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Rust errors / Types and traits

Rust compiler error · checked with rustc 1.99.0

Rust error E0588: packed type cannot transitively contain a `#[repr(align)]` type

What it meansA type with packed representation hint has a field with align representation hint.

What rustc prints

error[E0588]: packed type cannot transitively contain a `#[repr(align)]` type
 --> main.rs:5:1
  |
5 | struct Packed(Aligned);
  | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  |
note: `Aligned` has a `#[repr(align)]` attribute
 --> main.rs:2:1
  |
2 | struct Aligned(i32);
  | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Real output of rustc 1.99.0 compiling the official example below (2021 edition). Your names and line numbers will differ; the first line is the part to match.

E0588Types and traits
Activein rustc 1.99.0
7related errors linked below

The compiler team's explanation

A type with packed representation hint has a field with align representation hint.

Erroneous code example:

#[repr(align(16))]
struct Aligned(i32);

#[repr(packed)] // error!
struct Packed(Aligned);

Just like you cannot have both align and packed representation hints on the same type, a packed type cannot contain another type with the align representation hint. However, you can do the opposite:

#[repr(packed)]
struct Packed(i32);

#[repr(align(16))] // ok!
struct Aligned(Packed);

From rustc --explain E0588 (1.99.0), part of the Rust project, MIT or Apache-2.0. Official page.

Related errors

All 518 Rust error codes · Rust crate data · Glossary

Up next

Often hit nextE0308: mismatched typesA related error from the same family.Read it next →

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