Files
sx/issues/0030-extern-global-declarations.md
agra 34819f05de issues: relocate legacy examples/issue-* repros into issues/
Clear the examples/issue-* namespace (new layout keeps open-issue repros under
issues/, co-located with their .md). Two legacy files:

- issue-0030 was a feature-request placeholder (trivial main, no real test).
  `extern G : T;` cross-file sx globals are still unimplemented (parse error),
  so it's an open feature request: issues/0030-extern-global-declarations.{md,sx}.
- issue-0019 was a broken/superseded multi-file fixture (relative imports, not
  runnable from root; the non-transitive-#import scenario is covered by the
  passing 0706-modules-import-non-transitive). Moved to
  issues/0019-import-non-transitive-c-scope/ with a status note; safe to delete.

Suite unchanged: 324 passed.
2026-06-01 19:38:09 +03:00

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Markdown

# 0030 — `extern G : T;` cross-file sx global declarations (feature request)
> **Status: OPEN feature request** (not a bug). Relocated from the old
> `examples/issue-0030.sx` placeholder during the test-layout migration. Repro:
> `issues/0030-extern-global-declarations.sx` (currently a parse error — the
> syntax doesn't exist yet).
## Symptom / request
Support an `extern G : T;` top-level form so a global **defined** in one sx
source file can be **referenced** from another without threading it through
parameters — mirroring how `#foreign` function declarations work (declared in one
place, defined elsewhere, resolved at link time).
```sx
// game/main.sx
g_metal_gpu : *MetalGPU = null;
// game/chess/pieces.sx
extern g_metal_gpu : *MetalGPU; // ← parse error today
load :: (self: *ChessPieces, path: [:0]u8) {
inline if OS == .ios {
tex := g_metal_gpu.create_texture(w, h, .rgba8, xx pixels);
}
}
```
Today `pieces.load` takes `has_gpu: bool, gpu: GPU` params and `main.sx` threads
them through; cross-file `extern` globals would drop that ceremony. Distinct from
the existing `name : T #foreign;` form (an *external C* data symbol from
libsystem etc. — see `examples/1205-ffi-foreign-global.sx`); this request is for
sx-defined globals shared across sx modules.
## Reproduction
`issues/0030-extern-global-declarations.sx`:
```sx
#import "modules/std.sx";
extern g_x : *void; // want: a reference to a global defined elsewhere
main :: () -> s32 { 0; }
```
`./zig-out/bin/sx run …``error: expected '::', ':=', or ':' after identifier`
(the `extern` keyword/form is unparsed).
## Implementation sketch
- **parser** — surface syntax for `extern G : T;`. Must not clash with `G :: T;`
(type alias), `G : T = ---;` (uninitialized global), `G : T;` (typed global).
Reject `extern G : T = expr;` (an extern can't carry an initializer).
- **src/ir/lower.zig** — record an extern-global stub that resolves at
module-link time.
- **src/ir/emit_llvm.zig** — emit an `external` LLVM global (no storage, just a
reference). Globals already have first-class IR addresses; this adds an
"extern" flag meaning "emit a reference, not storage."
## Caveat
Encourages process-global state. Steer callers toward explicit parameter passing
where reasonable; reserve for genuine process singletons (active GPU, active
platform) where threading through every call site is more noise than signal.