backport tim_one's patch:

Repair widespread misuse of _PyString_Resize.  Since it's clear people
don't understand how this function works, also beefed up the docs.  The
most common usage error is of this form (often spread out across gotos):

	if (_PyString_Resize(&s, n) < 0) {
		Py_DECREF(s);
		s = NULL;
		goto outtahere;
	}

The error is that if _PyString_Resize runs out of memory, it automatically
decrefs the input string object s (which also deallocates it, since its
refcount must be 1 upon entry), and sets s to NULL.  So if the "if"
branch ever triggers, it's an error to call Py_DECREF(s):  s is already
NULL!  A correct way to write the above is the simpler (and intended)

	if (_PyString_Resize(&s, n) < 0)
		goto outtahere;

Bugfix candidate.

Original patch(es):
python/dist/src/Doc/api/concrete.tex:1.13

diff --git a/Doc/api/concrete.tex b/Doc/api/concrete.tex
index c947714bbb89b7b351efffbae64e3ae926e1ebab..2526621ac07504162321eb2043963ef56fdad772 100644 (file)
--- a/Doc/api/concrete.tex
+++ b/Doc/api/concrete.tex
@@ -582,7 +582,16 @@ parameter and are called with a non-string parameter.
 \begin{cfuncdesc}{int}{_PyString_Resize}{PyObject **string, int newsize}
   A way to resize a string object even though it is ``immutable''.
   Only use this to build up a brand new string object; don't use this
-  if the string may already be known in other parts of the code.
+  if the string may already be known in other parts of the code.  It
+  is an error to call this function if the refcount on the input string
+  object is not one.
+  Pass the address of an existing string object as an lvalue (it may
+  be written into), and the new size desired.  On success, \var{*string}
+  holds the resized string object and 0 is returned; the address in
+  \var{*string} may differ from its input value.  If the
+  reallocation fails, the original string object at \var{*string} is
+  deallocated, \var{*string} is set to \NULL{}, a memory exception is set,
+  and -1 is returned.
 \end{cfuncdesc}
 
 \begin{cfuncdesc}{PyObject*}{PyString_Format}{PyObject *format,