Is the JIT Compiler Getting Any Better?
JIT compilation is a remarkable bit of technology that opens the gates for a wide range of optimizations. Despite the fact that the current implementation is restrictive in the number of optimizations that can be performed due to time constraints, in theory it should be able to outperform any static compiler that exists. Of course, this is because dynamic properties of performance-critical code or its context are not fully known or verified until run time. The JIT compiler is able to exploit this gathered information by emitting more efficient code which can, in theory, be re-optimized every time it’s run. Currently, the compiler emits machine code only once per method. Once machine code is generated, it executes at raw machine speed.
