How does the compilation and linking process work? (Note: This is meant to be an entry to Stack Overflow's C++ FAQ. If you want to critique the idea of providing an FAQ in this form, then the post...
Linking - Object code (*.o) to executable (*) The first three steps make perfect sense to me, but I am still confused as to what linking actually does. After step three why can't I run the *.o file? At that point my C code is now in object/machine/byte code and can be interpreted by the CPU directly.
When creating a class library in C++, you can choose between dynamic (.dll, .so) and static (.lib, .a) libraries. What is the difference between them and when is it appropriate to use which?
There are really three possibilities: static linking, load-time dynamic linking, and run-time dynamic linking. The other question is asking about the difference between the second and third, while this is talking about the difference between the first and a group of the second and third taken together.
Static linking vs Dynamic linking Static linking is a process at compile time when a linked content is copied into the primary binary and becomes a single binary.
How does C++ linking work in practice? What I am looking for is a detailed explanation about how the linking happens, and not what commands do the linking. There's already a similar question about
As I understand, gcc performs compiling, assembling then linking. The latter two steps are achieved by it running as and ld. I can generate the assembly code by using gcc -S test.c. What would you type into a terminal, to convert the assembly code into an executable? (the reason for doing so is to learn assembly)
Linking dynamically is the default mode of most linkers these days. If you want to link statically you have to use the -static flag when linking. To clarify, when I say "linking dynamically" versus "linking statically" I mean the linking with external libraries, and not generating a library that in turn can be linked (dynamically or statically). The difference can't be seen in the object files ...
I have installed boost on Fedora 20 via yum and am trying some simple examples. However I have trouble to compile the first example from the logging tutorial. Compiling with g++ -c boosttest.cc wo...
4) Linking: This is where I'm confused. At this point you have an executable. But if you actually run that executable what happens? Is the problem that you may have included *.h files, and those only contain function prototypes? So if you actually call one of the functions from those files, it won't have a definition and your program will crash?
