How to make an analog of InString[]?

Question

I have discovered that InString[] does not work in MathLink mode when sending input with EnterExpressionPacket header. So I need to define my own function that returns previous input line. One way I have developed here does not work in some cases:

In[1]:= Unevaluated[2 + 2]
With[{line = $Line - 1}, HoldForm[In[line]]] /. (DownValues[In])
Out[1]= Unevaluated[2 + 2]
Out[2]= 2 + 2

This is because RuleDelayed has no HoldAllComplete attribute. Adding this attribute makes this OK:

In[1]:= Unprotect[RuleDelayed];
SetAttributes[RuleDelayed, HoldAllComplete];
Protect[RuleDelayed];
Unevaluated[2 + 2]
With[{line = $Line - 1}, HoldForm[In[line]]] /. DownValues[In]

Out[4]= Unevaluated[2 + 2]

Out[5]= Unevaluated[2 + 2]

But modifying built-in functions generally is not a good idea. Is there a better way to do this?

Answer 1

It seems that I have solved the problem. Here is the function:

In[1]:=
getLastInput := Module[{num, f},
    f = Function[{u, v},
        {u /. {In -> num, HoldPattern -> First}, HoldForm[v]}, HoldAllComplete];
    First@Cases[
        Block[{RuleDelayed = f}, DownValues[In]],
        {$Line - 1, x_} -> x, {1}, 1]]

In[2]:=
Unevaluated[2+2]
getLastInput

Out[2]=
Unevaluated[2+2]

Out[3]=
Unevaluated[2+2]

And I just have got the answer to the question on InString in MathLink mode from Todd Gayley (Wolfram Research):

InString is only assigned when using EnterTextPacket, not EnterExpressionPacket. There is no string form of the input when sending EnterExpressionPacket (whose content is, by definition, already an expression).

EDIT:

I just have found that my code does not work with input expressions with head Evaluate. The solution is to replace HoldForm by HoldComplete in my code:

getLastInput := Module[{num, f},
    f = Function[{u, v},
        {u /. {In -> num, HoldPattern -> First}, HoldComplete[v]}, HoldAllComplete];
    First@Cases[
        Block[{RuleDelayed = f}, DownValues[In]],
        {$Line - 1, x_} -> x, {1}, 1]]

This works well. Another approach would be to unprotect HoldForm and set up attribute HoldAllComplete on it. I'm wondering why HoldForm does not have this attribute by default?

EDIT 2:

In the comments for the main question Leonid Shifrin suggested much better solution:

getLastInput := 
 Block[{RuleDelayed},SetAttributes[RuleDelayed,HoldAllComplete];
  With[{line=$Line-1},HoldComplete[In[line]]/.DownValues[In]]]

See comments for details.

EDIT 3: The last code can be made even better for by replacing HoldComplete by double HoldForm:

getLastInput := 
 Block[{RuleDelayed},SetAttributes[RuleDelayed,HoldAllComplete];
  With[{line=$Line-1},HoldForm@HoldForm[In[line]]/.DownValues[In]]]

The idea is taken from presentation by Robby Villegas of Wolfram Research at the 1999 Developer Conference. See subsection "HoldCompleteForm: a non-printing variant of HoldComplete (just as HoldForm is to Hold)" in "Working With Unevaluated Expressions" notebook posted here.