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📖 NAME

Scalar::Util - A selection of general-utility scalar subroutines

🚀 Quick Reference

Use Case	Command	Description
🔍 Check if a reference is blessed	blessed($ref)	Returns the package name of a blessed reference, or undef
📍 Get memory address of a reference	refaddr($ref)	Returns the internal memory address as a plain integer
🏷️ Get the base type of a reference	reftype($ref)	Returns the underlying Perl type (ARRAY, HASH, etc.)
🪶 Create a weak reference	weaken($ref)	Converts a reference to weak; does not increase refcount
💪 Strengthen a weak reference	unweaken($ref)	Restores a weak reference to normal (strong) status
🔎 Check if a reference is weak	isweak($ref)	Returns true if the reference is weak
🔢 Create a dual-valued scalar	dualvar($num, $string)	Returns a scalar with different numeric and string values
🔢 Check if a scalar is dual-valued	isdual($var)	Returns true if the scalar has both numeric and string values
🔤 Check if a scalar is a vstring	isvstring($var)	Returns true if the scalar was coded as a vstring
🔢 Check if a scalar looks like a number	looks_like_number($var)	Returns true if Perl thinks the scalar is a number
📂 Get an open filehandle	openhandle($fh)	Returns $fh itself if it is an open or tied filehandle
🔒 Check if a scalar is readonly	readonly($var)	Returns true if the scalar is readonly
⚙️ Set a function prototype	set_prototype($code, $prototype)	Sets or deletes the prototype of a code reference
⚠️ Check if a scalar is tainted	tainted($var)	Returns true if the scalar is tainted (under -T)

📝 SYNOPSIS

use Scalar::Util qw(blessed dualvar isdual readonly refaddr reftype
                    tainted weaken isweak isvstring looks_like_number
                    set_prototype);
                    # and other useful utils appearing below

📚 DESCRIPTION

Scalar::Util contains a selection of subroutines that people have expressed would be nice to have in the perl core, but the usage would not really be high enough to warrant the use of a keyword, and the size would be so small that being individual extensions would be wasteful.

By default Scalar::Util does not export any subroutines.

🔗 FUNCTIONS FOR REFERENCES

The following functions all perform some useful activity on reference values.

🔍 blessed

my $pkg = blessed( $ref );

If $ref is a blessed reference, the name of the package that it is blessed into is returned. Otherwise undef is returned.

$scalar = "foo";
$class  = blessed $scalar;           # undef

$ref    = [];
$class  = blessed $ref;              # undef

$obj    = bless [], "Foo";
$class  = blessed $obj;              # "Foo"

⚠️ Take care when using this function simply as a truth test (such as in if(blessed $ref)...) because the package name "0" is defined yet false.

📍 refaddr

my $addr = refaddr( $ref );

If $ref is reference, the internal memory address of the referenced value is returned as a plain integer. Otherwise undef is returned.

$addr = refaddr "string";           # undef
$addr = refaddr \$var;              # eg 12345678
$addr = refaddr [];                 # eg 23456784

$obj  = bless {}, "Foo";
$addr = refaddr $obj;               # eg 88123488

🏷️ reftype

my $type = reftype( $ref );

If $ref is a reference, the basic Perl type of the variable referenced is returned as a plain string (such as "ARRAY" or "HASH"). Otherwise undef is returned.

$type = reftype "string";           # undef
$type = reftype \$var;              # SCALAR
$type = reftype [];                 # ARRAY

$obj  = bless {}, "Foo";
$type = reftype $obj;               # HASH

💡 Note that for internal reasons, all precompiled regexps (qr/.../) are blessed references; thus ref() returns the package name string "Regexp" on these but reftype() will return the underlying C structure type of "REGEXP" in all capitals.

🪶 weaken

weaken( $ref );

The lvalue $ref will be turned into a weak reference. This means that it will not hold a reference count on the object it references. Also, when the reference count on that object reaches zero, the reference will be set to undef. This function mutates the lvalue passed as its argument and returns no value.

This is useful for keeping copies of references, but you don't want to prevent the object being DESTROY-ed at its usual time.

{
  my $var;
  $ref = \$var;
  weaken($ref);                     # Make $ref a weak reference
}
# $ref is now undef

⚠️ Note that if you take a copy of a scalar with a weakened reference, the copy will be a strong reference.

my $var;
my $foo = \$var;
weaken($foo);                       # Make $foo a weak reference
my $bar = $foo;                     # $bar is now a strong reference

This may be less obvious in other situations, such as grep(), for instance when grepping through a list of weakened references to objects that may have been destroyed already:

@object = grep { defined } @object;

This will indeed remove all references to destroyed objects, but the remaining references to objects will be strong, causing the remaining objects to never be destroyed because there is now always a strong reference to them in the @object array.

💪 unweaken

unweaken( $ref );

Since version 1.36.

The lvalue REF will be turned from a weak reference back into a normal (strong) reference again. This function mutates the lvalue passed as its argument and returns no value. This undoes the action performed by weaken.

This function is slightly neater and more convenient than the otherwise-equivalent code

my $tmp = $REF;
undef $REF;
$REF = $tmp;

(because in particular, simply assigning a weak reference back to itself does not work to unweaken it; $REF = $REF does not work).

🔎 isweak

my $weak = isweak( $ref );

Returns true if $ref is a weak reference.

$ref  = \$foo;
$weak = isweak($ref);               # false
weaken($ref);
$weak = isweak($ref);               # true

NOTE: Copying a weak reference creates a normal, strong, reference.

$copy = $ref;
$weak = isweak($copy);              # false

🛠️ OTHER FUNCTIONS

🔢 dualvar

my $var = dualvar( $num, $string );

Returns a scalar that has the value $num in a numeric context and the value $string in a string context.

$foo = dualvar 10, "Hello";
$num = $foo + 2;                    # 12
$str = $foo . " world";             # Hello world

🔢 isdual

my $dual = isdual( $var );

Since version 1.26.

If $var is a scalar that has both numeric and string values, the result is true.

$foo = dualvar 86, "Nix";
$dual = isdual($foo);               # true

Note that a scalar can be made to have both string and numeric content through standard operations:

$foo = "10";
$dual = isdual($foo);               # false
$bar = $foo + 0;
$dual = isdual($foo);               # true

The $! variable is commonly dual-valued, though it is also magical in other ways:

$! = 1;
$dual = isdual($!);                 # true
print("$!\n");                      # "Operation not permitted"

CAUTION: This function is not as useful as it may seem. Dualvars are not a distinct concept in Perl, but a standard internal construct of all scalar values. Almost any value could be considered as a dualvar by this function through the course of normal operations.

🔤 isvstring

my $vstring = isvstring( $var );

If $var is a scalar which was coded as a vstring, the result is true.

$vs   = v49.46.48;
$fmt  = isvstring($vs) ? "%vd" : "%s"; #true
printf($fmt,$vs);

🔢 looks_like_number

my $isnum = looks_like_number( $var );

Returns true if perl thinks $var is a number. See looks_like_number in perlapi.

📂 openhandle

my $fh = openhandle( $fh );

Returns $fh itself, if $fh may be used as a filehandle and is open, or if it is a tied handle. Otherwise undef is returned.

$fh = openhandle(*STDIN);           # \*STDIN
$fh = openhandle(\*STDIN);          # \*STDIN
$fh = openhandle(*NOTOPEN);         # undef
$fh = openhandle("scalar");         # undef

🔒 readonly

my $ro = readonly( $var );

Returns true if $var is readonly.

sub foo { readonly($_[0]) }

$readonly = foo($bar);              # false
$readonly = foo(0);                 # true

⚙️ set_prototype

my $code = set_prototype( $code, $prototype );

Sets the prototype of the function given by the $code reference, or deletes it if $prototype is undef. Returns the $code reference itself.

set_prototype \&foo, '$$';

⚠️ tainted

my $t = tainted( $var );

Return true if $var is tainted.

$taint = tainted("constant");       # false
$taint = tainted($ENV{PWD});        # true if running under -T

⚠️ DIAGNOSTICS

Module use may give one of the following errors during import.

• Vstrings are not implemented in this version of perl — The version of perl that you are using does not implement Vstrings, to use isvstring you will need to use a newer release of perl.

🐛 KNOWN BUGS

There is a bug in perl5.6.0 with UV's that are >= 1<<31. This will show up as tests 8 and 9 of dualvar.t failing

📎 SEE ALSO

List::Util

©️ COPYRIGHT

Copyright (c) 1997-2007 Graham Barr <gbarr AT pobox.com>. All rights reserved. This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.

Additionally weaken and isweak which are

Copyright (c) 1999 Tuomas J. Lukka <lukka AT iki.fi>. All rights reserved. This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as perl itself.

Copyright (C) 2004, 2008 Matthijs van Duin. All rights reserved. Copyright (C) 2014 cPanel Inc. All rights reserved. This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.

📖 NAME 🚀 Quick Reference 📝 SYNOPSIS 📚 DESCRIPTION 🔗 FUNCTIONS FOR REFERENCES 🛠️ OTHER FUNCTIONS ⚠️ DIAGNOSTICS 🐛 KNOWN BUGS 📎 SEE ALSO ©️ COPYRIGHT