--- a/graal/com.oracle.graal.compiler.common/src/com/oracle/graal/compiler/common/remote/Context.java	Sun Nov 30 21:12:06 2014 +0100
+++ b/graal/com.oracle.graal.compiler.common/src/com/oracle/graal/compiler/common/remote/Context.java	Sun Nov 30 21:14:13 2014 +0100
@@ -37,6 +37,10 @@
 
 /**
  * Manages a context for replay or remote compilation.
+ *
+ * With respect to replay or remote compilation, certain objects only exist on the VM side of the
+ * VM-compiler boundary. These are objects that encapsulate compiler references to user heap objects
+ * or other VM data such as native VM objects representing Java classes and methods.
  */
 public class Context implements AutoCloseable {
 
@@ -463,6 +467,24 @@
         return true;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Asserts that the current caller is in code that is on the VM side.
+     *
+     * @param errorMessage the error message used for the {@link GraalInternalError} thrown if the
+     *            check fails
+     * @return true if the check succeeds
+     * @throw AssertionError if the check fails
+     */
+    public static boolean assertInLocal(String errorMessage) {
+        Context c = Context.getCurrent();
+        if (c != null) {
+            if (!c.inProxyInvocation()) {
+                throw new AssertionError(errorMessage);
+            }
+        }
+        return true;
+    }
+
     private NoContext leave;
     int activeInvocations;
 

--- a/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/HotSpotGraalRuntime.java	Sun Nov 30 21:12:06 2014 +0100
+++ b/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/HotSpotGraalRuntime.java	Sun Nov 30 21:14:13 2014 +0100
@@ -85,14 +85,8 @@
      * through references to a captured {@link HotSpotGraalRuntimeProvider}, not through the static
      * {@link HotSpotGraalRuntimeProvider} instance of the runtime hosting the replay.
      */
-    private static boolean checkRuntimeAccess() {
-        Context c = Context.getCurrent();
-        if (c != null) {
-            if (!c.inProxyInvocation()) {
-                throw new GraalInternalError("Cannot access HotSpotGraalRuntime statically in replay/remote context");
-            }
-        }
-        return true;
+    public static boolean checkRuntimeAccess() {
+        return Context.assertInLocal("Cannot access HotSpotGraalRuntime statically in replay/remote context");
     }
 
     /**

--- a/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/meta/HotSpotMetaspaceConstantImpl.java	Sun Nov 30 21:12:06 2014 +0100
+++ b/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/meta/HotSpotMetaspaceConstantImpl.java	Sun Nov 30 21:14:13 2014 +0100
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@
 import java.util.*;
 
 import com.oracle.graal.api.meta.*;
+import com.oracle.graal.compiler.common.remote.*;
 import com.oracle.graal.hotspot.HotSpotVMConfig.CompressEncoding;
 
 public final class HotSpotMetaspaceConstantImpl extends PrimitiveConstant implements HotSpotMetaspaceConstant, VMConstant, Remote {
@@ -46,6 +47,7 @@
         super(kind, primitive);
         this.metaspaceObject = metaspaceObject;
         this.compressed = compressed;
+        assert Context.assertInLocal("Should not create metaspace constants here");
     }
 
     @Override

--- a/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/meta/HotSpotObjectConstantImpl.java	Sun Nov 30 21:12:06 2014 +0100
+++ b/graal/com.oracle.graal.hotspot/src/com/oracle/graal/hotspot/meta/HotSpotObjectConstantImpl.java	Sun Nov 30 21:14:13 2014 +0100
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@
 
 import com.oracle.graal.api.code.*;
 import com.oracle.graal.api.meta.*;
+import com.oracle.graal.compiler.common.remote.*;
 import com.oracle.graal.graph.*;
 import com.oracle.graal.lir.*;
 
@@ -95,6 +96,7 @@
         assert stableDimension == 0 || (object != null && object.getClass().isArray());
         assert stableDimension >= 0 && stableDimension <= 255;
         assert !isDefaultStable || stableDimension > 0;
+        assert Context.assertInLocal("Should not create object constants here");
     }
 
     private HotSpotObjectConstantImpl(Object object, boolean compressed) {