compile_to_c


compile_to_c [options] <Root-Class> [<Root-Procedure>] [*.c] [*.o] [-l*]

Command compile_to_c is the SmallEiffel ANSI C code generator. Usualy this command is automatically called by command compile but you can use it separately to produce C code.

Command compile_to_c must have at least one argument to indicate the starting execution point of the system. Thus, execution will start in <Root-Procedure> of <Root-Class>. The default <Root-Procedure> is make.

Command compile_to_c produce all needed C files and also produce one command script file. The name of this script file change with the operating system used (*.make on Unix or *.BAT on DOS for example).

1. Options to select Eiffel compilation mode
There are 8 modes of compilation given by the following options names: -debug_check -all_check -loop_check -invariant_check -ensure_check -require_check -no_check and -boost option. Only one mode can be selected for the whole system to compile. Option -all_check is the default one.

-boost:
Compilation mode which includes all optimization. There is no target's existence test, no system-level validity checking. Some routines are inlined. No code is generated to get an execution trace in case of failure. There is no assertion check.

-no_check:
Compilation mode in which no Eiffel assertion is checked.
The target's existence test is performed. Some code is generated for the system-level validity checking, and to produce an execution trace (an execution stack is managed).
There is no inlining and no assertion check.

-require_check:
Compilation mode in which Eiffel preconditions are checked. The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code to test preconditions (require).

-ensure_check:
The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code to test postconditions (ensure).

-invariant_check:
The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code to test class invariant.

-loop_check:
The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code to test loop variant and loop invariant.

-all_check:
The default mode. The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code for the check instruction.

-debug_check:
The generated code is similar to the previous one, but also includes code for the debug instruction. All debug are checked regardless of the optional string key.

2. Others options

-trace:
This option may be useful to debug your program or to do some profiling. When selected, this option add some more C code to produce at run time the file "trace.se" (file "trace.se" is not produced at compile time). When running a traced program, you get a (usually huge) file "trace.se" in the launching directory. File "trace.se" tells you where your program is going: which line, which column in which Eiffel source file. Because all classes are traced, file "trace.se" is a huge file even for a small program. The feature GENERAL.trace_switch allow dynamic turning on/off of printed trace. At run time, when argument of trace_switch is true, trace printing is switched on (conversely, false is to switch off trace printing). When option -trace is not selected, calls to trace_switch are not taken in account by compile_to_c (no C code is produced). The -trace mode is not available whith mode -boost. Using at the same time -trace with -boost as the same effect as using -trace with -no_check. Also keep in mind that very simple instructions (as for example "i := i + 1;") may not be traced.

-cc <c_compiler>:
Call <c_compiler> instead of the default C compiler. See READ_ME of directory sys to set the default C compiler as well as the default linker.

-no_split:
produce only one C file for the whole Eiffel system. Thus, the C compiler may inline more functions calls. This option is usefull only to finalize an application (the incremental C compiling mode is switched off with -no_split).

-no_strip:
Do not produce a strip in the command file.

-o <output_name>:
Same meaning as -o option of the C compiler. The <output_name> is the name of the produced executable file.

-cecil <cecil_file>:
To allow some Eiffel features to be called from C (see cecil file for details). To call C functions/macros from Eiffel see external file.

-verbose:
to have information during the compilation (the full path of loaded files is printed, type inference score, removed files, etc).

-no_warning:
Suppress output for all warning messages (error messages are still printed).

-case_insensitive:
Switch on the case insensitive mode. For example, when this mode is selected, the Eiffel parser considers that the following identifiers are equivalent : item, ITEM, ItEm, ...

3. Options passed to the C compiler
Remaining options, *.c files, *.o files, library -l* are passed to the C compiler/linker.

4. The environment variable SmallEiffel
The environment variable SmallEiffel is used to indicate the place on the disk where the SmallEiffel directory is. This variable also indicates which system is used. When the SmallEiffel value contains a slash character ('/'), the compiler assumes it is a UNIX-like system.

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Copyright © Dominique COLNET and Suzanne COLLIN - <colnet@loria.fr>
Last update: Monday December 22, 1997