SPIRV-Tools Optimizer

Writing optimizer passes for SPIRV-Tools (src/ext/SPIRV-Tools).

Pass Skeleton

Derive from spvtools::opt::Pass (or MemPass for mem2reg-style passes), implement name() and Process().

// source/opt/my_pass.h
#ifndef SOURCE_OPT_MY_PASS_H_
#define SOURCE_OPT_MY_PASS_H_
#include "source/opt/pass.h"
namespace spvtools::opt {
class MyPass : public Pass {
 public:
  const char* name() const override { return "my-pass"; }
  Status Process() override;
  IRContext::Analysis GetPreservedAnalyses() override {
    return IRContext::kAnalysisDefUse | IRContext::kAnalysisCFG;
  }
};
}  // namespace spvtools::opt
#endif

// source/opt/my_pass.cpp
#include "source/opt/my_pass.h"
namespace spvtools::opt {
Pass::Status MyPass::Process() {
  bool modified = false;
  // Iterate functions
  for (auto& func : *get_module()) {
    for (auto& block : func) {
      for (auto& inst : block) {
        // transform inst...
        modified = true;
      }
    }
  }
  return modified ? Status::SuccessWithChange : Status::SuccessWithoutChange;
}
}  // namespace spvtools::opt

Rules:

• name() must match the --my-pass CLI flag used in RegisterPassFromFlag (no leading hyphens).
• Process() must return Status::Failure only on real errors.
• If you modify the module, return Status::SuccessWithChange; the pass manager invalidates analyses not listed in GetPreservedAnalyses().
• A single pass instance may only run once; internal state does not reset.

MemPass base class

Many load/store elimination passes derive from MemPass instead of Pass:

#include "source/opt/mem_pass.h"
class MyMemPass : public MemPass {
  // Inherits helpers: GetPtr(), IsTargetVar(), CollectTargetVars(),
  // HasOnlyNamesAndDecorates(), KillAllInsts(), Type2Undef(), etc.
};

Key APIs

Module / IRContext

Module* m = get_module();           // or context()->module()
IRContext* ctx = context();

m->ForEachInst([](Instruction* inst){ /* all insts */ }, true);
ctx->get_def_use_mgr();             // analysis::DefUseManager
ctx->get_type_mgr();                // analysis::TypeManager
ctx->get_constant_mgr();            // analysis::ConstantManager
ctx->get_decoration_mgr();          // analysis::DecorationManager
ctx->cfg();                         // CFG
ctx->GetValueNumberTable();         // ValueNumberTable
ctx->GetStructuredCFGAnalysis();    // StructuredCFGAnalysis
ctx->InvalidateAnalyses(IRContext::kAnalysisDefUse | IRContext::kAnalysisCFG);
ctx->IsConsistent();                // debug invariant check

Instruction

spv::Op opcode = inst->opcode();
uint32_t rid = inst->result_id();   // 0 if none
uint32_t tid = inst->type_id();     // 0 if none

// Operands: inst->begin() .. inst->end()
for (auto& op : *inst) {
  if (spvIsIdType(op.type)) { uint32_t id = op.words[0]; }
}

uint32_t val = inst->GetSingleWordInOperand(idx);
inst->NumInOperands();
inst->SetResultId(new_id);
inst->SetResultType(new_type_id);
inst->SetInOperand(idx, {new_val});
inst->ToBinary(&words);

// Predicates
inst->IsBranch();
inst->IsBlockTerminator();
inst->IsDecoration();
inst->IsConstant();
inst->IsLoad();
inst->IsNop();
inst->ToNop();        // turns instruction into OpNop

BasicBlock

for (auto& block : func) {  // func is a Function&
  uint32_t label = block.id();
  Instruction* label_inst = block.GetLabelInst();
  Instruction* merge = block.GetMergeInst();       // OpSelectionMerge / OpLoopMerge
  Instruction* loop_merge = block.GetLoopMergeInst();
  bool has_phi = block.HasPhiInstructions();

  // Iterate instructions (label included if you use ForEachInst)
  for (auto& inst : block) { }
  block.ForEachInst([](Instruction* i){ }, true);  // true = include debug lines

  // Terminator helpers
  block.ForEachSuccessorLabels([](uint32_t id){ });
  bool is_loop_header = block.IsLoopHeader();
  uint32_t merge_id = block.MergeBlockIdIfAny();
  uint32_t continue_id = block.ContinueBlockIdIfAny();
  Instruction* term = block.terminator();
}

Function

for (auto& func : *get_module()) {
  uint32_t func_id = func->DefInst().result_id();
  bool is_declaration = func->IsDeclaration();
  func->ForEachParam([](Instruction* param){ });
  // iterate blocks (func is a Function& from the module loop)
  for (auto& block : func) { }
}

Function does not have an IsEntryPoint() method. Check entry points via the module:

bool IsEntryPoint(Function* func, Module* module) {
  for (auto& entry : module->entry_points()) {
    // OpEntryPoint: operand 0 = execution model, operand 1 = function id
    if (entry.GetSingleWordInOperand(1) == func->result_id()) return true;
  }
  return false;
}

Building Instructions

#include "source/opt/ir_builder.h"

// Insert before an instruction
InstructionBuilder b(context(), insertion_point,
  IRContext::kAnalysisInstrToBlockMapping | IRContext::kAnalysisDefUse);

// Or append to end of a block
InstructionBuilder b(context(), parent_block,
  IRContext::kAnalysisInstrToBlockMapping | IRContext::kAnalysisDefUse);

Instruction* add = b.AddBinaryOp(type_id, spv::Op::OpIAdd, lhs, rhs);
Instruction* extract = b.AddCompositeExtract(elem_type_id, composite_id, {idx0, idx1});
Instruction* construct = b.AddCompositeConstruct(type_id, {id0, id1});
Instruction* load = b.AddLoad(type_id, ptr_id);
Instruction* store = b.AddStore(ptr_id, value_id);
Instruction* branch = b.AddBranch(target_id);
Instruction* cbranch = b.AddConditionalBranch(cond_id, true_id, false_id);
Instruction* cbranch_with_merge = b.AddConditionalBranch(cond_id, true_id, false_id, merge_id);
Instruction* phi = b.AddPhi(type_id, {val0, block0, val1, block1});
Instruction* unary = b.AddUnaryOp(type_id, spv::Op::OpConvertFToS, operand);
Instruction* nullary = b.AddNullaryOp(type_id, spv::Op::OpGroupAll);
Instruction* select = b.AddSelect(type_id, cond_id, true_id, false_id);
Instruction* access = b.AddAccessChain(ptr_type_id, base_ptr_id, {idx_id0, idx_id1});
Instruction* var = b.AddVariable(ptr_type_id, static_cast<uint32_t>(spv::StorageClass::Function));

InstructionBuilder can only preserve kAnalysisDefUse and kAnalysisInstrToBlockMapping; other analyses must be invalidated/rebuilt explicitly.

Replacing / Killing

// Replace all uses of old_id with new_id
ctx->ReplaceAllUsesWith(old_id, new_id);

// Replace uses only when predicate returns true
ctx->ReplaceAllUsesWithPredicate(old_id, new_id, [](Instruction* user) {
  return user->opcode() == spv::Op::OpStore;
});

// Kill an instruction (removes from block, updates def-use)
ctx->KillInst(inst);

// Kill an id and all its uses
ctx->KillDef(id);

// Get the defining instruction for an id
Instruction* def = ctx->get_def_use_mgr()->GetDef(id);

// Get users of an id
ctx->get_def_use_mgr()->ForEachUser(id, [](Instruction* user){ });
uint32_t n = ctx->get_def_use_mgr()->NumUsers(id);

Safe Iteration & Phi Nodes

When deleting instructions while iterating, collect first and kill after:

std::vector<Instruction*> to_kill;
get_module()->ForEachInst([&](Instruction* inst) {
  if (inst->IsNop()) to_kill.push_back(inst);
}, false);
for (auto* inst : to_kill) context()->KillInst(inst);

Phi operands arrive as (value_id, parent_block_id) pairs:

if (inst->opcode() == spv::Op::OpPhi) {
  for (uint32_t i = 0; i + 1 < inst->NumInOperands(); i += 2) {
    uint32_t value = inst->GetSingleWordInOperand(i);
    uint32_t parent = inst->GetSingleWordInOperand(i + 1);
  }
}

Testing

Tests live in test/opt/. Use PassTest<::testing::Test> fixture.

#include "gmock/gmock.h"
#include "gtest/gtest.h"
#include "test/opt/pass_fixture.h"
#include "test/opt/pass_utils.h"
#include "source/opt/my_pass.h"

using MyPassTest = PassTest<::testing::Test>;

TEST_F(MyPassTest, Basic) {
  const std::string before = R"(
OpCapability Shader
OpMemoryModel Logical GLSL450
%void = OpTypeVoid
%main = OpFunction %void None %void
%entry = OpLabel
OpReturn
OpFunctionEnd
)";
  const std::string after = before;
  SinglePassRunAndCheck<MyPass>(before, after, /*skip_nop=*/false, /*do_validation=*/false);
}

Fixture helpers:

• SinglePassRunAndCheck<PassT>(before, after, skip_nop, do_validation, args...) — exact match.
• SinglePassRunAndCheck<PassT>(before, after, skip_nop, args...) — overload without validation.
• SinglePassRunAndMatch<PassT>(original, do_validation, args...) — runs pass, disassembles, then checks with Effcee CHECK: patterns embedded in original. Always skips OpNop. Returns std::tuple<std::string, Pass::Status>.
• SinglePassRunAndFail<PassT>(original, args...) — expects Status::Failure, checks error messages with Effcee CHECK: patterns embedded in original.
• SinglePassRunToBinary<PassT>(assembly, skip_nop, args...) — returns std::tuple<std::vector<uint32_t>, Pass::Status>.
• SetAssembleOptions(SPV_TEXT_TO_BINARY_OPTION_PRESERVE_NUMERIC_IDS) — keep ids from assembly.
• SetDisassembleOptions(SPV_BINARY_TO_TEXT_OPTION_NO_HEADER) — omit SPIR-V header in output.
• SetTargetEnv(spv_target_env) — change target environment (default SPV_ENV_UNIVERSAL_1_3).

For match tests, embed CHECK: lines as comments in the assembly string:

const std::string assembly = R"(
; CHECK: OpReturn
OpCapability Shader
OpMemoryModel Logical GLSL450
%void = OpTypeVoid
%main = OpFunction %void None %void
%entry = OpLabel
OpReturn
OpFunctionEnd
)";
SinglePassRunAndMatch<MyPass>(assembly, false);

Multi-pass tests

TEST_F(MyPassTest, Pipeline) {
  const std::string before = R"(... )";
  const std::string after = R"(... )";
  AddPass<MyFirstPass>();
  AddPass<MySecondPass>();
  RunAndCheck(before, after);
}

Manual context tests

#include "source/opt/build_module.h"

TEST(MyPass, Manual) {
  std::unique_ptr<IRContext> ctx =
    BuildModule(SPV_ENV_UNIVERSAL_1_3, nullptr, assembly,
                SPV_TEXT_TO_BINARY_OPTION_PRESERVE_NUMERIC_IDS);
  ASSERT_NE(ctx, nullptr);
  MyPass pass;
  auto status = pass.Run(ctx.get());
  EXPECT_EQ(status, Pass::Status::SuccessWithChange);
  EXPECT_TRUE(ctx->IsConsistent());
}

Registering a Pass

1. Add header to source/opt/passes.h (or include directly).
2. Add CreateMyPassPass() factory declaration to include/spirv-tools/optimizer.hpp:

Optimizer::PassToken CreateMyPassPass();

3. Implement factory in source/opt/optimizer.cpp:

Optimizer::PassToken CreateMyPassPass() {
  return MakeUnique<Optimizer::PassToken::Impl>(MakeUnique<opt::MyPass>());
}

4. Add CLI flag mapping in source/opt/optimizer.cpp inside Optimizer::RegisterPassFromFlag:

} else if (pass_name == "my-pass") {
  RegisterPass(CreateMyPassPass());

5. Add source files to source/opt/CMakeLists.txt:

  my_pass.h
  ...
  my_pass.cpp

6. Add a test target/file under test/opt/ (e.g. my_pass_test.cpp) and list it in test/opt/CMakeLists.txt.

Look at nearby passes in RegisterPassFromFlag for the exact pattern. Passes with arguments parse pass_args before calling RegisterPass(...).

Analyses & Invalidation

Available IRContext::Analysis bits:

• kAnalysisNone, kAnalysisDefUse, kAnalysisInstrToBlockMapping, kAnalysisDecorations
• kAnalysisCombinators
• kAnalysisCFG, kAnalysisDominatorAnalysis, kAnalysisLoopAnalysis
• kAnalysisNameMap, kAnalysisScalarEvolution, kAnalysisRegisterPressure
• kAnalysisValueNumberTable, kAnalysisStructuredCFG, kAnalysisBuiltinVarId
• kAnalysisIdToFuncMapping, kAnalysisConstants, kAnalysisTypes
• kAnalysisDebugInfo, kAnalysisLiveness, kAnalysisIdToGraphMapping

After Process() returns SuccessWithChange, the pass manager automatically calls:

ctx->InvalidateAnalysesExceptFor(GetPreservedAnalyses());

If you mutate IDs outside normal helpers (e.g. CompactIdsPass), manually invalidate kAnalysisDebugInfo and any others that become stale mid-pass.

If you need an analysis inside Process() and are not preserving it, it is usually fine to request it via ctx->get_def_use_mgr() etc.; the manager will build it on demand. Just make sure GetPreservedAnalyses() reflects what survives your transformations.

Pass Manager / Recipes

spvtools::Optimizer opt(SPV_ENV_UNIVERSAL_1_3);
opt.SetMessageConsumer([](spv_message_level_t, const char*, const spv_position_t&, const char* msg) {
  std::cerr << msg << std::endl;
});
opt.RegisterPass(spvtools::CreateCompactIdsPass())
    .RegisterPass(spvtools::CreateAggressiveDCEPass());
opt.Run(binary.data(), binary.size(), &optimized);

Built-in recipes:

• RegisterPerformancePasses() / RegisterSizePasses() / RegisterLegalizationPasses()
• All three also have overloads taking a bool preserve_interface argument.

File Map

File	Purpose
source/opt/pass.h / pass.cpp	Base Pass class
source/opt/mem_pass.h / mem_pass.cpp	MemPass base for mem2reg-style passes
source/opt/empty_pass.h / null_pass.h	No-op passes for testing
source/opt/ir_context.h / ir_context.cpp	IRContext, analysis management
source/opt/module.h	Module, header, section lists
source/opt/function.h	Function
source/opt/basic_block.h	BasicBlock
source/opt/instruction.h	Instruction, Operand, DebugScope
source/opt/ir_builder.h	InstructionBuilder
source/opt/def_use_manager.h	DefUseManager
source/opt/type_manager.h	TypeManager
source/opt/constants.h	ConstantManager
source/opt/cfg.h	CFG
source/opt/fold.h	Folder (constant folding)
source/opt/passes.h	Unified include for all pass headers
test/opt/pass_fixture.h	PassTest fixture
include/spirv-tools/optimizer.hpp	Public C++ API
source/opt/optimizer.cpp	Pass factories & CLI flag dispatch
examples/cpp-interface/main.cpp	Example of assemble / validate / optimize / disassemble