FW: How does GCC implement dynamic binding?

[Michael Eager]

Lacefield, Greg (CNS COE) wrote:

> We are using GCC 3.3.1 and have a requirement imposed upon us by our
> customer to "...establish that the C++ compiler implements dynamic
> binding by utilizing static lookup tables..."

The short answer is "yes, GCC uses static lookup tables for dynamic
binding".  But don't take that as anything more than an educated
opinion, and certainly not certification.

> Given all this, I posed this question to the gcc mailing list and
> received a reply that directed me to the C++ ABI
> (http://codesourcery.com/cxx-abi/), which is more detailed and has the
> information I'm looking for.  However, I need to confirm, in the case of
> an FAA audit, that GCC 3.3.1 implements dynamic binding in this fashion.
> Can anyone on the steering committee "officially" confirm that GCC uses
> static v-tables as described in the ABI?

You should read the GPL license (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html)
under which GCC is distributed.  In particular see Paragraph 11, under
the large heading "NO WARRANTY".

I question whether you will find anyone who would be willing to affirm
that GCC has any specific behavior if such a certification were intended
to provide a guarantee or warranty, or if there was any expectation
that there was any assumption of liability for GCC's failure to
perform as indicated.

-- 
Michael Eager	 eager@eagercon.com
1960 Park Blvd., Palo Alto, CA 94306  650-325-8077