CODEWITHSUNDEEP
javaspringaopaspectj
Nihamata
Nihamata

Reputation: 57

Do some action after a method call inside another method

I want to do some specific actions after a non public method (bar) is called. This method is called inside another method (foo). Note that "bar" and "foo" both are defined in a third-party jar file.

I tried to do that using @before annotation in Aspect oriented programming using spring. However, I could not do that.

Could any one let me know how can I do specific thing (call a specific function) after a specific function from a jar file is called?

Upvotes: 0

Views: 2678

Answers (2)

Gervasio Amy
Gervasio Amy

Reputation: 295

Avoid using Spring AOP. It will not allow you to do that since Spring creates a proxy to aspectize a bean, thus, only calls to the "proxy" will be aspectized. It means, if you have a bean of that third party class (let call it fooBean), when you execeute fooBean.foo() you are actually going through the proxy which has the aspect logic, but once foo() method is executed, then internal calls, as for example the call to bar() will no longer go thought that proxy, so, there will be no aspect there.

Mybe running into a more complex solution as using pure AspectJ might help you, since it is not based on proxys, it just enhances compiled bytecodes

Upvotes: 0

kriegaex
kriegaex

Reputation: 67297

As Gervasio Amy suggested, you need to use AspectJ, not Spring AOP. If you are in a Spring environment, you can use AspectJ within Spring instead of Spring AOP, this is no problem. If you are not using Spring yet, AOP is not a reason to start using it, AspectJ works in simple Java SE (or EE) versions without Spring.

What you need to to is:

  • Compile your Aspect code with the AspectJ compiler ajc. (You can also compile your whole application with it because it is also a replacement for the Java compiler javac.)
  • Create a load-time weaving configuration aop.xml so as to enable your application to weave aspect code into 3rd party libraries on the fly during class-loading. I leave it up to you to figure out how to do that, just check the LTW documentation.
  • Start your JVM or application server with the AspectJ weaving agent on the command line via -javaagent:/path/to/aspectjweaver.jar switch.

Now what would the aspect you want look like? Let us try a few variants and refine the pointcut so as to make it match. But first let us set the stage for our experiments with a few sample 3rd party classes (Foo and Bar) and a little driver application (Application):

Sample application & 3rd party code: 

package my.thirdparty.application;

public class Foo {
    void blah() {
        zot();
    }

    void foo() {}

    void zot() {
        foo();
    }
}

package my.thirdparty.application;

public class Bar {
    Foo foo = new Foo();

    public void doSomething() {
        someMethod();
        bar();
        anotherMethod();
    }

    private void someMethod() {
        foo.blah();
        foo.foo();
        foo.zot();
    }

    private void bar() {
        foo.blah();
        // This is the only call we want to intercept, 'foo' called by 'bar'
        foo.foo();
        foo.zot();
        anotherMethod();
    }

    private void anotherMethod() {
        foo.blah();
        foo.foo();
        foo.zot();
    }
}

package de.scrum_master.app;

import my.thirdparty.application.Bar;

public class Application {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        new Bar().doSomething();
    }
}

As you can see, Application.main creates a Bar object and calls a public method Bar.doSomething. This method triggers a series of other method calls, some of which end up in Foo.foo being called indirectly, but only one single direct call is being made from Bar.bar to Foo.foo (which is what we are interested in according to your question).

Aspect, part #1: intercept all calls to Foo.foo

package de.scrum_master.aspect;

import my.thirdparty.application.Foo;
import my.thirdparty.application.Bar;

public aspect MethodInterceptor {
    pointcut allCalls() :
        call(* Foo.foo(..));

    Object around(Foo fooObject) : allCalls() && target(fooObject) {
        System.out.println(thisJoinPointStaticPart + " -> caller = " + thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart);
        //new Exception("printing stack trace").printStackTrace(System.out);
        //System.out.println();
        return proceed(fooObject);
    }
}

Console log:

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.someMethod())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())

This is a nice start, because now we can already intercept all calls to Foo.foo. But how about limiting the interceptions to those calls which are being made from within a control flow (cflow) of Bar.bar?

Aspect, part #2: intercept calls to Foo.foo made (in-)directly by Bar.bar

package de.scrum_master.aspect;

import my.thirdparty.application.Foo;
import my.thirdparty.application.Bar;

public aspect MethodInterceptor {
    pointcut indirectCalls() :
        call(* Foo.foo(..)) && cflow(execution(* Bar.bar(..)));

    Object around(Foo fooObject) : indirectCalls() && target(fooObject) {
        System.out.println(thisJoinPointStaticPart + " -> caller = " + thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart);
        //new Exception("printing stack trace").printStackTrace(System.out);
        //System.out.println();
        return proceed(fooObject);
    }
}

Console log:

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod())
call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())

Now this looks much better than before, we narrowed down our previous result of intercepted 12 calls down to 6. But how does it happen that we have callers like Foo.zot and Bar.anotherMethod in the result list, even though we said we wanted to limit the control flow to Bar.bar? The answer is simple: Those two methods were also directly or indirectly called by Bar.bar and are thus within the control flow. We see this more clearly if we inspect the call stacks (just uncomment the two log statements in the code):

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo_aroundBody1$advice(Foo.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot(Foo.java:11)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.blah(Foo.java:5)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:19)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.foo_aroundBody3$advice(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:21)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo_aroundBody1$advice(Foo.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot(Foo.java:11)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo_aroundBody1$advice(Foo.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot(Foo.java:11)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.blah(Foo.java:5)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod(Bar.java:27)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:23)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.foo_aroundBody5$advice(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod(Bar.java:28)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:23)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo_aroundBody1$advice(Foo.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Foo.zot(Foo.java:11)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod(Bar.java:29)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:23)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

If you inspect the 6 callstacks, you find Bar.bar in each of them. So the cflow pointcut has done just what we told it to.

Can we get even better? How about telling the aspect not just limit the callee (target) object to Foo but also the to also the caller (this) object to Bar?

Aspect, part #3: intercept calls to Foo.foo made (in-)directly by Bar.bar, but definitely from a Bar object

package de.scrum_master.aspect;

import my.thirdparty.application.Foo;
import my.thirdparty.application.Bar;

public aspect MethodInterceptor {
    pointcut callsFromBar(Bar barObject) :
        call(* Foo.foo(..)) && cflow(execution(* Bar.bar(..))) && this(barObject);

    Object around(Foo fooObject, Bar barObject) : callsFromBar(barObject) && target(fooObject) {
        System.out.println(thisJoinPointStaticPart + " -> caller = " + thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart);
        new Exception("printing stack trace").printStackTrace(System.out);
        System.out.println();
        return proceed(fooObject, barObject);
    }
}

Console log:

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.foo_aroundBody3$advice(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:21)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.foo_aroundBody5$advice(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.anotherMethod(Bar.java:28)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:23)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

We are getting better and better: down to 2 interceptions from 6. The one from Bar.anotherMethod is still unwanted because it was only indirectly triggered by Bar.bar and our ambition is to only intercept direct calls. Okay, then let us get even more precise:

Aspect, part #4: intercept calls to Foo.foo made directly by Bar.bar, no indirection permitted

package de.scrum_master.aspect;

import my.thirdparty.application.Foo;
import my.thirdparty.application.Bar;

public aspect MethodInterceptor {
    pointcut directCalls(Bar barObject) :
        call(* Foo.foo(..)) && cflow(execution(* Bar.bar(..))) && this(barObject) &&
        if("bar".equals(thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart.getSignature().getName()));

    Object around(Foo fooObject, Bar barObject) : directCalls(barObject) && target(fooObject) {
        System.out.println(thisJoinPointStaticPart + " -> caller = " + thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart);
        new Exception("printing stack trace").printStackTrace(System.out);
        System.out.println();
        return proceed(fooObject, barObject);
    }
}

Console log:

call(void my.thirdparty.application.Foo.foo()) -> caller = execution(void my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar())
java.lang.Exception: printing stack trace
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.foo_aroundBody3$advice(Bar.java:22)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.bar(Bar.java:21)
    at my.thirdparty.application.Bar.doSomething(Bar.java:8)
    at de.scrum_master.app.Application.main(Application.java:7)

Et voilà! This is what we wanted in the first place. Let us recapitulate what we have just done in order to narrow down the pointcut:

  • call(* Foo.foo(..)) - only calls to Foo.foo
  • cflow(execution(* Bar.bar(..))) - only with the execution of Bar.bar in the control flow
  • this(barObject) - the caller must be a Bar object
  • target(fooObject) - the callee must be a Foo object
  • if("bar".equals(thisEnclosingJoinPointStaticPart.getSignature().getName())) - a dynamic runtime condition checks if the direct caller's method name is really bar

I hope this solves your problem and was not too verbose. I wanted to do it tutorial-style so as to enable you to understand how to solve advanced AOP problems like this one. Enjoy!

Upvotes: 3

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