ConstantLoopCondition.qhelp

<!DOCTYPE qhelp PUBLIC
  "-//Semmle//qhelp//EN"
  "qhelp.dtd">
<qhelp>

<overview>
<p>
Loops can contain multiple exit conditions, either directly in the loop
condition or as guards around <code>break</code> or <code>return</code>
statements.  If none of the exit conditions can ever be satisfied, then
the loop will never terminate.
</p>
</overview>

<recommendation>
<p>
When writing a loop that is intended to terminate, make sure that all the
necessary exit conditions can be satisfied and that loop termination is clear.
</p>

</recommendation>

<example>
<p>
The following example searches for a field of a given name, and intends to
throw an exception if the field cannot be found.  However, if the field cannot
be found, the double loop structure means that the exit conditions will never
be met, resulting in an infinite loop.
</p>
<sample src="ConstantLoopConditionBad.java" />

<p>
The solution is to rewrite the code as follows using an <code>if</code>-statement.
</p>
<sample src="ConstantLoopConditionGood.java" />

</example>

<references>

<li>
Java Language Specification:
<a href="https://docs.oracle.com/javase/specs/jls/se11/html/jls-14.html">Blocks and Statements</a>.
</li>

</references>

</qhelp>