{
Init(portNumber);
}
public native void Init(int portNumber); // Void? Or what?
}
then I compile it with -h parameter to generate JNI .h file:
/* DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE - it is machine generated */
#include <jni.h>
/* Header for class RFEthernetDetector */
#ifndef _Included_RFEthernetDetector
#define _Included_RFEthernetDetector
#ifdef __cplusplus
extern "C" {
#endif
/*
* Class: RFEthernetDetector
* Method: Init
* Signature: (I)V
*/
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_Init
(JNIEnv *, jobject, jint);
#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif
#endif
I then create an implementation that will call the functions from my .a library:
#include "RFEthernetDetector.h" // auto-generated JNI header
#include "RFEthernetDetector_native.h" // h file that comes with the library,
//contains definition of RFEthernetDetector class
/*
* Class: RFEthernetDetector
* Method: Init
* Signature: (I)V
*/
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_Init(JNIEnv *env, jobject thisObj, jint value)
{
RFEthernetDetector *rfeDetector = new RFEthernetDetector(value); // constructor from the library
// now how do I access this new object from Java?
// if I need to later call rfDetector->doSomething() on that exact class instance?
}

You would need to build a RFEthernetDetector Java class that, through a pointer, owns a RFEthernetDetector on the C++ side. This is no fun, but inter-language glue never is.
// In this design, the C++ object needs to be explicitly destroyed by calling
// close() on the Java side.
// I think that Eclipse, at least, is configured by default to complain
// if an AutoCloseable is never close()d.
public class RFEthernetDetector implements AutoCloseable {
private final long cxxThis; // using the "store pointers as longs" convention
private boolean closed = false;
public RFEthernetDetector(int port) {
cxxThis = cxxConstruct(port);
};
#Override
public void close() {
if(!closed) {
cxxDestroy(cxxThis);
closed = true;
}
}
private static native long cxxConstruct(int port);
private static native void cxxDestroy(long cxxThis);
// Works fine as a safety net, I suppose...
#Override
#Deprecated
protected void finalize() {
close();
}
}
And on the C++ side:
#include "RFEthernetDetector.h"
JNIEXPORT jlong JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_cxxConstruct(JNIEnv *, jclass, jint port) {
return reinterpret_cast<jlong>(new RFEthernetDetector(port));
}
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_cxxDestroy(JNIEnv *, jclass, jlong thiz) {
delete reinterpret_cast<RFEthernetDetector*>(thiz);
// calling other methods is similar:
// pass the cxxThis to C++, cast it, and do something through it
}
If all that reinterpret_casting makes you feel uncomfortable, you could choose to instead keep a map around:
#include <map>
std::map<jlong, RFEthernetDetector> references;
JNIEXPORT jlong JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_cxxConstruct(JNIEnv *, jclass, jint port) {
jlong next = 0;
auto it = references.begin();
for(; it != references.end() && it->first == next; it++) next++;
references.emplace_hint(it, next, port);
return next;
}
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_RFEthernetDetector_cxxDestroy(JNIEnv *, jclass, jlong thiz) {
references.erase(thiz);
}

You'll need to build the native class in Java, then run the javah program which will build the stubs that Java expects. You'll then need to map the java stubs to the C++ code to compile and distribute that binding library along with your java program.
https://www3.ntu.edu.sg/home/ehchua/programming/java/JavaNativeInterface.html

So, what I ended up doing for now is basically storing the address in my .java class as "long" variable, and then have Init() method return the address of C++ instance as jlong.
Then, when I need to call something on that instance of a class - I pass the address as an additional argument and do the transformation in the C code like this (tested on test class / custom .so):
//constructor wrapper
JNIEXPORT jlong JNICALL Java_Test_Greetings(JNIEnv *env, jobject thisObj, jint value)
{
Greetings *greetings = new Greetings(value);
return (jlong)greetings;
}
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_Test_HelloWorld(JNIEnv *env, jobject thisObj, jlong reference)
{
Greetings *greetings;
greetings = (Greetings*)reference;
greetings->helloValue();
}
I have no idea if that's the correct way to do it, but it works... would appreciate if someone tells me how wrong I am.

Calling JNI function to create object

I'm writing JNI staff in C11 and have a question about strictly-conforming on-heap object creation.
JNI API provides a function to do this with the following signature:
jobject NewObject(JNIEnv *env, jclass clazz, jmethodID methodID, ...);
As specified in the 6.5.2.2(p7) Standard
The ellipsis notation in a function prototype declarator causes
argument type conversion to stop after the last declared parameter.
Arguments corresponding to the ellipsis notation should be explicitly converted to the expected type in order for the code to be conforming. Consider the following case:
public class Event{
public final int eventType;
public final String meta;
public Event(int eventType, String meta){
this.eventType = eventType;
this.meta = meta;
}
}
What types of the arguments I should convert the parameters corresponding to the ellipsis to?
I can guess that it should look as follows:
jclass event_class = ((*env)->FindClass)(env, "f/q/c/n/Event");
jmethodID ctor = (*env)->GetMethodID(
env,
event_class,
"<init>",
"(ILjava/lang/String;)V"
);
array_element = (*env)->NewObject(
env,
event_class,
ctor,
(jint) 0, (jobject) NULL //corresponds to the ellipsis
);

The types of the arguments are deduced from the method you are calling.
In your case, it is the constructor of the Event class that expects an int and a String.
So it would look like this:
jstring metaStr = (*env)->NewStringUTF(env, "hello");
jobject array_element = (*env)->NewObject(
env,
event_class,
ctor,
(jint)4711, metaStr
);
Test
To perform a brief test, we could write a class that calls a native C function that creates the desired Event object, initializes it, and returns it to the calling Java side.
This Java program would look like this:
import f.q.c.n.Event;
public class JNIEventTest {
static {
System.loadLibrary("native");
}
private native Event retrieveNativeEvent();
public static void main(String[] args) {
JNIEventTest jniEventTest = new JNIEventTest();
Event event = jniEventTest.retrieveNativeEvent();
System.out.println("eventType: " + event.eventType);
System.out.println("meta: " + event.meta);
}
}
The native C side would look like this then:
#include "JNIEventTest.h"
JNIEXPORT jobject JNICALL Java_JNIEventTest_retrieveNativeEvent(JNIEnv *env, jobject thisObject) {
jclass event_class = ((*env)->FindClass)(env, "f/q/c/n/Event");
jmethodID ctor = (*env)->GetMethodID(
env,
event_class,
"<init>",
"(ILjava/lang/String;)V"
);
jstring eventStr = (*env)->NewStringUTF(env, "hello");
jobject array_element = (*env)->NewObject(
env,
event_class,
ctor,
(jint)4711, eventStr
);
return array_element;
}
The debug output in the console then looks like this:
eventType: 4711
meta: hello

Java Native Interface : Object Passing

I was trying to implement a simple object passing code but there was a error by the compiler.
Error
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NoSuchFieldError: count at
objectpassing.ObjectPassing.changeCount(Native Method)
Here is my Java Code
public class ObjectPassing {
static{
System.load("out.dll");
}
int count=10;
String message="hi";
public static void main(String[] args)
{
ObjectPassing ob=new ObjectPassing();
ObjectPassing.changeCount();
System.out.println("Number in java"+ob.count);
System.out.println(ob.message);
}
private static native void changeCount();
}
My C code is :
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <jni.h>
#include "jnivg.h"
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_objectpassing_ObjectPassing_changeCount
(JNIEnv *env, jclass o)
{
jclass tc=(*env)->GetObjectClass(env,o);
jfieldID fid=(*env)->GetFieldID(env,tc,"count","I");
jint n=(*env)->GetIntField(env,o,fid);
printf("Number in c= %d",n);
n=200;
(*env)->SetIntField(env,o,fid,n);
}

You are trying to get the value of the non-static field from a static method, which is impossible due to common sense, regardless whether your method is native or not.
You should either make your count field static and use GetStaticFieldID and GetStaticIntField functions with it. Or make your changeCount method non-static so it will have a jobject parameter instead of jclass which you then will be able to use with GetIntField function.

How to call a method of a subclass / child class of an Java Object passed to JNI `jobject`

I have:
public class MyEntity {
private String _myEntityType;
public String get_myEntityType() {
return _myEntityType;
}
public void set_myEntityType(String _myEntityType) {
this._myEntityType = _myEntityType;
}
}
Then :
public class MyObjectEntity extends MyEntity {
public MyObjectEntity() {
super();
}
private String _myObjectDescription;
public String get_myObjectDescription() {
return _myObjectDescription;
}
public void set_myObjectDescription(String _myObjectDescription) {
this._myObjectDescription = _myObjectDescription;
}
}
Now I start getting into JNI.
public class MyPers {
// Load the 'my-pers-lib' library on application startup.
static {
System.loadLibrary("my-pers-lib");
}
public native Long myPersInit(MyEntity myEntity);
}
Then :
#include <jni.h>
#include <android/log.h>
extern "C"
JNIEXPORT jobject JNICALL
Java_my_ca_my_1gen_1lib_1pers_c_1libs_1core_RevPers_myPersInit(JNIEnv *env, jobject instance,
jobject myEntity) {
jclass myEntityClazz = env->GetObjectClass(myEntity);
/** START GET STRING **/
const char *myEntityType;
// and the get_myObjectDescription() method
jmethodID get_myObjectDescription = env->GetMethodID
(myEntityClazz, "get_myObjectDescription", "()Ljava/lang/String;");
// call the get_myObjectDescription() method
jstring s = (jstring) env->CallObjectMethod
(myEntity, get_myObjectDescription);
if (s != NULL) {
// convert the Java String to use it in C
myEntityType = env->GetStringUTFChars(s, 0);
__android_log_print(ANDROID_LOG_INFO, "MyApp", "get_myObjectDescription : %s\n",
myEntityType);
env->ReleaseStringUTFChars(s, myEntityType);
}
/** END GET STRING **/
return myEntityGUID;
}
I start it all up :
MyObjectEntity myObjectEntity = new MyObjectEntity();
myObjectEntity.set_myObjectDescription("A Good Day To Find Answers To Life's Important Questions.");
MyPers revPers = new MyPers();
Log.v("MyApp", "GUID : " + myPers.myPersInit(myObjectEntity));
The error I get is :
JNI CallObjectMethodV called with pending exception java.lang.NoSuchMethodError: no non-static method "Lmy_app/MyEntity;.get_myObjectDescription()Ljava/lang/String;"
QUESTION
How can I go about calling a method of a subclass / child class of an Java Object passed to JNI jobject, myEntity in this case?
extern "C"
JNIEXPORT jobject JNICALL
Java_myPersInit(JNIEnv *env, jobject instance, jobject myEntity)
Thank you all in advance.

How can I go about calling a method of a subclass / child class of an
Java Object passed to JNI jobject, myEntity in this case?
The question does not make sense. Objects do not have subclasses, classes do. Whatever the class of a given object happens to be defines the methods that you may invoke on that object. You seem to be trying to ask how to invoke methods of a subtype of the declared type of the native method parameter, but the premise of such a question runs counter to the actual fact that you do so exactly the same way you invoke any other instance method from JNI.
Consider: in Java, you would downcast to the subtype and then, supposing the cast succeeded, you would invoke the wanted method normally. In JNI, on the other hand, object references are not differentiated by pointed-to object type (they are all jobjects), so no casting is involved; you just go straight to invoking the wanted method normally.
Of course, a JNI error will occur if the class of the target object does not provide such a method. Whether it's a good idea to do what you describe is an entirely separate question.

Store a c++ object instance inside JNI jobject and retrieve later

I have a JNI class with methods init() work(), and cleanup(). On the C++ side I create an instance of a C++ class Foo during init(), then call some methods on it during work(), and finally delete it inside cleanup(). Right now I store instance of Foo as a global singleton on the C++ so that I can retrieve it from the different JNI calls. What I would really like to do is store a pointer to the Foo instance inside the jobject instance that gets passed to each JNI call, so that I can avoid having a global singleton and also so that I can support multiple instances of Foo. Is something like this possible?

You can store a pointer to your C++ object as a Java class member. For example, in Java:
class Foo
{
public long ptr = 0;
public native void init();
public native void work();
public native void cleanup();
}
And in C++:
jfieldID getPtrFieldId(JNIEnv * env, jobject obj)
{
static jfieldID ptrFieldId = 0;
if (!ptrFieldId)
{
jclass c = env->GetObjectClass(obj);
ptrFieldId = env->GetFieldID(c, "ptr", "J");
env->DeleteLocalRef(c);
}
return ptrFieldId;
}
class Foo
{
/* ... */
};
extern "C"
{
void Java_Foo_init(JNIEnv * env, jobject obj)
{
env->SetLongField(obj, getPtrFieldId(env, obj), (jlong) new Foo);
}
void Java_Foo_work(JNIEnv * env, jobject obj)
{
Foo * foo = (Foo *) env->GetLongField(obj, getPtrFieldId(env, obj));
foo->work();
}
void Java_Foo_cleanup(JNIEnv * env, jobject obj)
{
Foo * foo = (Foo *) env->GetLongField(obj, getPtrFieldId(env, obj));
delete foo;
}
}

Absolutely.
Create a Foo instance in JNI. Simply return the pointer (points to the instance created) as a jlong type. So you can use it as a handler later. Here is an example:
JNIEXPORT jlong JNICALL Java_com_example_init(JNIEnv *env, jobject thiz) {
Foo* pFoo = new Foo();
if (NULL == pFoo) {
// error handling
}
pFoo->initialize();
return reinterpret_cast<jlong>(pFoo);
}
JNIEXPORT void JNICALL Java_example_start(JNIEnv *env, jobject thiz,
jlong fooHandle) {
Foo* pFoo = reinterpret_cast<Foo*>(fooHandle);
pFoo->start();
}

You can do it with a long in java, however I would argue that its not a very good idea to put a pointer to some native memory address in an instance variable of a language that is expected to be operating in a sandbox. Its sloppy and it could be a exploit vector depending on what your doing.
I am guessing you are running into this problem because your native code is very close to your JNI code. If you structure your JNI layer as translation between your native code and Java, you may find it easier to work with.