# 0055 — binary arithmetic accepts mismatched operand types (`s64 + string`) **FIXED** (`examples/214-binop-operand-type-check.sx`). `lowerBinaryOp` in [src/ir/lower.zig](../src/ir/lower.zig) now checks operand-type compatibility for every scalar binary-op group before emitting, via three predicates that pass `.unresolved` through (so a type we couldn't infer is never falsely diagnosed) but reject a concretely incompatible operand: - **arithmetic** `+ - * / %` → `isArithOperand` (numeric / vector / pointer). Without it `s64 + string` lowered as `add : s64` and reinterpreted the string's bytes — garbage. - **ordering** `< <= > >=` → `isOrderingOperand` (numeric / enum / pointer / bool / vector). Without it `s64 < string` fed mismatched LLVM types to `icmp` and tripped the verifier. - **bitwise / shift** `& | ^ << >>` → `isBitwiseOperand` (integer / enum / bool / vector). Without it `s64 & string` reinterpreted the bytes. On mismatch it emits `cannot apply '' to operands of type '' and ''` and returns a placeholder sentinel instead of the corrupting op. The existing optional-unwrap and int×float promotion are applied before the check. Legitimate mixes — flags-enum bitwise (`.read | .write`, `perm & .read`), enum/pointer comparison, int literals — are unaffected (covered by `examples/50-smoke.sx`). Regression test: `examples/214` (rejects `+ * < & <<` against a `string` operand). Still NOT covered (left deliberately): equality `==` / `!=`, whose path is heavily special-cased (string `str_eq`, `Any` unbox, `optional == null`). `s64 == string` still slips through. Folding a compatibility check into that path without regressing the special cases is a separate change — open a fresh issue if it bites. ## Symptom Binary arithmetic operators (`+`, `-`, `*`, `/`, `%`) perform **no operand-type compatibility check**. `s64 + string` compiles cleanly and runs, reinterpreting the `string` operand's bytes (pointer/len) as an integer. - **Observed:** `a + c` where `a: s64`, `c: string` compiles and prints a garbage number (e.g. `4346102832` — `40 + `). - **Expected:** a type-error diagnostic, e.g. `cannot apply '+' to operands of type 's64' and 'string'`. Surfaced in `examples/213-canonical-map.sx`: a third source `v3: StrCell` (`VL(string)`) was added so the mapper became `(a, b, c) => a + b + c` with `a, b: s64` and `c: string`. The canonical `map` infers the closure params from the projected pack element types, so `a + b + c` is `s64 + s64 + string` — which should reject. Instead `r.get()` prints garbage (`4312977714`). > Note: the working-tree copy of `examples/213` also contains a *separate* > typo — `Closure(..sources.Target)` instead of `..sources.T`. `.Target` > is an unknown projection name and produces "cannot infer type of lambda > parameter" errors that mask this bug. Restoring `.T` exposes the real > hole. The two are independent; this issue is about the missing arithmetic > operand-type check, reproducible standalone with no pack machinery. ## Reproduction Minimal, standalone (only `modules/std.sx`): ```sx #import "modules/std.sx"; main :: () -> s32 { a : s64 = 40; c : string = "it should error"; r := a + c; // expected: type error (s64 + string) print("{}\n", r); // actual: prints garbage, e.g. 4346102832 0; } ``` ``` $ ./zig-out/bin/sx run repro.sx 4346102832 # should be a compile error, not a number ``` ## Investigation prompt > Binary arithmetic in the sx compiler does no operand-type compatibility > check. `lowerBinaryOp` in [src/ir/lower.zig](src/ir/lower.zig) (starts > ~L2545) computes the result type `ty` purely from the **LHS** operand > (`var ty = lhs_ty;` ~L2680), then at the final `switch (bop.op)` (~L2735) > emits `.add => self.builder.add(lhs, rhs, ty)` (and `.sub/.mul/.div/.mod`) > with that LHS-derived `ty` — never verifying `rhs_ty` is compatible. For > `s64 + string`, `ty = .s64` and the `string` rhs Ref is fed to an > `add : s64`, reinterpreting its bytes as an integer. > > The fix: before the arithmetic `switch` arms, for the arithmetic ops > (`add/sub/mul/div/mod`) check that `lhs_ty` and `rhs_ty` are > arithmetic-compatible (both numeric — int/float — modulo the existing > int×float promotion at ~L2682, or otherwise an exact match). When they > are not, emit a diagnostic via the existing > `if (self.diagnostics) |diags| diags.addFmt(.err, , "cannot apply > '{s}' to operands of type '{...}' and '{...}'", .{...})` pattern (see the > diagnostics calls already in this file, e.g. ~L2175, ~L2193) and return a > non-corrupting sentinel rather than a silently-wrong `add`. > > Watch the legitimate non-numeric `+` paths so the check doesn't > false-positive: tuple ops (`lowerTupleOp`, handled earlier ~L2718), > string `==`/`!=` (handled ~L2710), optional auto-unwrap (~L2693), and the > int×float promotion (~L2682). Decide whether string concatenation via `+` > is intended to be supported at all — if not, `string + string` should > also reject (currently untested here). > > Span: confirm how to get the operator/expression span for the diagnostic > — `lowerBinaryOp` takes `bop: *const ast.BinaryOp`; check whether > `ast.BinaryOp` carries a span or whether the enclosing node's span must > be threaded in (the other `addFmt` sites use `node.span`). > > Verify: re-run the repro above — expect a type-error diagnostic and a > non-zero exit instead of a printed integer. Then restore `examples/213`'s > `.Target` → `.T` and confirm `(a, b, c) => a + b + c` with a `string` > third source now errors at the `+` rather than printing garbage. Run > `bash tests/run_examples.sh` to confirm no legitimate arithmetic > regressed.