hpux ld_ia man page on unix.com

ld_ia(1) General Commands Manual ld_ia(1)

NAME
ld_ia: ld - link editor for Integrity systems

SYNOPSIS
The link editor
search] filename] epsym] symbol]... filename] x | file]... library] [bucketsizetype] outfile] symbol]... symbol]... symbol]... name]
bind]... n]
offset] dir]... file] file] offset] mode] path_list] oldpath:newpath] path] file] filename] symbol]... symbol]...
shared_library_path] function]... size] size] internal_name] percentage] function]... filename] filename] symbol]... symbol]...
shared_library_name] pagesize] pagesize] size] name] size] flag] type]
flag] symbol]... ] n] size]

Remarks
This manpage describes on Integrity systems. For on PA-RISC systems, see ld_pa(1).

DESCRIPTION
takes one or more object files or libraries as input and combines them to produce a single (usually executable) file. In doing so it
resolves references to external symbols, assigns final addresses to procedures and variables, revises code and data to reflect new
addresses (a process called "relocation") and updates symbolic debug information when present in the file.

By default, produces an executable file that can be run by the HP-UX loader (see exec(2)). Alternatively, the linker can generate a relo-
catable file that is suitable for further processing by (see below). It can also generate a shared library (see below). The linker marks
the output file non-executable if there are any duplicate symbols or any unresolved external references remain.

may or may not generate an output file (see option) if any other errors occur during its operation.

recognizes three kinds of input files:
o object files created by the compilers, assembler, or linker (also known as files),
o shared libraries created by the linker, and
o archives of object files (called archive libraries).

An archive library contains a table of all the externally-visible symbols from its component object files. (The archiver command ar(1)
creates and maintains this index.) uses this table to resolve references to external symbols.

processes files in the same order as they appear on the command line. It includes code and data from an archive library element if and
only if that object module provides a definition for a currently unresolved reference within the user's program (see It is common practice
to list libraries following the names of all simple object files on the command line.

Code and data from shared libraries is never copied into an executable program.
For 32-bit mode: is found at
For 64-bit mode:
is found at

You should include in a link.
For 32-bit mode: the dynamic loader is found at

For 64-bit mode:
the dynamic loader is found at

The dynamic loader attaches each required library to the process and resolves all symbolic references between the program and its
libraries.

NOTE: For information on linking secure programs with shared libraries, see the section below.

The text segment of a shared library is shared among all processes that use the library; each process using the library receives its own
copy of the data segment. If has been run on the executable that loads the library, the text segment of a shared library is mapped pri-
vately for each process running the executable. recursively examines the dependencies of shared libraries used by a program that was cre-
ated by If does not find a supporting shared library at the path recorded in the dependency list of a shared library, and if the dependency
is the result of an argument used when the shared library was created, searchs all the directories that it would search for a library that
was specified with (see and

Options
Specify whether shared or archive libraries are searched
with the option. The value of search should be one of or This option can appear more than once, interspersed among
options, to control the searching for each library. The default is to use the shared version of a library if one is
available, or the archive version if not.

If either or is active, only the specified library type is accepted.

If is active, the archive form is preferred, but the shared form is allowed.

If is active, the shared form is preferred but the archive form is allowed.

To create a statically-bound program, use the option rather than

Create a shared library rather than a normal executable file.
Object files processed with this option must contain (PIC), generated by default by the compiler.

See the discussion of position-independent code in cc(1), aCC(1), f90(1), as(1), and

Read ld options from a file.
Each line contains zero or more arguments separated by white space. Each line in the file, including the last line,
must end with a newline character. A character implies that the rest of the line is a comment. To escape a charac-
ter, use the sequence

Force definition of "common" symbols; that is, assign
addresses and sizes, for output. This option also strips COMDAT information from the output.

This option is the default.
Instructs the linker to produce a dynamically linked executable (a program which can use shared libraries). This
option is the complement of

If no shared libraries are linked in, the linker builds a dynamically linked executable. However, in PA32-bit mode
using the option, if no shared libraries are linked in, the linker builds a statically bound executable (or archive
bound executable).

For dynamically linked executables, the dynamic loader is involved in the process of loading the executable, regard-
less of whether it was linked with shared libraries. For (or statically bound) programs, control does not pass to
the dynamic loader. See dld.so(5) for more information.

Set the default entry point address for the output file to be that of
the symbol epsym. (This option only applies to executable files.)

Preserve compiler generated relocation sections in output
file

Prior to writing the symbol table to the output file,
mark this name as "local" so that it is no longer externally visible. This ensures that this particular entry will
not clash with a definition in another file during future processing by If used when building a shared library or
program, this option prevents the named symbol from being visible to the dynamic loader.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

Specify a mapfile that describes the output file memory map.

Please refer to guide and the for more information.

Search a library
or where x is one or more characters. The current state of the option determines whether the archive or shared or
version of a library is searched.

Because a library is searched when its name is encountered, the placement of a is significant. By default, 32-bit
libraries are located in 64-bit libraries are located in

If the environment variable is present in the user's environment, it should contain a colon-separated list of direc-
tories to search. These directories are searched instead of the default directories, but options can still be used.

If a program uses shared libraries, the dynamic loader, for 32-bit, or for 64-bit, attempts to load each library from
the same directory in which it was found at link time (see the and options).

Search the library specified.
Similar to the option except the current state of the option is not important. The library name can be any valid
filename.

Produce a load map on the standard output.

This option is ignored.

Specify the to optimize the hash table size (number of hash buckets). The valid values for bucketsizetype are:
Sets the number of hash buckets to half the number of dynamic symbols in the library.

Sets the number of hash buckets to the highest power of 2 that is less than the number of dynamic symbols in the
library.

Sets the number of hash buckets to the largest prime number that is less than the number of dynamic symbols in the
library. (This option is the default.)

Force the linker to create a fully archive bound program
(also called statically-bound executable).

Specify or (or equivalent startup code) on the command line when you use this option.

This option is the complement of

For dynamically linked executables, the dynamic loader is involved in the process of loading the executable, regard-
less of whether it was linked with shared libraries. For statically linked programs, control does not pass to the
dynamic loader.

Create a dynamically linked program if shared libraries are linked in.
If no shared libraries are linked in, the linker creates a fully archive bound program. This option is the default
in compatibility mode (with the options. See also the and options.

Produce an output object file named
outfile if is not specified).

This option is ignored.

Retain relocation information in the output file for subsequent re-linking.
The command does not report undefined symbols. This option cannot be used when building a shared library or in con-
junction with the or the incremental linking options.

Strip the output file of all symbol table, relocation,
and debug support information. (The strip(1) command also removes this information.) This option is incompatible
with the option and the option.

NOTE: Use of the option might impair or prevent the use of a symbolic debugger on the resulting program.

When building a shared library, causes the linker to resolve all references
to the specified symbol to the symbol defined in the library. This option is similar to but operates on a per symbol
basis.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

symbol can also be a regular expression that matches multiple symbol names. Regular expressions are described in
regexp(5).

Print a trace (to standard output) of each input file as
processes it.

Enter symbol as an undefined symbol in the symbol table. The resulting unresolved reference is useful for linking a pro-
gram solely from object files in a library.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

Display verbose messages during linking.
This option is equivalent to (see the option for more information).

Suppress all warnings.

Strip local symbols from the output file.
This reduces the size of the output file without impairing the effectiveness of object file utilities. This option
is incompatible with the option and the options. (The incremental linker requires the parts of the output load mod-
ule which are stripped out with the option.)

NOTE: Use of the option might impair or prevent the use of a symbolic debugger on the resulting program.

Indicate each file in which
symbol appears. You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is,
each symbol you specify must be preceded by the option.

Arrange for run-time dereferencing of null pointers to produce a
signal. (This is the complement of the option. is the default.)

This option is ignored and generates a warning message.

Select run-time binding behavior of a program using shared libraries or
the binding preference in building a shared library. The most common values for bind are:
Create direct link between symbol references and shared libraries by recording the name of the resolved shared
library during symbol resolution. This information is used during runtime to quickly resolve symbols without search-
ing through all currently loaded libraries.

will implicitly turn on symbolic binding (see and disable dependent shared library processing.

Direct binding can be disable during runtime by setting the environment variable.

Bind addresses on first reference
rather than at program start-up time. This is the default.

Mark the shared library so that it behaves as if loaded with
flag to This does not affect the dependent shared libraries.

Bind addresses of all symbols immediately upon loading the library.
Commonly followed by to allow procedure calls that cannot be resolved at program start-up to be resolved on
first reference.

Since suppresses messages about unresolved symbols, also specify to display those messages.

See the example below.

Only record direct bind information to shared libraries marked for
lazy loading. See

Mark the shared library so that an explicit unload using
or returns success silently without detaching the shared library from the process. Subsequently, the shared
library handle is valid only for It stays invalid for and until the next explicit load using or

Disallow direct binding.
Only a "direct hint" is recorded for references to libraries marked for lazy loading. This is the default
behavior.

If also using
for code symbols that could not be bound at program startup, defer binding them until they are referenced.
See description of above.

Since suppresses messages about unresolved symbols, also specify to display those messages.

Causes the search for a symbol definition to be restricted to
those symbols that were visible when the library was loaded.

Used only when building a shared library.
This option causes all references in a shared library to be resolved internally if possible. Such internally-
resolved symbols are still externally visible.

By default (without the option), references are either resolved to a symbol definition in the same compilation
unit or to the most visible definition. The first load module or shared library) that exports that symbol
contains the most visible definition. More than one load module can define and export the same symbol.

References to a symbol in a shared library can be resolved to a definition in another shared library even if
that symbol is defined in the shared library. You can use this option to enforce that all references in the
shared library use their own definitions, if defined in the shared library.

See the and options for more information about using with those options.

Display verbose messages when binding symbols.
This is the default except when is specified. In that case, must be explicitly specified to get verbose mes-
sages.

Use the option or see the manual for more information on the uses of binding modes.

This option is ignored and generates a warning message.

Set (in hexadecimal) the starting address of the data segment.
This option is useful with kernel and embedded applications. The default address for 64-bit mode is
0x6000000000000000 and the default address for 32-bit mode is 0x40008000.

Mark all symbols defined by a program for export
to shared libraries. In a mode link, marks only those symbols that are actually referenced by a shared library seen
at link time. In a link, all symbols are exported by default, so is not necessary to make symbols visible. However,
it has an additional side effect of identifying all exported symbols as necessary, so that they will not be removed
when using dead code elimination

Force load the archive library.
Equivalent to

This option is ignored and generates a warning.

This option is accepted and ignored.

Strip all unloadable data from the output file.
This option is typically used to strip debug information and is incompatible with the option.

NOTE: Use of the option might impair or prevent the use of a symbolic debugger on the resulting program.

Instrument the code to collect profile information upon execution.
When an instrumented program is executed, a profile database file is output (by default, named The profile data gath-
ered during program execution can be used in conjunction with the option. The default instrumenter is the dynamic
instrumenter but the option can be used to invoke the static instrumenter instead.

This option should not be used with the or options.

NOTE: If using the recommended method to instrument your programs is to use your compiler's option, rather than the
option. If you invoke the linker directly, you must pass the and options to the linker. If you have both an instru-
mented shared library and an instrumented shared executable that you want to link with that library, you must include
the and options in addition to the options. If using the default or no additional linker options are needed.

Search for or in dir before looking in default locations. You can specify more than one directory, but each must be preceded by
the option. The option is effective only if it precedes the option on the command line.

In 32-bit mode only, cause the data to be placed immediately following the
text, and make the text writable. Files of this type cannot be shared.

Turn on linker optimizations.
Currently the optimization includes the removal of dead procedures.

is passed to the linker by the compilers when the compiler option is selected.

This option is incompatible with the option.

For more details on linker optimizations use the option or see the manual.

Examine the profile database file produced by an instrumented program
(see the option) to perform profile based optimizations on the code. This option should not be used with the option.

Reorder debuggable functions.
This option is enable by default.

Reordering is based on link order file produced from by default. If you specify the option, the linker uses the
specified link order file, instead of for reordering.

This option is incompatible with

Save link order file generated by
during linking with option into user-specified file. This option is incompatible with the option.

Indicate to the linker to use the specified file for the link order file
instead of generating it using This option is incompatible with the option.

This option is ignored.

Set (in hexadecimal) the starting address of the text (i.e., code) segment.
This option is useful with kernel and embedded applications. The default address for 64-bit mode is
0x4000000000000000 and for 32-mode is 0x04000000. If the option is specified, the default is 0x1000.

This option is ignored and generates a warning message.

Same as option.

Output a message giving information about the version of
being used.

This is the default.
Allow run-time dereferencing of null pointers. See the discussions of and pointers in cc(1). (This is the comple-
ment of the option.)

Force storage allocation for hidden "common" symbols in
output. This is similar to the option, which allocates storage for all "common" symbols. If is specified in combi-
nation with the option, will take precedence.

Allows multiple symbol definitions.
By default, multiple symbol definitions that occur between relocatable objects will result in a fatal error condi-
tion. This option suppresses the error condition and allows the first symbol definition to be taken.

Control unsatisfied symbol error reporting.
does not flag errors if the resulting output file has unsatisfied symbols. This is the default for relocatable links
and shared library builds. flags an error if the resulting output file has unsatisfied symbols. This is the default
for program files.

Control the address space model to be used by the kernel.
Possible values for mode are and The default value is currently equivalent to In order to set the mode to any value
other than the default, this option must be used in conjunction with the option to ensure that the text and data seg-
ments are contiguous.

Specify a colon-separated list of directories
to be searched at program run-time to locate shared libraries needed by the executable output file that were speci-
fied with either the or options. This list of directories becomes the embedded path. If the option appears more
than once, the default is to record the last one specified. Use to change this default behavior.

If either is not used or if you specify a single colon as the argument, builds an embedded path using all the direc-
tories specified by the option(s) and the environment variable (see the option).

This option is ignored.

Turn on compatibility mode in the linker -- mimic
behavior of PA-RISC 32-bit links.

[Disable] Enable concatenation of search path specified
using

When you use the
linker option to override the effect of the compiler option, the linker omits the information from the object files
(in addition to copying over the debug information to the output file). However, if any object files were the result
of previous links, the information from these files is not omitted. The option, when used in conjunction with the
option, forces the linker to omit information from all object files, including objects generated with the option. is
the default.

is the default.
Include any paths that are specified with in the embedded path, unless you specify the option. If you use only the
path list specified by is in the embedded path.

The option removes all library paths that were specified with the option from the embedded path. The linker searches
the library paths specified by the option at link time. At run time, the only library paths searched are those spec-
ified by the environment variables and library paths specified by the linker option, and finally the default library
paths.

Used together with the
option, this option specifies that file should be used as the profile database file. The default value is See the
discussion of the environment variable for more information. This option is incompatible with the option.

Output information on procedures that were eliminated by procelim.
Equivalent to

Valid for executables and shared library links.
Instructs the linker to dump all external symbols into the file specified by filename. This dumps all external sym-
bols referred to within the load module or shared library) but not defined within the load module into the specified
file. You can pass this file back to your compiler using the option. For more information, see the compiler
options, and

When building a shared library or program,
mark the symbol for export to the dynamic loader. Only symbols explicitly marked are exported. When building a
shared library, calls to symbols that are not exported are resolved internally.

If you use the or option with references to the symbol specified are resolved internally if defined. The runtime
behavior may be different from using alone.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

This option is similar to the
option in that it exports a symbol. However, unlike the option, the option does not alter the visibility of any
other symbol in the file. When building a mode executable, by default exports only those symbols that are actually
referenced by a shared library seen at link time.

The option when specified with has the effect of exporting the specified symbol without hiding any of the symbols
exported by default.

In a mode link, all symbols are exported by default, so is not necessary to make a symbol visible. However, it has
the additional side effect of identifying the symbol as necessary, so that it will not be removed when using dead
code elimination The option still retains its export behavior if an option such as is also given.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

Instruct the linker to run the fastbind tool
on the executable it has produced. The executable should be linked with shared libraries. For more details about
fastbind(1), use the option, or see the manual. This option is incompatible with the option.

Pass the option to the fastbind tool. For more details about fastbind(1), use the option, or see the manual. This option is
incompatible with the option.

Enables the shared library filter mechanism, which allows you to
divide a large library into a "filter" and several "implementation" libraries for more efficient organization of
shared libraries. shared_library_path specifies the location of the filter library. See the for more information.

Specify the terminator function to be invoked in forward order, the order
the functions appear left to right on the command line.

You can specify more than one terminator function on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is,
each function you specify must be preceded by the option.

The default is The option loads all object files from archive libraries. loads only the required object files from archive
libraries. The selected mode, either explicitly or by default, remains in effect until you explicitly change it.

Enable the global symbol table hash mechanism,
used to look up values of symbol import/export entries. The and related options provide performance enhancements
through use of global symbol table which improves searching for exported symbols. See dld.so(5) and the for more
information.

This option is ignored.

Request a particular hash array size using the global symbol
table hash mechanism. The default value is 1103. The value can be overridden at runtime by setting the environment
variable to the value prime number. You can set the value using size file.

When building a shared library, record
internal_name as the name of the library. When the library is used to link another executable file (program or
shared library), this internal_name is recorded in the library list of the resulting output file instead of the path-
name of the input shared library. That is, if is not used, the shared library does not have an internal name and
when an executable is built with the shared library, the linker records the library name that it looks at.

If more than one option is seen on the link line, the linker uses the first one and emits a warning message.

Start the help browser utility
which comes with the HP-UX operating system. For more information, see to the manual. See manuals(5) for ordering
information.

Prevent all the symbols from being exported unless explicitly exported
with the This option marks all symbols as "local" in the symbol table. See also the and options.

Specify incremental linking.

If the output file does not exist, or if it was created without the option, the linker performs an initial incremen-
tal link. The output file produced is suitable for subsequent incremental links. The incremental link option is
valid for both executable and shared library links.

The following options are incompatible with the option. If you specify one of the following incompatible option with
the linker emits a warning message and ignores the option.

o The option: create a relocatable object file.

o Strip options: and strip the output file.

o Optimization options: file, name, and

The following options are compatible with the option with limitations:

o
Set the origin for the data and text segments. If you change the offset after the initial incremental link, the
linker performs an initial incremental link automatically.

o
Provide a non-default mapfile. The user specified mapfile specifications are permitted with the option. But you
should not modify the mapfile after the initial incremental link. If the mapfile is modified after the initial
link, an initial incremental link is performed automatically.

Suppress incremental-linking related warnings.
By default, the linker issues all incremental-linking related warnings. This option is ignored if used without or

Control the amount of padding
percentage the incremental linker allocates, relative to sizes of object file structures being padded. By default
the linker allocates less than 20% of padding space. This option is ignored if used without or

Perform an initial incremental link, regardless of the output load
module.

In certain situations (for example, internal padding space is exhausted) the incremental linker is forced to perform
an initial incremental link. The option allows you to avoid such unexpected initial incremental links by periodi-
cally rebuilding the output file.

Specify the initializer function to be invoked in reverse order, the
order the functions appear right to left on the command line.

You can specify more than one initializer function on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is,
each initializer function you specify must be preceded by the option.

Specify which instrumenter to use.
Only or are recognized. Default is

If is specified, the linker invokes automatically. If is specified, is automatically invoked by the dynamic loader
when the program is executed.

Change the path to use the program specified by filename for the "interpreter" program as the dynamic loader. This is useful
when using special versions of for debugging.

The default path for 32-bit programs is: and for 64-bit programs is:

Used only when building a shared library.
This will create a shared library that can be used for interposition. When resolving references for an application
with direct bind information (see the dynamic loader will search interposer libraries first. If the symbol cannot be
resolved to any interposing libraries, the direct binding information will be used.

Direct the linker to only create an executable if there were
no errors encountered during the link. If there were errors found (system errors or unresolved references), the out-
put file will be removed.

Enable [disable] lazy loading of shared libraries.
For libraries, loading is deferred until a reference is made to that library during execution. Both the and options
may appear on the link line at the same time. The mode that is specified, either explicitly or by default, remains
on for all subsequent libraries on the link line until the next occurrence of the one of these two options.

Libraries satisfying one or more of the following conditions are ineligible for lazy loading:

o is a filter library

o is accessed via a data reference from another module

o is accessed via an indirect function call

The linker will silently convert such libraries into libraries.

Dependent libraries of shared libraries will not be processed during link time, unless they are explicitly specified
on the link line.

Lazy loading can be disabled at runtime by setting the environment variable.

Sets a flag in the executable which causes the dynamic loader to merge
all data segments of shared libraries loaded at startup time into one block. Data segments for each dynamically
loaded library will also be merged with the data segments of dependent libraries. This increases run-time perfor-
mance by allowing the kernel to use larger size page table entries.

Enables the feature to use
for writing the output data. This is the default behavior. Linker enabled with is much faster.

Cause the linker to load all object modules before searching
any archive or shared libraries. The linker then searches the archive and shared libraries specified on the command
line in left to right order. It repeats the left to right search of the libraries on the command line until there
are no more unsatisfied symbols, or the last search added no new definitions. This option is useful if two libraries
are specified that have symbol dependencies on each other.

Pads the data segment with zeros, so that the data segment can be mapped
with a single call to at runtime. Normally, data segments require one call for file-backed storage and a second call
for blank static storage (bss). Use of this option increases your output file size.

Do not use the default memory map.
You must supply a mapfile through the linker option.

Disable the default linker behavior of the
option to create the .dynhash section for executables or shared libraries. Use this option to eliminate generation
of pre-computed hash table information for a library or an executable that is rarely used with the global symbol ta-
ble lookup scheme or for which the overhead of storing pre-computed hash values is too high. This option has no
effect when used with the option.

Instruct the dynamic loader to ignore the dynamic path searching environment
variables, and at runtime. By default, or if you specify the option, the dynamic loader looks at the environment
variables, that is, the environment variables are enabled. If you specify the option or the option, the option takes
effect and the dynamic loader ignores the variables (the environment variables are disabled). See the or options.

You can display the status of this option in an executable or shared library from the "shared library dynamic path
search" output of the command. See chatr(1) for more information. Generally, this option is used for secure pro-
grams.

Disables the feature and uses the normal buffering method to write into the output file. NOTE: Do not use unless in cases like
the system has very low memory and the linker fails because of this.

Override the compiler option, and copy all debug information to the executable file. When you use the compiler option with any of
the options, linker leaves the debug information in the object files instead of copying it over to the output file.
You can use the option at link time to force the linker to copy the debug information over to the output file and
negate the effect of the compiler option. See also

Do not remove symbol when using dead code elimination This option can be used for hidden symbols as well as exported symbols.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

With the option, allow procedures to be positioned independently. The default is to merge all procedures into a single sec-
tion.

This option is ignored.

The compiler option
is the default. causes the compiler to generate part of the debug information even when the compiler option is not
specified. The default option also causes part of the debug information to be always copied over to the executable
file, resulting in larger executables. enables the users to profile programs using tools like and even in the
absence of compilation.

The linker option can be used to override the default compiler option, and strip these debug information during link
time. can also be used with to fully enforce the mode (i.e., leaving the debug information in the object files).

When building a shared library with
causes the linker to exclude the specified symbol from symbol resolution.

You can specify more than one symbol on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is, each symbol you
specify must be preceded by the option.

symbol can also be a regular expression that matches multiple symbol names. Regular expressions are described in
regexp(5).

Ignore debug information from non-objdebug objects or
archives and proceed in mode. If you are debugging only files compiled with the option, can improve link time by
instructing the linker to bypass the processing of debug information from files compiled with

(Use only before the
option or the name of a shared library.) Cause the linker to add before the shared library name in the shared
library list and set the flag for the output module. At runtime, the dynamic loader determines the current directory
of the parent module (object module, shared library, or executable) and replaces for that directory name. For exam-
ple,

While the option is available, the recommended way to specify is in the embedded path with the option, for example,

For more details on use the option or see the manual.

Pads the data segment to a multiple of
pagesize with zeros. This can improve page allocation, thus reduce TLB misses by allowing the kernel to allocate
fewer, larger data pages. Use of this option increases your output file size.

Pads the text segment to a multiple of
pagesize with zeros. This can improve page allocation, thus reduce TLB misses by allowing the kernel to allocate
fewer, larger data pages. Use of this option increases your output file size.

Request a particular virtual memory page size that should be used for data.
Sizes of and are supported.

A size of allows the kernel to choose what page size should be used. A size of results in using the largest page
size available. The actual page size may vary if the requested size cannot be fulfilled.

This option is ignored.

With the option, specify that name should be used as the look-up name in the profile database file. The default is the base-
name of the output file (specified by the option.) This option is incompatible with the option.

Request a particular virtual memory page size that
should be used for instructions. See the option for additional information.

This option is ignored.

Specifies the size of the profiling sample counter buckets.
Valid values are 16 or 32. See gprof(1) for more details.

This option turns on the linkage table protection mode.
When this option is used, the linker aligns the linkage table within page boundaries so that no other data resides in
the same page. At runtime, the pages containing the linkage table are marked READ_ONLY.

This option turns on immediate binding. For more information about immediate binding, see binding under option

The options incompatible with this option are: and

This option is the default.
Indicate that at run-time, the dynamic loader can use the environment variables and to locate shared libraries needed
by the executable output file that allow dynamic library searching.

Shared libraries that allow dynamic library searching either contain an internal name without the slash character
(for example, the base name of the shared library pathname) or have no internal name and were specified with either
or or just the base name of the shared library pathname. The environment variables should be set to a colon-sepa-
rated list of directories.

In compatibility mode using the option, if both and are used, their relative order on the command line indicates
which path list is searched first (see the option). In standard mode (default mode or using the option), the order
of and does not affect the dynamic loader search order and the environment variables are always searched first.

This option will cause the paths specified in
(embedded path) to be used before the paths specified in or in searching for shared libraries. This changes the
default search order of and (embedded path).

This option is the default.
Turn on standard mode of the linker. This option is the complement of the option. Options set on with this option
are: Options set off or ignored when this option is specified are:

Do not output the unwind table.
This creates smaller executable sizes. Use this option if you do not need the unwind table for debugging or aC++
exception handling.

NOTE: Use of the option might impair or prevent the use of a symbolic debugger on the resulting program.

This option is ignored.

Enable [disable] printing a list of unsatisfied
symbols used by shared libraries. The default behavior in shared library build is and the default in executable
build is Some unsatisfied symbols reported by the linker are not required at run time because the modules which ref-
erence the symbols are not used.

Produces verbose output about the link operation.
type can have the following values:
Dumps all of the information from the options. Same as

Dump info about each object file loaded.

Dump info about the size of the heap used by a link.

Dump info about libraries searched.

Dump info about sections that have been eliminated by the
option

Dump info about each input section added to the output file.

Dump info about global symbols referenced/defined from/in the input files.

Specify how the environment for floating-point
operations should be initialized at program start-up. By default, modes are specified by the IEEE floating-point
standard: all traps disabled, gradual underflow, and rounding to nearest. The option supports the following modes
(upper case flag enables; lower case flag disables):

Enable sudden underflow (flush to zero) of denormalized values.

Trap on floating-point operations that produce inexact results.

Trap on Denormal|Unnormal operand floating-point operation.

Trap on floating-point overflow.

Trap on floating-point underflow.

Trap on invalid floating-point operations.

Trap on divide by zero.

Enable rounding upward (toward +Infinity).

Enable rounding downward (toward -Infinity).

Enable rounding toward zero (truncate, chop).

Enable rounding to nearest (the default).

More than one mode can be specified with a comma separated list. For example:
specifies sudden underflow, trapping on overflow and invalid, and rounding toward zero. The commas and the space
between and the modes may be omitted. Thus, is equivalent to

To dynamically change these settings at run-time, see fesettrapenable(3M), fesetflushtozero(3M), and fesetround(3M).

Specify the name of the initializer function when building a shared library.
A shared library may have multiple initializers specified. Initializers are executed in the order that they are
specified on the command line.

You can specify more than one initializer function on the command line with multiple option-symbol pairs, that is,
each initializer you specify must be preceded by the option.

This option is supported for compatibility. Use of the and options is recommended. For more details on the initial-
izer function, use the option or see the manual.

Enable [disable] dynamic optimization for this load module. The default
setting allows the run-time environment to enable or disable dynamic optimization. This is a unique setting that is
only used when neither option is specified.

This option is ignored.

Enable [disable] the elimination of procedures and data that are not
referenced by the application. The default is

Procedure and data elimination can occur at any optimization level, including level 0. The elimination occurs on a
per section basis; the section is removed only if all procedures/data in the section are unreferenced. For more
details use the option or see the manual. This option is incompatible with the option.

Note that compilers may pass to the linker for higher optimization levels; refer to compiler documentation for
detail.

This option is ignored and generates a warning message.

Instructs the interprocedural optimizer driver to pass the first
n percent of the object files to the high level optimizer for interprocedural optimizations such as inlining. This
option is designed to work at optimization level 4 in the presence of dynamic profiling.

This option is accepted and ignored.

This option is ignored and generates a warning message.

Defaults
Unless otherwise directed, names its output file The option overrides this. The default is to create a dynamically linked program unless
you specify the option. The default state of is to search shared libraries if available, archive libraries otherwise. The default bind
behavior is

The default value of the option is

The +objdebug Compiler Option
The compiler option, when used with any of the options, causes the debug information to be left in the object files instead of being placed
in output file. This results in shorter link times and smaller output files.

To debug the load modules compiled with option, the HP WDB debugger must have access to the object files. (Note that for object files
built with the option, the individual object files must be available to the debugger.) If you move the object files, use HP WDB's command
to specify the location of these objects.

The compiler option causes the debug information to be copied over to the output file. is the compile-time default.

If the linker detects any object files that were compiled with the option, it leaves the debug information in those files. Any object
files not compiled with have their debug information copied into the output file.

You can use the option at link time to continue to place the debug information into the output file, even if some objects were compiled
with

Incremental linking
In the edit-compile-link-debug development cycle, link time is a significant component. The incremental linker (available through the and
can reduce the link time by taking advantage of the fact that you can reuse most of the previous version of the program and that the
unchanged object files do not need to be processed. The incremental linker allows you to insert object code into an output file (exe-
cutable or shared library) that you created earlier, without relinking the unmodified object files. The time required to relink after the
initial incremental link depends on the number of modules you modify.

The linker performs the following different modes of linking:

o normal link: the default operation mode in which the linker links all modules.

o initial incremental link: the mode entered when you request an incremental link, but the output module created by the incremental linker
does not exist, or it exists but the incremental linker is unable to perform an incremental update.

o incremental link: the mode entered when you request an incremental link, an output module created by the incremental linker exists, and
the incremental linker does not require an initial incremental link.

Incremental links are usually much faster than regular links. On the initial link, the incremental linker requires about the same amount
of time that a normal link process requires, but subsequent incremental links can be much faster than a normal link.

A change in one object file in a moderate size link (tens of files, several megabytes total) normally is about 10 times faster than a regu-
lar link. The incremental linker perform as many incremental links as allocated padding space and other constrains permit. The cost of
the reduced link time is an increase in the size of the executable or shared library.

The incremental linker allocates padding space for all components of the output file. Padding makes modules larger than those modules
linked by As object files increase in size during successive incremental links, the incremental linker can exhaust the available padding.
If this occurs, it displays a warning message and does a complete initial incremental link of the module.

On the initial incremental link, the linker processes the input object files and libraries in the same way as the normal link. In addition
to the normal linking process, the incremental linker saves information about object files, global symbols, and relocations, and pads sec-
tions in the output file for expansion. On subsequent incremental links, the linker uses timestamps to determine which object files have
changed, and updates those modules.

Under certain conditions, the incremental linker cannot perform incremental links. When this occurs, the incremental linker automatically
performs an initial incremental link to restore the process. In the following situations, the linker automatically performs an initial
incremental link of the output file:

o Changed linker command line, where the linker command line does not match the command line stored in the output file. (With the excep-
tions of the verbose and tracing options)

o Any of the padding spaces have been exhausted.

o Modules have been modified by the or options or tools (for example, strip(1)).

o Incompatible incremental linker version, when you run a new version of the incremental linker on an executable created by an older ver-
sion.

o New working directory, where the incremental linker performs an initial incremental link if current directory changes.

o Archive or shared libraries are added/removed to/from the linker command line.

o Object files are removed from the linker command line.

Use the option or see the for more information.

The incremental linker searches an archive library if there are unsatisfied symbols. It extracts all archive members satisfying unsatis-
fied symbols and processes them as new object files. If an archive library is modified, the linker replaces the modified archive library.

An object file extracted from an archive library in the previous link remains in the output load module even if all references to symbols
defined in the object file have been removed. The linker removes these object files when it performs the next initial incremental link.

In an initial incremental link, the linker scans shared library symbol tables and resolves unsatisfied symbols the same way it would in a
regular link. In incremental links, the linker does not process shared libraries and their symbol tables at all and does not report shared
library unsatisfied symbols. The detection of unsatisfied symbols is left to the dynamic loader. If any of the shared libraries on the
command line was modified, the linker reverts to an initial incremental link.

Performance of the incremental linker may suffer greatly if you change a high percentage of object files.

The incremental linker may not link small programs much faster, and the relative increase in size of the executable is greater than that
for larger programs.

Do not use the incremental linker to create final production modules. Because it reserves additional padding space, modules created by the
incremental linker are considerably larger than those created in regular links.

Security Restrictions
On a system that supports fine-grained privileges, if a process gains any privileges from the binary's extended attributes, dynamic path
lookup is disabled. Similarly, on a system that supports compartments, if a process changes compartment due to the binary's extended
attributes, the dynamic path lookup is disabled.

See setfilexsec(1M) on how to set extended attributes on a binary. See privileges(5) and compartments(5) for more information on privi-
leges and compartments. Secure programs are programs that are commonly run by privileged users, such as or programs that run with elevated
privileges due to or protection. Yous should take special precautions when linking secure programs that use shared libraries. The default
linker behavior may be sufficient for secure PA-RISC 32-bit applications, but not for PA-RISC 64-bit or Integrity system applications.

Secure programs should be linked with the option to disable the use of and for locating shared library dependencies. Secure programs
should also link with to prevent the automatic construction of an embedded search path based on search directories specified with options.
Most directories searched at link time don't need to be searched at run time, and if these directories are specified as relative paths,
they expose the program to the same security risks as the use of and

Programs built with are linked as if and were specified. However, additional PA-RISC 32-bit compatibility features are also enabled by

Normal programs that depend on libraries that only exist in a directory specified in or must not be linked with and if is used, must also
be used to enable searching and Programs that depend on or cannot be protected as or programs.

uses the dynamic path lookup (with and only if the following conditions are satisfied:

That is, if the or does not match its effective counterpart, does not check the directories specified in and which causes the runtime error
"".

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES
Environment Variables
Arguments can be passed to the linker through the environment variable as well as on the command line. The linker gets the value of and
places its contents before any arguments on the command line.

Specifies default directories
to search for library files. See the option.

Specifies, at runtime, directories
to search for library files. See the option and the option for the for more information.

The following internationalization variables affect the execution of
Determines the locale category for native language, local customs and coded character set in the absence of and other environment vari-
ables. If is not specified or is set to the empty string, a default of (see lang(5)) is used instead of

Determines the values for all locale categories and has precedence over
and other environment variables.

Determines the locale that should be used to affect the format
and contents of diagnostic messages written to standard error.

Determines the locale category for numeric formatting.

Determines the locale category for character handling functions.

Determines the location of message catalogs for the processing
of

If any internationalization variable contains an invalid setting, behaves as if all internationalization variables are set to See envi-
ron(5).

In addition, the following environment variable affects
Specifies a directory for temporary files (see tmpnam(3S)).

Specifies the pathname of the browser to display the
when you use the option.

RETURN VALUES
returns the following values:

Successful completion.
The link is successful.
Failure.
An error has occurred.

EXAMPLES
Link part of a C program for later processing by (Note the suffix for the output object file; this is an HP-UX convention for indicating a
linkable object file):

Link a shared bound program in standard mode. Note that is not specified because for shared links, it is no longer necessary.

Link a simple Fortran program to use with a symbolic debugger (see wdb(1)). Because the option is not specified on the command line, the
output file name is

Create a shared library:

Create a shared library with an internal name, and this shared library allows dynamic library searching:

If you do not use the shared library does not have an internal name. The linker does not check whether is a symbolic link. It records the
library name that it looks at, if it does not have the internal name.

Add before the shared library name in the shared library list.

WARNINGS
recognizes several names as having special meanings. The symbol is reserved by the linker to refer to the first address beyond the end of
the program's address space. Similarly, the symbol refers to the first address beyond the initialized data, and the symbol refers to the
first address beyond the program text. The symbols and are also defined by the linker, but only if the program contains a reference to
these symbols and does not define them (see end(3C) for details).

The linker treats a user definition of any of the symbols listed here as an error.

Through its options, the linker gives users great flexibility. However, those who invoke the linker directly must assume some added
responsibilities.

There is no guarantee that the linker will pick up files from archive libraries and include them in the final program in the same relative
order that they occur within the library.

The linker emits warnings wherever it detects any compatibility issues. Among other things, these issues include architectural ones, as
well as functionality that may change over time. Some of these include:

o Checking of unsatisfied symbols by the linker, which sometimes skips certain object files from an archived library. This warning
is only given if the option is also provided.

As noted in the section, this release of the linker no longer supports certain options.

The linker accepts the following options and issues a warning message.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

The following options are supported for compatibility. They are accepted and ignored:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

AUTHOR
was developed by AT&T, the University of California, Berkeley, and HP.

FILES
32-bit system archive and shared libraries

64-bit system archive and shared libraries

output file

32-bit dynamic loader

64-bit dynamic loader

32-bit run-time startup file

64-bit run-time startup file

32-bit millicode library automatically searched by

64-bit millicode library automatically searched by

64-bit millicode library automatically searched by ld for embedded systems

message catalog

temporary files

file containing profile data generated by running an
instrumented executable

program for creating the procedure link order from
a profile database file created by an instrumented executable; forked by the option

static instrumenter to instrument an executable or a shared library.
It is invoked if you use the option.

SEE ALSO
Profiling and Debugging Tools
adb(1) absolute debugger
gprof(1) display call graph profile data
prof(1) display profile data
wdb(1) C, C++, Fortran symbolic debugger

System Tools
aCC(1) invoke the HP-UX aC++ compiler
ar(1) create archived libraries
cc(1) invoke the HP-UX C compiler
chatr(1) change program's internal attributes
elfdump(1) dump information contained in an object file
exec(2) execute a file
f90(1) invoke the HP-UX Fortran 90 compiler
fastbind(1) invoke the fastbind tool
lorder(1) find ordering relation for an object library
nm(1) print name list of object file
size(1) print section sizes of object files
strip(1) strip symbol and line number information from an object file

Miscellaneous
a.out(4) assembler, compiler, and linker output
ar(4) archive format
setfilexsec(1M)
crt0(3) execution startup routine
compartments(5)
privileges(5)
dld.so(5) dynamic loader
end(3C) symbol of the last locations in program
uld.so(5) microloader

Texts and Tutorials
(Use the option)
(See manuals(5) for ordering information)

STANDARDS CONFORMANCE
Integrity Systems Only ld_ia(1)

hpux man page for ld_ia