IonMonkey/Overview

IonMonkey compilation occurs in four major overall phases:

• MIR Generation. This phase transforms SpiderMonkey's bytecode into a control-flow graph and an architecture-independent, SSA-form IR.
• Optimization. The MIR analyzed and optimized. This is where global value numbering (GVN) and loop-invariant code motion (LICM) occur.
• Lowering. The MIR is transformed into an architecture-specific IR (still in SSA form) called LIR. Register allocation occurs on LIR.
• Code generation. The LIR is transformed into native assembly for x86, x64, or ARM (or what have you).

The full pipeline is roughly outlined with the following diagram:

Each major phase of the pipeline is separated into four articles:

• IonMonkey/MIR
• IonMonkey/Analysis
• IonMonkey/LIR
• IonMonkey/Code Generation

Lastly, if you're interested in porting IonMonkey to a new CPU architecture, you might want to take a look at IonMonkey/Porting.