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From: farren@gethen.UUCP (Michael J. Farren)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: MSC Linking and Libraries
Message-ID: <371@gethen.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 21-Nov-87 14:25:23 EST
Article-I.D.: gethen.371
Posted: Sat Nov 21 14:25:23 1987
Date-Received: Tue, 24-Nov-87 04:58:03 EST
References: <3195@rosevax.Rosemount.COM>
Reply-To: farren@gethen.UUCP (Michael J. Farren)
Organization: Sci-Fido - Unix in Oakland
Lines: 32
Keywords: MSC

richw@rosevax.Rosemount.COM (Rich Wagenknecht) writes:
>
>1) Does the MSC linker link an entire library to an object file
>or does it extract only the functions actually used by the
>object code?

It extracts only those functions actually used.  This, however, can
include functions needed by those functions, so it isn't as simple
as a one-to-one match.

>2) Why is the executable size of program so much larger
>than the object file size?

Because the object file does not include any of the code for the
library functions; this is included later, by the linker, and
expands the size significantly.  In the case of small programs
which use a lot of library functions, the code for the library
functions can be massively larger than the code for the program
itself.  Also, the .EXE file produced by the linker generally
has a large amount of initialization data and relocation information
not present in the object file.

>3) If the MSC linker does link in an entire library are there
>programs which will remove unused library functions.

Not needed; see #1.

-- 
----------------
Michael J. Farren      "... if the church put in half the time on covetousness
unisoft!gethen!farren   that it does on lust, this would be a better world ..."
gethen!farren@lll-winken.arpa             Garrison Keillor, "Lake Wobegon Days"