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Replace #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] with #[rustc_dyn_incompatible_trait]#148637

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rust-bors[bot] merged 1 commit intorust-lang:mainfrom
zachs18:rustc_dyn_incompatible
Jan 21, 2026
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Replace #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] with #[rustc_dyn_incompatible_trait]#148637
rust-bors[bot] merged 1 commit intorust-lang:mainfrom
zachs18:rustc_dyn_incompatible

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@zachs18 zachs18 commented Nov 7, 2025

Background: #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] on a trait currently still allows dyn Trait to exist (if the trait is otherwise dyn-compatible), it just means that dyn Trait does not automatically implement Trait via the normal object candidate. For some traits, this means that dyn Trait does not implement Trait at all (e.g. Unsize and Tuple). For some traits, this means that dyn Trait implements Trait, but with different associated types (e.g. Pointee, DiscriminantKind). Both of these cases can can cause issues with codegen , as seen in #148089 (and #148089 (comment) ), because codegen assumes that if dyn Trait does not implement Trait (including if dyn Trait<Assoc = T> does not implement Trait with Assoc == T), then dyn Trait cannot be constructed, so vtable accesses on dyn Trait are unreachable, but this is not the case if dyn Trait has multiple supertraits: one which is #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object], and one which we are doing the vtable access to call a method from.

This PR replaces #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] with #[rustc_dyn_incompatible_trait], which makes the marked trait dyn-incompatible, making dyn Trait not well-formed, instead of it being well-formed but not implementing Trait. This resolves #148089 by making it not compile.

May fix #148615

The traits that are currently marked #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] are: Sized, MetaSized, PointeeSized, TransmuteFrom, Unsize, BikeshedGuaranteedNoDrop, DiscriminantKind, Destruct, Tuple, FnPtr, Pointee. Of these:

  • Sized and FnPtr are already not dyn-compatible (FnPtr: Copy, which implies Sized)
  • MetaSized
    • Removed #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object]. Still dyn-compatible after this change. (Has a special-case in the trait solvers to ignore the object candidate for dyn MetaSized, since it dyn MetaSized: MetSized comes from the sized candidate that all dyn Trait get.)
  • PointeeSized
    • Removed #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object]. It doesn't seem to have been doing anything anyway (playground), since PointeeSized is removed before trait solving(?).
  • Pointee, DiscriminantKind, Unsize, and Tuple being dyn-compatible without having dyn Trait: Trait (with same assoc tys) can be observed to cause codegen issues (Segfault on nightly with feature Pointer Metadata #148089) so should be made dyn-incompatible
  • Destruct, TransmuteFrom, and BikeshedGuaranteedNoDrop I'm not sure if would be useful as object types, but they can be relaxed to being dyn-compatible later if it is determined they should be.

resolved

Questions before merge:

  1. dyn MetaSized: MetaSized having both SizedCandidate and ObjectCandidate
    1. I'm not sure if the checks in compiler/rustc_trait_selection/src/traits/project.rs and compiler/rustc_next_trait_solver/src/solve/assembly/mod.rs were "load-bearing" for MetaSized (which is the only trait that was previously #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object] that is still dyn-compatible after this change). Is it fine to just remove them? Removing them (as I did in the second commit) doesn't change any UI test results.
    2. IIUC, dyn MetaSized could get its MetaSized implementation in two ways: the object candidate (the normal dyn Trait: Trait) that was supressed by #[rustc_do_not_implement_via_object], and the SizedCandidate (that all dyn Trait get for dyn Trait: MetaSized). Given that MetaSized has no associated types or methods, is it fine that these both exist now? Or is it better to only have the SizedCandidate and leave these checks in (i.e. drop the second commit, and remove the FIXMEs)?
    3. Resolved: the trait solvers special-case dyn MetaSized to ignore the object candidate in preference to the sizedness candidate (technically the check is for any is_sizedness_trait, but only MetaSized gets this far (Sized is inherently dyn-incompatible, and dyn PointeeSized is ill-formed for other reasons)
  2. Diagnostics improvements?
    1. The diagnostics are kinda bad. If you have a trait Foo: Pointee {}, you now get a note that reads like Foo "opted out of dyn-compatbility", when really Pointee did that.
    2. Resolved: can be improved later
diagnostic example
#![feature(ptr_metadata)]

trait C: std::ptr::Pointee {}

fn main() {
    let y: &dyn C;
}
error[E0038]: the trait `C` is not dyn compatible
  --> c.rs:6:17
   |
 6 |     let y: &dyn C;
   |                 ^ `C` is not dyn compatible
   |
note: for a trait to be dyn compatible it needs to allow building a vtable
      for more information, visit <https://doc.rust-lang.org/reference/items/traits.html#dyn-compatibility>
  --> /home/zachary/opt_mount/zachary/Programming/rust-compiler-2/library/core/src/ptr/metadata.rs:57:1
   |
57 | #[rustc_dyn_incompatible_trait]
   | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ...because it opted out of dyn-compatbility
   |
  ::: c.rs:3:7
   |
 3 | trait C: std::ptr::Pointee {}
   |       - this trait is not dyn compatible...

error: aborting due to 1 previous error

For more information about this error, try `rustc --explain E0038`.

Still investigating "3. compiler/rustc_hir/src/attrs/encode_cross_crate.rs: Should DynIncompatibleTrait attribute be encoded cross crate?"

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dyn Pointee should be prohibited? Segfault on nightly with feature Pointer Metadata

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