* config/tc-cris.c (cris_create_short_jump): Remove prototype.
[deliverable/binutils-gdb.git] / binutils / doc / binutils.texi
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1\input texinfo @c -*- Texinfo -*-
2@setfilename binutils.info
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3@settitle @sc{gnu} Binary Utilities
4@finalout
5@synindex ky cp
8c2bc687 6
dff70155 7@c man begin INCLUDE
c428fa83 8@include bfdver.texi
dff70155 9@c man end
252b5132 10
0e9517a9 11@copying
0285c67d 12@c man begin COPYRIGHT
2423fbe6 13Copyright @copyright{} 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999,
71c57c16 142000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
252b5132 15
0285c67d 16Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
793c5807 17under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3
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18or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
19with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no
20Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the
947ed062 21section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.
252b5132 22
0285c67d 23@c man end
0e9517a9 24@end copying
252b5132 25
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26@dircategory Software development
27@direntry
28* Binutils: (binutils). The GNU binary utilities.
29@end direntry
30
31@dircategory Individual utilities
32@direntry
33* addr2line: (binutils)addr2line. Convert addresses to file and line.
34* ar: (binutils)ar. Create, modify, and extract from archives.
35* c++filt: (binutils)c++filt. Filter to demangle encoded C++ symbols.
36* cxxfilt: (binutils)c++filt. MS-DOS name for c++filt.
37* dlltool: (binutils)dlltool. Create files needed to build and use DLLs.
38* nlmconv: (binutils)nlmconv. Converts object code into an NLM.
39* nm: (binutils)nm. List symbols from object files.
40* objcopy: (binutils)objcopy. Copy and translate object files.
41* objdump: (binutils)objdump. Display information from object files.
42* ranlib: (binutils)ranlib. Generate index to archive contents.
43* readelf: (binutils)readelf. Display the contents of ELF format files.
44* size: (binutils)size. List section sizes and total size.
45* strings: (binutils)strings. List printable strings from files.
46* strip: (binutils)strip. Discard symbols.
47* windmc: (binutils)windmc. Generator for Windows message resources.
48* windres: (binutils)windres. Manipulate Windows resources.
49@end direntry
50
252b5132 51@titlepage
252b5132 52@title The @sc{gnu} Binary Utilities
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53@ifset VERSION_PACKAGE
54@subtitle @value{VERSION_PACKAGE}
55@end ifset
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56@subtitle Version @value{VERSION}
57@sp 1
36607f99 58@subtitle @value{UPDATED}
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59@author Roland H. Pesch
60@author Jeffrey M. Osier
61@author Cygnus Support
62@page
63
64@tex
65{\parskip=0pt \hfill Cygnus Support\par \hfill
e016ec1f 66Texinfo \texinfoversion\par }
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67@end tex
68
69@vskip 0pt plus 1filll
e016ec1f 70@insertcopying
252b5132 71@end titlepage
4ecceb71 72@contents
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73
74@node Top
75@top Introduction
76
77@cindex version
947ed062 78This brief manual contains documentation for the @sc{gnu} binary
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79utilities
80@ifset VERSION_PACKAGE
81@value{VERSION_PACKAGE}
82@end ifset
83version @value{VERSION}:
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84
85@iftex
86@table @code
87@item ar
88Create, modify, and extract from archives
89
90@item nm
91List symbols from object files
92
93@item objcopy
94Copy and translate object files
95
96@item objdump
97Display information from object files
98
99@item ranlib
100Generate index to archive contents
101
102@item readelf
103Display the contents of ELF format files.
104
105@item size
106List file section sizes and total size
107
108@item strings
109List printable strings from files
110
111@item strip
112Discard symbols
113
114@item c++filt
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115Demangle encoded C++ symbols (on MS-DOS, this program is named
116@code{cxxfilt})
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117
118@item addr2line
119Convert addresses into file names and line numbers
120
121@item nlmconv
122Convert object code into a Netware Loadable Module
123
124@item windres
125Manipulate Windows resources
126
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127@item windmc
128Genertor for Windows message resources
129
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130@item dlltool
131Create the files needed to build and use Dynamic Link Libraries
132@end table
133@end iftex
134
cf055d54 135This document is distributed under the terms of the GNU Free
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136Documentation License version 1.3. A copy of the license is included
137in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.
cf055d54 138
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139@menu
140* ar:: Create, modify, and extract from archives
141* nm:: List symbols from object files
142* objcopy:: Copy and translate object files
143* objdump:: Display information from object files
144* ranlib:: Generate index to archive contents
fff279a7 145* readelf:: Display the contents of ELF format files
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146* size:: List section sizes and total size
147* strings:: List printable strings from files
148* strip:: Discard symbols
149* c++filt:: Filter to demangle encoded C++ symbols
9d51cc66 150* cxxfilt: c++filt. MS-DOS name for c++filt
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151* addr2line:: Convert addresses to file and line
152* nlmconv:: Converts object code into an NLM
153* windres:: Manipulate Windows resources
692ed3e7 154* windmc:: Generator for Windows message resources
252b5132 155* dlltool:: Create files needed to build and use DLLs
07012eee 156* Common Options:: Command-line options for all utilities
fff279a7 157* Selecting the Target System:: How these utilities determine the target
252b5132 158* Reporting Bugs:: Reporting Bugs
cf055d54 159* GNU Free Documentation License:: GNU Free Documentation License
fa0d8a3e 160* Binutils Index:: Binutils Index
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161@end menu
162
163@node ar
164@chapter ar
165
166@kindex ar
167@cindex archives
168@cindex collections of files
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169
170@c man title ar create, modify, and extract from archives
171
252b5132 172@smallexample
3de39064 173ar [-]@var{p}[@var{mod} [@var{relpos}] [@var{count}]] @var{archive} [@var{member}@dots{}]
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174ar -M [ <mri-script ]
175@end smallexample
176
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177@c man begin DESCRIPTION ar
178
c7c55b78 179The @sc{gnu} @command{ar} program creates, modifies, and extracts from
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180archives. An @dfn{archive} is a single file holding a collection of
181other files in a structure that makes it possible to retrieve
182the original individual files (called @dfn{members} of the archive).
183
184The original files' contents, mode (permissions), timestamp, owner, and
185group are preserved in the archive, and can be restored on
c1c0eb9e 186extraction.
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187
188@cindex name length
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189@sc{gnu} @command{ar} can maintain archives whose members have names of any
190length; however, depending on how @command{ar} is configured on your
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191system, a limit on member-name length may be imposed for compatibility
192with archive formats maintained with other tools. If it exists, the
193limit is often 15 characters (typical of formats related to a.out) or 16
194characters (typical of formats related to coff).
195
196@cindex libraries
c7c55b78 197@command{ar} is considered a binary utility because archives of this sort
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198are most often used as @dfn{libraries} holding commonly needed
199subroutines.
200
201@cindex symbol index
c7c55b78 202@command{ar} creates an index to the symbols defined in relocatable
252b5132 203object modules in the archive when you specify the modifier @samp{s}.
c7c55b78 204Once created, this index is updated in the archive whenever @command{ar}
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205makes a change to its contents (save for the @samp{q} update operation).
206An archive with such an index speeds up linking to the library, and
207allows routines in the library to call each other without regard to
208their placement in the archive.
209
210You may use @samp{nm -s} or @samp{nm --print-armap} to list this index
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211table. If an archive lacks the table, another form of @command{ar} called
212@command{ranlib} can be used to add just the table.
252b5132 213
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214@cindex thin archives
215@sc{gnu} @command{ar} can optionally create a @emph{thin} archive,
216which contains a symbol index and references to the original copies
217of the member files of the archives. Such an archive is useful
218for building libraries for use within a local build, where the
219relocatable objects are expected to remain available, and copying the
220contents of each object would only waste time and space. Thin archives
221are also @emph{flattened}, so that adding one or more archives to a
222thin archive will add the elements of the nested archive individually.
223The paths to the elements of the archive are stored relative to the
224archive itself.
225
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226@cindex compatibility, @command{ar}
227@cindex @command{ar} compatibility
228@sc{gnu} @command{ar} is designed to be compatible with two different
252b5132 229facilities. You can control its activity using command-line options,
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230like the different varieties of @command{ar} on Unix systems; or, if you
231specify the single command-line option @option{-M}, you can control it
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232with a script supplied via standard input, like the MRI ``librarian''
233program.
234
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235@c man end
236
252b5132 237@menu
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238* ar cmdline:: Controlling @command{ar} on the command line
239* ar scripts:: Controlling @command{ar} with a script
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240@end menu
241
242@page
243@node ar cmdline
947ed062 244@section Controlling @command{ar} on the Command Line
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245
246@smallexample
0285c67d 247@c man begin SYNOPSIS ar
c7c55b78 248ar [@option{-X32_64}] [@option{-}]@var{p}[@var{mod} [@var{relpos}] [@var{count}]] @var{archive} [@var{member}@dots{}]
0285c67d 249@c man end
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250@end smallexample
251
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252@cindex Unix compatibility, @command{ar}
253When you use @command{ar} in the Unix style, @command{ar} insists on at least two
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254arguments to execute: one keyletter specifying the @emph{operation}
255(optionally accompanied by other keyletters specifying
256@emph{modifiers}), and the archive name to act on.
257
258Most operations can also accept further @var{member} arguments,
259specifying particular files to operate on.
260
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261@c man begin OPTIONS ar
262
c7c55b78 263@sc{gnu} @command{ar} allows you to mix the operation code @var{p} and modifier
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264flags @var{mod} in any order, within the first command-line argument.
265
266If you wish, you may begin the first command-line argument with a
267dash.
268
269@cindex operations on archive
270The @var{p} keyletter specifies what operation to execute; it may be
271any of the following, but you must specify only one of them:
272
c7c55b78 273@table @samp
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274@item d
275@cindex deleting from archive
276@emph{Delete} modules from the archive. Specify the names of modules to
277be deleted as @var{member}@dots{}; the archive is untouched if you
278specify no files to delete.
279
c7c55b78 280If you specify the @samp{v} modifier, @command{ar} lists each module
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281as it is deleted.
282
283@item m
284@cindex moving in archive
285Use this operation to @emph{move} members in an archive.
286
287The ordering of members in an archive can make a difference in how
288programs are linked using the library, if a symbol is defined in more
c1c0eb9e 289than one member.
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290
291If no modifiers are used with @code{m}, any members you name in the
292@var{member} arguments are moved to the @emph{end} of the archive;
293you can use the @samp{a}, @samp{b}, or @samp{i} modifiers to move them to a
294specified place instead.
295
296@item p
297@cindex printing from archive
298@emph{Print} the specified members of the archive, to the standard
299output file. If the @samp{v} modifier is specified, show the member
300name before copying its contents to standard output.
301
302If you specify no @var{member} arguments, all the files in the archive are
303printed.
304
305@item q
306@cindex quick append to archive
307@emph{Quick append}; Historically, add the files @var{member}@dots{} to the end of
308@var{archive}, without checking for replacement.
309
310The modifiers @samp{a}, @samp{b}, and @samp{i} do @emph{not} affect this
311operation; new members are always placed at the end of the archive.
312
c7c55b78 313The modifier @samp{v} makes @command{ar} list each file as it is appended.
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314
315Since the point of this operation is speed, the archive's symbol table
316index is not updated, even if it already existed; you can use @samp{ar s} or
c7c55b78 317@command{ranlib} explicitly to update the symbol table index.
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318
319However, too many different systems assume quick append rebuilds the
947ed062 320index, so @sc{gnu} @command{ar} implements @samp{q} as a synonym for @samp{r}.
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321
322@item r
323@cindex replacement in archive
324Insert the files @var{member}@dots{} into @var{archive} (with
325@emph{replacement}). This operation differs from @samp{q} in that any
326previously existing members are deleted if their names match those being
327added.
328
c7c55b78 329If one of the files named in @var{member}@dots{} does not exist, @command{ar}
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330displays an error message, and leaves undisturbed any existing members
331of the archive matching that name.
332
333By default, new members are added at the end of the file; but you may
334use one of the modifiers @samp{a}, @samp{b}, or @samp{i} to request
335placement relative to some existing member.
336
337The modifier @samp{v} used with this operation elicits a line of
338output for each file inserted, along with one of the letters @samp{a} or
339@samp{r} to indicate whether the file was appended (no old member
340deleted) or replaced.
341
342@item t
343@cindex contents of archive
344Display a @emph{table} listing the contents of @var{archive}, or those
345of the files listed in @var{member}@dots{} that are present in the
346archive. Normally only the member name is shown; if you also want to
347see the modes (permissions), timestamp, owner, group, and size, you can
348request that by also specifying the @samp{v} modifier.
349
350If you do not specify a @var{member}, all files in the archive
351are listed.
352
353@cindex repeated names in archive
354@cindex name duplication in archive
355If there is more than one file with the same name (say, @samp{fie}) in
356an archive (say @samp{b.a}), @samp{ar t b.a fie} lists only the
357first instance; to see them all, you must ask for a complete
358listing---in our example, @samp{ar t b.a}.
359@c WRS only; per Gumby, this is implementation-dependent, and in a more
360@c recent case in fact works the other way.
361
362@item x
363@cindex extract from archive
364@emph{Extract} members (named @var{member}) from the archive. You can
365use the @samp{v} modifier with this operation, to request that
c7c55b78 366@command{ar} list each name as it extracts it.
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367
368If you do not specify a @var{member}, all files in the archive
369are extracted.
370
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371Files cannot be extracted from a thin archive.
372
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373@end table
374
375A number of modifiers (@var{mod}) may immediately follow the @var{p}
376keyletter, to specify variations on an operation's behavior:
377
c7c55b78 378@table @samp
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379@item a
380@cindex relative placement in archive
381Add new files @emph{after} an existing member of the
382archive. If you use the modifier @samp{a}, the name of an existing archive
383member must be present as the @var{relpos} argument, before the
384@var{archive} specification.
385
386@item b
387Add new files @emph{before} an existing member of the
388archive. If you use the modifier @samp{b}, the name of an existing archive
389member must be present as the @var{relpos} argument, before the
390@var{archive} specification. (same as @samp{i}).
391
392@item c
393@cindex creating archives
394@emph{Create} the archive. The specified @var{archive} is always
395created if it did not exist, when you request an update. But a warning is
396issued unless you specify in advance that you expect to create it, by
397using this modifier.
398
399@item f
c7c55b78 400Truncate names in the archive. @sc{gnu} @command{ar} will normally permit file
252b5132 401names of any length. This will cause it to create archives which are
c7c55b78 402not compatible with the native @command{ar} program on some systems. If
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403this is a concern, the @samp{f} modifier may be used to truncate file
404names when putting them in the archive.
405
406@item i
407Insert new files @emph{before} an existing member of the
408archive. If you use the modifier @samp{i}, the name of an existing archive
409member must be present as the @var{relpos} argument, before the
410@var{archive} specification. (same as @samp{b}).
411
412@item l
413This modifier is accepted but not used.
414@c whaffor ar l modifier??? presumably compat; with
c1c0eb9e 415@c what???---doc@@cygnus.com, 25jan91
252b5132 416
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417@item N
418Uses the @var{count} parameter. This is used if there are multiple
419entries in the archive with the same name. Extract or delete instance
420@var{count} of the given name from the archive.
421
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422@item o
423@cindex dates in archive
424Preserve the @emph{original} dates of members when extracting them. If
425you do not specify this modifier, files extracted from the archive
426are stamped with the time of extraction.
427
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428@item P
429Use the full path name when matching names in the archive. @sc{gnu}
c7c55b78 430@command{ar} can not create an archive with a full path name (such archives
3de39064 431are not POSIX complaint), but other archive creators can. This option
c7c55b78 432will cause @sc{gnu} @command{ar} to match file names using a complete path
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433name, which can be convenient when extracting a single file from an
434archive created by another tool.
435
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436@item s
437@cindex writing archive index
438Write an object-file index into the archive, or update an existing one,
439even if no other change is made to the archive. You may use this modifier
440flag either with any operation, or alone. Running @samp{ar s} on an
441archive is equivalent to running @samp{ranlib} on it.
442
443@item S
444@cindex not writing archive index
445Do not generate an archive symbol table. This can speed up building a
446large library in several steps. The resulting archive can not be used
447with the linker. In order to build a symbol table, you must omit the
448@samp{S} modifier on the last execution of @samp{ar}, or you must run
449@samp{ranlib} on the archive.
450
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451@item T
452@cindex creating thin archive
453Make the specified @var{archive} a @emph{thin} archive. If it already
454exists and is a regular archive, the existing members must be present
455in the same directory as @var{archive}.
456
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457@item u
458@cindex updating an archive
459Normally, @samp{ar r}@dots{} inserts all files
460listed into the archive. If you would like to insert @emph{only} those
461of the files you list that are newer than existing members of the same
462names, use this modifier. The @samp{u} modifier is allowed only for the
463operation @samp{r} (replace). In particular, the combination @samp{qu} is
464not allowed, since checking the timestamps would lose any speed
465advantage from the operation @samp{q}.
466
467@item v
468This modifier requests the @emph{verbose} version of an operation. Many
469operations display additional information, such as filenames processed,
470when the modifier @samp{v} is appended.
471
472@item V
c7c55b78 473This modifier shows the version number of @command{ar}.
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474@end table
475
c7c55b78 476@command{ar} ignores an initial option spelt @samp{-X32_64}, for
6e800839 477compatibility with AIX. The behaviour produced by this option is the
947ed062 478default for @sc{gnu} @command{ar}. @command{ar} does not support any of the other
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479@samp{-X} options; in particular, it does not support @option{-X32}
480which is the default for AIX @command{ar}.
6e800839 481
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482@c man end
483
484@ignore
485@c man begin SEEALSO ar
486nm(1), ranlib(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
487@c man end
488@end ignore
489
252b5132 490@node ar scripts
947ed062 491@section Controlling @command{ar} with a Script
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492
493@smallexample
494ar -M [ <@var{script} ]
495@end smallexample
496
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497@cindex MRI compatibility, @command{ar}
498@cindex scripts, @command{ar}
499If you use the single command-line option @samp{-M} with @command{ar}, you
252b5132 500can control its operation with a rudimentary command language. This
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501form of @command{ar} operates interactively if standard input is coming
502directly from a terminal. During interactive use, @command{ar} prompts for
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503input (the prompt is @samp{AR >}), and continues executing even after
504errors. If you redirect standard input to a script file, no prompts are
c7c55b78 505issued, and @command{ar} abandons execution (with a nonzero exit code)
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506on any error.
507
c7c55b78 508The @command{ar} command language is @emph{not} designed to be equivalent
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509to the command-line options; in fact, it provides somewhat less control
510over archives. The only purpose of the command language is to ease the
c7c55b78 511transition to @sc{gnu} @command{ar} for developers who already have scripts
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512written for the MRI ``librarian'' program.
513
c7c55b78 514The syntax for the @command{ar} command language is straightforward:
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515@itemize @bullet
516@item
517commands are recognized in upper or lower case; for example, @code{LIST}
518is the same as @code{list}. In the following descriptions, commands are
519shown in upper case for clarity.
520
521@item
522a single command may appear on each line; it is the first word on the
523line.
524
525@item
526empty lines are allowed, and have no effect.
527
528@item
529comments are allowed; text after either of the characters @samp{*}
530or @samp{;} is ignored.
531
532@item
c7c55b78 533Whenever you use a list of names as part of the argument to an @command{ar}
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534command, you can separate the individual names with either commas or
535blanks. Commas are shown in the explanations below, for clarity.
536
537@item
538@samp{+} is used as a line continuation character; if @samp{+} appears
539at the end of a line, the text on the following line is considered part
540of the current command.
541@end itemize
542
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543Here are the commands you can use in @command{ar} scripts, or when using
544@command{ar} interactively. Three of them have special significance:
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545
546@code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE} specify a @dfn{current archive}, which is
547a temporary file required for most of the other commands.
548
549@code{SAVE} commits the changes so far specified by the script. Prior
550to @code{SAVE}, commands affect only the temporary copy of the current
551archive.
552
553@table @code
c1c0eb9e 554@item ADDLIB @var{archive}
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555@itemx ADDLIB @var{archive} (@var{module}, @var{module}, @dots{} @var{module})
556Add all the contents of @var{archive} (or, if specified, each named
557@var{module} from @var{archive}) to the current archive.
558
559Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
560
561@item ADDMOD @var{member}, @var{member}, @dots{} @var{member}
562@c FIXME! w/Replacement?? If so, like "ar r @var{archive} @var{names}"
563@c else like "ar q..."
564Add each named @var{member} as a module in the current archive.
565
566Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
567
568@item CLEAR
569Discard the contents of the current archive, canceling the effect of
570any operations since the last @code{SAVE}. May be executed (with no
571effect) even if no current archive is specified.
572
573@item CREATE @var{archive}
574Creates an archive, and makes it the current archive (required for many
575other commands). The new archive is created with a temporary name; it
576is not actually saved as @var{archive} until you use @code{SAVE}.
577You can overwrite existing archives; similarly, the contents of any
578existing file named @var{archive} will not be destroyed until @code{SAVE}.
579
580@item DELETE @var{module}, @var{module}, @dots{} @var{module}
581Delete each listed @var{module} from the current archive; equivalent to
582@samp{ar -d @var{archive} @var{module} @dots{} @var{module}}.
583
584Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
585
586@item DIRECTORY @var{archive} (@var{module}, @dots{} @var{module})
587@itemx DIRECTORY @var{archive} (@var{module}, @dots{} @var{module}) @var{outputfile}
588List each named @var{module} present in @var{archive}. The separate
589command @code{VERBOSE} specifies the form of the output: when verbose
590output is off, output is like that of @samp{ar -t @var{archive}
591@var{module}@dots{}}. When verbose output is on, the listing is like
592@samp{ar -tv @var{archive} @var{module}@dots{}}.
593
594Output normally goes to the standard output stream; however, if you
c7c55b78 595specify @var{outputfile} as a final argument, @command{ar} directs the
252b5132
RH
596output to that file.
597
598@item END
c7c55b78 599Exit from @command{ar}, with a @code{0} exit code to indicate successful
252b5132
RH
600completion. This command does not save the output file; if you have
601changed the current archive since the last @code{SAVE} command, those
602changes are lost.
603
604@item EXTRACT @var{module}, @var{module}, @dots{} @var{module}
605Extract each named @var{module} from the current archive, writing them
606into the current directory as separate files. Equivalent to @samp{ar -x
607@var{archive} @var{module}@dots{}}.
608
609Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
610
611@ignore
612@c FIXME Tokens but no commands???
613@item FULLDIR
614
615@item HELP
616@end ignore
617
618@item LIST
619Display full contents of the current archive, in ``verbose'' style
620regardless of the state of @code{VERBOSE}. The effect is like @samp{ar
c7c55b78 621tv @var{archive}}. (This single command is a @sc{gnu} @command{ar}
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RH
622enhancement, rather than present for MRI compatibility.)
623
624Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
625
626@item OPEN @var{archive}
627Opens an existing archive for use as the current archive (required for
628many other commands). Any changes as the result of subsequent commands
629will not actually affect @var{archive} until you next use @code{SAVE}.
630
631@item REPLACE @var{module}, @var{module}, @dots{} @var{module}
632In the current archive, replace each existing @var{module} (named in
633the @code{REPLACE} arguments) from files in the current working directory.
634To execute this command without errors, both the file, and the module in
c1c0eb9e 635the current archive, must exist.
252b5132
RH
636
637Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
638
639@item VERBOSE
640Toggle an internal flag governing the output from @code{DIRECTORY}.
641When the flag is on, @code{DIRECTORY} output matches output from
642@samp{ar -tv }@dots{}.
643
644@item SAVE
645Commit your changes to the current archive, and actually save it as a
646file with the name specified in the last @code{CREATE} or @code{OPEN}
c1c0eb9e 647command.
252b5132
RH
648
649Requires prior use of @code{OPEN} or @code{CREATE}.
650
651@end table
652
653@iftex
654@node ld
655@chapter ld
656@cindex linker
657@kindex ld
c7c55b78 658The @sc{gnu} linker @command{ld} is now described in a separate manual.
252b5132
RH
659@xref{Top,, Overview,, Using LD: the @sc{gnu} linker}.
660@end iftex
661
662@node nm
663@chapter nm
664@cindex symbols
665@kindex nm
666
0285c67d
NC
667@c man title nm list symbols from object files
668
252b5132 669@smallexample
0285c67d 670@c man begin SYNOPSIS nm
c7c55b78
NC
671nm [@option{-a}|@option{--debug-syms}] [@option{-g}|@option{--extern-only}]
672 [@option{-B}] [@option{-C}|@option{--demangle}[=@var{style}]] [@option{-D}|@option{--dynamic}]
72797995 673 [@option{-S}|@option{--print-size}] [@option{-s}|@option{--print-armap}]
3c9458e9 674 [@option{-A}|@option{-o}|@option{--print-file-name}][@option{--special-syms}]
c7c55b78
NC
675 [@option{-n}|@option{-v}|@option{--numeric-sort}] [@option{-p}|@option{--no-sort}]
676 [@option{-r}|@option{--reverse-sort}] [@option{--size-sort}] [@option{-u}|@option{--undefined-only}]
677 [@option{-t} @var{radix}|@option{--radix=}@var{radix}] [@option{-P}|@option{--portability}]
678 [@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}] [@option{-f}@var{format}|@option{--format=}@var{format}]
679 [@option{--defined-only}] [@option{-l}|@option{--line-numbers}] [@option{--no-demangle}]
680 [@option{-V}|@option{--version}] [@option{-X 32_64}] [@option{--help}] [@var{objfile}@dots{}]
0285c67d 681@c man end
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RH
682@end smallexample
683
0285c67d 684@c man begin DESCRIPTION nm
c7c55b78
NC
685@sc{gnu} @command{nm} lists the symbols from object files @var{objfile}@dots{}.
686If no object files are listed as arguments, @command{nm} assumes the file
252b5132
RH
687@file{a.out}.
688
c7c55b78 689For each symbol, @command{nm} shows:
252b5132
RH
690
691@itemize @bullet
692@item
693The symbol value, in the radix selected by options (see below), or
694hexadecimal by default.
695
696@item
697The symbol type. At least the following types are used; others are, as
698well, depending on the object file format. If lowercase, the symbol is
699local; if uppercase, the symbol is global (external).
700
701@c Some more detail on exactly what these symbol types are used for
702@c would be nice.
703@table @code
704@item A
705The symbol's value is absolute, and will not be changed by further
706linking.
707
708@item B
a1039809 709@itemx b
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RH
710The symbol is in the uninitialized data section (known as BSS).
711
712@item C
713The symbol is common. Common symbols are uninitialized data. When
714linking, multiple common symbols may appear with the same name. If the
715symbol is defined anywhere, the common symbols are treated as undefined
0285c67d
NC
716references.
717@ifclear man
718For more details on common symbols, see the discussion of
252b5132 719--warn-common in @ref{Options,,Linker options,ld.info,The GNU linker}.
0879a67a 720@end ifclear
252b5132
RH
721
722@item D
a1039809 723@itemx d
252b5132
RH
724The symbol is in the initialized data section.
725
726@item G
a1039809 727@itemx g
252b5132
RH
728The symbol is in an initialized data section for small objects. Some
729object file formats permit more efficient access to small data objects,
730such as a global int variable as opposed to a large global array.
731
a1039809
NC
732@item i
733The symbol is in a section specific to the implementation of DLLs.
734
252b5132
RH
735@item N
736The symbol is a debugging symbol.
737
a1039809
NC
738@item p
739The symbols is in a stack unwind section.
740
252b5132 741@item R
a1039809 742@itemx r
252b5132
RH
743The symbol is in a read only data section.
744
745@item S
a1039809 746@itemx s
252b5132
RH
747The symbol is in an uninitialized data section for small objects.
748
749@item T
a1039809 750@itemx t
252b5132
RH
751The symbol is in the text (code) section.
752
753@item U
754The symbol is undefined.
755
fad6fcbb 756@item V
a1039809 757@itemx v
fad6fcbb
NC
758The symbol is a weak object. When a weak defined symbol is linked with
759a normal defined symbol, the normal defined symbol is used with no error.
760When a weak undefined symbol is linked and the symbol is not defined,
a1039809
NC
761the value of the weak symbol becomes zero with no error. On some
762systems, uppercase indicates that a default value has been specified.
fad6fcbb 763
252b5132 764@item W
a1039809 765@itemx w
fad6fcbb
NC
766The symbol is a weak symbol that has not been specifically tagged as a
767weak object symbol. When a weak defined symbol is linked with a normal
768defined symbol, the normal defined symbol is used with no error.
769When a weak undefined symbol is linked and the symbol is not defined,
c87db184 770the value of the symbol is determined in a system-specific manner without
c1c0eb9e 771error. On some systems, uppercase indicates that a default value has been
977cdf5a
NC
772specified.
773
252b5132
RH
774@item -
775The symbol is a stabs symbol in an a.out object file. In this case, the
776next values printed are the stabs other field, the stabs desc field, and
c7c55b78
NC
777the stab type. Stabs symbols are used to hold debugging information.
778@ifclear man
779For more information, see @ref{Top,Stabs,Stabs Overview,stabs.info, The
252b5132 780``stabs'' debug format}.
c7c55b78 781@end ifclear
252b5132
RH
782
783@item ?
784The symbol type is unknown, or object file format specific.
785@end table
786
787@item
788The symbol name.
789@end itemize
790
0285c67d
NC
791@c man end
792
793@c man begin OPTIONS nm
252b5132
RH
794The long and short forms of options, shown here as alternatives, are
795equivalent.
796
c7c55b78 797@table @env
252b5132
RH
798@item -A
799@itemx -o
c1c0eb9e 800@itemx --print-file-name
252b5132
RH
801@cindex input file name
802@cindex file name
803@cindex source file name
f20a759a 804Precede each symbol by the name of the input file (or archive member)
252b5132
RH
805in which it was found, rather than identifying the input file once only,
806before all of its symbols.
807
808@item -a
c1c0eb9e 809@itemx --debug-syms
252b5132
RH
810@cindex debugging symbols
811Display all symbols, even debugger-only symbols; normally these are not
812listed.
813
814@item -B
c7c55b78
NC
815@cindex @command{nm} format
816@cindex @command{nm} compatibility
817The same as @option{--format=bsd} (for compatibility with the MIPS @command{nm}).
252b5132
RH
818
819@item -C
28c309a2 820@itemx --demangle[=@var{style}]
252b5132
RH
821@cindex demangling in nm
822Decode (@dfn{demangle}) low-level symbol names into user-level names.
823Besides removing any initial underscore prepended by the system, this
28c309a2 824makes C++ function names readable. Different compilers have different
c1c0eb9e
RM
825mangling styles. The optional demangling style argument can be used to
826choose an appropriate demangling style for your compiler. @xref{c++filt},
28c309a2 827for more information on demangling.
252b5132
RH
828
829@item --no-demangle
830Do not demangle low-level symbol names. This is the default.
831
832@item -D
833@itemx --dynamic
834@cindex dynamic symbols
835Display the dynamic symbols rather than the normal symbols. This is
836only meaningful for dynamic objects, such as certain types of shared
837libraries.
838
839@item -f @var{format}
840@itemx --format=@var{format}
c7c55b78
NC
841@cindex @command{nm} format
842@cindex @command{nm} compatibility
252b5132
RH
843Use the output format @var{format}, which can be @code{bsd},
844@code{sysv}, or @code{posix}. The default is @code{bsd}.
845Only the first character of @var{format} is significant; it can be
846either upper or lower case.
847
848@item -g
c1c0eb9e 849@itemx --extern-only
252b5132
RH
850@cindex external symbols
851Display only external symbols.
852
853@item -l
854@itemx --line-numbers
855@cindex symbol line numbers
856For each symbol, use debugging information to try to find a filename and
857line number. For a defined symbol, look for the line number of the
858address of the symbol. For an undefined symbol, look for the line
859number of a relocation entry which refers to the symbol. If line number
860information can be found, print it after the other symbol information.
861
862@item -n
863@itemx -v
c1c0eb9e 864@itemx --numeric-sort
252b5132 865Sort symbols numerically by their addresses, rather than alphabetically
c1c0eb9e 866by their names.
252b5132
RH
867
868@item -p
c1c0eb9e 869@itemx --no-sort
252b5132
RH
870@cindex sorting symbols
871Do not bother to sort the symbols in any order; print them in the order
872encountered.
873
874@item -P
875@itemx --portability
876Use the POSIX.2 standard output format instead of the default format.
877Equivalent to @samp{-f posix}.
878
72797995
L
879@item -S
880@itemx --print-size
06a30c77 881Print size, not the value, of defined symbols for the @code{bsd} output format.
72797995 882
252b5132
RH
883@item -s
884@itemx --print-armap
885@cindex symbol index, listing
886When listing symbols from archive members, include the index: a mapping
c7c55b78 887(stored in the archive by @command{ar} or @command{ranlib}) of which modules
252b5132
RH
888contain definitions for which names.
889
890@item -r
c1c0eb9e 891@itemx --reverse-sort
252b5132
RH
892Reverse the order of the sort (whether numeric or alphabetic); let the
893last come first.
894
895@item --size-sort
896Sort symbols by size. The size is computed as the difference between
897the value of the symbol and the value of the symbol with the next higher
c1c0eb9e
RM
898value. If the @code{bsd} output format is used the size of the symbol
899is printed, rather than the value, and @samp{-S} must be used in order
76ed1927 900both size and value to be printed.
252b5132 901
3c9458e9
NC
902@item --special-syms
903Display symbols which have a target-specific special meaning. These
904symbols are usually used by the target for some special processing and
905are not normally helpful when included included in the normal symbol
906lists. For example for ARM targets this option would skip the mapping
b45619c0 907symbols used to mark transitions between ARM code, THUMB code and
3c9458e9
NC
908data.
909
252b5132
RH
910@item -t @var{radix}
911@itemx --radix=@var{radix}
912Use @var{radix} as the radix for printing the symbol values. It must be
913@samp{d} for decimal, @samp{o} for octal, or @samp{x} for hexadecimal.
914
915@item --target=@var{bfdname}
916@cindex object code format
917Specify an object code format other than your system's default format.
918@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
919
920@item -u
c1c0eb9e 921@itemx --undefined-only
252b5132
RH
922@cindex external symbols
923@cindex undefined symbols
924Display only undefined symbols (those external to each object file).
925
926@item --defined-only
927@cindex external symbols
928@cindex undefined symbols
929Display only defined symbols for each object file.
930
931@item -V
932@itemx --version
c7c55b78 933Show the version number of @command{nm} and exit.
252b5132 934
6e800839
GK
935@item -X
936This option is ignored for compatibility with the AIX version of
c7c55b78
NC
937@command{nm}. It takes one parameter which must be the string
938@option{32_64}. The default mode of AIX @command{nm} corresponds
939to @option{-X 32}, which is not supported by @sc{gnu} @command{nm}.
6e800839 940
252b5132 941@item --help
c7c55b78 942Show a summary of the options to @command{nm} and exit.
252b5132
RH
943@end table
944
0285c67d
NC
945@c man end
946
947@ignore
948@c man begin SEEALSO nm
949ar(1), objdump(1), ranlib(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
950@c man end
951@end ignore
952
252b5132
RH
953@node objcopy
954@chapter objcopy
955
0285c67d
NC
956@c man title objcopy copy and translate object files
957
252b5132 958@smallexample
0285c67d 959@c man begin SYNOPSIS objcopy
c7c55b78
NC
960objcopy [@option{-F} @var{bfdname}|@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}]
961 [@option{-I} @var{bfdname}|@option{--input-target=}@var{bfdname}]
962 [@option{-O} @var{bfdname}|@option{--output-target=}@var{bfdname}]
963 [@option{-B} @var{bfdarch}|@option{--binary-architecture=}@var{bfdarch}]
2593f09a
NC
964 [@option{-S}|@option{--strip-all}]
965 [@option{-g}|@option{--strip-debug}]
c7c55b78
NC
966 [@option{-K} @var{symbolname}|@option{--keep-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
967 [@option{-N} @var{symbolname}|@option{--strip-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
bcf32829 968 [@option{--strip-unneeded-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
c7c55b78 969 [@option{-G} @var{symbolname}|@option{--keep-global-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
d58c2e3a 970 [@option{--localize-hidden}]
c7c55b78 971 [@option{-L} @var{symbolname}|@option{--localize-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
7b4a0685 972 [@option{--globalize-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
c7c55b78 973 [@option{-W} @var{symbolname}|@option{--weaken-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
5fe11841 974 [@option{-w}|@option{--wildcard}]
2593f09a
NC
975 [@option{-x}|@option{--discard-all}]
976 [@option{-X}|@option{--discard-locals}]
c7c55b78
NC
977 [@option{-b} @var{byte}|@option{--byte=}@var{byte}]
978 [@option{-i} @var{interleave}|@option{--interleave=}@var{interleave}]
979 [@option{-j} @var{sectionname}|@option{--only-section=}@var{sectionname}]
980 [@option{-R} @var{sectionname}|@option{--remove-section=}@var{sectionname}]
981 [@option{-p}|@option{--preserve-dates}]
982 [@option{--debugging}]
2593f09a
NC
983 [@option{--gap-fill=}@var{val}]
984 [@option{--pad-to=}@var{address}]
985 [@option{--set-start=}@var{val}]
986 [@option{--adjust-start=}@var{incr}]
c7c55b78
NC
987 [@option{--change-addresses=}@var{incr}]
988 [@option{--change-section-address} @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}]
989 [@option{--change-section-lma} @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}]
990 [@option{--change-section-vma} @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}]
991 [@option{--change-warnings}] [@option{--no-change-warnings}]
992 [@option{--set-section-flags} @var{section}=@var{flags}]
993 [@option{--add-section} @var{sectionname}=@var{filename}]
994 [@option{--rename-section} @var{oldname}=@var{newname}[,@var{flags}]]
2593f09a 995 [@option{--change-leading-char}] [@option{--remove-leading-char}]
9e48b4c6 996 [@option{--reverse-bytes=}@var{num}]
2593f09a
NC
997 [@option{--srec-len=}@var{ival}] [@option{--srec-forceS3}]
998 [@option{--redefine-sym} @var{old}=@var{new}]
999 [@option{--redefine-syms=}@var{filename}]
c7c55b78
NC
1000 [@option{--weaken}]
1001 [@option{--keep-symbols=}@var{filename}]
1002 [@option{--strip-symbols=}@var{filename}]
bcf32829 1003 [@option{--strip-unneeded-symbols=}@var{filename}]
c7c55b78
NC
1004 [@option{--keep-global-symbols=}@var{filename}]
1005 [@option{--localize-symbols=}@var{filename}]
7b4a0685 1006 [@option{--globalize-symbols=}@var{filename}]
c7c55b78 1007 [@option{--weaken-symbols=}@var{filename}]
c51238bc
DA
1008 [@option{--alt-machine-code=}@var{index}]
1009 [@option{--prefix-symbols=}@var{string}]
1010 [@option{--prefix-sections=}@var{string}]
1011 [@option{--prefix-alloc-sections=}@var{string}]
ed1653a7 1012 [@option{--add-gnu-debuglink=}@var{path-to-file}]
1637cd90 1013 [@option{--keep-file-symbols}]
ed1653a7 1014 [@option{--only-keep-debug}]
d3e52d40 1015 [@option{--extract-symbol}]
4087920c
MR
1016 [@option{--writable-text}]
1017 [@option{--readonly-text}]
1018 [@option{--pure}]
1019 [@option{--impure}]
c7c55b78 1020 [@option{-v}|@option{--verbose}]
c1c0eb9e 1021 [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
7c29036b 1022 [@option{--help}] [@option{--info}]
252b5132 1023 @var{infile} [@var{outfile}]
0285c67d 1024@c man end
252b5132
RH
1025@end smallexample
1026
0285c67d 1027@c man begin DESCRIPTION objcopy
c7c55b78
NC
1028The @sc{gnu} @command{objcopy} utility copies the contents of an object
1029file to another. @command{objcopy} uses the @sc{gnu} @sc{bfd} Library to
252b5132
RH
1030read and write the object files. It can write the destination object
1031file in a format different from that of the source object file. The
c7c55b78
NC
1032exact behavior of @command{objcopy} is controlled by command-line options.
1033Note that @command{objcopy} should be able to copy a fully linked file
ccd13d18
L
1034between any two formats. However, copying a relocatable object file
1035between any two formats may not work as expected.
252b5132 1036
c7c55b78
NC
1037@command{objcopy} creates temporary files to do its translations and
1038deletes them afterward. @command{objcopy} uses @sc{bfd} to do all its
252b5132
RH
1039translation work; it has access to all the formats described in @sc{bfd}
1040and thus is able to recognize most formats without being told
1041explicitly. @xref{BFD,,BFD,ld.info,Using LD}.
1042
c7c55b78 1043@command{objcopy} can be used to generate S-records by using an output
252b5132
RH
1044target of @samp{srec} (e.g., use @samp{-O srec}).
1045
c7c55b78
NC
1046@command{objcopy} can be used to generate a raw binary file by using an
1047output target of @samp{binary} (e.g., use @option{-O binary}). When
1048@command{objcopy} generates a raw binary file, it will essentially produce
252b5132
RH
1049a memory dump of the contents of the input object file. All symbols and
1050relocation information will be discarded. The memory dump will start at
1051the load address of the lowest section copied into the output file.
1052
1053When generating an S-record or a raw binary file, it may be helpful to
c7c55b78
NC
1054use @option{-S} to remove sections containing debugging information. In
1055some cases @option{-R} will be useful to remove sections which contain
f20a759a 1056information that is not needed by the binary file.
252b5132 1057
947ed062
NC
1058Note---@command{objcopy} is not able to change the endianness of its input
1059files. If the input format has an endianness (some formats do not),
c7c55b78 1060@command{objcopy} can only copy the inputs into file formats that have the
947ed062 1061same endianness or which have no endianness (e.g., @samp{srec}).
9e48b4c6 1062(However, see the @option{--reverse-bytes} option.)
18356cf2 1063
0285c67d
NC
1064@c man end
1065
1066@c man begin OPTIONS objcopy
1067
c7c55b78 1068@table @env
252b5132
RH
1069@item @var{infile}
1070@itemx @var{outfile}
f20a759a 1071The input and output files, respectively.
c7c55b78 1072If you do not specify @var{outfile}, @command{objcopy} creates a
252b5132
RH
1073temporary file and destructively renames the result with
1074the name of @var{infile}.
1075
c7c55b78 1076@item -I @var{bfdname}
252b5132
RH
1077@itemx --input-target=@var{bfdname}
1078Consider the source file's object format to be @var{bfdname}, rather than
1079attempting to deduce it. @xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
1080
1081@item -O @var{bfdname}
1082@itemx --output-target=@var{bfdname}
1083Write the output file using the object format @var{bfdname}.
1084@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
1085
1086@item -F @var{bfdname}
1087@itemx --target=@var{bfdname}
1088Use @var{bfdname} as the object format for both the input and the output
1089file; i.e., simply transfer data from source to destination with no
1090translation. @xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
1091
43a0748c
NC
1092@item -B @var{bfdarch}
1093@itemx --binary-architecture=@var{bfdarch}
1094Useful when transforming a raw binary input file into an object file.
1095In this case the output architecture can be set to @var{bfdarch}. This
1096option will be ignored if the input file has a known @var{bfdarch}. You
1097can access this binary data inside a program by referencing the special
1098symbols that are created by the conversion process. These symbols are
1099called _binary_@var{objfile}_start, _binary_@var{objfile}_end and
1100_binary_@var{objfile}_size. e.g. you can transform a picture file into
c1c0eb9e 1101an object file and then access it in your code using these symbols.
43a0748c 1102
f91ea849
ILT
1103@item -j @var{sectionname}
1104@itemx --only-section=@var{sectionname}
1105Copy only the named section from the input file to the output file.
1106This option may be given more than once. Note that using this option
1107inappropriately may make the output file unusable.
1108
252b5132
RH
1109@item -R @var{sectionname}
1110@itemx --remove-section=@var{sectionname}
1111Remove any section named @var{sectionname} from the output file. This
1112option may be given more than once. Note that using this option
1113inappropriately may make the output file unusable.
1114
1115@item -S
1116@itemx --strip-all
1117Do not copy relocation and symbol information from the source file.
1118
1119@item -g
1120@itemx --strip-debug
2593f09a 1121Do not copy debugging symbols or sections from the source file.
252b5132
RH
1122
1123@item --strip-unneeded
1124Strip all symbols that are not needed for relocation processing.
1125
1126@item -K @var{symbolname}
1127@itemx --keep-symbol=@var{symbolname}
e7f918ad
NC
1128When stripping symbols, keep symbol @var{symbolname} even if it would
1129normally be stripped. This option may be given more than once.
252b5132
RH
1130
1131@item -N @var{symbolname}
1132@itemx --strip-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1133Do not copy symbol @var{symbolname} from the source file. This option
1134may be given more than once.
1135
bcf32829
JB
1136@item --strip-unneeded-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1137Do not copy symbol @var{symbolname} from the source file unless it is needed
1138by a relocation. This option may be given more than once.
1139
16b2b71c
NC
1140@item -G @var{symbolname}
1141@itemx --keep-global-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1142Keep only symbol @var{symbolname} global. Make all other symbols local
1143to the file, so that they are not visible externally. This option may
1144be given more than once.
1145
d58c2e3a
RS
1146@item --localize-hidden
1147In an ELF object, mark all symbols that have hidden or internal visibility
1148as local. This option applies on top of symbol-specific localization options
1149such as @option{-L}.
1150
252b5132
RH
1151@item -L @var{symbolname}
1152@itemx --localize-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1153Make symbol @var{symbolname} local to the file, so that it is not
1154visible externally. This option may be given more than once.
1155
1156@item -W @var{symbolname}
1157@itemx --weaken-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1158Make symbol @var{symbolname} weak. This option may be given more than once.
1159
7b4a0685
NC
1160@item --globalize-symbol=@var{symbolname}
1161Give symbol @var{symbolname} global scoping so that it is visible
1162outside of the file in which it is defined. This option may be given
1163more than once.
1164
5fe11841
NC
1165@item -w
1166@itemx --wildcard
1167Permit regular expressions in @var{symbolname}s used in other command
1168line options. The question mark (?), asterisk (*), backslash (\) and
1169square brackets ([]) operators can be used anywhere in the symbol
1170name. If the first character of the symbol name is the exclamation
1171point (!) then the sense of the switch is reversed for that symbol.
1172For example:
1173
1174@smallexample
1175 -w -W !foo -W fo*
1176@end smallexample
1177
1178would cause objcopy to weaken all symbols that start with ``fo''
1179except for the symbol ``foo''.
1180
252b5132
RH
1181@item -x
1182@itemx --discard-all
1183Do not copy non-global symbols from the source file.
1184@c FIXME any reason to prefer "non-global" to "local" here?
1185
1186@item -X
1187@itemx --discard-locals
1188Do not copy compiler-generated local symbols.
1189(These usually start with @samp{L} or @samp{.}.)
1190
1191@item -b @var{byte}
1192@itemx --byte=@var{byte}
1193Keep only every @var{byte}th byte of the input file (header data is not
1194affected). @var{byte} can be in the range from 0 to @var{interleave}-1,
c7c55b78 1195where @var{interleave} is given by the @option{-i} or @option{--interleave}
252b5132
RH
1196option, or the default of 4. This option is useful for creating files
1197to program @sc{rom}. It is typically used with an @code{srec} output
1198target.
1199
1200@item -i @var{interleave}
1201@itemx --interleave=@var{interleave}
1202Only copy one out of every @var{interleave} bytes. Select which byte to
c7c55b78
NC
1203copy with the @option{-b} or @option{--byte} option. The default is 4.
1204@command{objcopy} ignores this option if you do not specify either @option{-b} or
1205@option{--byte}.
252b5132
RH
1206
1207@item -p
1208@itemx --preserve-dates
1209Set the access and modification dates of the output file to be the same
1210as those of the input file.
1211
1212@item --debugging
1213Convert debugging information, if possible. This is not the default
1214because only certain debugging formats are supported, and the
1215conversion process can be time consuming.
1216
1217@item --gap-fill @var{val}
1218Fill gaps between sections with @var{val}. This operation applies to
1219the @emph{load address} (LMA) of the sections. It is done by increasing
1220the size of the section with the lower address, and filling in the extra
1221space created with @var{val}.
1222
1223@item --pad-to @var{address}
1224Pad the output file up to the load address @var{address}. This is
1225done by increasing the size of the last section. The extra space is
c7c55b78 1226filled in with the value specified by @option{--gap-fill} (default zero).
252b5132
RH
1227
1228@item --set-start @var{val}
f20a759a 1229Set the start address of the new file to @var{val}. Not all object file
252b5132
RH
1230formats support setting the start address.
1231
1232@item --change-start @var{incr}
1233@itemx --adjust-start @var{incr}
1234@cindex changing start address
1235Change the start address by adding @var{incr}. Not all object file
1236formats support setting the start address.
1237
1238@item --change-addresses @var{incr}
1239@itemx --adjust-vma @var{incr}
1240@cindex changing object addresses
1241Change the VMA and LMA addresses of all sections, as well as the start
1242address, by adding @var{incr}. Some object file formats do not permit
1243section addresses to be changed arbitrarily. Note that this does not
1244relocate the sections; if the program expects sections to be loaded at a
1245certain address, and this option is used to change the sections such
c1c0eb9e 1246that they are loaded at a different address, the program may fail.
252b5132
RH
1247
1248@item --change-section-address @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}
1249@itemx --adjust-section-vma @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}
1250@cindex changing section address
1251Set or change both the VMA address and the LMA address of the named
1252@var{section}. If @samp{=} is used, the section address is set to
1253@var{val}. Otherwise, @var{val} is added to or subtracted from the
c7c55b78 1254section address. See the comments under @option{--change-addresses},
252b5132 1255above. If @var{section} does not exist in the input file, a warning will
c7c55b78 1256be issued, unless @option{--no-change-warnings} is used.
252b5132
RH
1257
1258@item --change-section-lma @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}
1259@cindex changing section LMA
1260Set or change the LMA address of the named @var{section}. The LMA
1261address is the address where the section will be loaded into memory at
1262program load time. Normally this is the same as the VMA address, which
1263is the address of the section at program run time, but on some systems,
1264especially those where a program is held in ROM, the two can be
1265different. If @samp{=} is used, the section address is set to
1266@var{val}. Otherwise, @var{val} is added to or subtracted from the
c7c55b78 1267section address. See the comments under @option{--change-addresses},
252b5132 1268above. If @var{section} does not exist in the input file, a warning
c1c0eb9e 1269will be issued, unless @option{--no-change-warnings} is used.
252b5132
RH
1270
1271@item --change-section-vma @var{section}@{=,+,-@}@var{val}
1272@cindex changing section VMA
1273Set or change the VMA address of the named @var{section}. The VMA
1274address is the address where the section will be located once the
1275program has started executing. Normally this is the same as the LMA
1276address, which is the address where the section will be loaded into
1277memory, but on some systems, especially those where a program is held in
1278ROM, the two can be different. If @samp{=} is used, the section address
1279is set to @var{val}. Otherwise, @var{val} is added to or subtracted
1280from the section address. See the comments under
c7c55b78 1281@option{--change-addresses}, above. If @var{section} does not exist in
252b5132 1282the input file, a warning will be issued, unless
c1c0eb9e 1283@option{--no-change-warnings} is used.
252b5132
RH
1284
1285@item --change-warnings
1286@itemx --adjust-warnings
c7c55b78
NC
1287If @option{--change-section-address} or @option{--change-section-lma} or
1288@option{--change-section-vma} is used, and the named section does not
c1c0eb9e 1289exist, issue a warning. This is the default.
252b5132
RH
1290
1291@item --no-change-warnings
1292@itemx --no-adjust-warnings
c7c55b78
NC
1293Do not issue a warning if @option{--change-section-address} or
1294@option{--adjust-section-lma} or @option{--adjust-section-vma} is used, even
c1c0eb9e 1295if the named section does not exist.
252b5132
RH
1296
1297@item --set-section-flags @var{section}=@var{flags}
1298Set the flags for the named section. The @var{flags} argument is a
1299comma separated string of flag names. The recognized names are
3994e2c6
ILT
1300@samp{alloc}, @samp{contents}, @samp{load}, @samp{noload},
1301@samp{readonly}, @samp{code}, @samp{data}, @samp{rom}, @samp{share}, and
1302@samp{debug}. You can set the @samp{contents} flag for a section which
1303does not have contents, but it is not meaningful to clear the
1304@samp{contents} flag of a section which does have contents--just remove
1305the section instead. Not all flags are meaningful for all object file
1306formats.
252b5132
RH
1307
1308@item --add-section @var{sectionname}=@var{filename}
1309Add a new section named @var{sectionname} while copying the file. The
1310contents of the new section are taken from the file @var{filename}. The
1311size of the section will be the size of the file. This option only
1312works on file formats which can support sections with arbitrary names.
1313
594ef5db
NC
1314@item --rename-section @var{oldname}=@var{newname}[,@var{flags}]
1315Rename a section from @var{oldname} to @var{newname}, optionally
1316changing the section's flags to @var{flags} in the process. This has
1317the advantage over usng a linker script to perform the rename in that
1318the output stays as an object file and does not become a linked
1319executable.
1320
1321This option is particularly helpful when the input format is binary,
1322since this will always create a section called .data. If for example,
1323you wanted instead to create a section called .rodata containing binary
1324data you could use the following command line to achieve it:
1325
1326@smallexample
1327 objcopy -I binary -O <output_format> -B <architecture> \
1328 --rename-section .data=.rodata,alloc,load,readonly,data,contents \
1329 <input_binary_file> <output_object_file>
1330@end smallexample
1331
252b5132
RH
1332@item --change-leading-char
1333Some object file formats use special characters at the start of
1334symbols. The most common such character is underscore, which compilers
c7c55b78 1335often add before every symbol. This option tells @command{objcopy} to
252b5132
RH
1336change the leading character of every symbol when it converts between
1337object file formats. If the object file formats use the same leading
1338character, this option has no effect. Otherwise, it will add a
1339character, or remove a character, or change a character, as
1340appropriate.
1341
1342@item --remove-leading-char
1343If the first character of a global symbol is a special symbol leading
1344character used by the object file format, remove the character. The
1345most common symbol leading character is underscore. This option will
1346remove a leading underscore from all global symbols. This can be useful
1347if you want to link together objects of different file formats with
1348different conventions for symbol names. This is different from
c7c55b78 1349@option{--change-leading-char} because it always changes the symbol name
252b5132
RH
1350when appropriate, regardless of the object file format of the output
1351file.
1352
9e48b4c6
NC
1353@item --reverse-bytes=@var{num}
1354Reverse the bytes in a section with output contents. A section length must
1355be evenly divisible by the value given in order for the swap to be able to
1356take place. Reversing takes place before the interleaving is performed.
1357
1358This option is used typically in generating ROM images for problematic
1359target systems. For example, on some target boards, the 32-bit words
1360fetched from 8-bit ROMs are re-assembled in little-endian byte order
1361regardless of the CPU byte order. Depending on the programming model, the
1362endianness of the ROM may need to be modified.
1363
1364Consider a simple file with a section containing the following eight
1365bytes: @code{12345678}.
1366
1367Using @samp{--reverse-bytes=2} for the above example, the bytes in the
1368output file would be ordered @code{21436587}.
1369
1370Using @samp{--reverse-bytes=4} for the above example, the bytes in the
1371output file would be ordered @code{43218765}.
1372
1373By using @samp{--reverse-bytes=2} for the above example, followed by
1374@samp{--reverse-bytes=4} on the output file, the bytes in the second
1375output file would be ordered @code{34127856}.
1376
420496c1
NC
1377@item --srec-len=@var{ival}
1378Meaningful only for srec output. Set the maximum length of the Srecords
1379being produced to @var{ival}. This length covers both address, data and
1380crc fields.
1381
1382@item --srec-forceS3
c1c0eb9e 1383Meaningful only for srec output. Avoid generation of S1/S2 records,
420496c1
NC
1384creating S3-only record format.
1385
57938635
AM
1386@item --redefine-sym @var{old}=@var{new}
1387Change the name of a symbol @var{old}, to @var{new}. This can be useful
1388when one is trying link two things together for which you have no
1389source, and there are name collisions.
1390
92991082
JT
1391@item --redefine-syms=@var{filename}
1392Apply @option{--redefine-sym} to each symbol pair "@var{old} @var{new}"
1393listed in the file @var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file,
1394with one symbol pair per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash
1395character. This option may be given more than once.
1396
252b5132
RH
1397@item --weaken
1398Change all global symbols in the file to be weak. This can be useful
1399when building an object which will be linked against other objects using
c7c55b78 1400the @option{-R} option to the linker. This option is only effective when
252b5132
RH
1401using an object file format which supports weak symbols.
1402
16b2b71c 1403@item --keep-symbols=@var{filename}
c7c55b78 1404Apply @option{--keep-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the file
16b2b71c
NC
1405@var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one symbol
1406name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash character.
1407This option may be given more than once.
1408
1409@item --strip-symbols=@var{filename}
c7c55b78 1410Apply @option{--strip-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the file
16b2b71c
NC
1411@var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one symbol
1412name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash character.
1413This option may be given more than once.
1414
bcf32829
JB
1415@item --strip-unneeded-symbols=@var{filename}
1416Apply @option{--strip-unneeded-symbol} option to each symbol listed in
1417the file @var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one
1418symbol name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash
1419character. This option may be given more than once.
1420
16b2b71c 1421@item --keep-global-symbols=@var{filename}
c7c55b78 1422Apply @option{--keep-global-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the
16b2b71c
NC
1423file @var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one
1424symbol name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash
1425character. This option may be given more than once.
1426
1427@item --localize-symbols=@var{filename}
c7c55b78 1428Apply @option{--localize-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the file
16b2b71c
NC
1429@var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one symbol
1430name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash character.
1431This option may be given more than once.
1432
7b4a0685
NC
1433@item --globalize-symbols=@var{filename}
1434Apply @option{--globalize-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the file
1435@var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one symbol
1436name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash character.
1437This option may be given more than once.
1438
16b2b71c 1439@item --weaken-symbols=@var{filename}
c7c55b78 1440Apply @option{--weaken-symbol} option to each symbol listed in the file
16b2b71c
NC
1441@var{filename}. @var{filename} is simply a flat file, with one symbol
1442name per line. Line comments may be introduced by the hash character.
1443This option may be given more than once.
1444
1ae8b3d2
AO
1445@item --alt-machine-code=@var{index}
1446If the output architecture has alternate machine codes, use the
1447@var{index}th code instead of the default one. This is useful in case
c1c0eb9e 1448a machine is assigned an official code and the tool-chain adopts the
1ae8b3d2 1449new code, but other applications still depend on the original code
f9d4ad2a
NC
1450being used. For ELF based architectures if the @var{index}
1451alternative does not exist then the value is treated as an absolute
1452number to be stored in the e_machine field of the ELF header.
1ae8b3d2 1453
4087920c
MR
1454@item --writable-text
1455Mark the output text as writable. This option isn't meaningful for all
1456object file formats.
1457
1458@item --readonly-text
1459Make the output text write protected. This option isn't meaningful for all
1460object file formats.
1461
1462@item --pure
1463Mark the output file as demand paged. This option isn't meaningful for all
1464object file formats.
1465
1466@item --impure
1467Mark the output file as impure. This option isn't meaningful for all
1468object file formats.
1469
d7fb0dd2
NC
1470@item --prefix-symbols=@var{string}
1471Prefix all symbols in the output file with @var{string}.
1472
1473@item --prefix-sections=@var{string}
1474Prefix all section names in the output file with @var{string}.
1475
1476@item --prefix-alloc-sections=@var{string}
1477Prefix all the names of all allocated sections in the output file with
1478@var{string}.
1479
ed1653a7
NC
1480@item --add-gnu-debuglink=@var{path-to-file}
1481Creates a .gnu_debuglink section which contains a reference to @var{path-to-file}
1482and adds it to the output file.
1483
1637cd90
JB
1484@item --keep-file-symbols
1485When stripping a file, perhaps with @option{--strip-debug} or
1486@option{--strip-unneeded}, retain any symbols specifying source file names,
1487which would otherwise get stripped.
1488
ed1653a7 1489@item --only-keep-debug
36d3b955
MR
1490Strip a file, removing contents of any sections that would not be
1491stripped by @option{--strip-debug} and leaving the debugging sections
c1c0eb9e 1492intact. In ELF files, this preserves all note sections in the output.
ed1653a7
NC
1493
1494The intention is that this option will be used in conjunction with
1495@option{--add-gnu-debuglink} to create a two part executable. One a
1496stripped binary which will occupy less space in RAM and in a
1497distribution and the second a debugging information file which is only
1498needed if debugging abilities are required. The suggested procedure
1499to create these files is as follows:
1500
1501@enumerate
1502@item Link the executable as normal. Assuming that is is called
1503@code{foo} then...
1504@item Run @code{objcopy --only-keep-debug foo foo.dbg} to
1505create a file containing the debugging info.
1506@item Run @code{objcopy --strip-debug foo} to create a
1507stripped executable.
1508@item Run @code{objcopy --add-gnu-debuglink=foo.dbg foo}
1509to add a link to the debugging info into the stripped executable.
1510@end enumerate
1511
928a4139 1512Note---the choice of @code{.dbg} as an extension for the debug info
ed1653a7
NC
1513file is arbitrary. Also the @code{--only-keep-debug} step is
1514optional. You could instead do this:
1515
1516@enumerate
1517@item Link the executable as normal.
1518@item Copy @code{foo} to @code{foo.full}
1519@item Run @code{objcopy --strip-debug foo}
1520@item Run @code{objcopy --add-gnu-debuglink=foo.full foo}
1521@end enumerate
1522
b45619c0 1523i.e., the file pointed to by the @option{--add-gnu-debuglink} can be the
ed1653a7
NC
1524full executable. It does not have to be a file created by the
1525@option{--only-keep-debug} switch.
1526
928a4139 1527Note---this switch is only intended for use on fully linked files. It
91bb255c
NC
1528does not make sense to use it on object files where the debugging
1529information may be incomplete. Besides the gnu_debuglink feature
1530currently only supports the presence of one filename containing
1531debugging information, not multiple filenames on a one-per-object-file
1532basis.
1533
d3e52d40
RS
1534@item --extract-symbol
1535Keep the file's section flags and symbols but remove all section data.
1536Specifically, the option:
1537
1538@itemize
d3e52d40
RS
1539@item removes the contents of all sections;
1540@item sets the size of every section to zero; and
1541@item sets the file's start address to zero.
1542@end itemize
c1c0eb9e 1543
d3e52d40
RS
1544This option is used to build a @file{.sym} file for a VxWorks kernel.
1545It can also be a useful way of reducing the size of a @option{--just-symbols}
1546linker input file.
1547
252b5132
RH
1548@item -V
1549@itemx --version
c7c55b78 1550Show the version number of @command{objcopy}.
252b5132
RH
1551
1552@item -v
1553@itemx --verbose
1554Verbose output: list all object files modified. In the case of
1555archives, @samp{objcopy -V} lists all members of the archive.
1556
1557@item --help
c7c55b78 1558Show a summary of the options to @command{objcopy}.
7c29036b
NC
1559
1560@item --info
1561Display a list showing all architectures and object formats available.
252b5132
RH
1562@end table
1563
0285c67d
NC
1564@c man end
1565
1566@ignore
1567@c man begin SEEALSO objcopy
1568ld(1), objdump(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
1569@c man end
1570@end ignore
1571
252b5132
RH
1572@node objdump
1573@chapter objdump
1574
1575@cindex object file information
1576@kindex objdump
1577
0285c67d
NC
1578@c man title objdump display information from object files.
1579
252b5132 1580@smallexample
0285c67d 1581@c man begin SYNOPSIS objdump
c7c55b78
NC
1582objdump [@option{-a}|@option{--archive-headers}]
1583 [@option{-b} @var{bfdname}|@option{--target=@var{bfdname}}]
1584 [@option{-C}|@option{--demangle}[=@var{style}] ]
1585 [@option{-d}|@option{--disassemble}]
1586 [@option{-D}|@option{--disassemble-all}]
1587 [@option{-z}|@option{--disassemble-zeroes}]
1588 [@option{-EB}|@option{-EL}|@option{--endian=}@{big | little @}]
1589 [@option{-f}|@option{--file-headers}]
98ec6e72 1590 [@option{-F}|@option{--file-offsets}]
c7c55b78
NC
1591 [@option{--file-start-context}]
1592 [@option{-g}|@option{--debugging}]
51cdc6e0 1593 [@option{-e}|@option{--debugging-tags}]
c7c55b78
NC
1594 [@option{-h}|@option{--section-headers}|@option{--headers}]
1595 [@option{-i}|@option{--info}]
1596 [@option{-j} @var{section}|@option{--section=}@var{section}]
1597 [@option{-l}|@option{--line-numbers}]
1598 [@option{-S}|@option{--source}]
1599 [@option{-m} @var{machine}|@option{--architecture=}@var{machine}]
1600 [@option{-M} @var{options}|@option{--disassembler-options=}@var{options}]
1601 [@option{-p}|@option{--private-headers}]
1602 [@option{-r}|@option{--reloc}]
1603 [@option{-R}|@option{--dynamic-reloc}]
1604 [@option{-s}|@option{--full-contents}]
4cb93e3b
TG
1605 [@option{-W[lLiaprmfFsoR]}|
1606 @option{--dwarf}[=rawline,=decodedline,=info,=abbrev,=pubnames,=aranges,=macro,=frames,=frames-interp,=str,=loc,=Ranges]]
c7c55b78
NC
1607 [@option{-G}|@option{--stabs}]
1608 [@option{-t}|@option{--syms}]
1609 [@option{-T}|@option{--dynamic-syms}]
1610 [@option{-x}|@option{--all-headers}]
1611 [@option{-w}|@option{--wide}]
1612 [@option{--start-address=}@var{address}]
1613 [@option{--stop-address=}@var{address}]
1614 [@option{--prefix-addresses}]
1615 [@option{--[no-]show-raw-insn}]
1616 [@option{--adjust-vma=}@var{offset}]
3c9458e9 1617 [@option{--special-syms}]
0dafdf3f
L
1618 [@option{--prefix=}@var{prefix}]
1619 [@option{--prefix-strip=}@var{level}]
c7c55b78
NC
1620 [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
1621 [@option{-H}|@option{--help}]
252b5132 1622 @var{objfile}@dots{}
0285c67d 1623@c man end
252b5132
RH
1624@end smallexample
1625
0285c67d
NC
1626@c man begin DESCRIPTION objdump
1627
c7c55b78 1628@command{objdump} displays information about one or more object files.
252b5132
RH
1629The options control what particular information to display. This
1630information is mostly useful to programmers who are working on the
1631compilation tools, as opposed to programmers who just want their
1632program to compile and work.
1633
1634@var{objfile}@dots{} are the object files to be examined. When you
c7c55b78 1635specify archives, @command{objdump} shows information on each of the member
252b5132
RH
1636object files.
1637
0285c67d
NC
1638@c man end
1639
1640@c man begin OPTIONS objdump
1641
252b5132 1642The long and short forms of options, shown here as alternatives, are
1dada9c5 1643equivalent. At least one option from the list
155e0d23 1644@option{-a,-d,-D,-e,-f,-g,-G,-h,-H,-p,-r,-R,-s,-S,-t,-T,-V,-x} must be given.
252b5132 1645
c7c55b78 1646@table @env
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RH
1647@item -a
1648@itemx --archive-header
1649@cindex archive headers
1650If any of the @var{objfile} files are archives, display the archive
1651header information (in a format similar to @samp{ls -l}). Besides the
1652information you could list with @samp{ar tv}, @samp{objdump -a} shows
1653the object file format of each archive member.
1654
1655@item --adjust-vma=@var{offset}
1656@cindex section addresses in objdump
1657@cindex VMA in objdump
1658When dumping information, first add @var{offset} to all the section
1659addresses. This is useful if the section addresses do not correspond to
1660the symbol table, which can happen when putting sections at particular
1661addresses when using a format which can not represent section addresses,
1662such as a.out.
1663
1664@item -b @var{bfdname}
1665@itemx --target=@var{bfdname}
1666@cindex object code format
1667Specify that the object-code format for the object files is
1668@var{bfdname}. This option may not be necessary; @var{objdump} can
1669automatically recognize many formats.
1670
1671For example,
1672@example
1673objdump -b oasys -m vax -h fu.o
1674@end example
1675@noindent
c7c55b78
NC
1676displays summary information from the section headers (@option{-h}) of
1677@file{fu.o}, which is explicitly identified (@option{-m}) as a VAX object
252b5132 1678file in the format produced by Oasys compilers. You can list the
c7c55b78 1679formats available with the @option{-i} option.
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RH
1680@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
1681
1682@item -C
28c309a2 1683@itemx --demangle[=@var{style}]
252b5132
RH
1684@cindex demangling in objdump
1685Decode (@dfn{demangle}) low-level symbol names into user-level names.
1686Besides removing any initial underscore prepended by the system, this
28c309a2 1687makes C++ function names readable. Different compilers have different
c1c0eb9e
RM
1688mangling styles. The optional demangling style argument can be used to
1689choose an appropriate demangling style for your compiler. @xref{c++filt},
28c309a2 1690for more information on demangling.
252b5132 1691
947ed062
NC
1692@item -g
1693@itemx --debugging
b922d590
NC
1694Display debugging information. This attempts to parse STABS and IEEE
1695debugging format information stored in the file and print it out using
1696a C like syntax. If neither of these formats are found this option
1697falls back on the @option{-W} option to print any DWARF information in
1698the file.
252b5132 1699
51cdc6e0
NC
1700@item -e
1701@itemx --debugging-tags
1702Like @option{-g}, but the information is generated in a format compatible
1703with ctags tool.
1704
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RH
1705@item -d
1706@itemx --disassemble
1707@cindex disassembling object code
1708@cindex machine instructions
1709Display the assembler mnemonics for the machine instructions from
1710@var{objfile}. This option only disassembles those sections which are
1711expected to contain instructions.
1712
1713@item -D
1714@itemx --disassemble-all
c7c55b78 1715Like @option{-d}, but disassemble the contents of all sections, not just
252b5132
RH
1716those expected to contain instructions.
1717
1718@item --prefix-addresses
1719When disassembling, print the complete address on each line. This is
1720the older disassembly format.
1721
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RH
1722@item -EB
1723@itemx -EL
1724@itemx --endian=@{big|little@}
1725@cindex endianness
1726@cindex disassembly endianness
1727Specify the endianness of the object files. This only affects
1728disassembly. This can be useful when disassembling a file format which
1729does not describe endianness information, such as S-records.
1730
1731@item -f
947ed062 1732@itemx --file-headers
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RH
1733@cindex object file header
1734Display summary information from the overall header of
1735each of the @var{objfile} files.
1736
98ec6e72
NC
1737@item -F
1738@itemx --file-offsets
1739@cindex object file offsets
1740When disassembling sections, whenever a symbol is displayed, also
1741display the file offset of the region of data that is about to be
1742dumped. If zeroes are being skipped, then when disassembly resumes,
1743tell the user how many zeroes were skipped and the file offset of the
32760852
NC
1744location from where the disassembly resumes. When dumping sections,
1745display the file offset of the location from where the dump starts.
98ec6e72 1746
f1563258
TW
1747@item --file-start-context
1748@cindex source code context
1749Specify that when displaying interlisted source code/disassembly
c7c55b78 1750(assumes @option{-S}) from a file that has not yet been displayed, extend the
f1563258
TW
1751context to the start of the file.
1752
252b5132 1753@item -h
947ed062
NC
1754@itemx --section-headers
1755@itemx --headers
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RH
1756@cindex section headers
1757Display summary information from the section headers of the
1758object file.
1759
1760File segments may be relocated to nonstandard addresses, for example by
c7c55b78
NC
1761using the @option{-Ttext}, @option{-Tdata}, or @option{-Tbss} options to
1762@command{ld}. However, some object file formats, such as a.out, do not
252b5132 1763store the starting address of the file segments. In those situations,
c7c55b78 1764although @command{ld} relocates the sections correctly, using @samp{objdump
252b5132
RH
1765-h} to list the file section headers cannot show the correct addresses.
1766Instead, it shows the usual addresses, which are implicit for the
1767target.
1768
947ed062
NC
1769@item -H
1770@itemx --help
c7c55b78 1771Print a summary of the options to @command{objdump} and exit.
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RH
1772
1773@item -i
1774@itemx --info
1775@cindex architectures available
1776@cindex object formats available
1777Display a list showing all architectures and object formats available
c7c55b78 1778for specification with @option{-b} or @option{-m}.
252b5132
RH
1779
1780@item -j @var{name}
1781@itemx --section=@var{name}
1782@cindex section information
1783Display information only for section @var{name}.
1784
1785@item -l
1786@itemx --line-numbers
1787@cindex source filenames for object files
1788Label the display (using debugging information) with the filename and
1789source line numbers corresponding to the object code or relocs shown.
c7c55b78 1790Only useful with @option{-d}, @option{-D}, or @option{-r}.
252b5132
RH
1791
1792@item -m @var{machine}
1793@itemx --architecture=@var{machine}
1794@cindex architecture
1795@cindex disassembly architecture
1796Specify the architecture to use when disassembling object files. This
1797can be useful when disassembling object files which do not describe
1798architecture information, such as S-records. You can list the available
c7c55b78 1799architectures with the @option{-i} option.
252b5132 1800
dd92f639
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1801@item -M @var{options}
1802@itemx --disassembler-options=@var{options}
1803Pass target specific information to the disassembler. Only supported on
31e0f3cd
NC
1804some targets. If it is necessary to specify more than one
1805disassembler option then multiple @option{-M} options can be used or
1806can be placed together into a comma separated list.
dd92f639
NC
1807
1808If the target is an ARM architecture then this switch can be used to
1809select which register name set is used during disassembler. Specifying
9c092ace 1810@option{-M reg-names-std} (the default) will select the register names as
58efb6c0
NC
1811used in ARM's instruction set documentation, but with register 13 called
1812'sp', register 14 called 'lr' and register 15 called 'pc'. Specifying
c7c55b78
NC
1813@option{-M reg-names-apcs} will select the name set used by the ARM
1814Procedure Call Standard, whilst specifying @option{-M reg-names-raw} will
58efb6c0
NC
1815just use @samp{r} followed by the register number.
1816
1817There are also two variants on the APCS register naming scheme enabled
c7c55b78
NC
1818by @option{-M reg-names-atpcs} and @option{-M reg-names-special-atpcs} which
1819use the ARM/Thumb Procedure Call Standard naming conventions. (Either
947ed062 1820with the normal register names or the special register names).
dd92f639 1821
8f915f68 1822This option can also be used for ARM architectures to force the
c36774d6 1823disassembler to interpret all instructions as Thumb instructions by
c7c55b78 1824using the switch @option{--disassembler-options=force-thumb}. This can be
8f915f68
NC
1825useful when attempting to disassemble thumb code produced by other
1826compilers.
1827
e396998b
AM
1828For the x86, some of the options duplicate functions of the @option{-m}
1829switch, but allow finer grained control. Multiple selections from the
1830following may be specified as a comma separated string.
b89e9eae 1831@option{x86-64}, @option{i386} and @option{i8086} select disassembly for
e396998b 1832the given architecture. @option{intel} and @option{att} select between
9d141669
L
1833intel syntax mode and AT&T syntax mode.
1834@option{intel-mnemonic} and @option{att-mnemonic} select between
1835intel mnemonic mode and AT&T mnemonic mode. @option{intel-mnemonic}
1836implies @option{intel} and @option{att-mnemonic} implies @option{att}.
1837@option{addr64}, @option{addr32},
e396998b
AM
1838@option{addr16}, @option{data32} and @option{data16} specify the default
1839address size and operand size. These four options will be overridden if
b89e9eae 1840@option{x86-64}, @option{i386} or @option{i8086} appear later in the
e396998b 1841option string. Lastly, @option{suffix}, when in AT&T mode,
b9e5d8e5 1842instructs the disassembler to print a mnemonic suffix even when the
e396998b
AM
1843suffix could be inferred by the operands.
1844
2f3bb96a
BE
1845For PowerPC, @option{booke} controls the disassembly of BookE
1846instructions. @option{32} and @option{64} select PowerPC and
1847PowerPC64 disassembly, respectively. @option{e300} selects
1848disassembly for the e300 family. @option{440} selects disassembly for
1849the PowerPC 440. @option{ppcps} selects disassembly for the paired
1850single instructions of the PPC750CL.
802a735e 1851
b45619c0 1852For MIPS, this option controls the printing of instruction mnemonic
e39893d7
FF
1853names and register names in disassembled instructions. Multiple
1854selections from the following may be specified as a comma separated
1855string, and invalid options are ignored:
640c0ccd
CD
1856
1857@table @code
e39893d7 1858@item no-aliases
b45619c0
NC
1859Print the 'raw' instruction mnemonic instead of some pseudo
1860instruction mnemonic. I.e., print 'daddu' or 'or' instead of 'move',
e39893d7
FF
1861'sll' instead of 'nop', etc.
1862
640c0ccd
CD
1863@item gpr-names=@var{ABI}
1864Print GPR (general-purpose register) names as appropriate
1865for the specified ABI. By default, GPR names are selected according to
1866the ABI of the binary being disassembled.
1867
1868@item fpr-names=@var{ABI}
1869Print FPR (floating-point register) names as
1870appropriate for the specified ABI. By default, FPR numbers are printed
1871rather than names.
1872
1873@item cp0-names=@var{ARCH}
1874Print CP0 (system control coprocessor; coprocessor 0) register names
1875as appropriate for the CPU or architecture specified by
1876@var{ARCH}. By default, CP0 register names are selected according to
1877the architecture and CPU of the binary being disassembled.
1878
af7ee8bf
CD
1879@item hwr-names=@var{ARCH}
1880Print HWR (hardware register, used by the @code{rdhwr} instruction) names
1881as appropriate for the CPU or architecture specified by
1882@var{ARCH}. By default, HWR names are selected according to
1883the architecture and CPU of the binary being disassembled.
1884
640c0ccd
CD
1885@item reg-names=@var{ABI}
1886Print GPR and FPR names as appropriate for the selected ABI.
1887
1888@item reg-names=@var{ARCH}
af7ee8bf
CD
1889Print CPU-specific register names (CP0 register and HWR names)
1890as appropriate for the selected CPU or architecture.
640c0ccd
CD
1891@end table
1892
1893For any of the options listed above, @var{ABI} or
1894@var{ARCH} may be specified as @samp{numeric} to have numbers printed
1895rather than names, for the selected types of registers.
1896You can list the available values of @var{ABI} and @var{ARCH} using
1897the @option{--help} option.
1898
ec72cfe5
NC
1899For VAX, you can specify function entry addresses with @option{-M
1900entry:0xf00ba}. You can use this multiple times to properly
1901disassemble VAX binary files that don't contain symbol tables (like
1902ROM dumps). In these cases, the function entry mask would otherwise
b45619c0 1903be decoded as VAX instructions, which would probably lead the rest
ec72cfe5
NC
1904of the function being wrongly disassembled.
1905
252b5132
RH
1906@item -p
1907@itemx --private-headers
1908Print information that is specific to the object file format. The exact
1909information printed depends upon the object file format. For some
1910object file formats, no additional information is printed.
1911
1912@item -r
1913@itemx --reloc
1914@cindex relocation entries, in object file
c7c55b78
NC
1915Print the relocation entries of the file. If used with @option{-d} or
1916@option{-D}, the relocations are printed interspersed with the
252b5132
RH
1917disassembly.
1918
1919@item -R
1920@itemx --dynamic-reloc
1921@cindex dynamic relocation entries, in object file
1922Print the dynamic relocation entries of the file. This is only
1923meaningful for dynamic objects, such as certain types of shared
840b96a7
AM
1924libraries. As for @option{-r}, if used with @option{-d} or
1925@option{-D}, the relocations are printed interspersed with the
1926disassembly.
252b5132
RH
1927
1928@item -s
1929@itemx --full-contents
1930@cindex sections, full contents
1931@cindex object file sections
155e0d23
NC
1932Display the full contents of any sections requested. By default all
1933non-empty sections are displayed.
252b5132
RH
1934
1935@item -S
1936@itemx --source
1937@cindex source disassembly
1938@cindex disassembly, with source
1939Display source code intermixed with disassembly, if possible. Implies
c7c55b78 1940@option{-d}.
252b5132 1941
0dafdf3f
L
1942@item --prefix=@var{prefix}
1943@cindex Add prefix to absolute paths
1944Specify @var{prefix} to add to the absolute paths when used with
1945@option{-S}.
1946
1947@item --prefix-strip=@var{level}
1948@cindex Strip absolute paths
1949Indicate how many initial directory names to strip off the hardwired
1950absolute paths. It has no effect without @option{--prefix=}@var{prefix}.
1951
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RH
1952@item --show-raw-insn
1953When disassembling instructions, print the instruction in hex as well as
1954in symbolic form. This is the default except when
c7c55b78 1955@option{--prefix-addresses} is used.
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RH
1956
1957@item --no-show-raw-insn
1958When disassembling instructions, do not print the instruction bytes.
c7c55b78 1959This is the default when @option{--prefix-addresses} is used.
252b5132 1960
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TG
1961@item -W[lLiaprmfFsoR]
1962@itemx --dwarf[=rawline,=decodedline,=info,=abbrev,=pubnames,=aranges,=macro,=frames,=frames-interp,=str,=loc,=Ranges]
4de2ad99
L
1963@cindex DWARF
1964@cindex debug symbols
4cb93e3b
TG
1965Displays the contents of the debug sections in the file, if any are
1966present. If one of the optional letters or words follows the switch
1967then only data found in those specific sections will be dumped.
4de2ad99 1968
1dada9c5 1969@item -G
947ed062 1970@itemx --stabs
252b5132
RH
1971@cindex stab
1972@cindex .stab
1973@cindex debug symbols
1974@cindex ELF object file format
1975Display the full contents of any sections requested. Display the
1976contents of the .stab and .stab.index and .stab.excl sections from an
1977ELF file. This is only useful on systems (such as Solaris 2.0) in which
1978@code{.stab} debugging symbol-table entries are carried in an ELF
1979section. In most other file formats, debugging symbol-table entries are
c7c55b78 1980interleaved with linkage symbols, and are visible in the @option{--syms}
0285c67d
NC
1981output.
1982@ifclear man
1983For more information on stabs symbols, see @ref{Top,Stabs,Stabs
252b5132 1984Overview,stabs.info, The ``stabs'' debug format}.
0285c67d 1985@end ifclear
252b5132
RH
1986
1987@item --start-address=@var{address}
1988@cindex start-address
1989Start displaying data at the specified address. This affects the output
c7c55b78 1990of the @option{-d}, @option{-r} and @option{-s} options.
252b5132
RH
1991
1992@item --stop-address=@var{address}
1993@cindex stop-address
1994Stop displaying data at the specified address. This affects the output
c7c55b78 1995of the @option{-d}, @option{-r} and @option{-s} options.
252b5132
RH
1996
1997@item -t
1998@itemx --syms
1999@cindex symbol table entries, printing
2000Print the symbol table entries of the file.
a1039809
NC
2001This is similar to the information provided by the @samp{nm} program,
2002although the display format is different. The format of the output
2003depends upon the format of the file being dumped, but there are two main
2004types. One looks like this:
2005
2006@smallexample
2007[ 4](sec 3)(fl 0x00)(ty 0)(scl 3) (nx 1) 0x00000000 .bss
2008[ 6](sec 1)(fl 0x00)(ty 0)(scl 2) (nx 0) 0x00000000 fred
2009@end smallexample
2010
2011where the number inside the square brackets is the number of the entry
2012in the symbol table, the @var{sec} number is the section number, the
2013@var{fl} value are the symbol's flag bits, the @var{ty} number is the
2014symbol's type, the @var{scl} number is the symbol's storage class and
2015the @var{nx} value is the number of auxilary entries associated with
2016the symbol. The last two fields are the symbol's value and its name.
2017
2018The other common output format, usually seen with ELF based files,
2019looks like this:
2020
2021@smallexample
202200000000 l d .bss 00000000 .bss
202300000000 g .text 00000000 fred
2024@end smallexample
2025
2026Here the first number is the symbol's value (sometimes refered to as
2027its address). The next field is actually a set of characters and
2028spaces indicating the flag bits that are set on the symbol. These
af3e16d9
NC
2029characters are described below. Next is the section with which the
2030symbol is associated or @emph{*ABS*} if the section is absolute (ie
2031not connected with any section), or @emph{*UND*} if the section is
2032referenced in the file being dumped, but not defined there.
2033
2034After the section name comes another field, a number, which for common
2035symbols is the alignment and for other symbol is the size. Finally
2036the symbol's name is displayed.
a1039809
NC
2037
2038The flag characters are divided into 7 groups as follows:
2039@table @code
2040@item l
2041@itemx g
2042@itemx !
2043The symbol is local (l), global (g), neither (a space) or both (!). A
928a4139 2044symbol can be neither local or global for a variety of reasons, e.g.,
a1039809
NC
2045because it is used for debugging, but it is probably an indication of
2046a bug if it is ever both local and global.
2047
2048@item w
2049The symbol is weak (w) or strong (a space).
2050
2051@item C
2052The symbol denotes a constructor (C) or an ordinary symbol (a space).
2053
2054@item W
2055The symbol is a warning (W) or a normal symbol (a space). A warning
2056symbol's name is a message to be displayed if the symbol following the
2057warning symbol is ever referenced.
2058
2059@item I
171191ba
NC
2060@item i
2061The symbol is an indirect reference to another symbol (I), a function
2062to be evaluated during reloc processing (i) or a normal symbol (a
2063space).
a1039809
NC
2064
2065@item d
2066@itemx D
2067The symbol is a debugging symbol (d) or a dynamic symbol (D) or a
2068normal symbol (a space).
2069
2070@item F
2071@item f
2072@item O
af3e16d9 2073The symbol is the name of a function (F) or a file (f) or an object
a1039809
NC
2074(O) or just a normal symbol (a space).
2075@end table
252b5132
RH
2076
2077@item -T
2078@itemx --dynamic-syms
2079@cindex dynamic symbol table entries, printing
2080Print the dynamic symbol table entries of the file. This is only
2081meaningful for dynamic objects, such as certain types of shared
2082libraries. This is similar to the information provided by the @samp{nm}
c7c55b78 2083program when given the @option{-D} (@option{--dynamic}) option.
252b5132 2084
3c9458e9
NC
2085@item --special-syms
2086When displaying symbols include those which the target considers to be
2087special in some way and which would not normally be of interest to the
2088user.
2089
947ed062
NC
2090@item -V
2091@itemx --version
c7c55b78 2092Print the version number of @command{objdump} and exit.
252b5132
RH
2093
2094@item -x
947ed062 2095@itemx --all-headers
252b5132
RH
2096@cindex all header information, object file
2097@cindex header information, all
2098Display all available header information, including the symbol table and
c7c55b78 2099relocation entries. Using @option{-x} is equivalent to specifying all of
04c34128 2100@option{-a -f -h -p -r -t}.
252b5132
RH
2101
2102@item -w
2103@itemx --wide
2104@cindex wide output, printing
2105Format some lines for output devices that have more than 80 columns.
31104126 2106Also do not truncate symbol names when they are displayed.
aefbdd67
BE
2107
2108@item -z
2c0c15f9 2109@itemx --disassemble-zeroes
aefbdd67
BE
2110Normally the disassembly output will skip blocks of zeroes. This
2111option directs the disassembler to disassemble those blocks, just like
2112any other data.
252b5132
RH
2113@end table
2114
0285c67d
NC
2115@c man end
2116
2117@ignore
2118@c man begin SEEALSO objdump
2119nm(1), readelf(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2120@c man end
2121@end ignore
2122
252b5132
RH
2123@node ranlib
2124@chapter ranlib
2125
2126@kindex ranlib
2127@cindex archive contents
2128@cindex symbol index
2129
0285c67d
NC
2130@c man title ranlib generate index to archive.
2131
252b5132 2132@smallexample
0285c67d 2133@c man begin SYNOPSIS ranlib
b14f9da0 2134ranlib [@option{-vVt}] @var{archive}
0285c67d 2135@c man end
252b5132
RH
2136@end smallexample
2137
0285c67d
NC
2138@c man begin DESCRIPTION ranlib
2139
c7c55b78 2140@command{ranlib} generates an index to the contents of an archive and
252b5132 2141stores it in the archive. The index lists each symbol defined by a
c1c0eb9e 2142member of an archive that is a relocatable object file.
252b5132
RH
2143
2144You may use @samp{nm -s} or @samp{nm --print-armap} to list this index.
2145
2146An archive with such an index speeds up linking to the library and
2147allows routines in the library to call each other without regard to
2148their placement in the archive.
2149
c7c55b78
NC
2150The @sc{gnu} @command{ranlib} program is another form of @sc{gnu} @command{ar}; running
2151@command{ranlib} is completely equivalent to executing @samp{ar -s}.
252b5132
RH
2152@xref{ar}.
2153
0285c67d
NC
2154@c man end
2155
2156@c man begin OPTIONS ranlib
2157
c7c55b78 2158@table @env
252b5132
RH
2159@item -v
2160@itemx -V
f20a759a 2161@itemx --version
c7c55b78 2162Show the version number of @command{ranlib}.
b14f9da0
NC
2163
2164@item -t
2165Update the timestamp of the symbol map of an archive.
252b5132
RH
2166@end table
2167
0285c67d
NC
2168@c man end
2169
2170@ignore
2171@c man begin SEEALSO ranlib
2172ar(1), nm(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2173@c man end
2174@end ignore
2175
252b5132
RH
2176@node size
2177@chapter size
2178
2179@kindex size
2180@cindex section sizes
2181
0285c67d
NC
2182@c man title size list section sizes and total size.
2183
252b5132 2184@smallexample
0285c67d 2185@c man begin SYNOPSIS size
c7c55b78 2186size [@option{-A}|@option{-B}|@option{--format=}@var{compatibility}]
15c82623
NC
2187 [@option{--help}]
2188 [@option{-d}|@option{-o}|@option{-x}|@option{--radix=}@var{number}]
29422971 2189 [@option{--common}]
15c82623 2190 [@option{-t}|@option{--totals}]
c1c0eb9e 2191 [@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}] [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
c7c55b78 2192 [@var{objfile}@dots{}]
0285c67d 2193@c man end
252b5132
RH
2194@end smallexample
2195
0285c67d
NC
2196@c man begin DESCRIPTION size
2197
c7c55b78 2198The @sc{gnu} @command{size} utility lists the section sizes---and the total
252b5132
RH
2199size---for each of the object or archive files @var{objfile} in its
2200argument list. By default, one line of output is generated for each
2201object file or each module in an archive.
2202
2203@var{objfile}@dots{} are the object files to be examined.
2204If none are specified, the file @code{a.out} will be used.
2205
0285c67d
NC
2206@c man end
2207
2208@c man begin OPTIONS size
2209
252b5132
RH
2210The command line options have the following meanings:
2211
c7c55b78 2212@table @env
252b5132
RH
2213@item -A
2214@itemx -B
2215@itemx --format=@var{compatibility}
c7c55b78 2216@cindex @command{size} display format
252b5132 2217Using one of these options, you can choose whether the output from @sc{gnu}
c7c55b78
NC
2218@command{size} resembles output from System V @command{size} (using @option{-A},
2219or @option{--format=sysv}), or Berkeley @command{size} (using @option{-B}, or
2220@option{--format=berkeley}). The default is the one-line format similar to
c1c0eb9e 2221Berkeley's.
252b5132
RH
2222@c Bonus for doc-source readers: you can also say --format=strange (or
2223@c anything else that starts with 's') for sysv, and --format=boring (or
2224@c anything else that starts with 'b') for Berkeley.
2225
2226Here is an example of the Berkeley (default) format of output from
c1c0eb9e 2227@command{size}:
252b5132 2228@smallexample
f20a759a 2229$ size --format=Berkeley ranlib size
252b5132
RH
2230text data bss dec hex filename
2231294880 81920 11592 388392 5ed28 ranlib
2232294880 81920 11888 388688 5ee50 size
2233@end smallexample
2234
2235@noindent
2236This is the same data, but displayed closer to System V conventions:
2237
2238@smallexample
f20a759a 2239$ size --format=SysV ranlib size
252b5132
RH
2240ranlib :
2241section size addr
c1c0eb9e
RM
2242.text 294880 8192
2243.data 81920 303104
2244.bss 11592 385024
2245Total 388392
252b5132
RH
2246
2247
2248size :
2249section size addr
c1c0eb9e
RM
2250.text 294880 8192
2251.data 81920 303104
2252.bss 11888 385024
2253Total 388688
252b5132
RH
2254@end smallexample
2255
2256@item --help
2257Show a summary of acceptable arguments and options.
2258
2259@item -d
2260@itemx -o
2261@itemx -x
2262@itemx --radix=@var{number}
c7c55b78 2263@cindex @command{size} number format
252b5132
RH
2264@cindex radix for section sizes
2265Using one of these options, you can control whether the size of each
c7c55b78
NC
2266section is given in decimal (@option{-d}, or @option{--radix=10}); octal
2267(@option{-o}, or @option{--radix=8}); or hexadecimal (@option{-x}, or
2268@option{--radix=16}). In @option{--radix=@var{number}}, only the three
252b5132 2269values (8, 10, 16) are supported. The total size is always given in two
c7c55b78
NC
2270radices; decimal and hexadecimal for @option{-d} or @option{-x} output, or
2271octal and hexadecimal if you're using @option{-o}.
252b5132 2272
29422971
AM
2273@item --common
2274Print total size of common symbols in each file. When using Berkeley
2275format these are included in the bss size.
2276
15c82623
NC
2277@item -t
2278@itemx --totals
2279Show totals of all objects listed (Berkeley format listing mode only).
2280
252b5132
RH
2281@item --target=@var{bfdname}
2282@cindex object code format
2283Specify that the object-code format for @var{objfile} is
c7c55b78 2284@var{bfdname}. This option may not be necessary; @command{size} can
252b5132
RH
2285automatically recognize many formats.
2286@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2287
2288@item -V
2289@itemx --version
c7c55b78 2290Display the version number of @command{size}.
252b5132
RH
2291@end table
2292
0285c67d
NC
2293@c man end
2294
2295@ignore
2296@c man begin SEEALSO size
2297ar(1), objdump(1), readelf(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2298@c man end
2299@end ignore
2300
252b5132
RH
2301@node strings
2302@chapter strings
2303@kindex strings
2304@cindex listings strings
2305@cindex printing strings
2306@cindex strings, printing
2307
0285c67d
NC
2308@c man title strings print the strings of printable characters in files.
2309
252b5132 2310@smallexample
0285c67d 2311@c man begin SYNOPSIS strings
d132876a
NC
2312strings [@option{-afov}] [@option{-}@var{min-len}]
2313 [@option{-n} @var{min-len}] [@option{--bytes=}@var{min-len}]
2314 [@option{-t} @var{radix}] [@option{--radix=}@var{radix}]
2315 [@option{-e} @var{encoding}] [@option{--encoding=}@var{encoding}]
2316 [@option{-}] [@option{--all}] [@option{--print-file-name}]
3bf31ec9 2317 [@option{-T} @var{bfdname}] [@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}]
c7c55b78 2318 [@option{--help}] [@option{--version}] @var{file}@dots{}
0285c67d 2319@c man end
252b5132
RH
2320@end smallexample
2321
0285c67d
NC
2322@c man begin DESCRIPTION strings
2323
c7c55b78 2324For each @var{file} given, @sc{gnu} @command{strings} prints the printable
252b5132
RH
2325character sequences that are at least 4 characters long (or the number
2326given with the options below) and are followed by an unprintable
2327character. By default, it only prints the strings from the initialized
2328and loaded sections of object files; for other types of files, it prints
2329the strings from the whole file.
2330
c7c55b78 2331@command{strings} is mainly useful for determining the contents of non-text
252b5132
RH
2332files.
2333
0285c67d
NC
2334@c man end
2335
2336@c man begin OPTIONS strings
2337
c7c55b78 2338@table @env
252b5132
RH
2339@item -a
2340@itemx --all
2341@itemx -
2342Do not scan only the initialized and loaded sections of object files;
2343scan the whole files.
2344
2345@item -f
2346@itemx --print-file-name
2347Print the name of the file before each string.
2348
2349@item --help
2350Print a summary of the program usage on the standard output and exit.
2351
2352@item -@var{min-len}
2353@itemx -n @var{min-len}
2354@itemx --bytes=@var{min-len}
2355Print sequences of characters that are at least @var{min-len} characters
2356long, instead of the default 4.
2357
2358@item -o
c7c55b78 2359Like @samp{-t o}. Some other versions of @command{strings} have @option{-o}
252b5132
RH
2360act like @samp{-t d} instead. Since we can not be compatible with both
2361ways, we simply chose one.
2362
2363@item -t @var{radix}
2364@itemx --radix=@var{radix}
2365Print the offset within the file before each string. The single
2366character argument specifies the radix of the offset---@samp{o} for
2367octal, @samp{x} for hexadecimal, or @samp{d} for decimal.
2368
d132876a
NC
2369@item -e @var{encoding}
2370@itemx --encoding=@var{encoding}
2371Select the character encoding of the strings that are to be found.
8745eafa
NC
2372Possible values for @var{encoding} are: @samp{s} = single-7-bit-byte
2373characters (ASCII, ISO 8859, etc., default), @samp{S} =
2374single-8-bit-byte characters, @samp{b} = 16-bit bigendian, @samp{l} =
237516-bit littleendian, @samp{B} = 32-bit bigendian, @samp{L} = 32-bit
830bf75c
NC
2376littleendian. Useful for finding wide character strings. (@samp{l}
2377and @samp{b} apply to, for example, Unicode UTF-16/UCS-2 encodings).
d132876a 2378
3bf31ec9
NC
2379@item -T @var{bfdname}
2380@itemx --target=@var{bfdname}
252b5132
RH
2381@cindex object code format
2382Specify an object code format other than your system's default format.
2383@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2384
2385@item -v
2386@itemx --version
2387Print the program version number on the standard output and exit.
2388@end table
2389
0285c67d
NC
2390@c man end
2391
2392@ignore
2393@c man begin SEEALSO strings
2394ar(1), nm(1), objdump(1), ranlib(1), readelf(1)
2395and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2396@c man end
2397@end ignore
2398
252b5132
RH
2399@node strip
2400@chapter strip
2401
2402@kindex strip
2403@cindex removing symbols
2404@cindex discarding symbols
2405@cindex symbols, discarding
2406
0285c67d
NC
2407@c man title strip Discard symbols from object files.
2408
252b5132 2409@smallexample
0285c67d 2410@c man begin SYNOPSIS strip
2593f09a
NC
2411strip [@option{-F} @var{bfdname} |@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}]
2412 [@option{-I} @var{bfdname} |@option{--input-target=}@var{bfdname}]
2413 [@option{-O} @var{bfdname} |@option{--output-target=}@var{bfdname}]
2414 [@option{-s}|@option{--strip-all}]
2415 [@option{-S}|@option{-g}|@option{-d}|@option{--strip-debug}]
2416 [@option{-K} @var{symbolname} |@option{--keep-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
2417 [@option{-N} @var{symbolname} |@option{--strip-symbol=}@var{symbolname}]
5fe11841 2418 [@option{-w}|@option{--wildcard}]
2593f09a
NC
2419 [@option{-x}|@option{--discard-all}] [@option{-X} |@option{--discard-locals}]
2420 [@option{-R} @var{sectionname} |@option{--remove-section=}@var{sectionname}]
2421 [@option{-o} @var{file}] [@option{-p}|@option{--preserve-dates}]
1637cd90 2422 [@option{--keep-file-symbols}]
ed1653a7 2423 [@option{--only-keep-debug}]
7c29036b
NC
2424 [@option{-v} |@option{--verbose}] [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
2425 [@option{--help}] [@option{--info}]
252b5132 2426 @var{objfile}@dots{}
0285c67d 2427@c man end
252b5132
RH
2428@end smallexample
2429
0285c67d
NC
2430@c man begin DESCRIPTION strip
2431
c7c55b78 2432@sc{gnu} @command{strip} discards all symbols from object files
252b5132
RH
2433@var{objfile}. The list of object files may include archives.
2434At least one object file must be given.
2435
c7c55b78 2436@command{strip} modifies the files named in its argument,
252b5132
RH
2437rather than writing modified copies under different names.
2438
0285c67d
NC
2439@c man end
2440
2441@c man begin OPTIONS strip
2442
c7c55b78 2443@table @env
252b5132
RH
2444@item -F @var{bfdname}
2445@itemx --target=@var{bfdname}
2446Treat the original @var{objfile} as a file with the object
2447code format @var{bfdname}, and rewrite it in the same format.
2448@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2449
2450@item --help
c7c55b78 2451Show a summary of the options to @command{strip} and exit.
252b5132 2452
7c29036b
NC
2453@item --info
2454Display a list showing all architectures and object formats available.
2455
947ed062 2456@item -I @var{bfdname}
252b5132
RH
2457@itemx --input-target=@var{bfdname}
2458Treat the original @var{objfile} as a file with the object
2459code format @var{bfdname}.
2460@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2461
2462@item -O @var{bfdname}
2463@itemx --output-target=@var{bfdname}
2464Replace @var{objfile} with a file in the output format @var{bfdname}.
2465@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2466
2467@item -R @var{sectionname}
2468@itemx --remove-section=@var{sectionname}
2469Remove any section named @var{sectionname} from the output file. This
2470option may be given more than once. Note that using this option
2471inappropriately may make the output file unusable.
2472
2473@item -s
2474@itemx --strip-all
2475Remove all symbols.
2476
2477@item -g
2478@itemx -S
15c82623 2479@itemx -d
252b5132
RH
2480@itemx --strip-debug
2481Remove debugging symbols only.
2482
2483@item --strip-unneeded
2484Remove all symbols that are not needed for relocation processing.
2485
2486@item -K @var{symbolname}
2487@itemx --keep-symbol=@var{symbolname}
e7f918ad
NC
2488When stripping symbols, keep symbol @var{symbolname} even if it would
2489normally be stripped. This option may be given more than once.
252b5132
RH
2490
2491@item -N @var{symbolname}
2492@itemx --strip-symbol=@var{symbolname}
2493Remove symbol @var{symbolname} from the source file. This option may be
2494given more than once, and may be combined with strip options other than
c7c55b78 2495@option{-K}.
252b5132
RH
2496
2497@item -o @var{file}
2498Put the stripped output in @var{file}, rather than replacing the
2499existing file. When this argument is used, only one @var{objfile}
2500argument may be specified.
2501
2502@item -p
2503@itemx --preserve-dates
2504Preserve the access and modification dates of the file.
2505
5fe11841
NC
2506@item -w
2507@itemx --wildcard
2508Permit regular expressions in @var{symbolname}s used in other command
2509line options. The question mark (?), asterisk (*), backslash (\) and
2510square brackets ([]) operators can be used anywhere in the symbol
2511name. If the first character of the symbol name is the exclamation
2512point (!) then the sense of the switch is reversed for that symbol.
2513For example:
2514
2515@smallexample
2516 -w -K !foo -K fo*
2517@end smallexample
2518
2519would cause strip to only keep symbols that start with the letters
2520``fo'', but to discard the symbol ``foo''.
2521
252b5132
RH
2522@item -x
2523@itemx --discard-all
2524Remove non-global symbols.
2525
2526@item -X
2527@itemx --discard-locals
2528Remove compiler-generated local symbols.
2529(These usually start with @samp{L} or @samp{.}.)
2530
1637cd90
JB
2531@item --keep-file-symbols
2532When stripping a file, perhaps with @option{--strip-debug} or
2533@option{--strip-unneeded}, retain any symbols specifying source file names,
2534which would otherwise get stripped.
2535
ed1653a7 2536@item --only-keep-debug
c1c0eb9e
RM
2537Strip a file, removing contents of any sections that would not be
2538stripped by @option{--strip-debug} and leaving the debugging sections
2539intact. In ELF files, this preserves all note sections in the output.
ed1653a7
NC
2540
2541The intention is that this option will be used in conjunction with
2542@option{--add-gnu-debuglink} to create a two part executable. One a
2543stripped binary which will occupy less space in RAM and in a
2544distribution and the second a debugging information file which is only
2545needed if debugging abilities are required. The suggested procedure
2546to create these files is as follows:
2547
2548@enumerate
2549@item Link the executable as normal. Assuming that is is called
2550@code{foo} then...
2551@item Run @code{objcopy --only-keep-debug foo foo.dbg} to
2552create a file containing the debugging info.
2553@item Run @code{objcopy --strip-debug foo} to create a
2554stripped executable.
2555@item Run @code{objcopy --add-gnu-debuglink=foo.dbg foo}
2556to add a link to the debugging info into the stripped executable.
2557@end enumerate
2558
928a4139 2559Note---the choice of @code{.dbg} as an extension for the debug info
ed1653a7
NC
2560file is arbitrary. Also the @code{--only-keep-debug} step is
2561optional. You could instead do this:
2562
2563@enumerate
2564@item Link the executable as normal.
928a4139 2565@item Copy @code{foo} to @code{foo.full}
ed1653a7
NC
2566@item Run @code{strip --strip-debug foo}
2567@item Run @code{objcopy --add-gnu-debuglink=foo.full foo}
2568@end enumerate
2569
928a4139 2570i.e., the file pointed to by the @option{--add-gnu-debuglink} can be the
ed1653a7
NC
2571full executable. It does not have to be a file created by the
2572@option{--only-keep-debug} switch.
2573
928a4139 2574Note---this switch is only intended for use on fully linked files. It
91bb255c
NC
2575does not make sense to use it on object files where the debugging
2576information may be incomplete. Besides the gnu_debuglink feature
2577currently only supports the presence of one filename containing
2578debugging information, not multiple filenames on a one-per-object-file
2579basis.
2580
252b5132
RH
2581@item -V
2582@itemx --version
c7c55b78 2583Show the version number for @command{strip}.
252b5132
RH
2584
2585@item -v
2586@itemx --verbose
2587Verbose output: list all object files modified. In the case of
2588archives, @samp{strip -v} lists all members of the archive.
2589@end table
2590
0285c67d
NC
2591@c man end
2592
2593@ignore
2594@c man begin SEEALSO strip
2595the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2596@c man end
2597@end ignore
2598
9d51cc66 2599@node c++filt, addr2line, strip, Top
252b5132
RH
2600@chapter c++filt
2601
2602@kindex c++filt
2603@cindex demangling C++ symbols
2604
0285c67d
NC
2605@c man title cxxfilt Demangle C++ and Java symbols.
2606
252b5132 2607@smallexample
0285c67d 2608@c man begin SYNOPSIS cxxfilt
c7c55b78 2609c++filt [@option{-_}|@option{--strip-underscores}]
c7c55b78 2610 [@option{-n}|@option{--no-strip-underscores}]
4e48c9dd 2611 [@option{-p}|@option{--no-params}]
ec948987 2612 [@option{-t}|@option{--types}]
cbf1f5df 2613 [@option{-i}|@option{--no-verbose}]
c7c55b78
NC
2614 [@option{-s} @var{format}|@option{--format=}@var{format}]
2615 [@option{--help}] [@option{--version}] [@var{symbol}@dots{}]
0285c67d 2616@c man end
252b5132
RH
2617@end smallexample
2618
0285c67d
NC
2619@c man begin DESCRIPTION cxxfilt
2620
9d51cc66 2621@kindex cxxfilt
ec948987
NC
2622The C++ and Java languages provide function overloading, which means
2623that you can write many functions with the same name, providing that
2624each function takes parameters of different types. In order to be
2625able to distinguish these similarly named functions C++ and Java
2626encode them into a low-level assembler name which uniquely identifies
2627each different version. This process is known as @dfn{mangling}. The
2628@command{c++filt}
c1c0eb9e 2629@footnote{MS-DOS does not allow @kbd{+} characters in file names, so on
195a97ce 2630MS-DOS this program is named @command{CXXFILT}.}
9d51cc66 2631program does the inverse mapping: it decodes (@dfn{demangles}) low-level
ec948987 2632names into user-level names so that they can be read.
252b5132
RH
2633
2634Every alphanumeric word (consisting of letters, digits, underscores,
cbf1f5df
NC
2635dollars, or periods) seen in the input is a potential mangled name.
2636If the name decodes into a C++ name, the C++ name replaces the
ec948987
NC
2637low-level name in the output, otherwise the original word is output.
2638In this way you can pass an entire assembler source file, containing
2639mangled names, through @command{c++filt} and see the same source file
2640containing demangled names.
252b5132 2641
ec948987
NC
2642You can also use @command{c++filt} to decipher individual symbols by
2643passing them on the command line:
252b5132
RH
2644
2645@example
2646c++filt @var{symbol}
2647@end example
2648
c7c55b78 2649If no @var{symbol} arguments are given, @command{c++filt} reads symbol
ec948987
NC
2650names from the standard input instead. All the results are printed on
2651the standard output. The difference between reading names from the
2652command line versus reading names from the standard input is that
2653command line arguments are expected to be just mangled names and no
b45619c0 2654checking is performed to separate them from surrounding text. Thus
ec948987
NC
2655for example:
2656
2657@smallexample
2658c++filt -n _Z1fv
2659@end smallexample
2660
2661will work and demangle the name to ``f()'' whereas:
2662
2663@smallexample
2664c++filt -n _Z1fv,
2665@end smallexample
2666
2667will not work. (Note the extra comma at the end of the mangled
2668name which makes it invalid). This command however will work:
2669
2670@smallexample
2671echo _Z1fv, | c++filt -n
2672@end smallexample
2673
928a4139 2674and will display ``f(),'', i.e., the demangled name followed by a
ec948987
NC
2675trailing comma. This behaviour is because when the names are read
2676from the standard input it is expected that they might be part of an
2677assembler source file where there might be extra, extraneous
928a4139 2678characters trailing after a mangled name. For example:
ec948987
NC
2679
2680@smallexample
2681 .type _Z1fv, @@function
2682@end smallexample
252b5132 2683
0285c67d
NC
2684@c man end
2685
2686@c man begin OPTIONS cxxfilt
2687
c7c55b78 2688@table @env
252b5132
RH
2689@item -_
2690@itemx --strip-underscores
2691On some systems, both the C and C++ compilers put an underscore in front
2692of every name. For example, the C name @code{foo} gets the low-level
2693name @code{_foo}. This option removes the initial underscore. Whether
c7c55b78 2694@command{c++filt} removes the underscore by default is target dependent.
252b5132
RH
2695
2696@item -j
2697@itemx --java
2698Prints demangled names using Java syntax. The default is to use C++
2699syntax.
2700
2701@item -n
2702@itemx --no-strip-underscores
2703Do not remove the initial underscore.
2704
4e48c9dd
ILT
2705@item -p
2706@itemx --no-params
2707When demangling the name of a function, do not display the types of
2708the function's parameters.
2709
cbf1f5df 2710@item -t
ec948987
NC
2711@itemx --types
2712Attempt to demangle types as well as function names. This is disabled
2713by default since mangled types are normally only used internally in
928a4139 2714the compiler, and they can be confused with non-mangled names. For example,
ec948987
NC
2715a function called ``a'' treated as a mangled type name would be
2716demangled to ``signed char''.
cbf1f5df
NC
2717
2718@item -i
2719@itemx --no-verbose
2720Do not include implementation details (if any) in the demangled
2721output.
2722
252b5132
RH
2723@item -s @var{format}
2724@itemx --format=@var{format}
947ed062
NC
2725@command{c++filt} can decode various methods of mangling, used by
2726different compilers. The argument to this option selects which
252b5132
RH
2727method it uses:
2728
2729@table @code
947ed062
NC
2730@item auto
2731Automatic selection based on executable (the default method)
252b5132 2732@item gnu
947ed062 2733the one used by the @sc{gnu} C++ compiler (g++)
252b5132 2734@item lucid
947ed062 2735the one used by the Lucid compiler (lcc)
252b5132
RH
2736@item arm
2737the one specified by the C++ Annotated Reference Manual
2738@item hp
947ed062 2739the one used by the HP compiler (aCC)
252b5132
RH
2740@item edg
2741the one used by the EDG compiler
b5e2a4f3 2742@item gnu-v3
947ed062
NC
2743the one used by the @sc{gnu} C++ compiler (g++) with the V3 ABI.
2744@item java
2745the one used by the @sc{gnu} Java compiler (gcj)
2746@item gnat
2747the one used by the @sc{gnu} Ada compiler (GNAT).
252b5132
RH
2748@end table
2749
2750@item --help
c7c55b78 2751Print a summary of the options to @command{c++filt} and exit.
252b5132
RH
2752
2753@item --version
c7c55b78 2754Print the version number of @command{c++filt} and exit.
252b5132
RH
2755@end table
2756
0285c67d
NC
2757@c man end
2758
2759@ignore
2760@c man begin SEEALSO cxxfilt
2761the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2762@c man end
2763@end ignore
2764
252b5132 2765@quotation
c7c55b78 2766@emph{Warning:} @command{c++filt} is a new utility, and the details of its
252b5132 2767user interface are subject to change in future releases. In particular,
b45619c0 2768a command-line option may be required in the future to decode a name
c1c0eb9e 2769passed as an argument on the command line; in other words,
252b5132
RH
2770
2771@example
2772c++filt @var{symbol}
2773@end example
2774
2775@noindent
2776may in a future release become
2777
2778@example
2779c++filt @var{option} @var{symbol}
2780@end example
2781@end quotation
2782
2783@node addr2line
2784@chapter addr2line
2785
2786@kindex addr2line
2787@cindex address to file name and line number
2788
0285c67d
NC
2789@c man title addr2line convert addresses into file names and line numbers.
2790
252b5132 2791@smallexample
0285c67d 2792@c man begin SYNOPSIS addr2line
c7c55b78 2793addr2line [@option{-b} @var{bfdname}|@option{--target=}@var{bfdname}]
bf44dd74 2794 [@option{-C}|@option{--demangle}[=@var{style}]]
c7c55b78
NC
2795 [@option{-e} @var{filename}|@option{--exe=}@var{filename}]
2796 [@option{-f}|@option{--functions}] [@option{-s}|@option{--basename}]
0c552dc1 2797 [@option{-i}|@option{--inlines}]
c5f8c388 2798 [@option{-j}|@option{--section=}@var{name}]
c7c55b78
NC
2799 [@option{-H}|@option{--help}] [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
2800 [addr addr @dots{}]
0285c67d 2801@c man end
252b5132
RH
2802@end smallexample
2803
0285c67d
NC
2804@c man begin DESCRIPTION addr2line
2805
c5f8c388
EB
2806@command{addr2line} translates addresses into file names and line numbers.
2807Given an address in an executable or an offset in a section of a relocatable
2808object, it uses the debugging information to figure out which file name and
2809line number are associated with it.
252b5132 2810
c5f8c388
EB
2811The executable or relocatable object to use is specified with the @option{-e}
2812option. The default is the file @file{a.out}. The section in the relocatable
2813object to use is specified with the @option{-j} option.
252b5132 2814
c7c55b78 2815@command{addr2line} has two modes of operation.
252b5132
RH
2816
2817In the first, hexadecimal addresses are specified on the command line,
c7c55b78 2818and @command{addr2line} displays the file name and line number for each
252b5132
RH
2819address.
2820
c7c55b78 2821In the second, @command{addr2line} reads hexadecimal addresses from
252b5132 2822standard input, and prints the file name and line number for each
c7c55b78 2823address on standard output. In this mode, @command{addr2line} may be used
252b5132
RH
2824in a pipe to convert dynamically chosen addresses.
2825
2826The format of the output is @samp{FILENAME:LINENO}. The file name and
2827line number for each address is printed on a separate line. If the
c7c55b78 2828@command{-f} option is used, then each @samp{FILENAME:LINENO} line is
252b5132
RH
2829preceded by a @samp{FUNCTIONNAME} line which is the name of the function
2830containing the address.
2831
2832If the file name or function name can not be determined,
c7c55b78
NC
2833@command{addr2line} will print two question marks in their place. If the
2834line number can not be determined, @command{addr2line} will print 0.
252b5132 2835
0285c67d
NC
2836@c man end
2837
2838@c man begin OPTIONS addr2line
2839
252b5132
RH
2840The long and short forms of options, shown here as alternatives, are
2841equivalent.
2842
c7c55b78 2843@table @env
252b5132
RH
2844@item -b @var{bfdname}
2845@itemx --target=@var{bfdname}
2846@cindex object code format
2847Specify that the object-code format for the object files is
2848@var{bfdname}.
2849
2850@item -C
28c309a2 2851@itemx --demangle[=@var{style}]
252b5132
RH
2852@cindex demangling in objdump
2853Decode (@dfn{demangle}) low-level symbol names into user-level names.
2854Besides removing any initial underscore prepended by the system, this
28c309a2 2855makes C++ function names readable. Different compilers have different
c1c0eb9e
RM
2856mangling styles. The optional demangling style argument can be used to
2857choose an appropriate demangling style for your compiler. @xref{c++filt},
28c309a2 2858for more information on demangling.
252b5132
RH
2859
2860@item -e @var{filename}
2861@itemx --exe=@var{filename}
2862Specify the name of the executable for which addresses should be
2863translated. The default file is @file{a.out}.
2864
2865@item -f
2866@itemx --functions
2867Display function names as well as file and line number information.
2868
2869@item -s
2870@itemx --basenames
2871Display only the base of each file name.
0c552dc1
FF
2872
2873@item -i
2874@itemx --inlines
2875If the address belongs to a function that was inlined, the source
2876information for all enclosing scopes back to the first non-inlined
2877function will also be printed. For example, if @code{main} inlines
2878@code{callee1} which inlines @code{callee2}, and address is from
2879@code{callee2}, the source information for @code{callee1} and @code{main}
2880will also be printed.
c5f8c388
EB
2881
2882@item -j
2883@itemx --section
2884Read offsets relative to the specified section instead of absolute addresses.
e107c42f 2885@end table
252b5132 2886
0285c67d
NC
2887@c man end
2888
2889@ignore
2890@c man begin SEEALSO addr2line
2891Info entries for @file{binutils}.
2892@c man end
2893@end ignore
2894
252b5132
RH
2895@node nlmconv
2896@chapter nlmconv
2897
c7c55b78 2898@command{nlmconv} converts a relocatable object file into a NetWare
252b5132
RH
2899Loadable Module.
2900
2901@ignore
c7c55b78 2902@command{nlmconv} currently works with @samp{i386} object
252b5132
RH
2903files in @code{coff}, @sc{elf}, or @code{a.out} format, and @sc{SPARC}
2904object files in @sc{elf}, or @code{a.out} format@footnote{
c7c55b78 2905@command{nlmconv} should work with any @samp{i386} or @sc{sparc} object
252b5132
RH
2906format in the Binary File Descriptor library. It has only been tested
2907with the above formats.}.
2908@end ignore
2909
2910@quotation
c7c55b78 2911@emph{Warning:} @command{nlmconv} is not always built as part of the binary
252b5132
RH
2912utilities, since it is only useful for NLM targets.
2913@end quotation
2914
0285c67d
NC
2915@c man title nlmconv converts object code into an NLM.
2916
252b5132 2917@smallexample
0285c67d 2918@c man begin SYNOPSIS nlmconv
c7c55b78
NC
2919nlmconv [@option{-I} @var{bfdname}|@option{--input-target=}@var{bfdname}]
2920 [@option{-O} @var{bfdname}|@option{--output-target=}@var{bfdname}]
2921 [@option{-T} @var{headerfile}|@option{--header-file=}@var{headerfile}]
2922 [@option{-d}|@option{--debug}] [@option{-l} @var{linker}|@option{--linker=}@var{linker}]
2923 [@option{-h}|@option{--help}] [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
252b5132 2924 @var{infile} @var{outfile}
0285c67d 2925@c man end
252b5132
RH
2926@end smallexample
2927
0285c67d
NC
2928@c man begin DESCRIPTION nlmconv
2929
c7c55b78 2930@command{nlmconv} converts the relocatable @samp{i386} object file
252b5132
RH
2931@var{infile} into the NetWare Loadable Module @var{outfile}, optionally
2932reading @var{headerfile} for NLM header information. For instructions
2933on writing the NLM command file language used in header files, see the
2934@samp{linkers} section, @samp{NLMLINK} in particular, of the @cite{NLM
2935Development and Tools Overview}, which is part of the NLM Software
2936Developer's Kit (``NLM SDK''), available from Novell, Inc.
c7c55b78 2937@command{nlmconv} uses the @sc{gnu} Binary File Descriptor library to read
0285c67d
NC
2938@var{infile};
2939@ifclear man
2940see @ref{BFD,,BFD,ld.info,Using LD}, for more information.
2941@end ifclear
252b5132 2942
c7c55b78 2943@command{nlmconv} can perform a link step. In other words, you can list
252b5132
RH
2944more than one object file for input if you list them in the definitions
2945file (rather than simply specifying one input file on the command line).
c7c55b78 2946In this case, @command{nlmconv} calls the linker for you.
252b5132 2947
0285c67d
NC
2948@c man end
2949
2950@c man begin OPTIONS nlmconv
2951
c7c55b78 2952@table @env
252b5132
RH
2953@item -I @var{bfdname}
2954@itemx --input-target=@var{bfdname}
c7c55b78 2955Object format of the input file. @command{nlmconv} can usually determine
252b5132
RH
2956the format of a given file (so no default is necessary).
2957@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2958
2959@item -O @var{bfdname}
2960@itemx --output-target=@var{bfdname}
c7c55b78 2961Object format of the output file. @command{nlmconv} infers the output
252b5132
RH
2962format based on the input format, e.g. for a @samp{i386} input file the
2963output format is @samp{nlm32-i386}.
2964@xref{Target Selection}, for more information.
2965
2966@item -T @var{headerfile}
2967@itemx --header-file=@var{headerfile}
2968Reads @var{headerfile} for NLM header information. For instructions on
2969writing the NLM command file language used in header files, see@ see the
2970@samp{linkers} section, of the @cite{NLM Development and Tools
2971Overview}, which is part of the NLM Software Developer's Kit, available
2972from Novell, Inc.
2973
2974@item -d
2975@itemx --debug
c7c55b78 2976Displays (on standard error) the linker command line used by @command{nlmconv}.
252b5132
RH
2977
2978@item -l @var{linker}
2979@itemx --linker=@var{linker}
2980Use @var{linker} for any linking. @var{linker} can be an absolute or a
2981relative pathname.
2982
2983@item -h
2984@itemx --help
2985Prints a usage summary.
2986
2987@item -V
2988@itemx --version
c7c55b78 2989Prints the version number for @command{nlmconv}.
252b5132
RH
2990@end table
2991
0285c67d
NC
2992@c man end
2993
2994@ignore
2995@c man begin SEEALSO nlmconv
2996the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
692ed3e7
NC
2997@c man end
2998@end ignore
2999
3000@node windmc
3001@chapter windmc
3002
3003@command{windmc} may be used to generator Windows message resources.
3004
3005@quotation
3006@emph{Warning:} @command{windmc} is not always built as part of the binary
3007utilities, since it is only useful for Windows targets.
3008@end quotation
3009
3010@c man title windmc generates Windows message resources.
3011
3012@smallexample
3013@c man begin SYNOPSIS windres
3014windmc [options] input-file
3015@c man end
3016@end smallexample
3017
3018@c man begin DESCRIPTION windmc
3019
3020@command{windmc} reads message definitions from an input file (.mc) and
3021translate them into a set of output files. The output files may be of
3022four kinds:
3023
3024@table @code
3025@item h
3026A C header file containing the message definitions.
3027
3028@item rc
3029A resource file compilable by the @command{windres} tool.
3030
3031@item bin
3032One or more binary files containing the resource data for a specific
3033message language.
3034
3035@item dbg
3036A C include file that maps message id's to their symbolic name.
3037@end table
3038
3039The exact description of these different formats is available in
3040documentation from Microsoft.
3041
3042When @command{windmc} converts from the @code{mc} format to the @code{bin}
3043format, @code{rc}, @code{h}, and optional @code{dbg} it is acting like the
3044Windows Message Compiler.
3045
3046@c man end
3047
3048@c man begin OPTIONS windmc
3049
3050@table @env
3051@item -a
3052@itemx --ascii_in
3053Specifies that the input file specified is ANSI. This is the default
3054behaviour.
3055
3056@item -A
3057@itemx --ascii_out
3058Specifies that messages in the output @code{bin} files should be in ANSI
3059format.
3060
3061@item -b
3062@itemx --binprefix
3063Specifies that @code{bin} filenames should have to be prefixed by the
3064basename of the source file.
3065
3066@item -c
3067@itemx --customflag
3068Sets the customer bit in all message id's.
3069
3070@item -C @var{codepage}
3071@itemx --codepage_in @var{codepage}
3072Sets the default codepage to be used to convert input file to UTF16. The
3073default is ocdepage 1252.
3074
3075@item -d
3076@itemx --decimal_values
3077Outputs the constants in the header file in decimal. Default is using
3078hexadecimal output.
3079
3080@item -e @var{ext}
3081@itemx --extension @var{ext}
3082The extension for the header file. The default is .h extension.
3083
3084@item -F @var{target}
3085@itemx --target @var{target}
3086Specify the BFD format to use for a bin file as output. This
3087is a BFD target name; you can use the @option{--help} option to see a list
3088of supported targets. Normally @command{windmc} will use the default
3089format, which is the first one listed by the @option{--help} option.
3090@ifclear man
3091@ref{Target Selection}.
3092@end ifclear
3093
3094@item -h @var{path}
3095@itemx --headerdir @var{path}
3096The target directory of the generated header file. The default is the
3097current directory.
3098
3099@item -H
3100@itemx --help
3101Displays a list of command line options and then exits.
3102
3103@item -m @var{characters}
3104@itemx --maxlength @var{characters}
3105Instructs @command{windmc} to generate a warning if the length
3106of any message exceeds the number specified.
3107
3108@item -n
3109@itemx --nullterminate
3110Terminate message text in @code{bin} files by zero. By default they are
3111terminated by CR/LF.
3112
3113@item -o
3114@itemx --hresult_use
3115Not yet implemented. Instructs @code{windmc} to generate an OLE2 header
3116file, using HRESULT definitions. Status codes are used if the flag is not
3117specified.
3118
3119@item -O @var{codepage}
3120@itemx --codepage_out @var{codepage}
3121Sets the default codepage to be used to output text files. The default
3122is ocdepage 1252.
3123
3124@item -r @var{path}
3125@itemx --rcdir @var{path}
3126The target directory for the generated @code{rc} script and the generated
3127@code{bin} files that the resource compiler script includes. The default
3128is the current directory.
3129
3130@item -u
3131@itemx --unicode_in
3132Specifies that the input file is UTF16.
3133
3134@item -U
3135@itemx --unicode_out
3136Specifies that messages in the output @code{bin} file should be in UTF16
3137format. This is the default behaviour.
3138
3139@item -v
3140@item --verbose
bd37ed49 3141Enable verbose mode.
692ed3e7
NC
3142
3143@item -V
3144@item --version
bd37ed49 3145Prints the version number for @command{windmc}.
692ed3e7
NC
3146
3147@item -x @var{path}
3148@itemx --xdgb @var{path}
3149The path of the @code{dbg} C include file that maps message id's to the
3150symbolic name. No such file is generated without specifying the switch.
3151@end table
3152
3153@c man end
3154
3155@ignore
3156@c man begin SEEALSO windmc
3157the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
0285c67d
NC
3158@c man end
3159@end ignore
3160
252b5132
RH
3161@node windres
3162@chapter windres
3163
c7c55b78 3164@command{windres} may be used to manipulate Windows resources.
252b5132
RH
3165
3166@quotation
c7c55b78 3167@emph{Warning:} @command{windres} is not always built as part of the binary
252b5132
RH
3168utilities, since it is only useful for Windows targets.
3169@end quotation
3170
0285c67d
NC
3171@c man title windres manipulate Windows resources.
3172
252b5132 3173@smallexample
0285c67d 3174@c man begin SYNOPSIS windres
252b5132 3175windres [options] [input-file] [output-file]
0285c67d 3176@c man end
252b5132
RH
3177@end smallexample
3178
0285c67d
NC
3179@c man begin DESCRIPTION windres
3180
c7c55b78 3181@command{windres} reads resources from an input file and copies them into
252b5132
RH
3182an output file. Either file may be in one of three formats:
3183
3184@table @code
3185@item rc
3186A text format read by the Resource Compiler.
3187
3188@item res
3189A binary format generated by the Resource Compiler.
3190
3191@item coff
3192A COFF object or executable.
3193@end table
3194
3195The exact description of these different formats is available in
3196documentation from Microsoft.
3197
c7c55b78 3198When @command{windres} converts from the @code{rc} format to the @code{res}
252b5132 3199format, it is acting like the Windows Resource Compiler. When
c7c55b78 3200@command{windres} converts from the @code{res} format to the @code{coff}
252b5132
RH
3201format, it is acting like the Windows @code{CVTRES} program.
3202
c7c55b78 3203When @command{windres} generates an @code{rc} file, the output is similar
252b5132
RH
3204but not identical to the format expected for the input. When an input
3205@code{rc} file refers to an external filename, an output @code{rc} file
3206will instead include the file contents.
3207
c7c55b78 3208If the input or output format is not specified, @command{windres} will
252b5132
RH
3209guess based on the file name, or, for the input file, the file contents.
3210A file with an extension of @file{.rc} will be treated as an @code{rc}
3211file, a file with an extension of @file{.res} will be treated as a
3212@code{res} file, and a file with an extension of @file{.o} or
3213@file{.exe} will be treated as a @code{coff} file.
3214
c7c55b78 3215If no output file is specified, @command{windres} will print the resources
252b5132
RH
3216in @code{rc} format to standard output.
3217
c7c55b78 3218The normal use is for you to write an @code{rc} file, use @command{windres}
252b5132
RH
3219to convert it to a COFF object file, and then link the COFF file into
3220your application. This will make the resources described in the
3221@code{rc} file available to Windows.
3222
0285c67d
NC
3223@c man end
3224
3225@c man begin OPTIONS windres
3226
c7c55b78 3227@table @env
252b5132
RH
3228@item -i @var{filename}
3229@itemx --input @var{filename}
3230The name of the input file. If this option is not used, then
c7c55b78
NC
3231@command{windres} will use the first non-option argument as the input file
3232name. If there are no non-option arguments, then @command{windres} will
3233read from standard input. @command{windres} can not read a COFF file from
edbedb71 3234standard input.
252b5132
RH
3235
3236@item -o @var{filename}
3237@itemx --output @var{filename}
3238The name of the output file. If this option is not used, then
c7c55b78 3239@command{windres} will use the first non-option argument, after any used
252b5132 3240for the input file name, as the output file name. If there is no
c7c55b78 3241non-option argument, then @command{windres} will write to standard output.
edbedb71 3242@command{windres} can not write a COFF file to standard output. Note,
b45619c0 3243for compatibility with @command{rc} the option @option{-fo} is also
edbedb71 3244accepted, but its use is not recommended.
252b5132 3245
85eb5110 3246@item -J @var{format}
252b5132
RH
3247@itemx --input-format @var{format}
3248The input format to read. @var{format} may be @samp{res}, @samp{rc}, or
c7c55b78 3249@samp{coff}. If no input format is specified, @command{windres} will
252b5132
RH
3250guess, as described above.
3251
3252@item -O @var{format}
3253@itemx --output-format @var{format}
3254The output format to generate. @var{format} may be @samp{res},
3255@samp{rc}, or @samp{coff}. If no output format is specified,
c7c55b78 3256@command{windres} will guess, as described above.
252b5132
RH
3257
3258@item -F @var{target}
3259@itemx --target @var{target}
3260Specify the BFD format to use for a COFF file as input or output. This
c7c55b78
NC
3261is a BFD target name; you can use the @option{--help} option to see a list
3262of supported targets. Normally @command{windres} will use the default
3263format, which is the first one listed by the @option{--help} option.
3264@ifclear man
252b5132 3265@ref{Target Selection}.
c7c55b78 3266@end ifclear
252b5132
RH
3267
3268@item --preprocessor @var{program}
c7c55b78 3269When @command{windres} reads an @code{rc} file, it runs it through the C
252b5132
RH
3270preprocessor first. This option may be used to specify the preprocessor
3271to use, including any leading arguments. The default preprocessor
3272argument is @code{gcc -E -xc-header -DRC_INVOKED}.
3273
85eb5110
NC
3274@item -I @var{directory}
3275@itemx --include-dir @var{directory}
252b5132 3276Specify an include directory to use when reading an @code{rc} file.
c7c55b78
NC
3277@command{windres} will pass this to the preprocessor as an @option{-I}
3278option. @command{windres} will also search this directory when looking for
85eb5110 3279files named in the @code{rc} file. If the argument passed to this command
c1c0eb9e 3280matches any of the supported @var{formats} (as described in the @option{-J}
85eb5110
NC
3281option), it will issue a deprecation warning, and behave just like the
3282@option{-J} option. New programs should not use this behaviour. If a
3283directory happens to match a @var{format}, simple prefix it with @samp{./}
3284to disable the backward compatibility.
252b5132 3285
751d21b5 3286@item -D @var{target}
ad0481cd 3287@itemx --define @var{sym}[=@var{val}]
c7c55b78 3288Specify a @option{-D} option to pass to the preprocessor when reading an
252b5132
RH
3289@code{rc} file.
3290
29b058f1
NC
3291@item -U @var{target}
3292@itemx --undefine @var{sym}
3293Specify a @option{-U} option to pass to the preprocessor when reading an
3294@code{rc} file.
3295
3126d709
CF
3296@item -r
3297Ignored for compatibility with rc.
3298
751d21b5
DD
3299@item -v
3300Enable verbose mode. This tells you what the preprocessor is if you
3301didn't specify one.
3302
30ff741f
NC
3303@item -c @var{val}
3304@item --codepage @var{val}
3305Specify the default codepage to use when reading an @code{rc} file.
3306@var{val} should be a hexadecimal prefixed by @samp{0x} or decimal
3307codepage code. The valid range is from zero up to 0xffff, but the
3308validity of the codepage is host and configuration dependent.
3309
3077f5d8 3310@item -l @var{val}
252b5132
RH
3311@item --language @var{val}
3312Specify the default language to use when reading an @code{rc} file.
3313@var{val} should be a hexadecimal language code. The low eight bits are
3314the language, and the high eight bits are the sublanguage.
3315
5a298d2d
NC
3316@item --use-temp-file
3317Use a temporary file to instead of using popen to read the output of
c1c0eb9e
RM
3318the preprocessor. Use this option if the popen implementation is buggy
3319on the host (eg., certain non-English language versions of Windows 95 and
5a298d2d
NC
3320Windows 98 are known to have buggy popen where the output will instead
3321go the console).
3322
3323@item --no-use-temp-file
3324Use popen, not a temporary file, to read the output of the preprocessor.
3325This is the default behaviour.
3326
3077f5d8 3327@item -h
252b5132
RH
3328@item --help
3329Prints a usage summary.
3330
3077f5d8 3331@item -V
252b5132 3332@item --version
c7c55b78 3333Prints the version number for @command{windres}.
252b5132
RH
3334
3335@item --yydebug
c7c55b78 3336If @command{windres} is compiled with @code{YYDEBUG} defined as @code{1},
252b5132
RH
3337this will turn on parser debugging.
3338@end table
3339
0285c67d
NC
3340@c man end
3341
3342@ignore
3343@c man begin SEEALSO windres
3344the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
3345@c man end
3346@end ignore
252b5132
RH
3347
3348@node dlltool
2aa9814e 3349@chapter dlltool
252b5132
RH
3350@cindex DLL
3351@kindex dlltool
3352
2aa9814e
BE
3353@command{dlltool} is used to create the files needed to create dynamic
3354link libraries (DLLs) on systems which understand PE format image
3355files such as Windows. A DLL contains an export table which contains
3356information that the runtime loader needs to resolve references from a
3357referencing program.
3358
3359The export table is generated by this program by reading in a
3360@file{.def} file or scanning the @file{.a} and @file{.o} files which
3361will be in the DLL. A @file{.o} file can contain information in
3362special @samp{.drectve} sections with export information.
252b5132
RH
3363
3364@quotation
2aa9814e
BE
3365@emph{Note:} @command{dlltool} is not always built as part of the
3366binary utilities, since it is only useful for those targets which
3367support DLLs.
252b5132
RH
3368@end quotation
3369
0285c67d
NC
3370@c man title dlltool Create files needed to build and use DLLs.
3371
252b5132 3372@smallexample
0285c67d 3373@c man begin SYNOPSIS dlltool
c7c55b78
NC
3374dlltool [@option{-d}|@option{--input-def} @var{def-file-name}]
3375 [@option{-b}|@option{--base-file} @var{base-file-name}]
3376 [@option{-e}|@option{--output-exp} @var{exports-file-name}]
3377 [@option{-z}|@option{--output-def} @var{def-file-name}]
c1c0eb9e 3378 [@option{-l}|@option{--output-lib} @var{library-file-name}]
c7c55b78
NC
3379 [@option{--export-all-symbols}] [@option{--no-export-all-symbols}]
3380 [@option{--exclude-symbols} @var{list}]
3381 [@option{--no-default-excludes}]
3382 [@option{-S}|@option{--as} @var{path-to-assembler}] [@option{-f}|@option{--as-flags} @var{options}]
3383 [@option{-D}|@option{--dllname} @var{name}] [@option{-m}|@option{--machine} @var{machine}]
14288fdc
DS
3384 [@option{-a}|@option{--add-indirect}]
3385 [@option{-U}|@option{--add-underscore}] [@option{--add-stdcall-underscore}]
3386 [@option{-k}|@option{--kill-at}] [@option{-A}|@option{--add-stdcall-alias}]
607dea97 3387 [@option{-p}|@option{--ext-prefix-alias} @var{prefix}]
d4732f7c 3388 [@option{-x}|@option{--no-idata4}] [@option{-c}|@option{--no-idata5}]
e77b97d4 3389 [@option{--use-nul-prefixed-import-tables}]
71c57c16
NC
3390 [@option{-I}|@option{--identify} @var{library-file-name}] [@option{--identify-strict}]
3391 [@option{-i}|@option{--interwork}]
f9346411 3392 [@option{-n}|@option{--nodelete}] [@option{-t}|@option{--temp-prefix} @var{prefix}]
c1c0eb9e 3393 [@option{-v}|@option{--verbose}]
c7c55b78 3394 [@option{-h}|@option{--help}] [@option{-V}|@option{--version}]
252b5132 3395 [object-file @dots{}]
0285c67d 3396@c man end
252b5132
RH
3397@end smallexample
3398
0285c67d
NC
3399@c man begin DESCRIPTION dlltool
3400
c7c55b78
NC
3401@command{dlltool} reads its inputs, which can come from the @option{-d} and
3402@option{-b} options as well as object files specified on the command
3403line. It then processes these inputs and if the @option{-e} option has
3404been specified it creates a exports file. If the @option{-l} option
3405has been specified it creates a library file and if the @option{-z} option
c1c0eb9e
RM
3406has been specified it creates a def file. Any or all of the @option{-e},
3407@option{-l} and @option{-z} options can be present in one invocation of
c7c55b78 3408dlltool.
252b5132
RH
3409
3410When creating a DLL, along with the source for the DLL, it is necessary
c7c55b78 3411to have three other files. @command{dlltool} can help with the creation of
252b5132
RH
3412these files.
3413
2aa9814e 3414The first file is a @file{.def} file which specifies which functions are
252b5132 3415exported from the DLL, which functions the DLL imports, and so on. This
c7c55b78
NC
3416is a text file and can be created by hand, or @command{dlltool} can be used
3417to create it using the @option{-z} option. In this case @command{dlltool}
252b5132
RH
3418will scan the object files specified on its command line looking for
3419those functions which have been specially marked as being exported and
2aa9814e 3420put entries for them in the @file{.def} file it creates.
252b5132
RH
3421
3422In order to mark a function as being exported from a DLL, it needs to
c7c55b78 3423have an @option{-export:<name_of_function>} entry in the @samp{.drectve}
252b5132
RH
3424section of the object file. This can be done in C by using the
3425asm() operator:
3426
3427@smallexample
c1c0eb9e 3428 asm (".section .drectve");
252b5132
RH
3429 asm (".ascii \"-export:my_func\"");
3430
3431 int my_func (void) @{ @dots{} @}
3432@end smallexample
3433
3434The second file needed for DLL creation is an exports file. This file
3435is linked with the object files that make up the body of the DLL and it
3436handles the interface between the DLL and the outside world. This is a
c7c55b78 3437binary file and it can be created by giving the @option{-e} option to
c1c0eb9e 3438@command{dlltool} when it is creating or reading in a @file{.def} file.
252b5132
RH
3439
3440The third file needed for DLL creation is the library file that programs
d4732f7c
CW
3441will link with in order to access the functions in the DLL (an `import
3442library'). This file can be created by giving the @option{-l} option to
3443dlltool when it is creating or reading in a @file{.def} file.
252b5132 3444
c7c55b78 3445@command{dlltool} builds the library file by hand, but it builds the
252b5132 3446exports file by creating temporary files containing assembler statements
c7c55b78 3447and then assembling these. The @option{-S} command line option can be
252b5132 3448used to specify the path to the assembler that dlltool will use,
c7c55b78
NC
3449and the @option{-f} option can be used to pass specific flags to that
3450assembler. The @option{-n} can be used to prevent dlltool from deleting
3451these temporary assembler files when it is done, and if @option{-n} is
252b5132
RH
3452specified twice then this will prevent dlltool from deleting the
3453temporary object files it used to build the library.
3454
3455Here is an example of creating a DLL from a source file @samp{dll.c} and
3456also creating a program (from an object file called @samp{program.o})
3457that uses that DLL:
3458
3459@smallexample
3460 gcc -c dll.c
3461 dlltool -e exports.o -l dll.lib dll.o
3462 gcc dll.o exports.o -o dll.dll
3463 gcc program.o dll.lib -o program
3464@end smallexample
3465
d4732f7c
CW
3466
3467@command{dlltool} may also be used to query an existing import library
3468to determine the name of the DLL to which it is associated. See the
3469description of the @option{-I} or @option{--identify} option.
3470
0285c67d
NC
3471@c man end
3472
3473@c man begin OPTIONS dlltool
3474
252b5132
RH
3475The command line options have the following meanings:
3476
c7c55b78 3477@table @env
252b5132
RH
3478
3479@item -d @var{filename}
3480@itemx --input-def @var{filename}
3481@cindex input .def file
2aa9814e 3482Specifies the name of a @file{.def} file to be read in and processed.
252b5132
RH
3483
3484@item -b @var{filename}
3485@itemx --base-file @var{filename}
3486@cindex base files
3487Specifies the name of a base file to be read in and processed. The
3488contents of this file will be added to the relocation section in the
3489exports file generated by dlltool.
3490
3491@item -e @var{filename}
3492@itemx --output-exp @var{filename}
3493Specifies the name of the export file to be created by dlltool.
3494
3495@item -z @var{filename}
3496@itemx --output-def @var{filename}
2aa9814e 3497Specifies the name of the @file{.def} file to be created by dlltool.
252b5132
RH
3498
3499@item -l @var{filename}
3500@itemx --output-lib @var{filename}
3501Specifies the name of the library file to be created by dlltool.
3502
3503@item --export-all-symbols
3504Treat all global and weak defined symbols found in the input object
3505files as symbols to be exported. There is a small list of symbols which
c7c55b78 3506are not exported by default; see the @option{--no-default-excludes}
252b5132 3507option. You may add to the list of symbols to not export by using the
c7c55b78 3508@option{--exclude-symbols} option.
252b5132
RH
3509
3510@item --no-export-all-symbols
2aa9814e 3511Only export symbols explicitly listed in an input @file{.def} file or in
252b5132
RH
3512@samp{.drectve} sections in the input object files. This is the default
3513behaviour. The @samp{.drectve} sections are created by @samp{dllexport}
3514attributes in the source code.
3515
3516@item --exclude-symbols @var{list}
3517Do not export the symbols in @var{list}. This is a list of symbol names
3518separated by comma or colon characters. The symbol names should not
3519contain a leading underscore. This is only meaningful when
c7c55b78 3520@option{--export-all-symbols} is used.
252b5132
RH
3521
3522@item --no-default-excludes
c7c55b78 3523When @option{--export-all-symbols} is used, it will by default avoid
252b5132
RH
3524exporting certain special symbols. The current list of symbols to avoid
3525exporting is @samp{DllMain@@12}, @samp{DllEntryPoint@@0},
c7c55b78 3526@samp{impure_ptr}. You may use the @option{--no-default-excludes} option
252b5132 3527to go ahead and export these special symbols. This is only meaningful
c7c55b78 3528when @option{--export-all-symbols} is used.
252b5132
RH
3529
3530@item -S @var{path}
3531@itemx --as @var{path}
3532Specifies the path, including the filename, of the assembler to be used
3533to create the exports file.
3534
6364e0b4
NC
3535@item -f @var{options}
3536@itemx --as-flags @var{options}
3537Specifies any specific command line options to be passed to the
252b5132 3538assembler when building the exports file. This option will work even if
c7c55b78 3539the @option{-S} option is not used. This option only takes one argument,
252b5132
RH
3540and if it occurs more than once on the command line, then later
3541occurrences will override earlier occurrences. So if it is necessary to
6364e0b4 3542pass multiple options to the assembler they should be enclosed in
252b5132
RH
3543double quotes.
3544
3545@item -D @var{name}
3546@itemx --dll-name @var{name}
2aa9814e
BE
3547Specifies the name to be stored in the @file{.def} file as the name of
3548the DLL when the @option{-e} option is used. If this option is not
3549present, then the filename given to the @option{-e} option will be
3550used as the name of the DLL.
252b5132
RH
3551
3552@item -m @var{machine}
3553@itemx -machine @var{machine}
3554Specifies the type of machine for which the library file should be
c7c55b78 3555built. @command{dlltool} has a built in default type, depending upon how
252b5132
RH
3556it was created, but this option can be used to override that. This is
3557normally only useful when creating DLLs for an ARM processor, when the
c36774d6 3558contents of the DLL are actually encode using Thumb instructions.
252b5132
RH
3559
3560@item -a
3561@itemx --add-indirect
c7c55b78 3562Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports file it
252b5132
RH
3563should add a section which allows the exported functions to be
3564referenced without using the import library. Whatever the hell that
c1c0eb9e 3565means!
252b5132
RH
3566
3567@item -U
3568@itemx --add-underscore
c7c55b78 3569Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports file it
c1c0eb9e 3570should prepend an underscore to the names of @emph{all} exported symbols.
14288fdc
DS
3571
3572@item --add-stdcall-underscore
3573Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports file it
3574should prepend an underscore to the names of exported @emph{stdcall}
3575functions. Variable names and non-stdcall function names are not modified.
3576This option is useful when creating GNU-compatible import libs for third
3577party DLLs that were built with MS-Windows tools.
252b5132
RH
3578
3579@item -k
3580@itemx --kill-at
c7c55b78 3581Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports file it
d67a454c
NC
3582should not append the string @samp{@@ <number>}. These numbers are
3583called ordinal numbers and they represent another way of accessing the
3584function in a DLL, other than by name.
252b5132
RH
3585
3586@item -A
3587@itemx --add-stdcall-alias
c7c55b78 3588Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports file it
252b5132
RH
3589should add aliases for stdcall symbols without @samp{@@ <number>}
3590in addition to the symbols with @samp{@@ <number>}.
3591
607dea97
NC
3592@item -p
3593@itemx --ext-prefix-alias @var{prefix}
3594Causes @command{dlltool} to create external aliases for all DLL
3595imports with the specified prefix. The aliases are created for both
3596external and import symbols with no leading underscore.
3597
252b5132
RH
3598@item -x
3599@itemx --no-idata4
c7c55b78
NC
3600Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports and library
3601files it should omit the @code{.idata4} section. This is for compatibility
252b5132
RH
3602with certain operating systems.
3603
e77b97d4
KT
3604@item --use-nul-prefixed-import-tables
3605Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports and library
3606files it should prefix the @code{.idata4} and @code{.idata5} by zero an
3607element. This emulates old gnu import library generation of
3608@code{dlltool}. By default this option is turned off.
3609
252b5132
RH
3610@item -c
3611@itemx --no-idata5
c7c55b78
NC
3612Specifies that when @command{dlltool} is creating the exports and library
3613files it should omit the @code{.idata5} section. This is for compatibility
252b5132
RH
3614with certain operating systems.
3615
d4732f7c
CW
3616@item -I @var{filename}
3617@itemx --identify @var{filename}
3618Specifies that @command{dlltool} should inspect the import library
71c57c16
NC
3619indicated by @var{filename} and report, on @code{stdout}, the name(s)
3620of the associated DLL(s). This can be performed in addition to any
3621other operations indicated by the other options and arguments.
3622@command{dlltool} fails if the import library does not exist or is not
3623actually an import library. See also @option{--identify-strict}.
3624
3625@item --identify-strict
3626Modifies the behavior of the @option{--identify} option, such
3627that an error is reported if @var{filename} is associated with
3628more than one DLL.
d4732f7c 3629
252b5132
RH
3630@item -i
3631@itemx --interwork
c7c55b78 3632Specifies that @command{dlltool} should mark the objects in the library
252b5132 3633file and exports file that it produces as supporting interworking
c36774d6 3634between ARM and Thumb code.
252b5132
RH
3635
3636@item -n
3637@itemx --nodelete
c7c55b78 3638Makes @command{dlltool} preserve the temporary assembler files it used to
252b5132
RH
3639create the exports file. If this option is repeated then dlltool will
3640also preserve the temporary object files it uses to create the library
f9346411
DS
3641file.
3642
3643@item -t @var{prefix}
3644@itemx --temp-prefix @var{prefix}
3645Makes @command{dlltool} use @var{prefix} when constructing the names of
3646temporary assembler and object files. By default, the temp file prefix
c1c0eb9e 3647is generated from the pid.
252b5132
RH
3648
3649@item -v
3650@itemx --verbose
3651Make dlltool describe what it is doing.
3652
3653@item -h
3654@itemx --help
3655Displays a list of command line options and then exits.
3656
3657@item -V
3658@itemx --version
3659Displays dlltool's version number and then exits.
3660
3661@end table
3662
0285c67d
NC
3663@c man end
3664
2aa9814e
BE
3665@menu
3666* def file format:: The format of the dlltool @file{.def} file
3667@end menu
3668
3669@node def file format
3670@section The format of the @command{dlltool} @file{.def} file
3671
3672A @file{.def} file contains any number of the following commands:
3673
3674@table @asis
3675
3676@item @code{NAME} @var{name} @code{[ ,} @var{base} @code{]}
3677The result is going to be named @var{name}@code{.exe}.
3678
3679@item @code{LIBRARY} @var{name} @code{[ ,} @var{base} @code{]}
3680The result is going to be named @var{name}@code{.dll}.
3681
3682@item @code{EXPORTS ( ( (} @var{name1} @code{[ = } @var{name2} @code{] ) | ( } @var{name1} @code{=} @var{module-name} @code{.} @var{external-name} @code{) )}
3683@item @code{[} @var{integer} @code{] [ NONAME ] [ CONSTANT ] [ DATA ] [ PRIVATE ] ) *}
3684Declares @var{name1} as an exported symbol from the DLL, with optional
3685ordinal number @var{integer}, or declares @var{name1} as an alias
3686(forward) of the function @var{external-name} in the DLL
3687@var{module-name}.
3688
3689@item @code{IMPORTS ( (} @var{internal-name} @code{=} @var{module-name} @code{.} @var{integer} @code{) | [} @var{internal-name} @code{= ]} @var{module-name} @code{.} @var{external-name} @code{) ) *}
3690Declares that @var{external-name} or the exported function whose
3691ordinal number is @var{integer} is to be imported from the file
3692@var{module-name}. If @var{internal-name} is specified then this is
3693the name that the imported function will be referred to in the body of
3694the DLL.
3695
3696@item @code{DESCRIPTION} @var{string}
3697Puts @var{string} into the output @file{.exp} file in the
3698@code{.rdata} section.
3699
3700@item @code{STACKSIZE} @var{number-reserve} @code{[, } @var{number-commit} @code{]}
3701@item @code{HEAPSIZE} @var{number-reserve} @code{[, } @var{number-commit} @code{]}
3702Generates @code{--stack} or @code{--heap}
3703@var{number-reserve},@var{number-commit} in the output @code{.drectve}
3704section. The linker will see this and act upon it.
3705
3706@item @code{CODE} @var{attr} @code{+}
3707@item @code{DATA} @var{attr} @code{+}
3708@item @code{SECTIONS (} @var{section-name} @var{attr}@code{ + ) *}
3709Generates @code{--attr} @var{section-name} @var{attr} in the output
3710@code{.drectve} section, where @var{attr} is one of @code{READ},
3711@code{WRITE}, @code{EXECUTE} or @code{SHARED}. The linker will see
3712this and act upon it.
3713
3714@end table
3715
0285c67d
NC
3716@ignore
3717@c man begin SEEALSO dlltool
2aa9814e 3718The Info pages for @file{binutils}.
0285c67d
NC
3719@c man end
3720@end ignore
3721
252b5132
RH
3722@node readelf
3723@chapter readelf
3724
3725@cindex ELF file information
3726@kindex readelf
3727
0285c67d
NC
3728@c man title readelf Displays information about ELF files.
3729
252b5132 3730@smallexample
0285c67d 3731@c man begin SYNOPSIS readelf
c1c0eb9e 3732readelf [@option{-a}|@option{--all}]
c7c55b78
NC
3733 [@option{-h}|@option{--file-header}]
3734 [@option{-l}|@option{--program-headers}|@option{--segments}]
3735 [@option{-S}|@option{--section-headers}|@option{--sections}]
81fc812e 3736 [@option{-g}|@option{--section-groups}]
5477e8a0 3737 [@option{-t}|@option{--section-details}]
c7c55b78
NC
3738 [@option{-e}|@option{--headers}]
3739 [@option{-s}|@option{--syms}|@option{--symbols}]
3740 [@option{-n}|@option{--notes}]
3741 [@option{-r}|@option{--relocs}]
3742 [@option{-u}|@option{--unwind}]
3743 [@option{-d}|@option{--dynamic}]
3744 [@option{-V}|@option{--version-info}]
947ed062 3745 [@option{-A}|@option{--arch-specific}]
c7c55b78 3746 [@option{-D}|@option{--use-dynamic}]
aef1f6d0 3747 [@option{-x} <number or name>|@option{--hex-dump=}<number or name>]
09c11c86 3748 [@option{-p} <number or name>|@option{--string-dump=}<number or name>]
4145f1d5 3749 [@option{-c}|@option{--archive-index}]
a262ae96
NC
3750 [@option{-w[lLiaprmfFsoR]}|
3751 @option{--debug-dump}[=rawline,=decodedline,=info,=abbrev,=pubnames,=aranges,=macro,=frames,=frames-interp,=str,=loc,=Ranges]]
947ed062 3752 [@option{-I}|@option{-histogram}]
c7c55b78 3753 [@option{-v}|@option{--version}]
d974e256 3754 [@option{-W}|@option{--wide}]
c7c55b78 3755 [@option{-H}|@option{--help}]
252b5132 3756 @var{elffile}@dots{}
0285c67d 3757@c man end
252b5132
RH
3758@end smallexample
3759
0285c67d
NC
3760@c man begin DESCRIPTION readelf
3761
c7c55b78 3762@command{readelf} displays information about one or more ELF format object
252b5132
RH
3763files. The options control what particular information to display.
3764
fb52b2f4
NC
3765@var{elffile}@dots{} are the object files to be examined. 32-bit and
376664-bit ELF files are supported, as are archives containing ELF files.
252b5132 3767
9eb20dd8
NC
3768This program performs a similar function to @command{objdump} but it
3769goes into more detail and it exists independently of the @sc{bfd}
3770library, so if there is a bug in @sc{bfd} then readelf will not be
3771affected.
3772
0285c67d
NC
3773@c man end
3774
3775@c man begin OPTIONS readelf
3776
252b5132
RH
3777The long and short forms of options, shown here as alternatives, are
3778equivalent. At least one option besides @samp{-v} or @samp{-H} must be
c1c0eb9e 3779given.
252b5132 3780
c7c55b78 3781@table @env
252b5132
RH
3782@item -a
3783@itemx --all
d95ef3ab 3784Equivalent to specifying @option{--file-header},
c7c55b78
NC
3785@option{--program-headers}, @option{--sections}, @option{--symbols},
3786@option{--relocs}, @option{--dynamic}, @option{--notes} and
c1c0eb9e 3787@option{--version-info}.
252b5132
RH
3788
3789@item -h
3790@itemx --file-header
3791@cindex ELF file header information
3792Displays the information contained in the ELF header at the start of the
3793file.
3794
3795@item -l
3796@itemx --program-headers
3797@itemx --segments
3798@cindex ELF program header information
3799@cindex ELF segment information
3800Displays the information contained in the file's segment headers, if it
3801has any.
3802
3803@item -S
3804@itemx --sections
3805@itemx --section-headers
3806@cindex ELF section information
3807Displays the information contained in the file's section headers, if it
3808has any.
3809
81fc812e
L
3810@item -g
3811@itemx --section-groups
3812@cindex ELF section group information
3813Displays the information contained in the file's section groups, if it
3814has any.
3815
5477e8a0
L
3816@item -t
3817@itemx --section-details
3818@cindex ELF section information
3819Displays the detailed section information. Implies @option{-S}.
81fc812e 3820
252b5132
RH
3821@item -s
3822@itemx --symbols
3823@itemx --syms
3824@cindex ELF symbol table information
3825Displays the entries in symbol table section of the file, if it has one.
3826
3827@item -e
3828@itemx --headers
c7c55b78 3829Display all the headers in the file. Equivalent to @option{-h -l -S}.
252b5132 3830
779fe533
NC
3831@item -n
3832@itemx --notes
1ec5cd37
NC
3833@cindex ELF notes
3834Displays the contents of the NOTE segments and/or sections, if any.
779fe533 3835
252b5132
RH
3836@item -r
3837@itemx --relocs
3838@cindex ELF reloc information
f5e21966
NC
3839Displays the contents of the file's relocation section, if it has one.
3840
3841@item -u
3842@itemx --unwind
3843@cindex unwind information
3844Displays the contents of the file's unwind section, if it has one. Only
3845the unwind sections for IA64 ELF files are currently supported.
252b5132
RH
3846
3847@item -d
3848@itemx --dynamic
3849@cindex ELF dynamic section information
3850Displays the contents of the file's dynamic section, if it has one.
3851
3852@item -V
3853@itemx --version-info
3854@cindex ELF version sections informations
3855Displays the contents of the version sections in the file, it they
3856exist.
3857
947ed062
NC
3858@item -A
3859@itemx --arch-specific
3860Displays architecture-specific information in the file, if there
3861is any.
3862
252b5132
RH
3863@item -D
3864@itemx --use-dynamic
c7c55b78 3865When displaying symbols, this option makes @command{readelf} use the
6dbb55b6 3866symbol table in the file's dynamic section, rather than the one in the
252b5132
RH
3867symbols section.
3868
aef1f6d0
DJ
3869@item -x <number or name>
3870@itemx --hex-dump=<number or name>
252b5132 3871Displays the contents of the indicated section as a hexadecimal dump.
aef1f6d0
DJ
3872A number identifies a particular section by index in the section table;
3873any other string identifies all sections with that name in the object file.
252b5132 3874
09c11c86
NC
3875@item -p <number or name>
3876@itemx --string-dump=<number or name>
3877Displays the contents of the indicated section as printable strings.
3878A number identifies a particular section by index in the section table;
3879any other string identifies all sections with that name in the object file.
3880
4145f1d5
NC
3881@item -c
3882@itemx --archive-index
3883@cindex Archive file symbol index information
3884Displays the file symbol index infomation contained in the header part
3885of binary archives. Performs the same function as the @option{t}
3886command to @command{ar}, but without using the BFD library. @xref{ar}.
3887
a262ae96
NC
3888@item -w[lLiaprmfFsoR]
3889@itemx --debug-dump[=rawline,=decodedline,=info,=abbrev,=pubnames,=aranges,=macro,=frames,=frames-interp,=str,=loc,=Ranges]
252b5132
RH
3890Displays the contents of the debug sections in the file, if any are
3891present. If one of the optional letters or words follows the switch
3892then only data found in those specific sections will be dumped.
3893
a262ae96
NC
3894Note: the @option{=decodedline} option will display the interpreted
3895contents of a .debug_line section whereas the @option{=rawline} option
3896dumps the contents in a raw format.
3897
947ed062
NC
3898@item -I
3899@itemx --histogram
252b5132
RH
3900Display a histogram of bucket list lengths when displaying the contents
3901of the symbol tables.
3902
3903@item -v
3904@itemx --version
3905Display the version number of readelf.
3906
d974e256
JJ
3907@item -W
3908@itemx --wide
3909Don't break output lines to fit into 80 columns. By default
3910@command{readelf} breaks section header and segment listing lines for
391164-bit ELF files, so that they fit into 80 columns. This option causes
3912@command{readelf} to print each section header resp. each segment one a
3913single line, which is far more readable on terminals wider than 80 columns.
3914
252b5132
RH
3915@item -H
3916@itemx --help
c7c55b78 3917Display the command line options understood by @command{readelf}.
252b5132
RH
3918
3919@end table
3920
0285c67d
NC
3921@c man end
3922
3923@ignore
3924@c man begin SEEALSO readelf
3925objdump(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils}.
3926@c man end
3927@end ignore
252b5132 3928
07012eee
MM
3929@node Common Options
3930@chapter Common Options
3931
3932The following command-line options are supported by all of the
3933programs described in this manual.
3934
dff70155 3935@c man begin OPTIONS
07012eee 3936@table @env
38fc1cb1 3937@include at-file.texi
dff70155 3938@c man end
07012eee
MM
3939
3940@item --help
3941Display the command-line options supported by the program.
3942
3943@item --version
3944Display the version number of the program.
3945
dff70155 3946@c man begin OPTIONS
07012eee 3947@end table
dff70155 3948@c man end
07012eee 3949
fff279a7 3950@node Selecting the Target System
947ed062 3951@chapter Selecting the Target System
252b5132 3952
947ed062 3953You can specify two aspects of the target system to the @sc{gnu}
252b5132
RH
3954binary file utilities, each in several ways:
3955
3956@itemize @bullet
3957@item
3958the target
3959
3960@item
3961the architecture
252b5132
RH
3962@end itemize
3963
3964In the following summaries, the lists of ways to specify values are in
3965order of decreasing precedence. The ways listed first override those
3966listed later.
3967
3968The commands to list valid values only list the values for which the
3969programs you are running were configured. If they were configured with
c7c55b78 3970@option{--enable-targets=all}, the commands list most of the available
252b5132
RH
3971values, but a few are left out; not all targets can be configured in at
3972once because some of them can only be configured @dfn{native} (on hosts
3973with the same type as the target system).
3974
3975@menu
c1c0eb9e
RM
3976* Target Selection::
3977* Architecture Selection::
252b5132
RH
3978@end menu
3979
3980@node Target Selection
3981@section Target Selection
3982
3983A @dfn{target} is an object file format. A given target may be
3984supported for multiple architectures (@pxref{Architecture Selection}).
3985A target selection may also have variations for different operating
3986systems or architectures.
3987
3988The command to list valid target values is @samp{objdump -i}
3989(the first column of output contains the relevant information).
3990
3991Some sample values are: @samp{a.out-hp300bsd}, @samp{ecoff-littlemips},
3992@samp{a.out-sunos-big}.
3993
3994You can also specify a target using a configuration triplet. This is
f20a759a
ILT
3995the same sort of name that is passed to @file{configure} to specify a
3996target. When you use a configuration triplet as an argument, it must be
3997fully canonicalized. You can see the canonical version of a triplet by
252b5132
RH
3998running the shell script @file{config.sub} which is included with the
3999sources.
4000
4001Some sample configuration triplets are: @samp{m68k-hp-bsd},
4002@samp{mips-dec-ultrix}, @samp{sparc-sun-sunos}.
4003
c7c55b78 4004@subheading @command{objdump} Target
252b5132
RH
4005
4006Ways to specify:
4007
4008@enumerate
4009@item
c7c55b78 4010command line option: @option{-b} or @option{--target}
252b5132
RH
4011
4012@item
4013environment variable @code{GNUTARGET}
4014
4015@item
4016deduced from the input file
4017@end enumerate
4018
c7c55b78 4019@subheading @command{objcopy} and @command{strip} Input Target
252b5132
RH
4020
4021Ways to specify:
4022
4023@enumerate
4024@item
c7c55b78 4025command line options: @option{-I} or @option{--input-target}, or @option{-F} or @option{--target}
252b5132
RH
4026
4027@item
4028environment variable @code{GNUTARGET}
4029
4030@item
4031deduced from the input file
4032@end enumerate
4033
c7c55b78 4034@subheading @command{objcopy} and @command{strip} Output Target
252b5132
RH
4035
4036Ways to specify:
4037
4038@enumerate
4039@item
c7c55b78 4040command line options: @option{-O} or @option{--output-target}, or @option{-F} or @option{--target}
252b5132
RH
4041
4042@item
c7c55b78 4043the input target (see ``@command{objcopy} and @command{strip} Input Target'' above)
252b5132
RH
4044
4045@item
4046environment variable @code{GNUTARGET}
4047
4048@item
4049deduced from the input file
4050@end enumerate
4051
c7c55b78 4052@subheading @command{nm}, @command{size}, and @command{strings} Target
252b5132
RH
4053
4054Ways to specify:
4055
4056@enumerate
4057@item
c7c55b78 4058command line option: @option{--target}
252b5132
RH
4059
4060@item
4061environment variable @code{GNUTARGET}
4062
4063@item
4064deduced from the input file
4065@end enumerate
4066
252b5132 4067@node Architecture Selection
947ed062 4068@section Architecture Selection
252b5132
RH
4069
4070An @dfn{architecture} is a type of @sc{cpu} on which an object file is
4071to run. Its name may contain a colon, separating the name of the
4072processor family from the name of the particular @sc{cpu}.
4073
4074The command to list valid architecture values is @samp{objdump -i} (the
4075second column contains the relevant information).
4076
4077Sample values: @samp{m68k:68020}, @samp{mips:3000}, @samp{sparc}.
4078
c7c55b78 4079@subheading @command{objdump} Architecture
252b5132
RH
4080
4081Ways to specify:
4082
4083@enumerate
4084@item
c7c55b78 4085command line option: @option{-m} or @option{--architecture}
252b5132
RH
4086
4087@item
4088deduced from the input file
4089@end enumerate
4090
c7c55b78 4091@subheading @command{objcopy}, @command{nm}, @command{size}, @command{strings} Architecture
252b5132
RH
4092
4093Ways to specify:
4094
4095@enumerate
4096@item
4097deduced from the input file
4098@end enumerate
4099
252b5132
RH
4100@node Reporting Bugs
4101@chapter Reporting Bugs
4102@cindex bugs
4103@cindex reporting bugs
4104
4105Your bug reports play an essential role in making the binary utilities
4106reliable.
4107
4108Reporting a bug may help you by bringing a solution to your problem, or
4109it may not. But in any case the principal function of a bug report is
4110to help the entire community by making the next version of the binary
4111utilities work better. Bug reports are your contribution to their
4112maintenance.
4113
4114In order for a bug report to serve its purpose, you must include the
4115information that enables us to fix the bug.
4116
4117@menu
4118* Bug Criteria:: Have you found a bug?
4119* Bug Reporting:: How to report bugs
4120@end menu
4121
4122@node Bug Criteria
947ed062 4123@section Have You Found a Bug?
252b5132
RH
4124@cindex bug criteria
4125
4126If you are not sure whether you have found a bug, here are some guidelines:
4127
4128@itemize @bullet
4129@cindex fatal signal
4130@cindex crash
4131@item
4132If a binary utility gets a fatal signal, for any input whatever, that is
4133a bug. Reliable utilities never crash.
4134
4135@cindex error on valid input
4136@item
4137If a binary utility produces an error message for valid input, that is a
4138bug.
4139
4140@item
4141If you are an experienced user of binary utilities, your suggestions for
4142improvement are welcome in any case.
4143@end itemize
4144
4145@node Bug Reporting
947ed062 4146@section How to Report Bugs
252b5132
RH
4147@cindex bug reports
4148@cindex bugs, reporting
4149
4150A number of companies and individuals offer support for @sc{gnu}
4151products. If you obtained the binary utilities from a support
4152organization, we recommend you contact that organization first.
4153
4154You can find contact information for many support companies and
4155individuals in the file @file{etc/SERVICE} in the @sc{gnu} Emacs
4156distribution.
4157
ad22bfe8 4158@ifset BUGURL
252b5132 4159In any event, we also recommend that you send bug reports for the binary
ad22bfe8
JM
4160utilities to @value{BUGURL}.
4161@end ifset
252b5132
RH
4162
4163The fundamental principle of reporting bugs usefully is this:
4164@strong{report all the facts}. If you are not sure whether to state a
4165fact or leave it out, state it!
4166
4167Often people omit facts because they think they know what causes the
4168problem and assume that some details do not matter. Thus, you might
4169assume that the name of a file you use in an example does not matter.
4170Well, probably it does not, but one cannot be sure. Perhaps the bug is
4171a stray memory reference which happens to fetch from the location where
4172that pathname is stored in memory; perhaps, if the pathname were
4173different, the contents of that location would fool the utility into
4174doing the right thing despite the bug. Play it safe and give a
4175specific, complete example. That is the easiest thing for you to do,
4176and the most helpful.
4177
4178Keep in mind that the purpose of a bug report is to enable us to fix the bug if
4179it is new to us. Therefore, always write your bug reports on the assumption
4180that the bug has not been reported previously.
4181
4182Sometimes people give a few sketchy facts and ask, ``Does this ring a
947ed062
NC
4183bell?'' This cannot help us fix a bug, so it is basically useless. We
4184respond by asking for enough details to enable us to investigate.
4185You might as well expedite matters by sending them to begin with.
252b5132
RH
4186
4187To enable us to fix the bug, you should include all these things:
4188
4189@itemize @bullet
4190@item
4191The version of the utility. Each utility announces it if you start it
c7c55b78 4192with the @option{--version} argument.
252b5132
RH
4193
4194Without this, we will not know whether there is any point in looking for
4195the bug in the current version of the binary utilities.
4196
4197@item
4198Any patches you may have applied to the source, including any patches
4199made to the @code{BFD} library.
4200
4201@item
4202The type of machine you are using, and the operating system name and
4203version number.
4204
4205@item
4206What compiler (and its version) was used to compile the utilities---e.g.
4207``@code{gcc-2.7}''.
4208
4209@item
4210The command arguments you gave the utility to observe the bug. To
4211guarantee you will not omit something important, list them all. A copy
4212of the Makefile (or the output from make) is sufficient.
4213
4214If we were to try to guess the arguments, we would probably guess wrong
4215and then we might not encounter the bug.
4216
4217@item
4218A complete input file, or set of input files, that will reproduce the
4219bug. If the utility is reading an object file or files, then it is
ad22bfe8 4220generally most helpful to send the actual object files.
252b5132
RH
4221
4222If the source files were produced exclusively using @sc{gnu} programs
c7c55b78 4223(e.g., @command{gcc}, @command{gas}, and/or the @sc{gnu} @command{ld}), then it
252b5132 4224may be OK to send the source files rather than the object files. In
c7c55b78 4225this case, be sure to say exactly what version of @command{gcc}, or
252b5132 4226whatever, was used to produce the object files. Also say how
c7c55b78 4227@command{gcc}, or whatever, was configured.
252b5132
RH
4228
4229@item
4230A description of what behavior you observe that you believe is
4231incorrect. For example, ``It gets a fatal signal.''
4232
4233Of course, if the bug is that the utility gets a fatal signal, then we
4234will certainly notice it. But if the bug is incorrect output, we might
4235not notice unless it is glaringly wrong. You might as well not give us
4236a chance to make a mistake.
4237
4238Even if the problem you experience is a fatal signal, you should still
f20a759a 4239say so explicitly. Suppose something strange is going on, such as your
b45619c0 4240copy of the utility is out of sync, or you have encountered a bug in
252b5132
RH
4241the C library on your system. (This has happened!) Your copy might
4242crash and ours would not. If you told us to expect a crash, then when
4243ours fails to crash, we would know that the bug was not happening for
4244us. If you had not told us to expect a crash, then we would not be able
4245to draw any conclusion from our observations.
4246
4247@item
4248If you wish to suggest changes to the source, send us context diffs, as
c7c55b78 4249generated by @command{diff} with the @option{-u}, @option{-c}, or @option{-p}
252b5132 4250option. Always send diffs from the old file to the new file. If you
c7c55b78 4251wish to discuss something in the @command{ld} source, refer to it by
f20a759a 4252context, not by line number.
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4253
4254The line numbers in our development sources will not match those in your
4255sources. Your line numbers would convey no useful information to us.
4256@end itemize
4257
4258Here are some things that are not necessary:
4259
4260@itemize @bullet
4261@item
4262A description of the envelope of the bug.
4263
4264Often people who encounter a bug spend a lot of time investigating
4265which changes to the input file will make the bug go away and which
4266changes will not affect it.
4267
4268This is often time consuming and not very useful, because the way we
4269will find the bug is by running a single example under the debugger
4270with breakpoints, not by pure deduction from a series of examples.
4271We recommend that you save your time for something else.
4272
4273Of course, if you can find a simpler example to report @emph{instead}
4274of the original one, that is a convenience for us. Errors in the
4275output will be easier to spot, running under the debugger will take
4276less time, and so on.
4277
4278However, simplification is not vital; if you do not want to do this,
4279report the bug anyway and send us the entire test case you used.
4280
4281@item
4282A patch for the bug.
4283
4284A patch for the bug does help us if it is a good one. But do not omit
4285the necessary information, such as the test case, on the assumption that
4286a patch is all we need. We might see problems with your patch and decide
4287to fix the problem another way, or we might not understand it at all.
4288
4289Sometimes with programs as complicated as the binary utilities it is
4290very hard to construct an example that will make the program follow a
4291certain path through the code. If you do not send us the example, we
4292will not be able to construct one, so we will not be able to verify that
4293the bug is fixed.
4294
4295And if we cannot understand what bug you are trying to fix, or why your
4296patch should be an improvement, we will not install it. A test case will
4297help us to understand.
4298
4299@item
4300A guess about what the bug is or what it depends on.
4301
4302Such guesses are usually wrong. Even we cannot guess right about such
4303things without first using the debugger to find the facts.
4304@end itemize
4305
fff279a7
NC
4306@node GNU Free Documentation License
4307@appendix GNU Free Documentation License
4308
947ed062 4309@include fdl.texi
cf055d54 4310
fa0d8a3e
NC
4311@node Binutils Index
4312@unnumbered Binutils Index
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4313
4314@printindex cp
4315
252b5132 4316@bye
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