It is entirely optional: MessageDef/EnumDef can still exist
on their own. But this can represent a def's file when it is
desirable to do so (eg. for code generators).
This approach will require that we change the way we handle
extensions. But I think it will be a good change overall.
Specifically, we previously handled extensions by duplicating
the extended message and then adding the extension as a regular
field to the duplicated message. This required also duplicating
any messages that could reach the extended message.
In the new world we will need a way of declaring and looking up
extensions separately from the message being extended.
This change also involves some notable changes to the generated
code:
- files are now called foo.upbdefs.h instead of foo.upb.h.
This reflects the fact that we might possibly generate several
different output files for a .proto file, and this one is just
for defs.
- we no longer generate selectors in the .h file.
- the upbdefs.c no longer vends a SymbolTable. Now it vends the
individual messages (and possibly a FileDef later). I think this
will compose better once we can generate files where one
generated files imports another.
We also make the descriptor reader vend a list of FileDefs now.
This is the best conceptual match for parsing a FileDescriptorSet.
Josh Haberman
e9d79d2441