GPERF(1) FSF GPERF(1)
NAME
gperf - generate a perfect hash function from a key set
SYNOPSIS
gperf [OPTION]... [INPUT-FILE]
DESCRIPTION
GNU 'gperf' generates perfect hash functions.
If a long option shows an argument as mandatory, then it is mandatory for the equivalent short option also.
Output file location:
--output-file=FILE Write output to specified file.
The results are written to standard output if no output file is specified or if it is -.
Input file interpretation:
-e, --delimiters=DELIMITER-LIST
Allow user to provide a string containing delimiters used to separate keywords from their attributes. Default is ",".
-t, --struct-type
Allows the user to include a structured type declaration for generated code. Any text before %% is considered part of the type dec-
laration. Key words and additional fields may follow this, one group of fields per line.
--ignore-case
Consider upper and lower case ASCII characters as equivalent. Note that locale dependent case mappings are ignored.
Language for the output code:
-L, --language=LANGUAGE-NAME
Generates code in the specified language. Languages handled are currently C++, ANSI-C, C, and KR-C. The default is C.
Details in the output code:
-K, --slot-name=NAME
Select name of the keyword component in the keyword structure.
-F, --initializer-suffix=INITIALIZERS
Initializers for additional components in the keyword structure.
-H, --hash-function-name=NAME
Specify name of generated hash function. Default is 'hash'.
-N, --lookup-function-name=NAME
Specify name of generated lookup function. Default name is 'in_word_set'.
-Z, --class-name=NAME
Specify name of generated C++ class. Default name is 'Perfect_Hash'.
-7, --seven-bit
Assume 7-bit characters.
-l, --compare-lengths
Compare key lengths before trying a string comparison. This is necessary if the keywords contain NUL bytes. It also helps cut down
on the number of string comparisons made during the lookup.
-c, --compare-strncmp
Generate comparison code using strncmp rather than strcmp.
-C, --readonly-tables
Make the contents of generated lookup tables constant, i.e., readonly.
-E, --enum
Define constant values using an enum local to the lookup function rather than with defines.
-I, --includes
Include the necessary system include file <string.h> at the beginning of the code.
-G, --global-table
Generate the static table of keywords as a static global variable, rather than hiding it inside of the lookup function (which is the
default behavior).
-P, --pic
Optimize the generated table for inclusion in shared libraries. This reduces the startup time of programs using a shared library
containing the generated code.
-Q, --string-pool-name=NAME
Specify name of string pool generated by option --pic. Default name is 'stringpool'.
--null-strings
Use NULL strings instead of empty strings for empty keyword table entries.
-W, --word-array-name=NAME
Specify name of word list array. Default name is 'wordlist'.
--length-table-name=NAME
Specify name of length table array. Default name is 'lengthtable'.
-S, --switch=COUNT
Causes the generated C code to use a switch statement scheme, rather than an array lookup table. This can lead to a reduction in
both time and space requirements for some keyfiles. The COUNT argument determines how many switch statements are generated. A value
of 1 generates 1 switch containing all the elements, a value of 2 generates 2 tables with 1/2 the elements in each table, etc. If
COUNT is very large, say 1000000, the generated C code does a binary search.
-T, --omit-struct-type
Prevents the transfer of the type declaration to the output file. Use this option if the type is already defined elsewhere.
Algorithm employed by gperf:
-k, --key-positions=KEYS
Select the key positions used in the hash function. The allowable choices range between 1-255, inclusive. The positions are sepa-
rated by commas, ranges may be used, and key positions may occur in any order. Also, the meta-character '*' causes the generated
hash function to consider ALL key positions, and $ indicates the "final character" of a key, e.g., $,1,2,4,6-10.
-D, --duplicates
Handle keywords that hash to duplicate values. This is useful for certain highly redundant keyword sets.
-m, --multiple-iterations=ITERATIONS
Perform multiple choices of the -i and -j values, and choose the best results. This increases the running time by a factor of ITERA-
TIONS but does a good job minimizing the generated table size.
-i, --initial-asso=N
Provide an initial value for the associate values array. Default is 0. Setting this value larger helps inflate the size of the final
table.
-j, --jump=JUMP-VALUE
Affects the "jump value", i.e., how far to advance the associated character value upon collisions. Must be an odd number, default is
5.
-n, --no-strlen
Do not include the length of the keyword when computing the hash function.
-r, --random
Utilizes randomness to initialize the associated values table.
-s, --size-multiple=N
Affects the size of the generated hash table. The numeric argument N indicates "how many times larger or smaller" the associated
value range should be, in relationship to the number of keys, e.g. a value of 3 means "allow the maximum associated value to be
about 3 times larger than the number of input keys". Conversely, a value of 1/3 means "make the maximum associated value about 3
times smaller than the number of input keys". A larger table should decrease the time required for an unsuccessful search, at the
expense of extra table space. Default value is 1.
Informative output:
-h, --help
Print this message.
-v, --version
Print the gperf version number.
-d, --debug
Enables the debugging option (produces verbose output to the standard error).
AUTHOR
Written by Douglas C. Schmidt and Bruno Haible.
REPORTING BUGS
Report bugs to <bug-gnu-gperf@gnu.org>.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 1989-1998, 2000-2004, 2006-2007 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This is free software; see the source for copying conditions. There is NO warranty; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICU-
LAR PURPOSE.
SEE ALSO
The full documentation for gperf is maintained as a Texinfo manual. If the info and gperf programs are properly installed at your site,
the command
info gperf
should give you access to the complete manual.
GNU gperf 3.0.3 May 2007 GPERF(1)