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This is gdb.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.8 from../.././gdb/doc/gdb.texinfo.INFO-DIR-SECTION Software developmentSTART-INFO-DIR-ENTRY* Gdb: (gdb). The GNU debugger.END-INFO-DIR-ENTRYThis file documents the GNU debugger GDB.This is the Ninth Edition, of `Debugging with GDB: the GNUSource-Level Debugger' for GDB Version 6.8.Copyright (C) 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996,1998,1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006Free Software Foundation, Inc.Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this documentunder the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 orany later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with theInvariant Sections being "Free Software" and "Free Software Needs FreeDocumentation", with the Front-Cover Texts being "A GNU Manual," andwith the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below.(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: "You are free to copy and modifythis GNU Manual. Buying copies from GNU Press supports the FSF indeveloping GNU and promoting software freedom."File: gdb.info, Node: Automatic Overlay Debugging, Next: Overlay Sample Program, Prev: Overlay Commands, Up: Overlays11.3 Automatic Overlay Debugging================================GDB can automatically track which overlays are mapped and which arenot, given some simple co-operation from the overlay manager in theinferior. If you enable automatic overlay debugging with the `overlayauto' command (*note Overlay Commands::), GDB looks in the inferior'smemory for certain variables describing the current state of theoverlays.Here are the variables your overlay manager must define to supportGDB's automatic overlay debugging:`_ovly_table':This variable must be an array of the following structures:struct{/* The overlay's mapped address. */unsigned long vma;/* The size of the overlay, in bytes. */unsigned long size;/* The overlay's load address. */unsigned long lma;/* Non-zero if the overlay is currently mapped;zero otherwise. */unsigned long mapped;}`_novlys':This variable must be a four-byte signed integer, holding the totalnumber of elements in `_ovly_table'.To decide whether a particular overlay is mapped or not, GDB looksfor an entry in `_ovly_table' whose `vma' and `lma' members equal theVMA and LMA of the overlay's section in the executable file. When GDBfinds a matching entry, it consults the entry's `mapped' member todetermine whether the overlay is currently mapped.In addition, your overlay manager may define a function called`_ovly_debug_event'. If this function is defined, GDB will silentlyset a breakpoint there. If the overlay manager then calls thisfunction whenever it has changed the overlay table, this will enableGDB to accurately keep track of which overlays are in program memory,and update any breakpoints that may be set in overlays. This willallow breakpoints to work even if the overlays are kept in ROM or othernon-writable memory while they are not being executed.File: gdb.info, Node: Overlay Sample Program, Prev: Automatic Overlay Debugging, Up: Overlays11.4 Overlay Sample Program===========================When linking a program which uses overlays, you must place the overlaysat their load addresses, while relocating them to run at their mappedaddresses. To do this, you must write a linker script (*note OverlayDescription: (ld.info)Overlay Description.). Unfortunately, sincelinker scripts are specific to a particular host system, targetarchitecture, and target memory layout, this manual cannot provideportable sample code demonstrating GDB's overlay support.However, the GDB source distribution does contain an overlaidprogram, with linker scripts for a few systems, as part of its testsuite. The program consists of the following files from`gdb/testsuite/gdb.base':`overlays.c'The main program file.`ovlymgr.c'A simple overlay manager, used by `overlays.c'.`foo.c'`bar.c'`baz.c'`grbx.c'Overlay modules, loaded and used by `overlays.c'.`d10v.ld'`m32r.ld'Linker scripts for linking the test program on the `d10v-elf' and`m32r-elf' targets.You can build the test program using the `d10v-elf' GCCcross-compiler like this:$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c overlays.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c ovlymgr.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c foo.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c bar.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c baz.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g -c grbx.c$ d10v-elf-gcc -g overlays.o ovlymgr.o foo.o bar.o \baz.o grbx.o -Wl,-Td10v.ld -o overlaysThe build process is identical for any other architecture, exceptthat you must substitute the appropriate compiler and linker script forthe target system for `d10v-elf-gcc' and `d10v.ld'.File: gdb.info, Node: Languages, Next: Symbols, Prev: Overlays, Up: Top12 Using GDB with Different Languages*************************************Although programming languages generally have common aspects, they arerarely expressed in the same manner. For instance, in ANSI C,dereferencing a pointer `p' is accomplished by `*p', but in Modula-2,it is accomplished by `p^'. Values can also be represented (anddisplayed) differently. Hex numbers in C appear as `0x1ae', while inModula-2 they appear as `1AEH'.Language-specific information is built into GDB for some languages,allowing you to express operations like the above in your program'snative language, and allowing GDB to output values in a mannerconsistent with the syntax of your program's native language. Thelanguage you use to build expressions is called the "working language".* Menu:* Setting:: Switching between source languages* Show:: Displaying the language* Checks:: Type and range checks* Supported Languages:: Supported languages* Unsupported Languages:: Unsupported languagesFile: gdb.info, Node: Setting, Next: Show, Up: Languages12.1 Switching Between Source Languages=======================================There are two ways to control the working language--either have GDB setit automatically, or select it manually yourself. You can use the `setlanguage' command for either purpose. On startup, GDB defaults tosetting the language automatically. The working language is used todetermine how expressions you type are interpreted, how values areprinted, etc.In addition to the working language, every source file that GDBknows about has its own working language. For some object fileformats, the compiler might indicate which language a particular sourcefile is in. However, most of the time GDB infers the language from thename of the file. The language of a source file controls whether C++names are demangled--this way `backtrace' can show each frameappropriately for its own language. There is no way to set thelanguage of a source file from within GDB, but you can set the languageassociated with a filename extension. *Note Displaying the Language:Show.This is most commonly a problem when you use a program, such as`cfront' or `f2c', that generates C but is written in another language.In that case, make the program use `#line' directives in its C output;that way GDB will know the correct language of the source code of theoriginal program, and will display that source code, not the generatedC code.* Menu:* Filenames:: Filename extensions and languages.* Manually:: Setting the working language manually* Automatically:: Having GDB infer the source languageFile: gdb.info, Node: Filenames, Next: Manually, Up: Setting12.1.1 List of Filename Extensions and Languages------------------------------------------------If a source file name ends in one of the following extensions, then GDBinfers that its language is the one indicated.`.ada'`.ads'`.adb'`.a'Ada source file.`.c'C source file`.C'`.cc'`.cp'`.cpp'`.cxx'`.c++'C++ source file`.m'Objective-C source file`.f'`.F'Fortran source file`.mod'Modula-2 source file`.s'`.S'Assembler source file. This actually behaves almost like C, butGDB does not skip over function prologues when stepping.In addition, you may set the language associated with a filenameextension. *Note Displaying the Language: Show.File: gdb.info, Node: Manually, Next: Automatically, Prev: Filenames, Up: Setting12.1.2 Setting the Working Language-----------------------------------If you allow GDB to set the language automatically, expressions areinterpreted the same way in your debugging session and your program.If you wish, you may set the language manually. To do this, issuethe command `set language LANG', where LANG is the name of a language,such as `c' or `modula-2'. For a list of the supported languages, type`set language'.Setting the language manually prevents GDB from updating the workinglanguage automatically. This can lead to confusion if you try to debuga program when the working language is not the same as the sourcelanguage, when an expression is acceptable to both languages--but meansdifferent things. For instance, if the current source file werewritten in C, and GDB was parsing Modula-2, a command such as:print a = b + cmight not have the effect you intended. In C, this means to add `b'and `c' and place the result in `a'. The result printed would be thevalue of `a'. In Modula-2, this means to compare `a' to the result of`b+c', yielding a `BOOLEAN' value.File: gdb.info, Node: Automatically, Prev: Manually, Up: Setting12.1.3 Having GDB Infer the Source Language-------------------------------------------To have GDB set the working language automatically, use `set languagelocal' or `set language auto'. GDB then infers the working language.That is, when your program stops in a frame (usually by encountering abreakpoint), GDB sets the working language to the language recorded forthe function in that frame. If the language for a frame is unknown(that is, if the function or block corresponding to the frame wasdefined in a source file that does not have a recognized extension),the current working language is not changed, and GDB issues a warning.This may not seem necessary for most programs, which are writtenentirely in one source language. However, program modules and librarieswritten in one source language can be used by a main program written ina different source language. Using `set language auto' in this casefrees you from having to set the working language manually.File: gdb.info, Node: Show, Next: Checks, Prev: Setting, Up: Languages12.2 Displaying the Language============================The following commands help you find out which language is the workinglanguage, and also what language source files were written in.`show language'Display the current working language. This is the language youcan use with commands such as `print' to build and computeexpressions that may involve variables in your program.`info frame'Display the source language for this frame. This language becomesthe working language if you use an identifier from this frame.*Note Information about a Frame: Frame Info, to identify the otherinformation listed here.`info source'Display the source language of this source file. *Note Examiningthe Symbol Table: Symbols, to identify the other informationlisted here.In unusual circumstances, you may have source files with extensionsnot in the standard list. You can then set the extension associatedwith a language explicitly:`set extension-language EXT LANGUAGE'Tell GDB that source files with extension EXT are to be assumed aswritten in the source language LANGUAGE.`info extensions'List all the filename extensions and the associated languages.File: gdb.info, Node: Checks, Next: Supported Languages, Prev: Show, Up: Languages12.3 Type and Range Checking============================_Warning:_ In this release, the GDB commands for type and rangechecking are included, but they do not yet have any effect. Thissection documents the intended facilities.Some languages are designed to guard you against making seeminglycommon errors through a series of compile- and run-time checks. Theseinclude checking the type of arguments to functions and operators, andmaking sure mathematical overflows are caught at run time. Checks suchas these help to ensure a program's correctness once it has beencompiled by eliminating type mismatches, and providing active checksfor range errors when your program is running.GDB can check for conditions like the above if you wish. AlthoughGDB does not check the statements in your program, it can checkexpressions entered directly into GDB for evaluation via the `print'command, for example. As with the working language, GDB can alsodecide whether or not to check automatically based on your program'ssource language. *Note Supported Languages: Supported Languages, forthe default settings of supported languages.* Menu:* Type Checking:: An overview of type checking* Range Checking:: An overview of range checkingFile: gdb.info, Node: Type Checking, Next: Range Checking, Up: Checks12.3.1 An Overview of Type Checking-----------------------------------Some languages, such as Modula-2, are strongly typed, meaning that thearguments to operators and functions have to be of the correct type,otherwise an error occurs. These checks prevent type mismatch errorsfrom ever causing any run-time problems. For example,1 + 2 => 3buterror--> 1 + 2.3The second example fails because the `CARDINAL' 1 is nottype-compatible with the `REAL' 2.3.For the expressions you use in GDB commands, you can tell the GDBtype checker to skip checking; to treat any mismatches as errors andabandon the expression; or to only issue warnings when type mismatchesoccur, but evaluate the expression anyway. When you choose the last ofthese, GDB evaluates expressions like the second example above, butalso issues a warning.Even if you turn type checking off, there may be other reasonsrelated to type that prevent GDB from evaluating an expression. Forinstance, GDB does not know how to add an `int' and a `struct foo'.These particular type errors have nothing to do with the language inuse, and usually arise from expressions, such as the one describedabove, which make little sense to evaluate anyway.Each language defines to what degree it is strict about type. Forinstance, both Modula-2 and C require the arguments to arithmeticaloperators to be numbers. In C, enumerated types and pointers can berepresented as numbers, so that they are valid arguments to mathematicaloperators. *Note Supported Languages: Supported Languages, for furtherdetails on specific languages.GDB provides some additional commands for controlling the typechecker:`set check type auto'Set type checking on or off based on the current working language.*Note Supported Languages: Supported Languages, for the defaultsettings for each language.`set check type on'`set check type off'Set type checking on or off, overriding the default setting for thecurrent working language. Issue a warning if the setting does notmatch the language default. If any type mismatches occur inevaluating an expression while type checking is on, GDB prints amessage and aborts evaluation of the expression.`set check type warn'Cause the type checker to issue warnings, but to always attempt toevaluate the expression. Evaluating the expression may still beimpossible for other reasons. For example, GDB cannot add numbersand structures.`show type'Show the current setting of the type checker, and whether or notGDB is setting it automatically.File: gdb.info, Node: Range Checking, Prev: Type Checking, Up: Checks12.3.2 An Overview of Range Checking------------------------------------In some languages (such as Modula-2), it is an error to exceed thebounds of a type; this is enforced with run-time checks. Such rangechecking is meant to ensure program correctness by making surecomputations do not overflow, or indices on an array element access donot exceed the bounds of the array.For expressions you use in GDB commands, you can tell GDB to treatrange errors in one of three ways: ignore them, always treat them aserrors and abandon the expression, or issue warnings but evaluate theexpression anyway.A range error can result from numerical overflow, from exceeding anarray index bound, or when you type a constant that is not a member ofany type. Some languages, however, do not treat overflows as an error.In many implementations of C, mathematical overflow causes the resultto "wrap around" to lower values--for example, if M is the largestinteger value, and S is the smallest, thenM + 1 => SThis, too, is specific to individual languages, and in some casesspecific to individual compilers or machines. *Note SupportedLanguages: Supported Languages, for further details on specificlanguages.GDB provides some additional commands for controlling the rangechecker:`set check range auto'Set range checking on or off based on the current working language.*Note Supported Languages: Supported Languages, for the defaultsettings for each language.`set check range on'`set check range off'Set range checking on or off, overriding the default setting forthe current working language. A warning is issued if the settingdoes not match the language default. If a range error occurs andrange checking is on, then a message is printed and evaluation ofthe expression is aborted.`set check range warn'Output messages when the GDB range checker detects a range error,but attempt to evaluate the expression anyway. Evaluating theexpression may still be impossible for other reasons, such asaccessing memory that the process does not own (a typical examplefrom many Unix systems).`show range'Show the current setting of the range checker, and whether or notit is being set automatically by GDB.File: gdb.info, Node: Supported Languages, Next: Unsupported Languages, Prev: Checks, Up: Languages12.4 Supported Languages========================GDB supports C, C++, Objective-C, Fortran, Java, Pascal, assembly,Modula-2, and Ada. Some GDB features may be used in expressionsregardless of the language you use: the GDB `@' and `::' operators, andthe `{type}addr' construct (*note Expressions: Expressions.) can beused with the constructs of any supported language.The following sections detail to what degree each source language issupported by GDB. These sections are not meant to be languagetutorials or references, but serve only as a reference guide to what theGDB expression parser accepts, and what input and output formats shouldlook like for different languages. There are many good books writtenon each of these languages; please look to these for a languagereference or tutorial.* Menu:* C:: C and C++* Objective-C:: Objective-C* Fortran:: Fortran* Pascal:: Pascal* Modula-2:: Modula-2* Ada:: AdaFile: gdb.info, Node: C, Next: Objective-C, Up: Supported Languages12.4.1 C and C++----------------Since C and C++ are so closely related, many features of GDB apply toboth languages. Whenever this is the case, we discuss those languagestogether.The C++ debugging facilities are jointly implemented by the C++compiler and GDB. Therefore, to debug your C++ code effectively, youmust compile your C++ programs with a supported C++ compiler, such asGNU `g++', or the HP ANSI C++ compiler (`aCC').For best results when using GNU C++, use the DWARF 2 debuggingformat; if it doesn't work on your system, try the stabs+ debuggingformat. You can select those formats explicitly with the `g++'command-line options `-gdwarf-2' and `-gstabs+'. *Note Options forDebugging Your Program or GCC: (gcc.info)Debugging Options.* Menu:* C Operators:: C and C++ operators* C Constants:: C and C++ constants* C Plus Plus Expressions:: C++ expressions* C Defaults:: Default settings for C and C++* C Checks:: C and C++ type and range checks* Debugging C:: GDB and C* Debugging C Plus Plus:: GDB features for C++* Decimal Floating Point:: Numbers in Decimal Floating Point formatFile: gdb.info, Node: C Operators, Next: C Constants, Up: C12.4.1.1 C and C++ Operators............................Operators must be defined on values of specific types. For instance,`+' is defined on numbers, but not on structures. Operators are oftendefined on groups of types.For the purposes of C and C++, the following definitions hold:* _Integral types_ include `int' with any of its storage-classspecifiers; `char'; `enum'; and, for C++, `bool'.* _Floating-point types_ include `float', `double', and `longdouble' (if supported by the target platform).* _Pointer types_ include all types defined as `(TYPE *)'.* _Scalar types_ include all of the above.The following operators are supported. They are listed here in orderof increasing precedence:`,'The comma or sequencing operator. Expressions in acomma-separated list are evaluated from left to right, with theresult of the entire expression being the last expressionevaluated.`='Assignment. The value of an assignment expression is the valueassigned. Defined on scalar types.`OP='Used in an expression of the form `A OP= B', and translated to`A = A OP B'. `OP=' and `=' have the same precedence. OP is anyone of the operators `|', `^', `&', `<<', `>>', `+', `-', `*',`/', `%'.`?:'The ternary operator. `A ? B : C' can be thought of as: if Athen B else C. A should be of an integral type.`||'Logical OR. Defined on integral types.`&&'Logical AND. Defined on integral types.`|'Bitwise OR. Defined on integral types.`^'Bitwise exclusive-OR. Defined on integral types.`&'Bitwise AND. Defined on integral types.`==, !='Equality and inequality. Defined on scalar types. The value ofthese expressions is 0 for false and non-zero for true.`<, >, <=, >='Less than, greater than, less than or equal, greater than or equal.Defined on scalar types. The value of these expressions is 0 forfalse and non-zero for true.`<<, >>'left shift, and right shift. Defined on integral types.`@'The GDB "artificial array" operator (*note Expressions:Expressions.).`+, -'Addition and subtraction. Defined on integral types,floating-point types and pointer types.`*, /, %'Multiplication, division, and modulus. Multiplication anddivision are defined on integral and floating-point types.Modulus is defined on integral types.`++, --'Increment and decrement. When appearing before a variable, theoperation is performed before the variable is used in anexpression; when appearing after it, the variable's value is usedbefore the operation takes place.`*'Pointer dereferencing. Defined on pointer types. Same precedenceas `++'.`&'Address operator. Defined on variables. Same precedence as `++'.For debugging C++, GDB implements a use of `&' beyond what isallowed in the C++ language itself: you can use `&(&REF)' toexamine the address where a C++ reference variable (declared with`&REF') is stored.`-'Negative. Defined on integral and floating-point types. Sameprecedence as `++'.`!'Logical negation. Defined on integral types. Same precedence as`++'.`~'Bitwise complement operator. Defined on integral types. Sameprecedence as `++'.`., ->'Structure member, and pointer-to-structure member. Forconvenience, GDB regards the two as equivalent, choosing whetherto dereference a pointer based on the stored type information.Defined on `struct' and `union' data.`.*, ->*'Dereferences of pointers to members.`[]'Array indexing. `A[I]' is defined as `*(A+I)'. Same precedenceas `->'.`()'Function parameter list. Same precedence as `->'.`::'C++ scope resolution operator. Defined on `struct', `union', and`class' types.`::'Doubled colons also represent the GDB scope operator (*noteExpressions: Expressions.). Same precedence as `::', above.If an operator is redefined in the user code, GDB usually attemptsto invoke the redefined version instead of using the operator'spredefined meaning.File: gdb.info, Node: C Constants, Next: C Plus Plus Expressions, Prev: C Operators, Up: C12.4.1.2 C and C++ Constants............................GDB allows you to express the constants of C and C++ in the followingways:* Integer constants are a sequence of digits. Octal constants arespecified by a leading `0' (i.e. zero), and hexadecimal constantsby a leading `0x' or `0X'. Constants may also end with a letter`l', specifying that the constant should be treated as a `long'value.* Floating point constants are a sequence of digits, followed by adecimal point, followed by a sequence of digits, and optionallyfollowed by an exponent. An exponent is of the form:`e[[+]|-]NNN', where NNN is another sequence of digits. The `+'is optional for positive exponents. A floating-point constant mayalso end with a letter `f' or `F', specifying that the constantshould be treated as being of the `float' (as opposed to thedefault `double') type; or with a letter `l' or `L', whichspecifies a `long double' constant.* Enumerated constants consist of enumerated identifiers, or theirintegral equivalents.* Character constants are a single character surrounded by singlequotes (`''), or a number--the ordinal value of the correspondingcharacter (usually its ASCII value). Within quotes, the singlecharacter may be represented by a letter or by "escape sequences",which are of the form `\NNN', where NNN is the octal representationof the character's ordinal value; or of the form `\X', where `X'is a predefined special character--for example, `\n' for newline.* String constants are a sequence of character constants surroundedby double quotes (`"'). Any valid character constant (as describedabove) may appear. Double quotes within the string must bepreceded by a backslash, so for instance `"a\"b'c"' is a string offive characters.* Pointer constants are an integral value. You can also writepointers to constants using the C operator `&'.* Array constants are comma-separated lists surrounded by braces `{'and `}'; for example, `{1,2,3}' is a three-element array ofintegers, `{{1,2}, {3,4}, {5,6}}' is a three-by-two array, and`{&"hi", &"there", &"fred"}' is a three-element array of pointers.File: gdb.info, Node: C Plus Plus Expressions, Next: C Defaults, Prev: C Constants, Up: C12.4.1.3 C++ Expressions........................GDB expression handling can interpret most C++ expressions._Warning:_ GDB can only debug C++ code if you use the propercompiler and the proper debug format. Currently, GDB works bestwhen debugging C++ code that is compiled with GCC 2.95.3 or withGCC 3.1 or newer, using the options `-gdwarf-2' or `-gstabs+'.DWARF 2 is preferred over stabs+. Most configurations of GCC emiteither DWARF 2 or stabs+ as their default debug format, so youusually don't need to specify a debug format explicitly. Othercompilers and/or debug formats are likely to work badly or not atall when using GDB to debug C++ code.1. Member function calls are allowed; you can use expressions likecount = aml->GetOriginal(x, y)2. While a member function is active (in the selected stack frame),your expressions have the same namespace available as the memberfunction; that is, GDB allows implicit references to the classinstance pointer `this' following the same rules as C++.3. You can call overloaded functions; GDB resolves the function callto the right definition, with some restrictions. GDB does notperform overload resolution involving user-defined typeconversions, calls to constructors, or instantiations of templatesthat do not exist in the program. It also cannot handle ellipsisargument lists or default arguments.It does perform integral conversions and promotions, floating-pointpromotions, arithmetic conversions, pointer conversions,conversions of class objects to base classes, and standardconversions such as those of functions or arrays to pointers; itrequires an exact match on the number of function arguments.Overload resolution is always performed, unless you have specified`set overload-resolution off'. *Note GDB Features for C++:Debugging C Plus Plus.You must specify `set overload-resolution off' in order to use anexplicit function signature to call an overloaded function, as inp 'foo(char,int)'('x', 13)The GDB command-completion facility can simplify this; see *NoteCommand Completion: Completion.4. GDB understands variables declared as C++ references; you can usethem in expressions just as you do in C++ source--they areautomatically dereferenced.In the parameter list shown when GDB displays a frame, the valuesof reference variables are not displayed (unlike other variables);this avoids clutter, since references are often used for largestructures. The _address_ of a reference variable is alwaysshown, unless you have specified `set print address off'.5. GDB supports the C++ name resolution operator `::'--yourexpressions can use it just as expressions in your program do.Since one scope may be defined in another, you can use `::'repeatedly if necessary, for example in an expression like`SCOPE1::SCOPE2::NAME'. GDB also allows resolving name scope byreference to source files, in both C and C++ debugging (*noteProgram Variables: Variables.).In addition, when used with HP's C++ compiler, GDB supports callingvirtual functions correctly, printing out virtual bases of objects,calling functions in a base subobject, casting objects, and invokinguser-defined operators.File: gdb.info, Node: C Defaults, Next: C Checks, Prev: C Plus Plus Expressions, Up: C12.4.1.4 C and C++ Defaults...........................If you allow GDB to set type and range checking automatically, theyboth default to `off' whenever the working language changes to C orC++. This happens regardless of whether you or GDB selects the workinglanguage.If you allow GDB to set the language automatically, it recognizessource files whose names end with `.c', `.C', or `.cc', etc, and whenGDB enters code compiled from one of these files, it sets the workinglanguage to C or C++. *Note Having GDB Infer the Source Language:Automatically, for further details.File: gdb.info, Node: C Checks, Next: Debugging C, Prev: C Defaults, Up: C12.4.1.5 C and C++ Type and Range Checks........................................By default, when GDB parses C or C++ expressions, type checking is notused. However, if you turn type checking on, GDB considers twovariables type equivalent if:* The two variables are structured and have the same structure,union, or enumerated tag.* The two variables have the same type name, or types that have beendeclared equivalent through `typedef'.Range checking, if turned on, is done on mathematical operations.Array indices are not checked, since they are often used to index apointer that is not itself an array.File: gdb.info, Node: Debugging C, Next: Debugging C Plus Plus, Prev: C Checks, Up: C12.4.1.6 GDB and C..................The `set print union' and `show print union' commands apply to the`union' type. When set to `on', any `union' that is inside a `struct'or `class' is also printed. Otherwise, it appears as `{...}'.The `@' operator aids in the debugging of dynamic arrays, formedwith pointers and a memory allocation function. *Note Expressions:Expressions.File: gdb.info, Node: Debugging C Plus Plus, Next: Decimal Floating Point, Prev: Debugging C, Up: C12.4.1.7 GDB Features for C++.............................Some GDB commands are particularly useful with C++, and some aredesigned specifically for use with C++. Here is a summary:`breakpoint menus'When you want a breakpoint in a function whose name is overloaded,GDB breakpoint menus help you specify which function definitionyou want. *Note Breakpoint Menus: Breakpoint Menus.`rbreak REGEX'Setting breakpoints using regular expressions is helpful forsetting breakpoints on overloaded functions that are not membersof any special classes. *Note Setting Breakpoints: Set Breaks.`catch throw'`catch catch'Debug C++ exception handling using these commands. *Note SettingCatchpoints: Set Catchpoints.`ptype TYPENAME'Print inheritance relationships as well as other information fortype TYPENAME. *Note Examining the Symbol Table: Symbols.`set print demangle'`show print demangle'`set print asm-demangle'`show print asm-demangle'Control whether C++ symbols display in their source form, both whendisplaying code as C++ source and when displaying disassemblies.*Note Print Settings: Print Settings.`set print object'`show print object'Choose whether to print derived (actual) or declared types ofobjects. *Note Print Settings: Print Settings.`set print vtbl'`show print vtbl'Control the format for printing virtual function tables. *NotePrint Settings: Print Settings. (The `vtbl' commands do not workon programs compiled with the HP ANSI C++ compiler (`aCC').)`set overload-resolution on'Enable overload resolution for C++ expression evaluation. Thedefault is on. For overloaded functions, GDB evaluates thearguments and searches for a function whose signature matches theargument types, using the standard C++ conversion rules (see *NoteC++ Expressions: C Plus Plus Expressions, for details). If itcannot find a match, it emits a message.`set overload-resolution off'Disable overload resolution for C++ expression evaluation. Foroverloaded functions that are not class member functions, GDBchooses the first function of the specified name that it finds inthe symbol table, whether or not its arguments are of the correcttype. For overloaded functions that are class member functions,GDB searches for a function whose signature _exactly_ matches theargument types.`show overload-resolution'Show the current setting of overload resolution.`Overloaded symbol names'You can specify a particular definition of an overloaded symbol,using the same notation that is used to declare such symbols inC++: type `SYMBOL(TYPES)' rather than just SYMBOL. You can alsouse the GDB command-line word completion facilities to list theavailable choices, or to finish the type list for you. *NoteCommand Completion: Completion, for details on how to do this.File: gdb.info, Node: Decimal Floating Point, Prev: Debugging C Plus Plus, Up: C12.4.1.8 Decimal Floating Point format......................................GDB can examine, set and perform computations with numbers in decimalfloating point format, which in the C language correspond to the`_Decimal32', `_Decimal64' and `_Decimal128' types as specified by theextension to support decimal floating-point arithmetic.There are two encodings in use, depending on the architecture: BID(Binary Integer Decimal) for x86 and x86-64, and DPD (Densely PackedDecimal) for PowerPC. GDB will use the appropriate encoding for theconfigured target.Because of a limitation in `libdecnumber', the library used by GDBto manipulate decimal floating point numbers, it is not possible toconvert (using a cast, for example) integers wider than 32-bit todecimal float.In addition, in order to imitate GDB's behaviour with binary floatingpoint computations, error checking in decimal float operations ignoresunderflow, overflow and divide by zero exceptions.In the PowerPC architecture, GDB provides a set of pseudo-registersto inspect `_Decimal128' values stored in floating point registers. See*Note PowerPC: PowerPC. for more details.File: gdb.info, Node: Objective-C, Next: Fortran, Prev: C, Up: Supported Languages12.4.2 Objective-C------------------This section provides information about some commands and commandoptions that are useful for debugging Objective-C code. See also *Noteinfo classes: Symbols, and *Note info selectors: Symbols, for a fewmore commands specific to Objective-C support.* Menu:* Method Names in Commands::* The Print Command with Objective-C::File: gdb.info, Node: Method Names in Commands, Next: The Print Command with Objective-C, Up: Objective-C12.4.2.1 Method Names in Commands.................................The following commands have been extended to accept Objective-C methodnames as line specifications:* `clear'* `break'* `info line'* `jump'* `list'A fully qualified Objective-C method name is specified as-[CLASS METHODNAME]where the minus sign is used to indicate an instance method and aplus sign (not shown) is used to indicate a class method. The classname CLASS and method name METHODNAME are enclosed in brackets, similarto the way messages are specified in Objective-C source code. Forexample, to set a breakpoint at the `create' instance method of class`Fruit' in the program currently being debugged, enter:break -[Fruit create]To list ten program lines around the `initialize' class method,enter:list +[NSText initialize]In the current version of GDB, the plus or minus sign is required.In future versions of GDB, the plus or minus sign will be optional, butyou can use it to narrow the search. It is also possible to specifyjust a method name:break createYou must specify the complete method name, including any colons. Ifyour program's source files contain more than one `create' method,you'll be presented with a numbered list of classes that implement thatmethod. Indicate your choice by number, or type `0' to exit if noneapply.As another example, to clear a breakpoint established at the`makeKeyAndOrderFront:' method of the `NSWindow' class, enter:clear -[NSWindow makeKeyAndOrderFront:]File: gdb.info, Node: The Print Command with Objective-C, Prev: Method Names in Commands, Up: Objective-C12.4.2.2 The Print Command With Objective-C...........................................The print command has also been extended to accept methods. Forexample:print -[OBJECT hash]will tell GDB to send the `hash' message to OBJECT and print theresult. Also, an additional command has been added, `print-object' or`po' for short, which is meant to print the description of an object.However, this command may only work with certain Objective-C librariesthat have a particular hook function, `_NSPrintForDebugger', defined.File: gdb.info, Node: Fortran, Next: Pascal, Prev: Objective-C, Up: Supported Languages12.4.3 Fortran--------------GDB can be used to debug programs written in Fortran, but it currentlysupports only the features of Fortran 77 language.Some Fortran compilers (GNU Fortran 77 and Fortran 95 compilersamong them) append an underscore to the names of variables andfunctions. When you debug programs compiled by those compilers, youwill need to refer to variables and functions with a trailingunderscore.* Menu:* Fortran Operators:: Fortran operators and expressions* Fortran Defaults:: Default settings for Fortran* Special Fortran Commands:: Special GDB commands for FortranFile: gdb.info, Node: Fortran Operators, Next: Fortran Defaults, Up: Fortran12.4.3.1 Fortran Operators and Expressions..........................................Operators must be defined on values of specific types. For instance,`+' is defined on numbers, but not on characters or other non-arithmetic types. Operators are often defined on groups of types.`**'The exponentiation operator. It raises the first operand to thepower of the second one.`:'The range operator. Normally used in the form of array(low:high)to represent a section of array.File: gdb.info, Node: Fortran Defaults, Next: Special Fortran Commands, Prev: Fortran Operators, Up: Fortran12.4.3.2 Fortran Defaults.........................Fortran symbols are usually case-insensitive, so GDB by default usescase-insensitive matches for Fortran symbols. You can change that withthe `set case-insensitive' command, see *Note Symbols::, for thedetails.File: gdb.info, Node: Special Fortran Commands, Prev: Fortran Defaults, Up: Fortran12.4.3.3 Special Fortran Commands.................................GDB has some commands to support Fortran-specific features, such asdisplaying common blocks.`info common [COMMON-NAME]'This command prints the values contained in the Fortran `COMMON'block whose name is COMMON-NAME. With no argument, the names ofall `COMMON' blocks visible at the current program location areprinted.File: gdb.info, Node: Pascal, Next: Modula-2, Prev: Fortran, Up: Supported Languages12.4.4 Pascal-------------Debugging Pascal programs which use sets, subranges, file variables, ornested functions does not currently work. GDB does not supportentering expressions, printing values, or similar features using Pascalsyntax.The Pascal-specific command `set print pascal_static-members'controls whether static members of Pascal objects are displayed. *Notepascal_static-members: Print Settings.File: gdb.info, Node: Modula-2, Next: Ada, Prev: Pascal, Up: Supported Languages12.4.5 Modula-2---------------The extensions made to GDB to support Modula-2 only support output fromthe GNU Modula-2 compiler (which is currently being developed). OtherModula-2 compilers are not currently supported, and attempting to debugexecutables produced by them is most likely to give an error as GDBreads in the executable's symbol table.* Menu:* M2 Operators:: Built-in operators* Built-In Func/Proc:: Built-in functions and procedures* M2 Constants:: Modula-2 constants* M2 Types:: Modula-2 types* M2 Defaults:: Default settings for Modula-2* Deviations:: Deviations from standard Modula-2* M2 Checks:: Modula-2 type and range checks* M2 Scope:: The scope operators `::' and `.'* GDB/M2:: GDB and Modula-2File: gdb.info, Node: M2 Operators, Next: Built-In Func/Proc, Up: Modula-212.4.5.1 Operators..................Operators must be defined on values of specific types. For instance,`+' is defined on numbers, but not on structures. Operators are oftendefined on groups of types. For the purposes of Modula-2, thefollowing definitions hold:* _Integral types_ consist of `INTEGER', `CARDINAL', and theirsubranges.* _Character types_ consist of `CHAR' and its subranges.* _Floating-point types_ consist of `REAL'.* _Pointer types_ consist of anything declared as `POINTER TO TYPE'.* _Scalar types_ consist of all of the above.* _Set types_ consist of `SET' and `BITSET' types.* _Boolean types_ consist of `BOOLEAN'.The following operators are supported, and appear in order ofincreasing precedence:`,'Function argument or array index separator.`:='Assignment. The value of VAR `:=' VALUE is VALUE.`<, >'Less than, greater than on integral, floating-point, or enumeratedtypes.`<=, >='Less than or equal to, greater than or equal to on integral,floating-point and enumerated types, or set inclusion on settypes. Same precedence as `<'.`=, <>, #'Equality and two ways of expressing inequality, valid on scalartypes. Same precedence as `<'. In GDB scripts, only `<>' isavailable for inequality, since `#' conflicts with the scriptcomment character.`IN'Set membership. Defined on set types and the types of theirmembers. Same precedence as `<'.`OR'Boolean disjunction. Defined on boolean types.`AND, &'Boolean conjunction. Defined on boolean types.`@'The GDB "artificial array" operator (*note Expressions:Expressions.).`+, -'Addition and subtraction on integral and floating-point types, orunion and difference on set types.`*'Multiplication on integral and floating-point types, or setintersection on set types.`/'Division on floating-point types, or symmetric set difference onset types. Same precedence as `*'.`DIV, MOD'Integer division and remainder. Defined on integral types. Sameprecedence as `*'.`-'Negative. Defined on `INTEGER' and `REAL' data.`^'Pointer dereferencing. Defined on pointer types.`NOT'Boolean negation. Defined on boolean types. Same precedence as`^'.`.'`RECORD' field selector. Defined on `RECORD' data. Sameprecedence as `^'.`[]'Array indexing. Defined on `ARRAY' data. Same precedence as `^'.`()'Procedure argument list. Defined on `PROCEDURE' objects. Sameprecedence as `^'.`::, .'GDB and Modula-2 scope operators._Warning:_ Set expressions and their operations are not yetsupported, so GDB treats the use of the operator `IN', or the useof operators `+', `-', `*', `/', `=', , `<>', `#', `<=', and `>='on sets as an error.File: gdb.info, Node: Built-In Func/Proc, Next: M2 Constants, Prev: M2 Operators, Up: Modula-212.4.5.2 Built-in Functions and Procedures..........................................Modula-2 also makes available several built-in procedures and functions.In describing these, the following metavariables are used:Arepresents an `ARRAY' variable.Crepresents a `CHAR' constant or variable.Irepresents a variable or constant of integral type.Mrepresents an identifier that belongs to a set. Generally used inthe same function with the metavariable S. The type of S shouldbe `SET OF MTYPE' (where MTYPE is the type of M).Nrepresents a variable or constant of integral or floating-pointtype.Rrepresents a variable or constant of floating-point type.Trepresents a type.Vrepresents a variable.Xrepresents a variable or constant of one of many types. See theexplanation of the function for details.All Modula-2 built-in procedures also return a result, describedbelow.`ABS(N)'Returns the absolute value of N.`CAP(C)'If C is a lower case letter, it returns its upper case equivalent,otherwise it returns its argument.`CHR(I)'Returns the character whose ordinal value is I.`DEC(V)'Decrements the value in the variable V by one. Returns the newvalue.`DEC(V,I)'Decrements the value in the variable V by I. Returns the newvalue.`EXCL(M,S)'Removes the element M from the set S. Returns the new set.`FLOAT(I)'Returns the floating point equivalent of the integer I.`HIGH(A)'Returns the index of the last member of A.`INC(V)'Increments the value in the variable V by one. Returns the newvalue.`INC(V,I)'Increments the value in the variable V by I. Returns the newvalue.`INCL(M,S)'Adds the element M to the set S if it is not already there.Returns the new set.`MAX(T)'Returns the maximum value of the type T.`MIN(T)'Returns the minimum value of the type T.`ODD(I)'Returns boolean TRUE if I is an odd number.`ORD(X)'Returns the ordinal value of its argument. For example, theordinal value of a character is its ASCII value (on machinessupporting the ASCII character set). X must be of an orderedtype, which include integral, character and enumerated types.`SIZE(X)'Returns the size of its argument. X can be a variable or a type.`TRUNC(R)'Returns the integral part of R.`TSIZE(X)'Returns the size of its argument. X can be a variable or a type.`VAL(T,I)'Returns the member of the type T whose ordinal value is I._Warning:_ Sets and their operations are not yet supported, soGDB treats the use of procedures `INCL' and `EXCL' as an error.File: gdb.info, Node: M2 Constants, Next: M2 Types, Prev: Built-In Func/Proc, Up: Modula-212.4.5.3 Constants..................GDB allows you to express the constants of Modula-2 in the followingways:* Integer constants are simply a sequence of digits. When used in anexpression, a constant is interpreted to be type-compatible withthe rest of the expression. Hexadecimal integers are specified bya trailing `H', and octal integers by a trailing `B'.* Floating point constants appear as a sequence of digits, followedby a decimal point and another sequence of digits. An optionalexponent can then be specified, in the form `E[+|-]NNN', where`[+|-]NNN' is the desired exponent. All of the digits of thefloating point constant must be valid decimal (base 10) digits.* Character constants consist of a single character enclosed by apair of like quotes, either single (`'') or double (`"'). They mayalso be expressed by their ordinal value (their ASCII value,usually) followed by a `C'.* String constants consist of a sequence of characters enclosed by apair of like quotes, either single (`'') or double (`"'). Escapesequences in the style of C are also allowed. *Note C and C++Constants: C Constants, for a brief explanation of escapesequences.* Enumerated constants consist of an enumerated identifier.* Boolean constants consist of the identifiers `TRUE' and `FALSE'.* Pointer constants consist of integral values only.* Set constants are not yet supported.File: gdb.info, Node: M2 Types, Next: M2 Defaults, Prev: M2 Constants, Up: Modula-212.4.5.4 Modula-2 Types.......................Currently GDB can print the following data types in Modula-2 syntax:array types, record types, set types, pointer types, procedure types,enumerated types, subrange types and base types. You can also printthe contents of variables declared using these type. This sectiongives a number of simple source code examples together with sample GDBsessions.The first example contains the following section of code:VARs: SET OF CHAR ;r: [20..40] ;and you can request GDB to interrogate the type and value of `r' and`s'.(gdb) print s{'A'..'C', 'Z'}(gdb) ptype sSET OF CHAR(gdb) print r21(gdb) ptype r[20..40]Likewise if your source code declares `s' as:VARs: SET ['A'..'Z'] ;then you may query the type of `s' by:(gdb) ptype stype = SET ['A'..'Z']Note that at present you cannot interactively manipulate setexpressions using the debugger.The following example shows how you might declare an array inModula-2 and how you can interact with GDB to print its type andcontents:VARs: ARRAY [-10..10] OF CHAR ;(gdb) ptype sARRAY [-10..10] OF CHARNote that the array handling is not yet complete and although thetype is printed correctly, expression handling still assumes that allarrays have a lower bound of zero and not `-10' as in the example above.Here are some more type related Modula-2 examples:TYPEcolour = (blue, red, yellow, green) ;t = [blue..yellow] ;VARs: t ;BEGINs := blue ;The GDB interaction shows how you can query the data type and value ofa variable.(gdb) print s$1 = blue(gdb) ptype ttype = [blue..yellow]In this example a Modula-2 array is declared and its contentsdisplayed. Observe that the contents are written in the same way astheir `C' counterparts.VARs: ARRAY [1..5] OF CARDINAL ;BEGINs[1] := 1 ;(gdb) print s$1 = {1, 0, 0, 0, 0}(gdb) ptype stype = ARRAY [1..5] OF CARDINALThe Modula-2 language interface to GDB also understands pointertypes as shown in this example:VARs: POINTER TO ARRAY [1..5] OF CARDINAL ;BEGINNEW(s) ;s^[1] := 1 ;and you can request that GDB describes the type of `s'.(gdb) ptype stype = POINTER TO ARRAY [1..5] OF CARDINALGDB handles compound types as we can see in this example. Here wecombine array types, record types, pointer types and subrange types:TYPEfoo = RECORDf1: CARDINAL ;f2: CHAR ;f3: myarray ;END ;myarray = ARRAY myrange OF CARDINAL ;myrange = [-2..2] ;VARs: POINTER TO ARRAY myrange OF foo ;and you can ask GDB to describe the type of `s' as shown below.(gdb) ptype stype = POINTER TO ARRAY [-2..2] OF foo = RECORDf1 : CARDINAL;f2 : CHAR;f3 : ARRAY [-2..2] OF CARDINAL;ENDFile: gdb.info, Node: M2 Defaults, Next: Deviations, Prev: M2 Types, Up: Modula-212.4.5.5 Modula-2 Defaults..........................If type and range checking are set automatically by GDB, they bothdefault to `on' whenever the working language changes to Modula-2.This happens regardless of whether you or GDB selected the workinglanguage.If you allow GDB to set the language automatically, then enteringcode compiled from a file whose name ends with `.mod' sets the workinglanguage to Modula-2. *Note Having GDB Infer the Source Language:Automatically, for further details.File: gdb.info, Node: Deviations, Next: M2 Checks, Prev: M2 Defaults, Up: Modula-212.4.5.6 Deviations from Standard Modula-2..........................................A few changes have been made to make Modula-2 programs easier to debug.This is done primarily via loosening its type strictness:* Unlike in standard Modula-2, pointer constants can be formed byintegers. This allows you to modify pointer variables duringdebugging. (In standard Modula-2, the actual address contained ina pointer variable is hidden from you; it can only be modifiedthrough direct assignment to another pointer variable orexpression that returned a pointer.)* C escape sequences can be used in strings and characters torepresent non-printable characters. GDB prints out strings withthese escape sequences embedded. Single non-printable charactersare printed using the `CHR(NNN)' format.* The assignment operator (`:=') returns the value of its right-handargument.* All built-in procedures both modify _and_ return their argument.File: gdb.info, Node: M2 Checks, Next: M2 Scope, Prev: Deviations, Up: Modula-212.4.5.7 Modula-2 Type and Range Checks......................................._Warning:_ in this release, GDB does not yet perform type or rangechecking.GDB considers two Modula-2 variables type equivalent if:* They are of types that have been declared equivalent via a `TYPET1 = T2' statement* They have been declared on the same line. (Note: This is true ofthe GNU Modula-2 compiler, but it may not be true of othercompilers.)As long as type checking is enabled, any attempt to combine variableswhose types are not equivalent is an error.Range checking is done on all mathematical operations, assignment,array index bounds, and all built-in functions and procedures.File: gdb.info, Node: M2 Scope, Next: GDB/M2, Prev: M2 Checks, Up: Modula-212.4.5.8 The Scope Operators `::' and `.'.........................................There are a few subtle differences between the Modula-2 scope operator(`.') and the GDB scope operator (`::'). The two have similar syntax:MODULE . IDSCOPE :: IDwhere SCOPE is the name of a module or a procedure, MODULE the name ofa module, and ID is any declared identifier within your program, exceptanother module.Using the `::' operator makes GDB search the scope specified bySCOPE for the identifier ID. If it is not found in the specifiedscope, then GDB searches all scopes enclosing the one specified bySCOPE.Using the `.' operator makes GDB search the current scope for theidentifier specified by ID that was imported from the definition modulespecified by MODULE. With this operator, it is an error if theidentifier ID was not imported from definition module MODULE, or if IDis not an identifier in MODULE.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/M2, Prev: M2 Scope, Up: Modula-212.4.5.9 GDB and Modula-2.........................Some GDB commands have little use when debugging Modula-2 programs.Five subcommands of `set print' and `show print' apply specifically toC and C++: `vtbl', `demangle', `asm-demangle', `object', and `union'.The first four apply to C++, and the last to the C `union' type, whichhas no direct analogue in Modula-2.The `@' operator (*note Expressions: Expressions.), while availablewith any language, is not useful with Modula-2. Its intent is to aidthe debugging of "dynamic arrays", which cannot be created in Modula-2as they can in C or C++. However, because an address can be specifiedby an integral constant, the construct `{TYPE}ADREXP' is still useful.In GDB scripts, the Modula-2 inequality operator `#' is interpretedas the beginning of a comment. Use `<>' instead.File: gdb.info, Node: Ada, Prev: Modula-2, Up: Supported Languages12.4.6 Ada----------The extensions made to GDB for Ada only support output from the GNU Ada(GNAT) compiler. Other Ada compilers are not currently supported, andattempting to debug executables produced by them is most likely to bedifficult.* Menu:* Ada Mode Intro:: General remarks on the Ada syntaxand semantics supported by Ada modein GDB.* Omissions from Ada:: Restrictions on the Ada expression syntax.* Additions to Ada:: Extensions of the Ada expression syntax.* Stopping Before Main Program:: Debugging the program during elaboration.* Ada Glitches:: Known peculiarities of Ada mode.File: gdb.info, Node: Ada Mode Intro, Next: Omissions from Ada, Up: Ada12.4.6.1 Introduction.....................The Ada mode of GDB supports a fairly large subset of Ada expressionsyntax, with some extensions. The philosophy behind the design of thissubset is* That GDB should provide basic literals and access to operations forarithmetic, dereferencing, field selection, indexing, andsubprogram calls, leaving more sophisticated computations tosubprograms written into the program (which therefore may becalled from GDB).* That type safety and strict adherence to Ada language restrictionsare not particularly important to the GDB user.* That brevity is important to the GDB user.Thus, for brevity, the debugger acts as if there were implicit`with' and `use' clauses in effect for all user-written packages,making it unnecessary to fully qualify most names with their packages,regardless of context. Where this causes ambiguity, GDB asks theuser's intent.The debugger will start in Ada mode if it detects an Ada mainprogram. As for other languages, it will enter Ada mode when stoppedin a program that was translated from an Ada source file.While in Ada mode, you may use `-' for comments. This is usefulmostly for documenting command files. The standard GDB comment (`#')still works at the beginning of a line in Ada mode, but not in themiddle (to allow based literals).The debugger supports limited overloading. Given a subprogram callin which the function symbol has multiple definitions, it will use thenumber of actual parameters and some information about their types toattempt to narrow the set of definitions. It also makes very limiteduse of context, preferring procedures to functions in the context ofthe `call' command, and functions to procedures elsewhere.File: gdb.info, Node: Omissions from Ada, Next: Additions to Ada, Prev: Ada Mode Intro, Up: Ada12.4.6.2 Omissions from Ada...........................Here are the notable omissions from the subset:* Only a subset of the attributes are supported:- 'First, 'Last, and 'Length on array objects (not on typesand subtypes).- 'Min and 'Max.- 'Pos and 'Val.- 'Tag.- 'Range on array objects (not subtypes), but only as the rightoperand of the membership (`in') operator.- 'Access, 'Unchecked_Access, and 'Unrestricted_Access (a GNATextension).- 'Address.* The names in `Characters.Latin_1' are not available andconcatenation is not implemented. Thus, escape characters instrings are not currently available.* Equality tests (`=' and `/=') on arrays test for bitwise equalityof representations. They will generally work correctly forstrings and arrays whose elements have integer or enumerationtypes. They may not work correctly for arrays whose element typeshave user-defined equality, for arrays of real values (inparticular, IEEE-conformant floating point, because of negativezeroes and NaNs), and for arrays whose elements contain unusedbits with indeterminate values.* The other component-by-component array operations (`and', `or',`xor', `not', and relational tests other than equality) are notimplemented.* There is limited support for array and record aggregates. They arepermitted only on the right sides of assignments, as in theseexamples:set An_Array := (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)set An_Array := (1, others => 0)set An_Array := (0|4 => 1, 1..3 => 2, 5 => 6)set A_2D_Array := ((1, 2, 3), (4, 5, 6), (7, 8, 9))set A_Record := (1, "Peter", True);set A_Record := (Name => "Peter", Id => 1, Alive => True)Changing a discriminant's value by assigning an aggregate has anundefined effect if that discriminant is used within the record.However, you can first modify discriminants by directly assigningto them (which normally would not be allowed in Ada), and thenperforming an aggregate assignment. For example, given a variable`A_Rec' declared to have a type such as:type Rec (Len : Small_Integer := 0) is recordId : Integer;Vals : IntArray (1 .. Len);end record;you can assign a value with a different size of `Vals' with twoassignments:set A_Rec.Len := 4set A_Rec := (Id => 42, Vals => (1, 2, 3, 4))As this example also illustrates, GDB is very loose about the usualrules concerning aggregates. You may leave out some of thecomponents of an array or record aggregate (such as the `Len'component in the assignment to `A_Rec' above); they will retaintheir original values upon assignment. You may freely use dynamicvalues as indices in component associations. You may even useoverlapping or redundant component associations, although whichcomponent values are assigned in such cases is not defined.* Calls to dispatching subprograms are not implemented.* The overloading algorithm is much more limited (i.e., lessselective) than that of real Ada. It makes only limited use ofthe context in which a subexpression appears to resolve itsmeaning, and it is much looser in its rules for allowing typematches. As a result, some function calls will be ambiguous, andthe user will be asked to choose the proper resolution.* The `new' operator is not implemented.* Entry calls are not implemented.* Aside from printing, arithmetic operations on the native VAXfloating-point formats are not supported.* It is not possible to slice a packed array.File: gdb.info, Node: Additions to Ada, Next: Stopping Before Main Program, Prev: Omissions from Ada, Up: Ada12.4.6.3 Additions to Ada.........................As it does for other languages, GDB makes certain generic extensions toAda (*note Expressions::):* If the expression E is a variable residing in memory (typically alocal variable or array element) and N is a positive integer, then`E@N' displays the values of E and the N-1 adjacent variablesfollowing it in memory as an array. In Ada, this operator isgenerally not necessary, since its prime use is in displayingparts of an array, and slicing will usually do this in Ada.However, there are occasional uses when debugging programs inwhich certain debugging information has been optimized away.* `B::VAR' means "the variable named VAR that appears in function orfile B." When B is a file name, you must typically surround it insingle quotes.* The expression `{TYPE} ADDR' means "the variable of type TYPE thatappears at address ADDR."* A name starting with `$' is a convenience variable (*noteConvenience Vars::) or a machine register (*note Registers::).In addition, GDB provides a few other shortcuts and outrightadditions specific to Ada:* The assignment statement is allowed as an expression, returningits right-hand operand as its value. Thus, you may enterset x := y + 3print A(tmp := y + 1)* The semicolon is allowed as an "operator," returning as its valuethe value of its right-hand operand. This allows, for example,complex conditional breaks:break fcondition 1 (report(i); k += 1; A(k) > 100)* Rather than use catenation and symbolic character names tointroduce special characters into strings, one may instead use aspecial bracket notation, which is also used to print strings. Asequence of characters of the form `["XX"]' within a string orcharacter literal denotes the (single) character whose numericencoding is XX in hexadecimal. The sequence of characters `["""]'also denotes a single quotation mark in strings. For example,"One line.["0a"]Next line.["0a"]"contains an ASCII newline character (`Ada.Characters.Latin_1.LF')after each period.* The subtype used as a prefix for the attributes 'Pos, 'Min, and'Max is optional (and is ignored in any case). For example, it isvalid to writeprint 'max(x, y)* When printing arrays, GDB uses positional notation when the arrayhas a lower bound of 1, and uses a modified named notationotherwise. For example, a one-dimensional array of three integerswith a lower bound of 3 might print as(3 => 10, 17, 1)That is, in contrast to valid Ada, only the first component has a`=>' clause.* You may abbreviate attributes in expressions with any unique,multi-character subsequence of their names (an exact match getspreference). For example, you may use a'len, a'gth, or a'lh inplace of a'length.* Since Ada is case-insensitive, the debugger normally mapsidentifiers you type to lower case. The GNAT compiler usesupper-case characters for some of its internal identifiers, whichare normally of no interest to users. For the rare occasions whenyou actually have to look at them, enclose them in angle bracketsto avoid the lower-case mapping. For example,gdb print <JMPBUF_SAVE>[0]* Printing an object of class-wide type or dereferencing anaccess-to-class-wide value will display all the components of theobject's specific type (as indicated by its run-time tag).Likewise, component selection on such a value will operate on thespecific type of the object.File: gdb.info, Node: Stopping Before Main Program, Next: Ada Glitches, Prev: Additions to Ada, Up: Ada12.4.6.4 Stopping at the Very Beginning.......................................It is sometimes necessary to debug the program during elaboration, andbefore reaching the main procedure. As defined in the Ada ReferenceManual, the elaboration code is invoked from a procedure called`adainit'. To run your program up to the beginning of elaboration,simply use the following two commands: `tbreak adainit' and `run'.File: gdb.info, Node: Ada Glitches, Prev: Stopping Before Main Program, Up: Ada12.4.6.5 Known Peculiarities of Ada Mode........................................Besides the omissions listed previously (*note Omissions from Ada::),we know of several problems with and limitations of Ada mode in GDB,some of which will be fixed with planned future releases of the debuggerand the GNU Ada compiler.* Currently, the debugger has insufficient information to determinewhether certain pointers represent pointers to objects or theobjects themselves. Thus, the user may have to tack an extra`.all' after an expression to get it printed properly.* Static constants that the compiler chooses not to materialize asobjects in storage are invisible to the debugger.* Named parameter associations in function argument lists areignored (the argument lists are treated as positional).* Many useful library packages are currently invisible to thedebugger.* Fixed-point arithmetic, conversions, input, and output is carriedout using floating-point arithmetic, and may give results thatonly approximate those on the host machine.* The type of the 'Address attribute may not be `System.Address'.* The GNAT compiler never generates the prefix `Standard' for any ofthe standard symbols defined by the Ada language. GDB knows aboutthis: it will strip the prefix from names when you use it, andwill never look for a name you have so qualified among localsymbols, nor match against symbols in other packages orsubprograms. If you have defined entities anywhere in yourprogram other than parameters and local variables whose simplenames match names in `Standard', GNAT's lack of qualification herecan cause confusion. When this happens, you can usually resolvethe confusion by qualifying the problematic names with package`Standard' explicitly.File: gdb.info, Node: Unsupported Languages, Prev: Supported Languages, Up: Languages12.5 Unsupported Languages==========================In addition to the other fully-supported programming languages, GDBalso provides a pseudo-language, called `minimal'. It does notrepresent a real programming language, but provides a set ofcapabilities close to what the C or assembly languages provide. Thisshould allow most simple operations to be performed while debugging anapplication that uses a language currently not supported by GDB.If the language is set to `auto', GDB will automatically select thislanguage if the current frame corresponds to an unsupported language.File: gdb.info, Node: Symbols, Next: Altering, Prev: Languages, Up: Top13 Examining the Symbol Table*****************************The commands described in this chapter allow you to inquire about thesymbols (names of variables, functions and types) defined in yourprogram. This information is inherent in the text of your program anddoes not change as your program executes. GDB finds it in yourprogram's symbol table, in the file indicated when you started GDB(*note Choosing Files: File Options.), or by one of the file-managementcommands (*note Commands to Specify Files: Files.).Occasionally, you may need to refer to symbols that contain unusualcharacters, which GDB ordinarily treats as word delimiters. The mostfrequent case is in referring to static variables in other source files(*note Program Variables: Variables.). File names are recorded inobject files as debugging symbols, but GDB would ordinarily parse atypical file name, like `foo.c', as the three words `foo' `.' `c'. Toallow GDB to recognize `foo.c' as a single symbol, enclose it in singlequotes; for example,p 'foo.c'::xlooks up the value of `x' in the scope of the file `foo.c'.`set case-sensitive on'`set case-sensitive off'`set case-sensitive auto'Normally, when GDB looks up symbols, it matches their names withcase sensitivity determined by the current source language.Occasionally, you may wish to control that. The command `setcase-sensitive' lets you do that by specifying `on' forcase-sensitive matches or `off' for case-insensitive ones. If youspecify `auto', case sensitivity is reset to the default suitablefor the source language. The default is case-sensitive matchesfor all languages except for Fortran, for which the default iscase-insensitive matches.`show case-sensitive'This command shows the current setting of case sensitivity forsymbols lookups.`info address SYMBOL'Describe where the data for SYMBOL is stored. For a registervariable, this says which register it is kept in. For anon-register local variable, this prints the stack-frame offset atwhich the variable is always stored.Note the contrast with `print &SYMBOL', which does not work at allfor a register variable, and for a stack local variable prints theexact address of the current instantiation of the variable.`info symbol ADDR'Print the name of a symbol which is stored at the address ADDR.If no symbol is stored exactly at ADDR, GDB prints the nearestsymbol and an offset from it:(gdb) info symbol 0x54320_initialize_vx + 396 in section .textThis is the opposite of the `info address' command. You can useit to find out the name of a variable or a function given itsaddress.`whatis [ARG]'Print the data type of ARG, which can be either an expression or adata type. With no argument, print the data type of `$', the lastvalue in the value history. If ARG is an expression, it is notactually evaluated, and any side-effecting operations (such asassignments or function calls) inside it do not take place. IfARG is a type name, it may be the name of a type or typedef, orfor C code it may have the form `class CLASS-NAME', `structSTRUCT-TAG', `union UNION-TAG' or `enum ENUM-TAG'. *NoteExpressions: Expressions.`ptype [ARG]'`ptype' accepts the same arguments as `whatis', but prints adetailed description of the type, instead of just the name of thetype. *Note Expressions: Expressions.For example, for this variable declaration:struct complex {double real; double imag;} v;the two commands give this output:(gdb) whatis vtype = struct complex(gdb) ptype vtype = struct complex {double real;double imag;}As with `whatis', using `ptype' without an argument refers to thetype of `$', the last value in the value history.Sometimes, programs use opaque data types or incompletespecifications of complex data structure. If the debuginformation included in the program does not allow GDB to displaya full declaration of the data type, it will say `<incompletetype>'. For example, given these declarations:struct foo;struct foo *fooptr;but no definition for `struct foo' itself, GDB will say:(gdb) ptype foo$1 = <incomplete type>"Incomplete type" is C terminology for data types that are notcompletely specified.`info types REGEXP'`info types'Print a brief description of all types whose names match theregular expression REGEXP (or all types in your program, if yousupply no argument). Each complete typename is matched as thoughit were a complete line; thus, `i type value' gives information onall types in your program whose names include the string `value',but `i type ^value$' gives information only on types whose completename is `value'.This command differs from `ptype' in two ways: first, like`whatis', it does not print a detailed description; second, itlists all source files where a type is defined.`info scope LOCATION'List all the variables local to a particular scope. This commandaccepts a LOCATION argument--a function name, a source line, or anaddress preceded by a `*', and prints all the variables local tothe scope defined by that location. (*Note Specify Location::, fordetails about supported forms of LOCATION.) For example:(gdb) info scope command_line_handlerScope for command_line_handler:Symbol rl is an argument at stack/frame offset 8, length 4.Symbol linebuffer is in static storage at address 0x150a18, length 4.Symbol linelength is in static storage at address 0x150a1c, length 4.Symbol p is a local variable in register $esi, length 4.Symbol p1 is a local variable in register $ebx, length 4.Symbol nline is a local variable in register $edx, length 4.Symbol repeat is a local variable at frame offset -8, length 4.This command is especially useful for determining what data tocollect during a "trace experiment", see *Note collect: TracepointActions.`info source'Show information about the current source file--that is, thesource file for the function containing the current point ofexecution:* the name of the source file, and the directory containing it,* the directory it was compiled in,* its length, in lines,* which programming language it is written in,* whether the executable includes debugging information forthat file, and if so, what format the information is in(e.g., STABS, Dwarf 2, etc.), and* whether the debugging information includes information aboutpreprocessor macros.`info sources'Print the names of all source files in your program for whichthere is debugging information, organized into two lists: fileswhose symbols have already been read, and files whose symbols willbe read when needed.`info functions'Print the names and data types of all defined functions.`info functions REGEXP'Print the names and data types of all defined functions whosenames contain a match for regular expression REGEXP. Thus, `infofun step' finds all functions whose names include `step'; `infofun ^step' finds those whose names start with `step'. If afunction name contains characters that conflict with the regularexpression language (e.g. `operator*()'), they may be quoted witha backslash.`info variables'Print the names and data types of all variables that are declaredoutside of functions (i.e. excluding local variables).`info variables REGEXP'Print the names and data types of all variables (except for localvariables) whose names contain a match for regular expressionREGEXP.`info classes'`info classes REGEXP'Display all Objective-C classes in your program, or (with theREGEXP argument) all those matching a particular regularexpression.`info selectors'`info selectors REGEXP'Display all Objective-C selectors in your program, or (with theREGEXP argument) all those matching a particular regularexpression.Some systems allow individual object files that make up yourprogram to be replaced without stopping and restarting yourprogram. For example, in VxWorks you can simply recompile adefective object file and keep on running. If you are running onone of these systems, you can allow GDB to reload the symbols forautomatically relinked modules:`set symbol-reloading on'Replace symbol definitions for the corresponding source filewhen an object file with a particular name is seen again.`set symbol-reloading off'Do not replace symbol definitions when encountering objectfiles of the same name more than once. This is the defaultstate; if you are not running on a system that permitsautomatic relinking of modules, you should leave`symbol-reloading' off, since otherwise GDB may discardsymbols when linking large programs, that may contain severalmodules (from different directories or libraries) with thesame name.`show symbol-reloading'Show the current `on' or `off' setting.`set opaque-type-resolution on'Tell GDB to resolve opaque types. An opaque type is a typedeclared as a pointer to a `struct', `class', or `union'--forexample, `struct MyType *'--that is used in one source filealthough the full declaration of `struct MyType' is in anothersource file. The default is on.A change in the setting of this subcommand will not take effectuntil the next time symbols for a file are loaded.`set opaque-type-resolution off'Tell GDB not to resolve opaque types. In this case, the type isprinted as follows:{<no data fields>}`show opaque-type-resolution'Show whether opaque types are resolved or not.`maint print symbols FILENAME'`maint print psymbols FILENAME'`maint print msymbols FILENAME'Write a dump of debugging symbol data into the file FILENAME.These commands are used to debug the GDB symbol-reading code. Onlysymbols with debugging data are included. If you use `maint printsymbols', GDB includes all the symbols for which it has alreadycollected full details: that is, FILENAME reflects symbols foronly those files whose symbols GDB has read. You can use thecommand `info sources' to find out which files these are. If youuse `maint print psymbols' instead, the dump shows informationabout symbols that GDB only knows partially--that is, symbolsdefined in files that GDB has skimmed, but not yet readcompletely. Finally, `maint print msymbols' dumps just theminimal symbol information required for each object file fromwhich GDB has read some symbols. *Note Commands to Specify Files:Files, for a discussion of how GDB reads symbols (in thedescription of `symbol-file').`maint info symtabs [ REGEXP ]'`maint info psymtabs [ REGEXP ]'List the `struct symtab' or `struct partial_symtab' structureswhose names match REGEXP. If REGEXP is not given, list them all.The output includes expressions which you can copy into a GDBdebugging this one to examine a particular structure in moredetail. For example:(gdb) maint info psymtabs dwarf2read{ objfile /home/gnu/build/gdb/gdb((struct objfile *) 0x82e69d0){ psymtab /home/gnu/src/gdb/dwarf2read.c((struct partial_symtab *) 0x8474b10)readin nofullname (null)text addresses 0x814d3c8 -- 0x8158074globals (* (struct partial_symbol **) 0x8507a08 @ 9)statics (* (struct partial_symbol **) 0x40e95b78 @ 2882)dependencies (none)}}(gdb) maint info symtabs(gdb)We see that there is one partial symbol table whose filenamecontains the string `dwarf2read', belonging to the `gdb'executable; and we see that GDB has not read in any symtabs yet atall. If we set a breakpoint on a function, that will cause GDB toread the symtab for the compilation unit containing that function:(gdb) break dwarf2_psymtab_to_symtabBreakpoint 1 at 0x814e5da: file /home/gnu/src/gdb/dwarf2read.c,line 1574.(gdb) maint info symtabs{ objfile /home/gnu/build/gdb/gdb((struct objfile *) 0x82e69d0){ symtab /home/gnu/src/gdb/dwarf2read.c((struct symtab *) 0x86c1f38)dirname (null)fullname (null)blockvector ((struct blockvector *) 0x86c1bd0) (primary)linetable ((struct linetable *) 0x8370fa0)debugformat DWARF 2}}(gdb)File: gdb.info, Node: Altering, Next: GDB Files, Prev: Symbols, Up: Top14 Altering Execution*********************Once you think you have found an error in your program, you might wantto find out for certain whether correcting the apparent error wouldlead to correct results in the rest of the run. You can find theanswer by experiment, using the GDB features for altering execution ofthe program.For example, you can store new values into variables or memorylocations, give your program a signal, restart it at a differentaddress, or even return prematurely from a function.* Menu:* Assignment:: Assignment to variables* Jumping:: Continuing at a different address* Signaling:: Giving your program a signal* Returning:: Returning from a function* Calling:: Calling your program's functions* Patching:: Patching your programFile: gdb.info, Node: Assignment, Next: Jumping, Up: Altering14.1 Assignment to Variables============================To alter the value of a variable, evaluate an assignment expression.*Note Expressions: Expressions. For example,print x=4stores the value 4 into the variable `x', and then prints the value ofthe assignment expression (which is 4). *Note Using GDB with DifferentLanguages: Languages, for more information on operators in supportedlanguages.If you are not interested in seeing the value of the assignment, usethe `set' command instead of the `print' command. `set' is really thesame as `print' except that the expression's value is not printed andis not put in the value history (*note Value History: Value History.).The expression is evaluated only for its effects.If the beginning of the argument string of the `set' command appearsidentical to a `set' subcommand, use the `set variable' command insteadof just `set'. This command is identical to `set' except for its lackof subcommands. For example, if your program has a variable `width',you get an error if you try to set a new value with just `setwidth=13', because GDB has the command `set width':(gdb) whatis widthtype = double(gdb) p width$4 = 13(gdb) set width=47Invalid syntax in expression.The invalid expression, of course, is `=47'. In order to actually setthe program's variable `width', use(gdb) set var width=47Because the `set' command has many subcommands that can conflictwith the names of program variables, it is a good idea to use the `setvariable' command instead of just `set'. For example, if your programhas a variable `g', you run into problems if you try to set a new valuewith just `set g=4', because GDB has the command `set gnutarget',abbreviated `set g':(gdb) whatis gtype = double(gdb) p g$1 = 1(gdb) set g=4(gdb) p g$2 = 1(gdb) rThe program being debugged has been started already.Start it from the beginning? (y or n) yStarting program: /home/smith/cc_progs/a.out"/home/smith/cc_progs/a.out": can't open to read symbols:Invalid bfd target.(gdb) show gThe current BFD target is "=4".The program variable `g' did not change, and you silently set the`gnutarget' to an invalid value. In order to set the variable `g', use(gdb) set var g=4GDB allows more implicit conversions in assignments than C; you canfreely store an integer value into a pointer variable or vice versa,and you can convert any structure to any other structure that is thesame length or shorter.To store values into arbitrary places in memory, use the `{...}'construct to generate a value of specified type at a specified address(*note Expressions: Expressions.). For example, `{int}0x83040' refersto memory location `0x83040' as an integer (which implies a certain sizeand representation in memory), andset {int}0x83040 = 4stores the value 4 into that memory location.File: gdb.info, Node: Jumping, Next: Signaling, Prev: Assignment, Up: Altering14.2 Continuing at a Different Address======================================Ordinarily, when you continue your program, you do so at the place whereit stopped, with the `continue' command. You can instead continue atan address of your own choosing, with the following commands:`jump LINESPEC'`jump LOCATION'Resume execution at line LINESPEC or at address given by LOCATION.Execution stops again immediately if there is a breakpoint there.*Note Specify Location::, for a description of the differentforms of LINESPEC and LOCATION. It is common practice to use the`tbreak' command in conjunction with `jump'. *Note SettingBreakpoints: Set Breaks.The `jump' command does not change the current stack frame, or thestack pointer, or the contents of any memory location or anyregister other than the program counter. If line LINESPEC is in adifferent function from the one currently executing, the resultsmay be bizarre if the two functions expect different patterns ofarguments or of local variables. For this reason, the `jump'command requests confirmation if the specified line is not in thefunction currently executing. However, even bizarre results arepredictable if you are well acquainted with the machine-languagecode of your program.On many systems, you can get much the same effect as the `jump'command by storing a new value into the register `$pc'. The differenceis that this does not start your program running; it only changes theaddress of where it _will_ run when you continue. For example,set $pc = 0x485makes the next `continue' command or stepping command execute ataddress `0x485', rather than at the address where your program stopped.*Note Continuing and Stepping: Continuing and Stepping.The most common occasion to use the `jump' command is to backup--perhaps with more breakpoints set--over a portion of a program thathas already executed, in order to examine its execution in more detail.File: gdb.info, Node: Signaling, Next: Returning, Prev: Jumping, Up: Altering14.3 Giving your Program a Signal=================================`signal SIGNAL'Resume execution where your program stopped, but immediately giveit the signal SIGNAL. SIGNAL can be the name or the number of asignal. For example, on many systems `signal 2' and `signalSIGINT' are both ways of sending an interrupt signal.Alternatively, if SIGNAL is zero, continue execution withoutgiving a signal. This is useful when your program stopped onaccount of a signal and would ordinary see the signal when resumedwith the `continue' command; `signal 0' causes it to resumewithout a signal.`signal' does not repeat when you press <RET> a second time afterexecuting the command.Invoking the `signal' command is not the same as invoking the `kill'utility from the shell. Sending a signal with `kill' causes GDB todecide what to do with the signal depending on the signal handlingtables (*note Signals::). The `signal' command passes the signaldirectly to your program.File: gdb.info, Node: Returning, Next: Calling, Prev: Signaling, Up: Altering14.4 Returning from a Function==============================`return'`return EXPRESSION'You can cancel execution of a function call with the `return'command. If you give an EXPRESSION argument, its value is used asthe function's return value.When you use `return', GDB discards the selected stack frame (andall frames within it). You can think of this as making the discardedframe return prematurely. If you wish to specify a value to bereturned, give that value as the argument to `return'.This pops the selected stack frame (*note Selecting a Frame:Selection.), and any other frames inside of it, leaving its caller asthe innermost remaining frame. That frame becomes selected. Thespecified value is stored in the registers used for returning values offunctions.The `return' command does not resume execution; it leaves theprogram stopped in the state that would exist if the function had justreturned. In contrast, the `finish' command (*note Continuing andStepping: Continuing and Stepping.) resumes execution until theselected stack frame returns naturally.File: gdb.info, Node: Calling, Next: Patching, Prev: Returning, Up: Altering14.5 Calling Program Functions==============================`print EXPR'Evaluate the expression EXPR and display the resulting value.EXPR may include calls to functions in the program being debugged.`call EXPR'Evaluate the expression EXPR without displaying `void' returnedvalues.You can use this variant of the `print' command if you want toexecute a function from your program that does not return anything(a.k.a. "a void function"), but without cluttering the output with`void' returned values that GDB will otherwise print. If theresult is not void, it is printed and saved in the value history.It is possible for the function you call via the `print' or `call'command to generate a signal (e.g., if there's a bug in the function,or if you passed it incorrect arguments). What happens in that case iscontrolled by the `set unwindonsignal' command.`set unwindonsignal'Set unwinding of the stack if a signal is received while in afunction that GDB called in the program being debugged. If set toon, GDB unwinds the stack it created for the call and restores thecontext to what it was before the call. If set to off (thedefault), GDB stops in the frame where the signal was received.`show unwindonsignal'Show the current setting of stack unwinding in the functionscalled by GDB.Sometimes, a function you wish to call is actually a "weak alias"for another function. In such case, GDB might not pick up the typeinformation, including the types of the function arguments, whichcauses GDB to call the inferior function incorrectly. As a result, thecalled function will function erroneously and may even crash. Asolution to that is to use the name of the aliased function instead.File: gdb.info, Node: Patching, Prev: Calling, Up: Altering14.6 Patching Programs======================By default, GDB opens the file containing your program's executablecode (or the corefile) read-only. This prevents accidental alterationsto machine code; but it also prevents you from intentionally patchingyour program's binary.If you'd like to be able to patch the binary, you can specify thatexplicitly with the `set write' command. For example, you might wantto turn on internal debugging flags, or even to make emergency repairs.`set write on'`set write off'If you specify `set write on', GDB opens executable and core filesfor both reading and writing; if you specify `set write off' (thedefault), GDB opens them read-only.If you have already loaded a file, you must load it again (usingthe `exec-file' or `core-file' command) after changing `setwrite', for your new setting to take effect.`show write'Display whether executable files and core files are opened forwriting as well as reading.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB Files, Next: Targets, Prev: Altering, Up: Top15 GDB Files************GDB needs to know the file name of the program to be debugged, both inorder to read its symbol table and in order to start your program. Todebug a core dump of a previous run, you must also tell GDB the name ofthe core dump file.* Menu:* Files:: Commands to specify files* Separate Debug Files:: Debugging information in separate files* Symbol Errors:: Errors reading symbol filesFile: gdb.info, Node: Files, Next: Separate Debug Files, Up: GDB Files15.1 Commands to Specify Files==============================You may want to specify executable and core dump file names. The usualway to do this is at start-up time, using the arguments to GDB'sstart-up commands (*note Getting In and Out of GDB: Invocation.).Occasionally it is necessary to change to a different file during aGDB session. Or you may run GDB and forget to specify a file you wantto use. Or you are debugging a remote target via `gdbserver' (*notefile: Server.). In these situations the GDB commands to specify newfiles are useful.`file FILENAME'Use FILENAME as the program to be debugged. It is read for itssymbols and for the contents of pure memory. It is also theprogram executed when you use the `run' command. If you do notspecify a directory and the file is not found in the GDB workingdirectory, GDB uses the environment variable `PATH' as a list ofdirectories to search, just as the shell does when looking for aprogram to run. You can change the value of this variable, forboth GDB and your program, using the `path' command.You can load unlinked object `.o' files into GDB using the `file'command. You will not be able to "run" an object file, but youcan disassemble functions and inspect variables. Also, if theunderlying BFD functionality supports it, you could use `gdb-write' to patch object files using this technique. Note that GDBcan neither interpret nor modify relocations in this case, sobranches and some initialized variables will appear to go to thewrong place. But this feature is still handy from time to time.`file'`file' with no argument makes GDB discard any information it hason both executable file and the symbol table.`exec-file [ FILENAME ]'Specify that the program to be run (but not the symbol table) isfound in FILENAME. GDB searches the environment variable `PATH'if necessary to locate your program. Omitting FILENAME means todiscard information on the executable file.`symbol-file [ FILENAME ]'Read symbol table information from file FILENAME. `PATH' issearched when necessary. Use the `file' command to get both symboltable and program to run from the same file.`symbol-file' with no argument clears out GDB information on yourprogram's symbol table.The `symbol-file' command causes GDB to forget the contents ofsome breakpoints and auto-display expressions. This is becausethey may contain pointers to the internal data recording symbolsand data types, which are part of the old symbol table data beingdiscarded inside GDB.`symbol-file' does not repeat if you press <RET> again afterexecuting it once.When GDB is configured for a particular environment, itunderstands debugging information in whatever format is thestandard generated for that environment; you may use either a GNUcompiler, or other compilers that adhere to the local conventions.Best results are usually obtained from GNU compilers; for example,using `GCC' you can generate debugging information for optimizedcode.For most kinds of object files, with the exception of old SVR3systems using COFF, the `symbol-file' command does not normallyread the symbol table in full right away. Instead, it scans thesymbol table quickly to find which source files and which symbolsare present. The details are read later, one source file at atime, as they are needed.The purpose of this two-stage reading strategy is to make GDBstart up faster. For the most part, it is invisible except foroccasional pauses while the symbol table details for a particularsource file are being read. (The `set verbose' command can turnthese pauses into messages if desired. *Note Optional Warningsand Messages: Messages/Warnings.)We have not implemented the two-stage strategy for COFF yet. Whenthe symbol table is stored in COFF format, `symbol-file' reads thesymbol table data in full right away. Note that "stabs-in-COFF"still does the two-stage strategy, since the debug info is actuallyin stabs format.`symbol-file FILENAME [ -readnow ]'`file FILENAME [ -readnow ]'You can override the GDB two-stage strategy for reading symboltables by using the `-readnow' option with any of the commands thatload symbol table information, if you want to be sure GDB has theentire symbol table available.`core-file [FILENAME]'`core'Specify the whereabouts of a core dump file to be used as the"contents of memory". Traditionally, core files contain only someparts of the address space of the process that generated them; GDBcan access the executable file itself for other parts.`core-file' with no argument specifies that no core file is to beused.Note that the core file is ignored when your program is actuallyrunning under GDB. So, if you have been running your program andyou wish to debug a core file instead, you must kill thesubprocess in which the program is running. To do this, use the`kill' command (*note Killing the Child Process: Kill Process.).`add-symbol-file FILENAME ADDRESS'`add-symbol-file FILENAME ADDRESS [ -readnow ]'`add-symbol-file FILENAME -sSECTION ADDRESS ...'The `add-symbol-file' command reads additional symbol tableinformation from the file FILENAME. You would use this commandwhen FILENAME has been dynamically loaded (by some other means)into the program that is running. ADDRESS should be the memoryaddress at which the file has been loaded; GDB cannot figure thisout for itself. You can additionally specify an arbitrary numberof `-sSECTION ADDRESS' pairs, to give an explicit section name andbase address for that section. You can specify any ADDRESS as anexpression.The symbol table of the file FILENAME is added to the symbol tableoriginally read with the `symbol-file' command. You can use the`add-symbol-file' command any number of times; the new symbol datathus read keeps adding to the old. To discard all old symbol datainstead, use the `symbol-file' command without any arguments.Although FILENAME is typically a shared library file, anexecutable file, or some other object file which has been fullyrelocated for loading into a process, you can also load symbolicinformation from relocatable `.o' files, as long as:* the file's symbolic information refers only to linker symbolsdefined in that file, not to symbols defined by other objectfiles,* every section the file's symbolic information refers to hasactually been loaded into the inferior, as it appears in thefile, and* you can determine the address at which every section wasloaded, and provide these to the `add-symbol-file' command.Some embedded operating systems, like Sun Chorus and VxWorks, canload relocatable files into an already running program; suchsystems typically make the requirements above easy to meet.However, it's important to recognize that many native systems usecomplex link procedures (`.linkonce' section factoring and C++constructor table assembly, for example) that make therequirements difficult to meet. In general, one cannot assumethat using `add-symbol-file' to read a relocatable object file'ssymbolic information will have the same effect as linking therelocatable object file into the program in the normal way.`add-symbol-file' does not repeat if you press <RET> after usingit.`add-symbol-file-from-memory ADDRESS'Load symbols from the given ADDRESS in a dynamically loaded objectfile whose image is mapped directly into the inferior's memory.For example, the Linux kernel maps a `syscall DSO' into eachprocess's address space; this DSO provides kernel-specific code forsome system calls. The argument can be any expression whoseevaluation yields the address of the file's shared object fileheader. For this command to work, you must have used`symbol-file' or `exec-file' commands in advance.`add-shared-symbol-files LIBRARY-FILE'`assf LIBRARY-FILE'The `add-shared-symbol-files' command can currently be used onlyin the Cygwin build of GDB on MS-Windows OS, where it is an aliasfor the `dll-symbols' command (*note Cygwin Native::). GDBautomatically looks for shared libraries, however if GDB does notfind yours, you can invoke `add-shared-symbol-files'. It takesone argument: the shared library's file name. `assf' is ashorthand alias for `add-shared-symbol-files'.`section SECTION ADDR'The `section' command changes the base address of the namedSECTION of the exec file to ADDR. This can be used if the execfile does not contain section addresses, (such as in the `a.out'format), or when the addresses specified in the file itself arewrong. Each section must be changed separately. The `info files'command, described below, lists all the sections and theiraddresses.`info files'`info target'`info files' and `info target' are synonymous; both print thecurrent target (*note Specifying a Debugging Target: Targets.),including the names of the executable and core dump filescurrently in use by GDB, and the files from which symbols wereloaded. The command `help target' lists all possible targetsrather than current ones.`maint info sections'Another command that can give you extra information about programsections is `maint info sections'. In addition to the sectioninformation displayed by `info files', this command displays theflags and file offset of each section in the executable and coredump files. In addition, `maint info sections' provides thefollowing command options (which may be arbitrarily combined):`ALLOBJ'Display sections for all loaded object files, includingshared libraries.`SECTIONS'Display info only for named SECTIONS.`SECTION-FLAGS'Display info only for sections for which SECTION-FLAGS aretrue. The section flags that GDB currently knows about are:`ALLOC'Section will have space allocated in the process whenloaded. Set for all sections except those containingdebug information.`LOAD'Section will be loaded from the file into the childprocess memory. Set for pre-initialized code and data,clear for `.bss' sections.`RELOC'Section needs to be relocated before loading.`READONLY'Section cannot be modified by the child process.`CODE'Section contains executable code only.`DATA'Section contains data only (no executable code).`ROM'Section will reside in ROM.`CONSTRUCTOR'Section contains data for constructor/destructor lists.`HAS_CONTENTS'Section is not empty.`NEVER_LOAD'An instruction to the linker to not output the section.`COFF_SHARED_LIBRARY'A notification to the linker that the section containsCOFF shared library information.`IS_COMMON'Section contains common symbols.`set trust-readonly-sections on'Tell GDB that readonly sections in your object file really areread-only (i.e. that their contents will not change). In thatcase, GDB can fetch values from these sections out of the objectfile, rather than from the target program. For some targets(notably embedded ones), this can be a significant enhancement todebugging performance.The default is off.`set trust-readonly-sections off'Tell GDB not to trust readonly sections. This means that thecontents of the section might change while the program is running,and must therefore be fetched from the target when needed.`show trust-readonly-sections'Show the current setting of trusting readonly sections.All file-specifying commands allow both absolute and relative filenames as arguments. GDB always converts the file name to an absolutefile name and remembers it that way.GDB supports GNU/Linux, MS-Windows, HP-UX, SunOS, SVr4, Irix, andIBM RS/6000 AIX shared libraries.On MS-Windows GDB must be linked with the Expat library to supportshared libraries. *Note Expat::.GDB automatically loads symbol definitions from shared librarieswhen you use the `run' command, or when you examine a core file.(Before you issue the `run' command, GDB does not understand referencesto a function in a shared library, however--unless you are debugging acore file).On HP-UX, if the program loads a library explicitly, GDBautomatically loads the symbols at the time of the `shl_load' call.There are times, however, when you may wish to not automatically loadsymbol definitions from shared libraries, such as when they areparticularly large or there are many of them.To control the automatic loading of shared library symbols, use thecommands:`set auto-solib-add MODE'If MODE is `on', symbols from all shared object libraries will beloaded automatically when the inferior begins execution, youattach to an independently started inferior, or when the dynamiclinker informs GDB that a new library has been loaded. If MODE is`off', symbols must be loaded manually, using the `sharedlibrary'command. The default value is `on'.If your program uses lots of shared libraries with debug info thattakes large amounts of memory, you can decrease the GDB memoryfootprint by preventing it from automatically loading the symbolsfrom shared libraries. To that end, type `set auto-solib-add off'before running the inferior, then load each library whose debugsymbols you do need with `sharedlibrary REGEXP', where REGEXP is aregular expression that matches the libraries whose symbols youwant to be loaded.`show auto-solib-add'Display the current autoloading mode.To explicitly load shared library symbols, use the `sharedlibrary'command:`info share'`info sharedlibrary'Print the names of the shared libraries which are currently loaded.`sharedlibrary REGEX'`share REGEX'Load shared object library symbols for files matching a Unixregular expression. As with files loaded automatically, it onlyloads shared libraries required by your program for a core file orafter typing `run'. If REGEX is omitted all shared librariesrequired by your program are loaded.`nosharedlibrary'Unload all shared object library symbols. This discards allsymbols that have been loaded from all shared libraries. Symbolsfrom shared libraries that were loaded by explicit user requestsare not discarded.Sometimes you may wish that GDB stops and gives you control when anyof shared library events happen. Use the `set stop-on-solib-events'command for this:`set stop-on-solib-events'This command controls whether GDB should give you control when thedynamic linker notifies it about some shared library event. Themost common event of interest is loading or unloading of a newshared library.`show stop-on-solib-events'Show whether GDB stops and gives you control when shared libraryevents happen.Shared libraries are also supported in many cross or remote debuggingconfigurations. A copy of the target's libraries need to be present onthe host system; they need to be the same as the target libraries,although the copies on the target can be stripped as long as the copieson the host are not.For remote debugging, you need to tell GDB where the targetlibraries are, so that it can load the correct copies--otherwise, itmay try to load the host's libraries. GDB has two variables to specifythe search directories for target libraries.`set sysroot PATH'Use PATH as the system root for the program being debugged. Anyabsolute shared library paths will be prefixed with PATH; manyruntime loaders store the absolute paths to the shared library inthe target program's memory. If you use `set sysroot' to findshared libraries, they need to be laid out in the same way thatthey are on the target, with e.g. a `/lib' and `/usr/lib' hierarchyunder PATH.The `set solib-absolute-prefix' command is an alias for `setsysroot'.You can set the default system root by using the configure-time`--with-sysroot' option. If the system root is inside GDB'sconfigured binary prefix (set with `--prefix' or `--exec-prefix'),then the default system root will be updated automatically if theinstalled GDB is moved to a new location.`show sysroot'Display the current shared library prefix.`set solib-search-path PATH'If this variable is set, PATH is a colon-separated list ofdirectories to search for shared libraries. `solib-search-path'is used after `sysroot' fails to locate the library, or if thepath to the library is relative instead of absolute. If you wantto use `solib-search-path' instead of `sysroot', be sure to set`sysroot' to a nonexistent directory to prevent GDB from findingyour host's libraries. `sysroot' is preferred; setting it to anonexistent directory may interfere with automatic loading ofshared library symbols.`show solib-search-path'Display the current shared library search path.File: gdb.info, Node: Separate Debug Files, Next: Symbol Errors, Prev: Files, Up: GDB Files15.2 Debugging Information in Separate Files============================================GDB allows you to put a program's debugging information in a fileseparate from the executable itself, in a way that allows GDB to findand load the debugging information automatically. Since debugginginformation can be very large--sometimes larger than the executablecode itself--some systems distribute debugging information for theirexecutables in separate files, which users can install only when theyneed to debug a problem.GDB supports two ways of specifying the separate debug info file:* The executable contains a "debug link" that specifies the name ofthe separate debug info file. The separate debug file's name isusually `EXECUTABLE.debug', where EXECUTABLE is the name of thecorresponding executable file without leading directories (e.g.,`ls.debug' for `/usr/bin/ls'). In addition, the debug linkspecifies a CRC32 checksum for the debug file, which GDB uses tovalidate that the executable and the debug file came from the samebuild.* The executable contains a "build ID", a unique bit string that isalso present in the corresponding debug info file. (This issupported only on some operating systems, notably those which usethe ELF format for binary files and the GNU Binutils.) For moredetails about this feature, see the description of the `--build-id'command-line option in *Note Command Line Options:(ld.info)Options. The debug info file's name is not specifiedexplicitly by the build ID, but can be computed from the build ID,see below.Depending on the way the debug info file is specified, GDB uses twodifferent methods of looking for the debug file:* For the "debug link" method, GDB looks up the named file in thedirectory of the executable file, then in a subdirectory of thatdirectory named `.debug', and finally under the global debugdirectory, in a subdirectory whose name is identical to the leadingdirectories of the executable's absolute file name.* For the "build ID" method, GDB looks in the `.build-id'subdirectory of the global debug directory for a file named`NN/NNNNNNNN.debug', where NN are the first 2 hex characters ofthe build ID bit string, and NNNNNNNN are the rest of the bitstring. (Real build ID strings are 32 or more hex characters, not10.)So, for example, suppose you ask GDB to debug `/usr/bin/ls', whichhas a debug link that specifies the file `ls.debug', and a build IDwhose value in hex is `abcdef1234'. If the global debug directory is`/usr/lib/debug', then GDB will look for the following debuginformation files, in the indicated order:- `/usr/lib/debug/.build-id/ab/cdef1234.debug'- `/usr/bin/ls.debug'- `/usr/bin/.debug/ls.debug'- `/usr/lib/debug/usr/bin/ls.debug'.You can set the global debugging info directory's name, and view thename GDB is currently using.`set debug-file-directory DIRECTORY'Set the directory which GDB searches for separate debugginginformation files to DIRECTORY.`show debug-file-directory'Show the directory GDB searches for separate debugging informationfiles.A debug link is a special section of the executable file named`.gnu_debuglink'. The section must contain:* A filename, with any leading directory components removed,followed by a zero byte,* zero to three bytes of padding, as needed to reach the nextfour-byte boundary within the section, and* a four-byte CRC checksum, stored in the same endianness used forthe executable file itself. The checksum is computed on thedebugging information file's full contents by the function givenbelow, passing zero as the CRC argument.Any executable file format can carry a debug link, as long as it cancontain a section named `.gnu_debuglink' with the contents describedabove.The build ID is a special section in the executable file (and inother ELF binary files that GDB may consider). This section is oftennamed `.note.gnu.build-id', but that name is not mandatory. Itcontains unique identification for the built files--the ID remains thesame across multiple builds of the same build tree. The defaultalgorithm SHA1 produces 160 bits (40 hexadecimal characters) of thecontent for the build ID string. The same section with an identicalvalue is present in the original built binary with symbols, in itsstripped variant, and in the separate debugging information file.The debugging information file itself should be an ordinaryexecutable, containing a full set of linker symbols, sections, anddebugging information. The sections of the debugging information fileshould have the same names, addresses, and sizes as the original file,but they need not contain any data--much like a `.bss' section in anordinary executable.The GNU binary utilities (Binutils) package includes the `objcopy'utility that can produce the separated executable / debugginginformation file pairs using the following commands:objcopy --only-keep-debug foo foo.debugstrip -g fooThese commands remove the debugging information from the executablefile `foo' and place it in the file `foo.debug'. You can use thefirst, second or both methods to link the two files:* The debug link method needs the following additional command toalso leave behind a debug link in `foo':objcopy --add-gnu-debuglink=foo.debug fooUlrich Drepper's `elfutils' package, starting with version 0.53,contains a version of the `strip' command such that the command`strip foo -f foo.debug' has the same functionality as the two`objcopy' commands and the `ln -s' command above, together.* Build ID gets embedded into the main executable using `ld--build-id' or the GCC counterpart `gcc -Wl,--build-id'. Build IDsupport plus compatibility fixes for debug files separation arepresent in GNU binary utilities (Binutils) package since version2.18.Since there are many different ways to compute CRC's for the debug link(different polynomials, reversals, byte ordering, etc.), the simplestway to describe the CRC used in `.gnu_debuglink' sections is to givethe complete code for a function that computes it:unsigned longgnu_debuglink_crc32 (unsigned long crc,unsigned char *buf, size_t len){static const unsigned long crc32_table[256] ={0x00000000, 0x77073096, 0xee0e612c, 0x990951ba, 0x076dc419,0x706af48f, 0xe963a535, 0x9e6495a3, 0x0edb8832, 0x79dcb8a4,0xe0d5e91e, 0x97d2d988, 0x09b64c2b, 0x7eb17cbd, 0xe7b82d07,0x90bf1d91, 0x1db71064, 0x6ab020f2, 0xf3b97148, 0x84be41de,0x1adad47d, 0x6ddde4eb, 0xf4d4b551, 0x83d385c7, 0x136c9856,0x646ba8c0, 0xfd62f97a, 0x8a65c9ec, 0x14015c4f, 0x63066cd9,0xfa0f3d63, 0x8d080df5, 0x3b6e20c8, 0x4c69105e, 0xd56041e4,0xa2677172, 0x3c03e4d1, 0x4b04d447, 0xd20d85fd, 0xa50ab56b,0x35b5a8fa, 0x42b2986c, 0xdbbbc9d6, 0xacbcf940, 0x32d86ce3,0x45df5c75, 0xdcd60dcf, 0xabd13d59, 0x26d930ac, 0x51de003a,0xc8d75180, 0xbfd06116, 0x21b4f4b5, 0x56b3c423, 0xcfba9599,0xb8bda50f, 0x2802b89e, 0x5f058808, 0xc60cd9b2, 0xb10be924,0x2f6f7c87, 0x58684c11, 0xc1611dab, 0xb6662d3d, 0x76dc4190,0x01db7106, 0x98d220bc, 0xefd5102a, 0x71b18589, 0x06b6b51f,0x9fbfe4a5, 0xe8b8d433, 0x7807c9a2, 0x0f00f934, 0x9609a88e,0xe10e9818, 0x7f6a0dbb, 0x086d3d2d, 0x91646c97, 0xe6635c01,0x6b6b51f4, 0x1c6c6162, 0x856530d8, 0xf262004e, 0x6c0695ed,0x1b01a57b, 0x8208f4c1, 0xf50fc457, 0x65b0d9c6, 0x12b7e950,0x8bbeb8ea, 0xfcb9887c, 0x62dd1ddf, 0x15da2d49, 0x8cd37cf3,0xfbd44c65, 0x4db26158, 0x3ab551ce, 0xa3bc0074, 0xd4bb30e2,0x4adfa541, 0x3dd895d7, 0xa4d1c46d, 0xd3d6f4fb, 0x4369e96a,0x346ed9fc, 0xad678846, 0xda60b8d0, 0x44042d73, 0x33031de5,0xaa0a4c5f, 0xdd0d7cc9, 0x5005713c, 0x270241aa, 0xbe0b1010,0xc90c2086, 0x5768b525, 0x206f85b3, 0xb966d409, 0xce61e49f,0x5edef90e, 0x29d9c998, 0xb0d09822, 0xc7d7a8b4, 0x59b33d17,0x2eb40d81, 0xb7bd5c3b, 0xc0ba6cad, 0xedb88320, 0x9abfb3b6,0x03b6e20c, 0x74b1d29a, 0xead54739, 0x9dd277af, 0x04db2615,0x73dc1683, 0xe3630b12, 0x94643b84, 0x0d6d6a3e, 0x7a6a5aa8,0xe40ecf0b, 0x9309ff9d, 0x0a00ae27, 0x7d079eb1, 0xf00f9344,0x8708a3d2, 0x1e01f268, 0x6906c2fe, 0xf762575d, 0x806567cb,0x196c3671, 0x6e6b06e7, 0xfed41b76, 0x89d32be0, 0x10da7a5a,0x67dd4acc, 0xf9b9df6f, 0x8ebeeff9, 0x17b7be43, 0x60b08ed5,0xd6d6a3e8, 0xa1d1937e, 0x38d8c2c4, 0x4fdff252, 0xd1bb67f1,0xa6bc5767, 0x3fb506dd, 0x48b2364b, 0xd80d2bda, 0xaf0a1b4c,0x36034af6, 0x41047a60, 0xdf60efc3, 0xa867df55, 0x316e8eef,0x4669be79, 0xcb61b38c, 0xbc66831a, 0x256fd2a0, 0x5268e236,0xcc0c7795, 0xbb0b4703, 0x220216b9, 0x5505262f, 0xc5ba3bbe,0xb2bd0b28, 0x2bb45a92, 0x5cb36a04, 0xc2d7ffa7, 0xb5d0cf31,0x2cd99e8b, 0x5bdeae1d, 0x9b64c2b0, 0xec63f226, 0x756aa39c,0x026d930a, 0x9c0906a9, 0xeb0e363f, 0x72076785, 0x05005713,0x95bf4a82, 0xe2b87a14, 0x7bb12bae, 0x0cb61b38, 0x92d28e9b,0xe5d5be0d, 0x7cdcefb7, 0x0bdbdf21, 0x86d3d2d4, 0xf1d4e242,0x68ddb3f8, 0x1fda836e, 0x81be16cd, 0xf6b9265b, 0x6fb077e1,0x18b74777, 0x88085ae6, 0xff0f6a70, 0x66063bca, 0x11010b5c,0x8f659eff, 0xf862ae69, 0x616bffd3, 0x166ccf45, 0xa00ae278,0xd70dd2ee, 0x4e048354, 0x3903b3c2, 0xa7672661, 0xd06016f7,0x4969474d, 0x3e6e77db, 0xaed16a4a, 0xd9d65adc, 0x40df0b66,0x37d83bf0, 0xa9bcae53, 0xdebb9ec5, 0x47b2cf7f, 0x30b5ffe9,0xbdbdf21c, 0xcabac28a, 0x53b39330, 0x24b4a3a6, 0xbad03605,0xcdd70693, 0x54de5729, 0x23d967bf, 0xb3667a2e, 0xc4614ab8,0x5d681b02, 0x2a6f2b94, 0xb40bbe37, 0xc30c8ea1, 0x5a05df1b,0x2d02ef8d};unsigned char *end;crc = ~crc & 0xffffffff;for (end = buf + len; buf < end; ++buf)crc = crc32_table[(crc ^ *buf) & 0xff] ^ (crc >> 8);return ~crc & 0xffffffff;}This computation does not apply to the "build ID" method.File: gdb.info, Node: Symbol Errors, Prev: Separate Debug Files, Up: GDB Files15.3 Errors Reading Symbol Files================================While reading a symbol file, GDB occasionally encounters problems, suchas symbol types it does not recognize, or known bugs in compileroutput. By default, GDB does not notify you of such problems, sincethey are relatively common and primarily of interest to peopledebugging compilers. If you are interested in seeing information aboutill-constructed symbol tables, you can either ask GDB to print only onemessage about each such type of problem, no matter how many times theproblem occurs; or you can ask GDB to print more messages, to see howmany times the problems occur, with the `set complaints' command (*noteOptional Warnings and Messages: Messages/Warnings.).The messages currently printed, and their meanings, include:`inner block not inside outer block in SYMBOL'The symbol information shows where symbol scopes begin and end(such as at the start of a function or a block of statements).This error indicates that an inner scope block is not fullycontained in its outer scope blocks.GDB circumvents the problem by treating the inner block as if ithad the same scope as the outer block. In the error message,SYMBOL may be shown as "`(don't know)'" if the outer block is not afunction.`block at ADDRESS out of order'The symbol information for symbol scope blocks should occur inorder of increasing addresses. This error indicates that it doesnot do so.GDB does not circumvent this problem, and has trouble locatingsymbols in the source file whose symbols it is reading. (You canoften determine what source file is affected by specifying `setverbose on'. *Note Optional Warnings and Messages:Messages/Warnings.)`bad block start address patched'The symbol information for a symbol scope block has a start addresssmaller than the address of the preceding source line. This isknown to occur in the SunOS 4.1.1 (and earlier) C compiler.GDB circumvents the problem by treating the symbol scope block asstarting on the previous source line.`bad string table offset in symbol N'Symbol number N contains a pointer into the string table which islarger than the size of the string table.GDB circumvents the problem by considering the symbol to have thename `foo', which may cause other problems if many symbols end upwith this name.`unknown symbol type `0xNN''The symbol information contains new data types that GDB does notyet know how to read. `0xNN' is the symbol type of theuncomprehended information, in hexadecimal.GDB circumvents the error by ignoring this symbol information.This usually allows you to debug your program, though certainsymbols are not accessible. If you encounter such a problem andfeel like debugging it, you can debug `gdb' with itself, breakpointon `complain', then go up to the function `read_dbx_symtab' andexamine `*bufp' to see the symbol.`stub type has NULL name'GDB could not find the full definition for a struct or class.`const/volatile indicator missing (ok if using g++ v1.x), got...'The symbol information for a C++ member function is missing someinformation that recent versions of the compiler should haveoutput for it.`info mismatch between compiler and debugger'GDB could not parse a type specification output by the compiler.File: gdb.info, Node: Targets, Next: Remote Debugging, Prev: GDB Files, Up: Top16 Specifying a Debugging Target********************************A "target" is the execution environment occupied by your program.Often, GDB runs in the same host environment as your program; inthat case, the debugging target is specified as a side effect when youuse the `file' or `core' commands. When you need more flexibility--forexample, running GDB on a physically separate host, or controlling astandalone system over a serial port or a realtime system over a TCP/IPconnection--you can use the `target' command to specify one of thetarget types configured for GDB (*note Commands for Managing Targets:Target Commands.).It is possible to build GDB for several different "targetarchitectures". When GDB is built like that, you can choose one of theavailable architectures with the `set architecture' command.`set architecture ARCH'This command sets the current target architecture to ARCH. Thevalue of ARCH can be `"auto"', in addition to one of the supportedarchitectures.`show architecture'Show the current target architecture.`set processor'`processor'These are alias commands for, respectively, `set architecture' and`show architecture'.* Menu:* Active Targets:: Active targets* Target Commands:: Commands for managing targets* Byte Order:: Choosing target byte orderFile: gdb.info, Node: Active Targets, Next: Target Commands, Up: Targets16.1 Active Targets===================There are three classes of targets: processes, core files, andexecutable files. GDB can work concurrently on up to three activetargets, one in each class. This allows you to (for example) start aprocess and inspect its activity without abandoning your work on a corefile.For example, if you execute `gdb a.out', then the executable file`a.out' is the only active target. If you designate a core file aswell--presumably from a prior run that crashed and coredumped--then GDBhas two active targets and uses them in tandem, looking first in thecorefile target, then in the executable file, to satisfy requests formemory addresses. (Typically, these two classes of target arecomplementary, since core files contain only a program's read-writememory--variables and so on--plus machine status, while executablefiles contain only the program text and initialized data.)When you type `run', your executable file becomes an active processtarget as well. When a process target is active, all GDB commandsrequesting memory addresses refer to that target; addresses in anactive core file or executable file target are obscured while theprocess target is active.Use the `core-file' and `exec-file' commands to select a new corefile or executable target (*note Commands to Specify Files: Files.).To specify as a target a process that is already running, use the`attach' command (*note Debugging an Already-running Process: Attach.).File: gdb.info, Node: Target Commands, Next: Byte Order, Prev: Active Targets, Up: Targets16.2 Commands for Managing Targets==================================`target TYPE PARAMETERS'Connects the GDB host environment to a target machine or process.A target is typically a protocol for talking to debuggingfacilities. You use the argument TYPE to specify the type orprotocol of the target machine.Further PARAMETERS are interpreted by the target protocol, buttypically include things like device names or host names to connectwith, process numbers, and baud rates.The `target' command does not repeat if you press <RET> againafter executing the command.`help target'Displays the names of all targets available. To display targetscurrently selected, use either `info target' or `info files'(*note Commands to Specify Files: Files.).`help target NAME'Describe a particular target, including any parameters necessary toselect it.`set gnutarget ARGS'GDB uses its own library BFD to read your files. GDB knowswhether it is reading an "executable", a "core", or a ".o" file;however, you can specify the file format with the `set gnutarget'command. Unlike most `target' commands, with `gnutarget' the`target' refers to a program, not a machine._Warning:_ To specify a file format with `set gnutarget', youmust know the actual BFD name.*Note Commands to Specify Files: Files.`show gnutarget'Use the `show gnutarget' command to display what file format`gnutarget' is set to read. If you have not set `gnutarget', GDBwill determine the file format for each file automatically, and`show gnutarget' displays `The current BDF target is "auto"'.Here are some common targets (available, or not, depending on the GDBconfiguration):`target exec PROGRAM'An executable file. `target exec PROGRAM' is the same as`exec-file PROGRAM'.`target core FILENAME'A core dump file. `target core FILENAME' is the same as`core-file FILENAME'.`target remote MEDIUM'A remote system connected to GDB via a serial line or networkconnection. This command tells GDB to use its own remote protocolover MEDIUM for debugging. *Note Remote Debugging::.For example, if you have a board connected to `/dev/ttya' on themachine running GDB, you could say:target remote /dev/ttya`target remote' supports the `load' command. This is only usefulif you have some other way of getting the stub to the targetsystem, and you can put it somewhere in memory where it won't getclobbered by the download.`target sim'Builtin CPU simulator. GDB includes simulators for mostarchitectures. In general,target simloadrunworks; however, you cannot assume that a specific memory map,device drivers, or even basic I/O is available, although somesimulators do provide these. For info about anyprocessor-specific simulator details, see the appropriate sectionin *Note Embedded Processors: Embedded Processors.Some configurations may include these targets as well:`target nrom DEV'NetROM ROM emulator. This target only supports downloading.Different targets are available on different configurations of GDB;your configuration may have more or fewer targets.Many remote targets require you to download the executable's codeonce you've successfully established a connection. You may wish tocontrol various aspects of this process.`set hash'This command controls whether a hash mark `#' is displayed whiledownloading a file to the remote monitor. If on, a hash mark isdisplayed after each S-record is successfully downloaded to themonitor.`show hash'Show the current status of displaying the hash mark.`set debug monitor'Enable or disable display of communications messages between GDBand the remote monitor.`show debug monitor'Show the current status of displaying communications between GDBand the remote monitor.`load FILENAME'Depending on what remote debugging facilities are configured intoGDB, the `load' command may be available. Where it exists, it ismeant to make FILENAME (an executable) available for debugging onthe remote system--by downloading, or dynamic linking, for example.`load' also records the FILENAME symbol table in GDB, like the`add-symbol-file' command.If your GDB does not have a `load' command, attempting to executeit gets the error message "`You can't do that when your target is...'"The file is loaded at whatever address is specified in theexecutable. For some object file formats, you can specify theload address when you link the program; for other formats, likea.out, the object file format specifies a fixed address.Depending on the remote side capabilities, GDB may be able to loadprograms into flash memory.`load' does not repeat if you press <RET> again after using it.File: gdb.info, Node: Byte Order, Prev: Target Commands, Up: Targets16.3 Choosing Target Byte Order===============================Some types of processors, such as the MIPS, PowerPC, and Renesas SH,offer the ability to run either big-endian or little-endian byteorders. Usually the executable or symbol will include a bit todesignate the endian-ness, and you will not need to worry about whichto use. However, you may still find it useful to adjust GDB's idea ofprocessor endian-ness manually.`set endian big'Instruct GDB to assume the target is big-endian.`set endian little'Instruct GDB to assume the target is little-endian.`set endian auto'Instruct GDB to use the byte order associated with the executable.`show endian'Display GDB's current idea of the target byte order.Note that these commands merely adjust interpretation of symbolicdata on the host, and that they have absolutely no effect on the targetsystem.File: gdb.info, Node: Remote Debugging, Next: Configurations, Prev: Targets, Up: Top17 Debugging Remote Programs****************************If you are trying to debug a program running on a machine that cannotrun GDB in the usual way, it is often useful to use remote debugging.For example, you might use remote debugging on an operating systemkernel, or on a small system which does not have a general purposeoperating system powerful enough to run a full-featured debugger.Some configurations of GDB have special serial or TCP/IP interfacesto make this work with particular debugging targets. In addition, GDBcomes with a generic serial protocol (specific to GDB, but not specificto any particular target system) which you can use if you write theremote stubs--the code that runs on the remote system to communicatewith GDB.Other remote targets may be available in your configuration of GDB;use `help target' to list them.* Menu:* Connecting:: Connecting to a remote target* File Transfer:: Sending files to a remote system* Server:: Using the gdbserver program* Remote Configuration:: Remote configuration* Remote Stub:: Implementing a remote stubFile: gdb.info, Node: Connecting, Next: File Transfer, Up: Remote Debugging17.1 Connecting to a Remote Target==================================On the GDB host machine, you will need an unstripped copy of yourprogram, since GDB needs symbol and debugging information. Start upGDB as usual, using the name of the local copy of your program as thefirst argument.GDB can communicate with the target over a serial line, or over anIP network using TCP or UDP. In each case, GDB uses the same protocolfor debugging your program; only the medium carrying the debuggingpackets varies. The `target remote' command establishes a connectionto the target. Its arguments indicate which medium to use:`target remote SERIAL-DEVICE'Use SERIAL-DEVICE to communicate with the target. For example, touse a serial line connected to the device named `/dev/ttyb':target remote /dev/ttybIf you're using a serial line, you may want to give GDB the`--baud' option, or use the `set remotebaud' command (*note setremotebaud: Remote Configuration.) before the `target' command.`target remote `HOST:PORT''`target remote `tcp:HOST:PORT''Debug using a TCP connection to PORT on HOST. The HOST may beeither a host name or a numeric IP address; PORT must be a decimalnumber. The HOST could be the target machine itself, if it isdirectly connected to the net, or it might be a terminal serverwhich in turn has a serial line to the target.For example, to connect to port 2828 on a terminal server named`manyfarms':target remote manyfarms:2828If your remote target is actually running on the same machine asyour debugger session (e.g. a simulator for your target running onthe same host), you can omit the hostname. For example, toconnect to port 1234 on your local machine:target remote :1234Note that the colon is still required here.`target remote `udp:HOST:PORT''Debug using UDP packets to PORT on HOST. For example, to connectto UDP port 2828 on a terminal server named `manyfarms':target remote udp:manyfarms:2828When using a UDP connection for remote debugging, you should keepin mind that the `U' stands for "Unreliable". UDP can silentlydrop packets on busy or unreliable networks, which will causehavoc with your debugging session.`target remote | COMMAND'Run COMMAND in the background and communicate with it using apipe. The COMMAND is a shell command, to be parsed and expandedby the system's command shell, `/bin/sh'; it should expect remoteprotocol packets on its standard input, and send replies on itsstandard output. You could use this to run a stand-alone simulatorthat speaks the remote debugging protocol, to make net connectionsusing programs like `ssh', or for other similar tricks.If COMMAND closes its standard output (perhaps by exiting), GDBwill try to send it a `SIGTERM' signal. (If the program hasalready exited, this will have no effect.)Once the connection has been established, you can use all the usualcommands to examine and change data and to step and continue the remoteprogram.Whenever GDB is waiting for the remote program, if you type theinterrupt character (often `Ctrl-c'), GDB attempts to stop the program.This may or may not succeed, depending in part on the hardware and theserial drivers the remote system uses. If you type the interruptcharacter once again, GDB displays this prompt:Interrupted while waiting for the program.Give up (and stop debugging it)? (y or n)If you type `y', GDB abandons the remote debugging session. (If youdecide you want to try again later, you can use `target remote' againto connect once more.) If you type `n', GDB goes back to waiting.`detach'When you have finished debugging the remote program, you can usethe `detach' command to release it from GDB control. Detachingfrom the target normally resumes its execution, but the resultswill depend on your particular remote stub. After the `detach'command, GDB is free to connect to another target.`disconnect'The `disconnect' command behaves like `detach', except that thetarget is generally not resumed. It will wait for GDB (thisinstance or another one) to connect and continue debugging. Afterthe `disconnect' command, GDB is again free to connect to anothertarget.`monitor CMD'This command allows you to send arbitrary commands directly to theremote monitor. Since GDB doesn't care about the commands itsends like this, this command is the way to extend GDB--you canadd new commands that only the external monitor will understandand implement.File: gdb.info, Node: File Transfer, Next: Server, Prev: Connecting, Up: Remote Debugging17.2 Sending files to a remote system=====================================Some remote targets offer the ability to transfer files over the sameconnection used to communicate with GDB. This is convenient fortargets accessible through other means, e.g. GNU/Linux systems running`gdbserver' over a network interface. For other targets, e.g. embeddeddevices with only a single serial port, this may be the only way toupload or download files.Not all remote targets support these commands.`remote put HOSTFILE TARGETFILE'Copy file HOSTFILE from the host system (the machine running GDB)to TARGETFILE on the target system.`remote get TARGETFILE HOSTFILE'Copy file TARGETFILE from the target system to HOSTFILE on thehost system.`remote delete TARGETFILE'Delete TARGETFILE from the target system.File: gdb.info, Node: Server, Next: Remote Configuration, Prev: File Transfer, Up: Remote Debugging17.3 Using the `gdbserver' Program==================================`gdbserver' is a control program for Unix-like systems, which allowsyou to connect your program with a remote GDB via `target remote'--butwithout linking in the usual debugging stub.`gdbserver' is not a complete replacement for the debugging stubs,because it requires essentially the same operating-system facilitiesthat GDB itself does. In fact, a system that can run `gdbserver' toconnect to a remote GDB could also run GDB locally! `gdbserver' issometimes useful nevertheless, because it is a much smaller programthan GDB itself. It is also easier to port than all of GDB, so you maybe able to get started more quickly on a new system by using`gdbserver'. Finally, if you develop code for real-time systems, youmay find that the tradeoffs involved in real-time operation make itmore convenient to do as much development work as possible on anothersystem, for example by cross-compiling. You can use `gdbserver' tomake a similar choice for debugging.GDB and `gdbserver' communicate via either a serial line or a TCPconnection, using the standard GDB remote serial protocol._Warning:_ `gdbserver' does not have any built-in security. Donot run `gdbserver' connected to any public network; a GDBconnection to `gdbserver' provides access to the target systemwith the same privileges as the user running `gdbserver'.17.3.1 Running `gdbserver'--------------------------Run `gdbserver' on the target system. You need a copy of the programyou want to debug, including any libraries it requires. `gdbserver'does not need your program's symbol table, so you can strip the programif necessary to save space. GDB on the host system does all the symbolhandling.To use the server, you must tell it how to communicate with GDB; thename of your program; and the arguments for your program. The usualsyntax is:target> gdbserver COMM PROGRAM [ ARGS ... ]COMM is either a device name (to use a serial line) or a TCPhostname and portnumber. For example, to debug Emacs with the argument`foo.txt' and communicate with GDB over the serial port `/dev/com1':target> gdbserver /dev/com1 emacs foo.txt`gdbserver' waits passively for the host GDB to communicate with it.To use a TCP connection instead of a serial line:target> gdbserver host:2345 emacs foo.txtThe only difference from the previous example is the first argument,specifying that you are communicating with the host GDB via TCP. The`host:2345' argument means that `gdbserver' is to expect a TCPconnection from machine `host' to local TCP port 2345. (Currently, the`host' part is ignored.) You can choose any number you want for theport number as long as it does not conflict with any TCP ports alreadyin use on the target system (for example, `23' is reserved for`telnet').(1) You must use the same port number with the host GDB`target remote' command.17.3.1.1 Attaching to a Running Program.......................................On some targets, `gdbserver' can also attach to running programs. Thisis accomplished via the `--attach' argument. The syntax is:target> gdbserver --attach COMM PIDPID is the process ID of a currently running process. It isn'tnecessary to point `gdbserver' at a binary for the running process.You can debug processes by name instead of process ID if your targethas the `pidof' utility:target> gdbserver --attach COMM `pidof PROGRAM`In case more than one copy of PROGRAM is running, or PROGRAM hasmultiple threads, most versions of `pidof' support the `-s' option toonly return the first process ID.17.3.1.2 Multi-Process Mode for `gdbserver'...........................................When you connect to `gdbserver' using `target remote', `gdbserver'debugs the specified program only once. When the program exits, or youdetach from it, GDB closes the connection and `gdbserver' exits.If you connect using `target extended-remote', `gdbserver' entersmulti-process mode. When the debugged program exits, or you detachfrom it, GDB stays connected to `gdbserver' even though no program isrunning. The `run' and `attach' commands instruct `gdbserver' to runor attach to a new program. The `run' command uses `set remoteexec-file' (*note set remote exec-file::) to select the program to run.Command line arguments are supported, except for wildcard expansionand I/O redirection (*note Arguments::).To start `gdbserver' without supplying an initial command to run orprocess ID to attach, use the `--multi' command line option. Then youcan connect using `target extended-remote' and start the program youwant to debug.`gdbserver' does not automatically exit in multi-process mode. Youcan terminate it by using `monitor exit' (*note Monitor Commands forgdbserver::).17.3.1.3 Other Command-Line Arguments for `gdbserver'.....................................................You can include `--debug' on the `gdbserver' command line. `gdbserver'will display extra status information about the debugging process.This option is intended for `gdbserver' development and for bug reportsto the developers.17.3.2 Connecting to `gdbserver'--------------------------------Run GDB on the host system.First make sure you have the necessary symbol files. Load symbolsfor your application using the `file' command before you connect. Use`set sysroot' to locate target libraries (unless your GDB was compiledwith the correct sysroot using `--with-sysroot').The symbol file and target libraries must exactly match theexecutable and libraries on the target, with one exception: the fileson the host system should not be stripped, even if the files on thetarget system are. Mismatched or missing files will lead to confusingresults during debugging. On GNU/Linux targets, mismatched or missingfiles may also prevent `gdbserver' from debugging multi-threadedprograms.Connect to your target (*note Connecting to a Remote Target:Connecting.). For TCP connections, you must start up `gdbserver' priorto using the `target remote' command. Otherwise you may get an errorwhose text depends on the host system, but which usually lookssomething like `Connection refused'. Don't use the `load' command inGDB when using `gdbserver', since the program is already on the target.17.3.3 Monitor Commands for `gdbserver'---------------------------------------During a GDB session using `gdbserver', you can use the `monitor'command to send special requests to `gdbserver'. Here are theavailable commands.`monitor help'List the available monitor commands.`monitor set debug 0'`monitor set debug 1'Disable or enable general debugging messages.`monitor set remote-debug 0'`monitor set remote-debug 1'Disable or enable specific debugging messages associated with theremote protocol (*note Remote Protocol::).`monitor exit'Tell gdbserver to exit immediately. This command should befollowed by `disconnect' to close the debugging session.`gdbserver' will detach from any attached processes and kill anyprocesses it created. Use `monitor exit' to terminate `gdbserver'at the end of a multi-process mode debug session.---------- Footnotes ----------(1) If you choose a port number that conflicts with another service,`gdbserver' prints an error message and exits.File: gdb.info, Node: Remote Configuration, Next: Remote Stub, Prev: Server, Up: Remote Debugging17.4 Remote Configuration=========================This section documents the configuration options available whendebugging remote programs. For the options related to the File I/Oextensions of the remote protocol, see *Note system-call-allowed:system.`set remoteaddresssize BITS'Set the maximum size of address in a memory packet to the specifiednumber of bits. GDB will mask off the address bits above thatnumber, when it passes addresses to the remote target. Thedefault value is the number of bits in the target's address.`show remoteaddresssize'Show the current value of remote address size in bits.`set remotebaud N'Set the baud rate for the remote serial I/O to N baud. The valueis used to set the speed of the serial port used for debuggingremote targets.`show remotebaud'Show the current speed of the remote connection.`set remotebreak'If set to on, GDB sends a `BREAK' signal to the remote when youtype `Ctrl-c' to interrupt the program running on the remote. Ifset to off, GDB sends the `Ctrl-C' character instead. The defaultis off, since most remote systems expect to see `Ctrl-C' as theinterrupt signal.`show remotebreak'Show whether GDB sends `BREAK' or `Ctrl-C' to interrupt the remoteprogram.`set remoteflow on'`set remoteflow off'Enable or disable hardware flow control (`RTS'/`CTS') on theserial port used to communicate to the remote target.`show remoteflow'Show the current setting of hardware flow control.`set remotelogbase BASE'Set the base (a.k.a. radix) of logging serial protocolcommunications to BASE. Supported values of BASE are: `ascii',`octal', and `hex'. The default is `ascii'.`show remotelogbase'Show the current setting of the radix for logging remote serialprotocol.`set remotelogfile FILE'Record remote serial communications on the named FILE. Thedefault is not to record at all.`show remotelogfile.'Show the current setting of the file name on which to record theserial communications.`set remotetimeout NUM'Set the timeout limit to wait for the remote target to respond toNUM seconds. The default is 2 seconds.`show remotetimeout'Show the current number of seconds to wait for the remote targetresponses.`set remote hardware-watchpoint-limit LIMIT'`set remote hardware-breakpoint-limit LIMIT'Restrict GDB to using LIMIT remote hardware breakpoint orwatchpoints. A limit of -1, the default, is treated as unlimited.`set remote exec-file FILENAME'`show remote exec-file'Select the file used for `run' with `target extended-remote'.This should be set to a filename valid on the target system. Ifit is not set, the target will use a default filename (e.g. thelast program run).The GDB remote protocol autodetects the packets supported by yourdebugging stub. If you need to override the autodetection, you can usethese commands to enable or disable individual packets. Each packetcan be set to `on' (the remote target supports this packet), `off' (theremote target does not support this packet), or `auto' (detect remotetarget support for this packet). They all default to `auto'. For moreinformation about each packet, see *Note Remote Protocol::.During normal use, you should not have to use any of these commands.If you do, that may be a bug in your remote debugging stub, or a bug inGDB. You may want to report the problem to the GDB developers.For each packet NAME, the command to enable or disable the packet is`set remote NAME-packet'. The available settings are:Command Name Remote Packet Related Features`fetch-register' `p' `info registers'`set-register' `P' `set'`binary-download' `X' `load', `set'`read-aux-vector' `qXfer:auxv:read' `info auxv'`symbol-lookup' `qSymbol' Detectingmultiple threads`attach' `vAttach' `attach'`verbose-resume' `vCont' Stepping orresuming multiplethreads`run' `vRun' `run'`software-breakpoint'`Z0' `break'`hardware-breakpoint'`Z1' `hbreak'`write-watchpoint' `Z2' `watch'`read-watchpoint' `Z3' `rwatch'`access-watchpoint' `Z4' `awatch'`target-features' `qXfer:features:read' `set architecture'`library-info' `qXfer:libraries:read' `infosharedlibrary'`memory-map' `qXfer:memory-map:read' `info mem'`read-spu-object' `qXfer:spu:read' `info spu'`write-spu-object' `qXfer:spu:write' `info spu'`get-thread-local- `qGetTLSAddr' Displayingstorage-address' `__thread'variables`supported-packets' `qSupported' Remotecommunicationsparameters`pass-signals' `QPassSignals' `handle SIGNAL'`hostio-close-packet'`vFile:close' `remote get',`remote put'`hostio-open-packet' `vFile:open' `remote get',`remote put'`hostio-pread-packet'`vFile:pread' `remote get',`remote put'`hostio-pwrite-packet'`vFile:pwrite' `remote get',`remote put'`hostio-unlink-packet'`vFile:unlink' `remote delete'File: gdb.info, Node: Remote Stub, Prev: Remote Configuration, Up: Remote Debugging17.5 Implementing a Remote Stub===============================The stub files provided with GDB implement the target side of thecommunication protocol, and the GDB side is implemented in the GDBsource file `remote.c'. Normally, you can simply allow thesesubroutines to communicate, and ignore the details. (If you'reimplementing your own stub file, you can still ignore the details: startwith one of the existing stub files. `sparc-stub.c' is the bestorganized, and therefore the easiest to read.)To debug a program running on another machine (the debugging"target" machine), you must first arrange for all the usualprerequisites for the program to run by itself. For example, for a Cprogram, you need:1. A startup routine to set up the C runtime environment; theseusually have a name like `crt0'. The startup routine may besupplied by your hardware supplier, or you may have to write yourown.2. A C subroutine library to support your program's subroutine calls,notably managing input and output.3. A way of getting your program to the other machine--for example, adownload program. These are often supplied by the hardwaremanufacturer, but you may have to write your own from hardwaredocumentation.The next step is to arrange for your program to use a serial port tocommunicate with the machine where GDB is running (the "host" machine).In general terms, the scheme looks like this:_On the host,_GDB already understands how to use this protocol; when everythingelse is set up, you can simply use the `target remote' command(*note Specifying a Debugging Target: Targets.)._On the target,_you must link with your program a few special-purpose subroutinesthat implement the GDB remote serial protocol. The filecontaining these subroutines is called a "debugging stub".On certain remote targets, you can use an auxiliary program`gdbserver' instead of linking a stub into your program. *NoteUsing the `gdbserver' Program: Server, for details.The debugging stub is specific to the architecture of the remotemachine; for example, use `sparc-stub.c' to debug programs on SPARCboards.These working remote stubs are distributed with GDB:`i386-stub.c'For Intel 386 and compatible architectures.`m68k-stub.c'For Motorola 680x0 architectures.`sh-stub.c'For Renesas SH architectures.`sparc-stub.c'For SPARC architectures.`sparcl-stub.c'For Fujitsu SPARCLITE architectures.The `README' file in the GDB distribution may list other recentlyadded stubs.* Menu:* Stub Contents:: What the stub can do for you* Bootstrapping:: What you must do for the stub* Debug Session:: Putting it all togetherFile: gdb.info, Node: Stub Contents, Next: Bootstrapping, Up: Remote Stub17.5.1 What the Stub Can Do for You-----------------------------------The debugging stub for your architecture supplies these threesubroutines:`set_debug_traps'This routine arranges for `handle_exception' to run when yourprogram stops. You must call this subroutine explicitly near thebeginning of your program.`handle_exception'This is the central workhorse, but your program never calls itexplicitly--the setup code arranges for `handle_exception' to runwhen a trap is triggered.`handle_exception' takes control when your program stops duringexecution (for example, on a breakpoint), and mediatescommunications with GDB on the host machine. This is where thecommunications protocol is implemented; `handle_exception' acts asthe GDB representative on the target machine. It begins bysending summary information on the state of your program, thencontinues to execute, retrieving and transmitting any informationGDB needs, until you execute a GDB command that makes your programresume; at that point, `handle_exception' returns control to yourown code on the target machine.`breakpoint'Use this auxiliary subroutine to make your program contain abreakpoint. Depending on the particular situation, this may bethe only way for GDB to get control. For instance, if your targetmachine has some sort of interrupt button, you won't need to callthis; pressing the interrupt button transfers control to`handle_exception'--in effect, to GDB. On some machines, simplyreceiving characters on the serial port may also trigger a trap;again, in that situation, you don't need to call `breakpoint' fromyour own program--simply running `target remote' from the host GDBsession gets control.Call `breakpoint' if none of these is true, or if you simply wantto make certain your program stops at a predetermined point for thestart of your debugging session.File: gdb.info, Node: Bootstrapping, Next: Debug Session, Prev: Stub Contents, Up: Remote Stub17.5.2 What You Must Do for the Stub------------------------------------The debugging stubs that come with GDB are set up for a particular chiparchitecture, but they have no information about the rest of yourdebugging target machine.First of all you need to tell the stub how to communicate with theserial port.`int getDebugChar()'Write this subroutine to read a single character from the serialport. It may be identical to `getchar' for your target system; adifferent name is used to allow you to distinguish the two if youwish.`void putDebugChar(int)'Write this subroutine to write a single character to the serialport. It may be identical to `putchar' for your target system; adifferent name is used to allow you to distinguish the two if youwish.If you want GDB to be able to stop your program while it is running,you need to use an interrupt-driven serial driver, and arrange for itto stop when it receives a `^C' (`\003', the control-C character).That is the character which GDB uses to tell the remote system to stop.Getting the debugging target to return the proper status to GDBprobably requires changes to the standard stub; one quick and dirty wayis to just execute a breakpoint instruction (the "dirty" part is thatGDB reports a `SIGTRAP' instead of a `SIGINT').Other routines you need to supply are:`void exceptionHandler (int EXCEPTION_NUMBER, void *EXCEPTION_ADDRESS)'Write this function to install EXCEPTION_ADDRESS in the exceptionhandling tables. You need to do this because the stub does nothave any way of knowing what the exception handling tables on yourtarget system are like (for example, the processor's table mightbe in ROM, containing entries which point to a table in RAM).EXCEPTION_NUMBER is the exception number which should be changed;its meaning is architecture-dependent (for example, differentnumbers might represent divide by zero, misaligned access, etc).When this exception occurs, control should be transferred directlyto EXCEPTION_ADDRESS, and the processor state (stack, registers,and so on) should be just as it is when a processor exceptionoccurs. So if you want to use a jump instruction to reachEXCEPTION_ADDRESS, it should be a simple jump, not a jump tosubroutine.For the 386, EXCEPTION_ADDRESS should be installed as an interruptgate so that interrupts are masked while the handler runs. Thegate should be at privilege level 0 (the most privileged level).The SPARC and 68k stubs are able to mask interrupts themselveswithout help from `exceptionHandler'.`void flush_i_cache()'On SPARC and SPARCLITE only, write this subroutine to flush theinstruction cache, if any, on your target machine. If there is noinstruction cache, this subroutine may be a no-op.On target machines that have instruction caches, GDB requires thisfunction to make certain that the state of your program is stable.You must also make sure this library routine is available:`void *memset(void *, int, int)'This is the standard library function `memset' that sets an area ofmemory to a known value. If you have one of the free versions of`libc.a', `memset' can be found there; otherwise, you must eitherobtain it from your hardware manufacturer, or write your own.If you do not use the GNU C compiler, you may need other standardlibrary subroutines as well; this varies from one stub to another, butin general the stubs are likely to use any of the common librarysubroutines which `GCC' generates as inline code.File: gdb.info, Node: Debug Session, Prev: Bootstrapping, Up: Remote Stub17.5.3 Putting it All Together------------------------------In summary, when your program is ready to debug, you must follow thesesteps.1. Make sure you have defined the supporting low-level routines(*note What You Must Do for the Stub: Bootstrapping.):`getDebugChar', `putDebugChar',`flush_i_cache', `memset', `exceptionHandler'.2. Insert these lines near the top of your program:set_debug_traps();breakpoint();3. For the 680x0 stub only, you need to provide a variable called`exceptionHook'. Normally you just use:void (*exceptionHook)() = 0;but if before calling `set_debug_traps', you set it to point to afunction in your program, that function is called when `GDB'continues after stopping on a trap (for example, bus error). Thefunction indicated by `exceptionHook' is called with oneparameter: an `int' which is the exception number.4. Compile and link together: your program, the GDB debugging stub foryour target architecture, and the supporting subroutines.5. Make sure you have a serial connection between your target machineand the GDB host, and identify the serial port on the host.6. Download your program to your target machine (or get it there bywhatever means the manufacturer provides), and start it.7. Start GDB on the host, and connect to the target (*note Connectingto a Remote Target: Connecting.).File: gdb.info, Node: Configurations, Next: Controlling GDB, Prev: Remote Debugging, Up: Top18 Configuration-Specific Information*************************************While nearly all GDB commands are available for all native and crossversions of the debugger, there are some exceptions. This chapterdescribes things that are only available in certain configurations.There are three major categories of configurations: nativeconfigurations, where the host and target are the same, embeddedoperating system configurations, which are usually the same for severaldifferent processor architectures, and bare embedded processors, whichare quite different from each other.* Menu:* Native::* Embedded OS::* Embedded Processors::* Architectures::File: gdb.info, Node: Native, Next: Embedded OS, Up: Configurations18.1 Native===========This section describes details specific to particular nativeconfigurations.* Menu:* HP-UX:: HP-UX* BSD libkvm Interface:: Debugging BSD kernel memory images* SVR4 Process Information:: SVR4 process information* DJGPP Native:: Features specific to the DJGPP port* Cygwin Native:: Features specific to the Cygwin port* Hurd Native:: Features specific to GNU Hurd* Neutrino:: Features specific to QNX NeutrinoFile: gdb.info, Node: HP-UX, Next: BSD libkvm Interface, Up: Native18.1.1 HP-UX------------On HP-UX systems, if you refer to a function or variable name thatbegins with a dollar sign, GDB searches for a user or system namefirst, before it searches for a convenience variable.File: gdb.info, Node: BSD libkvm Interface, Next: SVR4 Process Information, Prev: HP-UX, Up: Native18.1.2 BSD libkvm Interface---------------------------BSD-derived systems (FreeBSD/NetBSD/OpenBSD) have a kernel memoryinterface that provides a uniform interface for accessing kernel virtualmemory images, including live systems and crash dumps. GDB uses thisinterface to allow you to debug live kernels and kernel crash dumps onmany native BSD configurations. This is implemented as a special `kvm'debugging target. For debugging a live system, load the currentlyrunning kernel into GDB and connect to the `kvm' target:(gdb) target kvmFor debugging crash dumps, provide the file name of the crash dumpas an argument:(gdb) target kvm /var/crash/bsd.0Once connected to the `kvm' target, the following commands areavailable:`kvm pcb'Set current context from the "Process Control Block" (PCB) address.`kvm proc'Set current context from proc address. This command isn'tavailable on modern FreeBSD systems.File: gdb.info, Node: SVR4 Process Information, Next: DJGPP Native, Prev: BSD libkvm Interface, Up: Native18.1.3 SVR4 Process Information-------------------------------Many versions of SVR4 and compatible systems provide a facility called`/proc' that can be used to examine the image of a running processusing file-system subroutines. If GDB is configured for an operatingsystem with this facility, the command `info proc' is available toreport information about the process running your program, or about anyprocess running on your system. `info proc' works only on SVR4 systemsthat include the `procfs' code. This includes, as of this writing,GNU/Linux, OSF/1 (Digital Unix), Solaris, Irix, and Unixware, but notHP-UX, for example.`info proc'`info proc PROCESS-ID'Summarize available information about any running process. If aprocess ID is specified by PROCESS-ID, display information aboutthat process; otherwise display information about the program beingdebugged. The summary includes the debugged process ID, thecommand line used to invoke it, its current working directory, andits executable file's absolute file name.On some systems, PROCESS-ID can be of the form `[PID]/TID' whichspecifies a certain thread ID within a process. If the optionalPID part is missing, it means a thread from the process beingdebugged (the leading `/' still needs to be present, or else GDBwill interpret the number as a process ID rather than a thread ID).`info proc mappings'Report the memory address space ranges accessible in the program,with information on whether the process has read, write, orexecute access rights to each range. On GNU/Linux systems, eachmemory range includes the object file which is mapped to thatrange, instead of the memory access rights to that range.`info proc stat'`info proc status'These subcommands are specific to GNU/Linux systems. They showthe process-related information, including the user ID and groupID; how many threads are there in the process; its virtual memoryusage; the signals that are pending, blocked, and ignored; itsTTY; its consumption of system and user time; its stack size; its`nice' value; etc. For more information, see the `proc' man page(type `man 5 proc' from your shell prompt).`info proc all'Show all the information about the process described under all ofthe above `info proc' subcommands.`set procfs-trace'This command enables and disables tracing of `procfs' API calls.`show procfs-trace'Show the current state of `procfs' API call tracing.`set procfs-file FILE'Tell GDB to write `procfs' API trace to the named FILE. GDBappends the trace info to the previous contents of the file. Thedefault is to display the trace on the standard output.`show procfs-file'Show the file to which `procfs' API trace is written.`proc-trace-entry'`proc-trace-exit'`proc-untrace-entry'`proc-untrace-exit'These commands enable and disable tracing of entries into and exitsfrom the `syscall' interface.`info pidlist'For QNX Neutrino only, this command displays the list of all theprocesses and all the threads within each process.`info meminfo'For QNX Neutrino only, this command displays the list of allmapinfos.File: gdb.info, Node: DJGPP Native, Next: Cygwin Native, Prev: SVR4 Process Information, Up: Native18.1.4 Features for Debugging DJGPP Programs--------------------------------------------DJGPP is a port of the GNU development tools to MS-DOS and MS-Windows.DJGPP programs are 32-bit protected-mode programs that use the "DPMI"(DOS Protected-Mode Interface) API to run on top of real-mode DOSsystems and their emulations.GDB supports native debugging of DJGPP programs, and defines a fewcommands specific to the DJGPP port. This subsection describes thosecommands.`info dos'This is a prefix of DJGPP-specific commands which printinformation about the target system and important OS structures.`info dos sysinfo'This command displays assorted information about the underlyingplatform: the CPU type and features, the OS version and flavor, theDPMI version, and the available conventional and DPMI memory.`info dos gdt'`info dos ldt'`info dos idt'These 3 commands display entries from, respectively, Global, Local,and Interrupt Descriptor Tables (GDT, LDT, and IDT). Thedescriptor tables are data structures which store a descriptor foreach segment that is currently in use. The segment's selector isan index into a descriptor table; the table entry for that indexholds the descriptor's base address and limit, and its attributesand access rights.A typical DJGPP program uses 3 segments: a code segment, a datasegment (used for both data and the stack), and a DOS segment(which allows access to DOS/BIOS data structures and absoluteaddresses in conventional memory). However, the DPMI host willusually define additional segments in order to support the DPMIenvironment.These commands allow to display entries from the descriptor tables.Without an argument, all entries from the specified table aredisplayed. An argument, which should be an integer expression,means display a single entry whose index is given by the argument.For example, here's a convenient way to display information aboutthe debugged program's data segment:`(gdb) info dos ldt $ds'`0x13f: base=0x11970000 limit=0x0009ffff 32-Bit Data (Read/Write, Exp-up)'This comes in handy when you want to see whether a pointer isoutside the data segment's limit (i.e. "garbled").`info dos pde'`info dos pte'These two commands display entries from, respectively, the PageDirectory and the Page Tables. Page Directories and Page Tablesare data structures which control how virtual memory addresses aremapped into physical addresses. A Page Table includes an entryfor every page of memory that is mapped into the program's addressspace; there may be several Page Tables, each one holding up to4096 entries. A Page Directory has up to 4096 entries, one eachfor every Page Table that is currently in use.Without an argument, `info dos pde' displays the entire PageDirectory, and `info dos pte' displays all the entries in all ofthe Page Tables. An argument, an integer expression, given to the`info dos pde' command means display only that entry from the PageDirectory table. An argument given to the `info dos pte' commandmeans display entries from a single Page Table, the one pointed toby the specified entry in the Page Directory.These commands are useful when your program uses "DMA" (DirectMemory Access), which needs physical addresses to program the DMAcontroller.These commands are supported only with some DPMI servers.`info dos address-pte ADDR'This command displays the Page Table entry for a specified linearaddress. The argument ADDR is a linear address which shouldalready have the appropriate segment's base address added to it,because this command accepts addresses which may belong to _any_segment. For example, here's how to display the Page Table entryfor the page where a variable `i' is stored:`(gdb) info dos address-pte __djgpp_base_address + (char *)&i'`Page Table entry for address 0x11a00d30:'`Base=0x02698000 Dirty Acc. Not-Cached Write-Back Usr Read-Write +0xd30'This says that `i' is stored at offset `0xd30' from the page whosephysical base address is `0x02698000', and shows all theattributes of that page.Note that you must cast the addresses of variables to a `char *',since otherwise the value of `__djgpp_base_address', the baseaddress of all variables and functions in a DJGPP program, will beadded using the rules of C pointer arithmetics: if `i' is declaredan `int', GDB will add 4 times the value of `__djgpp_base_address'to the address of `i'.Here's another example, it displays the Page Table entry for thetransfer buffer:`(gdb) info dos address-pte *((unsigned *)&_go32_info_block + 3)'`Page Table entry for address 0x29110:'`Base=0x00029000 Dirty Acc. Not-Cached Write-Back Usr Read-Write +0x110'(The `+ 3' offset is because the transfer buffer's address is the3rd member of the `_go32_info_block' structure.) The outputclearly shows that this DPMI server maps the addresses inconventional memory 1:1, i.e. the physical (`0x00029000' +`0x110') and linear (`0x29110') addresses are identical.This command is supported only with some DPMI servers.In addition to native debugging, the DJGPP port supports remotedebugging via a serial data link. The following commands are specificto remote serial debugging in the DJGPP port of GDB.`set com1base ADDR'This command sets the base I/O port address of the `COM1' serialport.`set com1irq IRQ'This command sets the "Interrupt Request" (`IRQ') line to use forthe `COM1' serial port.There are similar commands `set com2base', `set com3irq', etc. forsetting the port address and the `IRQ' lines for the other 3 COMports.The related commands `show com1base', `show com1irq' etc. displaythe current settings of the base address and the `IRQ' lines usedby the COM ports.`info serial'This command prints the status of the 4 DOS serial ports. For eachport, it prints whether it's active or not, its I/O base addressand IRQ number, whether it uses a 16550-style FIFO, its baudrate,and the counts of various errors encountered so far.File: gdb.info, Node: Cygwin Native, Next: Hurd Native, Prev: DJGPP Native, Up: Native18.1.5 Features for Debugging MS Windows PE Executables-------------------------------------------------------GDB supports native debugging of MS Windows programs, including DLLswith and without symbolic debugging information. There are variousadditional Cygwin-specific commands, described in this section.Working with DLLs that have no debugging symbols is described in *NoteNon-debug DLL Symbols::.`info w32'This is a prefix of MS Windows-specific commands which printinformation about the target system and important OS structures.`info w32 selector'This command displays information returned by the Win32 API`GetThreadSelectorEntry' function. It takes an optional argumentthat is evaluated to a long value to give the information aboutthis given selector. Without argument, this command displaysinformation about the six segment registers.`info dll'This is a Cygwin-specific alias of `info shared'.`dll-symbols'This command loads symbols from a dll similarly to add-sym commandbut without the need to specify a base address.`set cygwin-exceptions MODE'If MODE is `on', GDB will break on exceptions that happen insidethe Cygwin DLL. If MODE is `off', GDB will delay recognition ofexceptions, and may ignore some exceptions which seem to be causedby internal Cygwin DLL "bookkeeping". This option is meantprimarily for debugging the Cygwin DLL itself; the default valueis `off' to avoid annoying GDB users with false `SIGSEGV' signals.`show cygwin-exceptions'Displays whether GDB will break on exceptions that happen insidethe Cygwin DLL itself.`set new-console MODE'If MODE is `on' the debuggee will be started in a new console onnext start. If MODE is `off'i, the debuggee will be started inthe same console as the debugger.`show new-console'Displays whether a new console is used when the debuggee isstarted.`set new-group MODE'This boolean value controls whether the debuggee should start anew group or stay in the same group as the debugger. This affectsthe way the Windows OS handles `Ctrl-C'.`show new-group'Displays current value of new-group boolean.`set debugevents'This boolean value adds debug output concerning kernel eventsrelated to the debuggee seen by the debugger. This includesevents that signal thread and process creation and exit, DLLloading and unloading, console interrupts, and debugging messagesproduced by the Windows `OutputDebugString' API call.`set debugexec'This boolean value adds debug output concerning execute events(such as resume thread) seen by the debugger.`set debugexceptions'This boolean value adds debug output concerning exceptions in thedebuggee seen by the debugger.`set debugmemory'This boolean value adds debug output concerning debuggee memoryreads and writes by the debugger.`set shell'This boolean values specifies whether the debuggee is called via ashell or directly (default value is on).`show shell'Displays if the debuggee will be started with a shell.* Menu:* Non-debug DLL Symbols:: Support for DLLs without debugging symbolsFile: gdb.info, Node: Non-debug DLL Symbols, Up: Cygwin Native18.1.5.1 Support for DLLs without Debugging Symbols...................................................Very often on windows, some of the DLLs that your program relies on donot include symbolic debugging information (for example,`kernel32.dll'). When GDB doesn't recognize any debugging symbols in aDLL, it relies on the minimal amount of symbolic information containedin the DLL's export table. This section describes working with suchsymbols, known internally to GDB as "minimal symbols".Note that before the debugged program has started execution, no DLLswill have been loaded. The easiest way around this problem is simply tostart the program -- either by setting a breakpoint or letting theprogram run once to completion. It is also possible to force GDB toload a particular DLL before starting the executable -- see the sharedlibrary information in *Note Files::, or the `dll-symbols' command in*Note Cygwin Native::. Currently, explicitly loading symbols from aDLL with no debugging information will cause the symbol names to beduplicated in GDB's lookup table, which may adversely affect symbollookup performance.18.1.5.2 DLL Name Prefixes..........................In keeping with the naming conventions used by the Microsoft debuggingtools, DLL export symbols are made available with a prefix based on theDLL name, for instance `KERNEL32!CreateFileA'. The plain name is alsoentered into the symbol table, so `CreateFileA' is often sufficient. Insome cases there will be name clashes within a program (particularly ifthe executable itself includes full debugging symbols) necessitatingthe use of the fully qualified name when referring to the contents ofthe DLL. Use single-quotes around the name to avoid the exclamationmark ("!") being interpreted as a language operator.Note that the internal name of the DLL may be all upper-case, eventhough the file name of the DLL is lower-case, or vice-versa. Sincesymbols within GDB are _case-sensitive_ this may cause some confusion.If in doubt, try the `info functions' and `info variables' commands oreven `maint print msymbols' (*note Symbols::). Here's an example:(gdb) info function CreateFileAAll functions matching regular expression "CreateFileA":Non-debugging symbols:0x77e885f4 CreateFileA0x77e885f4 KERNEL32!CreateFileA(gdb) info function !All functions matching regular expression "!":Non-debugging symbols:0x6100114c cygwin1!__assert0x61004034 cygwin1!_dll_crt0@00x61004240 cygwin1!dll_crt0(per_process *)[etc...]18.1.5.3 Working with Minimal Symbols.....................................Symbols extracted from a DLL's export table do not contain very muchtype information. All that GDB can do is guess whether a symbol refersto a function or variable depending on the linker section that containsthe symbol. Also note that the actual contents of the memory containedin a DLL are not available unless the program is running. This meansthat you cannot examine the contents of a variable or disassemble afunction within a DLL without a running program.Variables are generally treated as pointers and dereferencedautomatically. For this reason, it is often necessary to prefix avariable name with the address-of operator ("&") and provide explicittype information in the command. Here's an example of the type ofproblem:(gdb) print 'cygwin1!__argv'$1 = 268572168(gdb) x 'cygwin1!__argv'0x10021610: "\230y\""And two possible solutions:(gdb) print ((char **)'cygwin1!__argv')[0]$2 = 0x22fd98 "/cygdrive/c/mydirectory/myprogram"(gdb) x/2x &'cygwin1!__argv'0x610c0aa8 <cygwin1!__argv>: 0x10021608 0x00000000(gdb) x/x 0x100216080x10021608: 0x0022fd98(gdb) x/s 0x0022fd980x22fd98: "/cygdrive/c/mydirectory/myprogram"Setting a break point within a DLL is possible even before theprogram starts execution. However, under these circumstances, GDB can'texamine the initial instructions of the function in order to skip thefunction's frame set-up code. You can work around this by using "*&" toset the breakpoint at a raw memory address:(gdb) break *&'python22!PyOS_Readline'Breakpoint 1 at 0x1e04eff0The author of these extensions is not entirely convinced thatsetting a break point within a shared DLL like `kernel32.dll' iscompletely safe.File: gdb.info, Node: Hurd Native, Next: Neutrino, Prev: Cygwin Native, Up: Native18.1.6 Commands Specific to GNU Hurd Systems--------------------------------------------This subsection describes GDB commands specific to the GNU Hurd nativedebugging.`set signals'`set sigs'This command toggles the state of inferior signal interception byGDB. Mach exceptions, such as breakpoint traps, are not affectedby this command. `sigs' is a shorthand alias for `signals'.`show signals'`show sigs'Show the current state of intercepting inferior's signals.`set signal-thread'`set sigthread'This command tells GDB which thread is the `libc' signal thread.That thread is run when a signal is delivered to a runningprocess. `set sigthread' is the shorthand alias of `setsignal-thread'.`show signal-thread'`show sigthread'These two commands show which thread will run when the inferior isdelivered a signal.`set stopped'This commands tells GDB that the inferior process is stopped, aswith the `SIGSTOP' signal. The stopped process can be continuedby delivering a signal to it.`show stopped'This command shows whether GDB thinks the debuggee is stopped.`set exceptions'Use this command to turn off trapping of exceptions in theinferior. When exception trapping is off, neither breakpoints norsingle-stepping will work. To restore the default, set exceptiontrapping on.`show exceptions'Show the current state of trapping exceptions in the inferior.`set task pause'This command toggles task suspension when GDB has control.Setting it to on takes effect immediately, and the task issuspended whenever GDB gets control. Setting it to off will takeeffect the next time the inferior is continued. If this option isset to off, you can use `set thread default pause on' or `setthread pause on' (see below) to pause individual threads.`show task pause'Show the current state of task suspension.`set task detach-suspend-count'This command sets the suspend count the task will be left with whenGDB detaches from it.`show task detach-suspend-count'Show the suspend count the task will be left with when detaching.`set task exception-port'`set task excp'This command sets the task exception port to which GDB willforward exceptions. The argument should be the value of the "sendrights" of the task. `set task excp' is a shorthand alias.`set noninvasive'This command switches GDB to a mode that is the least invasive asfar as interfering with the inferior is concerned. This is thesame as using `set task pause', `set exceptions', and `setsignals' to values opposite to the defaults.`info send-rights'`info receive-rights'`info port-rights'`info port-sets'`info dead-names'`info ports'`info psets'These commands display information about, respectively, sendrights, receive rights, port rights, port sets, and dead names ofa task. There are also shorthand aliases: `info ports' for `infoport-rights' and `info psets' for `info port-sets'.`set thread pause'This command toggles current thread suspension when GDB hascontrol. Setting it to on takes effect immediately, and thecurrent thread is suspended whenever GDB gets control. Setting itto off will take effect the next time the inferior is continued.Normally, this command has no effect, since when GDB has control,the whole task is suspended. However, if you used `set task pauseoff' (see above), this command comes in handy to suspend only thecurrent thread.`show thread pause'This command shows the state of current thread suspension.`set thread run'This command sets whether the current thread is allowed to run.`show thread run'Show whether the current thread is allowed to run.`set thread detach-suspend-count'This command sets the suspend count GDB will leave on a threadwhen detaching. This number is relative to the suspend countfound by GDB when it notices the thread; use `set threadtakeover-suspend-count' to force it to an absolute value.`show thread detach-suspend-count'Show the suspend count GDB will leave on the thread when detaching.`set thread exception-port'`set thread excp'Set the thread exception port to which to forward exceptions. Thisoverrides the port set by `set task exception-port' (see above).`set thread excp' is the shorthand alias.`set thread takeover-suspend-count'Normally, GDB's thread suspend counts are relative to the valueGDB finds when it notices each thread. This command changes thesuspend counts to be absolute instead.`set thread default'`show thread default'Each of the above `set thread' commands has a `set thread default'counterpart (e.g., `set thread default pause', `set thread defaultexception-port', etc.). The `thread default' variety of commandssets the default thread properties for all threads; you can thenchange the properties of individual threads with the non-defaultcommands.File: gdb.info, Node: Neutrino, Prev: Hurd Native, Up: Native18.1.7 QNX Neutrino-------------------GDB provides the following commands specific to the QNX Neutrino target:`set debug nto-debug'When set to on, enables debugging messages specific to the QNXNeutrino support.`show debug nto-debug'Show the current state of QNX Neutrino messages.File: gdb.info, Node: Embedded OS, Next: Embedded Processors, Prev: Native, Up: Configurations18.2 Embedded Operating Systems===============================This section describes configurations involving the debugging ofembedded operating systems that are available for several differentarchitectures.* Menu:* VxWorks:: Using GDB with VxWorksGDB includes the ability to debug programs running on variousreal-time operating systems.File: gdb.info, Node: VxWorks, Up: Embedded OS18.2.1 Using GDB with VxWorks-----------------------------`target vxworks MACHINENAME'A VxWorks system, attached via TCP/IP. The argument MACHINENAMEis the target system's machine name or IP address.On VxWorks, `load' links FILENAME dynamically on the current targetsystem as well as adding its symbols in GDB.GDB enables developers to spawn and debug tasks running on networkedVxWorks targets from a Unix host. Already-running tasks spawned fromthe VxWorks shell can also be debugged. GDB uses code that runs onboth the Unix host and on the VxWorks target. The program `gdb' isinstalled and executed on the Unix host. (It may be installed with thename `vxgdb', to distinguish it from a GDB for debugging programs onthe host itself.)`VxWorks-timeout ARGS'All VxWorks-based targets now support the option `vxworks-timeout'.This option is set by the user, and ARGS represents the number ofseconds GDB waits for responses to rpc's. You might use this ifyour VxWorks target is a slow software simulator or is on the farside of a thin network line.The following information on connecting to VxWorks was current whenthis manual was produced; newer releases of VxWorks may use revisedprocedures.To use GDB with VxWorks, you must rebuild your VxWorks kernel toinclude the remote debugging interface routines in the VxWorks library`rdb.a'. To do this, define `INCLUDE_RDB' in the VxWorks configurationfile `configAll.h' and rebuild your VxWorks kernel. The resultingkernel contains `rdb.a', and spawns the source debugging task`tRdbTask' when VxWorks is booted. For more information on configuringand remaking VxWorks, see the manufacturer's manual.Once you have included `rdb.a' in your VxWorks system image and setyour Unix execution search path to find GDB, you are ready to run GDB.From your Unix host, run `gdb' (or `vxgdb', depending on yourinstallation).GDB comes up showing the prompt:(vxgdb)* Menu:* VxWorks Connection:: Connecting to VxWorks* VxWorks Download:: VxWorks download* VxWorks Attach:: Running tasksFile: gdb.info, Node: VxWorks Connection, Next: VxWorks Download, Up: VxWorks18.2.1.1 Connecting to VxWorks..............................The GDB command `target' lets you connect to a VxWorks target on thenetwork. To connect to a target whose host name is "`tt'", type:(vxgdb) target vxworks ttGDB displays messages like these:Attaching remote machine across net...Connected to tt.GDB then attempts to read the symbol tables of any object modulesloaded into the VxWorks target since it was last booted. GDB locatesthese files by searching the directories listed in the command searchpath (*note Your Program's Environment: Environment.); if it fails tofind an object file, it displays a message such as:prog.o: No such file or directory.When this happens, add the appropriate directory to the search pathwith the GDB command `path', and execute the `target' command again.File: gdb.info, Node: VxWorks Download, Next: VxWorks Attach, Prev: VxWorks Connection, Up: VxWorks18.2.1.2 VxWorks Download.........................If you have connected to the VxWorks target and you want to debug anobject that has not yet been loaded, you can use the GDB `load' commandto download a file from Unix to VxWorks incrementally. The object filegiven as an argument to the `load' command is actually opened twice:first by the VxWorks target in order to download the code, then by GDBin order to read the symbol table. This can lead to problems if thecurrent working directories on the two systems differ. If both systemshave NFS mounted the same filesystems, you can avoid these problems byusing absolute paths. Otherwise, it is simplest to set the workingdirectory on both systems to the directory in which the object fileresides, and then to reference the file by its name, without any path.For instance, a program `prog.o' may reside in `VXPATH/vw/demo/rdb' inVxWorks and in `HOSTPATH/vw/demo/rdb' on the host. To load thisprogram, type this on VxWorks:-> cd "VXPATH/vw/demo/rdb"Then, in GDB, type:(vxgdb) cd HOSTPATH/vw/demo/rdb(vxgdb) load prog.oGDB displays a response similar to this:Reading symbol data from wherever/vw/demo/rdb/prog.o... done.You can also use the `load' command to reload an object module afterediting and recompiling the corresponding source file. Note that thismakes GDB delete all currently-defined breakpoints, auto-displays, andconvenience variables, and to clear the value history. (This isnecessary in order to preserve the integrity of debugger's datastructures that reference the target system's symbol table.)File: gdb.info, Node: VxWorks Attach, Prev: VxWorks Download, Up: VxWorks18.2.1.3 Running Tasks......................You can also attach to an existing task using the `attach' command asfollows:(vxgdb) attach TASKwhere TASK is the VxWorks hexadecimal task ID. The task can be runningor suspended when you attach to it. Running tasks are suspended at thetime of attachment.File: gdb.info, Node: Embedded Processors, Next: Architectures, Prev: Embedded OS, Up: Configurations18.3 Embedded Processors========================This section goes into details specific to particular embeddedconfigurations.Whenever a specific embedded processor has a simulator, GDB allowsto send an arbitrary command to the simulator.`sim COMMAND'Send an arbitrary COMMAND string to the simulator. Consult thedocumentation for the specific simulator in use for informationabout acceptable commands.* Menu:* ARM:: ARM RDI* M32R/D:: Renesas M32R/D* M68K:: Motorola M68K* MIPS Embedded:: MIPS Embedded* OpenRISC 1000:: OpenRisc 1000* PA:: HP PA Embedded* PowerPC Embedded:: PowerPC Embedded* Sparclet:: Tsqware Sparclet* Sparclite:: Fujitsu Sparclite* Z8000:: Zilog Z8000* AVR:: Atmel AVR* CRIS:: CRIS* Super-H:: Renesas Super-HFile: gdb.info, Node: ARM, Next: M32R/D, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.1 ARM----------`target rdi DEV'ARM Angel monitor, via RDI library interface to ADP protocol. Youmay use this target to communicate with both boards running theAngel monitor, or with the EmbeddedICE JTAG debug device.`target rdp DEV'ARM Demon monitor.GDB provides the following ARM-specific commands:`set arm disassembler'This commands selects from a list of disassembly styles. The`"std"' style is the standard style.`show arm disassembler'Show the current disassembly style.`set arm apcs32'This command toggles ARM operation mode between 32-bit and 26-bit.`show arm apcs32'Display the current usage of the ARM 32-bit mode.`set arm fpu FPUTYPE'This command sets the ARM floating-point unit (FPU) type. Theargument FPUTYPE can be one of these:`auto'Determine the FPU type by querying the OS ABI.`softfpa'Software FPU, with mixed-endian doubles on little-endian ARMprocessors.`fpa'GCC-compiled FPA co-processor.`softvfp'Software FPU with pure-endian doubles.`vfp'VFP co-processor.`show arm fpu'Show the current type of the FPU.`set arm abi'This command forces GDB to use the specified ABI.`show arm abi'Show the currently used ABI.`set debug arm'Toggle whether to display ARM-specific debugging messages from theARM target support subsystem.`show debug arm'Show whether ARM-specific debugging messages are enabled.The following commands are available when an ARM target is debuggedusing the RDI interface:`rdilogfile [FILE]'Set the filename for the ADP (Angel Debugger Protocol) packet log.With an argument, sets the log file to the specified FILE. Withno argument, show the current log file name. The default log fileis `rdi.log'.`rdilogenable [ARG]'Control logging of ADP packets. With an argument of 1 or `"yes"'enables logging, with an argument 0 or `"no"' disables it. Withno arguments displays the current setting. When logging isenabled, ADP packets exchanged between GDB and the RDI targetdevice are logged to a file.`set rdiromatzero'Tell GDB whether the target has ROM at address 0. If on, vectorcatching is disabled, so that zero address can be used. If off(the default), vector catching is enabled. For this command totake effect, it needs to be invoked prior to the `target rdi'command.`show rdiromatzero'Show the current setting of ROM at zero address.`set rdiheartbeat'Enable or disable RDI heartbeat packets. It is not recommended toturn on this option, since it confuses ARM and EPI JTAG interface,as well as the Angel monitor.`show rdiheartbeat'Show the setting of RDI heartbeat packets.File: gdb.info, Node: M32R/D, Next: M68K, Prev: ARM, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.2 Renesas M32R/D and M32R/SDI----------------------------------`target m32r DEV'Renesas M32R/D ROM monitor.`target m32rsdi DEV'Renesas M32R SDI server, connected via parallel port to the board.The following GDB commands are specific to the M32R monitor:`set download-path PATH'Set the default path for finding downloadable SREC files.`show download-path'Show the default path for downloadable SREC files.`set board-address ADDR'Set the IP address for the M32R-EVA target board.`show board-address'Show the current IP address of the target board.`set server-address ADDR'Set the IP address for the download server, which is the GDB'shost machine.`show server-address'Display the IP address of the download server.`upload [FILE]'Upload the specified SREC FILE via the monitor's Ethernet uploadcapability. If no FILE argument is given, the current executablefile is uploaded.`tload [FILE]'Test the `upload' command.The following commands are available for M32R/SDI:`sdireset'This command resets the SDI connection.`sdistatus'This command shows the SDI connection status.`debug_chaos'Instructs the remote that M32R/Chaos debugging is to be used.`use_debug_dma'Instructs the remote to use the DEBUG_DMA method of accessingmemory.`use_mon_code'Instructs the remote to use the MON_CODE method of accessingmemory.`use_ib_break'Instructs the remote to set breakpoints by IB break.`use_dbt_break'Instructs the remote to set breakpoints by DBT.File: gdb.info, Node: M68K, Next: MIPS Embedded, Prev: M32R/D, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.3 M68k-----------The Motorola m68k configuration includes ColdFire support, and a targetcommand for the following ROM monitor.`target dbug DEV'dBUG ROM monitor for Motorola ColdFire.File: gdb.info, Node: MIPS Embedded, Next: OpenRISC 1000, Prev: M68K, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.4 MIPS Embedded--------------------GDB can use the MIPS remote debugging protocol to talk to a MIPS boardattached to a serial line. This is available when you configure GDBwith `--target=mips-idt-ecoff'.Use these GDB commands to specify the connection to your targetboard:`target mips PORT'To run a program on the board, start up `gdb' with the name ofyour program as the argument. To connect to the board, use thecommand `target mips PORT', where PORT is the name of the serialport connected to the board. If the program has not already beendownloaded to the board, you may use the `load' command todownload it. You can then use all the usual GDB commands.For example, this sequence connects to the target board through aserial port, and loads and runs a program called PROG through thedebugger:host$ gdb PROGGDB is free software and ...(gdb) target mips /dev/ttyb(gdb) load PROG(gdb) run`target mips HOSTNAME:PORTNUMBER'On some GDB host configurations, you can specify a TCP connection(for instance, to a serial line managed by a terminalconcentrator) instead of a serial port, using the syntax`HOSTNAME:PORTNUMBER'.`target pmon PORT'PMON ROM monitor.`target ddb PORT'NEC's DDB variant of PMON for Vr4300.`target lsi PORT'LSI variant of PMON.`target r3900 DEV'Densan DVE-R3900 ROM monitor for Toshiba R3900 Mips.`target array DEV'Array Tech LSI33K RAID controller board.GDB also supports these special commands for MIPS targets:`set mipsfpu double'`set mipsfpu single'`set mipsfpu none'`set mipsfpu auto'`show mipsfpu'If your target board does not support the MIPS floating pointcoprocessor, you should use the command `set mipsfpu none' (if youneed this, you may wish to put the command in your GDB init file).This tells GDB how to find the return value of functions whichreturn floating point values. It also allows GDB to avoid savingthe floating point registers when calling functions on the board.If you are using a floating point coprocessor with only singleprecision floating point support, as on the R4650 processor, usethe command `set mipsfpu single'. The default double precisionfloating point coprocessor may be selected using `set mipsfpudouble'.In previous versions the only choices were double precision or nofloating point, so `set mipsfpu on' will select double precisionand `set mipsfpu off' will select no floating point.As usual, you can inquire about the `mipsfpu' variable with `showmipsfpu'.`set timeout SECONDS'`set retransmit-timeout SECONDS'`show timeout'`show retransmit-timeout'You can control the timeout used while waiting for a packet, inthe MIPS remote protocol, with the `set timeout SECONDS' command.The default is 5 seconds. Similarly, you can control the timeoutused while waiting for an acknowledgement of a packet with the `setretransmit-timeout SECONDS' command. The default is 3 seconds.You can inspect both values with `show timeout' and `showretransmit-timeout'. (These commands are _only_ available whenGDB is configured for `--target=mips-idt-ecoff'.)The timeout set by `set timeout' does not apply when GDB iswaiting for your program to stop. In that case, GDB waits foreverbecause it has no way of knowing how long the program is going torun before stopping.`set syn-garbage-limit NUM'Limit the maximum number of characters GDB should ignore when ittries to synchronize with the remote target. The default is 10characters. Setting the limit to -1 means there's no limit.`show syn-garbage-limit'Show the current limit on the number of characters to ignore whentrying to synchronize with the remote system.`set monitor-prompt PROMPT'Tell GDB to expect the specified PROMPT string from the remotemonitor. The default depends on the target:pmon target`PMON'ddb target`NEC010'lsi target`PMON>'`show monitor-prompt'Show the current strings GDB expects as the prompt from the remotemonitor.`set monitor-warnings'Enable or disable monitor warnings about hardware breakpoints.This has effect only for the `lsi' target. When on, GDB willdisplay warning messages whose codes are returned by the `lsi'PMON monitor for breakpoint commands.`show monitor-warnings'Show the current setting of printing monitor warnings.`pmon COMMAND'This command allows sending an arbitrary COMMAND string to themonitor. The monitor must be in debug mode for this to work.File: gdb.info, Node: OpenRISC 1000, Next: PA, Prev: MIPS Embedded, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.5 OpenRISC 1000--------------------See OR1k Architecture document (`www.opencores.org') for moreinformation about platform and commands.`target jtag jtag://HOST:PORT'Connects to remote JTAG server. JTAG remote server can be eitheran or1ksim or JTAG server, connected via parallel port to theboard.Example: `target jtag jtag://localhost:9999'`or1ksim COMMAND'If connected to `or1ksim' OpenRISC 1000 Architectural Simulator,proprietary commands can be executed.`info or1k spr'Displays spr groups.`info or1k spr GROUP'`info or1k spr GROUPNO'Displays register names in selected group.`info or1k spr GROUP REGISTER'`info or1k spr REGISTER'`info or1k spr GROUPNO REGISTERNO'`info or1k spr REGISTERNO'Shows information about specified spr register.`spr GROUP REGISTER VALUE'`spr REGISTER VALUE'`spr GROUPNO REGISTERNO VALUE'`spr REGISTERNO VALUE'Writes VALUE to specified spr register.Some implementations of OpenRISC 1000 Architecture also havehardware trace. It is very similar to GDB trace, except it does notinterfere with normal program execution and is thus much faster.Hardware breakpoints/watchpoint triggers can be set using:`$LEA/$LDATA'Load effective address/data`$SEA/$SDATA'Store effective address/data`$AEA/$ADATA'Access effective address ($SEA or $LEA) or data ($SDATA/$LDATA)`$FETCH'Fetch dataWhen triggered, it can capture low level data, like: `PC', `LSEA',`LDATA', `SDATA', `READSPR', `WRITESPR', `INSTR'.`htrace' commands:`hwatch CONDITIONAL'Set hardware watchpoint on combination of Load/Store EffectiveAddress(es) or Data. For example:`hwatch ($LEA == my_var) && ($LDATA < 50) || ($SEA == my_var) &&($SDATA >= 50)'`hwatch ($LEA == my_var) && ($LDATA < 50) || ($SEA == my_var) &&($SDATA >= 50)'`htrace info'Display information about current HW trace configuration.`htrace trigger CONDITIONAL'Set starting criteria for HW trace.`htrace qualifier CONDITIONAL'Set acquisition qualifier for HW trace.`htrace stop CONDITIONAL'Set HW trace stopping criteria.`htrace record [DATA]*'Selects the data to be recorded, when qualifier is met and HWtrace was triggered.`htrace enable'`htrace disable'Enables/disables the HW trace.`htrace rewind [FILENAME]'Clears currently recorded trace data.If filename is specified, new trace file is made and any newlycollected data will be written there.`htrace print [START [LEN]]'Prints trace buffer, using current record configuration.`htrace mode continuous'Set continuous trace mode.`htrace mode suspend'Set suspend trace mode.File: gdb.info, Node: PowerPC Embedded, Next: Sparclet, Prev: PA, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.6 PowerPC Embedded-----------------------GDB provides the following PowerPC-specific commands:`set powerpc soft-float'`show powerpc soft-float'Force GDB to use (or not use) a software floating point callingconvention. By default, GDB selects the calling convention basedon the selected architecture and the provided executable file.`set powerpc vector-abi'`show powerpc vector-abi'Force GDB to use the specified calling convention for vectorarguments and return values. The valid options are `auto';`generic', to avoid vector registers even if they are present;`altivec', to use AltiVec registers; and `spe' to use SPEregisters. By default, GDB selects the calling convention basedon the selected architecture and the provided executable file.`target dink32 DEV'DINK32 ROM monitor.`target ppcbug DEV'`target ppcbug1 DEV'PPCBUG ROM monitor for PowerPC.`target sds DEV'SDS monitor, running on a PowerPC board (such as Motorola's ADS).The following commands specific to the SDS protocol are supported byGDB:`set sdstimeout NSEC'Set the timeout for SDS protocol reads to be NSEC seconds. Thedefault is 2 seconds.`show sdstimeout'Show the current value of the SDS timeout.`sds COMMAND'Send the specified COMMAND string to the SDS monitor.File: gdb.info, Node: PA, Next: PowerPC Embedded, Prev: OpenRISC 1000, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.7 HP PA Embedded---------------------`target op50n DEV'OP50N monitor, running on an OKI HPPA board.`target w89k DEV'W89K monitor, running on a Winbond HPPA board.File: gdb.info, Node: Sparclet, Next: Sparclite, Prev: PowerPC Embedded, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.8 Tsqware Sparclet-----------------------GDB enables developers to debug tasks running on Sparclet targets froma Unix host. GDB uses code that runs on both the Unix host and on theSparclet target. The program `gdb' is installed and executed on theUnix host.`remotetimeout ARGS'GDB supports the option `remotetimeout'. This option is set bythe user, and ARGS represents the number of seconds GDB waits forresponses.When compiling for debugging, include the options `-g' to get debuginformation and `-Ttext' to relocate the program to where you wish toload it on the target. You may also want to add the options `-n' or`-N' in order to reduce the size of the sections. Example:sparclet-aout-gcc prog.c -Ttext 0x12010000 -g -o prog -NYou can use `objdump' to verify that the addresses are what youintended:sparclet-aout-objdump --headers --syms progOnce you have set your Unix execution search path to find GDB, youare ready to run GDB. From your Unix host, run `gdb' (or`sparclet-aout-gdb', depending on your installation).GDB comes up showing the prompt:(gdbslet)* Menu:* Sparclet File:: Setting the file to debug* Sparclet Connection:: Connecting to Sparclet* Sparclet Download:: Sparclet download* Sparclet Execution:: Running and debuggingFile: gdb.info, Node: Sparclet File, Next: Sparclet Connection, Up: Sparclet18.3.8.1 Setting File to Debug..............................The GDB command `file' lets you choose with program to debug.(gdbslet) file progGDB then attempts to read the symbol table of `prog'. GDB locatesthe file by searching the directories listed in the command search path.If the file was compiled with debug information (option `-g'), sourcefiles will be searched as well. GDB locates the source files bysearching the directories listed in the directory search path (*noteYour Program's Environment: Environment.). If it fails to find a file,it displays a message such as:prog: No such file or directory.When this happens, add the appropriate directories to the searchpaths with the GDB commands `path' and `dir', and execute the `target'command again.File: gdb.info, Node: Sparclet Connection, Next: Sparclet Download, Prev: Sparclet File, Up: Sparclet18.3.8.2 Connecting to Sparclet...............................The GDB command `target' lets you connect to a Sparclet target. Toconnect to a target on serial port "`ttya'", type:(gdbslet) target sparclet /dev/ttyaRemote target sparclet connected to /dev/ttyamain () at ../prog.c:3GDB displays messages like these:Connected to ttya.File: gdb.info, Node: Sparclet Download, Next: Sparclet Execution, Prev: Sparclet Connection, Up: Sparclet18.3.8.3 Sparclet Download..........................Once connected to the Sparclet target, you can use the GDB `load'command to download the file from the host to the target. The filename and load offset should be given as arguments to the `load' command.Since the file format is aout, the program must be loaded to thestarting address. You can use `objdump' to find out what this valueis. The load offset is an offset which is added to the VMA (virtualmemory address) of each of the file's sections. For instance, if theprogram `prog' was linked to text address 0x1201000, with data at0x12010160 and bss at 0x12010170, in GDB, type:(gdbslet) load prog 0x12010000Loading section .text, size 0xdb0 vma 0x12010000If the code is loaded at a different address then what the programwas linked to, you may need to use the `section' and `add-symbol-file'commands to tell GDB where to map the symbol table.File: gdb.info, Node: Sparclet Execution, Prev: Sparclet Download, Up: Sparclet18.3.8.4 Running and Debugging..............................You can now begin debugging the task using GDB's execution controlcommands, `b', `step', `run', etc. See the GDB manual for the list ofcommands.(gdbslet) b mainBreakpoint 1 at 0x12010000: file prog.c, line 3.(gdbslet) runStarting program: progBreakpoint 1, main (argc=1, argv=0xeffff21c) at prog.c:33 char *symarg = 0;(gdbslet) step4 char *execarg = "hello!";(gdbslet)File: gdb.info, Node: Sparclite, Next: Z8000, Prev: Sparclet, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.9 Fujitsu Sparclite------------------------`target sparclite DEV'Fujitsu sparclite boards, used only for the purpose of loading.You must use an additional command to debug the program. Forexample: target remote DEV using GDB standard remote protocol.File: gdb.info, Node: Z8000, Next: AVR, Prev: Sparclite, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.10 Zilog Z8000-------------------When configured for debugging Zilog Z8000 targets, GDB includes a Z8000simulator.For the Z8000 family, `target sim' simulates either the Z8002 (theunsegmented variant of the Z8000 architecture) or the Z8001 (thesegmented variant). The simulator recognizes which architecture isappropriate by inspecting the object code.`target sim ARGS'Debug programs on a simulated CPU. If the simulator supports setupoptions, specify them via ARGS.After specifying this target, you can debug programs for the simulatedCPU in the same style as programs for your host computer; use the`file' command to load a new program image, the `run' command to runyour program, and so on.As well as making available all the usual machine registers (*noteRegisters: Registers.), the Z8000 simulator provides three additionalitems of information as specially named registers:`cycles'Counts clock-ticks in the simulator.`insts'Counts instructions run in the simulator.`time'Execution time in 60ths of a second.You can refer to these values in GDB expressions with the usualconventions; for example, `b fputc if $cycles>5000' sets a conditionalbreakpoint that suspends only after at least 5000 simulated clock ticks.File: gdb.info, Node: AVR, Next: CRIS, Prev: Z8000, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.11 Atmel AVR-----------------When configured for debugging the Atmel AVR, GDB supports the followingAVR-specific commands:`info io_registers'This command displays information about the AVR I/O registers. Foreach register, GDB prints its number and value.File: gdb.info, Node: CRIS, Next: Super-H, Prev: AVR, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.12 CRIS------------When configured for debugging CRIS, GDB provides the followingCRIS-specific commands:`set cris-version VER'Set the current CRIS version to VER, either `10' or `32'. TheCRIS version affects register names and sizes. This command isuseful in case autodetection of the CRIS version fails.`show cris-version'Show the current CRIS version.`set cris-dwarf2-cfi'Set the usage of DWARF-2 CFI for CRIS debugging. The default is`on'. Change to `off' when using `gcc-cris' whose version is below`R59'.`show cris-dwarf2-cfi'Show the current state of using DWARF-2 CFI.`set cris-mode MODE'Set the current CRIS mode to MODE. It should only be changed whendebugging in guru mode, in which case it should be set to `guru'(the default is `normal').`show cris-mode'Show the current CRIS mode.File: gdb.info, Node: Super-H, Prev: CRIS, Up: Embedded Processors18.3.13 Renesas Super-H-----------------------For the Renesas Super-H processor, GDB provides these commands:`regs'Show the values of all Super-H registers.File: gdb.info, Node: Architectures, Prev: Embedded Processors, Up: Configurations18.4 Architectures==================This section describes characteristics of architectures that affect alluses of GDB with the architecture, both native and cross.* Menu:* i386::* A29K::* Alpha::* MIPS::* HPPA:: HP PA architecture* SPU:: Cell Broadband Engine SPU architecture* PowerPC::File: gdb.info, Node: i386, Next: A29K, Up: Architectures18.4.1 x86 Architecture-specific Issues---------------------------------------`set struct-convention MODE'Set the convention used by the inferior to return `struct's and`union's from functions to MODE. Possible values of MODE are`"pcc"', `"reg"', and `"default"' (the default). `"default"' or`"pcc"' means that `struct's are returned on the stack, while`"reg"' means that a `struct' or a `union' whose size is 1, 2, 4,or 8 bytes will be returned in a register.`show struct-convention'Show the current setting of the convention to return `struct'sfrom functions.File: gdb.info, Node: A29K, Next: Alpha, Prev: i386, Up: Architectures18.4.2 A29K-----------`set rstack_high_address ADDRESS'On AMD 29000 family processors, registers are saved in a separate"register stack". There is no way for GDB to determine the extentof this stack. Normally, GDB just assumes that the stack is"large enough". This may result in GDB referencing memorylocations that do not exist. If necessary, you can get aroundthis problem by specifying the ending address of the registerstack with the `set rstack_high_address' command. The argumentshould be an address, which you probably want to precede with `0x'to specify in hexadecimal.`show rstack_high_address'Display the current limit of the register stack, on AMD 29000family processors.File: gdb.info, Node: Alpha, Next: MIPS, Prev: A29K, Up: Architectures18.4.3 Alpha------------See the following section.File: gdb.info, Node: MIPS, Next: HPPA, Prev: Alpha, Up: Architectures18.4.4 MIPS-----------Alpha- and MIPS-based computers use an unusual stack frame, whichsometimes requires GDB to search backward in the object code to findthe beginning of a function.To improve response time (especially for embedded applications, whereGDB may be restricted to a slow serial line for this search) you maywant to limit the size of this search, using one of these commands:`set heuristic-fence-post LIMIT'Restrict GDB to examining at most LIMIT bytes in its search forthe beginning of a function. A value of 0 (the default) meansthere is no limit. However, except for 0, the larger the limitthe more bytes `heuristic-fence-post' must search and thereforethe longer it takes to run. You should only need to use thiscommand when debugging a stripped executable.`show heuristic-fence-post'Display the current limit.These commands are available _only_ when GDB is configured fordebugging programs on Alpha or MIPS processors.Several MIPS-specific commands are available when debugging MIPSprograms:`set mips abi ARG'Tell GDB which MIPS ABI is used by the inferior. Possible valuesof ARG are:`auto'The default ABI associated with the current binary (this isthe default).`o32'`o64'`n32'`n64'`eabi32'`eabi64'`auto'`show mips abi'Show the MIPS ABI used by GDB to debug the inferior.`set mipsfpu'`show mipsfpu'*Note set mipsfpu: MIPS Embedded.`set mips mask-address ARG'This command determines whether the most-significant 32 bits of64-bit MIPS addresses are masked off. The argument ARG can be`on', `off', or `auto'. The latter is the default setting, whichlets GDB determine the correct value.`show mips mask-address'Show whether the upper 32 bits of MIPS addresses are masked off ornot.`set remote-mips64-transfers-32bit-regs'This command controls compatibility with 64-bit MIPS targets thattransfer data in 32-bit quantities. If you have an old MIPS 64target that transfers 32 bits for some registers, like SR and FSR,and 64 bits for other registers, set this option to `on'.`show remote-mips64-transfers-32bit-regs'Show the current setting of compatibility with older MIPS 64targets.`set debug mips'This command turns on and off debugging messages for theMIPS-specific target code in GDB.`show debug mips'Show the current setting of MIPS debugging messages.File: gdb.info, Node: HPPA, Next: SPU, Prev: MIPS, Up: Architectures18.4.5 HPPA-----------When GDB is debugging the HP PA architecture, it provides the followingspecial commands:`set debug hppa'This command determines whether HPPA architecture-specificdebugging messages are to be displayed.`show debug hppa'Show whether HPPA debugging messages are displayed.`maint print unwind ADDRESS'This command displays the contents of the unwind table entry at thegiven ADDRESS.File: gdb.info, Node: SPU, Next: PowerPC, Prev: HPPA, Up: Architectures18.4.6 Cell Broadband Engine SPU architecture---------------------------------------------When GDB is debugging the Cell Broadband Engine SPU architecture, itprovides the following special commands:`info spu event'Display SPU event facility status. Shows current event mask andpending event status.`info spu signal'Display SPU signal notification facility status. Shows pendingsignal-control word and signal notification mode of both signalnotification channels.`info spu mailbox'Display SPU mailbox facility status. Shows all pending entries,in order of processing, in each of the SPU Write Outbound, SPUWrite Outbound Interrupt, and SPU Read Inbound mailboxes.`info spu dma'Display MFC DMA status. Shows all pending commands in the MFC DMAqueue. For each entry, opcode, tag, class IDs, effective andlocal store addresses and transfer size are shown.`info spu proxydma'Display MFC Proxy-DMA status. Shows all pending commands in theMFC Proxy-DMA queue. For each entry, opcode, tag, class IDs,effective and local store addresses and transfer size are shown.File: gdb.info, Node: PowerPC, Prev: SPU, Up: Architectures18.4.7 PowerPC--------------When GDB is debugging the PowerPC architecture, it provides a set ofpseudo-registers to enable inspection of 128-bit wide Decimal FloatingPoint numbers stored in the floating point registers. These values mustbe stored in two consecutive registers, always starting at an evenregister like `f0' or `f2'.The pseudo-registers go from `$dl0' through `$dl15', and are formedby joining the even/odd register pairs `f0' and `f1' for `$dl0', `f2'and `f3' for `$dl1' and so on.File: gdb.info, Node: Controlling GDB, Next: Sequences, Prev: Configurations, Up: Top19 Controlling GDB******************You can alter the way GDB interacts with you by using the `set'command. For commands controlling how GDB displays data, see *NotePrint Settings: Print Settings. Other settings are described here.* Menu:* Prompt:: Prompt* Editing:: Command editing* Command History:: Command history* Screen Size:: Screen size* Numbers:: Numbers* ABI:: Configuring the current ABI* Messages/Warnings:: Optional warnings and messages* Debugging Output:: Optional messages about internal happeningsFile: gdb.info, Node: Prompt, Next: Editing, Up: Controlling GDB19.1 Prompt===========GDB indicates its readiness to read a command by printing a stringcalled the "prompt". This string is normally `(gdb)'. You can changethe prompt string with the `set prompt' command. For instance, whendebugging GDB with GDB, it is useful to change the prompt in one of theGDB sessions so that you can always tell which one you are talking to._Note:_ `set prompt' does not add a space for you after the promptyou set. This allows you to set a prompt which ends in a space or aprompt that does not.`set prompt NEWPROMPT'Directs GDB to use NEWPROMPT as its prompt string henceforth.`show prompt'Prints a line of the form: `Gdb's prompt is: YOUR-PROMPT'File: gdb.info, Node: Editing, Next: Command History, Prev: Prompt, Up: Controlling GDB19.2 Command Editing====================GDB reads its input commands via the "Readline" interface. This GNUlibrary provides consistent behavior for programs which provide acommand line interface to the user. Advantages are GNU Emacs-style or"vi"-style inline editing of commands, `csh'-like history substitution,and a storage and recall of command history across debugging sessions.You may control the behavior of command line editing in GDB with thecommand `set'.`set editing'`set editing on'Enable command line editing (enabled by default).`set editing off'Disable command line editing.`show editing'Show whether command line editing is enabled.*Note Command Line Editing::, for more details about the Readlineinterface. Users unfamiliar with GNU Emacs or `vi' are encouraged toread that chapter.File: gdb.info, Node: Command History, Next: Screen Size, Prev: Editing, Up: Controlling GDB19.3 Command History====================GDB can keep track of the commands you type during your debuggingsessions, so that you can be certain of precisely what happened. Usethese commands to manage the GDB command history facility.GDB uses the GNU History library, a part of the Readline package, toprovide the history facility. *Note Using History Interactively::, forthe detailed description of the History library.To issue a command to GDB without affecting certain aspects of thestate which is seen by users, prefix it with `server ' (*note ServerPrefix::). This means that this command will not affect the commandhistory, nor will it affect GDB's notion of which command to repeat if<RET> is pressed on a line by itself.The server prefix does not affect the recording of values into thevalue history; to print a value without recording it into the valuehistory, use the `output' command instead of the `print' command.Here is the description of GDB commands related to command history.`set history filename FNAME'Set the name of the GDB command history file to FNAME. This isthe file where GDB reads an initial command history list, andwhere it writes the command history from this session when itexits. You can access this list through history expansion orthrough the history command editing characters listed below. Thisfile defaults to the value of the environment variable`GDBHISTFILE', or to `./.gdb_history' (`./_gdb_history' on MS-DOS)if this variable is not set.`set history save'`set history save on'Record command history in a file, whose name may be specified withthe `set history filename' command. By default, this option isdisabled.`set history save off'Stop recording command history in a file.`set history size SIZE'Set the number of commands which GDB keeps in its history list.This defaults to the value of the environment variable `HISTSIZE',or to 256 if this variable is not set.History expansion assigns special meaning to the character `!'.*Note Event Designators::, for more details.Since `!' is also the logical not operator in C, history expansionis off by default. If you decide to enable history expansion with the`set history expansion on' command, you may sometimes need to follow`!' (when it is used as logical not, in an expression) with a space ora tab to prevent it from being expanded. The readline historyfacilities do not attempt substitution on the strings `!=' and `!(',even when history expansion is enabled.The commands to control history expansion are:`set history expansion on'`set history expansion'Enable history expansion. History expansion is off by default.`set history expansion off'Disable history expansion.`show history'`show history filename'`show history save'`show history size'`show history expansion'These commands display the state of the GDB history parameters.`show history' by itself displays all four states.`show commands'Display the last ten commands in the command history.`show commands N'Print ten commands centered on command number N.`show commands +'Print ten commands just after the commands last printed.File: gdb.info, Node: Screen Size, Next: Numbers, Prev: Command History, Up: Controlling GDB19.4 Screen Size================Certain commands to GDB may produce large amounts of information outputto the screen. To help you read all of it, GDB pauses and asks you forinput at the end of each page of output. Type <RET> when you want tocontinue the output, or `q' to discard the remaining output. Also, thescreen width setting determines when to wrap lines of output.Depending on what is being printed, GDB tries to break the line at areadable place, rather than simply letting it overflow onto thefollowing line.Normally GDB knows the size of the screen from the terminal driversoftware. For example, on Unix GDB uses the termcap data base togetherwith the value of the `TERM' environment variable and the `stty rows'and `stty cols' settings. If this is not correct, you can override itwith the `set height' and `set width' commands:`set height LPP'`show height'`set width CPL'`show width'These `set' commands specify a screen height of LPP lines and ascreen width of CPL characters. The associated `show' commandsdisplay the current settings.If you specify a height of zero lines, GDB does not pause duringoutput no matter how long the output is. This is useful if outputis to a file or to an editor buffer.Likewise, you can specify `set width 0' to prevent GDB fromwrapping its output.`set pagination on'`set pagination off'Turn the output pagination on or off; the default is on. Turningpagination off is the alternative to `set height 0'.`show pagination'Show the current pagination mode.File: gdb.info, Node: Numbers, Next: ABI, Prev: Screen Size, Up: Controlling GDB19.5 Numbers============You can always enter numbers in octal, decimal, or hexadecimal in GDBby the usual conventions: octal numbers begin with `0', decimal numbersend with `.', and hexadecimal numbers begin with `0x'. Numbers thatneither begin with `0' or `0x', nor end with a `.' are, by default,entered in base 10; likewise, the default display for numbers--when noparticular format is specified--is base 10. You can change the defaultbase for both input and output with the commands described below.`set input-radix BASE'Set the default base for numeric input. Supported choices forBASE are decimal 8, 10, or 16. BASE must itself be specifiedeither unambiguously or using the current input radix; forexample, any ofset input-radix 012set input-radix 10.set input-radix 0xasets the input base to decimal. On the other hand, `setinput-radix 10' leaves the input radix unchanged, no matter whatit was, since `10', being without any leading or trailing signs ofits base, is interpreted in the current radix. Thus, if thecurrent radix is 16, `10' is interpreted in hex, i.e. as 16decimal, which doesn't change the radix.`set output-radix BASE'Set the default base for numeric display. Supported choices forBASE are decimal 8, 10, or 16. BASE must itself be specifiedeither unambiguously or using the current input radix.`show input-radix'Display the current default base for numeric input.`show output-radix'Display the current default base for numeric display.`set radix [BASE]'`show radix'These commands set and show the default base for both input andoutput of numbers. `set radix' sets the radix of input and outputto the same base; without an argument, it resets the radix back toits default value of 10.File: gdb.info, Node: ABI, Next: Messages/Warnings, Prev: Numbers, Up: Controlling GDB19.6 Configuring the Current ABI================================GDB can determine the "ABI" (Application Binary Interface) of yourapplication automatically. However, sometimes you need to override itsconclusions. Use these commands to manage GDB's view of the currentABI.One GDB configuration can debug binaries for multiple operatingsystem targets, either via remote debugging or native emulation. GDBwill autodetect the "OS ABI" (Operating System ABI) in use, but you canoverride its conclusion using the `set osabi' command. One examplewhere this is useful is in debugging of binaries which use an alternateC library (e.g. UCLIBC for GNU/Linux) which does not have the sameidentifying marks that the standard C library for your platformprovides.`show osabi'Show the OS ABI currently in use.`set osabi'With no argument, show the list of registered available OS ABI's.`set osabi ABI'Set the current OS ABI to ABI.Generally, the way that an argument of type `float' is passed to afunction depends on whether the function is prototyped. For aprototyped (i.e. ANSI/ISO style) function, `float' arguments are passedunchanged, according to the architecture's convention for `float'. Forunprototyped (i.e. K&R style) functions, `float' arguments are firstpromoted to type `double' and then passed.Unfortunately, some forms of debug information do not reliablyindicate whether a function is prototyped. If GDB calls a functionthat is not marked as prototyped, it consults `setcoerce-float-to-double'.`set coerce-float-to-double'`set coerce-float-to-double on'Arguments of type `float' will be promoted to `double' when passedto an unprototyped function. This is the default setting.`set coerce-float-to-double off'Arguments of type `float' will be passed directly to unprototypedfunctions.`show coerce-float-to-double'Show the current setting of promoting `float' to `double'.GDB needs to know the ABI used for your program's C++ objects. Thecorrect C++ ABI depends on which C++ compiler was used to build yourapplication. GDB only fully supports programs with a single C++ ABI;if your program contains code using multiple C++ ABI's or if GDB cannot identify your program's ABI correctly, you can tell GDB which ABIto use. Currently supported ABI's include "gnu-v2", for `g++' versionsbefore 3.0, "gnu-v3", for `g++' versions 3.0 and later, and "hpaCC" forthe HP ANSI C++ compiler. Other C++ compilers may use the "gnu-v2" or"gnu-v3" ABI's as well. The default setting is "auto".`show cp-abi'Show the C++ ABI currently in use.`set cp-abi'With no argument, show the list of supported C++ ABI's.`set cp-abi ABI'`set cp-abi auto'Set the current C++ ABI to ABI, or return to automatic detection.File: gdb.info, Node: Messages/Warnings, Next: Debugging Output, Prev: ABI, Up: Controlling GDB19.7 Optional Warnings and Messages===================================By default, GDB is silent about its inner workings. If you are runningon a slow machine, you may want to use the `set verbose' command. Thismakes GDB tell you when it does a lengthy internal operation, so youwill not think it has crashed.Currently, the messages controlled by `set verbose' are those whichannounce that the symbol table for a source file is being read; see`symbol-file' in *Note Commands to Specify Files: Files.`set verbose on'Enables GDB output of certain informational messages.`set verbose off'Disables GDB output of certain informational messages.`show verbose'Displays whether `set verbose' is on or off.By default, if GDB encounters bugs in the symbol table of an objectfile, it is silent; but if you are debugging a compiler, you may findthis information useful (*note Errors Reading Symbol Files: SymbolErrors.).`set complaints LIMIT'Permits GDB to output LIMIT complaints about each type of unusualsymbols before becoming silent about the problem. Set LIMIT tozero to suppress all complaints; set it to a large number toprevent complaints from being suppressed.`show complaints'Displays how many symbol complaints GDB is permitted to produce.By default, GDB is cautious, and asks what sometimes seems to be alot of stupid questions to confirm certain commands. For example, ifyou try to run a program which is already running:(gdb) runThe program being debugged has been started already.Start it from the beginning? (y or n)If you are willing to unflinchingly face the consequences of your owncommands, you can disable this "feature":`set confirm off'Disables confirmation requests.`set confirm on'Enables confirmation requests (the default).`show confirm'Displays state of confirmation requests.If you need to debug user-defined commands or sourced files you mayfind it useful to enable "command tracing". In this mode each commandwill be printed as it is executed, prefixed with one or more `+'symbols, the quantity denoting the call depth of each command.`set trace-commands on'Enable command tracing.`set trace-commands off'Disable command tracing.`show trace-commands'Display the current state of command tracing.File: gdb.info, Node: Debugging Output, Prev: Messages/Warnings, Up: Controlling GDB19.8 Optional Messages about Internal Happenings================================================GDB has commands that enable optional debugging messages from variousGDB subsystems; normally these commands are of interest to GDBmaintainers, or when reporting a bug. This section documents thosecommands.`set exec-done-display'Turns on or off the notification of asynchronous commands'completion. When on, GDB will print a message when anasynchronous command finishes its execution. The default is off.`show exec-done-display'Displays the current setting of asynchronous command completionnotification.`set debug arch'Turns on or off display of gdbarch debugging info. The default isoff`show debug arch'Displays the current state of displaying gdbarch debugging info.`set debug aix-thread'Display debugging messages about inner workings of the AIX threadmodule.`show debug aix-thread'Show the current state of AIX thread debugging info display.`set debug event'Turns on or off display of GDB event debugging info. The defaultis off.`show debug event'Displays the current state of displaying GDB event debugging info.`set debug expression'Turns on or off display of debugging info about GDB expressionparsing. The default is off.`show debug expression'Displays the current state of displaying debugging info about GDBexpression parsing.`set debug frame'Turns on or off display of GDB frame debugging info. The defaultis off.`show debug frame'Displays the current state of displaying GDB frame debugging info.`set debug infrun'Turns on or off display of GDB debugging info for running theinferior. The default is off. `infrun.c' contains GDB's runtimestate machine used for implementing operations such assingle-stepping the inferior.`show debug infrun'Displays the current state of GDB inferior debugging.`set debug lin-lwp'Turns on or off debugging messages from the Linux LWP debugsupport.`show debug lin-lwp'Show the current state of Linux LWP debugging messages.`set debug observer'Turns on or off display of GDB observer debugging. This includesinfo such as the notification of observable events.`show debug observer'Displays the current state of observer debugging.`set debug overload'Turns on or off display of GDB C++ overload debugging info. Thisincludes info such as ranking of functions, etc. The default isoff.`show debug overload'Displays the current state of displaying GDB C++ overloaddebugging info.`set debug remote'Turns on or off display of reports on all packets sent back andforth across the serial line to the remote machine. The info isprinted on the GDB standard output stream. The default is off.`show debug remote'Displays the state of display of remote packets.`set debug serial'Turns on or off display of GDB serial debugging info. The defaultis off.`show debug serial'Displays the current state of displaying GDB serial debugging info.`set debug solib-frv'Turns on or off debugging messages for FR-V shared-library code.`show debug solib-frv'Display the current state of FR-V shared-library code debuggingmessages.`set debug target'Turns on or off display of GDB target debugging info. This infoincludes what is going on at the target level of GDB, as ithappens. The default is 0. Set it to 1 to track events, and to 2to also track the value of large memory transfers. Changes tothis flag do not take effect until the next time you connect to atarget or use the `run' command.`show debug target'Displays the current state of displaying GDB target debugging info.`set debugvarobj'Turns on or off display of GDB variable object debugging info. Thedefault is off.`show debugvarobj'Displays the current state of displaying GDB variable objectdebugging info.`set debug xml'Turns on or off debugging messages for built-in XML parsers.`show debug xml'Displays the current state of XML debugging messages.File: gdb.info, Node: Sequences, Next: Interpreters, Prev: Controlling GDB, Up: Top20 Canned Sequences of Commands*******************************Aside from breakpoint commands (*note Breakpoint Command Lists: BreakCommands.), GDB provides two ways to store sequences of commands forexecution as a unit: user-defined commands and command files.* Menu:* Define:: How to define your own commands* Hooks:: Hooks for user-defined commands* Command Files:: How to write scripts of commands to be stored in a file* Output:: Commands for controlled outputFile: gdb.info, Node: Define, Next: Hooks, Up: Sequences20.1 User-defined Commands==========================A "user-defined command" is a sequence of GDB commands to which youassign a new name as a command. This is done with the `define'command. User commands may accept up to 10 arguments separated bywhitespace. Arguments are accessed within the user command via`$arg0...$arg9'. A trivial example:define adderprint $arg0 + $arg1 + $arg2endTo execute the command use:adder 1 2 3This defines the command `adder', which prints the sum of its threearguments. Note the arguments are text substitutions, so they mayreference variables, use complex expressions, or even perform inferiorfunctions calls.In addition, `$argc' may be used to find out how many arguments havebeen passed. This expands to a number in the range 0...10.define adderif $argc == 2print $arg0 + $arg1endif $argc == 3print $arg0 + $arg1 + $arg2endend`define COMMANDNAME'Define a command named COMMANDNAME. If there is already a commandby that name, you are asked to confirm that you want to redefineit.The definition of the command is made up of other GDB commandlines, which are given following the `define' command. The end ofthese commands is marked by a line containing `end'.`document COMMANDNAME'Document the user-defined command COMMANDNAME, so that it can beaccessed by `help'. The command COMMANDNAME must already bedefined. This command reads lines of documentation just as`define' reads the lines of the command definition, ending with`end'. After the `document' command is finished, `help' on commandCOMMANDNAME displays the documentation you have written.You may use the `document' command again to change thedocumentation of a command. Redefining the command with `define'does not change the documentation.`dont-repeat'Used inside a user-defined command, this tells GDB that thiscommand should not be repeated when the user hits <RET> (*noterepeat last command: Command Syntax.).`help user-defined'List all user-defined commands, with the first line of thedocumentation (if any) for each.`show user'`show user COMMANDNAME'Display the GDB commands used to define COMMANDNAME (but not itsdocumentation). If no COMMANDNAME is given, display thedefinitions for all user-defined commands.`show max-user-call-depth'`set max-user-call-depth'The value of `max-user-call-depth' controls how many recursionlevels are allowed in user-defined commands before GDB suspects aninfinite recursion and aborts the command.In addition to the above commands, user-defined commands frequentlyuse control flow commands, described in *Note Command Files::.When user-defined commands are executed, the commands of thedefinition are not printed. An error in any command stops execution ofthe user-defined command.If used interactively, commands that would ask for confirmationproceed without asking when used inside a user-defined command. ManyGDB commands that normally print messages to say what they are doingomit the messages when used in a user-defined command.File: gdb.info, Node: Hooks, Next: Command Files, Prev: Define, Up: Sequences20.2 User-defined Command Hooks===============================You may define "hooks", which are a special kind of user-definedcommand. Whenever you run the command `foo', if the user-definedcommand `hook-foo' exists, it is executed (with no arguments) beforethat command.A hook may also be defined which is run after the command youexecuted. Whenever you run the command `foo', if the user-definedcommand `hookpost-foo' exists, it is executed (with no arguments) afterthat command. Post-execution hooks may exist simultaneously withpre-execution hooks, for the same command.It is valid for a hook to call the command which it hooks. If thisoccurs, the hook is not re-executed, thereby avoiding infiniterecursion.In addition, a pseudo-command, `stop' exists. Defining(`hook-stop') makes the associated commands execute every timeexecution stops in your program: before breakpoint commands are run,displays are printed, or the stack frame is printed.For example, to ignore `SIGALRM' signals while single-stepping, buttreat them normally during normal execution, you could define:define hook-stophandle SIGALRM nopassenddefine hook-runhandle SIGALRM passenddefine hook-continuehandle SIGALRM passendAs a further example, to hook at the beginning and end of the `echo'command, and to add extra text to the beginning and end of the message,you could define:define hook-echoecho <<<---enddefine hookpost-echoecho --->>>\nend(gdb) echo Hello World<<<---Hello World--->>>(gdb)You can define a hook for any single-word command in GDB, but notfor command aliases; you should define a hook for the basic commandname, e.g. `backtrace' rather than `bt'. If an error occurs duringthe execution of your hook, execution of GDB commands stops and GDBissues a prompt (before the command that you actually typed had achance to run).If you try to define a hook which does not match any known command,you get a warning from the `define' command.File: gdb.info, Node: Command Files, Next: Output, Prev: Hooks, Up: Sequences20.3 Command Files==================A command file for GDB is a text file made of lines that are GDBcommands. Comments (lines starting with `#') may also be included. Anempty line in a command file does nothing; it does not mean to repeatthe last command, as it would from the terminal.You can request the execution of a command file with the `source'command:`source [`-v'] FILENAME'Execute the command file FILENAME.The lines in a command file are generally executed sequentially,unless the order of execution is changed by one of the _flow-controlcommands_ described below. The commands are not printed as they areexecuted. An error in any command terminates execution of the commandfile and control is returned to the console.GDB searches for FILENAME in the current directory and then on thesearch path (specified with the `directory' command).If `-v', for verbose mode, is given then GDB displays each commandas it is executed. The option must be given before FILENAME, and isinterpreted as part of the filename anywhere else.Commands that would ask for confirmation if used interactivelyproceed without asking when used in a command file. Many GDB commandsthat normally print messages to say what they are doing omit themessages when called from command files.GDB also accepts command input from standard input. In this mode,normal output goes to standard output and error output goes to standarderror. Errors in a command file supplied on standard input do notterminate execution of the command file--execution continues with thenext command.gdb < cmds > log 2>&1(The syntax above will vary depending on the shell used.) Thisexample will execute commands from the file `cmds'. All output anderrors would be directed to `log'.Since commands stored on command files tend to be more general thancommands typed interactively, they frequently need to deal withcomplicated situations, such as different or unexpected values ofvariables and symbols, changes in how the program being debugged isbuilt, etc. GDB provides a set of flow-control commands to deal withthese complexities. Using these commands, you can write complexscripts that loop over data structures, execute commands conditionally,etc.`if'`else'This command allows to include in your script conditionallyexecuted commands. The `if' command takes a single argument, whichis an expression to evaluate. It is followed by a series ofcommands that are executed only if the expression is true (itsvalue is nonzero). There can then optionally be an `else' line,followed by a series of commands that are only executed if theexpression was false. The end of the list is marked by a linecontaining `end'.`while'This command allows to write loops. Its syntax is similar to`if': the command takes a single argument, which is an expressionto evaluate, and must be followed by the commands to execute, oneper line, terminated by an `end'. These commands are called the"body" of the loop. The commands in the body of `while' areexecuted repeatedly as long as the expression evaluates to true.`loop_break'This command exits the `while' loop in whose body it is included.Execution of the script continues after that `while's `end' line.`loop_continue'This command skips the execution of the rest of the body ofcommands in the `while' loop in whose body it is included.Execution branches to the beginning of the `while' loop, where itevaluates the controlling expression.`end'Terminate the block of commands that are the body of `if', `else',or `while' flow-control commands.File: gdb.info, Node: Output, Prev: Command Files, Up: Sequences20.4 Commands for Controlled Output===================================During the execution of a command file or a user-defined command, normalGDB output is suppressed; the only output that appears is what isexplicitly printed by the commands in the definition. This sectiondescribes three commands useful for generating exactly the output youwant.`echo TEXT'Print TEXT. Nonprinting characters can be included in TEXT usingC escape sequences, such as `\n' to print a newline. *No newlineis printed unless you specify one.* In addition to the standard Cescape sequences, a backslash followed by a space stands for aspace. This is useful for displaying a string with spaces at thebeginning or the end, since leading and trailing spaces areotherwise trimmed from all arguments. To print ` and foo = ', usethe command `echo \ and foo = \ '.A backslash at the end of TEXT can be used, as in C, to continuethe command onto subsequent lines. For example,echo This is some text\n\which is continued\n\onto several lines.\nproduces the same output asecho This is some text\necho which is continued\necho onto several lines.\n`output EXPRESSION'Print the value of EXPRESSION and nothing but that value: nonewlines, no `$NN = '. The value is not entered in the valuehistory either. *Note Expressions: Expressions, for moreinformation on expressions.`output/FMT EXPRESSION'Print the value of EXPRESSION in format FMT. You can use the sameformats as for `print'. *Note Output Formats: Output Formats, formore information.`printf TEMPLATE, EXPRESSIONS...'Print the values of one or more EXPRESSIONS under the control ofthe string TEMPLATE. To print several values, make EXPRESSIONS bea comma-separated list of individual expressions, which may beeither numbers or pointers. Their values are printed as specifiedby TEMPLATE, exactly as a C program would do by executing the codebelow:printf (TEMPLATE, EXPRESSIONS...);As in `C' `printf', ordinary characters in TEMPLATE are printedverbatim, while "conversion specification" introduced by the `%'character cause subsequent EXPRESSIONS to be evaluated, theirvalues converted and formatted according to type and styleinformation encoded in the conversion specifications, and thenprinted.For example, you can print two values in hex like this:printf "foo, bar-foo = 0x%x, 0x%x\n", foo, bar-foo`printf' supports all the standard `C' conversion specifications,including the flags and modifiers between the `%' character andthe conversion letter, with the following exceptions:* The argument-ordering modifiers, such as `2$', are notsupported.* The modifier `*' is not supported for specifying precision orwidth.* The `'' flag (for separation of digits into groups accordingto `LC_NUMERIC'') is not supported.* The type modifiers `hh', `j', `t', and `z' are not supported.* The conversion letter `n' (as in `%n') is not supported.* The conversion letters `a' and `A' are not supported.Note that the `ll' type modifier is supported only if theunderlying `C' implementation used to build GDB supports the `longlong int' type, and the `L' type modifier is supported only if`long double' type is available.As in `C', `printf' supports simple backslash-escape sequences,such as `\n', `\t', `\\', `\"', `\a', and `\f', that consist ofbackslash followed by a single character. Octal and hexadecimalescape sequences are not supported.Additionally, `printf' supports conversion specifications for DFP("Decimal Floating Point") types using the following lengthmodifiers together with a floating point specifier. letters:* `H' for printing `Decimal32' types.* `D' for printing `Decimal64' types.* `DD' for printing `Decimal128' types.If the underlying `C' implementation used to build GDB has supportfor the three length modifiers for DFP types, other modifiers suchas width and precision will also be available for GDB to use.In case there is no such `C' support, no additional modifiers willbe available and the value will be printed in the standard way.Here's an example of printing DFP types using the above conversionletters:printf "D32: %Hf - D64: %Df - D128: %DDf\n",1.2345df,1.2E10dd,1.2E1dlFile: gdb.info, Node: Interpreters, Next: TUI, Prev: Sequences, Up: Top21 Command Interpreters***********************GDB supports multiple command interpreters, and some commandinfrastructure to allow users or user interface writers to switchbetween interpreters or run commands in other interpreters.GDB currently supports two command interpreters, the consoleinterpreter (sometimes called the command-line interpreter or CLI) andthe machine interface interpreter (or GDB/MI). This manual describesboth of these interfaces in great detail.By default, GDB will start with the console interpreter. However,the user may choose to start GDB with another interpreter by specifyingthe `-i' or `--interpreter' startup options. Defined interpretersinclude:`console'The traditional console or command-line interpreter. This is themost often used interpreter with GDB. With no interpreterspecified at runtime, GDB will use this interpreter.`mi'The newest GDB/MI interface (currently `mi2'). Used primarily byprograms wishing to use GDB as a backend for a debugger GUI or anIDE. For more information, see *Note The GDB/MI Interface: GDB/MI.`mi2'The current GDB/MI interface.`mi1'The GDB/MI interface included in GDB 5.1, 5.2, and 5.3.The interpreter being used by GDB may not be dynamically switched atruntime. Although possible, this could lead to a very precarioussituation. Consider an IDE using GDB/MI. If a user enters the command"interpreter-set console" in a console view, GDB would switch to usingthe console interpreter, rendering the IDE inoperable!Although you may only choose a single interpreter at startup, youmay execute commands in any interpreter from the current interpreterusing the appropriate command. If you are running the consoleinterpreter, simply use the `interpreter-exec' command:interpreter-exec mi "-data-list-register-names"GDB/MI has a similar command, although it is only available inversions of GDB which support GDB/MI version 2 (or greater).File: gdb.info, Node: TUI, Next: Emacs, Prev: Interpreters, Up: Top22 GDB Text User Interface*************************** Menu:* TUI Overview:: TUI overview* TUI Keys:: TUI key bindings* TUI Single Key Mode:: TUI single key mode* TUI Commands:: TUI-specific commands* TUI Configuration:: TUI configuration variablesThe GDB Text User Interface (TUI) is a terminal interface which usesthe `curses' library to show the source file, the assembly output, theprogram registers and GDB commands in separate text windows. The TUImode is supported only on platforms where a suitable version of the`curses' library is available.The TUI mode is enabled by default when you invoke GDB as either`gdbtui' or `gdb -tui'. You can also switch in and out of TUI modewhile GDB runs by using various TUI commands and key bindings, such as`C-x C-a'. *Note TUI Key Bindings: TUI Keys.File: gdb.info, Node: TUI Overview, Next: TUI Keys, Up: TUI22.1 TUI Overview=================In TUI mode, GDB can display several text windows:_command_This window is the GDB command window with the GDB prompt and theGDB output. The GDB input is still managed using readline._source_The source window shows the source file of the program. Thecurrent line and active breakpoints are displayed in this window._assembly_The assembly window shows the disassembly output of the program._register_This window shows the processor registers. Registers arehighlighted when their values change.The source and assembly windows show the current program position byhighlighting the current line and marking it with a `>' marker.Breakpoints are indicated with two markers. The first marker indicatesthe breakpoint type:`B'Breakpoint which was hit at least once.`b'Breakpoint which was never hit.`H'Hardware breakpoint which was hit at least once.`h'Hardware breakpoint which was never hit.The second marker indicates whether the breakpoint is enabled or not:`+'Breakpoint is enabled.`-'Breakpoint is disabled.The source, assembly and register windows are updated when thecurrent thread changes, when the frame changes, or when the programcounter changes.These windows are not all visible at the same time. The commandwindow is always visible. The others can be arranged in severallayouts:* source only,* assembly only,* source and assembly,* source and registers, or* assembly and registers.A status line above the command window shows the followinginformation:_target_Indicates the current GDB target. (*note Specifying a DebuggingTarget: Targets.)._process_Gives the current process or thread number. When no process isbeing debugged, this field is set to `No process'._function_Gives the current function name for the selected frame. The nameis demangled if demangling is turned on (*note Print Settings::).When there is no symbol corresponding to the current programcounter, the string `??' is displayed._line_Indicates the current line number for the selected frame. Whenthe current line number is not known, the string `??' is displayed._pc_Indicates the current program counter address.File: gdb.info, Node: TUI Keys, Next: TUI Single Key Mode, Prev: TUI Overview, Up: TUI22.2 TUI Key Bindings=====================The TUI installs several key bindings in the readline keymaps (*noteCommand Line Editing::). The following key bindings are installed forboth TUI mode and the GDB standard mode.`C-x C-a'`C-x a'`C-x A'Enter or leave the TUI mode. When leaving the TUI mode, thecurses window management stops and GDB operates using its standardmode, writing on the terminal directly. When reentering the TUImode, control is given back to the curses windows. The screen isthen refreshed.`C-x 1'Use a TUI layout with only one window. The layout will either be`source' or `assembly'. When the TUI mode is not active, it willswitch to the TUI mode.Think of this key binding as the Emacs `C-x 1' binding.`C-x 2'Use a TUI layout with at least two windows. When the currentlayout already has two windows, the next layout with two windowsis used. When a new layout is chosen, one window will always becommon to the previous layout and the new one.Think of it as the Emacs `C-x 2' binding.`C-x o'Change the active window. The TUI associates several key bindings(like scrolling and arrow keys) with the active window. Thiscommand gives the focus to the next TUI window.Think of it as the Emacs `C-x o' binding.`C-x s'Switch in and out of the TUI SingleKey mode that binds single keysto GDB commands (*note TUI Single Key Mode::).The following key bindings only work in the TUI mode:<PgUp>Scroll the active window one page up.<PgDn>Scroll the active window one page down.<Up>Scroll the active window one line up.<Down>Scroll the active window one line down.<Left>Scroll the active window one column left.<Right>Scroll the active window one column right.`C-L'Refresh the screen.Because the arrow keys scroll the active window in the TUI mode, theyare not available for their normal use by readline unless the commandwindow has the focus. When another window is active, you must useother readline key bindings such as `C-p', `C-n', `C-b' and `C-f' tocontrol the command window.File: gdb.info, Node: TUI Single Key Mode, Next: TUI Commands, Prev: TUI Keys, Up: TUI22.3 TUI Single Key Mode========================The TUI also provides a "SingleKey" mode, which binds severalfrequently used GDB commands to single keys. Type `C-x s' to switchinto this mode, where the following key bindings are used:`c'continue`d'down`f'finish`n'next`q'exit the SingleKey mode.`r'run`s'step`u'up`v'info locals`w'whereOther keys temporarily switch to the GDB command prompt. The keythat was pressed is inserted in the editing buffer so that it ispossible to type most GDB commands without interaction with the TUISingleKey mode. Once the command is entered the TUI SingleKey mode isrestored. The only way to permanently leave this mode is by typing `q'or `C-x s'.File: gdb.info, Node: TUI Commands, Next: TUI Configuration, Prev: TUI Single Key Mode, Up: TUI22.4 TUI-specific Commands==========================The TUI has specific commands to control the text windows. Thesecommands are always available, even when GDB is not in the TUI mode.When GDB is in the standard mode, most of these commands willautomatically switch to the TUI mode.`info win'List and give the size of all displayed windows.`layout next'Display the next layout.`layout prev'Display the previous layout.`layout src'Display the source window only.`layout asm'Display the assembly window only.`layout split'Display the source and assembly window.`layout regs'Display the register window together with the source or assemblywindow.`focus next'Make the next window active for scrolling.`focus prev'Make the previous window active for scrolling.`focus src'Make the source window active for scrolling.`focus asm'Make the assembly window active for scrolling.`focus regs'Make the register window active for scrolling.`focus cmd'Make the command window active for scrolling.`refresh'Refresh the screen. This is similar to typing `C-L'.`tui reg float'Show the floating point registers in the register window.`tui reg general'Show the general registers in the register window.`tui reg next'Show the next register group. The list of register groups as wellas their order is target specific. The predefined register groupsare the following: `general', `float', `system', `vector', `all',`save', `restore'.`tui reg system'Show the system registers in the register window.`update'Update the source window and the current execution point.`winheight NAME +COUNT'`winheight NAME -COUNT'Change the height of the window NAME by COUNT lines. Positivecounts increase the height, while negative counts decrease it.`tabset NCHARS'Set the width of tab stops to be NCHARS characters.File: gdb.info, Node: TUI Configuration, Prev: TUI Commands, Up: TUI22.5 TUI Configuration Variables================================Several configuration variables control the appearance of TUI windows.`set tui border-kind KIND'Select the border appearance for the source, assembly and registerwindows. The possible values are the following:`space'Use a space character to draw the border.`ascii'Use ASCII characters `+', `-' and `|' to draw the border.`acs'Use the Alternate Character Set to draw the border. Theborder is drawn using character line graphics if the terminalsupports them.`set tui border-mode MODE'`set tui active-border-mode MODE'Select the display attributes for the borders of the inactivewindows or the active window. The MODE can be one of thefollowing:`normal'Use normal attributes to display the border.`standout'Use standout mode.`reverse'Use reverse video mode.`half'Use half bright mode.`half-standout'Use half bright and standout mode.`bold'Use extra bright or bold mode.`bold-standout'Use extra bright or bold and standout mode.File: gdb.info, Node: Emacs, Next: GDB/MI, Prev: TUI, Up: Top23 Using GDB under GNU Emacs****************************A special interface allows you to use GNU Emacs to view (and edit) thesource files for the program you are debugging with GDB.To use this interface, use the command `M-x gdb' in Emacs. Give theexecutable file you want to debug as an argument. This command startsGDB as a subprocess of Emacs, with input and output through a newlycreated Emacs buffer.Running GDB under Emacs can be just like running GDB normally exceptfor two things:* All "terminal" input and output goes through an Emacs buffer,called the GUD buffer.This applies both to GDB commands and their output, and to theinput and output done by the program you are debugging.This is useful because it means that you can copy the text ofprevious commands and input them again; you can even use parts ofthe output in this way.All the facilities of Emacs' Shell mode are available forinteracting with your program. In particular, you can sendsignals the usual way--for example, `C-c C-c' for an interrupt,`C-c C-z' for a stop.* GDB displays source code through Emacs.Each time GDB displays a stack frame, Emacs automatically finds thesource file for that frame and puts an arrow (`=>') at the leftmargin of the current line. Emacs uses a separate buffer forsource display, and splits the screen to show both your GDB sessionand the source.Explicit GDB `list' or search commands still produce output asusual, but you probably have no reason to use them from Emacs.We call this "text command mode". Emacs 22.1, and later, also usesa graphical mode, enabled by default, which provides further buffersthat can control the execution and describe the state of your program.*Note GDB Graphical Interface: (Emacs)GDB Graphical Interface.If you specify an absolute file name when prompted for the `M-x gdb'argument, then Emacs sets your current working directory to where yourprogram resides. If you only specify the file name, then Emacs setsyour current working directory to to the directory associated with theprevious buffer. In this case, GDB may find your program by searchingyour environment's `PATH' variable, but on some operating systems itmight not find the source. So, although the GDB input and outputsession proceeds normally, the auxiliary buffer does not display thecurrent source and line of execution.The initial working directory of GDB is printed on the top line ofthe GUD buffer and this serves as a default for the commands thatspecify files for GDB to operate on. *Note Commands to Specify Files:Files.By default, `M-x gdb' calls the program called `gdb'. If you needto call GDB by a different name (for example, if you keep severalconfigurations around, with different names) you can customize theEmacs variable `gud-gdb-command-name' to run the one you want.In the GUD buffer, you can use these special Emacs commands inaddition to the standard Shell mode commands:`C-h m'Describe the features of Emacs' GUD Mode.`C-c C-s'Execute to another source line, like the GDB `step' command; alsoupdate the display window to show the current file and location.`C-c C-n'Execute to next source line in this function, skipping all functioncalls, like the GDB `next' command. Then update the display windowto show the current file and location.`C-c C-i'Execute one instruction, like the GDB `stepi' command; updatedisplay window accordingly.`C-c C-f'Execute until exit from the selected stack frame, like the GDB`finish' command.`C-c C-r'Continue execution of your program, like the GDB `continue'command.`C-c <'Go up the number of frames indicated by the numeric argument(*note Numeric Arguments: (Emacs)Arguments.), like the GDB `up'command.`C-c >'Go down the number of frames indicated by the numeric argument,like the GDB `down' command.In any source file, the Emacs command `C-x <SPC>' (`gud-break')tells GDB to set a breakpoint on the source line point is on.In text command mode, if you type `M-x speedbar', Emacs displays aseparate frame which shows a backtrace when the GUD buffer is current.Move point to any frame in the stack and type <RET> to make it becomethe current frame and display the associated source in the sourcebuffer. Alternatively, click `Mouse-2' to make the selected framebecome the current one. In graphical mode, the speedbar displays watchexpressions.If you accidentally delete the source-display buffer, an easy way toget it back is to type the command `f' in the GDB buffer, to request aframe display; when you run under Emacs, this recreates the sourcebuffer if necessary to show you the context of the current frame.The source files displayed in Emacs are in ordinary Emacs bufferswhich are visiting the source files in the usual way. You can edit thefiles with these buffers if you wish; but keep in mind that GDBcommunicates with Emacs in terms of line numbers. If you add or deletelines from the text, the line numbers that GDB knows cease tocorrespond properly with the code.A more detailed description of Emacs' interaction with GDB is givenin the Emacs manual (*note Debuggers: (Emacs)Debuggers.).File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI, Next: Annotations, Prev: Emacs, Up: Top24 The GDB/MI Interface***********************Function and Purpose====================GDB/MI is a line based machine oriented text interface to GDB and isactivated by specifying using the `--interpreter' command line option(*note Mode Options::). It is specifically intended to support thedevelopment of systems which use the debugger as just one smallcomponent of a larger system.This chapter is a specification of the GDB/MI interface. It iswritten in the form of a reference manual.Note that GDB/MI is still under construction, so some of thefeatures described below are incomplete and subject to change (*noteGDB/MI Development and Front Ends: GDB/MI Development and Front Ends.).Notation and Terminology========================This chapter uses the following notation:* `|' separates two alternatives.* `[ SOMETHING ]' indicates that SOMETHING is optional: it may ormay not be given.* `( GROUP )*' means that GROUP inside the parentheses may repeatzero or more times.* `( GROUP )+' means that GROUP inside the parentheses may repeatone or more times.* `"STRING"' means a literal STRING.* Menu:* GDB/MI Command Syntax::* GDB/MI Compatibility with CLI::* GDB/MI Development and Front Ends::* GDB/MI Output Records::* GDB/MI Simple Examples::* GDB/MI Command Description Format::* GDB/MI Breakpoint Commands::* GDB/MI Program Context::* GDB/MI Thread Commands::* GDB/MI Program Execution::* GDB/MI Stack Manipulation::* GDB/MI Variable Objects::* GDB/MI Data Manipulation::* GDB/MI Tracepoint Commands::* GDB/MI Symbol Query::* GDB/MI File Commands::* GDB/MI Target Manipulation::* GDB/MI File Transfer Commands::* GDB/MI Miscellaneous Commands::File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Command Syntax, Next: GDB/MI Compatibility with CLI, Up: GDB/MI24.1 GDB/MI Command Syntax==========================* Menu:* GDB/MI Input Syntax::* GDB/MI Output Syntax::File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Input Syntax, Next: GDB/MI Output Syntax, Up: GDB/MI Command Syntax24.1.1 GDB/MI Input Syntax--------------------------`COMMAND ==>'`CLI-COMMAND | MI-COMMAND'`CLI-COMMAND ==>'`[ TOKEN ] CLI-COMMAND NL', where CLI-COMMAND is any existing GDBCLI command.`MI-COMMAND ==>'`[ TOKEN ] "-" OPERATION ( " " OPTION )* `[' " --" `]' ( " "PARAMETER )* NL'`TOKEN ==>'"any sequence of digits"`OPTION ==>'`"-" PARAMETER [ " " PARAMETER ]'`PARAMETER ==>'`NON-BLANK-SEQUENCE | C-STRING'`OPERATION ==>'_any of the operations described in this chapter_`NON-BLANK-SEQUENCE ==>'_anything, provided it doesn't contain special characters such as"-", NL, """ and of course " "_`C-STRING ==>'`""" SEVEN-BIT-ISO-C-STRING-CONTENT """'`NL ==>'`CR | CR-LF'Notes:* The CLI commands are still handled by the MI interpreter; theiroutput is described below.* The `TOKEN', when present, is passed back when the commandfinishes.* Some MI commands accept optional arguments as part of the parameterlist. Each option is identified by a leading `-' (dash) and may befollowed by an optional argument parameter. Options occur firstin the parameter list and can be delimited from normal parametersusing `--' (this is useful when some parameters begin with a dash).Pragmatics:* We want easy access to the existing CLI syntax (for debugging).* We want it to be easy to spot a MI operation.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Output Syntax, Prev: GDB/MI Input Syntax, Up: GDB/MI Command Syntax24.1.2 GDB/MI Output Syntax---------------------------The output from GDB/MI consists of zero or more out-of-band recordsfollowed, optionally, by a single result record. This result record isfor the most recent command. The sequence of output records isterminated by `(gdb)'.If an input command was prefixed with a `TOKEN' then thecorresponding output for that command will also be prefixed by that sameTOKEN.`OUTPUT ==>'`( OUT-OF-BAND-RECORD )* [ RESULT-RECORD ] "(gdb)" NL'`RESULT-RECORD ==>'` [ TOKEN ] "^" RESULT-CLASS ( "," RESULT )* NL'`OUT-OF-BAND-RECORD ==>'`ASYNC-RECORD | STREAM-RECORD'`ASYNC-RECORD ==>'`EXEC-ASYNC-OUTPUT | STATUS-ASYNC-OUTPUT | NOTIFY-ASYNC-OUTPUT'`EXEC-ASYNC-OUTPUT ==>'`[ TOKEN ] "*" ASYNC-OUTPUT'`STATUS-ASYNC-OUTPUT ==>'`[ TOKEN ] "+" ASYNC-OUTPUT'`NOTIFY-ASYNC-OUTPUT ==>'`[ TOKEN ] "=" ASYNC-OUTPUT'`ASYNC-OUTPUT ==>'`ASYNC-CLASS ( "," RESULT )* NL'`RESULT-CLASS ==>'`"done" | "running" | "connected" | "error" | "exit"'`ASYNC-CLASS ==>'`"stopped" | OTHERS' (where OTHERS will be added depending on theneeds--this is still in development).`RESULT ==>'` VARIABLE "=" VALUE'`VARIABLE ==>'` STRING '`VALUE ==>'` CONST | TUPLE | LIST '`CONST ==>'`C-STRING'`TUPLE ==>'` "{}" | "{" RESULT ( "," RESULT )* "}" '`LIST ==>'` "[]" | "[" VALUE ( "," VALUE )* "]" | "[" RESULT ( "," RESULT )*"]" '`STREAM-RECORD ==>'`CONSOLE-STREAM-OUTPUT | TARGET-STREAM-OUTPUT | LOG-STREAM-OUTPUT'`CONSOLE-STREAM-OUTPUT ==>'`"~" C-STRING'`TARGET-STREAM-OUTPUT ==>'`"@" C-STRING'`LOG-STREAM-OUTPUT ==>'`"&" C-STRING'`NL ==>'`CR | CR-LF'`TOKEN ==>'_any sequence of digits_.Notes:* All output sequences end in a single line containing a period.* The `TOKEN' is from the corresponding request. If an executioncommand is interrupted by the `-exec-interrupt' command, the TOKENassociated with the `*stopped' message is the one of the originalexecution command, not the one of the interrupt command.* STATUS-ASYNC-OUTPUT contains on-going status information about theprogress of a slow operation. It can be discarded. All statusoutput is prefixed by `+'.* EXEC-ASYNC-OUTPUT contains asynchronous state change on the target(stopped, started, disappeared). All async output is prefixed by`*'.* NOTIFY-ASYNC-OUTPUT contains supplementary information that theclient should handle (e.g., a new breakpoint information). Allnotify output is prefixed by `='.* CONSOLE-STREAM-OUTPUT is output that should be displayed as is inthe console. It is the textual response to a CLI command. Allthe console output is prefixed by `~'.* TARGET-STREAM-OUTPUT is the output produced by the target program.All the target output is prefixed by `@'.* LOG-STREAM-OUTPUT is output text coming from GDB's internals, forinstance messages that should be displayed as part of an errorlog. All the log output is prefixed by `&'.* New GDB/MI commands should only output LISTS containing VALUES.*Note GDB/MI Stream Records: GDB/MI Stream Records, for more detailsabout the various output records.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Compatibility with CLI, Next: GDB/MI Development and Front Ends, Prev: GDB/MI Command Syntax, Up: GDB/MI24.2 GDB/MI Compatibility with CLI==================================For the developers convenience CLI commands can be entered directly,but there may be some unexpected behaviour. For example, commands thatquery the user will behave as if the user replied yes, breakpointcommand lists are not executed and some CLI commands, such as `if',`when' and `define', prompt for further input with `>', which is notvalid MI output.This feature may be removed at some stage in the future and it isrecommended that front ends use the `-interpreter-exec' command (*note-interpreter-exec::).File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Development and Front Ends, Next: GDB/MI Output Records, Prev: GDB/MI Compatibility with CLI, Up: GDB/MI24.3 GDB/MI Development and Front Ends======================================The application which takes the MI output and presents the state of theprogram being debugged to the user is called a "front end".Although GDB/MI is still incomplete, it is currently being used by avariety of front ends to GDB. This makes it difficult to introduce newfunctionality without breaking existing usage. This section tries tominimize the problems by describing how the protocol might change.Some changes in MI need not break a carefully designed front end, andfor these the MI version will remain unchanged. The following is alist of changes that may occur within one level, so front ends shouldparse MI output in a way that can handle them:* New MI commands may be added.* New fields may be added to the output of any MI command.* The range of values for fields with specified values, e.g.,`in_scope' (*note -var-update::) may be extended.If the changes are likely to break front ends, the MI version levelwill be increased by one. This will allow the front end to parse theoutput according to the MI version. Apart from mi0, new versions ofGDB will not support old versions of MI and it will be theresponsibility of the front end to work with the new one.The best way to avoid unexpected changes in MI that might break yourfront end is to make your project known to GDB developers and followdevelopment on <gdb@sourceware.org> and <gdb-patches@sourceware.org>.There is also the mailing list <dmi-discuss@lists.freestandards.org>,hosted by the Free Standards Group, which has the aim of creating amore general MI protocol called Debugger Machine Interface (DMI) thatwill become a standard for all debuggers, not just GDB.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Output Records, Next: GDB/MI Simple Examples, Prev: GDB/MI Development and Front Ends, Up: GDB/MI24.4 GDB/MI Output Records==========================* Menu:* GDB/MI Result Records::* GDB/MI Stream Records::* GDB/MI Out-of-band Records::File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Result Records, Next: GDB/MI Stream Records, Up: GDB/MI Output Records24.4.1 GDB/MI Result Records----------------------------In addition to a number of out-of-band notifications, the response to aGDB/MI command includes one of the following result indications:`"^done" [ "," RESULTS ]'The synchronous operation was successful, `RESULTS' are the returnvalues.`"^running"'The asynchronous operation was successfully started. The target isrunning.`"^connected"'GDB has connected to a remote target.`"^error" "," C-STRING'The operation failed. The `C-STRING' contains the correspondingerror message.`"^exit"'GDB has terminated.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Stream Records, Next: GDB/MI Out-of-band Records, Prev: GDB/MI Result Records, Up: GDB/MI Output Records24.4.2 GDB/MI Stream Records----------------------------GDB internally maintains a number of output streams: the console, thetarget, and the log. The output intended for each of these streams isfunneled through the GDB/MI interface using "stream records".Each stream record begins with a unique "prefix character" whichidentifies its stream (*note GDB/MI Output Syntax: GDB/MI OutputSyntax.). In addition to the prefix, each stream record contains a`STRING-OUTPUT'. This is either raw text (with an implicit new line)or a quoted C string (which does not contain an implicit newline).`"~" STRING-OUTPUT'The console output stream contains text that should be displayedin the CLI console window. It contains the textual responses toCLI commands.`"@" STRING-OUTPUT'The target output stream contains any textual output from therunning target. This is only present when GDB's event loop istruly asynchronous, which is currently only the case for remotetargets.`"&" STRING-OUTPUT'The log stream contains debugging messages being produced by GDB'sinternals.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Out-of-band Records, Prev: GDB/MI Stream Records, Up: GDB/MI Output Records24.4.3 GDB/MI Out-of-band Records---------------------------------"Out-of-band" records are used to notify the GDB/MI client ofadditional changes that have occurred. Those changes can either be aconsequence of GDB/MI (e.g., a breakpoint modified) or a result oftarget activity (e.g., target stopped).The following is a preliminary list of possible out-of-band records.In particular, the EXEC-ASYNC-OUTPUT records.`*stopped,reason="REASON"'REASON can be one of the following:`breakpoint-hit'A breakpoint was reached.`watchpoint-trigger'A watchpoint was triggered.`read-watchpoint-trigger'A read watchpoint was triggered.`access-watchpoint-trigger'An access watchpoint was triggered.`function-finished'An -exec-finish or similar CLI command was accomplished.`location-reached'An -exec-until or similar CLI command was accomplished.`watchpoint-scope'A watchpoint has gone out of scope.`end-stepping-range'An -exec-next, -exec-next-instruction, -exec-step,-exec-step-instruction or similar CLI command was accomplished.`exited-signalled'The inferior exited because of a signal.`exited'The inferior exited.`exited-normally'The inferior exited normally.`signal-received'A signal was received by the inferior.File: gdb.info, Node: GDB/MI Simple Examples, Next: GDB/MI Command Description Format, Prev: GDB/MI Output Records, Up: GDB/MI24.5 Simple Examples of GDB/MI Interaction==========================================This subsection presents several simple examples of interaction usingthe GDB/MI interface. In these examples, `->' means that the followingline is passed to GDB/MI as input, while `<-' means the output receivedfrom GDB/MI.Note the line breaks shown in the examples are here only forreadability, they don't appear in the real output.Setting a Breakpoint--------------------Setting a breakpoint generates synchronous output which containsdetailed information of the breakpoint.-> -break-insert main<- ^done,bkpt={number="1",type="breakpoint",disp="keep",enabled="y",addr="0x08048564",func="main",file="myprog.c",fullname="/home/nickrob/myprog.c",line="68",times="0"}<- (gdb)Program Execution-----------------Program execution generates asynchronous records and MI gives thereason that execution stopped.-> -exec-run<- ^running<- (gdb)<- *stopped,reason="breakpoint-hit",bkptno="1",thread-id="0",frame={addr="0x08048564",func="main",args=[{name="argc",value="1"},{name="argv",value="0xbfc4d4d4"}],file="myprog.c",fullname="/home/nickrob/myprog.c",line="68"}<- (gdb)-> -exec-continue<- ^running<- (gdb)<- *stopped,reason="exited-normally"<- (gdb)Quitting GDB------------Quitting GDB just prints the result class `^exit'.-> (gdb)<- -gdb-exit<- ^exitA Bad Command-------------Here's what happens if you pass a non-existent command:-> -rubbish<- ^error,msg="Undefined MI command: rubbish"<- (gdb)
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