| Using the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC): Common Variable Attributes |
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The following attributes are supported on most targets.
aligned (alignment)
This attribute specifies a minimum alignment for the variable or structure field, measured in bytes. For example, the declaration:
int x __attribute__ ((aligned (16))) = 0;
causes the compiler to allocate the global variable x on a
16-byte boundary. On a 68040, this could be used in conjunction with
an asm expression to access the move16 instruction which
requires 16-byte aligned operands.
You can also specify the alignment of structure fields. For example, to
create a double-word aligned int pair, you could write:
struct foo { int x[2] __attribute__ ((aligned (8))); };
This is an alternative to creating a union with a double member,
which forces the union to be double-word aligned.
As in the preceding examples, you can explicitly specify the alignment (in bytes) that you wish the compiler to use for a given variable or structure field. Alternatively, you can leave out the alignment factor and just ask the compiler to align a variable or field to the default alignment for the target architecture you are compiling for. The default alignment is sufficient for all scalar types, but may not be enough for all vector types on a target that supports vector operations. The default alignment is fixed for a particular target ABI.
GCC also provides a target specific macro __BIGGEST_ALIGNMENT__,
which is the largest alignment ever used for any data type on the
target machine you are compiling for. For example, you could write:
short array[3] __attribute__ ((aligned (__BIGGEST_ALIGNMENT__)));
The compiler automatically sets the alignment for the declared
variable or field to __BIGGEST_ALIGNMENT__. Doing this can
often make copy operations more efficient, because the compiler can
use whatever instructions copy the biggest chunks of memory when
performing copies to or from the variables or fields that you have
aligned this way. Note that the value of __BIGGEST_ALIGNMENT__
may change depending on command-line options.
When used on a struct, or struct member, the aligned attribute can
only increase the alignment; in order to decrease it, the packed
attribute must be specified as well. When used as part of a typedef, the
aligned attribute can both increase and decrease alignment, and
specifying the packed attribute generates a warning.
Note that the effectiveness of aligned attributes may be limited
by inherent limitations in your linker. On many systems, the linker is
only able to arrange for variables to be aligned up to a certain maximum
alignment. (For some linkers, the maximum supported alignment may
be very very small.) If your linker is only able to align variables
up to a maximum of 8-byte alignment, then specifying aligned(16)
in an __attribute__ still only provides you with 8-byte
alignment. See your linker documentation for further information.
The aligned attribute can also be used for functions
(see Common Function Attributes.)
cleanup (cleanup_function)
The cleanup attribute runs a function when the variable goes
out of scope. This attribute can only be applied to auto function
scope variables; it may not be applied to parameters or variables
with static storage duration. The function must take one parameter,
a pointer to a type compatible with the variable. The return value
of the function (if any) is ignored.
If -fexceptions is enabled, then cleanup_function
is run during the stack unwinding that happens during the
processing of the exception. Note that the cleanup attribute
does not allow the exception to be caught, only to perform an action.
It is undefined what happens if cleanup_function does not
return normally.
common
nocommon
The common attribute requests GCC to place a variable in
“common” storage. The nocommon attribute requests the
opposite—to allocate space for it directly.
These attributes override the default chosen by the -fno-common and -fcommon flags respectively.
deprecated
deprecated (msg)
The deprecated attribute results in a warning if the variable
is used anywhere in the source file. This is useful when identifying
variables that are expected to be removed in a future version of a
program. The warning also includes the location of the declaration
of the deprecated variable, to enable users to easily find further
information about why the variable is deprecated, or what they should
do instead. Note that the warning only occurs for uses:
extern int old_var __attribute__ ((deprecated));
extern int old_var;
int new_fn () { return old_var; }
results in a warning on line 3 but not line 2. The optional msg argument, which must be a string, is printed in the warning if present.
The deprecated attribute can also be used for functions and
types (see Common Function Attributes,
see Common Type Attributes).
mode (mode)
This attribute specifies the data type for the declaration—whichever type corresponds to the mode mode. This in effect lets you request an integer or floating-point type according to its width.
See Machine Modes in GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) Internals,
for a list of the possible keywords for mode.
You may also specify a mode of byte or __byte__ to
indicate the mode corresponding to a one-byte integer, word or
__word__ for the mode of a one-word integer, and pointer
or __pointer__ for the mode used to represent pointers.
packed
The packed attribute specifies that a variable or structure field
should have the smallest possible alignment—one byte for a variable,
and one bit for a field, unless you specify a larger value with the
aligned attribute.
Here is a structure in which the field x is packed, so that it
immediately follows a:
struct foo
{
char a;
int x[2] __attribute__ ((packed));
};
Note: The 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 series of GCC ignore the
packed attribute on bit-fields of type char. This has
been fixed in GCC 4.4 but the change can lead to differences in the
structure layout. See the documentation of
-Wpacked-bitfield-compat for more information.
section ("section-name")
Normally, the compiler places the objects it generates in sections like
data and bss. Sometimes, however, you need additional sections,
or you need certain particular variables to appear in special sections,
for example to map to special hardware. The section
attribute specifies that a variable (or function) lives in a particular
section. For example, this small program uses several specific section names:
struct duart a __attribute__ ((section ("DUART_A"))) = { 0 };
struct duart b __attribute__ ((section ("DUART_B"))) = { 0 };
char stack[10000] __attribute__ ((section ("STACK"))) = { 0 };
int init_data __attribute__ ((section ("INITDATA")));
main()
{
/* Initialize stack pointer */
init_sp (stack + sizeof (stack));
/* Initialize initialized data */
memcpy (&init_data, &data, &edata - &data);
/* Turn on the serial ports */
init_duart (&a);
init_duart (&b);
}
Use the section attribute with
global variables and not local variables,
as shown in the example.
You may use the section attribute with initialized or
uninitialized global variables but the linker requires
each object be defined once, with the exception that uninitialized
variables tentatively go in the common (or bss) section
and can be multiply “defined”. Using the section attribute
changes what section the variable goes into and may cause the
linker to issue an error if an uninitialized variable has multiple
definitions. You can force a variable to be initialized with the
-fno-common flag or the nocommon attribute.
Some file formats do not support arbitrary sections so the section
attribute is not available on all platforms.
If you need to map the entire contents of a module to a particular
section, consider using the facilities of the linker instead.
tls_model ("tls_model")
The tls_model attribute sets thread-local storage model
(see Thread-Local) of a particular __thread variable,
overriding -ftls-model= command-line switch on a per-variable
basis.
The tls_model argument should be one of global-dynamic,
local-dynamic, initial-exec or local-exec.
Not all targets support this attribute.
unused
This attribute, attached to a variable, means that the variable is meant to be possibly unused. GCC does not produce a warning for this variable.
used
This attribute, attached to a variable with static storage, means that the variable must be emitted even if it appears that the variable is not referenced.
When applied to a static data member of a C++ class template, the attribute also means that the member is instantiated if the class itself is instantiated.
vector_size (bytes)
This attribute specifies the vector size for the variable, measured in bytes. For example, the declaration:
int foo __attribute__ ((vector_size (16)));
causes the compiler to set the mode for foo, to be 16 bytes,
divided into int sized units. Assuming a 32-bit int (a vector of
4 units of 4 bytes), the corresponding mode of foo is V4SI.
This attribute is only applicable to integral and float scalars, although arrays, pointers, and function return values are allowed in conjunction with this construct.
Aggregates with this attribute are invalid, even if they are of the same size as a corresponding scalar. For example, the declaration:
struct S { int a; };
struct S __attribute__ ((vector_size (16))) foo;
is invalid even if the size of the structure is the same as the size of
the int.
visibility ("visibility_type")
This attribute affects the linkage of the declaration to which it is attached.
The visibility attribute is described in
Common Function Attributes.
weak
The weak attribute is described in
Common Function Attributes.
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