Annotation Type Impure


  • @Documented
    @Retention(RUNTIME)
    @Target({METHOD,CONSTRUCTOR})
    public @interface Impure
    Impure is a method annotation that means the method might have side effects and/or might be nondeterministic. Conceptually, it completes the "lattice" of purity annotations by serving as a top element. That is, any @Pure method can be treated as @SideEffectFree or @Deterministic, and any @SideEffectFree or @Deterministic method can be treated as @Impure.

    This annotation should not be written by a programmer, because leaving a method unannotated is equivalent to writing this annotation.

    The purpose of this annotation is for use by tools. A tool may distinguish between unannotated methods (that the tool has not yet examined) and @Impure methods (that the tool has determined to be neither @SideEffectFree nor @Deterministic).

    See the Checker Framework Manual:
    Side effects, determinism, purity, and flow-sensitive analysis