NullPointerException: Cannot invoke "TypeBinding.kind()" because "type" is null

[liefke]

I just migrated from Eclipse 2022-12 to 2023-03.

Now I get the following exception when building or editing some of the classes in my project:

java.lang.NullPointerException: Cannot invoke "org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.TypeBinding.kind()" because "type" is null
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.LookupEnvironment.convertToRawType(LookupEnvironment.java:844)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.RawTypeBinding.initializeArguments(RawTypeBinding.java:238)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ParameterizedTypeBinding.substitute(ParameterizedTypeBinding.java:1432)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.Scope$Substitutor.substitute(Scope.java:586)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.Scope.substitute(Scope.java:530)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ParameterizedFieldBinding.<init>(ParameterizedFieldBinding.java:36)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ParameterizedTypeBinding.fields(ParameterizedTypeBinding.java:609)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ParameterizedTypeBinding.getField(ParameterizedTypeBinding.java:803)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.Scope.findField(Scope.java:1437)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.Scope.findField(Scope.java:1383)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.MethodScope.findField(MethodScope.java:473)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.BlockScope.getBinding(BlockScope.java:623)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.ast.QualifiedNameReference.resolveType(QualifiedNameReference.java:1029)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.ast.MemberValuePair.resolveTypeExpecting(MemberValuePair.java:93)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.ast.Annotation.resolveType(Annotation.java:932)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.ast.ASTNode.resolveAnnotations(ASTNode.java:958)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.ast.ASTNode.resolveAnnotations(ASTNode.java:788)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.SourceTypeBinding.initAnnotationTagBits(SourceTypeBinding.java:1657)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.SourceTypeBinding.getAnnotationTagBits(SourceTypeBinding.java:1642)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.SourceTypeBinding.getNullDefault(SourceTypeBinding.java:2054)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ClassScope.hasDefaultNullnessFor(ClassScope.java:1737)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ClassScope.findSupertype(ClassScope.java:1671)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ClassScope.connectSuperclass(ClassScope.java:1176)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ClassScope.connectTypeHierarchy(ClassScope.java:1454)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.CompilationUnitScope.connectTypeHierarchy(CompilationUnitScope.java:394)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.LookupEnvironment.completeTypeBindings(LookupEnvironment.java:521)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.Compiler.internalBeginToCompile(Compiler.java:881)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.Compiler.beginToCompile(Compiler.java:394)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.dom.CompilationUnitResolver.resolve(CompilationUnitResolver.java:1248)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.dom.CompilationUnitResolver.resolve(CompilationUnitResolver.java:790)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.dom.ASTParser.internalCreateAST(ASTParser.java:1245)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.dom.ASTParser.createAST(ASTParser.java:868)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.manipulation.CoreASTProvider$1.run(CoreASTProvider.java:294)
	at org.eclipse.core.runtime.SafeRunner.run(SafeRunner.java:45)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.manipulation.CoreASTProvider.createAST(CoreASTProvider.java:286)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.manipulation.CoreASTProvider.getAST(CoreASTProvider.java:199)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.core.manipulation.SharedASTProviderCore.getAST(SharedASTProviderCore.java:138)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.ui.viewsupport.SelectionListenerWithASTManager$PartListenerGroup.calculateASTandInform(SelectionListenerWithASTManager.java:166)
	at org.eclipse.jdt.internal.ui.viewsupport.SelectionListenerWithASTManager$PartListenerGroup$1.run(SelectionListenerWithASTManager.java:151)
	at org.eclipse.core.internal.jobs.Worker.run(Worker.java:63)

I could narrow the problem down to this class:

package mypackage;

@Deprecated(since = Example.SINCE)
class Example<T> implements Serializable {
	
	static final String SINCE = "...";

	private T target;

}

The real class looks different and is much more complex, Serializable and Deprecated are just examples. The problem occurs with any other annotation or interface and even when dropping the implements Serializable and using a super class instead. If I import Example into another class (even without using it), I get the same error for that class, too.

If I remove either the implements, the annotation or the target attribute, or if I inline the since reference, the error is gone. As a workaround I'm using the inline String in the annotation (@Deprecated(since = "...")).

[iloveeclipse]

I can't reproduce in a new Java project, please attach project with all settings etc.
Note that your example has compile error:

[liefke]

It is after all just an example - the NPE occurs no matter if I add the import for Serializable or not.

But as you say, you can't reproduce it with a new Java project, I narrowed the problem further down: I have annotation-based null analysis turned on (as you can see from my stacktrace - SourceTypeBinding.getNullDefault) and when I turn that off, the exception is gone.

I've attached an MRE project now: Test.zip

[srikanth-sankaran]

@stephan-herrmann Another problem scenario where org.eclipse.jdt.internal.compiler.lookup.ClassScope.hasDefaultNullnessFor(ClassScope.java:1737) triggers a symptom that is different from #1007 and cousins

[stephan-herrmann]

Will be fixed by the next iteration in #1067

[stephan-herrmann]

Resolved via #1077