Toolchains, Compilers And Makefiles - Revision history

CRNKEE002: /* Make Files */

2020-07-24T11:22:08Z

Make Files

CRNKEE002: /* Make Files */

2020-07-24T11:21:47Z

Make Files

CRNKEE002: /* Debugging */

2020-07-24T11:09:16Z

Debugging

CRNKEE002: /* Toolchains */

2020-07-24T11:07:21Z

Toolchains

CRNKEE002 at 10:02, 6 February 2020

2020-02-06T10:02:36Z

CRNKEE002: Created page with "== Toolchains == A toolchain is a collection of tools that, in this context enables you to write code for an embedded system. For C-based development, a toolchain may consist..."

2020-02-06T08:25:58Z

Created page with "== Toolchains == A toolchain is a collection of tools that, in this context enables you to write code for an embedded system. For C-based development, a toolchain may consist..."

New page

== Toolchains ==

A toolchain is a collection of tools that, in this context enables you to write code for an embedded system. For C-based development, a toolchain may consist of the following:

;A text editor or IDE
:This is used to write the code that you plan to run on your embedded system.
;Make
:An automation tool for compiling, linking, and executing files. More on this later.
;Compiler
:Turns the C code you’ve written into assembly
;Assembler
:Turns assembly code into binary object files
;Linker
:A linker takes one or more object files and converts them into an executable which can run on the target system.

Usually the compiler, assembler and linker are all integrated into one single command which can be run. The most common of these is GCC (GNU Compiler Compiler Collection).

== Compilation ==
If you are on a Linux based system and you wish to compile something, you can run:

<pre>$ g++ <file>.c -o <compiled_file_name></pre>
== Make Files ==

https://www.gnu.org/software/make/manual/make.html<br />
Make files are a way of simplifying the compilation and build process.

Here’s a simplified generic makefile:

<pre class="numberLines">.RECIPEPREFIX += # Tells make that we are using spaces instead of tabs
CC = g++ # CC sets the compiler we’re using
CFLAGS = -lm -lrt # Set compiler flags

PROG = bin/* # Directory containing binaries to run
OBJS = obj/* # Directory containing object files

default: # Define the default rule, called when simply running "make" in terminal
$(CC) $(INCLUDE) $(CFLAGS) -c src/Prac2.c -o obj/Prac2.o # Compile object files
$(CC) $(INCLUDE) $(CFLAGS) -c Tools/Timer.cpp -o obj/Timer.o # Compile library files
$(CC) -o bin/Prac2 obj/Prac2.o obj/Timer.o $(CFLAGS) # Link object files into binary

run: # Define a new rule to be called when running "make run" in terminal
bin/Prac2 # Run the Prac 2 binary

clean: # Define a new rule to be called when running "make clean" in terminal
rm -rf $(PROG) $(OBJS) # Remove the compiled binaries and object files </pre>

== Cross Compilation ==
When working with large programs for a system, or when writing programs for an embedded system, it may be useful to use a more powerful system such as a desktop machine to compile the program. This can save you time and effort.

=== JetBrains CLion ===

Thankfully, cross-compilation is a common task and companies know this, so they develop tools to make our lives easier (and make themselves money). In the interest of your education (and the hopes that you spend money on their tools at a later stage), they make these tools accessible to you. For instructions on how to install, configure and use CLion, see [[CLion]].

@@ Line 29: / Line 29: @@
 Make files are a way of simplifying the compilation and build process.
-Here’s a simplified generic makefile:
+Here’s a simple example makefile:
 <syntaxhighlight lang="make" line='line'>.RECIPEPREFIX += # Tells make that we are using spaces instead of tabs

@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 == Debugging ==
-Debugging is a very important aspect of development. For information on GDB, see [[http://wiki.ee.uct.ac.za/GNU_Project_Debugger]].
+Debugging is a very important aspect of development. For information on GDB, see [[GNU_Project_Debugger]].
 == Compilation ==

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:02, 6 February 2020
Line 1:		Line 1:
		+	[[Category:Software]]
	== Toolchains ==		== Toolchains ==

@@ Line 31: / Line 31: @@
 Here’s a simplified generic makefile:
-<pre class="numberLines">.RECIPEPREFIX += # Tells make that we are using spaces instead of tabs
+<syntaxhighlight lang="make" line='line'>.RECIPEPREFIX += # Tells make that we are using spaces instead of tabs
-CC = g++  # CC sets the compiler we’re using
+CC = g++          # CC sets the compiler we’re using
 CFLAGS = -lm -lrt # Set compiler flags
@@ Line 38: / Line 38: @@
 OBJS = obj/* # Directory containing object files
 # Define the default rule, called when simply running "make" in terminal
-default:  # Define the default rule, called when simply running "make" in terminal
+default:
-     $(CC) $(INCLUDE) $(CFLAGS) -c src/Prac2.c -o obj/Prac2.o # Compile object files
+     $(CC) $(INCLUDE) $(CFLAGS) -c src/Prac2.c -o obj/Prac2.o     # Compile object files
      $(CC) $(INCLUDE) $(CFLAGS) -c Tools/Timer.cpp -o obj/Timer.o # Compile library files
-     $(CC) -o bin/Prac2 obj/Prac2.o obj/Timer.o $(CFLAGS) # Link object files into binary
+     $(CC) -o bin/Prac2 obj/Prac2.o obj/Timer.o $(CFLAGS)         # Link object files into binary
-run: # Define a new rule to be called when running "make run" in terminal
+# Define a new rule to be called when running "make run" in terminal
      bin/Prac2 # Run the Prac 2 binary
-clean: # Define a new rule to be called when running "make clean" in terminal
+# Define a new rule to be called when running "make clean" in terminal
-     rm -rf $(PROG) $(OBJS) # Remove the compiled binaries and object files </pre>
+clean:
 == Cross Compilation ==

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 :A linker takes one or more object files and converts them into an executable which can run on the target system.
-Usually the compiler, assembler and linker are all integrated into one single command which can be run. The most common of these is GCC (GNU Compiler Compiler Collection).
+Usually the compiler, assembler and linker are all integrated into one single command which can be run. The most common of these is GCC (GNU Compiler Collection).
 == Compilation ==