Metadata

ID: go-best-practices/replace-loop-copy

Language: Go

Severity: Warning

Category: Best Practices

Description

In Go, when you need to copy the elements from one slice to another, it is recommended to use the copy() function instead of manually iterating over the elements using a for loop with the index.

Here are the reasons why copy(dst, src) is preferred over the for loop approach:

1. Simplicity and Readability: The copy(dst, src) function provides a clear and concise way to perform slice copying operations. It clearly conveys the intention of copying the elements from src to dst without needing any explicit iteration or indexing.
2. Performance: The copy() function is implemented with optimized internal instructions and optimizations. It leverages lower-level memory operations and avoids unnecessary checks, making it more efficient and performant than manually iterating over the slice elements.
3. Correctness and Safety: The copy() function guarantees the correct and safe handling of overlapping slices by performing each element-by-element copy in a well-defined manner. This ensures that the operation is carried out correctly, even if the source and destination slices overlap.

For example, consider the following code snippets:

for i, x := range src {
    dst[i] = x
}

copy(dst, src)

Both snippets copy the elements from src to dst, assuming they have the same lengths. However, the second snippet using copy(dst, src) is preferred for its simplicity, readability, performance, and safety.

By using copy(dst, src) instead of the for loop, you can write more efficient and reliable code that adheres to Go’s idiomatic style.

Non-Compliant Code Examples

func main() {
    dst := make([]int, 51)
    println("something")
    for i, x := range src {
        dst[i] = x
    }
}

Compliant Code Examples

func main() {
    for k, v := range newTags {
        tags[k] = v
    }
}

func main() {
    copy(dst, x)
}