About This Guide

This guide describes the use of GNAT, a compiler and software development toolset for the full Ada 95 programming language. It describes the features of the compiler and tools, and details how to use them to build Ada 95 applications.

What This Guide Contains
What You Should Know Before Reading This Guide
Related Information
Conventions

What This Guide Contains

This guide contains the following chapters:

• 1. Getting Started With GNAT, describes how to get started compiling and running Ada programs with the GNAT Ada programming environment.
• 2. The GNAT Compilation Model, describes the compilation model used by GNAT.
• 3. Compiling Using gnatgcc, describes how to compile Ada programs with gnatgcc, the Ada compiler.
• 4. Binding Using gnatbind, describes how to perform binding of Ada programs with gnatbind, the GNAT binding utility.
• 5. Linking Using gnatlink, describes gnatlink, a program that provides for linking using the GNAT run-time library to construct a program. gnatlink can also incorporate foreign language object units into the executable.
• 6. The GNAT Make Program gnatmake, describes gnatmake, a utility that automatically determines the set of sources needed by an Ada compilation unit, and executes the necessary compilations binding and link.
• 7. Renaming Files Using gnatchop, describes gnatchop, a utility that allows you to preprocess a file that contains Ada source code, and split it into one or more new files, one for each compilation unit.
• 10. The cross-referencing tools gnatxref and gnatfind, discusses gnatxref and gnatfind, two tools that provide an easy way to navigate through sources.
• 11. File Name Krunching Using gnatkr, describes the gnatkr file name krunching utility, used to handle shortened file names on operating systems with a limit on the length of names.
• 12. Preprocessing Using gnatprep, describes gnatprep, a preprocessor utility that allows a single source file to be used to generate multiple or parameterized source files, by means of macro substitution.
• 13. The GNAT library browser gnatls, describes gnatls, a utility that displays information about compiled units, including dependences on the corresponding sources files, and consistency of compilations.
• 14. Rebuilding the GNAT Library, describe the process of rebuilding the GNAT library.

• 15. Finding memory problems with gnatmem, describes gnatmem, a utility that monitors dynamic allocation and deallocation activity in a program, and displays information about incorrect deallocations and sources of possible memory leaks.
• 16. ASIS-Based Tools, gives the general idea about the tools built on top of the ASIS implementation for GNAT.
• 17. Creating Sample Bodies Using gnatstub, discusses gnatstub, a utility that generates empty, but compilable bodies for library units.
• 18. Minimizing Executables for Ada Programs Using gnatelim, discusses gnatelim, a tool which detects unused subprograms and produces information that helps the compiler to create a smaller executable for a program.
• 19. Other Utility Programs, discusses several other GNAT utilities, including gnatpsta and gnatpsys.
• 20. Running and Debugging Ada Programs, describes how to run and debug Ada programs.

• 2.11 Building mixed Ada & C++ programs, gives hints on how to interface with c++.

• 21. Performance Considerations, reviews the trade offs between using defaults or options in program development.

What You Should Know Before Reading This Guide

This user's guide assumes that you are familiar with Ada 95 language, as described in the International Standard ANSI/ISO/IEC-8652:1995, Jan 1995.

Related Information

For further information about related tools, refer to the following documents:

• GNAT Reference Manual, which contains all reference material for the GNAT implementation of Ada 95.

• Ada 95 Language Reference Manual, which contains all reference material for the Ada 95 programming language.

• Debugging with GDB contains all details on the use of the GNU source-level debugger.

• GNU Emacs Manual contains full information on the extensible editor and programming environment Emacs.

Conventions

Following are examples of the typographical and graphic conventions used in this guide:

• Functions, utility program names, standard names, and classes.

• `Option flags'

• `File Names', `button names', and `field names'.

• Variables.

• Emphasis.

• [optional information or parameters]

• Examples are described by text

  and then shown this way.

Commands that are entered by the user are preceded in this manual by the characters "$ " (dollar sign followed by space). If your system uses this sequence as a prompt, then the commands will appear exactly as you see them in the manual. If your system uses some other prompt, then the command will appear with the $ replaced by whatever prompt character you are using.