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[deliverable/binutils-gdb.git] / gas / doc / as.texinfo
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252b5132 1\input texinfo @c -*-Texinfo-*-
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2@c Copyright 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000,
3@c 2001
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4@c Free Software Foundation, Inc.
5@c UPDATE!! On future updates--
6@c (1) check for new machine-dep cmdline options in
7@c md_parse_option definitions in config/tc-*.c
8@c (2) for platform-specific directives, examine md_pseudo_op
9@c in config/tc-*.c
10@c (3) for object-format specific directives, examine obj_pseudo_op
11@c in config/obj-*.c
12@c (4) portable directives in potable[] in read.c
13@c %**start of header
14@setfilename as.info
15@c ---config---
16@c defaults, config file may override:
17@set have-stabs
18@c ---
19@include asconfig.texi
20@include gasver.texi
21@c ---
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22@c man begin NAME
23@ifset man
24@c Configure for the generation of man pages
25@set AS as
26@set TARGET TARGET
27@set GENERIC
28@set A29K
29@set ARC
30@set ARM
31@set D10V
32@set D30V
33@set H8/300
34@set H8/500
35@set HPPA
36@set I370
37@set I80386
38@set I860
39@set I960
40@set M32R
41@set M68HC11
42@set M680X0
81b0b3f1 43@set M880X0
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44@set MCORE
45@set MIPS
46@set PDP11
47@set PJ
48@set SH
49@set SPARC
50@set C54X
51@set V850
52@set VAX
53@end ifset
54@c man end
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55@c common OR combinations of conditions
56@ifset AOUT
57@set aout-bout
58@end ifset
59@ifset ARM/Thumb
60@set ARM
61@end ifset
62@ifset BOUT
63@set aout-bout
64@end ifset
65@ifset H8/300
66@set H8
67@end ifset
68@ifset H8/500
69@set H8
70@end ifset
71@ifset SH
72@set H8
73@end ifset
74@ifset HPPA
75@set abnormal-separator
76@end ifset
77@c ------------
78@ifset GENERIC
79@settitle Using @value{AS}
80@end ifset
81@ifclear GENERIC
82@settitle Using @value{AS} (@value{TARGET})
83@end ifclear
84@setchapternewpage odd
85@c %**end of header
86
87@c @smallbook
88@c @set SMALL
89@c WARE! Some of the machine-dependent sections contain tables of machine
90@c instructions. Except in multi-column format, these tables look silly.
91@c Unfortunately, Texinfo doesn't have a general-purpose multi-col format, so
92@c the multi-col format is faked within @example sections.
93@c
94@c Again unfortunately, the natural size that fits on a page, for these tables,
95@c is different depending on whether or not smallbook is turned on.
96@c This matters, because of order: text flow switches columns at each page
97@c break.
98@c
99@c The format faked in this source works reasonably well for smallbook,
100@c not well for the default large-page format. This manual expects that if you
101@c turn on @smallbook, you will also uncomment the "@set SMALL" to enable the
102@c tables in question. You can turn on one without the other at your
103@c discretion, of course.
104@ifinfo
105@set SMALL
106@c the insn tables look just as silly in info files regardless of smallbook,
107@c might as well show 'em anyways.
108@end ifinfo
109
110@ifinfo
111@format
112START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
113* As: (as). The GNU assembler.
114END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
115@end format
116@end ifinfo
117
118@finalout
119@syncodeindex ky cp
120
121@ifinfo
122This file documents the GNU Assembler "@value{AS}".
123
0285c67d 124@c man begin COPYRIGHT
a349d9dd 125Copyright (C) 1991, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
252b5132 126
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127Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
128under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1
129or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
130with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no
131Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the
132section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
133
134@c man end
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135
136@ignore
137Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
138results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
139notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
140(this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
141
142@end ignore
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143@end ifinfo
144
145@titlepage
146@title Using @value{AS}
147@subtitle The @sc{gnu} Assembler
148@ifclear GENERIC
149@subtitle for the @value{TARGET} family
150@end ifclear
151@sp 1
152@subtitle Version @value{VERSION}
153@sp 1
154@sp 13
155The Free Software Foundation Inc. thanks The Nice Computer
156Company of Australia for loaning Dean Elsner to write the
157first (Vax) version of @code{as} for Project @sc{gnu}.
158The proprietors, management and staff of TNCCA thank FSF for
159distracting the boss while they got some work
160done.
161@sp 3
162@author Dean Elsner, Jay Fenlason & friends
163@page
164@tex
165{\parskip=0pt
166\hfill {\it Using {\tt @value{AS}}}\par
167\hfill Edited by Cygnus Support\par
168}
169%"boxit" macro for figures:
170%Modified from Knuth's ``boxit'' macro from TeXbook (answer to exercise 21.3)
171\gdef\boxit#1#2{\vbox{\hrule\hbox{\vrule\kern3pt
172 \vbox{\parindent=0pt\parskip=0pt\hsize=#1\kern3pt\strut\hfil
173#2\hfil\strut\kern3pt}\kern3pt\vrule}\hrule}}%box with visible outline
174\gdef\ibox#1#2{\hbox to #1{#2\hfil}\kern8pt}% invisible box
175@end tex
176
177@vskip 0pt plus 1filll
a349d9dd 178Copyright @copyright{} 1991, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
252b5132 179
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180 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
181 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1
182 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
183 with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no
184 Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the
185 section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
252b5132 186
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187@end titlepage
188
189@ifinfo
190@node Top
191@top Using @value{AS}
192
193This file is a user guide to the @sc{gnu} assembler @code{@value{AS}} version
194@value{VERSION}.
195@ifclear GENERIC
196This version of the file describes @code{@value{AS}} configured to generate
197code for @value{TARGET} architectures.
198@end ifclear
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199
200This document is distributed under the terms of the GNU Free
201Documentation License. A copy of the license is included in the
202section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
203
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204@menu
205* Overview:: Overview
206* Invoking:: Command-Line Options
207* Syntax:: Syntax
208* Sections:: Sections and Relocation
209* Symbols:: Symbols
210* Expressions:: Expressions
211* Pseudo Ops:: Assembler Directives
212* Machine Dependencies:: Machine Dependent Features
213* Reporting Bugs:: Reporting Bugs
214* Acknowledgements:: Who Did What
cf055d54 215* GNU Free Documentation License:: GNU Free Documentation License
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216* Index:: Index
217@end menu
218@end ifinfo
219
220@node Overview
221@chapter Overview
222@iftex
223This manual is a user guide to the @sc{gnu} assembler @code{@value{AS}}.
224@ifclear GENERIC
225This version of the manual describes @code{@value{AS}} configured to generate
226code for @value{TARGET} architectures.
227@end ifclear
228@end iftex
229
230@cindex invocation summary
231@cindex option summary
232@cindex summary of options
233Here is a brief summary of how to invoke @code{@value{AS}}. For details,
234@pxref{Invoking,,Comand-Line Options}.
235
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236@c man title AS the portable GNU assembler.
237
238@c man begin SEEALSO
239gcc(1), ld(1), and the Info entries for @file{binutils} and @file{ld}.
240@c man end
241
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242@c We don't use deffn and friends for the following because they seem
243@c to be limited to one line for the header.
244@smallexample
0285c67d 245@c man begin SYNOPSIS
252b5132 246@value{AS} [ -a[cdhlns][=file] ] [ -D ] [ --defsym @var{sym}=@var{val} ]
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247 [ -f ] [ --gstabs ] [ --gdwarf2 ] [ --help ] [ -I @var{dir} ]
248 [ -J ] [ -K ] [ -L ]
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249 [ --listing--lhs-width=NUM ][ --listing-lhs-width2=NUM ]
250 [ --listing-rhs-width=NUM ][ --listing-cont-lines=NUM ]
252b5132 251 [ --keep-locals ] [ -o @var{objfile} ] [ -R ] [ --statistics ] [ -v ]
2bdd6cf5 252 [ -version ] [ --version ] [ -W ] [ --warn ] [ --fatal-warnings ]
ea20a7da 253 [ -w ] [ -x ] [ -Z ] [ --target-help ]
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254@ifset A29K
255@c am29k has no machine-dependent assembler options
256@end ifset
257@ifset ARC
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258 [ -marc[5|6|7|8] ]
259 [ -EB | -EL ]
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260@end ifset
261@ifset ARM
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262 [ -m[arm]1 | -m[arm]2 | -m[arm]250 | -m[arm]3 |
263 -m[arm]6 | -m[arm]60 | -m[arm]600 | -m[arm]610 |
264 -m[arm]620 | -m[arm]7[t][[d]m[i]][fe] | -m[arm]70 |
265 -m[arm]700 | -m[arm]710[c] | -m[arm]7100 |
266 -m[arm]7500 | -m[arm]8 | -m[arm]810 | -m[arm]9 |
267 -m[arm]920 | -m[arm]920t | -m[arm]9tdmi |
cdf82bcf 268 -mstrongarm | -mstrongarm110 | -mstrongarm1100 ]
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269 [ -m[arm]v2 | -m[arm]v2a | -m[arm]v3 | -m[arm]v3m |
270 -m[arm]v4 | -m[arm]v4t | -m[arm]v5 | -[arm]v5t |
271 -[arm]v5te ]
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272 [ -mthumb | -mall ]
273 [ -mfpa10 | -mfpa11 | -mfpe-old | -mno-fpu ]
274 [ -EB | -EL ]
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275 [ -mapcs-32 | -mapcs-26 | -mapcs-float |
276 -mapcs-reentrant ]
277 [ -mthumb-interwork ] [ -moabi ] [ -k ]
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278@end ifset
279@ifset D10V
280 [ -O ]
281@end ifset
282@ifset D30V
283 [ -O | -n | -N ]
284@end ifset
285@ifset H8
286@c Hitachi family chips have no machine-dependent assembler options
287@end ifset
288@ifset HPPA
289@c HPPA has no machine-dependent assembler options (yet).
290@end ifset
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291@ifset PJ
292 [ -mb | -me ]
293@end ifset
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294@ifset SPARC
295@c The order here is important. See c-sparc.texi.
296 [ -Av6 | -Av7 | -Av8 | -Asparclet | -Asparclite
297 -Av8plus | -Av8plusa | -Av9 | -Av9a ]
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298 [ -xarch=v8plus | -xarch=v8plusa ] [ -bump ]
299 [ -32 | -64 ]
252b5132 300@end ifset
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301@ifset TIC54X
302 [ -mcpu=54[123589] | -mcpu=54[56]lp ] [ -mfar-mode | -mf ]
303 [ -merrors-to-file <filename> | -me <filename> ]
304@end ifset
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305@ifset Z8000
306@c Z8000 has no machine-dependent assembler options
307@end ifset
308@ifset I960
309@c see md_parse_option in tc-i960.c
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310 [ -ACA | -ACA_A | -ACB | -ACC | -AKA | -AKB |
311 -AKC | -AMC ]
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312 [ -b ] [ -no-relax ]
313@end ifset
ec694b89 314@ifset M32R
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315 [ --m32rx | --[no-]warn-explicit-parallel-conflicts |
316 --W[n]p ]
ec694b89 317@end ifset
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318@ifset M680X0
319 [ -l ] [ -m68000 | -m68010 | -m68020 | ... ]
320@end ifset
321@ifset MCORE
322 [ -jsri2bsr ] [ -sifilter ] [ -relax ]
ec694b89 323 [ -mcpu=[210|340] ]
252b5132 324@end ifset
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325@ifset M68HC11
326 [ -m68hc11 | -m68hc12 ]
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327 [ --force-long-branchs ] [ --short-branchs ]
328 [ --strict-direct-mode ] [ --print-insn-syntax ]
329 [ --print-opcodes ] [ --generate-example ]
60bcf0fa 330@end ifset
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331@ifset MIPS
332 [ -nocpp ] [ -EL ] [ -EB ] [ -G @var{num} ] [ -mcpu=@var{CPU} ]
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333 [ -mips1 ] [ -mips2 ] [ -mips3 ] [ -mips4 ] [ -mips5 ]
334 [ -mips32 ] [ -mips64 ]
e7af610e 335 [ -m4650 ] [ -no-m4650 ]
63486801 336 [ --trap ] [ --break ] [ -n ]
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337 [ --emulation=@var{name} ]
338@end ifset
339 [ -- | @var{files} @dots{} ]
0285c67d 340@c man end
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341@end smallexample
342
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343@c man begin OPTIONS
344
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345@table @code
346@item -a[cdhlmns]
347Turn on listings, in any of a variety of ways:
348
349@table @code
350@item -ac
351omit false conditionals
352
353@item -ad
354omit debugging directives
355
356@item -ah
357include high-level source
358
359@item -al
360include assembly
361
362@item -am
363include macro expansions
364
365@item -an
366omit forms processing
367
368@item -as
369include symbols
370
371@item =file
372set the name of the listing file
373@end table
374
375You may combine these options; for example, use @samp{-aln} for assembly
376listing without forms processing. The @samp{=file} option, if used, must be
377the last one. By itself, @samp{-a} defaults to @samp{-ahls}.
378
379@item -D
380Ignored. This option is accepted for script compatibility with calls to
381other assemblers.
382
383@item --defsym @var{sym}=@var{value}
384Define the symbol @var{sym} to be @var{value} before assembling the input file.
385@var{value} must be an integer constant. As in C, a leading @samp{0x}
386indicates a hexadecimal value, and a leading @samp{0} indicates an octal value.
387
388@item -f
389``fast''---skip whitespace and comment preprocessing (assume source is
390compiler output).
391
392@item --gstabs
393Generate stabs debugging information for each assembler line. This
394may help debugging assembler code, if the debugger can handle it.
395
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396@item --gdwarf2
397Generate DWARF2 debugging information for each assembler line. This
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398may help debugging assembler code, if the debugger can handle it. Note - this
399option is only supported by some targets, not all of them.
cdf82bcf 400
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401@item --help
402Print a summary of the command line options and exit.
403
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404@item --target-help
405Print a summary of all target specific options and exit.
406
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407@item -I @var{dir}
408Add directory @var{dir} to the search list for @code{.include} directives.
409
410@item -J
411Don't warn about signed overflow.
412
413@item -K
414@ifclear DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
415This option is accepted but has no effect on the @value{TARGET} family.
416@end ifclear
417@ifset DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
418Issue warnings when difference tables altered for long displacements.
419@end ifset
420
421@item -L
422@itemx --keep-locals
423Keep (in the symbol table) local symbols. On traditional a.out systems
424these start with @samp{L}, but different systems have different local
425label prefixes.
426
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427@item --listing-lhs-width=@var{number}
428Set the maximum width, in words, of the output data column for an assembler
429listing to @var{number}.
430
431@item --listing-lhs-width2=@var{number}
432Set the maximum width, in words, of the output data column for continuation
433lines in an assembler listing to @var{number}.
434
435@item --listing-rhs-width=@var{number}
436Set the maximum width of an input source line, as displayed in a listing, to
437@var{number} bytes.
438
439@item --listing-cont-lines=@var{number}
440Set the maximum number of lines printed in a listing for a single line of input
441to @var{number} + 1.
442
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443@item -o @var{objfile}
444Name the object-file output from @code{@value{AS}} @var{objfile}.
445
446@item -R
447Fold the data section into the text section.
448
449@item --statistics
450Print the maximum space (in bytes) and total time (in seconds) used by
451assembly.
452
453@item --strip-local-absolute
454Remove local absolute symbols from the outgoing symbol table.
455
456@item -v
457@itemx -version
458Print the @code{as} version.
459
460@item --version
461Print the @code{as} version and exit.
462
463@item -W
2bdd6cf5 464@itemx --no-warn
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465Suppress warning messages.
466
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467@item --fatal-warnings
468Treat warnings as errors.
469
470@item --warn
471Don't suppress warning messages or treat them as errors.
472
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473@item -w
474Ignored.
475
476@item -x
477Ignored.
478
479@item -Z
480Generate an object file even after errors.
481
482@item -- | @var{files} @dots{}
483Standard input, or source files to assemble.
484
485@end table
486
487@ifset ARC
488The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for
489an ARC processor.
490
491@table @code
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492@item -marc[5|6|7|8]
493This option selects the core processor variant.
494@item -EB | -EL
495Select either big-endian (-EB) or little-endian (-EL) output.
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496@end table
497@end ifset
498
499@ifset ARM
500The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the ARM
501processor family.
502
503@table @code
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504@item -m[arm][1|2|3|6|7|8|9][...]
505Specify which ARM processor variant is the target.
506@item -m[arm]v[2|2a|3|3m|4|4t|5|5t]
507Specify which ARM architecture variant is used by the target.
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508@item -mthumb | -mall
509Enable or disable Thumb only instruction decoding.
510@item -mfpa10 | -mfpa11 | -mfpe-old | -mno-fpu
a349d9dd 511Select which Floating Point architecture is the target.
cdf82bcf 512@item -mapcs-32 | -mapcs-26 | -mapcs-float | -mapcs-reentrant | -moabi
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513Select which procedure calling convention is in use.
514@item -EB | -EL
515Select either big-endian (-EB) or little-endian (-EL) output.
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516@item -mthumb-interwork
517Specify that the code has been generated with interworking between Thumb and
518ARM code in mind.
519@item -k
520Specify that PIC code has been generated.
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521@end table
522@end ifset
523
524@ifset D10V
525The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for
526a D10V processor.
527@table @code
528@cindex D10V optimization
529@cindex optimization, D10V
530@item -O
531Optimize output by parallelizing instructions.
532@end table
533@end ifset
534
535@ifset D30V
536The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for a D30V
537processor.
538@table @code
539@cindex D30V optimization
540@cindex optimization, D30V
541@item -O
542Optimize output by parallelizing instructions.
543
544@cindex D30V nops
545@item -n
546Warn when nops are generated.
547
548@cindex D30V nops after 32-bit multiply
549@item -N
550Warn when a nop after a 32-bit multiply instruction is generated.
551@end table
552@end ifset
553
554@ifset I960
555The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the
556Intel 80960 processor.
557
558@table @code
559@item -ACA | -ACA_A | -ACB | -ACC | -AKA | -AKB | -AKC | -AMC
560Specify which variant of the 960 architecture is the target.
561
562@item -b
563Add code to collect statistics about branches taken.
564
565@item -no-relax
566Do not alter compare-and-branch instructions for long displacements;
567error if necessary.
568
569@end table
570@end ifset
571
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572@ifset M32R
573The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the
574Mitsubishi M32R series.
575
576@table @code
577
578@item --m32rx
579Specify which processor in the M32R family is the target. The default
580is normally the M32R, but this option changes it to the M32RX.
581
582@item --warn-explicit-parallel-conflicts or --Wp
583Produce warning messages when questionable parallel constructs are
584encountered.
585
586@item --no-warn-explicit-parallel-conflicts or --Wnp
587Do not produce warning messages when questionable parallel constructs are
588encountered.
589
590@end table
591@end ifset
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592
593@ifset M680X0
594The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the
595Motorola 68000 series.
596
597@table @code
598
599@item -l
600Shorten references to undefined symbols, to one word instead of two.
601
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602@item -m68000 | -m68008 | -m68010 | -m68020 | -m68030
603@itemx | -m68040 | -m68060 | -m68302 | -m68331 | -m68332
604@itemx | -m68333 | -m68340 | -mcpu32 | -m5200
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605Specify what processor in the 68000 family is the target. The default
606is normally the 68020, but this can be changed at configuration time.
607
608@item -m68881 | -m68882 | -mno-68881 | -mno-68882
609The target machine does (or does not) have a floating-point coprocessor.
610The default is to assume a coprocessor for 68020, 68030, and cpu32. Although
611the basic 68000 is not compatible with the 68881, a combination of the
612two can be specified, since it's possible to do emulation of the
613coprocessor instructions with the main processor.
614
615@item -m68851 | -mno-68851
616The target machine does (or does not) have a memory-management
617unit coprocessor. The default is to assume an MMU for 68020 and up.
618
619@end table
620@end ifset
621
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622@ifset PDP11
623
624For details about the PDP-11 machine dependent features options,
625see @ref{PDP-11-Options}.
626
627@table @code
628@item -mpic | -mno-pic
629Generate position-independent (or position-dependent) code. The
630default is @code{-mpic}.
631
632@item -mall
633@itemx -mall-extensions
634Enable all instruction set extensions. This is the default.
635
636@item -mno-extensions
637Disable all instruction set extensions.
638
639@item -m@var{extension} | -mno-@var{extension}
640Enable (or disable) a particular instruction set extension.
641
642@item -m@var{cpu}
643Enable the instruction set extensions supported by a particular CPU, and
644disable all other extensions.
645
646@item -m@var{machine}
647Enable the instruction set extensions supported by a particular machine
648model, and disable all other extensions.
649@end table
650
651@end ifset
652
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653@ifset PJ
654The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for
655a picoJava processor.
656
657@table @code
658
659@cindex PJ endianness
660@cindex endianness, PJ
661@cindex big endian output, PJ
662@item -mb
663Generate ``big endian'' format output.
664
665@cindex little endian output, PJ
666@item -ml
667Generate ``little endian'' format output.
668
669@end table
670@end ifset
671
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672@ifset M68HC11
673The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the
674Motorola 68HC11 or 68HC12 series.
675
676@table @code
677
678@item -m68hc11 | -m68hc12
679Specify what processor is the target. The default is
680defined by the configuration option when building the assembler.
681
682@item --force-long-branchs
683Relative branches are turned into absolute ones. This concerns
684conditional branches, unconditional branches and branches to a
685sub routine.
686
687@item -S | --short-branchs
688Do not turn relative branchs into absolute ones
689when the offset is out of range.
690
691@item --strict-direct-mode
692Do not turn the direct addressing mode into extended addressing mode
693when the instruction does not support direct addressing mode.
694
695@item --print-insn-syntax
696Print the syntax of instruction in case of error.
697
698@item --print-opcodes
699print the list of instructions with syntax and then exit.
700
701@item --generate-example
702print an example of instruction for each possible instruction and then exit.
703This option is only useful for testing @code{@value{AS}}.
704
705@end table
706@end ifset
707
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708@ifset SPARC
709The following options are available when @code{@value{AS}} is configured
710for the SPARC architecture:
711
712@table @code
713@item -Av6 | -Av7 | -Av8 | -Asparclet | -Asparclite
714@itemx -Av8plus | -Av8plusa | -Av9 | -Av9a
715Explicitly select a variant of the SPARC architecture.
716
717@samp{-Av8plus} and @samp{-Av8plusa} select a 32 bit environment.
718@samp{-Av9} and @samp{-Av9a} select a 64 bit environment.
719
720@samp{-Av8plusa} and @samp{-Av9a} enable the SPARC V9 instruction set with
721UltraSPARC extensions.
722
723@item -xarch=v8plus | -xarch=v8plusa
724For compatibility with the Solaris v9 assembler. These options are
725equivalent to -Av8plus and -Av8plusa, respectively.
726
727@item -bump
728Warn when the assembler switches to another architecture.
729@end table
730@end ifset
731
39bec121
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732@ifset TIC54X
733The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for the 'c54x
734architecture.
735
736@table @code
737@item -mfar-mode
738Enable extended addressing mode. All addresses and relocations will assume
739extended addressing (usually 23 bits).
740@item -mcpu=@var{CPU_VERSION}
741Sets the CPU version being compiled for.
742@item -merrors-to-file @var{FILENAME}
743Redirect error output to a file, for broken systems which don't support such
744behaviour in the shell.
745@end table
746@end ifset
747
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748@ifset MIPS
749The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for
750a MIPS processor.
751
752@table @code
753@item -G @var{num}
754This option sets the largest size of an object that can be referenced
755implicitly with the @code{gp} register. It is only accepted for targets that
756use ECOFF format, such as a DECstation running Ultrix. The default value is 8.
757
758@cindex MIPS endianness
759@cindex endianness, MIPS
760@cindex big endian output, MIPS
761@item -EB
762Generate ``big endian'' format output.
763
764@cindex little endian output, MIPS
765@item -EL
766Generate ``little endian'' format output.
767
768@cindex MIPS ISA
769@item -mips1
770@itemx -mips2
771@itemx -mips3
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772@itemx -mips4
773@itemx -mips32
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774Generate code for a particular MIPS Instruction Set Architecture level.
775@samp{-mips1} corresponds to the @sc{r2000} and @sc{r3000} processors,
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776@samp{-mips2} to the @sc{r6000} processor, and @samp{-mips3} to the @sc{r4000}
777processor.
778@samp{-mips5}, @samp{-mips32}, and @samp{-mips64} correspond
779to generic @sc{MIPS V}, @sc{MIPS32}, and @sc{MIPS64} ISA
780processors, respectively.
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781
782@item -m4650
783@itemx -no-m4650
784Generate code for the MIPS @sc{r4650} chip. This tells the assembler to accept
785the @samp{mad} and @samp{madu} instruction, and to not schedule @samp{nop}
786instructions around accesses to the @samp{HI} and @samp{LO} registers.
787@samp{-no-m4650} turns off this option.
788
789@item -mcpu=@var{CPU}
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790Generate code for a particular MIPS cpu. It is exactly equivalent to
791@samp{-m@var{cpu}}, except that there are more value of @var{cpu}
792understood.
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793
794@cindex emulation
795@item --emulation=@var{name}
796This option causes @code{@value{AS}} to emulate @code{@value{AS}} configured
797for some other target, in all respects, including output format (choosing
798between ELF and ECOFF only), handling of pseudo-opcodes which may generate
799debugging information or store symbol table information, and default
800endianness. The available configuration names are: @samp{mipsecoff},
801@samp{mipself}, @samp{mipslecoff}, @samp{mipsbecoff}, @samp{mipslelf},
802@samp{mipsbelf}. The first two do not alter the default endianness from that
803of the primary target for which the assembler was configured; the others change
804the default to little- or big-endian as indicated by the @samp{b} or @samp{l}
805in the name. Using @samp{-EB} or @samp{-EL} will override the endianness
806selection in any case.
807
808This option is currently supported only when the primary target
809@code{@value{AS}} is configured for is a MIPS ELF or ECOFF target.
810Furthermore, the primary target or others specified with
811@samp{--enable-targets=@dots{}} at configuration time must include support for
812the other format, if both are to be available. For example, the Irix 5
813configuration includes support for both.
814
815Eventually, this option will support more configurations, with more
816fine-grained control over the assembler's behavior, and will be supported for
817more processors.
818
819@item -nocpp
820@code{@value{AS}} ignores this option. It is accepted for compatibility with
821the native tools.
822
823@need 900
824@item --trap
825@itemx --no-trap
826@itemx --break
827@itemx --no-break
828Control how to deal with multiplication overflow and division by zero.
829@samp{--trap} or @samp{--no-break} (which are synonyms) take a trap exception
830(and only work for Instruction Set Architecture level 2 and higher);
831@samp{--break} or @samp{--no-trap} (also synonyms, and the default) take a
832break exception.
63486801
L
833
834@item -n
835When this option is used, @code{@value{AS}} will issue a warning every
836time it generates a nop instruction from a macro.
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837@end table
838@end ifset
839
840@ifset MCORE
841The following options are available when @value{AS} is configured for
842an MCore processor.
843
844@table @code
845@item -jsri2bsr
846@itemx -nojsri2bsr
847Enable or disable the JSRI to BSR transformation. By default this is enabled.
848The command line option @samp{-nojsri2bsr} can be used to disable it.
849
850@item -sifilter
851@itemx -nosifilter
852Enable or disable the silicon filter behaviour. By default this is disabled.
a349d9dd 853The default can be overridden by the @samp{-sifilter} command line option.
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854
855@item -relax
856Alter jump instructions for long displacements.
857
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858@item -mcpu=[210|340]
859Select the cpu type on the target hardware. This controls which instructions
860can be assembled.
861
862@item -EB
863Assemble for a big endian target.
864
865@item -EL
866Assemble for a little endian target.
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867
868@end table
869@end ifset
870
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871@c man end
872
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873@menu
874* Manual:: Structure of this Manual
875* GNU Assembler:: The GNU Assembler
876* Object Formats:: Object File Formats
877* Command Line:: Command Line
878* Input Files:: Input Files
879* Object:: Output (Object) File
880* Errors:: Error and Warning Messages
881@end menu
882
883@node Manual
884@section Structure of this Manual
885
886@cindex manual, structure and purpose
887This manual is intended to describe what you need to know to use
888@sc{gnu} @code{@value{AS}}. We cover the syntax expected in source files, including
889notation for symbols, constants, and expressions; the directives that
890@code{@value{AS}} understands; and of course how to invoke @code{@value{AS}}.
891
892@ifclear GENERIC
893We also cover special features in the @value{TARGET}
894configuration of @code{@value{AS}}, including assembler directives.
895@end ifclear
896@ifset GENERIC
897This manual also describes some of the machine-dependent features of
898various flavors of the assembler.
899@end ifset
900
901@cindex machine instructions (not covered)
902On the other hand, this manual is @emph{not} intended as an introduction
903to programming in assembly language---let alone programming in general!
904In a similar vein, we make no attempt to introduce the machine
905architecture; we do @emph{not} describe the instruction set, standard
906mnemonics, registers or addressing modes that are standard to a
907particular architecture.
908@ifset GENERIC
909You may want to consult the manufacturer's
910machine architecture manual for this information.
911@end ifset
912@ifclear GENERIC
913@ifset H8/300
914For information on the H8/300 machine instruction set, see @cite{H8/300
915Series Programming Manual} (Hitachi ADE--602--025). For the H8/300H,
916see @cite{H8/300H Series Programming Manual} (Hitachi).
917@end ifset
918@ifset H8/500
919For information on the H8/500 machine instruction set, see @cite{H8/500
920Series Programming Manual} (Hitachi M21T001).
921@end ifset
922@ifset SH
923For information on the Hitachi SH machine instruction set, see
924@cite{SH-Microcomputer User's Manual} (Hitachi Micro Systems, Inc.).
925@end ifset
926@ifset Z8000
927For information on the Z8000 machine instruction set, see @cite{Z8000 CPU Technical Manual}
928@end ifset
929@end ifclear
930
931@c I think this is premature---doc@cygnus.com, 17jan1991
932@ignore
933Throughout this manual, we assume that you are running @dfn{GNU},
934the portable operating system from the @dfn{Free Software
935Foundation, Inc.}. This restricts our attention to certain kinds of
936computer (in particular, the kinds of computers that @sc{gnu} can run on);
937once this assumption is granted examples and definitions need less
938qualification.
939
940@code{@value{AS}} is part of a team of programs that turn a high-level
941human-readable series of instructions into a low-level
942computer-readable series of instructions. Different versions of
943@code{@value{AS}} are used for different kinds of computer.
944@end ignore
945
946@c There used to be a section "Terminology" here, which defined
947@c "contents", "byte", "word", and "long". Defining "word" to any
948@c particular size is confusing when the .word directive may generate 16
949@c bits on one machine and 32 bits on another; in general, for the user
950@c version of this manual, none of these terms seem essential to define.
951@c They were used very little even in the former draft of the manual;
952@c this draft makes an effort to avoid them (except in names of
953@c directives).
954
955@node GNU Assembler
956@section The GNU Assembler
957
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958@c man begin DESCRIPTION
959
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960@sc{gnu} @code{as} is really a family of assemblers.
961@ifclear GENERIC
962This manual describes @code{@value{AS}}, a member of that family which is
963configured for the @value{TARGET} architectures.
964@end ifclear
965If you use (or have used) the @sc{gnu} assembler on one architecture, you
966should find a fairly similar environment when you use it on another
967architecture. Each version has much in common with the others,
968including object file formats, most assembler directives (often called
969@dfn{pseudo-ops}) and assembler syntax.@refill
970
971@cindex purpose of @sc{gnu} assembler
972@code{@value{AS}} is primarily intended to assemble the output of the
973@sc{gnu} C compiler @code{@value{GCC}} for use by the linker
974@code{@value{LD}}. Nevertheless, we've tried to make @code{@value{AS}}
975assemble correctly everything that other assemblers for the same
976machine would assemble.
977@ifset VAX
978Any exceptions are documented explicitly (@pxref{Machine Dependencies}).
979@end ifset
980@ifset M680X0
981@c This remark should appear in generic version of manual; assumption
982@c here is that generic version sets M680x0.
983This doesn't mean @code{@value{AS}} always uses the same syntax as another
984assembler for the same architecture; for example, we know of several
985incompatible versions of 680x0 assembly language syntax.
986@end ifset
987
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NC
988@c man end
989
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990Unlike older assemblers, @code{@value{AS}} is designed to assemble a source
991program in one pass of the source file. This has a subtle impact on the
992@kbd{.org} directive (@pxref{Org,,@code{.org}}).
993
994@node Object Formats
995@section Object File Formats
996
997@cindex object file format
998The @sc{gnu} assembler can be configured to produce several alternative
999object file formats. For the most part, this does not affect how you
1000write assembly language programs; but directives for debugging symbols
1001are typically different in different file formats. @xref{Symbol
1002Attributes,,Symbol Attributes}.
1003@ifclear GENERIC
1004@ifclear MULTI-OBJ
1005On the @value{TARGET}, @code{@value{AS}} is configured to produce
1006@value{OBJ-NAME} format object files.
1007@end ifclear
1008@c The following should exhaust all configs that set MULTI-OBJ, ideally
1009@ifset A29K
1010On the @value{TARGET}, @code{@value{AS}} can be configured to produce either
1011@code{a.out} or COFF format object files.
1012@end ifset
1013@ifset I960
1014On the @value{TARGET}, @code{@value{AS}} can be configured to produce either
1015@code{b.out} or COFF format object files.
1016@end ifset
1017@ifset HPPA
1018On the @value{TARGET}, @code{@value{AS}} can be configured to produce either
1019SOM or ELF format object files.
1020@end ifset
1021@end ifclear
1022
1023@node Command Line
1024@section Command Line
1025
1026@cindex command line conventions
0285c67d 1027
252b5132
RH
1028After the program name @code{@value{AS}}, the command line may contain
1029options and file names. Options may appear in any order, and may be
1030before, after, or between file names. The order of file names is
1031significant.
1032
1033@cindex standard input, as input file
1034@kindex --
1035@file{--} (two hyphens) by itself names the standard input file
1036explicitly, as one of the files for @code{@value{AS}} to assemble.
1037
1038@cindex options, command line
1039Except for @samp{--} any command line argument that begins with a
1040hyphen (@samp{-}) is an option. Each option changes the behavior of
1041@code{@value{AS}}. No option changes the way another option works. An
1042option is a @samp{-} followed by one or more letters; the case of
1043the letter is important. All options are optional.
1044
1045Some options expect exactly one file name to follow them. The file
1046name may either immediately follow the option's letter (compatible
1047with older assemblers) or it may be the next command argument (@sc{gnu}
1048standard). These two command lines are equivalent:
1049
1050@smallexample
1051@value{AS} -o my-object-file.o mumble.s
1052@value{AS} -omy-object-file.o mumble.s
1053@end smallexample
1054
1055@node Input Files
1056@section Input Files
1057
1058@cindex input
1059@cindex source program
1060@cindex files, input
1061We use the phrase @dfn{source program}, abbreviated @dfn{source}, to
1062describe the program input to one run of @code{@value{AS}}. The program may
1063be in one or more files; how the source is partitioned into files
1064doesn't change the meaning of the source.
1065
1066@c I added "con" prefix to "catenation" just to prove I can overcome my
1067@c APL training... doc@cygnus.com
1068The source program is a concatenation of the text in all the files, in the
1069order specified.
1070
0285c67d 1071@c man begin DESCRIPTION
252b5132
RH
1072Each time you run @code{@value{AS}} it assembles exactly one source
1073program. The source program is made up of one or more files.
1074(The standard input is also a file.)
1075
1076You give @code{@value{AS}} a command line that has zero or more input file
1077names. The input files are read (from left file name to right). A
1078command line argument (in any position) that has no special meaning
1079is taken to be an input file name.
1080
1081If you give @code{@value{AS}} no file names it attempts to read one input file
1082from the @code{@value{AS}} standard input, which is normally your terminal. You
1083may have to type @key{ctl-D} to tell @code{@value{AS}} there is no more program
1084to assemble.
1085
1086Use @samp{--} if you need to explicitly name the standard input file
1087in your command line.
1088
1089If the source is empty, @code{@value{AS}} produces a small, empty object
1090file.
1091
0285c67d
NC
1092@c man end
1093
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1094@subheading Filenames and Line-numbers
1095
1096@cindex input file linenumbers
1097@cindex line numbers, in input files
1098There are two ways of locating a line in the input file (or files) and
1099either may be used in reporting error messages. One way refers to a line
1100number in a physical file; the other refers to a line number in a
1101``logical'' file. @xref{Errors, ,Error and Warning Messages}.
1102
1103@dfn{Physical files} are those files named in the command line given
1104to @code{@value{AS}}.
1105
1106@dfn{Logical files} are simply names declared explicitly by assembler
1107directives; they bear no relation to physical files. Logical file names help
1108error messages reflect the original source file, when @code{@value{AS}} source
1109is itself synthesized from other files. @code{@value{AS}} understands the
1110@samp{#} directives emitted by the @code{@value{GCC}} preprocessor. See also
1111@ref{File,,@code{.file}}.
1112
1113@node Object
1114@section Output (Object) File
1115
1116@cindex object file
1117@cindex output file
1118@kindex a.out
1119@kindex .o
1120Every time you run @code{@value{AS}} it produces an output file, which is
1121your assembly language program translated into numbers. This file
1122is the object file. Its default name is
1123@ifclear BOUT
1124@code{a.out}.
1125@end ifclear
1126@ifset BOUT
1127@ifset GENERIC
1128@code{a.out}, or
1129@end ifset
1130@code{b.out} when @code{@value{AS}} is configured for the Intel 80960.
1131@end ifset
1132You can give it another name by using the @code{-o} option. Conventionally,
1133object file names end with @file{.o}. The default name is used for historical
1134reasons: older assemblers were capable of assembling self-contained programs
1135directly into a runnable program. (For some formats, this isn't currently
1136possible, but it can be done for the @code{a.out} format.)
1137
1138@cindex linker
1139@kindex ld
1140The object file is meant for input to the linker @code{@value{LD}}. It contains
1141assembled program code, information to help @code{@value{LD}} integrate
1142the assembled program into a runnable file, and (optionally) symbolic
1143information for the debugger.
1144
1145@c link above to some info file(s) like the description of a.out.
1146@c don't forget to describe @sc{gnu} info as well as Unix lossage.
1147
1148@node Errors
1149@section Error and Warning Messages
1150
0285c67d
NC
1151@c man begin DESCRIPTION
1152
a349d9dd 1153@cindex error messages
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1154@cindex warning messages
1155@cindex messages from assembler
1156@code{@value{AS}} may write warnings and error messages to the standard error
1157file (usually your terminal). This should not happen when a compiler
1158runs @code{@value{AS}} automatically. Warnings report an assumption made so
1159that @code{@value{AS}} could keep assembling a flawed program; errors report a
1160grave problem that stops the assembly.
1161
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1162@c man end
1163
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1164@cindex format of warning messages
1165Warning messages have the format
1166
1167@smallexample
1168file_name:@b{NNN}:Warning Message Text
1169@end smallexample
1170
1171@noindent
1172@cindex line numbers, in warnings/errors
1173(where @b{NNN} is a line number). If a logical file name has been given
1174(@pxref{File,,@code{.file}}) it is used for the filename, otherwise the name of
1175the current input file is used. If a logical line number was given
1176@ifset GENERIC
1177(@pxref{Line,,@code{.line}})
1178@end ifset
1179@ifclear GENERIC
1180@ifclear A29K
1181(@pxref{Line,,@code{.line}})
1182@end ifclear
1183@ifset A29K
1184(@pxref{Ln,,@code{.ln}})
1185@end ifset
1186@end ifclear
1187then it is used to calculate the number printed,
1188otherwise the actual line in the current source file is printed. The
1189message text is intended to be self explanatory (in the grand Unix
1190tradition).
1191
1192@cindex format of error messages
1193Error messages have the format
1194@smallexample
1195file_name:@b{NNN}:FATAL:Error Message Text
1196@end smallexample
1197The file name and line number are derived as for warning
1198messages. The actual message text may be rather less explanatory
1199because many of them aren't supposed to happen.
1200
1201@node Invoking
1202@chapter Command-Line Options
1203
1204@cindex options, all versions of assembler
1205This chapter describes command-line options available in @emph{all}
1206versions of the @sc{gnu} assembler; @pxref{Machine Dependencies}, for options specific
1207@ifclear GENERIC
1208to the @value{TARGET}.
1209@end ifclear
1210@ifset GENERIC
1211to particular machine architectures.
1212@end ifset
1213
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1214@c man begin DESCRIPTION
1215
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1216If you are invoking @code{@value{AS}} via the @sc{gnu} C compiler (version 2),
1217you can use the @samp{-Wa} option to pass arguments through to the assembler.
1218The assembler arguments must be separated from each other (and the @samp{-Wa})
1219by commas. For example:
1220
1221@smallexample
1222gcc -c -g -O -Wa,-alh,-L file.c
1223@end smallexample
1224
1225@noindent
1226This passes two options to the assembler: @samp{-alh} (emit a listing to
1227standard output with with high-level and assembly source) and @samp{-L} (retain
1228local symbols in the symbol table).
1229
1230Usually you do not need to use this @samp{-Wa} mechanism, since many compiler
1231command-line options are automatically passed to the assembler by the compiler.
1232(You can call the @sc{gnu} compiler driver with the @samp{-v} option to see
1233precisely what options it passes to each compilation pass, including the
1234assembler.)
1235
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1236@c man end
1237
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1238@menu
1239* a:: -a[cdhlns] enable listings
1240* D:: -D for compatibility
1241* f:: -f to work faster
1242* I:: -I for .include search path
1243@ifclear DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
1244* K:: -K for compatibility
1245@end ifclear
1246@ifset DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
1247* K:: -K for difference tables
1248@end ifset
1249
1250* L:: -L to retain local labels
c3a27914 1251* listing:: --listing-XXX to configure listing output
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1252* M:: -M or --mri to assemble in MRI compatibility mode
1253* MD:: --MD for dependency tracking
1254* o:: -o to name the object file
1255* R:: -R to join data and text sections
1256* statistics:: --statistics to see statistics about assembly
1257* traditional-format:: --traditional-format for compatible output
1258* v:: -v to announce version
2bdd6cf5 1259* W:: -W, --no-warn, --warn, --fatal-warnings to control warnings
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1260* Z:: -Z to make object file even after errors
1261@end menu
1262
1263@node a
1264@section Enable Listings: @code{-a[cdhlns]}
1265
1266@kindex -a
1267@kindex -ac
1268@kindex -ad
1269@kindex -ah
1270@kindex -al
1271@kindex -an
1272@kindex -as
1273@cindex listings, enabling
1274@cindex assembly listings, enabling
1275
1276These options enable listing output from the assembler. By itself,
1277@samp{-a} requests high-level, assembly, and symbols listing.
1278You can use other letters to select specific options for the list:
1279@samp{-ah} requests a high-level language listing,
1280@samp{-al} requests an output-program assembly listing, and
1281@samp{-as} requests a symbol table listing.
1282High-level listings require that a compiler debugging option like
1283@samp{-g} be used, and that assembly listings (@samp{-al}) be requested
1284also.
1285
1286Use the @samp{-ac} option to omit false conditionals from a listing. Any lines
1287which are not assembled because of a false @code{.if} (or @code{.ifdef}, or any
1288other conditional), or a true @code{.if} followed by an @code{.else}, will be
1289omitted from the listing.
1290
1291Use the @samp{-ad} option to omit debugging directives from the
1292listing.
1293
1294Once you have specified one of these options, you can further control
1295listing output and its appearance using the directives @code{.list},
1296@code{.nolist}, @code{.psize}, @code{.eject}, @code{.title}, and
1297@code{.sbttl}.
1298The @samp{-an} option turns off all forms processing.
1299If you do not request listing output with one of the @samp{-a} options, the
1300listing-control directives have no effect.
1301
1302The letters after @samp{-a} may be combined into one option,
1303@emph{e.g.}, @samp{-aln}.
1304
c3a27914
NC
1305Note if the assembler source is coming from the standard input (eg because it
1306is being created by @code{@value{GCC}} and the @samp{-pipe} command line switch
1307is being used) then the listing will not contain any comments or preprocessor
1308directives. This is because the listing code buffers input source lines from
1309stdin only after they have been preprocessed by the assembler. This reduces
1310memory usage and makes the code more efficient.
1311
252b5132
RH
1312@node D
1313@section @code{-D}
1314
1315@kindex -D
1316This option has no effect whatsoever, but it is accepted to make it more
1317likely that scripts written for other assemblers also work with
1318@code{@value{AS}}.
1319
1320@node f
1321@section Work Faster: @code{-f}
1322
1323@kindex -f
1324@cindex trusted compiler
1325@cindex faster processing (@code{-f})
1326@samp{-f} should only be used when assembling programs written by a
1327(trusted) compiler. @samp{-f} stops the assembler from doing whitespace
1328and comment preprocessing on
1329the input file(s) before assembling them. @xref{Preprocessing,
1330,Preprocessing}.
1331
1332@quotation
1333@emph{Warning:} if you use @samp{-f} when the files actually need to be
1334preprocessed (if they contain comments, for example), @code{@value{AS}} does
1335not work correctly.
1336@end quotation
1337
1338@node I
1339@section @code{.include} search path: @code{-I} @var{path}
1340
1341@kindex -I @var{path}
1342@cindex paths for @code{.include}
1343@cindex search path for @code{.include}
1344@cindex @code{include} directive search path
1345Use this option to add a @var{path} to the list of directories
1346@code{@value{AS}} searches for files specified in @code{.include}
1347directives (@pxref{Include,,@code{.include}}). You may use @code{-I} as
1348many times as necessary to include a variety of paths. The current
1349working directory is always searched first; after that, @code{@value{AS}}
1350searches any @samp{-I} directories in the same order as they were
1351specified (left to right) on the command line.
1352
1353@node K
1354@section Difference Tables: @code{-K}
1355
1356@kindex -K
1357@ifclear DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
1358On the @value{TARGET} family, this option is allowed, but has no effect. It is
1359permitted for compatibility with the @sc{gnu} assembler on other platforms,
1360where it can be used to warn when the assembler alters the machine code
1361generated for @samp{.word} directives in difference tables. The @value{TARGET}
1362family does not have the addressing limitations that sometimes lead to this
1363alteration on other platforms.
1364@end ifclear
1365
1366@ifset DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
1367@cindex difference tables, warning
1368@cindex warning for altered difference tables
1369@code{@value{AS}} sometimes alters the code emitted for directives of the form
1370@samp{.word @var{sym1}-@var{sym2}}; @pxref{Word,,@code{.word}}.
1371You can use the @samp{-K} option if you want a warning issued when this
1372is done.
1373@end ifset
1374
1375@node L
1376@section Include Local Labels: @code{-L}
1377
1378@kindex -L
1379@cindex local labels, retaining in output
1380Labels beginning with @samp{L} (upper case only) are called @dfn{local
1381labels}. @xref{Symbol Names}. Normally you do not see such labels when
1382debugging, because they are intended for the use of programs (like
1383compilers) that compose assembler programs, not for your notice.
1384Normally both @code{@value{AS}} and @code{@value{LD}} discard such labels, so you do not
1385normally debug with them.
1386
1387This option tells @code{@value{AS}} to retain those @samp{L@dots{}} symbols
1388in the object file. Usually if you do this you also tell the linker
1389@code{@value{LD}} to preserve symbols whose names begin with @samp{L}.
1390
1391By default, a local label is any label beginning with @samp{L}, but each
1392target is allowed to redefine the local label prefix.
1393@ifset HPPA
1394On the HPPA local labels begin with @samp{L$}.
1395@end ifset
252b5132 1396
c3a27914
NC
1397@node listing
1398@section Configuringh listing output: @code{--listing}
1399
1400The listing feature of the assembler can be enabled via the command line switch
1401@samp{-a} (@pxref{a}). This feature combines the input source file(s) with a
1402hex dump of the corresponding locations in the output object file, and displays
1403them as a listing file. The format of this listing can be controlled by pseudo
1404ops inside the assembler source (@pxref{List} @pxref{Title} @pxref{Sbttl}
1405@pxref{Psize} @pxref{Eject}) and also by the following switches:
1406
1407@table @code
1408@item --listing-lhs-width=@samp{number}
1409@kindex --listing-lhs-width
1410@cindex Width of first line disassembly output
1411Sets the maximum width, in words, of the first line of the hex byte dump. This
1412dump appears on the left hand side of the listing output.
1413
1414@item --listing-lhs-width2=@samp{number}
1415@kindex --listing-lhs-width2
1416@cindex Width of continuation lines of disassembly output
1417Sets the maximum width, in words, of any further lines of the hex byte dump for
1418a given inut source line. If this value is not specified, it defaults to being
1419the same as the value specified for @samp{--listing-lhs-width}. If neither
1420switch is used the default is to one.
1421
1422@item --listing-rhs-width=@samp{number}
1423@kindex --listing-rhs-width
1424@cindex Width of source line output
1425Sets the maximum width, in characters, of the source line that is displayed
1426alongside the hex dump. The default value for this parameter is 100. The
1427source line is displayed on the right hand side of the listing output.
1428
1429@item --listing-cont-lines=@samp{number}
1430@kindex --listing-cont-lines
1431@cindex Maximum number of continuation lines
1432Sets the maximum number of continuation lines of hex dump that will be
1433displayed for a given single line of source input. The default value is 4.
1434@end table
1435
252b5132
RH
1436@node M
1437@section Assemble in MRI Compatibility Mode: @code{-M}
1438
1439@kindex -M
1440@cindex MRI compatibility mode
1441The @code{-M} or @code{--mri} option selects MRI compatibility mode. This
1442changes the syntax and pseudo-op handling of @code{@value{AS}} to make it
1443compatible with the @code{ASM68K} or the @code{ASM960} (depending upon the
1444configured target) assembler from Microtec Research. The exact nature of the
1445MRI syntax will not be documented here; see the MRI manuals for more
1446information. Note in particular that the handling of macros and macro
1447arguments is somewhat different. The purpose of this option is to permit
1448assembling existing MRI assembler code using @code{@value{AS}}.
1449
1450The MRI compatibility is not complete. Certain operations of the MRI assembler
1451depend upon its object file format, and can not be supported using other object
1452file formats. Supporting these would require enhancing each object file format
1453individually. These are:
1454
1455@itemize @bullet
1456@item global symbols in common section
1457
1458The m68k MRI assembler supports common sections which are merged by the linker.
1459Other object file formats do not support this. @code{@value{AS}} handles
1460common sections by treating them as a single common symbol. It permits local
1461symbols to be defined within a common section, but it can not support global
1462symbols, since it has no way to describe them.
1463
1464@item complex relocations
1465
1466The MRI assemblers support relocations against a negated section address, and
1467relocations which combine the start addresses of two or more sections. These
1468are not support by other object file formats.
1469
1470@item @code{END} pseudo-op specifying start address
1471
1472The MRI @code{END} pseudo-op permits the specification of a start address.
1473This is not supported by other object file formats. The start address may
1474instead be specified using the @code{-e} option to the linker, or in a linker
1475script.
1476
1477@item @code{IDNT}, @code{.ident} and @code{NAME} pseudo-ops
1478
1479The MRI @code{IDNT}, @code{.ident} and @code{NAME} pseudo-ops assign a module
1480name to the output file. This is not supported by other object file formats.
1481
1482@item @code{ORG} pseudo-op
1483
1484The m68k MRI @code{ORG} pseudo-op begins an absolute section at a given
1485address. This differs from the usual @code{@value{AS}} @code{.org} pseudo-op,
1486which changes the location within the current section. Absolute sections are
1487not supported by other object file formats. The address of a section may be
1488assigned within a linker script.
1489@end itemize
1490
1491There are some other features of the MRI assembler which are not supported by
1492@code{@value{AS}}, typically either because they are difficult or because they
1493seem of little consequence. Some of these may be supported in future releases.
1494
1495@itemize @bullet
1496
1497@item EBCDIC strings
1498
1499EBCDIC strings are not supported.
1500
1501@item packed binary coded decimal
1502
1503Packed binary coded decimal is not supported. This means that the @code{DC.P}
1504and @code{DCB.P} pseudo-ops are not supported.
1505
1506@item @code{FEQU} pseudo-op
1507
1508The m68k @code{FEQU} pseudo-op is not supported.
1509
1510@item @code{NOOBJ} pseudo-op
1511
1512The m68k @code{NOOBJ} pseudo-op is not supported.
1513
1514@item @code{OPT} branch control options
1515
1516The m68k @code{OPT} branch control options---@code{B}, @code{BRS}, @code{BRB},
1517@code{BRL}, and @code{BRW}---are ignored. @code{@value{AS}} automatically
1518relaxes all branches, whether forward or backward, to an appropriate size, so
1519these options serve no purpose.
1520
1521@item @code{OPT} list control options
1522
1523The following m68k @code{OPT} list control options are ignored: @code{C},
1524@code{CEX}, @code{CL}, @code{CRE}, @code{E}, @code{G}, @code{I}, @code{M},
1525@code{MEX}, @code{MC}, @code{MD}, @code{X}.
1526
1527@item other @code{OPT} options
1528
1529The following m68k @code{OPT} options are ignored: @code{NEST}, @code{O},
1530@code{OLD}, @code{OP}, @code{P}, @code{PCO}, @code{PCR}, @code{PCS}, @code{R}.
1531
1532@item @code{OPT} @code{D} option is default
1533
1534The m68k @code{OPT} @code{D} option is the default, unlike the MRI assembler.
1535@code{OPT NOD} may be used to turn it off.
1536
1537@item @code{XREF} pseudo-op.
1538
1539The m68k @code{XREF} pseudo-op is ignored.
1540
1541@item @code{.debug} pseudo-op
1542
1543The i960 @code{.debug} pseudo-op is not supported.
1544
1545@item @code{.extended} pseudo-op
1546
1547The i960 @code{.extended} pseudo-op is not supported.
1548
1549@item @code{.list} pseudo-op.
1550
1551The various options of the i960 @code{.list} pseudo-op are not supported.
1552
1553@item @code{.optimize} pseudo-op
1554
1555The i960 @code{.optimize} pseudo-op is not supported.
1556
1557@item @code{.output} pseudo-op
1558
1559The i960 @code{.output} pseudo-op is not supported.
1560
1561@item @code{.setreal} pseudo-op
1562
1563The i960 @code{.setreal} pseudo-op is not supported.
1564
1565@end itemize
1566
1567@node MD
1568@section Dependency tracking: @code{--MD}
1569
1570@kindex --MD
1571@cindex dependency tracking
1572@cindex make rules
1573
1574@code{@value{AS}} can generate a dependency file for the file it creates. This
1575file consists of a single rule suitable for @code{make} describing the
1576dependencies of the main source file.
1577
1578The rule is written to the file named in its argument.
1579
1580This feature is used in the automatic updating of makefiles.
1581
1582@node o
1583@section Name the Object File: @code{-o}
1584
1585@kindex -o
1586@cindex naming object file
1587@cindex object file name
1588There is always one object file output when you run @code{@value{AS}}. By
1589default it has the name
1590@ifset GENERIC
1591@ifset I960
1592@file{a.out} (or @file{b.out}, for Intel 960 targets only).
1593@end ifset
1594@ifclear I960
1595@file{a.out}.
1596@end ifclear
1597@end ifset
1598@ifclear GENERIC
1599@ifset I960
1600@file{b.out}.
1601@end ifset
1602@ifclear I960
1603@file{a.out}.
1604@end ifclear
1605@end ifclear
1606You use this option (which takes exactly one filename) to give the
1607object file a different name.
1608
1609Whatever the object file is called, @code{@value{AS}} overwrites any
1610existing file of the same name.
1611
1612@node R
1613@section Join Data and Text Sections: @code{-R}
1614
1615@kindex -R
1616@cindex data and text sections, joining
1617@cindex text and data sections, joining
1618@cindex joining text and data sections
1619@cindex merging text and data sections
1620@code{-R} tells @code{@value{AS}} to write the object file as if all
1621data-section data lives in the text section. This is only done at
1622the very last moment: your binary data are the same, but data
1623section parts are relocated differently. The data section part of
1624your object file is zero bytes long because all its bytes are
1625appended to the text section. (@xref{Sections,,Sections and Relocation}.)
1626
1627When you specify @code{-R} it would be possible to generate shorter
1628address displacements (because we do not have to cross between text and
1629data section). We refrain from doing this simply for compatibility with
1630older versions of @code{@value{AS}}. In future, @code{-R} may work this way.
1631
1632@ifset COFF
1633When @code{@value{AS}} is configured for COFF output,
1634this option is only useful if you use sections named @samp{.text} and
1635@samp{.data}.
1636@end ifset
1637
1638@ifset HPPA
1639@code{-R} is not supported for any of the HPPA targets. Using
1640@code{-R} generates a warning from @code{@value{AS}}.
1641@end ifset
1642
1643@node statistics
1644@section Display Assembly Statistics: @code{--statistics}
1645
1646@kindex --statistics
1647@cindex statistics, about assembly
1648@cindex time, total for assembly
1649@cindex space used, maximum for assembly
1650Use @samp{--statistics} to display two statistics about the resources used by
1651@code{@value{AS}}: the maximum amount of space allocated during the assembly
1652(in bytes), and the total execution time taken for the assembly (in @sc{cpu}
1653seconds).
1654
1655@node traditional-format
1656@section Compatible output: @code{--traditional-format}
1657
1658@kindex --traditional-format
1659For some targets, the output of @code{@value{AS}} is different in some ways
1660from the output of some existing assembler. This switch requests
1661@code{@value{AS}} to use the traditional format instead.
1662
1663For example, it disables the exception frame optimizations which
1664@code{@value{AS}} normally does by default on @code{@value{GCC}} output.
1665
1666@node v
1667@section Announce Version: @code{-v}
1668
1669@kindex -v
1670@kindex -version
1671@cindex assembler version
1672@cindex version of assembler
1673You can find out what version of as is running by including the
1674option @samp{-v} (which you can also spell as @samp{-version}) on the
1675command line.
1676
1677@node W
2bdd6cf5 1678@section Control Warnings: @code{-W}, @code{--warn}, @code{--no-warn}, @code{--fatal-warnings}
252b5132 1679
252b5132
RH
1680@code{@value{AS}} should never give a warning or error message when
1681assembling compiler output. But programs written by people often
1682cause @code{@value{AS}} to give a warning that a particular assumption was
1683made. All such warnings are directed to the standard error file.
2bdd6cf5
GK
1684
1685@kindex @samp{-W}
1686@kindex @samp{--no-warn}
1687@cindex suppressing warnings
1688@cindex warnings, suppressing
1689If you use the @code{-W} and @code{--no-warn} options, no warnings are issued.
1690This only affects the warning messages: it does not change any particular of
1691how @code{@value{AS}} assembles your file. Errors, which stop the assembly,
1692are still reported.
1693
1694@kindex @samp{--fatal-warnings}
1695@cindex errors, caused by warnings
1696@cindex warnings, causing error
1697If you use the @code{--fatal-warnings} option, @code{@value{AS}} considers
1698files that generate warnings to be in error.
1699
1700@kindex @samp{--warn}
1701@cindex warnings, switching on
1702You can switch these options off again by specifying @code{--warn}, which
1703causes warnings to be output as usual.
252b5132
RH
1704
1705@node Z
1706@section Generate Object File in Spite of Errors: @code{-Z}
1707@cindex object file, after errors
1708@cindex errors, continuing after
1709After an error message, @code{@value{AS}} normally produces no output. If for
1710some reason you are interested in object file output even after
1711@code{@value{AS}} gives an error message on your program, use the @samp{-Z}
1712option. If there are any errors, @code{@value{AS}} continues anyways, and
1713writes an object file after a final warning message of the form @samp{@var{n}
1714errors, @var{m} warnings, generating bad object file.}
1715
1716@node Syntax
1717@chapter Syntax
1718
1719@cindex machine-independent syntax
1720@cindex syntax, machine-independent
1721This chapter describes the machine-independent syntax allowed in a
1722source file. @code{@value{AS}} syntax is similar to what many other
1723assemblers use; it is inspired by the BSD 4.2
1724@ifclear VAX
1725assembler.
1726@end ifclear
1727@ifset VAX
1728assembler, except that @code{@value{AS}} does not assemble Vax bit-fields.
1729@end ifset
1730
1731@menu
1732* Preprocessing:: Preprocessing
1733* Whitespace:: Whitespace
1734* Comments:: Comments
1735* Symbol Intro:: Symbols
1736* Statements:: Statements
1737* Constants:: Constants
1738@end menu
1739
1740@node Preprocessing
1741@section Preprocessing
1742
1743@cindex preprocessing
1744The @code{@value{AS}} internal preprocessor:
1745@itemize @bullet
1746@cindex whitespace, removed by preprocessor
1747@item
1748adjusts and removes extra whitespace. It leaves one space or tab before
1749the keywords on a line, and turns any other whitespace on the line into
1750a single space.
1751
1752@cindex comments, removed by preprocessor
1753@item
1754removes all comments, replacing them with a single space, or an
1755appropriate number of newlines.
1756
1757@cindex constants, converted by preprocessor
1758@item
1759converts character constants into the appropriate numeric values.
1760@end itemize
1761
1762It does not do macro processing, include file handling, or
1763anything else you may get from your C compiler's preprocessor. You can
1764do include file processing with the @code{.include} directive
1765(@pxref{Include,,@code{.include}}). You can use the @sc{gnu} C compiler driver
1766to get other ``CPP'' style preprocessing, by giving the input file a
1767@samp{.S} suffix. @xref{Overall Options,, Options Controlling the Kind of
1768Output, gcc.info, Using GNU CC}.
1769
1770Excess whitespace, comments, and character constants
1771cannot be used in the portions of the input text that are not
1772preprocessed.
1773
1774@cindex turning preprocessing on and off
1775@cindex preprocessing, turning on and off
1776@kindex #NO_APP
1777@kindex #APP
1778If the first line of an input file is @code{#NO_APP} or if you use the
1779@samp{-f} option, whitespace and comments are not removed from the input file.
1780Within an input file, you can ask for whitespace and comment removal in
1781specific portions of the by putting a line that says @code{#APP} before the
1782text that may contain whitespace or comments, and putting a line that says
1783@code{#NO_APP} after this text. This feature is mainly intend to support
1784@code{asm} statements in compilers whose output is otherwise free of comments
1785and whitespace.
1786
1787@node Whitespace
1788@section Whitespace
1789
1790@cindex whitespace
1791@dfn{Whitespace} is one or more blanks or tabs, in any order.
1792Whitespace is used to separate symbols, and to make programs neater for
1793people to read. Unless within character constants
1794(@pxref{Characters,,Character Constants}), any whitespace means the same
1795as exactly one space.
1796
1797@node Comments
1798@section Comments
1799
1800@cindex comments
1801There are two ways of rendering comments to @code{@value{AS}}. In both
1802cases the comment is equivalent to one space.
1803
1804Anything from @samp{/*} through the next @samp{*/} is a comment.
1805This means you may not nest these comments.
1806
1807@smallexample
1808/*
1809 The only way to include a newline ('\n') in a comment
1810 is to use this sort of comment.
1811*/
1812
1813/* This sort of comment does not nest. */
1814@end smallexample
1815
1816@cindex line comment character
1817Anything from the @dfn{line comment} character to the next newline
1818is considered a comment and is ignored. The line comment character is
1819@ifset A29K
1820@samp{;} for the AMD 29K family;
1821@end ifset
1822@ifset ARC
1823@samp{;} on the ARC;
1824@end ifset
550262c4
NC
1825@ifset ARM
1826@samp{@@} on the ARM;
1827@end ifset
252b5132
RH
1828@ifset H8/300
1829@samp{;} for the H8/300 family;
1830@end ifset
1831@ifset H8/500
1832@samp{!} for the H8/500 family;
1833@end ifset
1834@ifset HPPA
1835@samp{;} for the HPPA;
1836@end ifset
55b62671
AJ
1837@ifset I80386
1838@samp{#} on the i386 and x86-64;
1839@end ifset
252b5132
RH
1840@ifset I960
1841@samp{#} on the i960;
1842@end ifset
e135f41b
NC
1843@ifset PDP11
1844@samp{;} for the PDP-11;
1845@end ifset
041dd5a9
ILT
1846@ifset PJ
1847@samp{;} for picoJava;
1848@end ifset
252b5132
RH
1849@ifset SH
1850@samp{!} for the Hitachi SH;
1851@end ifset
1852@ifset SPARC
1853@samp{!} on the SPARC;
1854@end ifset
1855@ifset M32R
1856@samp{#} on the m32r;
1857@end ifset
1858@ifset M680X0
1859@samp{|} on the 680x0;
1860@end ifset
60bcf0fa
NC
1861@ifset M68HC11
1862@samp{#} on the 68HC11 and 68HC12;
1863@end ifset
81b0b3f1
BE
1864@ifset M880X0
1865@samp{;} on the M880x0;
1866@end ifset
252b5132
RH
1867@ifset VAX
1868@samp{#} on the Vax;
1869@end ifset
1870@ifset Z8000
1871@samp{!} for the Z8000;
1872@end ifset
1873@ifset V850
1874@samp{#} on the V850;
1875@end ifset
1876see @ref{Machine Dependencies}. @refill
81b0b3f1 1877@c FIXME What about i860?
252b5132
RH
1878
1879@ifset GENERIC
1880On some machines there are two different line comment characters. One
1881character only begins a comment if it is the first non-whitespace character on
1882a line, while the other always begins a comment.
1883@end ifset
1884
1885@ifset V850
1886The V850 assembler also supports a double dash as starting a comment that
1887extends to the end of the line.
1888
1889@samp{--};
1890@end ifset
1891
1892@kindex #
1893@cindex lines starting with @code{#}
1894@cindex logical line numbers
1895To be compatible with past assemblers, lines that begin with @samp{#} have a
1896special interpretation. Following the @samp{#} should be an absolute
1897expression (@pxref{Expressions}): the logical line number of the @emph{next}
1898line. Then a string (@pxref{Strings,, Strings}) is allowed: if present it is a
1899new logical file name. The rest of the line, if any, should be whitespace.
1900
1901If the first non-whitespace characters on the line are not numeric,
1902the line is ignored. (Just like a comment.)
1903
1904@smallexample
1905 # This is an ordinary comment.
1906# 42-6 "new_file_name" # New logical file name
1907 # This is logical line # 36.
1908@end smallexample
1909This feature is deprecated, and may disappear from future versions
1910of @code{@value{AS}}.
1911
1912@node Symbol Intro
1913@section Symbols
1914
1915@cindex characters used in symbols
1916@ifclear SPECIAL-SYMS
1917A @dfn{symbol} is one or more characters chosen from the set of all
1918letters (both upper and lower case), digits and the three characters
1919@samp{_.$}.
1920@end ifclear
1921@ifset SPECIAL-SYMS
1922@ifclear GENERIC
1923@ifset H8
1924A @dfn{symbol} is one or more characters chosen from the set of all
1925letters (both upper and lower case), digits and the three characters
1926@samp{._$}. (Save that, on the H8/300 only, you may not use @samp{$} in
1927symbol names.)
1928@end ifset
1929@end ifclear
1930@end ifset
1931@ifset GENERIC
1932On most machines, you can also use @code{$} in symbol names; exceptions
1933are noted in @ref{Machine Dependencies}.
1934@end ifset
1935No symbol may begin with a digit. Case is significant.
1936There is no length limit: all characters are significant. Symbols are
1937delimited by characters not in that set, or by the beginning of a file
1938(since the source program must end with a newline, the end of a file is
1939not a possible symbol delimiter). @xref{Symbols}.
1940@cindex length of symbols
1941
1942@node Statements
1943@section Statements
1944
1945@cindex statements, structure of
1946@cindex line separator character
1947@cindex statement separator character
1948@ifclear GENERIC
1949@ifclear abnormal-separator
1950A @dfn{statement} ends at a newline character (@samp{\n}) or at a
1951semicolon (@samp{;}). The newline or semicolon is considered part of
1952the preceding statement. Newlines and semicolons within character
1953constants are an exception: they do not end statements.
1954@end ifclear
1955@ifset abnormal-separator
1956@ifset A29K
1957A @dfn{statement} ends at a newline character (@samp{\n}) or an ``at''
1958sign (@samp{@@}). The newline or at sign is considered part of the
1959preceding statement. Newlines and at signs within character constants
1960are an exception: they do not end statements.
1961@end ifset
1962@ifset HPPA
1963A @dfn{statement} ends at a newline character (@samp{\n}) or an exclamation
1964point (@samp{!}). The newline or exclamation point is considered part of the
1965preceding statement. Newlines and exclamation points within character
1966constants are an exception: they do not end statements.
1967@end ifset
1968@ifset H8
1969A @dfn{statement} ends at a newline character (@samp{\n}); or (for the
1970H8/300) a dollar sign (@samp{$}); or (for the
1971Hitachi-SH or the
1972H8/500) a semicolon
1973(@samp{;}). The newline or separator character is considered part of
1974the preceding statement. Newlines and separators within character
1975constants are an exception: they do not end statements.
1976@end ifset
1977@end ifset
1978@end ifclear
1979@ifset GENERIC
1980A @dfn{statement} ends at a newline character (@samp{\n}) or line
1981separator character. (The line separator is usually @samp{;}, unless
1982this conflicts with the comment character; @pxref{Machine Dependencies}.) The
1983newline or separator character is considered part of the preceding
1984statement. Newlines and separators within character constants are an
1985exception: they do not end statements.
1986@end ifset
1987
1988@cindex newline, required at file end
1989@cindex EOF, newline must precede
1990It is an error to end any statement with end-of-file: the last
1991character of any input file should be a newline.@refill
1992
1993An empty statement is allowed, and may include whitespace. It is ignored.
1994
1995@cindex instructions and directives
1996@cindex directives and instructions
1997@c "key symbol" is not used elsewhere in the document; seems pedantic to
1998@c @defn{} it in that case, as was done previously... doc@cygnus.com,
1999@c 13feb91.
2000A statement begins with zero or more labels, optionally followed by a
2001key symbol which determines what kind of statement it is. The key
2002symbol determines the syntax of the rest of the statement. If the
2003symbol begins with a dot @samp{.} then the statement is an assembler
2004directive: typically valid for any computer. If the symbol begins with
2005a letter the statement is an assembly language @dfn{instruction}: it
2006assembles into a machine language instruction.
2007@ifset GENERIC
2008Different versions of @code{@value{AS}} for different computers
2009recognize different instructions. In fact, the same symbol may
2010represent a different instruction in a different computer's assembly
2011language.@refill
2012@end ifset
2013
2014@cindex @code{:} (label)
2015@cindex label (@code{:})
2016A label is a symbol immediately followed by a colon (@code{:}).
2017Whitespace before a label or after a colon is permitted, but you may not
2018have whitespace between a label's symbol and its colon. @xref{Labels}.
2019
2020@ifset HPPA
2021For HPPA targets, labels need not be immediately followed by a colon, but
2022the definition of a label must begin in column zero. This also implies that
2023only one label may be defined on each line.
2024@end ifset
2025
2026@smallexample
2027label: .directive followed by something
2028another_label: # This is an empty statement.
2029 instruction operand_1, operand_2, @dots{}
2030@end smallexample
2031
2032@node Constants
2033@section Constants
2034
2035@cindex constants
2036A constant is a number, written so that its value is known by
2037inspection, without knowing any context. Like this:
2038@smallexample
2039@group
2040.byte 74, 0112, 092, 0x4A, 0X4a, 'J, '\J # All the same value.
2041.ascii "Ring the bell\7" # A string constant.
2042.octa 0x123456789abcdef0123456789ABCDEF0 # A bignum.
2043.float 0f-314159265358979323846264338327\
204495028841971.693993751E-40 # - pi, a flonum.
2045@end group
2046@end smallexample
2047
2048@menu
2049* Characters:: Character Constants
2050* Numbers:: Number Constants
2051@end menu
2052
2053@node Characters
2054@subsection Character Constants
2055
2056@cindex character constants
2057@cindex constants, character
2058There are two kinds of character constants. A @dfn{character} stands
2059for one character in one byte and its value may be used in
2060numeric expressions. String constants (properly called string
2061@emph{literals}) are potentially many bytes and their values may not be
2062used in arithmetic expressions.
2063
2064@menu
2065* Strings:: Strings
2066* Chars:: Characters
2067@end menu
2068
2069@node Strings
2070@subsubsection Strings
2071
2072@cindex string constants
2073@cindex constants, string
2074A @dfn{string} is written between double-quotes. It may contain
2075double-quotes or null characters. The way to get special characters
2076into a string is to @dfn{escape} these characters: precede them with
2077a backslash @samp{\} character. For example @samp{\\} represents
2078one backslash: the first @code{\} is an escape which tells
2079@code{@value{AS}} to interpret the second character literally as a backslash
2080(which prevents @code{@value{AS}} from recognizing the second @code{\} as an
2081escape character). The complete list of escapes follows.
2082
2083@cindex escape codes, character
2084@cindex character escape codes
2085@table @kbd
2086@c @item \a
2087@c Mnemonic for ACKnowledge; for ASCII this is octal code 007.
2088@c
2089@cindex @code{\b} (backspace character)
2090@cindex backspace (@code{\b})
2091@item \b
2092Mnemonic for backspace; for ASCII this is octal code 010.
2093
2094@c @item \e
2095@c Mnemonic for EOText; for ASCII this is octal code 004.
2096@c
2097@cindex @code{\f} (formfeed character)
2098@cindex formfeed (@code{\f})
2099@item \f
2100Mnemonic for FormFeed; for ASCII this is octal code 014.
2101
2102@cindex @code{\n} (newline character)
2103@cindex newline (@code{\n})
2104@item \n
2105Mnemonic for newline; for ASCII this is octal code 012.
2106
2107@c @item \p
2108@c Mnemonic for prefix; for ASCII this is octal code 033, usually known as @code{escape}.
2109@c
2110@cindex @code{\r} (carriage return character)
2111@cindex carriage return (@code{\r})
2112@item \r
2113Mnemonic for carriage-Return; for ASCII this is octal code 015.
2114
2115@c @item \s
2116@c Mnemonic for space; for ASCII this is octal code 040. Included for compliance with
2117@c other assemblers.
2118@c
2119@cindex @code{\t} (tab)
2120@cindex tab (@code{\t})
2121@item \t
2122Mnemonic for horizontal Tab; for ASCII this is octal code 011.
2123
2124@c @item \v
2125@c Mnemonic for Vertical tab; for ASCII this is octal code 013.
2126@c @item \x @var{digit} @var{digit} @var{digit}
2127@c A hexadecimal character code. The numeric code is 3 hexadecimal digits.
2128@c
2129@cindex @code{\@var{ddd}} (octal character code)
2130@cindex octal character code (@code{\@var{ddd}})
2131@item \ @var{digit} @var{digit} @var{digit}
2132An octal character code. The numeric code is 3 octal digits.
2133For compatibility with other Unix systems, 8 and 9 are accepted as digits:
2134for example, @code{\008} has the value 010, and @code{\009} the value 011.
2135
2136@cindex @code{\@var{xd...}} (hex character code)
2137@cindex hex character code (@code{\@var{xd...}})
2138@item \@code{x} @var{hex-digits...}
2139A hex character code. All trailing hex digits are combined. Either upper or
2140lower case @code{x} works.
2141
2142@cindex @code{\\} (@samp{\} character)
2143@cindex backslash (@code{\\})
2144@item \\
2145Represents one @samp{\} character.
2146
2147@c @item \'
2148@c Represents one @samp{'} (accent acute) character.
2149@c This is needed in single character literals
2150@c (@xref{Characters,,Character Constants}.) to represent
2151@c a @samp{'}.
2152@c
2153@cindex @code{\"} (doublequote character)
2154@cindex doublequote (@code{\"})
2155@item \"
2156Represents one @samp{"} character. Needed in strings to represent
2157this character, because an unescaped @samp{"} would end the string.
2158
2159@item \ @var{anything-else}
2160Any other character when escaped by @kbd{\} gives a warning, but
2161assembles as if the @samp{\} was not present. The idea is that if
2162you used an escape sequence you clearly didn't want the literal
2163interpretation of the following character. However @code{@value{AS}} has no
2164other interpretation, so @code{@value{AS}} knows it is giving you the wrong
2165code and warns you of the fact.
2166@end table
2167
2168Which characters are escapable, and what those escapes represent,
2169varies widely among assemblers. The current set is what we think
2170the BSD 4.2 assembler recognizes, and is a subset of what most C
2171compilers recognize. If you are in doubt, do not use an escape
2172sequence.
2173
2174@node Chars
2175@subsubsection Characters
2176
2177@cindex single character constant
2178@cindex character, single
2179@cindex constant, single character
2180A single character may be written as a single quote immediately
2181followed by that character. The same escapes apply to characters as
2182to strings. So if you want to write the character backslash, you
2183must write @kbd{'\\} where the first @code{\} escapes the second
2184@code{\}. As you can see, the quote is an acute accent, not a
2185grave accent. A newline
2186@ifclear GENERIC
2187@ifclear abnormal-separator
2188(or semicolon @samp{;})
2189@end ifclear
2190@ifset abnormal-separator
2191@ifset A29K
2192(or at sign @samp{@@})
2193@end ifset
2194@ifset H8
2195(or dollar sign @samp{$}, for the H8/300; or semicolon @samp{;} for the
2196Hitachi SH or
2197H8/500)
2198@end ifset
2199@end ifset
2200@end ifclear
2201immediately following an acute accent is taken as a literal character
2202and does not count as the end of a statement. The value of a character
2203constant in a numeric expression is the machine's byte-wide code for
2204that character. @code{@value{AS}} assumes your character code is ASCII:
2205@kbd{'A} means 65, @kbd{'B} means 66, and so on. @refill
2206
2207@node Numbers
2208@subsection Number Constants
2209
2210@cindex constants, number
2211@cindex number constants
2212@code{@value{AS}} distinguishes three kinds of numbers according to how they
2213are stored in the target machine. @emph{Integers} are numbers that
2214would fit into an @code{int} in the C language. @emph{Bignums} are
2215integers, but they are stored in more than 32 bits. @emph{Flonums}
2216are floating point numbers, described below.
2217
2218@menu
2219* Integers:: Integers
2220* Bignums:: Bignums
2221* Flonums:: Flonums
2222@ifclear GENERIC
2223@ifset I960
2224* Bit Fields:: Bit Fields
2225@end ifset
2226@end ifclear
2227@end menu
2228
2229@node Integers
2230@subsubsection Integers
2231@cindex integers
2232@cindex constants, integer
2233
2234@cindex binary integers
2235@cindex integers, binary
2236A binary integer is @samp{0b} or @samp{0B} followed by zero or more of
2237the binary digits @samp{01}.
2238
2239@cindex octal integers
2240@cindex integers, octal
2241An octal integer is @samp{0} followed by zero or more of the octal
2242digits (@samp{01234567}).
2243
2244@cindex decimal integers
2245@cindex integers, decimal
2246A decimal integer starts with a non-zero digit followed by zero or
2247more digits (@samp{0123456789}).
2248
2249@cindex hexadecimal integers
2250@cindex integers, hexadecimal
2251A hexadecimal integer is @samp{0x} or @samp{0X} followed by one or
2252more hexadecimal digits chosen from @samp{0123456789abcdefABCDEF}.
2253
2254Integers have the usual values. To denote a negative integer, use
2255the prefix operator @samp{-} discussed under expressions
2256(@pxref{Prefix Ops,,Prefix Operators}).
2257
2258@node Bignums
2259@subsubsection Bignums
2260
2261@cindex bignums
2262@cindex constants, bignum
2263A @dfn{bignum} has the same syntax and semantics as an integer
2264except that the number (or its negative) takes more than 32 bits to
2265represent in binary. The distinction is made because in some places
2266integers are permitted while bignums are not.
2267
2268@node Flonums
2269@subsubsection Flonums
2270@cindex flonums
2271@cindex floating point numbers
2272@cindex constants, floating point
2273
2274@cindex precision, floating point
2275A @dfn{flonum} represents a floating point number. The translation is
2276indirect: a decimal floating point number from the text is converted by
2277@code{@value{AS}} to a generic binary floating point number of more than
2278sufficient precision. This generic floating point number is converted
2279to a particular computer's floating point format (or formats) by a
2280portion of @code{@value{AS}} specialized to that computer.
2281
2282A flonum is written by writing (in order)
2283@itemize @bullet
2284@item
2285The digit @samp{0}.
2286@ifset HPPA
2287(@samp{0} is optional on the HPPA.)
2288@end ifset
2289
2290@item
2291A letter, to tell @code{@value{AS}} the rest of the number is a flonum.
2292@ifset GENERIC
2293@kbd{e} is recommended. Case is not important.
2294@ignore
2295@c FIXME: verify if flonum syntax really this vague for most cases
2296(Any otherwise illegal letter works here, but that might be changed. Vax BSD
22974.2 assembler seems to allow any of @samp{defghDEFGH}.)
2298@end ignore
2299
2300On the H8/300, H8/500,
2301Hitachi SH,
2302and AMD 29K architectures, the letter must be
2303one of the letters @samp{DFPRSX} (in upper or lower case).
2304
2305On the ARC, the letter must be one of the letters @samp{DFRS}
2306(in upper or lower case).
2307
2308On the Intel 960 architecture, the letter must be
2309one of the letters @samp{DFT} (in upper or lower case).
2310
2311On the HPPA architecture, the letter must be @samp{E} (upper case only).
2312@end ifset
2313@ifclear GENERIC
2314@ifset A29K
2315One of the letters @samp{DFPRSX} (in upper or lower case).
2316@end ifset
2317@ifset ARC
2318One of the letters @samp{DFRS} (in upper or lower case).
2319@end ifset
2320@ifset H8
2321One of the letters @samp{DFPRSX} (in upper or lower case).
2322@end ifset
2323@ifset HPPA
2324The letter @samp{E} (upper case only).
2325@end ifset
2326@ifset I960
2327One of the letters @samp{DFT} (in upper or lower case).
2328@end ifset
2329@end ifclear
2330
2331@item
2332An optional sign: either @samp{+} or @samp{-}.
2333
2334@item
2335An optional @dfn{integer part}: zero or more decimal digits.
2336
2337@item
2338An optional @dfn{fractional part}: @samp{.} followed by zero
2339or more decimal digits.
2340
2341@item
2342An optional exponent, consisting of:
2343
2344@itemize @bullet
2345@item
2346An @samp{E} or @samp{e}.
2347@c I can't find a config where "EXP_CHARS" is other than 'eE', but in
2348@c principle this can perfectly well be different on different targets.
2349@item
2350Optional sign: either @samp{+} or @samp{-}.
2351@item
2352One or more decimal digits.
2353@end itemize
2354
2355@end itemize
2356
2357At least one of the integer part or the fractional part must be
2358present. The floating point number has the usual base-10 value.
2359
2360@code{@value{AS}} does all processing using integers. Flonums are computed
2361independently of any floating point hardware in the computer running
2362@code{@value{AS}}.
2363
2364@ifclear GENERIC
2365@ifset I960
2366@c Bit fields are written as a general facility but are also controlled
2367@c by a conditional-compilation flag---which is as of now (21mar91)
2368@c turned on only by the i960 config of GAS.
2369@node Bit Fields
2370@subsubsection Bit Fields
2371
2372@cindex bit fields
2373@cindex constants, bit field
2374You can also define numeric constants as @dfn{bit fields}.
2375specify two numbers separated by a colon---
2376@example
2377@var{mask}:@var{value}
2378@end example
2379@noindent
2380@code{@value{AS}} applies a bitwise @sc{and} between @var{mask} and
2381@var{value}.
2382
2383The resulting number is then packed
2384@ifset GENERIC
2385@c this conditional paren in case bit fields turned on elsewhere than 960
2386(in host-dependent byte order)
2387@end ifset
2388into a field whose width depends on which assembler directive has the
2389bit-field as its argument. Overflow (a result from the bitwise and
2390requiring more binary digits to represent) is not an error; instead,
2391more constants are generated, of the specified width, beginning with the
2392least significant digits.@refill
2393
2394The directives @code{.byte}, @code{.hword}, @code{.int}, @code{.long},
2395@code{.short}, and @code{.word} accept bit-field arguments.
2396@end ifset
2397@end ifclear
2398
2399@node Sections
2400@chapter Sections and Relocation
2401@cindex sections
2402@cindex relocation
2403
2404@menu
2405* Secs Background:: Background
2406* Ld Sections:: Linker Sections
2407* As Sections:: Assembler Internal Sections
2408* Sub-Sections:: Sub-Sections
2409* bss:: bss Section
2410@end menu
2411
2412@node Secs Background
2413@section Background
2414
2415Roughly, a section is a range of addresses, with no gaps; all data
2416``in'' those addresses is treated the same for some particular purpose.
2417For example there may be a ``read only'' section.
2418
2419@cindex linker, and assembler
2420@cindex assembler, and linker
2421The linker @code{@value{LD}} reads many object files (partial programs) and
2422combines their contents to form a runnable program. When @code{@value{AS}}
2423emits an object file, the partial program is assumed to start at address 0.
2424@code{@value{LD}} assigns the final addresses for the partial program, so that
2425different partial programs do not overlap. This is actually an
2426oversimplification, but it suffices to explain how @code{@value{AS}} uses
2427sections.
2428
2429@code{@value{LD}} moves blocks of bytes of your program to their run-time
2430addresses. These blocks slide to their run-time addresses as rigid
2431units; their length does not change and neither does the order of bytes
2432within them. Such a rigid unit is called a @emph{section}. Assigning
2433run-time addresses to sections is called @dfn{relocation}. It includes
2434the task of adjusting mentions of object-file addresses so they refer to
2435the proper run-time addresses.
2436@ifset H8
2437For the H8/300 and H8/500,
2438and for the Hitachi SH,
2439@code{@value{AS}} pads sections if needed to
2440ensure they end on a word (sixteen bit) boundary.
2441@end ifset
2442
2443@cindex standard assembler sections
2444An object file written by @code{@value{AS}} has at least three sections, any
2445of which may be empty. These are named @dfn{text}, @dfn{data} and
2446@dfn{bss} sections.
2447
2448@ifset COFF
2449@ifset GENERIC
2450When it generates COFF output,
2451@end ifset
2452@code{@value{AS}} can also generate whatever other named sections you specify
2453using the @samp{.section} directive (@pxref{Section,,@code{.section}}).
2454If you do not use any directives that place output in the @samp{.text}
2455or @samp{.data} sections, these sections still exist, but are empty.
2456@end ifset
2457
2458@ifset HPPA
2459@ifset GENERIC
2460When @code{@value{AS}} generates SOM or ELF output for the HPPA,
2461@end ifset
2462@code{@value{AS}} can also generate whatever other named sections you
2463specify using the @samp{.space} and @samp{.subspace} directives. See
2464@cite{HP9000 Series 800 Assembly Language Reference Manual}
2465(HP 92432-90001) for details on the @samp{.space} and @samp{.subspace}
2466assembler directives.
2467
2468@ifset SOM
2469Additionally, @code{@value{AS}} uses different names for the standard
2470text, data, and bss sections when generating SOM output. Program text
2471is placed into the @samp{$CODE$} section, data into @samp{$DATA$}, and
2472BSS into @samp{$BSS$}.
2473@end ifset
2474@end ifset
2475
2476Within the object file, the text section starts at address @code{0}, the
2477data section follows, and the bss section follows the data section.
2478
2479@ifset HPPA
2480When generating either SOM or ELF output files on the HPPA, the text
2481section starts at address @code{0}, the data section at address
2482@code{0x4000000}, and the bss section follows the data section.
2483@end ifset
2484
2485To let @code{@value{LD}} know which data changes when the sections are
2486relocated, and how to change that data, @code{@value{AS}} also writes to the
2487object file details of the relocation needed. To perform relocation
2488@code{@value{LD}} must know, each time an address in the object
2489file is mentioned:
2490@itemize @bullet
2491@item
2492Where in the object file is the beginning of this reference to
2493an address?
2494@item
2495How long (in bytes) is this reference?
2496@item
2497Which section does the address refer to? What is the numeric value of
2498@display
2499(@var{address}) @minus{} (@var{start-address of section})?
2500@end display
2501@item
2502Is the reference to an address ``Program-Counter relative''?
2503@end itemize
2504
2505@cindex addresses, format of
2506@cindex section-relative addressing
2507In fact, every address @code{@value{AS}} ever uses is expressed as
2508@display
2509(@var{section}) + (@var{offset into section})
2510@end display
2511@noindent
2512Further, most expressions @code{@value{AS}} computes have this section-relative
2513nature.
2514@ifset SOM
2515(For some object formats, such as SOM for the HPPA, some expressions are
2516symbol-relative instead.)
2517@end ifset
2518
2519In this manual we use the notation @{@var{secname} @var{N}@} to mean ``offset
2520@var{N} into section @var{secname}.''
2521
2522Apart from text, data and bss sections you need to know about the
2523@dfn{absolute} section. When @code{@value{LD}} mixes partial programs,
2524addresses in the absolute section remain unchanged. For example, address
2525@code{@{absolute 0@}} is ``relocated'' to run-time address 0 by
2526@code{@value{LD}}. Although the linker never arranges two partial programs'
2527data sections with overlapping addresses after linking, @emph{by definition}
2528their absolute sections must overlap. Address @code{@{absolute@ 239@}} in one
2529part of a program is always the same address when the program is running as
2530address @code{@{absolute@ 239@}} in any other part of the program.
2531
2532The idea of sections is extended to the @dfn{undefined} section. Any
2533address whose section is unknown at assembly time is by definition
2534rendered @{undefined @var{U}@}---where @var{U} is filled in later.
2535Since numbers are always defined, the only way to generate an undefined
2536address is to mention an undefined symbol. A reference to a named
2537common block would be such a symbol: its value is unknown at assembly
2538time so it has section @emph{undefined}.
2539
2540By analogy the word @emph{section} is used to describe groups of sections in
2541the linked program. @code{@value{LD}} puts all partial programs' text
2542sections in contiguous addresses in the linked program. It is
2543customary to refer to the @emph{text section} of a program, meaning all
2544the addresses of all partial programs' text sections. Likewise for
2545data and bss sections.
2546
2547Some sections are manipulated by @code{@value{LD}}; others are invented for
2548use of @code{@value{AS}} and have no meaning except during assembly.
2549
2550@node Ld Sections
2551@section Linker Sections
2552@code{@value{LD}} deals with just four kinds of sections, summarized below.
2553
2554@table @strong
2555
2556@ifset COFF
2557@cindex named sections
2558@cindex sections, named
2559@item named sections
2560@end ifset
2561@ifset aout-bout
2562@cindex text section
2563@cindex data section
2564@itemx text section
2565@itemx data section
2566@end ifset
2567These sections hold your program. @code{@value{AS}} and @code{@value{LD}} treat them as
2568separate but equal sections. Anything you can say of one section is
2569true another.
2570@ifset aout-bout
2571When the program is running, however, it is
2572customary for the text section to be unalterable. The
2573text section is often shared among processes: it contains
2574instructions, constants and the like. The data section of a running
2575program is usually alterable: for example, C variables would be stored
2576in the data section.
2577@end ifset
2578
2579@cindex bss section
2580@item bss section
2581This section contains zeroed bytes when your program begins running. It
a349d9dd 2582is used to hold uninitialized variables or common storage. The length of
252b5132
RH
2583each partial program's bss section is important, but because it starts
2584out containing zeroed bytes there is no need to store explicit zero
2585bytes in the object file. The bss section was invented to eliminate
2586those explicit zeros from object files.
2587
2588@cindex absolute section
2589@item absolute section
2590Address 0 of this section is always ``relocated'' to runtime address 0.
2591This is useful if you want to refer to an address that @code{@value{LD}} must
2592not change when relocating. In this sense we speak of absolute
2593addresses being ``unrelocatable'': they do not change during relocation.
2594
2595@cindex undefined section
2596@item undefined section
2597This ``section'' is a catch-all for address references to objects not in
2598the preceding sections.
2599@c FIXME: ref to some other doc on obj-file formats could go here.
2600@end table
2601
2602@cindex relocation example
2603An idealized example of three relocatable sections follows.
2604@ifset COFF
2605The example uses the traditional section names @samp{.text} and @samp{.data}.
2606@end ifset
2607Memory addresses are on the horizontal axis.
2608
2609@c TEXI2ROFF-KILL
2610@ifinfo
2611@c END TEXI2ROFF-KILL
2612@smallexample
2613 +-----+----+--+
2614partial program # 1: |ttttt|dddd|00|
2615 +-----+----+--+
2616
2617 text data bss
2618 seg. seg. seg.
2619
2620 +---+---+---+
2621partial program # 2: |TTT|DDD|000|
2622 +---+---+---+
2623
2624 +--+---+-----+--+----+---+-----+~~
2625linked program: | |TTT|ttttt| |dddd|DDD|00000|
2626 +--+---+-----+--+----+---+-----+~~
2627
2628 addresses: 0 @dots{}
2629@end smallexample
2630@c TEXI2ROFF-KILL
2631@end ifinfo
2632@need 5000
2633@tex
2634
2635\line{\it Partial program \#1: \hfil}
2636\line{\ibox{2.5cm}{\tt text}\ibox{2cm}{\tt data}\ibox{1cm}{\tt bss}\hfil}
2637\line{\boxit{2.5cm}{\tt ttttt}\boxit{2cm}{\tt dddd}\boxit{1cm}{\tt 00}\hfil}
2638
2639\line{\it Partial program \#2: \hfil}
2640\line{\ibox{1cm}{\tt text}\ibox{1.5cm}{\tt data}\ibox{1cm}{\tt bss}\hfil}
2641\line{\boxit{1cm}{\tt TTT}\boxit{1.5cm}{\tt DDDD}\boxit{1cm}{\tt 000}\hfil}
2642
2643\line{\it linked program: \hfil}
2644\line{\ibox{.5cm}{}\ibox{1cm}{\tt text}\ibox{2.5cm}{}\ibox{.75cm}{}\ibox{2cm}{\tt data}\ibox{1.5cm}{}\ibox{2cm}{\tt bss}\hfil}
2645\line{\boxit{.5cm}{}\boxit{1cm}{\tt TTT}\boxit{2.5cm}{\tt
2646ttttt}\boxit{.75cm}{}\boxit{2cm}{\tt dddd}\boxit{1.5cm}{\tt
2647DDDD}\boxit{2cm}{\tt 00000}\ \dots\hfil}
2648
2649\line{\it addresses: \hfil}
2650\line{0\dots\hfil}
2651
2652@end tex
2653@c END TEXI2ROFF-KILL
2654
2655@node As Sections
2656@section Assembler Internal Sections
2657
2658@cindex internal assembler sections
2659@cindex sections in messages, internal
2660These sections are meant only for the internal use of @code{@value{AS}}. They
2661have no meaning at run-time. You do not really need to know about these
2662sections for most purposes; but they can be mentioned in @code{@value{AS}}
2663warning messages, so it might be helpful to have an idea of their
2664meanings to @code{@value{AS}}. These sections are used to permit the
2665value of every expression in your assembly language program to be a
2666section-relative address.
2667
2668@table @b
2669@cindex assembler internal logic error
2670@item ASSEMBLER-INTERNAL-LOGIC-ERROR!
2671An internal assembler logic error has been found. This means there is a
2672bug in the assembler.
2673
2674@cindex expr (internal section)
2675@item expr section
2676The assembler stores complex expression internally as combinations of
2677symbols. When it needs to represent an expression as a symbol, it puts
2678it in the expr section.
2679@c FIXME item debug
2680@c FIXME item transfer[t] vector preload
2681@c FIXME item transfer[t] vector postload
2682@c FIXME item register
2683@end table
2684
2685@node Sub-Sections
2686@section Sub-Sections
2687
2688@cindex numbered subsections
2689@cindex grouping data
2690@ifset aout-bout
2691Assembled bytes
2692@ifset COFF
2693conventionally
2694@end ifset
2695fall into two sections: text and data.
2696@end ifset
2697You may have separate groups of
2698@ifset GENERIC
2699data in named sections
2700@end ifset
2701@ifclear GENERIC
2702@ifclear aout-bout
2703data in named sections
2704@end ifclear
2705@ifset aout-bout
2706text or data
2707@end ifset
2708@end ifclear
2709that you want to end up near to each other in the object file, even though they
2710are not contiguous in the assembler source. @code{@value{AS}} allows you to
2711use @dfn{subsections} for this purpose. Within each section, there can be
2712numbered subsections with values from 0 to 8192. Objects assembled into the
2713same subsection go into the object file together with other objects in the same
2714subsection. For example, a compiler might want to store constants in the text
2715section, but might not want to have them interspersed with the program being
2716assembled. In this case, the compiler could issue a @samp{.text 0} before each
2717section of code being output, and a @samp{.text 1} before each group of
2718constants being output.
2719
2720Subsections are optional. If you do not use subsections, everything
2721goes in subsection number zero.
2722
2723@ifset GENERIC
2724Each subsection is zero-padded up to a multiple of four bytes.
2725(Subsections may be padded a different amount on different flavors
2726of @code{@value{AS}}.)
2727@end ifset
2728@ifclear GENERIC
2729@ifset H8
2730On the H8/300 and H8/500 platforms, each subsection is zero-padded to a word
2731boundary (two bytes).
2732The same is true on the Hitachi SH.
2733@end ifset
2734@ifset I960
2735@c FIXME section padding (alignment)?
2736@c Rich Pixley says padding here depends on target obj code format; that
2737@c doesn't seem particularly useful to say without further elaboration,
2738@c so for now I say nothing about it. If this is a generic BFD issue,
2739@c these paragraphs might need to vanish from this manual, and be
2740@c discussed in BFD chapter of binutils (or some such).
2741@end ifset
2742@ifset A29K
2743On the AMD 29K family, no particular padding is added to section or
2744subsection sizes; @value{AS} forces no alignment on this platform.
2745@end ifset
2746@end ifclear
2747
2748Subsections appear in your object file in numeric order, lowest numbered
2749to highest. (All this to be compatible with other people's assemblers.)
2750The object file contains no representation of subsections; @code{@value{LD}} and
2751other programs that manipulate object files see no trace of them.
2752They just see all your text subsections as a text section, and all your
2753data subsections as a data section.
2754
2755To specify which subsection you want subsequent statements assembled
2756into, use a numeric argument to specify it, in a @samp{.text
2757@var{expression}} or a @samp{.data @var{expression}} statement.
2758@ifset COFF
2759@ifset GENERIC
2760When generating COFF output, you
2761@end ifset
2762@ifclear GENERIC
2763You
2764@end ifclear
2765can also use an extra subsection
2766argument with arbitrary named sections: @samp{.section @var{name},
2767@var{expression}}.
2768@end ifset
2769@var{Expression} should be an absolute expression.
2770(@xref{Expressions}.) If you just say @samp{.text} then @samp{.text 0}
2771is assumed. Likewise @samp{.data} means @samp{.data 0}. Assembly
2772begins in @code{text 0}. For instance:
2773@smallexample
2774.text 0 # The default subsection is text 0 anyway.
2775.ascii "This lives in the first text subsection. *"
2776.text 1
2777.ascii "But this lives in the second text subsection."
2778.data 0
2779.ascii "This lives in the data section,"
2780.ascii "in the first data subsection."
2781.text 0
2782.ascii "This lives in the first text section,"
2783.ascii "immediately following the asterisk (*)."
2784@end smallexample
2785
2786Each section has a @dfn{location counter} incremented by one for every byte
2787assembled into that section. Because subsections are merely a convenience
2788restricted to @code{@value{AS}} there is no concept of a subsection location
2789counter. There is no way to directly manipulate a location counter---but the
2790@code{.align} directive changes it, and any label definition captures its
2791current value. The location counter of the section where statements are being
2792assembled is said to be the @dfn{active} location counter.
2793
2794@node bss
2795@section bss Section
2796
2797@cindex bss section
2798@cindex common variable storage
2799The bss section is used for local common variable storage.
2800You may allocate address space in the bss section, but you may
2801not dictate data to load into it before your program executes. When
2802your program starts running, all the contents of the bss
2803section are zeroed bytes.
2804
2805The @code{.lcomm} pseudo-op defines a symbol in the bss section; see
2806@ref{Lcomm,,@code{.lcomm}}.
2807
2808The @code{.comm} pseudo-op may be used to declare a common symbol, which is
2809another form of uninitialized symbol; see @xref{Comm,,@code{.comm}}.
2810
2811@ifset GENERIC
2812When assembling for a target which supports multiple sections, such as ELF or
2813COFF, you may switch into the @code{.bss} section and define symbols as usual;
2814see @ref{Section,,@code{.section}}. You may only assemble zero values into the
2815section. Typically the section will only contain symbol definitions and
2816@code{.skip} directives (@pxref{Skip,,@code{.skip}}).
2817@end ifset
2818
2819@node Symbols
2820@chapter Symbols
2821
2822@cindex symbols
2823Symbols are a central concept: the programmer uses symbols to name
2824things, the linker uses symbols to link, and the debugger uses symbols
2825to debug.
2826
2827@quotation
2828@cindex debuggers, and symbol order
2829@emph{Warning:} @code{@value{AS}} does not place symbols in the object file in
2830the same order they were declared. This may break some debuggers.
2831@end quotation
2832
2833@menu
2834* Labels:: Labels
2835* Setting Symbols:: Giving Symbols Other Values
2836* Symbol Names:: Symbol Names
2837* Dot:: The Special Dot Symbol
2838* Symbol Attributes:: Symbol Attributes
2839@end menu
2840
2841@node Labels
2842@section Labels
2843
2844@cindex labels
2845A @dfn{label} is written as a symbol immediately followed by a colon
2846@samp{:}. The symbol then represents the current value of the
2847active location counter, and is, for example, a suitable instruction
2848operand. You are warned if you use the same symbol to represent two
2849different locations: the first definition overrides any other
2850definitions.
2851
2852@ifset HPPA
2853On the HPPA, the usual form for a label need not be immediately followed by a
2854colon, but instead must start in column zero. Only one label may be defined on
2855a single line. To work around this, the HPPA version of @code{@value{AS}} also
2856provides a special directive @code{.label} for defining labels more flexibly.
2857@end ifset
2858
2859@node Setting Symbols
2860@section Giving Symbols Other Values
2861
2862@cindex assigning values to symbols
2863@cindex symbol values, assigning
2864A symbol can be given an arbitrary value by writing a symbol, followed
2865by an equals sign @samp{=}, followed by an expression
2866(@pxref{Expressions}). This is equivalent to using the @code{.set}
2867directive. @xref{Set,,@code{.set}}.
2868
2869@node Symbol Names
2870@section Symbol Names
2871
2872@cindex symbol names
2873@cindex names, symbol
2874@ifclear SPECIAL-SYMS
2875Symbol names begin with a letter or with one of @samp{._}. On most
2876machines, you can also use @code{$} in symbol names; exceptions are
2877noted in @ref{Machine Dependencies}. That character may be followed by any
2878string of digits, letters, dollar signs (unless otherwise noted in
2879@ref{Machine Dependencies}), and underscores.
2880@end ifclear
2881@ifset A29K
2882For the AMD 29K family, @samp{?} is also allowed in the
2883body of a symbol name, though not at its beginning.
2884@end ifset
2885
2886@ifset SPECIAL-SYMS
2887@ifset H8
2888Symbol names begin with a letter or with one of @samp{._}. On the
2889Hitachi SH or the
2890H8/500, you can also use @code{$} in symbol names. That character may
2891be followed by any string of digits, letters, dollar signs (save on the
2892H8/300), and underscores.
2893@end ifset
2894@end ifset
2895
2896Case of letters is significant: @code{foo} is a different symbol name
2897than @code{Foo}.
2898
2899Each symbol has exactly one name. Each name in an assembly language program
2900refers to exactly one symbol. You may use that symbol name any number of times
2901in a program.
2902
2903@subheading Local Symbol Names
2904
2905@cindex local symbol names
2906@cindex symbol names, local
2907@cindex temporary symbol names
2908@cindex symbol names, temporary
2909Local symbols help compilers and programmers use names temporarily.
2910There are ten local symbol names, which are re-used throughout the
2911program. You may refer to them using the names @samp{0} @samp{1}
2912@dots{} @samp{9}. To define a local symbol, write a label of the form
2913@samp{@b{N}:} (where @b{N} represents any digit). To refer to the most
2914recent previous definition of that symbol write @samp{@b{N}b}, using the
2915same digit as when you defined the label. To refer to the next
2916definition of a local label, write @samp{@b{N}f}---where @b{N} gives you
2917a choice of 10 forward references. The @samp{b} stands for
2918``backwards'' and the @samp{f} stands for ``forwards''.
2919
2920Local symbols are not emitted by the current @sc{gnu} C compiler.
2921
2922There is no restriction on how you can use these labels, but
2923remember that at any point in the assembly you can refer to at most
292410 prior local labels and to at most 10 forward local labels.
2925
2926Local symbol names are only a notation device. They are immediately
2927transformed into more conventional symbol names before the assembler
2928uses them. The symbol names stored in the symbol table, appearing in
2929error messages and optionally emitted to the object file have these
2930parts:
2931
2932@table @code
2933@item L
2934All local labels begin with @samp{L}. Normally both @code{@value{AS}} and
2935@code{@value{LD}} forget symbols that start with @samp{L}. These labels are
2936used for symbols you are never intended to see. If you use the
2937@samp{-L} option then @code{@value{AS}} retains these symbols in the
2938object file. If you also instruct @code{@value{LD}} to retain these symbols,
2939you may use them in debugging.
2940
2941@item @var{digit}
2942If the label is written @samp{0:} then the digit is @samp{0}.
2943If the label is written @samp{1:} then the digit is @samp{1}.
2944And so on up through @samp{9:}.
2945
2946@item @kbd{C-A}
2947This unusual character is included so you do not accidentally invent
2948a symbol of the same name. The character has ASCII value
2949@samp{\001}.
2950
2951@item @emph{ordinal number}
2952This is a serial number to keep the labels distinct. The first
2953@samp{0:} gets the number @samp{1}; The 15th @samp{0:} gets the
2954number @samp{15}; @emph{etc.}. Likewise for the other labels @samp{1:}
2955through @samp{9:}.
2956@end table
2957
2958For instance, the first @code{1:} is named @code{L1@kbd{C-A}1}, the 44th
2959@code{3:} is named @code{L3@kbd{C-A}44}.
2960
2961@node Dot
2962@section The Special Dot Symbol
2963
2964@cindex dot (symbol)
2965@cindex @code{.} (symbol)
2966@cindex current address
2967@cindex location counter
2968The special symbol @samp{.} refers to the current address that
2969@code{@value{AS}} is assembling into. Thus, the expression @samp{melvin:
2970.long .} defines @code{melvin} to contain its own address.
2971Assigning a value to @code{.} is treated the same as a @code{.org}
2972directive. Thus, the expression @samp{.=.+4} is the same as saying
2973@ifclear no-space-dir
2974@samp{.space 4}.
2975@end ifclear
2976@ifset no-space-dir
2977@ifset A29K
2978@samp{.block 4}.
2979@end ifset
2980@end ifset
2981
2982@node Symbol Attributes
2983@section Symbol Attributes
2984
2985@cindex symbol attributes
2986@cindex attributes, symbol
2987Every symbol has, as well as its name, the attributes ``Value'' and
2988``Type''. Depending on output format, symbols can also have auxiliary
2989attributes.
2990@ifset INTERNALS
2991The detailed definitions are in @file{a.out.h}.
2992@end ifset
2993
2994If you use a symbol without defining it, @code{@value{AS}} assumes zero for
2995all these attributes, and probably won't warn you. This makes the
2996symbol an externally defined symbol, which is generally what you
2997would want.
2998
2999@menu
3000* Symbol Value:: Value
3001* Symbol Type:: Type
3002@ifset aout-bout
3003@ifset GENERIC
3004* a.out Symbols:: Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}
3005@end ifset
3006@ifclear GENERIC
3007@ifclear BOUT
3008* a.out Symbols:: Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}
3009@end ifclear
3010@ifset BOUT
3011* a.out Symbols:: Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}, @code{b.out}
3012@end ifset
3013@end ifclear
3014@end ifset
3015@ifset COFF
3016* COFF Symbols:: Symbol Attributes for COFF
3017@end ifset
3018@ifset SOM
3019* SOM Symbols:: Symbol Attributes for SOM
3020@end ifset
3021@end menu
3022
3023@node Symbol Value
3024@subsection Value
3025
3026@cindex value of a symbol
3027@cindex symbol value
3028The value of a symbol is (usually) 32 bits. For a symbol which labels a
3029location in the text, data, bss or absolute sections the value is the
3030number of addresses from the start of that section to the label.
3031Naturally for text, data and bss sections the value of a symbol changes
3032as @code{@value{LD}} changes section base addresses during linking. Absolute
3033symbols' values do not change during linking: that is why they are
3034called absolute.
3035
3036The value of an undefined symbol is treated in a special way. If it is
30370 then the symbol is not defined in this assembler source file, and
3038@code{@value{LD}} tries to determine its value from other files linked into the
3039same program. You make this kind of symbol simply by mentioning a symbol
3040name without defining it. A non-zero value represents a @code{.comm}
3041common declaration. The value is how much common storage to reserve, in
3042bytes (addresses). The symbol refers to the first address of the
3043allocated storage.
3044
3045@node Symbol Type
3046@subsection Type
3047
3048@cindex type of a symbol
3049@cindex symbol type
3050The type attribute of a symbol contains relocation (section)
3051information, any flag settings indicating that a symbol is external, and
3052(optionally), other information for linkers and debuggers. The exact
3053format depends on the object-code output format in use.
3054
3055@ifset aout-bout
3056@ifclear GENERIC
3057@ifset BOUT
3058@c The following avoids a "widow" subsection title. @group would be
3059@c better if it were available outside examples.
3060@need 1000
3061@node a.out Symbols
3062@subsection Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}, @code{b.out}
3063
3064@cindex @code{b.out} symbol attributes
3065@cindex symbol attributes, @code{b.out}
3066These symbol attributes appear only when @code{@value{AS}} is configured for
3067one of the Berkeley-descended object output formats---@code{a.out} or
3068@code{b.out}.
3069
3070@end ifset
3071@ifclear BOUT
3072@node a.out Symbols
3073@subsection Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}
3074
3075@cindex @code{a.out} symbol attributes
3076@cindex symbol attributes, @code{a.out}
3077
3078@end ifclear
3079@end ifclear
3080@ifset GENERIC
3081@node a.out Symbols
3082@subsection Symbol Attributes: @code{a.out}
3083
3084@cindex @code{a.out} symbol attributes
3085@cindex symbol attributes, @code{a.out}
3086
3087@end ifset
3088@menu
3089* Symbol Desc:: Descriptor
3090* Symbol Other:: Other
3091@end menu
3092
3093@node Symbol Desc
3094@subsubsection Descriptor
3095
3096@cindex descriptor, of @code{a.out} symbol
3097This is an arbitrary 16-bit value. You may establish a symbol's
3098descriptor value by using a @code{.desc} statement
3099(@pxref{Desc,,@code{.desc}}). A descriptor value means nothing to
3100@code{@value{AS}}.
3101
3102@node Symbol Other
3103@subsubsection Other
3104
3105@cindex other attribute, of @code{a.out} symbol
3106This is an arbitrary 8-bit value. It means nothing to @code{@value{AS}}.
3107@end ifset
3108
3109@ifset COFF
3110@node COFF Symbols
3111@subsection Symbol Attributes for COFF
3112
3113@cindex COFF symbol attributes
3114@cindex symbol attributes, COFF
3115
3116The COFF format supports a multitude of auxiliary symbol attributes;
3117like the primary symbol attributes, they are set between @code{.def} and
3118@code{.endef} directives.
3119
3120@subsubsection Primary Attributes
3121
3122@cindex primary attributes, COFF symbols
3123The symbol name is set with @code{.def}; the value and type,
3124respectively, with @code{.val} and @code{.type}.
3125
3126@subsubsection Auxiliary Attributes
3127
3128@cindex auxiliary attributes, COFF symbols
3129The @code{@value{AS}} directives @code{.dim}, @code{.line}, @code{.scl},
3130@code{.size}, and @code{.tag} can generate auxiliary symbol table
3131information for COFF.
3132@end ifset
3133
3134@ifset SOM
3135@node SOM Symbols
3136@subsection Symbol Attributes for SOM
3137
3138@cindex SOM symbol attributes
3139@cindex symbol attributes, SOM
3140
3141The SOM format for the HPPA supports a multitude of symbol attributes set with
3142the @code{.EXPORT} and @code{.IMPORT} directives.
3143
3144The attributes are described in @cite{HP9000 Series 800 Assembly
3145Language Reference Manual} (HP 92432-90001) under the @code{IMPORT} and
3146@code{EXPORT} assembler directive documentation.
3147@end ifset
3148
3149@node Expressions
3150@chapter Expressions
3151
3152@cindex expressions
3153@cindex addresses
3154@cindex numeric values
3155An @dfn{expression} specifies an address or numeric value.
3156Whitespace may precede and/or follow an expression.
3157
3158The result of an expression must be an absolute number, or else an offset into
3159a particular section. If an expression is not absolute, and there is not
3160enough information when @code{@value{AS}} sees the expression to know its
3161section, a second pass over the source program might be necessary to interpret
3162the expression---but the second pass is currently not implemented.
3163@code{@value{AS}} aborts with an error message in this situation.
3164
3165@menu
3166* Empty Exprs:: Empty Expressions
3167* Integer Exprs:: Integer Expressions
3168@end menu
3169
3170@node Empty Exprs
3171@section Empty Expressions
3172
3173@cindex empty expressions
3174@cindex expressions, empty
3175An empty expression has no value: it is just whitespace or null.
3176Wherever an absolute expression is required, you may omit the
3177expression, and @code{@value{AS}} assumes a value of (absolute) 0. This
3178is compatible with other assemblers.
3179
3180@node Integer Exprs
3181@section Integer Expressions
3182
3183@cindex integer expressions
3184@cindex expressions, integer
3185An @dfn{integer expression} is one or more @emph{arguments} delimited
3186by @emph{operators}.
3187
3188@menu
3189* Arguments:: Arguments
3190* Operators:: Operators
3191* Prefix Ops:: Prefix Operators
3192* Infix Ops:: Infix Operators
3193@end menu
3194
3195@node Arguments
3196@subsection Arguments
3197
3198@cindex expression arguments
3199@cindex arguments in expressions
3200@cindex operands in expressions
3201@cindex arithmetic operands
3202@dfn{Arguments} are symbols, numbers or subexpressions. In other
3203contexts arguments are sometimes called ``arithmetic operands''. In
3204this manual, to avoid confusing them with the ``instruction operands'' of
3205the machine language, we use the term ``argument'' to refer to parts of
3206expressions only, reserving the word ``operand'' to refer only to machine
3207instruction operands.
3208
3209Symbols are evaluated to yield @{@var{section} @var{NNN}@} where
3210@var{section} is one of text, data, bss, absolute,
3211or undefined. @var{NNN} is a signed, 2's complement 32 bit
3212integer.
3213
3214Numbers are usually integers.
3215
3216A number can be a flonum or bignum. In this case, you are warned
3217that only the low order 32 bits are used, and @code{@value{AS}} pretends
3218these 32 bits are an integer. You may write integer-manipulating
3219instructions that act on exotic constants, compatible with other
3220assemblers.
3221
3222@cindex subexpressions
3223Subexpressions are a left parenthesis @samp{(} followed by an integer
3224expression, followed by a right parenthesis @samp{)}; or a prefix
3225operator followed by an argument.
3226
3227@node Operators
3228@subsection Operators
3229
3230@cindex operators, in expressions
3231@cindex arithmetic functions
3232@cindex functions, in expressions
3233@dfn{Operators} are arithmetic functions, like @code{+} or @code{%}. Prefix
3234operators are followed by an argument. Infix operators appear
3235between their arguments. Operators may be preceded and/or followed by
3236whitespace.
3237
3238@node Prefix Ops
3239@subsection Prefix Operator
3240
3241@cindex prefix operators
3242@code{@value{AS}} has the following @dfn{prefix operators}. They each take
3243one argument, which must be absolute.
3244
3245@c the tex/end tex stuff surrounding this small table is meant to make
3246@c it align, on the printed page, with the similar table in the next
3247@c section (which is inside an enumerate).
3248@tex
3249\global\advance\leftskip by \itemindent
3250@end tex
3251
3252@table @code
3253@item -
3254@dfn{Negation}. Two's complement negation.
3255@item ~
3256@dfn{Complementation}. Bitwise not.
3257@end table
3258
3259@tex
3260\global\advance\leftskip by -\itemindent
3261@end tex
3262
3263@node Infix Ops
3264@subsection Infix Operators
3265
3266@cindex infix operators
3267@cindex operators, permitted arguments
3268@dfn{Infix operators} take two arguments, one on either side. Operators
3269have precedence, but operations with equal precedence are performed left
3270to right. Apart from @code{+} or @code{-}, both arguments must be
3271absolute, and the result is absolute.
3272
3273@enumerate
3274@cindex operator precedence
3275@cindex precedence of operators
3276
3277@item
3278Highest Precedence
3279
3280@table @code
3281@item *
3282@dfn{Multiplication}.
3283
3284@item /
3285@dfn{Division}. Truncation is the same as the C operator @samp{/}
3286
3287@item %
3288@dfn{Remainder}.
3289
3290@item <
3291@itemx <<
3292@dfn{Shift Left}. Same as the C operator @samp{<<}.
3293
3294@item >
3295@itemx >>
3296@dfn{Shift Right}. Same as the C operator @samp{>>}.
3297@end table
3298
3299@item
3300Intermediate precedence
3301
3302@table @code
3303@item |
3304
3305@dfn{Bitwise Inclusive Or}.
3306
3307@item &
3308@dfn{Bitwise And}.
3309
3310@item ^
3311@dfn{Bitwise Exclusive Or}.
3312
3313@item !
3314@dfn{Bitwise Or Not}.
3315@end table
3316
3317@item
b131d4dc 3318Low Precedence
252b5132
RH
3319
3320@table @code
3321@cindex addition, permitted arguments
3322@cindex plus, permitted arguments
3323@cindex arguments for addition
3324@item +
3325@dfn{Addition}. If either argument is absolute, the result has the section of
3326the other argument. You may not add together arguments from different
3327sections.
3328
3329@cindex subtraction, permitted arguments
3330@cindex minus, permitted arguments
3331@cindex arguments for subtraction
3332@item -
3333@dfn{Subtraction}. If the right argument is absolute, the
3334result has the section of the left argument.
3335If both arguments are in the same section, the result is absolute.
3336You may not subtract arguments from different sections.
3337@c FIXME is there still something useful to say about undefined - undefined ?
b131d4dc
NC
3338
3339@cindex comparison expressions
3340@cindex expressions, comparison
3341@item ==
3342@dfn{Is Equal To}
3343@item <>
3344@dfn{Is Not Equal To}
3345@item <
3346@dfn{Is Less Than}
3347@itemx >
3348@dfn{Is Greater Than}
3349@itemx >=
3350@dfn{Is Greater Than Or Equal To}
3351@itemx <=
3352@dfn{Is Less Than Or Equal To}
3353
3354The comparison operators can be used as infix operators. A true results has a
3355value of -1 whereas a false result has a value of 0. Note, these operators
3356perform signed comparisons.
3357@end table
3358
3359@item Lowest Precedence
3360
3361@table @code
3362@item &&
3363@dfn{Logical And}.
3364
3365@item ||
3366@dfn{Logical Or}.
3367
3368These two logical operations can be used to combine the results of sub
3369expressions. Note, unlike the comparison operators a true result returns a
3370value of 1 but a false results does still return 0. Also note that the logical
3371or operator has a slightly lower precedence than logical and.
3372
252b5132
RH
3373@end table
3374@end enumerate
3375
3376In short, it's only meaningful to add or subtract the @emph{offsets} in an
3377address; you can only have a defined section in one of the two arguments.
3378
3379@node Pseudo Ops
3380@chapter Assembler Directives
3381
3382@cindex directives, machine independent
3383@cindex pseudo-ops, machine independent
3384@cindex machine independent directives
3385All assembler directives have names that begin with a period (@samp{.}).
3386The rest of the name is letters, usually in lower case.
3387
3388This chapter discusses directives that are available regardless of the
3389target machine configuration for the @sc{gnu} assembler.
3390@ifset GENERIC
3391Some machine configurations provide additional directives.
3392@xref{Machine Dependencies}.
3393@end ifset
3394@ifclear GENERIC
3395@ifset machine-directives
3396@xref{Machine Dependencies} for additional directives.
3397@end ifset
3398@end ifclear
3399
3400@menu
3401* Abort:: @code{.abort}
3402@ifset COFF
3403* ABORT:: @code{.ABORT}
3404@end ifset
f0dc282c 3405
252b5132
RH
3406* Align:: @code{.align @var{abs-expr} , @var{abs-expr}}
3407* Ascii:: @code{.ascii "@var{string}"}@dots{}
3408* Asciz:: @code{.asciz "@var{string}"}@dots{}
3409* Balign:: @code{.balign @var{abs-expr} , @var{abs-expr}}
3410* Byte:: @code{.byte @var{expressions}}
3411* Comm:: @code{.comm @var{symbol} , @var{length} }
3412* Data:: @code{.data @var{subsection}}
3413@ifset COFF
3414* Def:: @code{.def @var{name}}
3415@end ifset
3416@ifset aout-bout
3417* Desc:: @code{.desc @var{symbol}, @var{abs-expression}}
3418@end ifset
3419@ifset COFF
3420* Dim:: @code{.dim}
3421@end ifset
f0dc282c 3422
252b5132
RH
3423* Double:: @code{.double @var{flonums}}
3424* Eject:: @code{.eject}
3425* Else:: @code{.else}
3fd9f047 3426* Elseif:: @code{.elseif}
252b5132
RH
3427* End:: @code{.end}
3428@ifset COFF
3429* Endef:: @code{.endef}
3430@end ifset
f0dc282c 3431
252b5132
RH
3432* Endfunc:: @code{.endfunc}
3433* Endif:: @code{.endif}
3434* Equ:: @code{.equ @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3435* Equiv:: @code{.equiv @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3436* Err:: @code{.err}
3437* Exitm:: @code{.exitm}
3438* Extern:: @code{.extern}
3439* Fail:: @code{.fail}
3440@ifclear no-file-dir
3441* File:: @code{.file @var{string}}
3442@end ifclear
f0dc282c 3443
252b5132
RH
3444* Fill:: @code{.fill @var{repeat} , @var{size} , @var{value}}
3445* Float:: @code{.float @var{flonums}}
3446* Func:: @code{.func}
3447* Global:: @code{.global @var{symbol}}, @code{.globl @var{symbol}}
c91d2e08
NC
3448@ifset ELF
3449* Hidden:: @code{.hidden @var{names}}
3450@end ifset
f0dc282c 3451
252b5132
RH
3452* hword:: @code{.hword @var{expressions}}
3453* Ident:: @code{.ident}
3454* If:: @code{.if @var{absolute expression}}
7e005732 3455* Incbin:: @code{.incbin "@var{file}"[,@var{skip}[,@var{count}]]}
252b5132
RH
3456* Include:: @code{.include "@var{file}"}
3457* Int:: @code{.int @var{expressions}}
c91d2e08
NC
3458@ifset ELF
3459* Internal:: @code{.internal @var{names}}
3460@end ifset
f0dc282c 3461
252b5132
RH
3462* Irp:: @code{.irp @var{symbol},@var{values}}@dots{}
3463* Irpc:: @code{.irpc @var{symbol},@var{values}}@dots{}
3464* Lcomm:: @code{.lcomm @var{symbol} , @var{length}}
3465* Lflags:: @code{.lflags}
3466@ifclear no-line-dir
3467* Line:: @code{.line @var{line-number}}
3468@end ifclear
f0dc282c 3469
252b5132
RH
3470* Ln:: @code{.ln @var{line-number}}
3471* Linkonce:: @code{.linkonce [@var{type}]}
3472* List:: @code{.list}
3473* Long:: @code{.long @var{expressions}}
3474@ignore
3475* Lsym:: @code{.lsym @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3476@end ignore
f0dc282c 3477
252b5132
RH
3478* Macro:: @code{.macro @var{name} @var{args}}@dots{}
3479* MRI:: @code{.mri @var{val}}
252b5132
RH
3480* Nolist:: @code{.nolist}
3481* Octa:: @code{.octa @var{bignums}}
3482* Org:: @code{.org @var{new-lc} , @var{fill}}
3483* P2align:: @code{.p2align @var{abs-expr} , @var{abs-expr}}
c91d2e08
NC
3484@ifset ELF
3485* PopSection:: @code{.popsection}
3486* Previous:: @code{.previous}
3487@end ifset
f0dc282c 3488
252b5132 3489* Print:: @code{.print @var{string}}
c91d2e08
NC
3490@ifset ELF
3491* Protected:: @code{.protected @var{names}}
3492@end ifset
f0dc282c 3493
252b5132
RH
3494* Psize:: @code{.psize @var{lines}, @var{columns}}
3495* Purgem:: @code{.purgem @var{name}}
c91d2e08
NC
3496@ifset ELF
3497* PushSection:: @code{.pushsection @var{name}}
3498@end ifset
f0dc282c 3499
252b5132
RH
3500* Quad:: @code{.quad @var{bignums}}
3501* Rept:: @code{.rept @var{count}}
3502* Sbttl:: @code{.sbttl "@var{subheading}"}
3503@ifset COFF
3504* Scl:: @code{.scl @var{class}}
3505* Section:: @code{.section @var{name}, @var{subsection}}
3506@end ifset
f0dc282c 3507
252b5132
RH
3508* Set:: @code{.set @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3509* Short:: @code{.short @var{expressions}}
3510* Single:: @code{.single @var{flonums}}
c91d2e08 3511* Size:: @code{.size [@var{name} , @var{expression}]}
252b5132
RH
3512* Skip:: @code{.skip @var{size} , @var{fill}}
3513* Sleb128:: @code{.sleb128 @var{expressions}}
3514* Space:: @code{.space @var{size} , @var{fill}}
3515@ifset have-stabs
3516* Stab:: @code{.stabd, .stabn, .stabs}
3517@end ifset
f0dc282c 3518
252b5132
RH
3519* String:: @code{.string "@var{str}"}
3520* Struct:: @code{.struct @var{expression}}
3521@ifset ELF
c91d2e08 3522* SubSection:: @code{.subsection}
252b5132
RH
3523* Symver:: @code{.symver @var{name},@var{name2@@nodename}}
3524@end ifset
f0dc282c 3525
252b5132
RH
3526@ifset COFF
3527* Tag:: @code{.tag @var{structname}}
3528@end ifset
f0dc282c 3529
252b5132
RH
3530* Text:: @code{.text @var{subsection}}
3531* Title:: @code{.title "@var{heading}"}
c91d2e08
NC
3532* Type:: @code{.type <@var{int} | @var{name} , @var{type description}>}
3533* Uleb128:: @code{.uleb128 @var{expressions}}
252b5132 3534@ifset COFF
252b5132
RH
3535* Val:: @code{.val @var{addr}}
3536@end ifset
f0dc282c 3537
2e13b764 3538@ifset ELF
c91d2e08 3539* Version:: @code{.version "@var{string}"}
c91d2e08
NC
3540* VTableEntry:: @code{.vtable_entry @var{table}, @var{offset}}
3541* VTableInherit:: @code{.vtable_inherit @var{child}, @var{parent}}
c91d2e08 3542* Weak:: @code{.weak @var{names}}
2e13b764 3543@end ifset
f0dc282c 3544
252b5132
RH
3545* Word:: @code{.word @var{expressions}}
3546* Deprecated:: Deprecated Directives
3547@end menu
3548
3549@node Abort
3550@section @code{.abort}
3551
3552@cindex @code{abort} directive
3553@cindex stopping the assembly
3554This directive stops the assembly immediately. It is for
3555compatibility with other assemblers. The original idea was that the
3556assembly language source would be piped into the assembler. If the sender
3557of the source quit, it could use this directive tells @code{@value{AS}} to
3558quit also. One day @code{.abort} will not be supported.
3559
3560@ifset COFF
3561@node ABORT
3562@section @code{.ABORT}
3563
3564@cindex @code{ABORT} directive
3565When producing COFF output, @code{@value{AS}} accepts this directive as a
3566synonym for @samp{.abort}.
3567
3568@ifset BOUT
3569When producing @code{b.out} output, @code{@value{AS}} accepts this directive,
3570but ignores it.
3571@end ifset
3572@end ifset
3573
3574@node Align
3575@section @code{.align @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}}
3576
3577@cindex padding the location counter
3578@cindex @code{align} directive
3579Pad the location counter (in the current subsection) to a particular storage
3580boundary. The first expression (which must be absolute) is the alignment
3581required, as described below.
3582
3583The second expression (also absolute) gives the fill value to be stored in the
3584padding bytes. It (and the comma) may be omitted. If it is omitted, the
3585padding bytes are normally zero. However, on some systems, if the section is
3586marked as containing code and the fill value is omitted, the space is filled
3587with no-op instructions.
3588
3589The third expression is also absolute, and is also optional. If it is present,
3590it is the maximum number of bytes that should be skipped by this alignment
3591directive. If doing the alignment would require skipping more bytes than the
3592specified maximum, then the alignment is not done at all. You can omit the
3593fill value (the second argument) entirely by simply using two commas after the
3594required alignment; this can be useful if you want the alignment to be filled
3595with no-op instructions when appropriate.
3596
3597The way the required alignment is specified varies from system to system.
3598For the a29k, hppa, m68k, m88k, w65, sparc, and Hitachi SH, and i386 using ELF
3599format,
3600the first expression is the
3601alignment request in bytes. For example @samp{.align 8} advances
3602the location counter until it is a multiple of 8. If the location counter
3603is already a multiple of 8, no change is needed.
3604
adcf07e6
NC
3605For other systems, including the i386 using a.out format, and the arm and
3606strongarm, it is the
252b5132
RH
3607number of low-order zero bits the location counter must have after
3608advancement. For example @samp{.align 3} advances the location
3609counter until it a multiple of 8. If the location counter is already a
3610multiple of 8, no change is needed.
3611
3612This inconsistency is due to the different behaviors of the various
3613native assemblers for these systems which GAS must emulate.
3614GAS also provides @code{.balign} and @code{.p2align} directives,
3615described later, which have a consistent behavior across all
3616architectures (but are specific to GAS).
3617
3618@node Ascii
3619@section @code{.ascii "@var{string}"}@dots{}
3620
3621@cindex @code{ascii} directive
3622@cindex string literals
3623@code{.ascii} expects zero or more string literals (@pxref{Strings})
3624separated by commas. It assembles each string (with no automatic
3625trailing zero byte) into consecutive addresses.
3626
3627@node Asciz
3628@section @code{.asciz "@var{string}"}@dots{}
3629
3630@cindex @code{asciz} directive
3631@cindex zero-terminated strings
3632@cindex null-terminated strings
3633@code{.asciz} is just like @code{.ascii}, but each string is followed by
3634a zero byte. The ``z'' in @samp{.asciz} stands for ``zero''.
3635
3636@node Balign
3637@section @code{.balign[wl] @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}}
3638
3639@cindex padding the location counter given number of bytes
3640@cindex @code{balign} directive
3641Pad the location counter (in the current subsection) to a particular
3642storage boundary. The first expression (which must be absolute) is the
3643alignment request in bytes. For example @samp{.balign 8} advances
3644the location counter until it is a multiple of 8. If the location counter
3645is already a multiple of 8, no change is needed.
3646
3647The second expression (also absolute) gives the fill value to be stored in the
3648padding bytes. It (and the comma) may be omitted. If it is omitted, the
3649padding bytes are normally zero. However, on some systems, if the section is
3650marked as containing code and the fill value is omitted, the space is filled
3651with no-op instructions.
3652
3653The third expression is also absolute, and is also optional. If it is present,
3654it is the maximum number of bytes that should be skipped by this alignment
3655directive. If doing the alignment would require skipping more bytes than the
3656specified maximum, then the alignment is not done at all. You can omit the
3657fill value (the second argument) entirely by simply using two commas after the
3658required alignment; this can be useful if you want the alignment to be filled
3659with no-op instructions when appropriate.
3660
3661@cindex @code{balignw} directive
3662@cindex @code{balignl} directive
3663The @code{.balignw} and @code{.balignl} directives are variants of the
3664@code{.balign} directive. The @code{.balignw} directive treats the fill
3665pattern as a two byte word value. The @code{.balignl} directives treats the
3666fill pattern as a four byte longword value. For example, @code{.balignw
36674,0x368d} will align to a multiple of 4. If it skips two bytes, they will be
3668filled in with the value 0x368d (the exact placement of the bytes depends upon
3669the endianness of the processor). If it skips 1 or 3 bytes, the fill value is
3670undefined.
3671
3672@node Byte
3673@section @code{.byte @var{expressions}}
3674
3675@cindex @code{byte} directive
3676@cindex integers, one byte
3677@code{.byte} expects zero or more expressions, separated by commas.
3678Each expression is assembled into the next byte.
3679
3680@node Comm
3681@section @code{.comm @var{symbol} , @var{length} }
3682
3683@cindex @code{comm} directive
3684@cindex symbol, common
3685@code{.comm} declares a common symbol named @var{symbol}. When linking, a
3686common symbol in one object file may be merged with a defined or common symbol
3687of the same name in another object file. If @code{@value{LD}} does not see a
3688definition for the symbol--just one or more common symbols--then it will
3689allocate @var{length} bytes of uninitialized memory. @var{length} must be an
3690absolute expression. If @code{@value{LD}} sees multiple common symbols with
3691the same name, and they do not all have the same size, it will allocate space
3692using the largest size.
3693
3694@ifset ELF
3695When using ELF, the @code{.comm} directive takes an optional third argument.
3696This is the desired alignment of the symbol, specified as a byte boundary (for
3697example, an alignment of 16 means that the least significant 4 bits of the
3698address should be zero). The alignment must be an absolute expression, and it
3699must be a power of two. If @code{@value{LD}} allocates uninitialized memory
3700for the common symbol, it will use the alignment when placing the symbol. If
3701no alignment is specified, @code{@value{AS}} will set the alignment to the
3702largest power of two less than or equal to the size of the symbol, up to a
3703maximum of 16.
3704@end ifset
3705
3706@ifset HPPA
3707The syntax for @code{.comm} differs slightly on the HPPA. The syntax is
3708@samp{@var{symbol} .comm, @var{length}}; @var{symbol} is optional.
3709@end ifset
3710
3711@node Data
3712@section @code{.data @var{subsection}}
3713
3714@cindex @code{data} directive
3715@code{.data} tells @code{@value{AS}} to assemble the following statements onto the
3716end of the data subsection numbered @var{subsection} (which is an
3717absolute expression). If @var{subsection} is omitted, it defaults
3718to zero.
3719
3720@ifset COFF
3721@node Def
3722@section @code{.def @var{name}}
3723
3724@cindex @code{def} directive
3725@cindex COFF symbols, debugging
3726@cindex debugging COFF symbols
3727Begin defining debugging information for a symbol @var{name}; the
3728definition extends until the @code{.endef} directive is encountered.
3729@ifset BOUT
3730
3731This directive is only observed when @code{@value{AS}} is configured for COFF
3732format output; when producing @code{b.out}, @samp{.def} is recognized,
3733but ignored.
3734@end ifset
3735@end ifset
3736
3737@ifset aout-bout
3738@node Desc
3739@section @code{.desc @var{symbol}, @var{abs-expression}}
3740
3741@cindex @code{desc} directive
3742@cindex COFF symbol descriptor
3743@cindex symbol descriptor, COFF
3744This directive sets the descriptor of the symbol (@pxref{Symbol Attributes})
3745to the low 16 bits of an absolute expression.
3746
3747@ifset COFF
3748The @samp{.desc} directive is not available when @code{@value{AS}} is
3749configured for COFF output; it is only for @code{a.out} or @code{b.out}
3750object format. For the sake of compatibility, @code{@value{AS}} accepts
3751it, but produces no output, when configured for COFF.
3752@end ifset
3753@end ifset
3754
3755@ifset COFF
3756@node Dim
3757@section @code{.dim}
3758
3759@cindex @code{dim} directive
3760@cindex COFF auxiliary symbol information
3761@cindex auxiliary symbol information, COFF
3762This directive is generated by compilers to include auxiliary debugging
3763information in the symbol table. It is only permitted inside
3764@code{.def}/@code{.endef} pairs.
3765@ifset BOUT
3766
3767@samp{.dim} is only meaningful when generating COFF format output; when
3768@code{@value{AS}} is generating @code{b.out}, it accepts this directive but
3769ignores it.
3770@end ifset
3771@end ifset
3772
3773@node Double
3774@section @code{.double @var{flonums}}
3775
3776@cindex @code{double} directive
3777@cindex floating point numbers (double)
3778@code{.double} expects zero or more flonums, separated by commas. It
3779assembles floating point numbers.
3780@ifset GENERIC
3781The exact kind of floating point numbers emitted depends on how
3782@code{@value{AS}} is configured. @xref{Machine Dependencies}.
3783@end ifset
3784@ifclear GENERIC
3785@ifset IEEEFLOAT
3786On the @value{TARGET} family @samp{.double} emits 64-bit floating-point numbers
3787in @sc{ieee} format.
3788@end ifset
3789@end ifclear
3790
3791@node Eject
3792@section @code{.eject}
3793
3794@cindex @code{eject} directive
3795@cindex new page, in listings
3796@cindex page, in listings
3797@cindex listing control: new page
3798Force a page break at this point, when generating assembly listings.
3799
3800@node Else
3801@section @code{.else}
3802
3803@cindex @code{else} directive
3804@code{.else} is part of the @code{@value{AS}} support for conditional
3805assembly; @pxref{If,,@code{.if}}. It marks the beginning of a section
3806of code to be assembled if the condition for the preceding @code{.if}
3807was false.
3808
3fd9f047
TW
3809@node Elseif
3810@section @code{.elseif}
3811
3812@cindex @code{elseif} directive
3813@code{.elseif} is part of the @code{@value{AS}} support for conditional
3814assembly; @pxref{If,,@code{.if}}. It is shorthand for beginning a new
3815@code{.if} block that would otherwise fill the entire @code{.else} section.
3816
252b5132
RH
3817@node End
3818@section @code{.end}
3819
3820@cindex @code{end} directive
3821@code{.end} marks the end of the assembly file. @code{@value{AS}} does not
3822process anything in the file past the @code{.end} directive.
3823
3824@ifset COFF
3825@node Endef
3826@section @code{.endef}
3827
3828@cindex @code{endef} directive
3829This directive flags the end of a symbol definition begun with
3830@code{.def}.
3831@ifset BOUT
3832
3833@samp{.endef} is only meaningful when generating COFF format output; if
3834@code{@value{AS}} is configured to generate @code{b.out}, it accepts this
3835directive but ignores it.
3836@end ifset
3837@end ifset
3838
3839@node Endfunc
3840@section @code{.endfunc}
3841@cindex @code{endfunc} directive
3842@code{.endfunc} marks the end of a function specified with @code{.func}.
3843
3844@node Endif
3845@section @code{.endif}
3846
3847@cindex @code{endif} directive
3848@code{.endif} is part of the @code{@value{AS}} support for conditional assembly;
3849it marks the end of a block of code that is only assembled
3850conditionally. @xref{If,,@code{.if}}.
3851
3852@node Equ
3853@section @code{.equ @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3854
3855@cindex @code{equ} directive
3856@cindex assigning values to symbols
3857@cindex symbols, assigning values to
3858This directive sets the value of @var{symbol} to @var{expression}.
3859It is synonymous with @samp{.set}; @pxref{Set,,@code{.set}}.
3860
3861@ifset HPPA
3862The syntax for @code{equ} on the HPPA is
3863@samp{@var{symbol} .equ @var{expression}}.
3864@end ifset
3865
3866@node Equiv
3867@section @code{.equiv @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
3868@cindex @code{equiv} directive
3869The @code{.equiv} directive is like @code{.equ} and @code{.set}, except that
3870the assembler will signal an error if @var{symbol} is already defined.
3871
3872Except for the contents of the error message, this is roughly equivalent to
3873@smallexample
3874.ifdef SYM
3875.err
3876.endif
3877.equ SYM,VAL
3878@end smallexample
3879
3880@node Err
3881@section @code{.err}
3882@cindex @code{err} directive
3883If @code{@value{AS}} assembles a @code{.err} directive, it will print an error
3884message and, unless the @code{-Z} option was used, it will not generate an
3885object file. This can be used to signal error an conditionally compiled code.
3886
3887@node Exitm
3888@section @code{.exitm}
3889Exit early from the current macro definition. @xref{Macro}.
3890
3891@node Extern
3892@section @code{.extern}
3893
3894@cindex @code{extern} directive
3895@code{.extern} is accepted in the source program---for compatibility
3896with other assemblers---but it is ignored. @code{@value{AS}} treats
3897all undefined symbols as external.
3898
3899@node Fail
3900@section @code{.fail @var{expression}}
3901
3902@cindex @code{fail} directive
3903Generates an error or a warning. If the value of the @var{expression} is 500
3904or more, @code{@value{AS}} will print a warning message. If the value is less
3905than 500, @code{@value{AS}} will print an error message. The message will
3906include the value of @var{expression}. This can occasionally be useful inside
3907complex nested macros or conditional assembly.
3908
3909@ifclear no-file-dir
3910@node File
3911@section @code{.file @var{string}}
3912
3913@cindex @code{file} directive
3914@cindex logical file name
3915@cindex file name, logical
3916@code{.file} tells @code{@value{AS}} that we are about to start a new logical
3917file. @var{string} is the new file name. In general, the filename is
3918recognized whether or not it is surrounded by quotes @samp{"}; but if you wish
3919to specify an empty file name, you must give the quotes--@code{""}. This
3920statement may go away in future: it is only recognized to be compatible with
3921old @code{@value{AS}} programs.
3922@ifset A29K
3923In some configurations of @code{@value{AS}}, @code{.file} has already been
3924removed to avoid conflicts with other assemblers. @xref{Machine Dependencies}.
3925@end ifset
3926@end ifclear
3927
3928@node Fill
3929@section @code{.fill @var{repeat} , @var{size} , @var{value}}
3930
3931@cindex @code{fill} directive
3932@cindex writing patterns in memory
3933@cindex patterns, writing in memory
bc64be0c 3934@var{repeat}, @var{size} and @var{value} are absolute expressions.
252b5132
RH
3935This emits @var{repeat} copies of @var{size} bytes. @var{Repeat}
3936may be zero or more. @var{Size} may be zero or more, but if it is
3937more than 8, then it is deemed to have the value 8, compatible with
3938other people's assemblers. The contents of each @var{repeat} bytes
3939is taken from an 8-byte number. The highest order 4 bytes are
3940zero. The lowest order 4 bytes are @var{value} rendered in the
3941byte-order of an integer on the computer @code{@value{AS}} is assembling for.
3942Each @var{size} bytes in a repetition is taken from the lowest order
3943@var{size} bytes of this number. Again, this bizarre behavior is
3944compatible with other people's assemblers.
3945
3946@var{size} and @var{value} are optional.
3947If the second comma and @var{value} are absent, @var{value} is
3948assumed zero. If the first comma and following tokens are absent,
3949@var{size} is assumed to be 1.
3950
3951@node Float
3952@section @code{.float @var{flonums}}
3953
3954@cindex floating point numbers (single)
3955@cindex @code{float} directive
3956This directive assembles zero or more flonums, separated by commas. It
3957has the same effect as @code{.single}.
3958@ifset GENERIC
3959The exact kind of floating point numbers emitted depends on how
3960@code{@value{AS}} is configured.
3961@xref{Machine Dependencies}.
3962@end ifset
3963@ifclear GENERIC
3964@ifset IEEEFLOAT
3965On the @value{TARGET} family, @code{.float} emits 32-bit floating point numbers
3966in @sc{ieee} format.
3967@end ifset
3968@end ifclear
3969
3970@node Func
3971@section @code{.func @var{name}[,@var{label}]}
3972@cindex @code{func} directive
3973@code{.func} emits debugging information to denote function @var{name}, and
3974is ignored unless the file is assembled with debugging enabled.
3975Only @samp{--gstabs} is currently supported.
3976@var{label} is the entry point of the function and if omitted @var{name}
3977prepended with the @samp{leading char} is used.
3978@samp{leading char} is usually @code{_} or nothing, depending on the target.
3979All functions are currently defined to have @code{void} return type.
3980The function must be terminated with @code{.endfunc}.
3981
3982@node Global
3983@section @code{.global @var{symbol}}, @code{.globl @var{symbol}}
3984
3985@cindex @code{global} directive
3986@cindex symbol, making visible to linker
3987@code{.global} makes the symbol visible to @code{@value{LD}}. If you define
3988@var{symbol} in your partial program, its value is made available to
3989other partial programs that are linked with it. Otherwise,
3990@var{symbol} takes its attributes from a symbol of the same name
3991from another file linked into the same program.
3992
3993Both spellings (@samp{.globl} and @samp{.global}) are accepted, for
3994compatibility with other assemblers.
3995
3996@ifset HPPA
3997On the HPPA, @code{.global} is not always enough to make it accessible to other
3998partial programs. You may need the HPPA-only @code{.EXPORT} directive as well.
3999@xref{HPPA Directives,, HPPA Assembler Directives}.
4000@end ifset
4001
c91d2e08
NC
4002@ifset ELF
4003@node Hidden
4004@section @code{.hidden @var{names}}
4005
4006@cindex @code{.hidden} directive
4007@cindex Visibility
4008This one of the ELF visibility directives. The other two are
a349d9dd
PB
4009@code{.internal} (@pxref{Internal,,@code{.internal}}) and
4010@code{.protected} (@pxref{Protected,,@code{.protected}}).
c91d2e08
NC
4011
4012This directive overrides the named symbols default visibility (which is set by
4013their binding: local, global or weak). The directive sets the visibility to
4014@code{hidden} which means that the symbols are not visible to other components.
4015Such symbols are always considered to be @code{protected} as well.
4016@end ifset
4017
252b5132
RH
4018@node hword
4019@section @code{.hword @var{expressions}}
4020
4021@cindex @code{hword} directive
4022@cindex integers, 16-bit
4023@cindex numbers, 16-bit
4024@cindex sixteen bit integers
4025This expects zero or more @var{expressions}, and emits
4026a 16 bit number for each.
4027
4028@ifset GENERIC
4029This directive is a synonym for @samp{.short}; depending on the target
4030architecture, it may also be a synonym for @samp{.word}.
4031@end ifset
4032@ifclear GENERIC
4033@ifset W32
4034This directive is a synonym for @samp{.short}.
4035@end ifset
4036@ifset W16
4037This directive is a synonym for both @samp{.short} and @samp{.word}.
4038@end ifset
4039@end ifclear
4040
4041@node Ident
4042@section @code{.ident}
4043
4044@cindex @code{ident} directive
4045This directive is used by some assemblers to place tags in object files.
4046@code{@value{AS}} simply accepts the directive for source-file
4047compatibility with such assemblers, but does not actually emit anything
4048for it.
4049
4050@node If
4051@section @code{.if @var{absolute expression}}
4052
4053@cindex conditional assembly
4054@cindex @code{if} directive
4055@code{.if} marks the beginning of a section of code which is only
4056considered part of the source program being assembled if the argument
4057(which must be an @var{absolute expression}) is non-zero. The end of
4058the conditional section of code must be marked by @code{.endif}
4059(@pxref{Endif,,@code{.endif}}); optionally, you may include code for the
4060alternative condition, flagged by @code{.else} (@pxref{Else,,@code{.else}}).
3fd9f047
TW
4061If you have several conditions to check, @code{.elseif} may be used to avoid
4062nesting blocks if/else within each subsequent @code{.else} block.
252b5132
RH
4063
4064The following variants of @code{.if} are also supported:
4065@table @code
4066@cindex @code{ifdef} directive
4067@item .ifdef @var{symbol}
4068Assembles the following section of code if the specified @var{symbol}
4069has been defined.
4070
4071@cindex @code{ifc} directive
4072@item .ifc @var{string1},@var{string2}
4073Assembles the following section of code if the two strings are the same. The
4074strings may be optionally quoted with single quotes. If they are not quoted,
4075the first string stops at the first comma, and the second string stops at the
4076end of the line. Strings which contain whitespace should be quoted. The
4077string comparison is case sensitive.
4078
4079@cindex @code{ifeq} directive
4080@item .ifeq @var{absolute expression}
4081Assembles the following section of code if the argument is zero.
4082
4083@cindex @code{ifeqs} directive
4084@item .ifeqs @var{string1},@var{string2}
4085Another form of @code{.ifc}. The strings must be quoted using double quotes.
4086
4087@cindex @code{ifge} directive
4088@item .ifge @var{absolute expression}
4089Assembles the following section of code if the argument is greater than or
4090equal to zero.
4091
4092@cindex @code{ifgt} directive
4093@item .ifgt @var{absolute expression}
4094Assembles the following section of code if the argument is greater than zero.
4095
4096@cindex @code{ifle} directive
4097@item .ifle @var{absolute expression}
4098Assembles the following section of code if the argument is less than or equal
4099to zero.
4100
4101@cindex @code{iflt} directive
4102@item .iflt @var{absolute expression}
4103Assembles the following section of code if the argument is less than zero.
4104
4105@cindex @code{ifnc} directive
4106@item .ifnc @var{string1},@var{string2}.
4107Like @code{.ifc}, but the sense of the test is reversed: this assembles the
4108following section of code if the two strings are not the same.
4109
4110@cindex @code{ifndef} directive
4111@cindex @code{ifnotdef} directive
4112@item .ifndef @var{symbol}
4113@itemx .ifnotdef @var{symbol}
4114Assembles the following section of code if the specified @var{symbol}
4115has not been defined. Both spelling variants are equivalent.
4116
4117@cindex @code{ifne} directive
4118@item .ifne @var{absolute expression}
4119Assembles the following section of code if the argument is not equal to zero
4120(in other words, this is equivalent to @code{.if}).
4121
4122@cindex @code{ifnes} directive
4123@item .ifnes @var{string1},@var{string2}
4124Like @code{.ifeqs}, but the sense of the test is reversed: this assembles the
4125following section of code if the two strings are not the same.
4126@end table
4127
7e005732
NC
4128@node Incbin
4129@section @code{.incbin "@var{file}"[,@var{skip}[,@var{count}]]}
4130
4131@cindex @code{incbin} directive
4132@cindex binary files, including
4133The @code{incbin} directive includes @var{file} verbatim at the current
4134location. You can control the search paths used with the @samp{-I} command-line
4135option (@pxref{Invoking,,Command-Line Options}). Quotation marks are required
4136around @var{file}.
4137
4138The @var{skip} argument skips a number of bytes from the start of the
4139@var{file}. The @var{count} argument indicates the maximum number of bytes to
4140read. Note that the data from is not aligned in any way, make sure to proper
4141alignment is provided before and after the @code{incbin} directive.
4142
252b5132
RH
4143@node Include
4144@section @code{.include "@var{file}"}
4145
4146@cindex @code{include} directive
4147@cindex supporting files, including
4148@cindex files, including
4149This directive provides a way to include supporting files at specified
4150points in your source program. The code from @var{file} is assembled as
4151if it followed the point of the @code{.include}; when the end of the
4152included file is reached, assembly of the original file continues. You
4153can control the search paths used with the @samp{-I} command-line option
4154(@pxref{Invoking,,Command-Line Options}). Quotation marks are required
4155around @var{file}.
4156
4157@node Int
4158@section @code{.int @var{expressions}}
4159
4160@cindex @code{int} directive
4161@cindex integers, 32-bit
4162Expect zero or more @var{expressions}, of any section, separated by commas.
4163For each expression, emit a number that, at run time, is the value of that
4164expression. The byte order and bit size of the number depends on what kind
4165of target the assembly is for.
4166
4167@ifclear GENERIC
4168@ifset H8
4169On the H8/500 and most forms of the H8/300, @code{.int} emits 16-bit
4170integers. On the H8/300H and the Hitachi SH, however, @code{.int} emits
417132-bit integers.
4172@end ifset
4173@end ifclear
4174
c91d2e08
NC
4175@ifset ELF
4176@node Internal
4177@section @code{.internal @var{names}}
4178
4179@cindex @code{.internal} directive
4180@cindex Visibility
4181This one of the ELF visibility directives. The other two are
a349d9dd
PB
4182@code{.hidden} (@pxref{Hidden,,@code{.hidden}}) and
4183@code{.protected} (@pxref{Protected,,@code{.protected}}).
c91d2e08
NC
4184
4185This directive overrides the named symbols default visibility (which is set by
4186their binding: local, global or weak). The directive sets the visibility to
4187@code{internal} which means that the symbols are considered to be @code{hidden}
4188(ie not visible to other components), and that some extra, processor specific
4189processing must also be performed upon the symbols as well.
4190@end ifset
4191
252b5132
RH
4192@node Irp
4193@section @code{.irp @var{symbol},@var{values}}@dots{}
4194
4195@cindex @code{irp} directive
4196Evaluate a sequence of statements assigning different values to @var{symbol}.
4197The sequence of statements starts at the @code{.irp} directive, and is
4198terminated by an @code{.endr} directive. For each @var{value}, @var{symbol} is
4199set to @var{value}, and the sequence of statements is assembled. If no
4200@var{value} is listed, the sequence of statements is assembled once, with
4201@var{symbol} set to the null string. To refer to @var{symbol} within the
4202sequence of statements, use @var{\symbol}.
4203
4204For example, assembling
4205
4206@example
4207 .irp param,1,2,3
4208 move d\param,sp@@-
4209 .endr
4210@end example
4211
4212is equivalent to assembling
4213
4214@example
4215 move d1,sp@@-
4216 move d2,sp@@-
4217 move d3,sp@@-
4218@end example
4219
4220@node Irpc
4221@section @code{.irpc @var{symbol},@var{values}}@dots{}
4222
4223@cindex @code{irpc} directive
4224Evaluate a sequence of statements assigning different values to @var{symbol}.
4225The sequence of statements starts at the @code{.irpc} directive, and is
4226terminated by an @code{.endr} directive. For each character in @var{value},
4227@var{symbol} is set to the character, and the sequence of statements is
4228assembled. If no @var{value} is listed, the sequence of statements is
4229assembled once, with @var{symbol} set to the null string. To refer to
4230@var{symbol} within the sequence of statements, use @var{\symbol}.
4231
4232For example, assembling
4233
4234@example
4235 .irpc param,123
4236 move d\param,sp@@-
4237 .endr
4238@end example
4239
4240is equivalent to assembling
4241
4242@example
4243 move d1,sp@@-
4244 move d2,sp@@-
4245 move d3,sp@@-
4246@end example
4247
4248@node Lcomm
4249@section @code{.lcomm @var{symbol} , @var{length}}
4250
4251@cindex @code{lcomm} directive
4252@cindex local common symbols
4253@cindex symbols, local common
4254Reserve @var{length} (an absolute expression) bytes for a local common
4255denoted by @var{symbol}. The section and value of @var{symbol} are
4256those of the new local common. The addresses are allocated in the bss
4257section, so that at run-time the bytes start off zeroed. @var{Symbol}
4258is not declared global (@pxref{Global,,@code{.global}}), so is normally
4259not visible to @code{@value{LD}}.
4260
4261@ifset GENERIC
4262Some targets permit a third argument to be used with @code{.lcomm}. This
4263argument specifies the desired alignment of the symbol in the bss section.
4264@end ifset
4265
4266@ifset HPPA
4267The syntax for @code{.lcomm} differs slightly on the HPPA. The syntax is
4268@samp{@var{symbol} .lcomm, @var{length}}; @var{symbol} is optional.
4269@end ifset
4270
4271@node Lflags
4272@section @code{.lflags}
4273
4274@cindex @code{lflags} directive (ignored)
4275@code{@value{AS}} accepts this directive, for compatibility with other
4276assemblers, but ignores it.
4277
4278@ifclear no-line-dir
4279@node Line
4280@section @code{.line @var{line-number}}
4281
4282@cindex @code{line} directive
4283@end ifclear
4284@ifset no-line-dir
4285@node Ln
4286@section @code{.ln @var{line-number}}
4287
4288@cindex @code{ln} directive
4289@end ifset
4290@cindex logical line number
4291@ifset aout-bout
4292Change the logical line number. @var{line-number} must be an absolute
4293expression. The next line has that logical line number. Therefore any other
4294statements on the current line (after a statement separator character) are
4295reported as on logical line number @var{line-number} @minus{} 1. One day
4296@code{@value{AS}} will no longer support this directive: it is recognized only
4297for compatibility with existing assembler programs.
4298
4299@ifset GENERIC
4300@ifset A29K
4301@emph{Warning:} In the AMD29K configuration of @value{AS}, this command is
4302not available; use the synonym @code{.ln} in that context.
4303@end ifset
4304@end ifset
4305@end ifset
4306
4307@ifclear no-line-dir
4308Even though this is a directive associated with the @code{a.out} or
4309@code{b.out} object-code formats, @code{@value{AS}} still recognizes it
4310when producing COFF output, and treats @samp{.line} as though it
4311were the COFF @samp{.ln} @emph{if} it is found outside a
4312@code{.def}/@code{.endef} pair.
4313
4314Inside a @code{.def}, @samp{.line} is, instead, one of the directives
4315used by compilers to generate auxiliary symbol information for
4316debugging.
4317@end ifclear
4318
4319@node Linkonce
4320@section @code{.linkonce [@var{type}]}
4321@cindex COMDAT
4322@cindex @code{linkonce} directive
4323@cindex common sections
4324Mark the current section so that the linker only includes a single copy of it.
4325This may be used to include the same section in several different object files,
4326but ensure that the linker will only include it once in the final output file.
4327The @code{.linkonce} pseudo-op must be used for each instance of the section.
4328Duplicate sections are detected based on the section name, so it should be
4329unique.
4330
4331This directive is only supported by a few object file formats; as of this
4332writing, the only object file format which supports it is the Portable
4333Executable format used on Windows NT.
4334
4335The @var{type} argument is optional. If specified, it must be one of the
4336following strings. For example:
4337@smallexample
4338.linkonce same_size
4339@end smallexample
4340Not all types may be supported on all object file formats.
4341
4342@table @code
4343@item discard
4344Silently discard duplicate sections. This is the default.
4345
4346@item one_only
4347Warn if there are duplicate sections, but still keep only one copy.
4348
4349@item same_size
4350Warn if any of the duplicates have different sizes.
4351
4352@item same_contents
4353Warn if any of the duplicates do not have exactly the same contents.
4354@end table
4355
4356@node Ln
4357@section @code{.ln @var{line-number}}
4358
4359@cindex @code{ln} directive
4360@ifclear no-line-dir
4361@samp{.ln} is a synonym for @samp{.line}.
4362@end ifclear
4363@ifset no-line-dir
4364Tell @code{@value{AS}} to change the logical line number. @var{line-number}
4365must be an absolute expression. The next line has that logical
4366line number, so any other statements on the current line (after a
4367statement separator character @code{;}) are reported as on logical
4368line number @var{line-number} @minus{} 1.
4369@ifset BOUT
4370
4371This directive is accepted, but ignored, when @code{@value{AS}} is
4372configured for @code{b.out}; its effect is only associated with COFF
4373output format.
4374@end ifset
4375@end ifset
4376
4377@node MRI
4378@section @code{.mri @var{val}}
4379
4380@cindex @code{mri} directive
4381@cindex MRI mode, temporarily
4382If @var{val} is non-zero, this tells @code{@value{AS}} to enter MRI mode. If
4383@var{val} is zero, this tells @code{@value{AS}} to exit MRI mode. This change
4384affects code assembled until the next @code{.mri} directive, or until the end
4385of the file. @xref{M, MRI mode, MRI mode}.
4386
4387@node List
4388@section @code{.list}
4389
4390@cindex @code{list} directive
4391@cindex listing control, turning on
4392Control (in conjunction with the @code{.nolist} directive) whether or
4393not assembly listings are generated. These two directives maintain an
4394internal counter (which is zero initially). @code{.list} increments the
4395counter, and @code{.nolist} decrements it. Assembly listings are
4396generated whenever the counter is greater than zero.
4397
4398By default, listings are disabled. When you enable them (with the
4399@samp{-a} command line option; @pxref{Invoking,,Command-Line Options}),
4400the initial value of the listing counter is one.
4401
4402@node Long
4403@section @code{.long @var{expressions}}
4404
4405@cindex @code{long} directive
4406@code{.long} is the same as @samp{.int}, @pxref{Int,,@code{.int}}.
4407
4408@ignore
4409@c no one seems to know what this is for or whether this description is
4410@c what it really ought to do
4411@node Lsym
4412@section @code{.lsym @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
4413
4414@cindex @code{lsym} directive
4415@cindex symbol, not referenced in assembly
4416@code{.lsym} creates a new symbol named @var{symbol}, but does not put it in
4417the hash table, ensuring it cannot be referenced by name during the
4418rest of the assembly. This sets the attributes of the symbol to be
4419the same as the expression value:
4420@smallexample
4421@var{other} = @var{descriptor} = 0
4422@var{type} = @r{(section of @var{expression})}
4423@var{value} = @var{expression}
4424@end smallexample
4425@noindent
4426The new symbol is not flagged as external.
4427@end ignore
4428
4429@node Macro
4430@section @code{.macro}
4431
4432@cindex macros
4433The commands @code{.macro} and @code{.endm} allow you to define macros that
4434generate assembly output. For example, this definition specifies a macro
4435@code{sum} that puts a sequence of numbers into memory:
4436
4437@example
4438 .macro sum from=0, to=5
4439 .long \from
4440 .if \to-\from
4441 sum "(\from+1)",\to
4442 .endif
4443 .endm
4444@end example
4445
4446@noindent
4447With that definition, @samp{SUM 0,5} is equivalent to this assembly input:
4448
4449@example
4450 .long 0
4451 .long 1
4452 .long 2
4453 .long 3
4454 .long 4
4455 .long 5
4456@end example
4457
4458@ftable @code
4459@item .macro @var{macname}
4460@itemx .macro @var{macname} @var{macargs} @dots{}
4461@cindex @code{macro} directive
4462Begin the definition of a macro called @var{macname}. If your macro
4463definition requires arguments, specify their names after the macro name,
4464separated by commas or spaces. You can supply a default value for any
4465macro argument by following the name with @samp{=@var{deflt}}. For
4466example, these are all valid @code{.macro} statements:
4467
4468@table @code
4469@item .macro comm
4470Begin the definition of a macro called @code{comm}, which takes no
4471arguments.
4472
4473@item .macro plus1 p, p1
4474@itemx .macro plus1 p p1
4475Either statement begins the definition of a macro called @code{plus1},
4476which takes two arguments; within the macro definition, write
4477@samp{\p} or @samp{\p1} to evaluate the arguments.
4478
4479@item .macro reserve_str p1=0 p2
4480Begin the definition of a macro called @code{reserve_str}, with two
4481arguments. The first argument has a default value, but not the second.
4482After the definition is complete, you can call the macro either as
4483@samp{reserve_str @var{a},@var{b}} (with @samp{\p1} evaluating to
4484@var{a} and @samp{\p2} evaluating to @var{b}), or as @samp{reserve_str
4485,@var{b}} (with @samp{\p1} evaluating as the default, in this case
4486@samp{0}, and @samp{\p2} evaluating to @var{b}).
4487@end table
4488
4489When you call a macro, you can specify the argument values either by
4490position, or by keyword. For example, @samp{sum 9,17} is equivalent to
4491@samp{sum to=17, from=9}.
4492
4493@item .endm
4494@cindex @code{endm} directive
4495Mark the end of a macro definition.
4496
4497@item .exitm
4498@cindex @code{exitm} directive
4499Exit early from the current macro definition.
4500
4501@cindex number of macros executed
4502@cindex macros, count executed
4503@item \@@
4504@code{@value{AS}} maintains a counter of how many macros it has
4505executed in this pseudo-variable; you can copy that number to your
4506output with @samp{\@@}, but @emph{only within a macro definition}.
4507
4508@ignore
4509@item LOCAL @var{name} [ , @dots{} ]
4510@emph{Warning: @code{LOCAL} is only available if you select ``alternate
4511macro syntax'' with @samp{-a} or @samp{--alternate}.} @xref{Alternate,,
4512Alternate macro syntax}.
4513
4514Generate a string replacement for each of the @var{name} arguments, and
4515replace any instances of @var{name} in each macro expansion. The
4516replacement string is unique in the assembly, and different for each
4517separate macro expansion. @code{LOCAL} allows you to write macros that
4518define symbols, without fear of conflict between separate macro expansions.
4519@end ignore
4520@end ftable
4521
4522@node Nolist
4523@section @code{.nolist}
4524
4525@cindex @code{nolist} directive
4526@cindex listing control, turning off
4527Control (in conjunction with the @code{.list} directive) whether or
4528not assembly listings are generated. These two directives maintain an
4529internal counter (which is zero initially). @code{.list} increments the
4530counter, and @code{.nolist} decrements it. Assembly listings are
4531generated whenever the counter is greater than zero.
4532
4533@node Octa
4534@section @code{.octa @var{bignums}}
4535
4536@c FIXME: double size emitted for "octa" on i960, others? Or warn?
4537@cindex @code{octa} directive
4538@cindex integer, 16-byte
4539@cindex sixteen byte integer
4540This directive expects zero or more bignums, separated by commas. For each
4541bignum, it emits a 16-byte integer.
4542
4543The term ``octa'' comes from contexts in which a ``word'' is two bytes;
4544hence @emph{octa}-word for 16 bytes.
4545
4546@node Org
4547@section @code{.org @var{new-lc} , @var{fill}}
4548
4549@cindex @code{org} directive
4550@cindex location counter, advancing
4551@cindex advancing location counter
4552@cindex current address, advancing
4553Advance the location counter of the current section to
4554@var{new-lc}. @var{new-lc} is either an absolute expression or an
4555expression with the same section as the current subsection. That is,
4556you can't use @code{.org} to cross sections: if @var{new-lc} has the
4557wrong section, the @code{.org} directive is ignored. To be compatible
4558with former assemblers, if the section of @var{new-lc} is absolute,
4559@code{@value{AS}} issues a warning, then pretends the section of @var{new-lc}
4560is the same as the current subsection.
4561
4562@code{.org} may only increase the location counter, or leave it
4563unchanged; you cannot use @code{.org} to move the location counter
4564backwards.
4565
4566@c double negative used below "not undefined" because this is a specific
4567@c reference to "undefined" (as SEG_UNKNOWN is called in this manual)
4568@c section. doc@cygnus.com 18feb91
4569Because @code{@value{AS}} tries to assemble programs in one pass, @var{new-lc}
4570may not be undefined. If you really detest this restriction we eagerly await
4571a chance to share your improved assembler.
4572
4573Beware that the origin is relative to the start of the section, not
4574to the start of the subsection. This is compatible with other
4575people's assemblers.
4576
4577When the location counter (of the current subsection) is advanced, the
4578intervening bytes are filled with @var{fill} which should be an
4579absolute expression. If the comma and @var{fill} are omitted,
4580@var{fill} defaults to zero.
4581
4582@node P2align
4583@section @code{.p2align[wl] @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}, @var{abs-expr}}
4584
4585@cindex padding the location counter given a power of two
4586@cindex @code{p2align} directive
4587Pad the location counter (in the current subsection) to a particular
4588storage boundary. The first expression (which must be absolute) is the
4589number of low-order zero bits the location counter must have after
4590advancement. For example @samp{.p2align 3} advances the location
4591counter until it a multiple of 8. If the location counter is already a
4592multiple of 8, no change is needed.
4593
4594The second expression (also absolute) gives the fill value to be stored in the
4595padding bytes. It (and the comma) may be omitted. If it is omitted, the
4596padding bytes are normally zero. However, on some systems, if the section is
4597marked as containing code and the fill value is omitted, the space is filled
4598with no-op instructions.
4599
4600The third expression is also absolute, and is also optional. If it is present,
4601it is the maximum number of bytes that should be skipped by this alignment
4602directive. If doing the alignment would require skipping more bytes than the
4603specified maximum, then the alignment is not done at all. You can omit the
4604fill value (the second argument) entirely by simply using two commas after the
4605required alignment; this can be useful if you want the alignment to be filled
4606with no-op instructions when appropriate.
4607
4608@cindex @code{p2alignw} directive
4609@cindex @code{p2alignl} directive
4610The @code{.p2alignw} and @code{.p2alignl} directives are variants of the
4611@code{.p2align} directive. The @code{.p2alignw} directive treats the fill
4612pattern as a two byte word value. The @code{.p2alignl} directives treats the
4613fill pattern as a four byte longword value. For example, @code{.p2alignw
46142,0x368d} will align to a multiple of 4. If it skips two bytes, they will be
4615filled in with the value 0x368d (the exact placement of the bytes depends upon
4616the endianness of the processor). If it skips 1 or 3 bytes, the fill value is
4617undefined.
4618
c91d2e08
NC
4619@ifset ELF
4620@node Previous
4621@section @code{.previous}
4622
4623@cindex @code{.previous} directive
4624@cindex Section Stack
4625This is one of the ELF section stack manipulation directives. The others are
a349d9dd
PB
4626@code{.section} (@pxref{Section}), @code{.subsection} (@pxref{SubSection}),
4627@code{.pushsection} (@pxref{PushSection}), and @code{.popsection}
4628(@pxref{PopSection}).
c91d2e08
NC
4629
4630This directive swaps the current section (and subsection) with most recently
4631referenced section (and subsection) prior to this one. Multiple
4632@code{.previous} directives in a row will flip between two sections (and their
4633subsections).
4634
4635In terms of the section stack, this directive swaps the current section with
4636the top section on the section stack.
4637@end ifset
4638
4639@ifset ELF
4640@node PopSection
4641@section @code{.popsection}
4642
4643@cindex @code{.popsection} directive
4644@cindex Section Stack
4645This is one of the ELF section stack manipulation directives. The others are
a349d9dd
PB
4646@code{.section} (@pxref{Section}), @code{.subsection} (@pxref{SubSection}),
4647@code{.pushsection} (@pxref{PushSection}), and @code{.previous}
4648(@pxref{Previous}).
c91d2e08
NC
4649
4650This directive replaces the current section (and subsection) with the top
4651section (and subsection) on the section stack. This section is popped off the
4652stack.
c91d2e08
NC
4653@end ifset
4654
252b5132
RH
4655@node Print
4656@section @code{.print @var{string}}
4657
4658@cindex @code{print} directive
4659@code{@value{AS}} will print @var{string} on the standard output during
4660assembly. You must put @var{string} in double quotes.
4661
c91d2e08
NC
4662@ifset ELF
4663@node Protected
4664@section @code{.protected @var{names}}
4665
4666@cindex @code{.protected} directive
4667@cindex Visibility
4668This one of the ELF visibility directives. The other two are
a349d9dd 4669@code{.hidden} (@pxref{Hidden}) and @code{.internal} (@pxref{Internal}).
c91d2e08
NC
4670
4671This directive overrides the named symbols default visibility (which is set by
4672their binding: local, global or weak). The directive sets the visibility to
4673@code{protected} which means that any references to the symbols from within the
4674components that defines them must be resolved to the definition in that
4675component, even if a definition in another component would normally preempt
4676this.
4677@end ifset
4678
252b5132
RH
4679@node Psize
4680@section @code{.psize @var{lines} , @var{columns}}
4681
4682@cindex @code{psize} directive
4683@cindex listing control: paper size
4684@cindex paper size, for listings
4685Use this directive to declare the number of lines---and, optionally, the
4686number of columns---to use for each page, when generating listings.
4687
4688If you do not use @code{.psize}, listings use a default line-count
4689of 60. You may omit the comma and @var{columns} specification; the
4690default width is 200 columns.
4691
4692@code{@value{AS}} generates formfeeds whenever the specified number of
4693lines is exceeded (or whenever you explicitly request one, using
4694@code{.eject}).
4695
4696If you specify @var{lines} as @code{0}, no formfeeds are generated save
4697those explicitly specified with @code{.eject}.
4698
4699@node Purgem
4700@section @code{.purgem @var{name}}
4701
4702@cindex @code{purgem} directive
4703Undefine the macro @var{name}, so that later uses of the string will not be
4704expanded. @xref{Macro}.
4705
c91d2e08
NC
4706@ifset ELF
4707@node PushSection
4708@section @code{.pushsection @var{name} , @var{subsection}}
4709
4710@cindex @code{.pushsection} directive
4711@cindex Section Stack
4712This is one of the ELF section stack manipulation directives. The others are
a349d9dd
PB
4713@code{.section} (@pxref{Section}), @code{.subsection} (@pxref{SubSection}),
4714@code{.popsection} (@pxref{PopSection}), and @code{.previous}
4715(@pxref{Previous}).
c91d2e08 4716
a349d9dd 4717This directive is a synonym for @code{.section}. It pushes the current section
c91d2e08
NC
4718(and subsection) onto the top of the section stack, and then replaces the
4719current section and subsection with @code{name} and @code{subsection}.
c91d2e08
NC
4720@end ifset
4721
252b5132
RH
4722@node Quad
4723@section @code{.quad @var{bignums}}
4724
4725@cindex @code{quad} directive
4726@code{.quad} expects zero or more bignums, separated by commas. For
4727each bignum, it emits
4728@ifclear bignum-16
4729an 8-byte integer. If the bignum won't fit in 8 bytes, it prints a
4730warning message; and just takes the lowest order 8 bytes of the bignum.
4731@cindex eight-byte integer
4732@cindex integer, 8-byte
4733
4734The term ``quad'' comes from contexts in which a ``word'' is two bytes;
4735hence @emph{quad}-word for 8 bytes.
4736@end ifclear
4737@ifset bignum-16
4738a 16-byte integer. If the bignum won't fit in 16 bytes, it prints a
4739warning message; and just takes the lowest order 16 bytes of the bignum.
4740@cindex sixteen-byte integer
4741@cindex integer, 16-byte
4742@end ifset
4743
4744@node Rept
4745@section @code{.rept @var{count}}
4746
4747@cindex @code{rept} directive
4748Repeat the sequence of lines between the @code{.rept} directive and the next
4749@code{.endr} directive @var{count} times.
4750
4751For example, assembling
4752
4753@example
4754 .rept 3
4755 .long 0
4756 .endr
4757@end example
4758
4759is equivalent to assembling
4760
4761@example
4762 .long 0
4763 .long 0
4764 .long 0
4765@end example
4766
4767@node Sbttl
4768@section @code{.sbttl "@var{subheading}"}
4769
4770@cindex @code{sbttl} directive
4771@cindex subtitles for listings
4772@cindex listing control: subtitle
4773Use @var{subheading} as the title (third line, immediately after the
4774title line) when generating assembly listings.
4775
4776This directive affects subsequent pages, as well as the current page if
4777it appears within ten lines of the top of a page.
4778
4779@ifset COFF
4780@node Scl
4781@section @code{.scl @var{class}}
4782
4783@cindex @code{scl} directive
4784@cindex symbol storage class (COFF)
4785@cindex COFF symbol storage class
4786Set the storage-class value for a symbol. This directive may only be
4787used inside a @code{.def}/@code{.endef} pair. Storage class may flag
4788whether a symbol is static or external, or it may record further
4789symbolic debugging information.
4790@ifset BOUT
4791
4792The @samp{.scl} directive is primarily associated with COFF output; when
4793configured to generate @code{b.out} output format, @code{@value{AS}}
4794accepts this directive but ignores it.
4795@end ifset
4796@end ifset
4797
4798@node Section
c91d2e08 4799@section @code{.section @var{name}} (COFF version)
252b5132
RH
4800
4801@cindex @code{section} directive
4802@cindex named section
4803Use the @code{.section} directive to assemble the following code into a section
4804named @var{name}.
4805
4806This directive is only supported for targets that actually support arbitrarily
4807named sections; on @code{a.out} targets, for example, it is not accepted, even
4808with a standard @code{a.out} section name.
4809
252b5132
RH
4810For COFF targets, the @code{.section} directive is used in one of the following
4811ways:
c91d2e08 4812
252b5132
RH
4813@smallexample
4814.section @var{name}[, "@var{flags}"]
4815.section @var{name}[, @var{subsegment}]
4816@end smallexample
4817
4818If the optional argument is quoted, it is taken as flags to use for the
4819section. Each flag is a single character. The following flags are recognized:
4820@table @code
4821@item b
4822bss section (uninitialized data)
4823@item n
4824section is not loaded
4825@item w
4826writable section
4827@item d
4828data section
4829@item r
4830read-only section
4831@item x
4832executable section
2dcc60be
ILT
4833@item s
4834shared section (meaningful for PE targets)
252b5132
RH
4835@end table
4836
4837If no flags are specified, the default flags depend upon the section name. If
4838the section name is not recognized, the default will be for the section to be
7e84d676
NC
4839loaded and writable. Note the @code{n} and @code{w} flags remove attributes
4840from the section, rather than adding them, so if they are used on their own it
4841will be as if no flags had been specified at all.
252b5132
RH
4842
4843If the optional argument to the @code{.section} directive is not quoted, it is
4844taken as a subsegment number (@pxref{Sub-Sections}).
252b5132 4845
c91d2e08
NC
4846
4847@section @code{.section @var{name}} (ELF version)
4848
4849@cindex @code{section} directive
4850@cindex named section
252b5132 4851@ifset ELF
c91d2e08
NC
4852@cindex Section Stack
4853This is one of the ELF section stack manipulation directives. The others are
a349d9dd
PB
4854@code{.subsection} (@pxref{SubSection}), @code{.pushsection}
4855(@pxref{PushSection}), @code{.popsection} (@pxref{PopSection}), and
4856@code{.previous} (@pxref{Previous}).
c91d2e08
NC
4857@end ifset
4858
252b5132 4859For ELF targets, the @code{.section} directive is used like this:
c91d2e08 4860
252b5132 4861@smallexample
c91d2e08 4862.section @var{name} [, "@var{flags}"[, @@@var{type}]]
252b5132 4863@end smallexample
c91d2e08 4864
252b5132 4865The optional @var{flags} argument is a quoted string which may contain any
a349d9dd 4866combination of the following characters:
252b5132
RH
4867@table @code
4868@item a
4869section is allocatable
4870@item w
4871section is writable
4872@item x
4873section is executable
4874@end table
4875
4876The optional @var{type} argument may contain one of the following constants:
4877@table @code
4878@item @@progbits
4879section contains data
4880@item @@nobits
4881section does not contain data (i.e., section only occupies space)
4882@end table
4883
4884If no flags are specified, the default flags depend upon the section name. If
4885the section name is not recognized, the default will be for the section to have
4886none of the above flags: it will not be allocated in memory, nor writable, nor
4887executable. The section will contain data.
4888
4889For ELF targets, the assembler supports another type of @code{.section}
4890directive for compatibility with the Solaris assembler:
c91d2e08 4891
252b5132
RH
4892@smallexample
4893.section "@var{name}"[, @var{flags}...]
4894@end smallexample
c91d2e08 4895
252b5132
RH
4896Note that the section name is quoted. There may be a sequence of comma
4897separated flags:
4898@table @code
4899@item #alloc
4900section is allocatable
4901@item #write
4902section is writable
4903@item #execinstr
4904section is executable
4905@end table
c91d2e08
NC
4906
4907This directive replaces the current section and subsection. The replaced
4908section and subsection are pushed onto the section stack. See the contents of
4909the gas testsuite directory @code{gas/testsuite/gas/elf} for some examples of
4910how this directive and the other section stack directives work.
252b5132
RH
4911
4912@node Set
4913@section @code{.set @var{symbol}, @var{expression}}
4914
4915@cindex @code{set} directive
4916@cindex symbol value, setting
4917Set the value of @var{symbol} to @var{expression}. This
4918changes @var{symbol}'s value and type to conform to
4919@var{expression}. If @var{symbol} was flagged as external, it remains
4920flagged (@pxref{Symbol Attributes}).
4921
4922You may @code{.set} a symbol many times in the same assembly.
4923
4924If you @code{.set} a global symbol, the value stored in the object
4925file is the last value stored into it.
4926
4927@ifset HPPA
4928The syntax for @code{set} on the HPPA is
4929@samp{@var{symbol} .set @var{expression}}.
4930@end ifset
4931
4932@node Short
4933@section @code{.short @var{expressions}}
4934
4935@cindex @code{short} directive
4936@ifset GENERIC
4937@code{.short} is normally the same as @samp{.word}.
4938@xref{Word,,@code{.word}}.
4939
4940In some configurations, however, @code{.short} and @code{.word} generate
4941numbers of different lengths; @pxref{Machine Dependencies}.
4942@end ifset
4943@ifclear GENERIC
4944@ifset W16
4945@code{.short} is the same as @samp{.word}. @xref{Word,,@code{.word}}.
4946@end ifset
4947@ifset W32
4948This expects zero or more @var{expressions}, and emits
4949a 16 bit number for each.
4950@end ifset
4951@end ifclear
4952
4953@node Single
4954@section @code{.single @var{flonums}}
4955
4956@cindex @code{single} directive
4957@cindex floating point numbers (single)
4958This directive assembles zero or more flonums, separated by commas. It
4959has the same effect as @code{.float}.
4960@ifset GENERIC
4961The exact kind of floating point numbers emitted depends on how
4962@code{@value{AS}} is configured. @xref{Machine Dependencies}.
4963@end ifset
4964@ifclear GENERIC
4965@ifset IEEEFLOAT
4966On the @value{TARGET} family, @code{.single} emits 32-bit floating point
4967numbers in @sc{ieee} format.
4968@end ifset
4969@end ifclear
4970
252b5132 4971@node Size
c91d2e08 4972@section @code{.size} (COFF version)
c91d2e08 4973
9a297610 4974@cindex @code{size} directive
252b5132
RH
4975This directive is generated by compilers to include auxiliary debugging
4976information in the symbol table. It is only permitted inside
4977@code{.def}/@code{.endef} pairs.
252b5132 4978
c91d2e08 4979@ifset BOUT
252b5132
RH
4980@samp{.size} is only meaningful when generating COFF format output; when
4981@code{@value{AS}} is generating @code{b.out}, it accepts this directive but
4982ignores it.
4983@end ifset
c91d2e08
NC
4984
4985@section @code{.size @var{name} , @var{expression}} (ELF version)
4986@cindex @code{size} directive
4987
4988This directive is used to set the size associated with a symbol @var{name}.
4989The size in bytes is computed from @var{expression} which can make use of label
4990arithmetic. This directive is typically used to set the size of function
4991symbols.
252b5132
RH
4992
4993@node Sleb128
4994@section @code{.sleb128 @var{expressions}}
4995
4996@cindex @code{sleb128} directive
4997@var{sleb128} stands for ``signed little endian base 128.'' This is a
4998compact, variable length representation of numbers used by the DWARF
4999symbolic debugging format. @xref{Uleb128,@code{.uleb128}}.
5000
5001@ifclear no-space-dir
5002@node Skip
5003@section @code{.skip @var{size} , @var{fill}}
5004
5005@cindex @code{skip} directive
5006@cindex filling memory
5007This directive emits @var{size} bytes, each of value @var{fill}. Both
5008@var{size} and @var{fill} are absolute expressions. If the comma and
5009@var{fill} are omitted, @var{fill} is assumed to be zero. This is the same as
5010@samp{.space}.
5011
5012@node Space
5013@section @code{.space @var{size} , @var{fill}}
5014
5015@cindex @code{space} directive
5016@cindex filling memory
5017This directive emits @var{size} bytes, each of value @var{fill}. Both
5018@var{size} and @var{fill} are absolute expressions. If the comma
5019and @var{fill} are omitted, @var{fill} is assumed to be zero. This is the same
5020as @samp{.skip}.
5021
5022@ifset HPPA
5023@quotation
5024@emph{Warning:} @code{.space} has a completely different meaning for HPPA
5025targets; use @code{.block} as a substitute. See @cite{HP9000 Series 800
5026Assembly Language Reference Manual} (HP 92432-90001) for the meaning of the
5027@code{.space} directive. @xref{HPPA Directives,,HPPA Assembler Directives},
5028for a summary.
5029@end quotation
5030@end ifset
5031@end ifclear
5032
5033@ifset A29K
5034@ifclear GENERIC
5035@node Space
5036@section @code{.space}
5037@cindex @code{space} directive
5038@end ifclear
5039On the AMD 29K, this directive is ignored; it is accepted for
5040compatibility with other AMD 29K assemblers.
5041
5042@quotation
5043@emph{Warning:} In most versions of the @sc{gnu} assembler, the directive
5044@code{.space} has the effect of @code{.block} @xref{Machine Dependencies}.
5045@end quotation
5046@end ifset
5047
5048@ifset have-stabs
5049@node Stab
5050@section @code{.stabd, .stabn, .stabs}
5051
5052@cindex symbolic debuggers, information for
5053@cindex @code{stab@var{x}} directives
5054There are three directives that begin @samp{.stab}.
5055All emit symbols (@pxref{Symbols}), for use by symbolic debuggers.
5056The symbols are not entered in the @code{@value{AS}} hash table: they
5057cannot be referenced elsewhere in the source file.
5058Up to five fields are required:
5059
5060@table @var
5061@item string
5062This is the symbol's name. It may contain any character except
5063@samp{\000}, so is more general than ordinary symbol names. Some
5064debuggers used to code arbitrarily complex structures into symbol names
5065using this field.
5066
5067@item type
5068An absolute expression. The symbol's type is set to the low 8 bits of
5069this expression. Any bit pattern is permitted, but @code{@value{LD}}
5070and debuggers choke on silly bit patterns.
5071
5072@item other
5073An absolute expression. The symbol's ``other'' attribute is set to the
5074low 8 bits of this expression.
5075
5076@item desc
5077An absolute expression. The symbol's descriptor is set to the low 16
5078bits of this expression.
5079
5080@item value
5081An absolute expression which becomes the symbol's value.
5082@end table
5083
5084If a warning is detected while reading a @code{.stabd}, @code{.stabn},
5085or @code{.stabs} statement, the symbol has probably already been created;
5086you get a half-formed symbol in your object file. This is
5087compatible with earlier assemblers!
5088
5089@table @code
5090@cindex @code{stabd} directive
5091@item .stabd @var{type} , @var{other} , @var{desc}
5092
5093The ``name'' of the symbol generated is not even an empty string.
5094It is a null pointer, for compatibility. Older assemblers used a
5095null pointer so they didn't waste space in object files with empty
5096strings.
5097
5098The symbol's value is set to the location counter,
5099relocatably. When your program is linked, the value of this symbol
5100is the address of the location counter when the @code{.stabd} was
5101assembled.
5102
5103@cindex @code{stabn} directive
5104@item .stabn @var{type} , @var{other} , @var{desc} , @var{value}
5105The name of the symbol is set to the empty string @code{""}.
5106
5107@cindex @code{stabs} directive
5108@item .stabs @var{string} , @var{type} , @var{other} , @var{desc} , @var{value}
5109All five fields are specified.
5110@end table
5111@end ifset
5112@c end have-stabs
5113
5114@node String
5115@section @code{.string} "@var{str}"
5116
5117@cindex string, copying to object file
5118@cindex @code{string} directive
5119
5120Copy the characters in @var{str} to the object file. You may specify more than
5121one string to copy, separated by commas. Unless otherwise specified for a
5122particular machine, the assembler marks the end of each string with a 0 byte.
5123You can use any of the escape sequences described in @ref{Strings,,Strings}.
5124
5125@node Struct
5126@section @code{.struct @var{expression}}
5127
5128@cindex @code{struct} directive
5129Switch to the absolute section, and set the section offset to @var{expression},
5130which must be an absolute expression. You might use this as follows:
5131@smallexample
5132 .struct 0
5133field1:
5134 .struct field1 + 4
5135field2:
5136 .struct field2 + 4
5137field3:
5138@end smallexample
5139This would define the symbol @code{field1} to have the value 0, the symbol
5140@code{field2} to have the value 4, and the symbol @code{field3} to have the
5141value 8. Assembly would be left in the absolute section, and you would need to
5142use a @code{.section} directive of some sort to change to some other section
5143before further assembly.
5144
c91d2e08
NC
5145@ifset ELF
5146@node SubSection
5147@section @code{.subsection @var{name}}
5148
5149@cindex @code{.subsection} directive
5150@cindex Section Stack
5151This is one of the ELF section stack manipulation directives. The others are
a349d9dd
PB
5152@code{.section} (@pxref{Section}), @code{.pushsection} (@pxref{PushSection}),
5153@code{.popsection} (@pxref{PopSection}), and @code{.previous}
5154(@pxref{Previous}).
c91d2e08
NC
5155
5156This directive replaces the current subsection with @code{name}. The current
5157section is not changed. The replaced subsection is put onto the section stack
5158in place of the then current top of stack subsection.
c91d2e08
NC
5159@end ifset
5160
252b5132
RH
5161@ifset ELF
5162@node Symver
5163@section @code{.symver}
5164@cindex @code{symver} directive
5165@cindex symbol versioning
5166@cindex versions of symbols
5167Use the @code{.symver} directive to bind symbols to specific version nodes
5168within a source file. This is only supported on ELF platforms, and is
5169typically used when assembling files to be linked into a shared library.
5170There are cases where it may make sense to use this in objects to be bound
5171into an application itself so as to override a versioned symbol from a
5172shared library.
5173
79082ff0 5174For ELF targets, the @code{.symver} directive can be used like this:
252b5132
RH
5175@smallexample
5176.symver @var{name}, @var{name2@@nodename}
5177@end smallexample
339681c0 5178If the symbol @var{name} is defined within the file
79082ff0 5179being assembled, the @code{.symver} directive effectively creates a symbol
252b5132
RH
5180alias with the name @var{name2@@nodename}, and in fact the main reason that we
5181just don't try and create a regular alias is that the @var{@@} character isn't
5182permitted in symbol names. The @var{name2} part of the name is the actual name
5183of the symbol by which it will be externally referenced. The name @var{name}
5184itself is merely a name of convenience that is used so that it is possible to
5185have definitions for multiple versions of a function within a single source
5186file, and so that the compiler can unambiguously know which version of a
5187function is being mentioned. The @var{nodename} portion of the alias should be
5188the name of a node specified in the version script supplied to the linker when
5189building a shared library. If you are attempting to override a versioned
5190symbol from a shared library, then @var{nodename} should correspond to the
5191nodename of the symbol you are trying to override.
339681c0
L
5192
5193If the symbol @var{name} is not defined within the file being assembled, all
5194references to @var{name} will be changed to @var{name2@@nodename}. If no
5195reference to @var{name} is made, @var{name2@@nodename} will be removed from the
5196symbol table.
79082ff0
L
5197
5198Another usage of the @code{.symver} directive is:
5199@smallexample
5200.symver @var{name}, @var{name2@@@@nodename}
5201@end smallexample
5202In this case, the symbol @var{name} must exist and be defined within
a349d9dd 5203the file being assembled. It is similar to @var{name2@@nodename}. The
79082ff0
L
5204difference is @var{name2@@@@nodename} will also be used to resolve
5205references to @var{name2} by the linker.
5206
5207The third usage of the @code{.symver} directive is:
5208@smallexample
5209.symver @var{name}, @var{name2@@@@@@nodename}
5210@end smallexample
5211When @var{name} is not defined within the
5212file being assembled, it is treated as @var{name2@@nodename}. When
5213@var{name} is defined within the file being assembled, the symbol
5214name, @var{name}, will be changed to @var{name2@@@@nodename}.
252b5132
RH
5215@end ifset
5216
5217@ifset COFF
5218@node Tag
5219@section @code{.tag @var{structname}}
5220
5221@cindex COFF structure debugging
5222@cindex structure debugging, COFF
5223@cindex @code{tag} directive
5224This directive is generated by compilers to include auxiliary debugging
5225information in the symbol table. It is only permitted inside
5226@code{.def}/@code{.endef} pairs. Tags are used to link structure
5227definitions in the symbol table with instances of those structures.
5228@ifset BOUT
5229
5230@samp{.tag} is only used when generating COFF format output; when
5231@code{@value{AS}} is generating @code{b.out}, it accepts this directive but
5232ignores it.
5233@end ifset
5234@end ifset
5235
5236@node Text
5237@section @code{.text @var{subsection}}
5238
5239@cindex @code{text} directive
5240Tells @code{@value{AS}} to assemble the following statements onto the end of
5241the text subsection numbered @var{subsection}, which is an absolute
5242expression. If @var{subsection} is omitted, subsection number zero
5243is used.
5244
5245@node Title
5246@section @code{.title "@var{heading}"}
5247
5248@cindex @code{title} directive
5249@cindex listing control: title line
5250Use @var{heading} as the title (second line, immediately after the
5251source file name and pagenumber) when generating assembly listings.
5252
5253This directive affects subsequent pages, as well as the current page if
5254it appears within ten lines of the top of a page.
5255
252b5132 5256@node Type
c91d2e08 5257@section @code{.type @var{int}} (COFF version)
252b5132
RH
5258
5259@cindex COFF symbol type
5260@cindex symbol type, COFF
5261@cindex @code{type} directive
5262This directive, permitted only within @code{.def}/@code{.endef} pairs,
5263records the integer @var{int} as the type attribute of a symbol table entry.
252b5132 5264
c91d2e08 5265@ifset BOUT
252b5132
RH
5266@samp{.type} is associated only with COFF format output; when
5267@code{@value{AS}} is configured for @code{b.out} output, it accepts this
5268directive but ignores it.
5269@end ifset
c91d2e08
NC
5270
5271@section @code{.type @var{name} , @var{type description}} (ELF version)
5272
5273@cindex ELF symbol type
5274@cindex symbol type, ELF
5275@cindex @code{type} directive
5276This directive is used to set the type of symbol @var{name} to be either a
a349d9dd 5277function symbol or an object symbol. There are five different syntaxes
c91d2e08 5278supported for the @var{type description} field, in order to provide
a349d9dd 5279compatibility with various other assemblers. The syntaxes supported are:
c91d2e08
NC
5280
5281@smallexample
5282 .type <name>,#function
5283 .type <name>,#object
5284
5285 .type <name>,@@function
5286 .type <name>,@@object
5287
5288 .type <name>,%function
5289 .type <name>,%object
5290
5291 .type <name>,"function"
5292 .type <name>,"object"
5293
5294 .type <name> STT_FUNCTION
5295 .type <name> STT_OBJECT
5296@end smallexample
5297
5298@node Uleb128
5299@section @code{.uleb128 @var{expressions}}
5300
5301@cindex @code{uleb128} directive
5302@var{uleb128} stands for ``unsigned little endian base 128.'' This is a
5303compact, variable length representation of numbers used by the DWARF
5304symbolic debugging format. @xref{Sleb128,@code{.sleb128}}.
252b5132
RH
5305
5306@ifset COFF
5307@node Val
5308@section @code{.val @var{addr}}
5309
5310@cindex @code{val} directive
5311@cindex COFF value attribute
5312@cindex value attribute, COFF
5313This directive, permitted only within @code{.def}/@code{.endef} pairs,
5314records the address @var{addr} as the value attribute of a symbol table
5315entry.
5316@ifset BOUT
5317
5318@samp{.val} is used only for COFF output; when @code{@value{AS}} is
5319configured for @code{b.out}, it accepts this directive but ignores it.
5320@end ifset
5321@end ifset
5322
2e13b764 5323@ifset ELF
c91d2e08
NC
5324@node Version
5325@section @code{.version "@var{string}"}
2e13b764 5326
c91d2e08
NC
5327@cindex @code{.version}
5328This directive creates a @code{.note} section and places into it an ELF
5329formatted note of type NT_VERSION. The note's name is set to @code{string}.
9a297610 5330@end ifset
2e13b764 5331
c91d2e08
NC
5332@ifset ELF
5333@node VTableEntry
5334@section @code{.vtable_entry @var{table}, @var{offset}}
2e13b764 5335
c91d2e08
NC
5336@cindex @code{.vtable_entry}
5337This directive finds or creates a symbol @code{table} and creates a
5338@code{VTABLE_ENTRY} relocation for it with an addend of @code{offset}.
2e13b764 5339
c91d2e08
NC
5340@node VTableInherit
5341@section @code{.vtable_inherit @var{child}, @var{parent}}
2e13b764 5342
c91d2e08
NC
5343@cindex @code{.vtable_inherit}
5344This directive finds the symbol @code{child} and finds or creates the symbol
5345@code{parent} and then creates a @code{VTABLE_INHERIT} relocation for the
a349d9dd 5346parent whose addend is the value of the child symbol. As a special case the
c91d2e08
NC
5347parent name of @code{0} is treated as refering the @code{*ABS*} section.
5348@end ifset
2e13b764 5349
c91d2e08
NC
5350@ifset ELF
5351@node Weak
5352@section @code{.weak @var{names}}
2e13b764 5353
c91d2e08 5354@cindex @code{.weak}
a349d9dd 5355This directive sets the weak attribute on the comma separated list of symbol
c91d2e08 5356@code{names}. If the symbols do not already exist, they will be created.
2e13b764
NC
5357@end ifset
5358
252b5132
RH
5359@node Word
5360@section @code{.word @var{expressions}}
5361
5362@cindex @code{word} directive
5363This directive expects zero or more @var{expressions}, of any section,
5364separated by commas.
5365@ifclear GENERIC
5366@ifset W32
5367For each expression, @code{@value{AS}} emits a 32-bit number.
5368@end ifset
5369@ifset W16
5370For each expression, @code{@value{AS}} emits a 16-bit number.
5371@end ifset
5372@end ifclear
5373@ifset GENERIC
5374
5375The size of the number emitted, and its byte order,
5376depend on what target computer the assembly is for.
5377@end ifset
5378
5379@c on amd29k, i960, sparc the "special treatment to support compilers" doesn't
5380@c happen---32-bit addressability, period; no long/short jumps.
5381@ifset DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
5382@cindex difference tables altered
5383@cindex altered difference tables
5384@quotation
5385@emph{Warning: Special Treatment to support Compilers}
5386@end quotation
5387
5388@ifset GENERIC
5389Machines with a 32-bit address space, but that do less than 32-bit
5390addressing, require the following special treatment. If the machine of
5391interest to you does 32-bit addressing (or doesn't require it;
5392@pxref{Machine Dependencies}), you can ignore this issue.
5393
5394@end ifset
5395In order to assemble compiler output into something that works,
a349d9dd 5396@code{@value{AS}} occasionally does strange things to @samp{.word} directives.
252b5132
RH
5397Directives of the form @samp{.word sym1-sym2} are often emitted by
5398compilers as part of jump tables. Therefore, when @code{@value{AS}} assembles a
5399directive of the form @samp{.word sym1-sym2}, and the difference between
5400@code{sym1} and @code{sym2} does not fit in 16 bits, @code{@value{AS}}
5401creates a @dfn{secondary jump table}, immediately before the next label.
5402This secondary jump table is preceded by a short-jump to the
5403first byte after the secondary table. This short-jump prevents the flow
5404of control from accidentally falling into the new table. Inside the
5405table is a long-jump to @code{sym2}. The original @samp{.word}
5406contains @code{sym1} minus the address of the long-jump to
5407@code{sym2}.
5408
5409If there were several occurrences of @samp{.word sym1-sym2} before the
5410secondary jump table, all of them are adjusted. If there was a
5411@samp{.word sym3-sym4}, that also did not fit in sixteen bits, a
5412long-jump to @code{sym4} is included in the secondary jump table,
5413and the @code{.word} directives are adjusted to contain @code{sym3}
5414minus the address of the long-jump to @code{sym4}; and so on, for as many
5415entries in the original jump table as necessary.
5416
5417@ifset INTERNALS
5418@emph{This feature may be disabled by compiling @code{@value{AS}} with the
5419@samp{-DWORKING_DOT_WORD} option.} This feature is likely to confuse
5420assembly language programmers.
5421@end ifset
5422@end ifset
5423@c end DIFF-TBL-KLUGE
5424
5425@node Deprecated
5426@section Deprecated Directives
5427
5428@cindex deprecated directives
5429@cindex obsolescent directives
5430One day these directives won't work.
5431They are included for compatibility with older assemblers.
5432@table @t
5433@item .abort
5434@item .line
5435@end table
5436
5437@ifset GENERIC
5438@node Machine Dependencies
5439@chapter Machine Dependent Features
5440
5441@cindex machine dependencies
5442The machine instruction sets are (almost by definition) different on
5443each machine where @code{@value{AS}} runs. Floating point representations
5444vary as well, and @code{@value{AS}} often supports a few additional
5445directives or command-line options for compatibility with other
5446assemblers on a particular platform. Finally, some versions of
5447@code{@value{AS}} support special pseudo-instructions for branch
5448optimization.
5449
5450This chapter discusses most of these differences, though it does not
5451include details on any machine's instruction set. For details on that
5452subject, see the hardware manufacturer's manual.
5453
5454@menu
5455@ifset A29K
5456* AMD29K-Dependent:: AMD 29K Dependent Features
5457@end ifset
5458@ifset ARC
5459* ARC-Dependent:: ARC Dependent Features
5460@end ifset
5461@ifset ARM
5462* ARM-Dependent:: ARM Dependent Features
5463@end ifset
5464@ifset D10V
5465* D10V-Dependent:: D10V Dependent Features
5466@end ifset
5467@ifset D30V
5468* D30V-Dependent:: D30V Dependent Features
5469@end ifset
5470@ifset H8/300
5471* H8/300-Dependent:: Hitachi H8/300 Dependent Features
5472@end ifset
5473@ifset H8/500
5474* H8/500-Dependent:: Hitachi H8/500 Dependent Features
5475@end ifset
5476@ifset HPPA
5477* HPPA-Dependent:: HPPA Dependent Features
5478@end ifset
5b93d8bb
AM
5479@ifset I370
5480* ESA/390-Dependent:: IBM ESA/390 Dependent Features
5481@end ifset
252b5132 5482@ifset I80386
55b62671 5483* i386-Dependent:: Intel 80386 and AMD x86-64 Dependent Features
252b5132 5484@end ifset
e3308d0d
JE
5485@ifset I860
5486* i860-Dependent:: Intel 80860 Dependent Features
5487@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5488@ifset I960
5489* i960-Dependent:: Intel 80960 Dependent Features
5490@end ifset
ec694b89
NC
5491@ifset M32R
5492* M32R-Dependent:: M32R Dependent Features
5493@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5494@ifset M680X0
5495* M68K-Dependent:: M680x0 Dependent Features
5496@end ifset
60bcf0fa
NC
5497@ifset M68HC11
5498* M68HC11-Dependent:: M68HC11 and 68HC12 Dependent Features
5499@end ifset
81b0b3f1
BE
5500@ifset M880X0
5501* M88K-Dependent:: M880x0 Dependent Features
5502@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5503@ifset MIPS
5504* MIPS-Dependent:: MIPS Dependent Features
5505@end ifset
5506@ifset SH
5507* SH-Dependent:: Hitachi SH Dependent Features
5508@end ifset
e135f41b
NC
5509@ifset PDP11
5510* PDP-11-Dependent:: PDP-11 Dependent Features
5511@end ifset
041dd5a9
ILT
5512@ifset PJ
5513* PJ-Dependent:: picoJava Dependent Features
5514@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5515@ifset SPARC
5516* Sparc-Dependent:: SPARC Dependent Features
5517@end ifset
39bec121
TW
5518@ifset TIC54X
5519* TIC54X-Dependent:: TI TMS320C54x Dependent Features
5520@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5521@ifset V850
5522* V850-Dependent:: V850 Dependent Features
5523@end ifset
5524@ifset Z8000
5525* Z8000-Dependent:: Z8000 Dependent Features
5526@end ifset
5527@ifset VAX
5528* Vax-Dependent:: VAX Dependent Features
5529@end ifset
5530@end menu
5531
5532@lowersections
5533@end ifset
5534
5535@c The following major nodes are *sections* in the GENERIC version, *chapters*
5536@c in single-cpu versions. This is mainly achieved by @lowersections. There is a
5537@c peculiarity: to preserve cross-references, there must be a node called
5538@c "Machine Dependencies". Hence the conditional nodenames in each
5539@c major node below. Node defaulting in makeinfo requires adjacency of
5540@c node and sectioning commands; hence the repetition of @chapter BLAH
5541@c in both conditional blocks.
5542
5543@ifset ARC
0d2bcfaf 5544@include c-arc.texi
252b5132
RH
5545@end ifset
5546
5547@ifset A29K
5548@include c-a29k.texi
5549@end ifset
5550
5551@ifset ARM
5552@include c-arm.texi
5553@end ifset
5554
5555@ifset Hitachi-all
5556@ifclear GENERIC
5557@node Machine Dependencies
5558@chapter Machine Dependent Features
5559
5560The machine instruction sets are different on each Hitachi chip family,
5561and there are also some syntax differences among the families. This
5562chapter describes the specific @code{@value{AS}} features for each
5563family.
5564
5565@menu
5566* H8/300-Dependent:: Hitachi H8/300 Dependent Features
5567* H8/500-Dependent:: Hitachi H8/500 Dependent Features
5568* SH-Dependent:: Hitachi SH Dependent Features
5569@end menu
5570@lowersections
5571@end ifclear
5572@end ifset
5573
5574@ifset D10V
5575@include c-d10v.texi
5576@end ifset
5577
5578@ifset D30V
5579@include c-d30v.texi
5580@end ifset
5581
5582@ifset H8/300
5583@include c-h8300.texi
5584@end ifset
5585
5586@ifset H8/500
5587@include c-h8500.texi
5588@end ifset
5589
5590@ifset HPPA
5591@include c-hppa.texi
5592@end ifset
5593
5b93d8bb
AM
5594@ifset I370
5595@include c-i370.texi
5596@end ifset
5597
252b5132
RH
5598@ifset I80386
5599@include c-i386.texi
5600@end ifset
5601
e3308d0d
JE
5602@ifset I860
5603@include c-i860.texi
5604@end ifset
5605
252b5132
RH
5606@ifset I960
5607@include c-i960.texi
5608@end ifset
5609
ec694b89
NC
5610@ifset M32R
5611@include c-m32r.texi
5612@end ifset
252b5132
RH
5613
5614@ifset M680X0
5615@include c-m68k.texi
5616@end ifset
5617
60bcf0fa
NC
5618@ifset M68HC11
5619@include c-m68hc11.texi
5620@end ifset
5621
81b0b3f1
BE
5622@ifset M880X0
5623@include c-m88k.texi
5624@end ifset
5625
252b5132
RH
5626@ifset MIPS
5627@include c-mips.texi
5628@end ifset
5629
5630@ifset NS32K
5631@include c-ns32k.texi
5632@end ifset
5633
e135f41b
NC
5634@ifset PDP11
5635@include c-pdp11.texi
5636@end ifset
5637
041dd5a9
ILT
5638@ifset PJ
5639@include c-pj.texi
5640@end ifset
5641
252b5132
RH
5642@ifset SH
5643@include c-sh.texi
5644@end ifset
5645
5646@ifset SPARC
5647@include c-sparc.texi
5648@end ifset
5649
39bec121
TW
5650@ifset TIC54X
5651@include c-tic54x.texi
5652@end ifset
5653
252b5132
RH
5654@ifset Z8000
5655@include c-z8k.texi
5656@end ifset
5657
5658@ifset VAX
5659@include c-vax.texi
5660@end ifset
5661
5662@ifset V850
5663@include c-v850.texi
5664@end ifset
5665
5666@ifset GENERIC
5667@c reverse effect of @down at top of generic Machine-Dep chapter
5668@raisesections
5669@end ifset
5670
5671@node Reporting Bugs
5672@chapter Reporting Bugs
5673@cindex bugs in assembler
5674@cindex reporting bugs in assembler
5675
5676Your bug reports play an essential role in making @code{@value{AS}} reliable.
5677
5678Reporting a bug may help you by bringing a solution to your problem, or it may
5679not. But in any case the principal function of a bug report is to help the
5680entire community by making the next version of @code{@value{AS}} work better.
5681Bug reports are your contribution to the maintenance of @code{@value{AS}}.
5682
5683In order for a bug report to serve its purpose, you must include the
5684information that enables us to fix the bug.
5685
5686@menu
5687* Bug Criteria:: Have you found a bug?
5688* Bug Reporting:: How to report bugs
5689@end menu
5690
5691@node Bug Criteria
5692@section Have you found a bug?
5693@cindex bug criteria
5694
5695If you are not sure whether you have found a bug, here are some guidelines:
5696
5697@itemize @bullet
5698@cindex fatal signal
5699@cindex assembler crash
5700@cindex crash of assembler
5701@item
5702If the assembler gets a fatal signal, for any input whatever, that is a
5703@code{@value{AS}} bug. Reliable assemblers never crash.
5704
5705@cindex error on valid input
5706@item
5707If @code{@value{AS}} produces an error message for valid input, that is a bug.
5708
5709@cindex invalid input
5710@item
5711If @code{@value{AS}} does not produce an error message for invalid input, that
5712is a bug. However, you should note that your idea of ``invalid input'' might
5713be our idea of ``an extension'' or ``support for traditional practice''.
5714
5715@item
5716If you are an experienced user of assemblers, your suggestions for improvement
5717of @code{@value{AS}} are welcome in any case.
5718@end itemize
5719
5720@node Bug Reporting
5721@section How to report bugs
5722@cindex bug reports
5723@cindex assembler bugs, reporting
5724
5725A number of companies and individuals offer support for @sc{gnu} products. If
5726you obtained @code{@value{AS}} from a support organization, we recommend you
5727contact that organization first.
5728
5729You can find contact information for many support companies and
5730individuals in the file @file{etc/SERVICE} in the @sc{gnu} Emacs
5731distribution.
5732
5733In any event, we also recommend that you send bug reports for @code{@value{AS}}
46a04e3a 5734to @samp{bug-binutils@@gnu.org}.
252b5132
RH
5735
5736The fundamental principle of reporting bugs usefully is this:
5737@strong{report all the facts}. If you are not sure whether to state a
5738fact or leave it out, state it!
5739
5740Often people omit facts because they think they know what causes the problem
5741and assume that some details do not matter. Thus, you might assume that the
5742name of a symbol you use in an example does not matter. Well, probably it does
5743not, but one cannot be sure. Perhaps the bug is a stray memory reference which
5744happens to fetch from the location where that name is stored in memory;
5745perhaps, if the name were different, the contents of that location would fool
5746the assembler into doing the right thing despite the bug. Play it safe and
5747give a specific, complete example. That is the easiest thing for you to do,
5748and the most helpful.
5749
5750Keep in mind that the purpose of a bug report is to enable us to fix the bug if
5751it is new to us. Therefore, always write your bug reports on the assumption
5752that the bug has not been reported previously.
5753
5754Sometimes people give a few sketchy facts and ask, ``Does this ring a
5755bell?'' Those bug reports are useless, and we urge everyone to
5756@emph{refuse to respond to them} except to chide the sender to report
5757bugs properly.
5758
5759To enable us to fix the bug, you should include all these things:
5760
5761@itemize @bullet
5762@item
5763The version of @code{@value{AS}}. @code{@value{AS}} announces it if you start
5764it with the @samp{--version} argument.
5765
5766Without this, we will not know whether there is any point in looking for
5767the bug in the current version of @code{@value{AS}}.
5768
5769@item
5770Any patches you may have applied to the @code{@value{AS}} source.
5771
5772@item
5773The type of machine you are using, and the operating system name and
5774version number.
5775
5776@item
5777What compiler (and its version) was used to compile @code{@value{AS}}---e.g.
5778``@code{gcc-2.7}''.
5779
5780@item
5781The command arguments you gave the assembler to assemble your example and
5782observe the bug. To guarantee you will not omit something important, list them
5783all. A copy of the Makefile (or the output from make) is sufficient.
5784
5785If we were to try to guess the arguments, we would probably guess wrong
5786and then we might not encounter the bug.
5787
5788@item
5789A complete input file that will reproduce the bug. If the bug is observed when
5790the assembler is invoked via a compiler, send the assembler source, not the
5791high level language source. Most compilers will produce the assembler source
5792when run with the @samp{-S} option. If you are using @code{@value{GCC}}, use
5793the options @samp{-v --save-temps}; this will save the assembler source in a
5794file with an extension of @file{.s}, and also show you exactly how
5795@code{@value{AS}} is being run.
5796
5797@item
5798A description of what behavior you observe that you believe is
5799incorrect. For example, ``It gets a fatal signal.''
5800
5801Of course, if the bug is that @code{@value{AS}} gets a fatal signal, then we
5802will certainly notice it. But if the bug is incorrect output, we might not
5803notice unless it is glaringly wrong. You might as well not give us a chance to
5804make a mistake.
5805
5806Even if the problem you experience is a fatal signal, you should still say so
5807explicitly. Suppose something strange is going on, such as, your copy of
5808@code{@value{AS}} is out of synch, or you have encountered a bug in the C
5809library on your system. (This has happened!) Your copy might crash and ours
5810would not. If you told us to expect a crash, then when ours fails to crash, we
5811would know that the bug was not happening for us. If you had not told us to
5812expect a crash, then we would not be able to draw any conclusion from our
5813observations.
5814
5815@item
5816If you wish to suggest changes to the @code{@value{AS}} source, send us context
5817diffs, as generated by @code{diff} with the @samp{-u}, @samp{-c}, or @samp{-p}
5818option. Always send diffs from the old file to the new file. If you even
5819discuss something in the @code{@value{AS}} source, refer to it by context, not
5820by line number.
5821
5822The line numbers in our development sources will not match those in your
5823sources. Your line numbers would convey no useful information to us.
5824@end itemize
5825
5826Here are some things that are not necessary:
5827
5828@itemize @bullet
5829@item
5830A description of the envelope of the bug.
5831
5832Often people who encounter a bug spend a lot of time investigating
5833which changes to the input file will make the bug go away and which
5834changes will not affect it.
5835
5836This is often time consuming and not very useful, because the way we
5837will find the bug is by running a single example under the debugger
5838with breakpoints, not by pure deduction from a series of examples.
5839We recommend that you save your time for something else.
5840
5841Of course, if you can find a simpler example to report @emph{instead}
5842of the original one, that is a convenience for us. Errors in the
5843output will be easier to spot, running under the debugger will take
5844less time, and so on.
5845
5846However, simplification is not vital; if you do not want to do this,
5847report the bug anyway and send us the entire test case you used.
5848
5849@item
5850A patch for the bug.
5851
5852A patch for the bug does help us if it is a good one. But do not omit
5853the necessary information, such as the test case, on the assumption that
5854a patch is all we need. We might see problems with your patch and decide
5855to fix the problem another way, or we might not understand it at all.
5856
5857Sometimes with a program as complicated as @code{@value{AS}} it is very hard to
5858construct an example that will make the program follow a certain path through
5859the code. If you do not send us the example, we will not be able to construct
5860one, so we will not be able to verify that the bug is fixed.
5861
5862And if we cannot understand what bug you are trying to fix, or why your
5863patch should be an improvement, we will not install it. A test case will
5864help us to understand.
5865
5866@item
5867A guess about what the bug is or what it depends on.
5868
5869Such guesses are usually wrong. Even we cannot guess right about such
5870things without first using the debugger to find the facts.
5871@end itemize
5872
5873@node Acknowledgements
5874@chapter Acknowledgements
5875
5876If you have contributed to @code{@value{AS}} and your name isn't listed here,
5877it is not meant as a slight. We just don't know about it. Send mail to the
5878maintainer, and we'll correct the situation. Currently
5879@c (January 1994),
5880the maintainer is Ken Raeburn (email address @code{raeburn@@cygnus.com}).
5881
5882Dean Elsner wrote the original @sc{gnu} assembler for the VAX.@footnote{Any
5883more details?}
5884
5885Jay Fenlason maintained GAS for a while, adding support for GDB-specific debug
5886information and the 68k series machines, most of the preprocessing pass, and
5887extensive changes in @file{messages.c}, @file{input-file.c}, @file{write.c}.
5888
5889K. Richard Pixley maintained GAS for a while, adding various enhancements and
5890many bug fixes, including merging support for several processors, breaking GAS
5891up to handle multiple object file format back ends (including heavy rewrite,
5892testing, an integration of the coff and b.out back ends), adding configuration
5893including heavy testing and verification of cross assemblers and file splits
5894and renaming, converted GAS to strictly ANSI C including full prototypes, added
5895support for m680[34]0 and cpu32, did considerable work on i960 including a COFF
5896port (including considerable amounts of reverse engineering), a SPARC opcode
5897file rewrite, DECstation, rs6000, and hp300hpux host ports, updated ``know''
5898assertions and made them work, much other reorganization, cleanup, and lint.
5899
5900Ken Raeburn wrote the high-level BFD interface code to replace most of the code
5901in format-specific I/O modules.
5902
5903The original VMS support was contributed by David L. Kashtan. Eric Youngdale
5904has done much work with it since.
5905
5906The Intel 80386 machine description was written by Eliot Dresselhaus.
5907
5908Minh Tran-Le at IntelliCorp contributed some AIX 386 support.
5909
5910The Motorola 88k machine description was contributed by Devon Bowen of Buffalo
5911University and Torbjorn Granlund of the Swedish Institute of Computer Science.
5912
5913Keith Knowles at the Open Software Foundation wrote the original MIPS back end
5914(@file{tc-mips.c}, @file{tc-mips.h}), and contributed Rose format support
5915(which hasn't been merged in yet). Ralph Campbell worked with the MIPS code to
5916support a.out format.
5917
5918Support for the Zilog Z8k and Hitachi H8/300 and H8/500 processors (tc-z8k,
5919tc-h8300, tc-h8500), and IEEE 695 object file format (obj-ieee), was written by
5920Steve Chamberlain of Cygnus Support. Steve also modified the COFF back end to
5921use BFD for some low-level operations, for use with the H8/300 and AMD 29k
5922targets.
5923
5924John Gilmore built the AMD 29000 support, added @code{.include} support, and
5925simplified the configuration of which versions accept which directives. He
5926updated the 68k machine description so that Motorola's opcodes always produced
5927fixed-size instructions (e.g. @code{jsr}), while synthetic instructions
5928remained shrinkable (@code{jbsr}). John fixed many bugs, including true tested
5929cross-compilation support, and one bug in relaxation that took a week and
5930required the proverbial one-bit fix.
5931
5932Ian Lance Taylor of Cygnus Support merged the Motorola and MIT syntax for the
593368k, completed support for some COFF targets (68k, i386 SVR3, and SCO Unix),
5934added support for MIPS ECOFF and ELF targets, wrote the initial RS/6000 and
5935PowerPC assembler, and made a few other minor patches.
5936
5937Steve Chamberlain made @code{@value{AS}} able to generate listings.
5938
5939Hewlett-Packard contributed support for the HP9000/300.
5940
5941Jeff Law wrote GAS and BFD support for the native HPPA object format (SOM)
5942along with a fairly extensive HPPA testsuite (for both SOM and ELF object
5943formats). This work was supported by both the Center for Software Science at
5944the University of Utah and Cygnus Support.
5945
5946Support for ELF format files has been worked on by Mark Eichin of Cygnus
5947Support (original, incomplete implementation for SPARC), Pete Hoogenboom and
5948Jeff Law at the University of Utah (HPPA mainly), Michael Meissner of the Open
5949Software Foundation (i386 mainly), and Ken Raeburn of Cygnus Support (sparc,
5950and some initial 64-bit support).
5951
5b93d8bb
AM
5952Linas Vepstas added GAS support for the ESA/390 "IBM 370" architecture.
5953
252b5132
RH
5954Richard Henderson rewrote the Alpha assembler. Klaus Kaempf wrote GAS and BFD
5955support for openVMS/Alpha.
5956
39bec121
TW
5957Timothy Wall, Michael Hayes, and Greg Smart contributed to the various tic*
5958flavors.
5959
252b5132
RH
5960Several engineers at Cygnus Support have also provided many small bug fixes and
5961configuration enhancements.
5962
5963Many others have contributed large or small bugfixes and enhancements. If
5964you have contributed significant work and are not mentioned on this list, and
5965want to be, let us know. Some of the history has been lost; we are not
5966intentionally leaving anyone out.
5967
cf055d54
NC
5968@node GNU Free Documentation License
5969@chapter GNU Free Documentation License
5970
5971 GNU Free Documentation License
5972
5973 Version 1.1, March 2000
5974
5975 Copyright (C) 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
5976 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA
5977
5978 Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
5979 of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.
5980
5981
59820. PREAMBLE
5983
5984The purpose of this License is to make a manual, textbook, or other
5985written document "free" in the sense of freedom: to assure everyone
5986the effective freedom to copy and redistribute it, with or without
5987modifying it, either commercially or noncommercially. Secondarily,
5988this License preserves for the author and publisher a way to get
5989credit for their work, while not being considered responsible for
5990modifications made by others.
5991
5992This License is a kind of "copyleft", which means that derivative
5993works of the document must themselves be free in the same sense. It
5994complements the GNU General Public License, which is a copyleft
5995license designed for free software.
5996
5997We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for free
5998software, because free software needs free documentation: a free
5999program should come with manuals providing the same freedoms that the
6000software does. But this License is not limited to software manuals;
6001it can be used for any textual work, regardless of subject matter or
6002whether it is published as a printed book. We recommend this License
6003principally for works whose purpose is instruction or reference.
6004
6005
60061. APPLICABILITY AND DEFINITIONS
6007
6008This License applies to any manual or other work that contains a
6009notice placed by the copyright holder saying it can be distributed
6010under the terms of this License. The "Document", below, refers to any
6011such manual or work. Any member of the public is a licensee, and is
6012addressed as "you".
6013
6014A "Modified Version" of the Document means any work containing the
6015Document or a portion of it, either copied verbatim, or with
6016modifications and/or translated into another language.
6017
6018A "Secondary Section" is a named appendix or a front-matter section of
6019the Document that deals exclusively with the relationship of the
6020publishers or authors of the Document to the Document's overall subject
6021(or to related matters) and contains nothing that could fall directly
6022within that overall subject. (For example, if the Document is in part a
6023textbook of mathematics, a Secondary Section may not explain any
6024mathematics.) The relationship could be a matter of historical
6025connection with the subject or with related matters, or of legal,
6026commercial, philosophical, ethical or political position regarding
6027them.
6028
6029The "Invariant Sections" are certain Secondary Sections whose titles
6030are designated, as being those of Invariant Sections, in the notice
6031that says that the Document is released under this License.
6032
6033The "Cover Texts" are certain short passages of text that are listed,
6034as Front-Cover Texts or Back-Cover Texts, in the notice that says that
6035the Document is released under this License.
6036
6037A "Transparent" copy of the Document means a machine-readable copy,
6038represented in a format whose specification is available to the
6039general public, whose contents can be viewed and edited directly and
6040straightforwardly with generic text editors or (for images composed of
6041pixels) generic paint programs or (for drawings) some widely available
6042drawing editor, and that is suitable for input to text formatters or
6043for automatic translation to a variety of formats suitable for input
6044to text formatters. A copy made in an otherwise Transparent file
6045format whose markup has been designed to thwart or discourage
6046subsequent modification by readers is not Transparent. A copy that is
6047not "Transparent" is called "Opaque".
6048
6049Examples of suitable formats for Transparent copies include plain
6050ASCII without markup, Texinfo input format, LaTeX input format, SGML
6051or XML using a publicly available DTD, and standard-conforming simple
6052HTML designed for human modification. Opaque formats include
6053PostScript, PDF, proprietary formats that can be read and edited only
6054by proprietary word processors, SGML or XML for which the DTD and/or
6055processing tools are not generally available, and the
6056machine-generated HTML produced by some word processors for output
6057purposes only.
6058
6059The "Title Page" means, for a printed book, the title page itself,
6060plus such following pages as are needed to hold, legibly, the material
6061this License requires to appear in the title page. For works in
6062formats which do not have any title page as such, "Title Page" means
6063the text near the most prominent appearance of the work's title,
6064preceding the beginning of the body of the text.
6065
6066
60672. VERBATIM COPYING
6068
6069You may copy and distribute the Document in any medium, either
6070commercially or noncommercially, provided that this License, the
6071copyright notices, and the license notice saying this License applies
6072to the Document are reproduced in all copies, and that you add no other
6073conditions whatsoever to those of this License. You may not use
6074technical measures to obstruct or control the reading or further
6075copying of the copies you make or distribute. However, you may accept
6076compensation in exchange for copies. If you distribute a large enough
6077number of copies you must also follow the conditions in section 3.
6078
6079You may also lend copies, under the same conditions stated above, and
6080you may publicly display copies.
6081
6082
60833. COPYING IN QUANTITY
6084
6085If you publish printed copies of the Document numbering more than 100,
6086and the Document's license notice requires Cover Texts, you must enclose
6087the copies in covers that carry, clearly and legibly, all these Cover
6088Texts: Front-Cover Texts on the front cover, and Back-Cover Texts on
6089the back cover. Both covers must also clearly and legibly identify
6090you as the publisher of these copies. The front cover must present
6091the full title with all words of the title equally prominent and
6092visible. You may add other material on the covers in addition.
6093Copying with changes limited to the covers, as long as they preserve
6094the title of the Document and satisfy these conditions, can be treated
6095as verbatim copying in other respects.
6096
6097If the required texts for either cover are too voluminous to fit
6098legibly, you should put the first ones listed (as many as fit
6099reasonably) on the actual cover, and continue the rest onto adjacent
6100pages.
6101
6102If you publish or distribute Opaque copies of the Document numbering
6103more than 100, you must either include a machine-readable Transparent
6104copy along with each Opaque copy, or state in or with each Opaque copy
6105a publicly-accessible computer-network location containing a complete
6106Transparent copy of the Document, free of added material, which the
6107general network-using public has access to download anonymously at no
6108charge using public-standard network protocols. If you use the latter
6109option, you must take reasonably prudent steps, when you begin
6110distribution of Opaque copies in quantity, to ensure that this
6111Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated location
6112until at least one year after the last time you distribute an Opaque
6113copy (directly or through your agents or retailers) of that edition to
6114the public.
6115
6116It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of the
6117Document well before redistributing any large number of copies, to give
6118them a chance to provide you with an updated version of the Document.
6119
6120
61214. MODIFICATIONS
6122
6123You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document under
6124the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you release
6125the Modified Version under precisely this License, with the Modified
6126Version filling the role of the Document, thus licensing distribution
6127and modification of the Modified Version to whoever possesses a copy
6128of it. In addition, you must do these things in the Modified Version:
6129
6130A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title distinct
6131 from that of the Document, and from those of previous versions
6132 (which should, if there were any, be listed in the History section
6133 of the Document). You may use the same title as a previous version
6134 if the original publisher of that version gives permission.
6135B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or entities
6136 responsible for authorship of the modifications in the Modified
6137 Version, together with at least five of the principal authors of the
6138 Document (all of its principal authors, if it has less than five).
6139C. State on the Title page the name of the publisher of the
6140 Modified Version, as the publisher.
6141D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document.
6142E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modifications
6143 adjacent to the other copyright notices.
6144F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license notice
6145 giving the public permission to use the Modified Version under the
6146 terms of this License, in the form shown in the Addendum below.
6147G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant Sections
6148 and required Cover Texts given in the Document's license notice.
6149H. Include an unaltered copy of this License.
6150I. Preserve the section entitled "History", and its title, and add to
6151 it an item stating at least the title, year, new authors, and
6152 publisher of the Modified Version as given on the Title Page. If
6153 there is no section entitled "History" in the Document, create one
6154 stating the title, year, authors, and publisher of the Document as
6155 given on its Title Page, then add an item describing the Modified
6156 Version as stated in the previous sentence.
6157J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document for
6158 public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and likewise
6159 the network locations given in the Document for previous versions
6160 it was based on. These may be placed in the "History" section.
6161 You may omit a network location for a work that was published at
6162 least four years before the Document itself, or if the original
6163 publisher of the version it refers to gives permission.
6164K. In any section entitled "Acknowledgements" or "Dedications",
6165 preserve the section's title, and preserve in the section all the
6166 substance and tone of each of the contributor acknowledgements
6167 and/or dedications given therein.
6168L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document,
6169 unaltered in their text and in their titles. Section numbers
6170 or the equivalent are not considered part of the section titles.
6171M. Delete any section entitled "Endorsements". Such a section
6172 may not be included in the Modified Version.
6173N. Do not retitle any existing section as "Endorsements"
6174 or to conflict in title with any Invariant Section.
6175
6176If the Modified Version includes new front-matter sections or
6177appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no material
6178copied from the Document, you may at your option designate some or all
6179of these sections as invariant. To do this, add their titles to the
6180list of Invariant Sections in the Modified Version's license notice.
6181These titles must be distinct from any other section titles.
6182
6183You may add a section entitled "Endorsements", provided it contains
6184nothing but endorsements of your Modified Version by various
6185parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text has
6186been approved by an organization as the authoritative definition of a
6187standard.
6188
6189You may add a passage of up to five words as a Front-Cover Text, and a
6190passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end of the list
6191of Cover Texts in the Modified Version. Only one passage of
6192Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be added by (or
6193through arrangements made by) any one entity. If the Document already
6194includes a cover text for the same cover, previously added by you or
6195by arrangement made by the same entity you are acting on behalf of,
6196you may not add another; but you may replace the old one, on explicit
6197permission from the previous publisher that added the old one.
6198
6199The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this License
6200give permission to use their names for publicity for or to assert or
6201imply endorsement of any Modified Version.
6202
6203
62045. COMBINING DOCUMENTS
6205
6206You may combine the Document with other documents released under this
6207License, under the terms defined in section 4 above for modified
6208versions, provided that you include in the combination all of the
6209Invariant Sections of all of the original documents, unmodified, and
6210list them all as Invariant Sections of your combined work in its
6211license notice.
6212
6213The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and
6214multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single
6215copy. If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name but
6216different contents, make the title of each such section unique by
6217adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the original
6218author or publisher of that section if known, or else a unique number.
6219Make the same adjustment to the section titles in the list of
6220Invariant Sections in the license notice of the combined work.
6221
6222In the combination, you must combine any sections entitled "History"
6223in the various original documents, forming one section entitled
6224"History"; likewise combine any sections entitled "Acknowledgements",
6225and any sections entitled "Dedications". You must delete all sections
6226entitled "Endorsements."
6227
6228
62296. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS
6230
6231You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other documents
6232released under this License, and replace the individual copies of this
6233License in the various documents with a single copy that is included in
6234the collection, provided that you follow the rules of this License for
6235verbatim copying of each of the documents in all other respects.
6236
6237You may extract a single document from such a collection, and distribute
6238it individually under this License, provided you insert a copy of this
6239License into the extracted document, and follow this License in all
6240other respects regarding verbatim copying of that document.
6241
6242
62437. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS
6244
6245A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other separate
6246and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of a storage or
6247distribution medium, does not as a whole count as a Modified Version
6248of the Document, provided no compilation copyright is claimed for the
6249compilation. Such a compilation is called an "aggregate", and this
6250License does not apply to the other self-contained works thus compiled
6251with the Document, on account of their being thus compiled, if they
6252are not themselves derivative works of the Document.
6253
6254If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these
6255copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one quarter
6256of the entire aggregate, the Document's Cover Texts may be placed on
6257covers that surround only the Document within the aggregate.
6258Otherwise they must appear on covers around the whole aggregate.
6259
6260
62618. TRANSLATION
6262
6263Translation is considered a kind of modification, so you may
6264distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section 4.
6265Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special
6266permission from their copyright holders, but you may include
6267translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the
6268original versions of these Invariant Sections. You may include a
6269translation of this License provided that you also include the
6270original English version of this License. In case of a disagreement
6271between the translation and the original English version of this
6272License, the original English version will prevail.
6273
6274
62759. TERMINATION
6276
6277You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document except
6278as expressly provided for under this License. Any other attempt to
6279copy, modify, sublicense or distribute the Document is void, and will
6280automatically terminate your rights under this License. However,
6281parties who have received copies, or rights, from you under this
6282License will not have their licenses terminated so long as such
6283parties remain in full compliance.
6284
6285
628610. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE
6287
6288The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions
6289of the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time. Such new
6290versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may
6291differ in detail to address new problems or concerns. See
6292http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/.
6293
6294Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version number.
6295If the Document specifies that a particular numbered version of this
6296License "or any later version" applies to it, you have the option of
6297following the terms and conditions either of that specified version or
6298of any later version that has been published (not as a draft) by the
6299Free Software Foundation. If the Document does not specify a version
6300number of this License, you may choose any version ever published (not
6301as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation.
6302
6303
6304ADDENDUM: How to use this License for your documents
6305
6306To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of
6307the License in the document and put the following copyright and
6308license notices just after the title page:
6309
6310@smallexample
6311 Copyright (c) YEAR YOUR NAME.
6312 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
6313 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1
6314 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
6315 with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with the
6316 Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts being LIST.
6317 A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU
6318 Free Documentation License".
6319@end smallexample
6320
6321If you have no Invariant Sections, write "with no Invariant Sections"
6322instead of saying which ones are invariant. If you have no
6323Front-Cover Texts, write "no Front-Cover Texts" instead of
6324"Front-Cover Texts being LIST"; likewise for Back-Cover Texts.
6325
6326If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we
6327recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of
6328free software license, such as the GNU General Public License,
6329to permit their use in free software.
6330
252b5132
RH
6331@node Index
6332@unnumbered Index
6333
6334@printindex cp
6335
6336@contents
6337@bye
6338@c Local Variables:
6339@c fill-column: 79
6340@c End:
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