Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!tikal!sigma!uw-nsr!john
From: john@uw-nsr.UUCP (John Sambrook)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c
Subject: Re: Any bounds-checking C compilers?
Message-ID: <1354@uw-nsr.UUCP>
Date: 2 Jul 88 15:49:54 GMT
References: <4033@pasteur.Berkeley.Edu>
Reply-To: john@uw-nsr.UUCP (John Sambrook 548-4386)
Organization: UW-Bioengineering, Seattle, WA
Lines: 35

In article <4033@pasteur.Berkeley.Edu> faustus@ic.Berkeley.EDU (Wayne A. Christopher) writes:
>Are there any C compilers that compile in run-time bounds checking for array
>accesses?  In some cases you couldn't do it, of course, but it would be nice
>to be able to turn it on for those cases where it is possible.
>
>	Wayne
>
Disclaimer:

        I have no association with Data General other than being a consumer
        of their Unix products.  The C compiler is the best Unix C compiler
        I have ever used, and I have used a few.  In fact, the DG Unix C 
        compiler is a lot like having the IBM PL/I "Checkout" and "Optimizing"
        compilers rolled into one.  

The Data General C compiler can do this when requested via cc command 
line switches.  The compiler has a number of other features which make
it a real winner for porting existing code and for developing new code.

Another nice feature of this compiler and runtime system is that you
can compile in line number and procedure name information for use in
the event of a program abort.  Then, when your program does something
stupid, like dereferencing through NULL, you get a traceback that prints
line number and procedure name for each currently active procedure.  

There are a number of other useful options, like the ability to have
either signed or unsigned characters, and the ability to have zeroed
stack frames or not, and runtime pointer type checking for a certain
class of pointers ("byte" pointers v.s. "word" pointers).

-- 
John Sambrook                        Internet: john@nsr.bioeng.washington.edu
University of Washington RC-05           UUCP: uw-nsr!john
Seattle, Washington  98195               Dial: (206) 548-4386

                       ``Otium Cum Dignitate''