Question 1

How do I build luaffi on Windows?

Accepted Answer

Use the msvcbuild.bat script in a Visual Studio command prompt with targets like 'release' or 'debug'. Edit the batch file if your Lua installation differs from the default C:\Lua5.1 path.

Question 2

Luaffi vs LuaJIT FFI: which is better for standard Lua?

Accepted Answer

Luaffi is ideal for standard Lua 5.1/5.2 when you need LuaJIT-like FFI without the full environment, but it has casting differences and missing features. Choose LuaJIT if exact compatibility and performance are critical and LuaJIT is an option.

Question 3

Can luaffi parse C++ header files directly?

Accepted Answer

It can parse C declarations from headers, but has limitations with C++ features like reference types and vectors, as noted in the todo list. It's best suited for C interop rather than full C++ support.

Question 4

How do I call a C function from Lua using luaffi?

Accepted Answer

Copy the C function declaration into a Lua string, use ffi.cdef to parse it, then access the function via ffi.C or a loaded library. The JIT compilation handles argument passing and execution efficiently.

Question 5

Is luaffi compatible with Lua 5.3 or later?

Accepted Answer

The README only mentions Lua 5.1 and 5.2 support. Compatibility with Lua 5.3 or later is not officially stated, so check GitHub issues or test it for newer versions.

Question 6

What are the performance implications of using luaffi?

Accepted Answer

Luaffi uses dynasm JIT for C calls, offering performance similar to LuaJIT FFI in standard Lua. However, as a standalone library, it might have slight overhead compared to LuaJIT's integrated approach.

luaffi

What is luaffi?

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