From 7cf702830bc2f12108a1e7b98cc486bc549ac1e2 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Akash Levy <akashlevy@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 2026 11:33:19 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] Revert "Return an empty list from get_property on an empty
 collection"

---
 tcl/Property.tcl            |  7 ++-----
 test/get_property_empty.ok  | 12 ------------
 test/get_property_empty.tcl | 31 -------------------------------
 test/get_property_empty.v   |  8 --------
 test/regression_vars.tcl    |  1 -
 5 files changed, 2 insertions(+), 57 deletions(-)
 delete mode 100644 test/get_property_empty.ok
 delete mode 100644 test/get_property_empty.tcl
 delete mode 100644 test/get_property_empty.v

diff --git a/tcl/Property.tcl b/tcl/Property.tcl
index 4c3285c38..015f6683b 100644
--- a/tcl/Property.tcl
+++ b/tcl/Property.tcl
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ namespace eval sta {
 
 define_cmd_args "get_property" \
   {[-object_type library|liberty_library|cell|liberty_cell|instance|pin|net|port|clock|timing_arc] object property} \
-  -help {The `get_property` command returns a property of an object. Given a collection of objects it returns one value per object, so an empty collection returns an empty list. Properties for each object type are shown below.
+  -help {The `get_property` command returns a property of an object. Properties for each object type are shown below.
 
 | Object type | Properties |
 | --- | --- |
@@ -64,10 +64,7 @@ proc get_property_cmd { cmd type_key cmd_args } {
   set object [lindex $cmd_args 0]
   set prop [lindex $cmd_args 1]
   if { $object == "" } {
-    # Both list and collection mode encode "nothing matched" as the empty string, so this is
-    # the zero-element case of the collection branch below: no objects, no property values.
-    # The get_*/all_* command that came up empty already warned unless it was given -quiet.
-    return {}
+    sta_error 2200 "get_property object is null."
   } elseif { [sta::is_collection $object] || [sizeof_collection $object] > 1 } {
     set results {}
     foreach_in_collection element $object {
diff --git a/test/get_property_empty.ok b/test/get_property_empty.ok
deleted file mode 100644
index 13ac45a8b..000000000
--- a/test/get_property_empty.ok
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,12 +0,0 @@
-all_outputs: '' 0
-nets of all_outputs: '' 0
-get_ports: '' 0
-get_pins: '' 0
-get_cells: '' 0
-get_clocks: '' 0
-get_lib_cells: '' 0
-empty list: '' 0
-empty string: '' 0
-empty -object_type: '' 0
-one port: 'in1' 1
-all_inputs: 'in1 in2 clk' 3
diff --git a/test/get_property_empty.tcl b/test/get_property_empty.tcl
deleted file mode 100644
index 46c6c7a73..000000000
--- a/test/get_property_empty.tcl
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,31 +0,0 @@
-# get_property on an empty collection used to abort with Error 2200, so any script that
-# asked for a property of a get_*/all_* result that matched nothing died on the spot.
-read_liberty ../examples/nangate45_slow.lib.gz
-read_verilog get_property_empty.v
-link_design no_outputs
-create_clock -name clk -period 10 [get_ports clk]
-
-proc show { label value } {
-  puts "$label: '$value' [llength $value]"
-}
-
-# The reported case: a design with no output ports, and the SDC idiom that consumes
-# the names it returns.
-show "all_outputs" [get_property [all_outputs] name]
-show "nets of all_outputs" [get_nets -quiet [get_property [all_outputs] name]]
-
-# Any object type whose lookup matched nothing.
-show "get_ports" [get_property [get_ports -quiet no_such_port*] name]
-show "get_pins" [get_property [get_pins -quiet no_such_pin*] direction]
-show "get_cells" [get_property [get_cells -quiet no_such_inst*] full_name]
-show "get_clocks" [get_property [get_clocks -quiet no_such_clock*] period]
-show "get_lib_cells" [get_property [get_lib_cells -quiet *no_such_cell*] area]
-
-# Literal empty object arguments, including the -object_type name lookup path.
-show "empty list" [get_property {} name]
-show "empty string" [get_property "" name]
-show "empty -object_type" [get_property -object_type port {} name]
-
-# Non-empty results are unchanged: a bare value for one object, a list for many.
-show "one port" [get_property [get_ports in1] name]
-show "all_inputs" [get_property [all_inputs] name]
diff --git a/test/get_property_empty.v b/test/get_property_empty.v
deleted file mode 100644
index dfa5ea960..000000000
--- a/test/get_property_empty.v
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,8 +0,0 @@
-// Every port is an input, so all_outputs comes back empty.
-module no_outputs (in1, in2, clk);
-  input in1, in2, clk;
-  wire r1q, u1z;
-
-  DFF_X1 r1 (.D(in1), .CK(clk), .Q(r1q));
-  BUF_X1 u1 (.A(r1q), .Z(u1z));
-endmodule // no_outputs
diff --git a/test/regression_vars.tcl b/test/regression_vars.tcl
index 02379fd05..3f9a99fa9 100644
--- a/test/regression_vars.tcl
+++ b/test/regression_vars.tcl
@@ -164,7 +164,6 @@ record_public_tests {
   get_lib_pins_of_objects
   get_noargs
   get_objrefs
-  get_property_empty
   get_property_flags
   get_scenes
   input_delay_ref_pin_rebuild