Linked native module initialization function receives module name instead of module object

[kaero]

Linked and built-in native modules initialization function receive v8::String as second argument instead of v8::Object instance of Module. It makes impossible to export something except precreated exports object.

Dynamic modules initialization:
https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/v5.4.1/src/node.cc#L2193-L2268

void DLOpen(const FunctionCallbackInfo<Value>& args) {
  // ...
  Local<Object> module = args[0]->ToObject(env->isolate());  // Cast
  // ...
  Local<Object> exports = module->Get(exports_string)->ToObject(env->isolate());

  if (mp->nm_context_register_func != nullptr) {
    mp->nm_context_register_func(exports, module, env->context(), mp->nm_priv);
  } else if (mp->nm_register_func != nullptr) {
    mp->nm_register_func(exports, module, mp->nm_priv);
  } 
  // ...
}

Linked modules initalization:
https://github.com/nodejs/node/blob/v5.4.1/src/node.cc#L2400-L2428

static void LinkedBinding(const FunctionCallbackInfo<Value>& args) {
  // ...
  Local<String> module = args[0]->ToString(env->isolate());
  // ...
  Local<Object> exports = Object::New(env->isolate());
  if (mod->nm_context_register_func != nullptr) {
    mod->nm_context_register_func(exports,
                                  module,
                                  env->context(),
                                  mod->nm_priv);
  } else if (mod->nm_register_func != nullptr) {
    mod->nm_register_func(exports, module, mod->nm_priv);
  }
  // ...
  cache->Set(module, exports);
  args.GetReturnValue().Set(exports);
}

nodejs/help#44

\cc @indutny

[kaero]

Btw, node.js doesn't provide any public interface to initialize linked modules. I think it's possible to add the initialization of linked modules to require by hacking Module._load() a bit.

[bnoordhuis]

I think we'd entertain patches for the bug in LinkedBinding() but anything that touches lib/module.js will most likely get roundly rejected.

[kaero]

anything that touches lib/module.js will most likely get roundly rejected.

Holy cow detected ;)

@bnoordhuis Is it safe to continue to use process._linkedBinding? May it be renamed it to linkedBinding to became more "public"? Any documentation about building node.js with linked modules will be nice to have, now this feature looks like the sacred knowledge.

[bnoordhuis]

It's not really public API, the intended audience are embedders and people rolling their own node packages. As such, the underscore prefix seems appropriate to me; we won't intentionally break it but neither will we bend over backwards to maintain backwards compatibility.