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      1 This is gprof.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.8 from gprof.texi.
      2 
      3 INFO-DIR-SECTION Software development
      4 START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
      5 * gprof: (gprof).                Profiling your program's execution
      6 END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
      7 
      8    This file documents the gprof profiler of the GNU system.
      9 
     10    Copyright (C) 1988, 1992, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007,
     11 2008, 2009 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
     12 
     13    Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
     14 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
     15 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
     16 Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover
     17 Texts.  A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU
     18 Free Documentation License".
     19 
     20 
     21 File: gprof.info,  Node: Top,  Next: Introduction,  Up: (dir)
     22 
     23 Profiling a Program: Where Does It Spend Its Time?
     24 **************************************************
     25 
     26 This manual describes the GNU profiler, `gprof', and how you can use it
     27 to determine which parts of a program are taking most of the execution
     28 time.  We assume that you know how to write, compile, and execute
     29 programs.  GNU `gprof' was written by Jay Fenlason.
     30 
     31    This manual is for `gprof' (GNU Binutils) version 2.21.90.
     32 
     33    This document is distributed under the terms of the GNU Free
     34 Documentation License version 1.3.  A copy of the license is included
     35 in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
     36 
     37 * Menu:
     38 
     39 * Introduction::        What profiling means, and why it is useful.
     40 
     41 * Compiling::           How to compile your program for profiling.
     42 * Executing::           Executing your program to generate profile data
     43 * Invoking::            How to run `gprof', and its options
     44 
     45 * Output::              Interpreting `gprof''s output
     46 
     47 * Inaccuracy::          Potential problems you should be aware of
     48 * How do I?::           Answers to common questions
     49 * Incompatibilities::   (between GNU `gprof' and Unix `gprof'.)
     50 * Details::             Details of how profiling is done
     51 * GNU Free Documentation License::  GNU Free Documentation License
     52 
     53 
     54 File: gprof.info,  Node: Introduction,  Next: Compiling,  Prev: Top,  Up: Top
     55 
     56 1 Introduction to Profiling
     57 ***************************
     58 
     59 Profiling allows you to learn where your program spent its time and
     60 which functions called which other functions while it was executing.
     61 This information can show you which pieces of your program are slower
     62 than you expected, and might be candidates for rewriting to make your
     63 program execute faster.  It can also tell you which functions are being
     64 called more or less often than you expected.  This may help you spot
     65 bugs that had otherwise been unnoticed.
     66 
     67    Since the profiler uses information collected during the actual
     68 execution of your program, it can be used on programs that are too
     69 large or too complex to analyze by reading the source.  However, how
     70 your program is run will affect the information that shows up in the
     71 profile data.  If you don't use some feature of your program while it
     72 is being profiled, no profile information will be generated for that
     73 feature.
     74 
     75    Profiling has several steps:
     76 
     77    * You must compile and link your program with profiling enabled.
     78      *Note Compiling a Program for Profiling: Compiling.
     79 
     80    * You must execute your program to generate a profile data file.
     81      *Note Executing the Program: Executing.
     82 
     83    * You must run `gprof' to analyze the profile data.  *Note `gprof'
     84      Command Summary: Invoking.
     85 
     86    The next three chapters explain these steps in greater detail.
     87 
     88    Several forms of output are available from the analysis.
     89 
     90    The "flat profile" shows how much time your program spent in each
     91 function, and how many times that function was called.  If you simply
     92 want to know which functions burn most of the cycles, it is stated
     93 concisely here.  *Note The Flat Profile: Flat Profile.
     94 
     95    The "call graph" shows, for each function, which functions called
     96 it, which other functions it called, and how many times.  There is also
     97 an estimate of how much time was spent in the subroutines of each
     98 function.  This can suggest places where you might try to eliminate
     99 function calls that use a lot of time.  *Note The Call Graph: Call
    100 Graph.
    101 
    102    The "annotated source" listing is a copy of the program's source
    103 code, labeled with the number of times each line of the program was
    104 executed.  *Note The Annotated Source Listing: Annotated Source.
    105 
    106    To better understand how profiling works, you may wish to read a
    107 description of its implementation.  *Note Implementation of Profiling:
    108 Implementation.
    109 
    110 
    111 File: gprof.info,  Node: Compiling,  Next: Executing,  Prev: Introduction,  Up: Top
    112 
    113 2 Compiling a Program for Profiling
    114 ***********************************
    115 
    116 The first step in generating profile information for your program is to
    117 compile and link it with profiling enabled.
    118 
    119    To compile a source file for profiling, specify the `-pg' option when
    120 you run the compiler.  (This is in addition to the options you normally
    121 use.)
    122 
    123    To link the program for profiling, if you use a compiler such as `cc'
    124 to do the linking, simply specify `-pg' in addition to your usual
    125 options.  The same option, `-pg', alters either compilation or linking
    126 to do what is necessary for profiling.  Here are examples:
    127 
    128      cc -g -c myprog.c utils.c -pg
    129      cc -o myprog myprog.o utils.o -pg
    130 
    131    The `-pg' option also works with a command that both compiles and
    132 links:
    133 
    134      cc -o myprog myprog.c utils.c -g -pg
    135 
    136    Note: The `-pg' option must be part of your compilation options as
    137 well as your link options.  If it is not then no call-graph data will
    138 be gathered and when you run `gprof' you will get an error message like
    139 this:
    140 
    141      gprof: gmon.out file is missing call-graph data
    142 
    143    If you add the `-Q' switch to suppress the printing of the call
    144 graph data you will still be able to see the time samples:
    145 
    146      Flat profile:
    147 
    148      Each sample counts as 0.01 seconds.
    149        %   cumulative   self              self     total
    150       time   seconds   seconds    calls  Ts/call  Ts/call  name
    151       44.12      0.07     0.07                             zazLoop
    152       35.29      0.14     0.06                             main
    153       20.59      0.17     0.04                             bazMillion
    154 
    155    If you run the linker `ld' directly instead of through a compiler
    156 such as `cc', you may have to specify a profiling startup file
    157 `gcrt0.o' as the first input file instead of the usual startup file
    158 `crt0.o'.  In addition, you would probably want to specify the
    159 profiling C library, `libc_p.a', by writing `-lc_p' instead of the
    160 usual `-lc'.  This is not absolutely necessary, but doing this gives
    161 you number-of-calls information for standard library functions such as
    162 `read' and `open'.  For example:
    163 
    164      ld -o myprog /lib/gcrt0.o myprog.o utils.o -lc_p
    165 
    166    If you are running the program on a system which supports shared
    167 libraries you may run into problems with the profiling support code in
    168 a shared library being called before that library has been fully
    169 initialised.  This is usually detected by the program encountering a
    170 segmentation fault as soon as it is run.  The solution is to link
    171 against a static version of the library containing the profiling
    172 support code, which for `gcc' users can be done via the `-static' or
    173 `-static-libgcc' command line option.  For example:
    174 
    175      gcc -g -pg -static-libgcc myprog.c utils.c -o myprog
    176 
    177    If you compile only some of the modules of the program with `-pg',
    178 you can still profile the program, but you won't get complete
    179 information about the modules that were compiled without `-pg'.  The
    180 only information you get for the functions in those modules is the
    181 total time spent in them; there is no record of how many times they
    182 were called, or from where.  This will not affect the flat profile
    183 (except that the `calls' field for the functions will be blank), but
    184 will greatly reduce the usefulness of the call graph.
    185 
    186    If you wish to perform line-by-line profiling you should use the
    187 `gcov' tool instead of `gprof'.  See that tool's manual or info pages
    188 for more details of how to do this.
    189 
    190    Note, older versions of `gcc' produce line-by-line profiling
    191 information that works with `gprof' rather than `gcov' so there is
    192 still support for displaying this kind of information in `gprof'. *Note
    193 Line-by-line Profiling: Line-by-line.
    194 
    195    It also worth noting that `gcc' implements a
    196 `-finstrument-functions' command line option which will insert calls to
    197 special user supplied instrumentation routines at the entry and exit of
    198 every function in their program.  This can be used to implement an
    199 alternative profiling scheme.
    200 
    201 
    202 File: gprof.info,  Node: Executing,  Next: Invoking,  Prev: Compiling,  Up: Top
    203 
    204 3 Executing the Program
    205 ***********************
    206 
    207 Once the program is compiled for profiling, you must run it in order to
    208 generate the information that `gprof' needs.  Simply run the program as
    209 usual, using the normal arguments, file names, etc.  The program should
    210 run normally, producing the same output as usual.  It will, however, run
    211 somewhat slower than normal because of the time spent collecting and
    212 writing the profile data.
    213 
    214    The way you run the program--the arguments and input that you give
    215 it--may have a dramatic effect on what the profile information shows.
    216 The profile data will describe the parts of the program that were
    217 activated for the particular input you use.  For example, if the first
    218 command you give to your program is to quit, the profile data will show
    219 the time used in initialization and in cleanup, but not much else.
    220 
    221    Your program will write the profile data into a file called
    222 `gmon.out' just before exiting.  If there is already a file called
    223 `gmon.out', its contents are overwritten.  There is currently no way to
    224 tell the program to write the profile data under a different name, but
    225 you can rename the file afterwards if you are concerned that it may be
    226 overwritten.
    227 
    228    In order to write the `gmon.out' file properly, your program must
    229 exit normally: by returning from `main' or by calling `exit'.  Calling
    230 the low-level function `_exit' does not write the profile data, and
    231 neither does abnormal termination due to an unhandled signal.
    232 
    233    The `gmon.out' file is written in the program's _current working
    234 directory_ at the time it exits.  This means that if your program calls
    235 `chdir', the `gmon.out' file will be left in the last directory your
    236 program `chdir''d to.  If you don't have permission to write in this
    237 directory, the file is not written, and you will get an error message.
    238 
    239    Older versions of the GNU profiling library may also write a file
    240 called `bb.out'.  This file, if present, contains an human-readable
    241 listing of the basic-block execution counts.  Unfortunately, the
    242 appearance of a human-readable `bb.out' means the basic-block counts
    243 didn't get written into `gmon.out'.  The Perl script `bbconv.pl',
    244 included with the `gprof' source distribution, will convert a `bb.out'
    245 file into a format readable by `gprof'.  Invoke it like this:
    246 
    247      bbconv.pl < bb.out > BH-DATA
    248 
    249    This translates the information in `bb.out' into a form that `gprof'
    250 can understand.  But you still need to tell `gprof' about the existence
    251 of this translated information.  To do that, include BB-DATA on the
    252 `gprof' command line, _along with `gmon.out'_, like this:
    253 
    254      gprof OPTIONS EXECUTABLE-FILE gmon.out BB-DATA [YET-MORE-PROFILE-DATA-FILES...] [> OUTFILE]
    255 
    256 
    257 File: gprof.info,  Node: Invoking,  Next: Output,  Prev: Executing,  Up: Top
    258 
    259 4 `gprof' Command Summary
    260 *************************
    261 
    262 After you have a profile data file `gmon.out', you can run `gprof' to
    263 interpret the information in it.  The `gprof' program prints a flat
    264 profile and a call graph on standard output.  Typically you would
    265 redirect the output of `gprof' into a file with `>'.
    266 
    267    You run `gprof' like this:
    268 
    269      gprof OPTIONS [EXECUTABLE-FILE [PROFILE-DATA-FILES...]] [> OUTFILE]
    270 
    271 Here square-brackets indicate optional arguments.
    272 
    273    If you omit the executable file name, the file `a.out' is used.  If
    274 you give no profile data file name, the file `gmon.out' is used.  If
    275 any file is not in the proper format, or if the profile data file does
    276 not appear to belong to the executable file, an error message is
    277 printed.
    278 
    279    You can give more than one profile data file by entering all their
    280 names after the executable file name; then the statistics in all the
    281 data files are summed together.
    282 
    283    The order of these options does not matter.
    284 
    285 * Menu:
    286 
    287 * Output Options::      Controlling `gprof''s output style
    288 * Analysis Options::    Controlling how `gprof' analyzes its data
    289 * Miscellaneous Options::
    290 * Deprecated Options::  Options you no longer need to use, but which
    291                             have been retained for compatibility
    292 * Symspecs::            Specifying functions to include or exclude
    293 
    294 
    295 File: gprof.info,  Node: Output Options,  Next: Analysis Options,  Up: Invoking
    296 
    297 4.1 Output Options
    298 ==================
    299 
    300 These options specify which of several output formats `gprof' should
    301 produce.
    302 
    303    Many of these options take an optional "symspec" to specify
    304 functions to be included or excluded.  These options can be specified
    305 multiple times, with different symspecs, to include or exclude sets of
    306 symbols.  *Note Symspecs: Symspecs.
    307 
    308    Specifying any of these options overrides the default (`-p -q'),
    309 which prints a flat profile and call graph analysis for all functions.
    310 
    311 `-A[SYMSPEC]'
    312 `--annotated-source[=SYMSPEC]'
    313      The `-A' option causes `gprof' to print annotated source code.  If
    314      SYMSPEC is specified, print output only for matching symbols.
    315      *Note The Annotated Source Listing: Annotated Source.
    316 
    317 `-b'
    318 `--brief'
    319      If the `-b' option is given, `gprof' doesn't print the verbose
    320      blurbs that try to explain the meaning of all of the fields in the
    321      tables.  This is useful if you intend to print out the output, or
    322      are tired of seeing the blurbs.
    323 
    324 `-C[SYMSPEC]'
    325 `--exec-counts[=SYMSPEC]'
    326      The `-C' option causes `gprof' to print a tally of functions and
    327      the number of times each was called.  If SYMSPEC is specified,
    328      print tally only for matching symbols.
    329 
    330      If the profile data file contains basic-block count records,
    331      specifying the `-l' option, along with `-C', will cause basic-block
    332      execution counts to be tallied and displayed.
    333 
    334 `-i'
    335 `--file-info'
    336      The `-i' option causes `gprof' to display summary information
    337      about the profile data file(s) and then exit.  The number of
    338      histogram, call graph, and basic-block count records is displayed.
    339 
    340 `-I DIRS'
    341 `--directory-path=DIRS'
    342      The `-I' option specifies a list of search directories in which to
    343      find source files.  Environment variable GPROF_PATH can also be
    344      used to convey this information.  Used mostly for annotated source
    345      output.
    346 
    347 `-J[SYMSPEC]'
    348 `--no-annotated-source[=SYMSPEC]'
    349      The `-J' option causes `gprof' not to print annotated source code.
    350      If SYMSPEC is specified, `gprof' prints annotated source, but
    351      excludes matching symbols.
    352 
    353 `-L'
    354 `--print-path'
    355      Normally, source filenames are printed with the path component
    356      suppressed.  The `-L' option causes `gprof' to print the full
    357      pathname of source filenames, which is determined from symbolic
    358      debugging information in the image file and is relative to the
    359      directory in which the compiler was invoked.
    360 
    361 `-p[SYMSPEC]'
    362 `--flat-profile[=SYMSPEC]'
    363      The `-p' option causes `gprof' to print a flat profile.  If
    364      SYMSPEC is specified, print flat profile only for matching symbols.
    365      *Note The Flat Profile: Flat Profile.
    366 
    367 `-P[SYMSPEC]'
    368 `--no-flat-profile[=SYMSPEC]'
    369      The `-P' option causes `gprof' to suppress printing a flat profile.
    370      If SYMSPEC is specified, `gprof' prints a flat profile, but
    371      excludes matching symbols.
    372 
    373 `-q[SYMSPEC]'
    374 `--graph[=SYMSPEC]'
    375      The `-q' option causes `gprof' to print the call graph analysis.
    376      If SYMSPEC is specified, print call graph only for matching symbols
    377      and their children.  *Note The Call Graph: Call Graph.
    378 
    379 `-Q[SYMSPEC]'
    380 `--no-graph[=SYMSPEC]'
    381      The `-Q' option causes `gprof' to suppress printing the call graph.
    382      If SYMSPEC is specified, `gprof' prints a call graph, but excludes
    383      matching symbols.
    384 
    385 `-t'
    386 `--table-length=NUM'
    387      The `-t' option causes the NUM most active source lines in each
    388      source file to be listed when source annotation is enabled.  The
    389      default is 10.
    390 
    391 `-y'
    392 `--separate-files'
    393      This option affects annotated source output only.  Normally,
    394      `gprof' prints annotated source files to standard-output.  If this
    395      option is specified, annotated source for a file named
    396      `path/FILENAME' is generated in the file `FILENAME-ann'.  If the
    397      underlying file system would truncate `FILENAME-ann' so that it
    398      overwrites the original `FILENAME', `gprof' generates annotated
    399      source in the file `FILENAME.ann' instead (if the original file
    400      name has an extension, that extension is _replaced_ with `.ann').
    401 
    402 `-Z[SYMSPEC]'
    403 `--no-exec-counts[=SYMSPEC]'
    404      The `-Z' option causes `gprof' not to print a tally of functions
    405      and the number of times each was called.  If SYMSPEC is specified,
    406      print tally, but exclude matching symbols.
    407 
    408 `-r'
    409 `--function-ordering'
    410      The `--function-ordering' option causes `gprof' to print a
    411      suggested function ordering for the program based on profiling
    412      data.  This option suggests an ordering which may improve paging,
    413      tlb and cache behavior for the program on systems which support
    414      arbitrary ordering of functions in an executable.
    415 
    416      The exact details of how to force the linker to place functions in
    417      a particular order is system dependent and out of the scope of this
    418      manual.
    419 
    420 `-R MAP_FILE'
    421 `--file-ordering MAP_FILE'
    422      The `--file-ordering' option causes `gprof' to print a suggested
    423      .o link line ordering for the program based on profiling data.
    424      This option suggests an ordering which may improve paging, tlb and
    425      cache behavior for the program on systems which do not support
    426      arbitrary ordering of functions in an executable.
    427 
    428      Use of the `-a' argument is highly recommended with this option.
    429 
    430      The MAP_FILE argument is a pathname to a file which provides
    431      function name to object file mappings.  The format of the file is
    432      similar to the output of the program `nm'.
    433 
    434           c-parse.o:00000000 T yyparse
    435           c-parse.o:00000004 C yyerrflag
    436           c-lang.o:00000000 T maybe_objc_method_name
    437           c-lang.o:00000000 T print_lang_statistics
    438           c-lang.o:00000000 T recognize_objc_keyword
    439           c-decl.o:00000000 T print_lang_identifier
    440           c-decl.o:00000000 T print_lang_type
    441           ...
    442 
    443      To create a MAP_FILE with GNU `nm', type a command like `nm
    444      --extern-only --defined-only -v --print-file-name program-name'.
    445 
    446 `-T'
    447 `--traditional'
    448      The `-T' option causes `gprof' to print its output in
    449      "traditional" BSD style.
    450 
    451 `-w WIDTH'
    452 `--width=WIDTH'
    453      Sets width of output lines to WIDTH.  Currently only used when
    454      printing the function index at the bottom of the call graph.
    455 
    456 `-x'
    457 `--all-lines'
    458      This option affects annotated source output only.  By default,
    459      only the lines at the beginning of a basic-block are annotated.
    460      If this option is specified, every line in a basic-block is
    461      annotated by repeating the annotation for the first line.  This
    462      behavior is similar to `tcov''s `-a'.
    463 
    464 `--demangle[=STYLE]'
    465 `--no-demangle'
    466      These options control whether C++ symbol names should be demangled
    467      when printing output.  The default is to demangle symbols.  The
    468      `--no-demangle' option may be used to turn off demangling.
    469      Different compilers have different mangling styles.  The optional
    470      demangling style argument can be used to choose an appropriate
    471      demangling style for your compiler.
    472 
    473 
    474 File: gprof.info,  Node: Analysis Options,  Next: Miscellaneous Options,  Prev: Output Options,  Up: Invoking
    475 
    476 4.2 Analysis Options
    477 ====================
    478 
    479 `-a'
    480 `--no-static'
    481      The `-a' option causes `gprof' to suppress the printing of
    482      statically declared (private) functions.  (These are functions
    483      whose names are not listed as global, and which are not visible
    484      outside the file/function/block where they were defined.)  Time
    485      spent in these functions, calls to/from them, etc., will all be
    486      attributed to the function that was loaded directly before it in
    487      the executable file.  This option affects both the flat profile
    488      and the call graph.
    489 
    490 `-c'
    491 `--static-call-graph'
    492      The `-c' option causes the call graph of the program to be
    493      augmented by a heuristic which examines the text space of the
    494      object file and identifies function calls in the binary machine
    495      code.  Since normal call graph records are only generated when
    496      functions are entered, this option identifies children that could
    497      have been called, but never were.  Calls to functions that were
    498      not compiled with profiling enabled are also identified, but only
    499      if symbol table entries are present for them.  Calls to dynamic
    500      library routines are typically _not_ found by this option.
    501      Parents or children identified via this heuristic are indicated in
    502      the call graph with call counts of `0'.
    503 
    504 `-D'
    505 `--ignore-non-functions'
    506      The `-D' option causes `gprof' to ignore symbols which are not
    507      known to be functions.  This option will give more accurate
    508      profile data on systems where it is supported (Solaris and HPUX for
    509      example).
    510 
    511 `-k FROM/TO'
    512      The `-k' option allows you to delete from the call graph any arcs
    513      from symbols matching symspec FROM to those matching symspec TO.
    514 
    515 `-l'
    516 `--line'
    517      The `-l' option enables line-by-line profiling, which causes
    518      histogram hits to be charged to individual source code lines,
    519      instead of functions.  This feature only works with programs
    520      compiled by older versions of the `gcc' compiler.  Newer versions
    521      of `gcc' are designed to work with the `gcov' tool instead.
    522 
    523      If the program was compiled with basic-block counting enabled,
    524      this option will also identify how many times each line of code
    525      was executed.  While line-by-line profiling can help isolate where
    526      in a large function a program is spending its time, it also
    527      significantly increases the running time of `gprof', and magnifies
    528      statistical inaccuracies.  *Note Statistical Sampling Error:
    529      Sampling Error.
    530 
    531 `-m NUM'
    532 `--min-count=NUM'
    533      This option affects execution count output only.  Symbols that are
    534      executed less than NUM times are suppressed.
    535 
    536 `-nSYMSPEC'
    537 `--time=SYMSPEC'
    538      The `-n' option causes `gprof', in its call graph analysis, to
    539      only propagate times for symbols matching SYMSPEC.
    540 
    541 `-NSYMSPEC'
    542 `--no-time=SYMSPEC'
    543      The `-n' option causes `gprof', in its call graph analysis, not to
    544      propagate times for symbols matching SYMSPEC.
    545 
    546 `-SFILENAME'
    547 `--external-symbol-table=FILENAME'
    548      The `-S' option causes `gprof' to read an external symbol table
    549      file, such as `/proc/kallsyms', rather than read the symbol table
    550      from the given object file (the default is `a.out'). This is useful
    551      for profiling kernel modules.
    552 
    553 `-z'
    554 `--display-unused-functions'
    555      If you give the `-z' option, `gprof' will mention all functions in
    556      the flat profile, even those that were never called, and that had
    557      no time spent in them.  This is useful in conjunction with the
    558      `-c' option for discovering which routines were never called.
    559 
    560 
    561 
    562 File: gprof.info,  Node: Miscellaneous Options,  Next: Deprecated Options,  Prev: Analysis Options,  Up: Invoking
    563 
    564 4.3 Miscellaneous Options
    565 =========================
    566 
    567 `-d[NUM]'
    568 `--debug[=NUM]'
    569      The `-d NUM' option specifies debugging options.  If NUM is not
    570      specified, enable all debugging.  *Note Debugging `gprof':
    571      Debugging.
    572 
    573 `-h'
    574 `--help'
    575      The `-h' option prints command line usage.
    576 
    577 `-ONAME'
    578 `--file-format=NAME'
    579      Selects the format of the profile data files.  Recognized formats
    580      are `auto' (the default), `bsd', `4.4bsd', `magic', and `prof'
    581      (not yet supported).
    582 
    583 `-s'
    584 `--sum'
    585      The `-s' option causes `gprof' to summarize the information in the
    586      profile data files it read in, and write out a profile data file
    587      called `gmon.sum', which contains all the information from the
    588      profile data files that `gprof' read in.  The file `gmon.sum' may
    589      be one of the specified input files; the effect of this is to
    590      merge the data in the other input files into `gmon.sum'.
    591 
    592      Eventually you can run `gprof' again without `-s' to analyze the
    593      cumulative data in the file `gmon.sum'.
    594 
    595 `-v'
    596 `--version'
    597      The `-v' flag causes `gprof' to print the current version number,
    598      and then exit.
    599 
    600 
    601 
    602 File: gprof.info,  Node: Deprecated Options,  Next: Symspecs,  Prev: Miscellaneous Options,  Up: Invoking
    603 
    604 4.4 Deprecated Options
    605 ======================
    606 
    607 These options have been replaced with newer versions that use symspecs.
    608 
    609 `-e FUNCTION_NAME'
    610      The `-e FUNCTION' option tells `gprof' to not print information
    611      about the function FUNCTION_NAME (and its children...) in the call
    612      graph.  The function will still be listed as a child of any
    613      functions that call it, but its index number will be shown as
    614      `[not printed]'.  More than one `-e' option may be given; only one
    615      FUNCTION_NAME may be indicated with each `-e' option.
    616 
    617 `-E FUNCTION_NAME'
    618      The `-E FUNCTION' option works like the `-e' option, but time
    619      spent in the function (and children who were not called from
    620      anywhere else), will not be used to compute the
    621      percentages-of-time for the call graph.  More than one `-E' option
    622      may be given; only one FUNCTION_NAME may be indicated with each
    623      `-E' option.
    624 
    625 `-f FUNCTION_NAME'
    626      The `-f FUNCTION' option causes `gprof' to limit the call graph to
    627      the function FUNCTION_NAME and its children (and their
    628      children...).  More than one `-f' option may be given; only one
    629      FUNCTION_NAME may be indicated with each `-f' option.
    630 
    631 `-F FUNCTION_NAME'
    632      The `-F FUNCTION' option works like the `-f' option, but only time
    633      spent in the function and its children (and their children...)
    634      will be used to determine total-time and percentages-of-time for
    635      the call graph.  More than one `-F' option may be given; only one
    636      FUNCTION_NAME may be indicated with each `-F' option.  The `-F'
    637      option overrides the `-E' option.
    638 
    639 
    640    Note that only one function can be specified with each `-e', `-E',
    641 `-f' or `-F' option.  To specify more than one function, use multiple
    642 options.  For example, this command:
    643 
    644      gprof -e boring -f foo -f bar myprogram > gprof.output
    645 
    646 lists in the call graph all functions that were reached from either
    647 `foo' or `bar' and were not reachable from `boring'.
    648 
    649 
    650 File: gprof.info,  Node: Symspecs,  Prev: Deprecated Options,  Up: Invoking
    651 
    652 4.5 Symspecs
    653 ============
    654 
    655 Many of the output options allow functions to be included or excluded
    656 using "symspecs" (symbol specifications), which observe the following
    657 syntax:
    658 
    659        filename_containing_a_dot
    660      | funcname_not_containing_a_dot
    661      | linenumber
    662      | ( [ any_filename ] `:' ( any_funcname | linenumber ) )
    663 
    664    Here are some sample symspecs:
    665 
    666 `main.c'
    667      Selects everything in file `main.c'--the dot in the string tells
    668      `gprof' to interpret the string as a filename, rather than as a
    669      function name.  To select a file whose name does not contain a
    670      dot, a trailing colon should be specified.  For example, `odd:' is
    671      interpreted as the file named `odd'.
    672 
    673 `main'
    674      Selects all functions named `main'.
    675 
    676      Note that there may be multiple instances of the same function name
    677      because some of the definitions may be local (i.e., static).
    678      Unless a function name is unique in a program, you must use the
    679      colon notation explained below to specify a function from a
    680      specific source file.
    681 
    682      Sometimes, function names contain dots.  In such cases, it is
    683      necessary to add a leading colon to the name.  For example,
    684      `:.mul' selects function `.mul'.
    685 
    686      In some object file formats, symbols have a leading underscore.
    687      `gprof' will normally not print these underscores.  When you name a
    688      symbol in a symspec, you should type it exactly as `gprof' prints
    689      it in its output.  For example, if the compiler produces a symbol
    690      `_main' from your `main' function, `gprof' still prints it as
    691      `main' in its output, so you should use `main' in symspecs.
    692 
    693 `main.c:main'
    694      Selects function `main' in file `main.c'.
    695 
    696 `main.c:134'
    697      Selects line 134 in file `main.c'.
    698 
    699 
    700 File: gprof.info,  Node: Output,  Next: Inaccuracy,  Prev: Invoking,  Up: Top
    701 
    702 5 Interpreting `gprof''s Output
    703 *******************************
    704 
    705 `gprof' can produce several different output styles, the most important
    706 of which are described below.  The simplest output styles (file
    707 information, execution count, and function and file ordering) are not
    708 described here, but are documented with the respective options that
    709 trigger them.  *Note Output Options: Output Options.
    710 
    711 * Menu:
    712 
    713 * Flat Profile::        The flat profile shows how much time was spent
    714                             executing directly in each function.
    715 * Call Graph::          The call graph shows which functions called which
    716                             others, and how much time each function used
    717                             when its subroutine calls are included.
    718 * Line-by-line::        `gprof' can analyze individual source code lines
    719 * Annotated Source::    The annotated source listing displays source code
    720                             labeled with execution counts
    721 
    722 
    723 File: gprof.info,  Node: Flat Profile,  Next: Call Graph,  Up: Output
    724 
    725 5.1 The Flat Profile
    726 ====================
    727 
    728 The "flat profile" shows the total amount of time your program spent
    729 executing each function.  Unless the `-z' option is given, functions
    730 with no apparent time spent in them, and no apparent calls to them, are
    731 not mentioned.  Note that if a function was not compiled for profiling,
    732 and didn't run long enough to show up on the program counter histogram,
    733 it will be indistinguishable from a function that was never called.
    734 
    735    This is part of a flat profile for a small program:
    736 
    737      Flat profile:
    738 
    739      Each sample counts as 0.01 seconds.
    740        %   cumulative   self              self     total
    741       time   seconds   seconds    calls  ms/call  ms/call  name
    742       33.34      0.02     0.02     7208     0.00     0.00  open
    743       16.67      0.03     0.01      244     0.04     0.12  offtime
    744       16.67      0.04     0.01        8     1.25     1.25  memccpy
    745       16.67      0.05     0.01        7     1.43     1.43  write
    746       16.67      0.06     0.01                             mcount
    747        0.00      0.06     0.00      236     0.00     0.00  tzset
    748        0.00      0.06     0.00      192     0.00     0.00  tolower
    749        0.00      0.06     0.00       47     0.00     0.00  strlen
    750        0.00      0.06     0.00       45     0.00     0.00  strchr
    751        0.00      0.06     0.00        1     0.00    50.00  main
    752        0.00      0.06     0.00        1     0.00     0.00  memcpy
    753        0.00      0.06     0.00        1     0.00    10.11  print
    754        0.00      0.06     0.00        1     0.00     0.00  profil
    755        0.00      0.06     0.00        1     0.00    50.00  report
    756      ...
    757 
    758 The functions are sorted first by decreasing run-time spent in them,
    759 then by decreasing number of calls, then alphabetically by name.  The
    760 functions `mcount' and `profil' are part of the profiling apparatus and
    761 appear in every flat profile; their time gives a measure of the amount
    762 of overhead due to profiling.
    763 
    764    Just before the column headers, a statement appears indicating how
    765 much time each sample counted as.  This "sampling period" estimates the
    766 margin of error in each of the time figures.  A time figure that is not
    767 much larger than this is not reliable.  In this example, each sample
    768 counted as 0.01 seconds, suggesting a 100 Hz sampling rate.  The
    769 program's total execution time was 0.06 seconds, as indicated by the
    770 `cumulative seconds' field.  Since each sample counted for 0.01
    771 seconds, this means only six samples were taken during the run.  Two of
    772 the samples occurred while the program was in the `open' function, as
    773 indicated by the `self seconds' field.  Each of the other four samples
    774 occurred one each in `offtime', `memccpy', `write', and `mcount'.
    775 Since only six samples were taken, none of these values can be regarded
    776 as particularly reliable.  In another run, the `self seconds' field for
    777 `mcount' might well be `0.00' or `0.02'.  *Note Statistical Sampling
    778 Error: Sampling Error, for a complete discussion.
    779 
    780    The remaining functions in the listing (those whose `self seconds'
    781 field is `0.00') didn't appear in the histogram samples at all.
    782 However, the call graph indicated that they were called, so therefore
    783 they are listed, sorted in decreasing order by the `calls' field.
    784 Clearly some time was spent executing these functions, but the paucity
    785 of histogram samples prevents any determination of how much time each
    786 took.
    787 
    788    Here is what the fields in each line mean:
    789 
    790 `% time'
    791      This is the percentage of the total execution time your program
    792      spent in this function.  These should all add up to 100%.
    793 
    794 `cumulative seconds'
    795      This is the cumulative total number of seconds the computer spent
    796      executing this functions, plus the time spent in all the functions
    797      above this one in this table.
    798 
    799 `self seconds'
    800      This is the number of seconds accounted for by this function alone.
    801      The flat profile listing is sorted first by this number.
    802 
    803 `calls'
    804      This is the total number of times the function was called.  If the
    805      function was never called, or the number of times it was called
    806      cannot be determined (probably because the function was not
    807      compiled with profiling enabled), the "calls" field is blank.
    808 
    809 `self ms/call'
    810      This represents the average number of milliseconds spent in this
    811      function per call, if this function is profiled.  Otherwise, this
    812      field is blank for this function.
    813 
    814 `total ms/call'
    815      This represents the average number of milliseconds spent in this
    816      function and its descendants per call, if this function is
    817      profiled.  Otherwise, this field is blank for this function.  This
    818      is the only field in the flat profile that uses call graph
    819      analysis.
    820 
    821 `name'
    822      This is the name of the function.   The flat profile is sorted by
    823      this field alphabetically after the "self seconds" and "calls"
    824      fields are sorted.
    825 
    826 
    827 File: gprof.info,  Node: Call Graph,  Next: Line-by-line,  Prev: Flat Profile,  Up: Output
    828 
    829 5.2 The Call Graph
    830 ==================
    831 
    832 The "call graph" shows how much time was spent in each function and its
    833 children.  From this information, you can find functions that, while
    834 they themselves may not have used much time, called other functions
    835 that did use unusual amounts of time.
    836 
    837    Here is a sample call from a small program.  This call came from the
    838 same `gprof' run as the flat profile example in the previous section.
    839 
    840      granularity: each sample hit covers 2 byte(s) for 20.00% of 0.05 seconds
    841 
    842      index % time    self  children    called     name
    843                                                       <spontaneous>
    844      [1]    100.0    0.00    0.05                 start [1]
    845                      0.00    0.05       1/1           main [2]
    846                      0.00    0.00       1/2           on_exit [28]
    847                      0.00    0.00       1/1           exit [59]
    848      -----------------------------------------------
    849                      0.00    0.05       1/1           start [1]
    850      [2]    100.0    0.00    0.05       1         main [2]
    851                      0.00    0.05       1/1           report [3]
    852      -----------------------------------------------
    853                      0.00    0.05       1/1           main [2]
    854      [3]    100.0    0.00    0.05       1         report [3]
    855                      0.00    0.03       8/8           timelocal [6]
    856                      0.00    0.01       1/1           print [9]
    857                      0.00    0.01       9/9           fgets [12]
    858                      0.00    0.00      12/34          strncmp <cycle 1> [40]
    859                      0.00    0.00       8/8           lookup [20]
    860                      0.00    0.00       1/1           fopen [21]
    861                      0.00    0.00       8/8           chewtime [24]
    862                      0.00    0.00       8/16          skipspace [44]
    863      -----------------------------------------------
    864      [4]     59.8    0.01        0.02       8+472     <cycle 2 as a whole> [4]
    865                      0.01        0.02     244+260         offtime <cycle 2> [7]
    866                      0.00        0.00     236+1           tzset <cycle 2> [26]
    867      -----------------------------------------------
    868 
    869    The lines full of dashes divide this table into "entries", one for
    870 each function.  Each entry has one or more lines.
    871 
    872    In each entry, the primary line is the one that starts with an index
    873 number in square brackets.  The end of this line says which function
    874 the entry is for.  The preceding lines in the entry describe the
    875 callers of this function and the following lines describe its
    876 subroutines (also called "children" when we speak of the call graph).
    877 
    878    The entries are sorted by time spent in the function and its
    879 subroutines.
    880 
    881    The internal profiling function `mcount' (*note The Flat Profile:
    882 Flat Profile.) is never mentioned in the call graph.
    883 
    884 * Menu:
    885 
    886 * Primary::       Details of the primary line's contents.
    887 * Callers::       Details of caller-lines' contents.
    888 * Subroutines::   Details of subroutine-lines' contents.
    889 * Cycles::        When there are cycles of recursion,
    890                    such as `a' calls `b' calls `a'...
    891 
    892 
    893 File: gprof.info,  Node: Primary,  Next: Callers,  Up: Call Graph
    894 
    895 5.2.1 The Primary Line
    896 ----------------------
    897 
    898 The "primary line" in a call graph entry is the line that describes the
    899 function which the entry is about and gives the overall statistics for
    900 this function.
    901 
    902    For reference, we repeat the primary line from the entry for function
    903 `report' in our main example, together with the heading line that shows
    904 the names of the fields:
    905 
    906      index  % time    self  children called     name
    907      ...
    908      [3]    100.0    0.00    0.05       1         report [3]
    909 
    910    Here is what the fields in the primary line mean:
    911 
    912 `index'
    913      Entries are numbered with consecutive integers.  Each function
    914      therefore has an index number, which appears at the beginning of
    915      its primary line.
    916 
    917      Each cross-reference to a function, as a caller or subroutine of
    918      another, gives its index number as well as its name.  The index
    919      number guides you if you wish to look for the entry for that
    920      function.
    921 
    922 `% time'
    923      This is the percentage of the total time that was spent in this
    924      function, including time spent in subroutines called from this
    925      function.
    926 
    927      The time spent in this function is counted again for the callers of
    928      this function.  Therefore, adding up these percentages is
    929      meaningless.
    930 
    931 `self'
    932      This is the total amount of time spent in this function.  This
    933      should be identical to the number printed in the `seconds' field
    934      for this function in the flat profile.
    935 
    936 `children'
    937      This is the total amount of time spent in the subroutine calls
    938      made by this function.  This should be equal to the sum of all the
    939      `self' and `children' entries of the children listed directly
    940      below this function.
    941 
    942 `called'
    943      This is the number of times the function was called.
    944 
    945      If the function called itself recursively, there are two numbers,
    946      separated by a `+'.  The first number counts non-recursive calls,
    947      and the second counts recursive calls.
    948 
    949      In the example above, the function `report' was called once from
    950      `main'.
    951 
    952 `name'
    953      This is the name of the current function.  The index number is
    954      repeated after it.
    955 
    956      If the function is part of a cycle of recursion, the cycle number
    957      is printed between the function's name and the index number (*note
    958      How Mutually Recursive Functions Are Described: Cycles.).  For
    959      example, if function `gnurr' is part of cycle number one, and has
    960      index number twelve, its primary line would be end like this:
    961 
    962           gnurr <cycle 1> [12]
    963 
    964 
    965 File: gprof.info,  Node: Callers,  Next: Subroutines,  Prev: Primary,  Up: Call Graph
    966 
    967 5.2.2 Lines for a Function's Callers
    968 ------------------------------------
    969 
    970 A function's entry has a line for each function it was called by.
    971 These lines' fields correspond to the fields of the primary line, but
    972 their meanings are different because of the difference in context.
    973 
    974    For reference, we repeat two lines from the entry for the function
    975 `report', the primary line and one caller-line preceding it, together
    976 with the heading line that shows the names of the fields:
    977 
    978      index  % time    self  children called     name
    979      ...
    980                      0.00    0.05       1/1           main [2]
    981      [3]    100.0    0.00    0.05       1         report [3]
    982 
    983    Here are the meanings of the fields in the caller-line for `report'
    984 called from `main':
    985 
    986 `self'
    987      An estimate of the amount of time spent in `report' itself when it
    988      was called from `main'.
    989 
    990 `children'
    991      An estimate of the amount of time spent in subroutines of `report'
    992      when `report' was called from `main'.
    993 
    994      The sum of the `self' and `children' fields is an estimate of the
    995      amount of time spent within calls to `report' from `main'.
    996 
    997 `called'
    998      Two numbers: the number of times `report' was called from `main',
    999      followed by the total number of non-recursive calls to `report'
   1000      from all its callers.
   1001 
   1002 `name and index number'
   1003      The name of the caller of `report' to which this line applies,
   1004      followed by the caller's index number.
   1005 
   1006      Not all functions have entries in the call graph; some options to
   1007      `gprof' request the omission of certain functions.  When a caller
   1008      has no entry of its own, it still has caller-lines in the entries
   1009      of the functions it calls.
   1010 
   1011      If the caller is part of a recursion cycle, the cycle number is
   1012      printed between the name and the index number.
   1013 
   1014    If the identity of the callers of a function cannot be determined, a
   1015 dummy caller-line is printed which has `<spontaneous>' as the "caller's
   1016 name" and all other fields blank.  This can happen for signal handlers.
   1017 
   1018 
   1019 File: gprof.info,  Node: Subroutines,  Next: Cycles,  Prev: Callers,  Up: Call Graph
   1020 
   1021 5.2.3 Lines for a Function's Subroutines
   1022 ----------------------------------------
   1023 
   1024 A function's entry has a line for each of its subroutines--in other
   1025 words, a line for each other function that it called.  These lines'
   1026 fields correspond to the fields of the primary line, but their meanings
   1027 are different because of the difference in context.
   1028 
   1029    For reference, we repeat two lines from the entry for the function
   1030 `main', the primary line and a line for a subroutine, together with the
   1031 heading line that shows the names of the fields:
   1032 
   1033      index  % time    self  children called     name
   1034      ...
   1035      [2]    100.0    0.00    0.05       1         main [2]
   1036                      0.00    0.05       1/1           report [3]
   1037 
   1038    Here are the meanings of the fields in the subroutine-line for `main'
   1039 calling `report':
   1040 
   1041 `self'
   1042      An estimate of the amount of time spent directly within `report'
   1043      when `report' was called from `main'.
   1044 
   1045 `children'
   1046      An estimate of the amount of time spent in subroutines of `report'
   1047      when `report' was called from `main'.
   1048 
   1049      The sum of the `self' and `children' fields is an estimate of the
   1050      total time spent in calls to `report' from `main'.
   1051 
   1052 `called'
   1053      Two numbers, the number of calls to `report' from `main' followed
   1054      by the total number of non-recursive calls to `report'.  This
   1055      ratio is used to determine how much of `report''s `self' and
   1056      `children' time gets credited to `main'.  *Note Estimating
   1057      `children' Times: Assumptions.
   1058 
   1059 `name'
   1060      The name of the subroutine of `main' to which this line applies,
   1061      followed by the subroutine's index number.
   1062 
   1063      If the caller is part of a recursion cycle, the cycle number is
   1064      printed between the name and the index number.
   1065 
   1066 
   1067 File: gprof.info,  Node: Cycles,  Prev: Subroutines,  Up: Call Graph
   1068 
   1069 5.2.4 How Mutually Recursive Functions Are Described
   1070 ----------------------------------------------------
   1071 
   1072 The graph may be complicated by the presence of "cycles of recursion"
   1073 in the call graph.  A cycle exists if a function calls another function
   1074 that (directly or indirectly) calls (or appears to call) the original
   1075 function.  For example: if `a' calls `b', and `b' calls `a', then `a'
   1076 and `b' form a cycle.
   1077 
   1078    Whenever there are call paths both ways between a pair of functions,
   1079 they belong to the same cycle.  If `a' and `b' call each other and `b'
   1080 and `c' call each other, all three make one cycle.  Note that even if
   1081 `b' only calls `a' if it was not called from `a', `gprof' cannot
   1082 determine this, so `a' and `b' are still considered a cycle.
   1083 
   1084    The cycles are numbered with consecutive integers.  When a function
   1085 belongs to a cycle, each time the function name appears in the call
   1086 graph it is followed by `<cycle NUMBER>'.
   1087 
   1088    The reason cycles matter is that they make the time values in the
   1089 call graph paradoxical.  The "time spent in children" of `a' should
   1090 include the time spent in its subroutine `b' and in `b''s
   1091 subroutines--but one of `b''s subroutines is `a'!  How much of `a''s
   1092 time should be included in the children of `a', when `a' is indirectly
   1093 recursive?
   1094 
   1095    The way `gprof' resolves this paradox is by creating a single entry
   1096 for the cycle as a whole.  The primary line of this entry describes the
   1097 total time spent directly in the functions of the cycle.  The
   1098 "subroutines" of the cycle are the individual functions of the cycle,
   1099 and all other functions that were called directly by them.  The
   1100 "callers" of the cycle are the functions, outside the cycle, that
   1101 called functions in the cycle.
   1102 
   1103    Here is an example portion of a call graph which shows a cycle
   1104 containing functions `a' and `b'.  The cycle was entered by a call to
   1105 `a' from `main'; both `a' and `b' called `c'.
   1106 
   1107      index  % time    self  children called     name
   1108      ----------------------------------------
   1109                       1.77        0    1/1        main [2]
   1110      [3]     91.71    1.77        0    1+5    <cycle 1 as a whole> [3]
   1111                       1.02        0    3          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1112                       0.75        0    2          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1113      ----------------------------------------
   1114                                        3          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1115      [4]     52.85    1.02        0    0      b <cycle 1> [4]
   1116                                        2          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1117                          0        0    3/6        c [6]
   1118      ----------------------------------------
   1119                       1.77        0    1/1        main [2]
   1120                                        2          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1121      [5]     38.86    0.75        0    1      a <cycle 1> [5]
   1122                                        3          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1123                          0        0    3/6        c [6]
   1124      ----------------------------------------
   1125 
   1126 (The entire call graph for this program contains in addition an entry
   1127 for `main', which calls `a', and an entry for `c', with callers `a' and
   1128 `b'.)
   1129 
   1130      index  % time    self  children called     name
   1131                                                   <spontaneous>
   1132      [1]    100.00       0     1.93    0      start [1]
   1133                       0.16     1.77    1/1        main [2]
   1134      ----------------------------------------
   1135                       0.16     1.77    1/1        start [1]
   1136      [2]    100.00    0.16     1.77    1      main [2]
   1137                       1.77        0    1/1        a <cycle 1> [5]
   1138      ----------------------------------------
   1139                       1.77        0    1/1        main [2]
   1140      [3]     91.71    1.77        0    1+5    <cycle 1 as a whole> [3]
   1141                       1.02        0    3          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1142                       0.75        0    2          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1143                          0        0    6/6        c [6]
   1144      ----------------------------------------
   1145                                        3          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1146      [4]     52.85    1.02        0    0      b <cycle 1> [4]
   1147                                        2          a <cycle 1> [5]
   1148                          0        0    3/6        c [6]
   1149      ----------------------------------------
   1150                       1.77        0    1/1        main [2]
   1151                                        2          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1152      [5]     38.86    0.75        0    1      a <cycle 1> [5]
   1153                                        3          b <cycle 1> [4]
   1154                          0        0    3/6        c [6]
   1155      ----------------------------------------
   1156                          0        0    3/6        b <cycle 1> [4]
   1157                          0        0    3/6        a <cycle 1> [5]
   1158      [6]      0.00       0        0    6      c [6]
   1159      ----------------------------------------
   1160 
   1161    The `self' field of the cycle's primary line is the total time spent
   1162 in all the functions of the cycle.  It equals the sum of the `self'
   1163 fields for the individual functions in the cycle, found in the entry in
   1164 the subroutine lines for these functions.
   1165 
   1166    The `children' fields of the cycle's primary line and subroutine
   1167 lines count only subroutines outside the cycle.  Even though `a' calls
   1168 `b', the time spent in those calls to `b' is not counted in `a''s
   1169 `children' time.  Thus, we do not encounter the problem of what to do
   1170 when the time in those calls to `b' includes indirect recursive calls
   1171 back to `a'.
   1172 
   1173    The `children' field of a caller-line in the cycle's entry estimates
   1174 the amount of time spent _in the whole cycle_, and its other
   1175 subroutines, on the times when that caller called a function in the
   1176 cycle.
   1177 
   1178    The `called' field in the primary line for the cycle has two numbers:
   1179 first, the number of times functions in the cycle were called by
   1180 functions outside the cycle; second, the number of times they were
   1181 called by functions in the cycle (including times when a function in
   1182 the cycle calls itself).  This is a generalization of the usual split
   1183 into non-recursive and recursive calls.
   1184 
   1185    The `called' field of a subroutine-line for a cycle member in the
   1186 cycle's entry says how many time that function was called from
   1187 functions in the cycle.  The total of all these is the second number in
   1188 the primary line's `called' field.
   1189 
   1190    In the individual entry for a function in a cycle, the other
   1191 functions in the same cycle can appear as subroutines and as callers.
   1192 These lines show how many times each function in the cycle called or
   1193 was called from each other function in the cycle.  The `self' and
   1194 `children' fields in these lines are blank because of the difficulty of
   1195 defining meanings for them when recursion is going on.
   1196 
   1197 
   1198 File: gprof.info,  Node: Line-by-line,  Next: Annotated Source,  Prev: Call Graph,  Up: Output
   1199 
   1200 5.3 Line-by-line Profiling
   1201 ==========================
   1202 
   1203 `gprof''s `-l' option causes the program to perform "line-by-line"
   1204 profiling.  In this mode, histogram samples are assigned not to
   1205 functions, but to individual lines of source code.  This only works
   1206 with programs compiled with older versions of the `gcc' compiler.
   1207 Newer versions of `gcc' use a different program - `gcov' - to display
   1208 line-by-line profiling information.
   1209 
   1210    With the older versions of `gcc' the program usually has to be
   1211 compiled with a `-g' option, in addition to `-pg', in order to generate
   1212 debugging symbols for tracking source code lines.  Note, in much older
   1213 versions of `gcc' the program had to be compiled with the `-a' command
   1214 line option as well.
   1215 
   1216    The flat profile is the most useful output table in line-by-line
   1217 mode.  The call graph isn't as useful as normal, since the current
   1218 version of `gprof' does not propagate call graph arcs from source code
   1219 lines to the enclosing function.  The call graph does, however, show
   1220 each line of code that called each function, along with a count.
   1221 
   1222    Here is a section of `gprof''s output, without line-by-line
   1223 profiling.  Note that `ct_init' accounted for four histogram hits, and
   1224 13327 calls to `init_block'.
   1225 
   1226      Flat profile:
   1227 
   1228      Each sample counts as 0.01 seconds.
   1229        %   cumulative   self              self     total
   1230       time   seconds   seconds    calls  us/call  us/call  name
   1231       30.77      0.13     0.04     6335     6.31     6.31  ct_init
   1232 
   1233 
   1234      		     Call graph (explanation follows)
   1235 
   1236 
   1237      granularity: each sample hit covers 4 byte(s) for 7.69% of 0.13 seconds
   1238 
   1239      index % time    self  children    called     name
   1240 
   1241                      0.00    0.00       1/13496       name_too_long
   1242                      0.00    0.00      40/13496       deflate
   1243                      0.00    0.00     128/13496       deflate_fast
   1244                      0.00    0.00   13327/13496       ct_init
   1245      [7]      0.0    0.00    0.00   13496         init_block
   1246 
   1247    Now let's look at some of `gprof''s output from the same program run,
   1248 this time with line-by-line profiling enabled.  Note that `ct_init''s
   1249 four histogram hits are broken down into four lines of source code--one
   1250 hit occurred on each of lines 349, 351, 382 and 385.  In the call graph,
   1251 note how `ct_init''s 13327 calls to `init_block' are broken down into
   1252 one call from line 396, 3071 calls from line 384, 3730 calls from line
   1253 385, and 6525 calls from 387.
   1254 
   1255      Flat profile:
   1256 
   1257      Each sample counts as 0.01 seconds.
   1258        %   cumulative   self
   1259       time   seconds   seconds    calls  name
   1260        7.69      0.10     0.01           ct_init (trees.c:349)
   1261        7.69      0.11     0.01           ct_init (trees.c:351)
   1262        7.69      0.12     0.01           ct_init (trees.c:382)
   1263        7.69      0.13     0.01           ct_init (trees.c:385)
   1264 
   1265 
   1266      		     Call graph (explanation follows)
   1267 
   1268 
   1269      granularity: each sample hit covers 4 byte(s) for 7.69% of 0.13 seconds
   1270 
   1271        % time    self  children    called     name
   1272 
   1273                  0.00    0.00       1/13496       name_too_long (gzip.c:1440)
   1274                  0.00    0.00       1/13496       deflate (deflate.c:763)
   1275                  0.00    0.00       1/13496       ct_init (trees.c:396)
   1276                  0.00    0.00       2/13496       deflate (deflate.c:727)
   1277                  0.00    0.00       4/13496       deflate (deflate.c:686)
   1278                  0.00    0.00       5/13496       deflate (deflate.c:675)
   1279                  0.00    0.00      12/13496       deflate (deflate.c:679)
   1280                  0.00    0.00      16/13496       deflate (deflate.c:730)
   1281                  0.00    0.00     128/13496       deflate_fast (deflate.c:654)
   1282                  0.00    0.00    3071/13496       ct_init (trees.c:384)
   1283                  0.00    0.00    3730/13496       ct_init (trees.c:385)
   1284                  0.00    0.00    6525/13496       ct_init (trees.c:387)
   1285      [6]  0.0    0.00    0.00   13496         init_block (trees.c:408)
   1286 
   1287 
   1288 File: gprof.info,  Node: Annotated Source,  Prev: Line-by-line,  Up: Output
   1289 
   1290 5.4 The Annotated Source Listing
   1291 ================================
   1292 
   1293 `gprof''s `-A' option triggers an annotated source listing, which lists
   1294 the program's source code, each function labeled with the number of
   1295 times it was called.  You may also need to specify the `-I' option, if
   1296 `gprof' can't find the source code files.
   1297 
   1298    With older versions of `gcc' compiling with `gcc ... -g -pg -a'
   1299 augments your program with basic-block counting code, in addition to
   1300 function counting code.  This enables `gprof' to determine how many
   1301 times each line of code was executed.  With newer versions of `gcc'
   1302 support for displaying basic-block counts is provided by the `gcov'
   1303 program.
   1304 
   1305    For example, consider the following function, taken from gzip, with
   1306 line numbers added:
   1307 
   1308       1 ulg updcrc(s, n)
   1309       2     uch *s;
   1310       3     unsigned n;
   1311       4 {
   1312       5     register ulg c;
   1313       6
   1314       7     static ulg crc = (ulg)0xffffffffL;
   1315       8
   1316       9     if (s == NULL) {
   1317      10         c = 0xffffffffL;
   1318      11     } else {
   1319      12         c = crc;
   1320      13         if (n) do {
   1321      14             c = crc_32_tab[...];
   1322      15         } while (--n);
   1323      16     }
   1324      17     crc = c;
   1325      18     return c ^ 0xffffffffL;
   1326      19 }
   1327 
   1328    `updcrc' has at least five basic-blocks.  One is the function
   1329 itself.  The `if' statement on line 9 generates two more basic-blocks,
   1330 one for each branch of the `if'.  A fourth basic-block results from the
   1331 `if' on line 13, and the contents of the `do' loop form the fifth
   1332 basic-block.  The compiler may also generate additional basic-blocks to
   1333 handle various special cases.
   1334 
   1335    A program augmented for basic-block counting can be analyzed with
   1336 `gprof -l -A'.  The `-x' option is also helpful, to ensure that each
   1337 line of code is labeled at least once.  Here is `updcrc''s annotated
   1338 source listing for a sample `gzip' run:
   1339 
   1340                      ulg updcrc(s, n)
   1341                          uch *s;
   1342                          unsigned n;
   1343                  2 ->{
   1344                          register ulg c;
   1345 
   1346                          static ulg crc = (ulg)0xffffffffL;
   1347 
   1348                  2 ->    if (s == NULL) {
   1349                  1 ->        c = 0xffffffffL;
   1350                  1 ->    } else {
   1351                  1 ->        c = crc;
   1352                  1 ->        if (n) do {
   1353              26312 ->            c = crc_32_tab[...];
   1354      26312,1,26311 ->        } while (--n);
   1355                          }
   1356                  2 ->    crc = c;
   1357                  2 ->    return c ^ 0xffffffffL;
   1358                  2 ->}
   1359 
   1360    In this example, the function was called twice, passing once through
   1361 each branch of the `if' statement.  The body of the `do' loop was
   1362 executed a total of 26312 times.  Note how the `while' statement is
   1363 annotated.  It began execution 26312 times, once for each iteration
   1364 through the loop.  One of those times (the last time) it exited, while
   1365 it branched back to the beginning of the loop 26311 times.
   1366 
   1367 
   1368 File: gprof.info,  Node: Inaccuracy,  Next: How do I?,  Prev: Output,  Up: Top
   1369 
   1370 6 Inaccuracy of `gprof' Output
   1371 ******************************
   1372 
   1373 * Menu:
   1374 
   1375 * Sampling Error::      Statistical margins of error
   1376 * Assumptions::         Estimating children times
   1377 
   1378 
   1379 File: gprof.info,  Node: Sampling Error,  Next: Assumptions,  Up: Inaccuracy
   1380 
   1381 6.1 Statistical Sampling Error
   1382 ==============================
   1383 
   1384 The run-time figures that `gprof' gives you are based on a sampling
   1385 process, so they are subject to statistical inaccuracy.  If a function
   1386 runs only a small amount of time, so that on the average the sampling
   1387 process ought to catch that function in the act only once, there is a
   1388 pretty good chance it will actually find that function zero times, or
   1389 twice.
   1390 
   1391    By contrast, the number-of-calls and basic-block figures are derived
   1392 by counting, not sampling.  They are completely accurate and will not
   1393 vary from run to run if your program is deterministic and single
   1394 threaded.  In multi-threaded applications, or single threaded
   1395 applications that link with multi-threaded libraries, the counts are
   1396 only deterministic if the counting function is thread-safe.  (Note:
   1397 beware that the mcount counting function in glibc is _not_
   1398 thread-safe).  *Note Implementation of Profiling: Implementation.
   1399 
   1400    The "sampling period" that is printed at the beginning of the flat
   1401 profile says how often samples are taken.  The rule of thumb is that a
   1402 run-time figure is accurate if it is considerably bigger than the
   1403 sampling period.
   1404 
   1405    The actual amount of error can be predicted.  For N samples, the
   1406 _expected_ error is the square-root of N.  For example, if the sampling
   1407 period is 0.01 seconds and `foo''s run-time is 1 second, N is 100
   1408 samples (1 second/0.01 seconds), sqrt(N) is 10 samples, so the expected
   1409 error in `foo''s run-time is 0.1 seconds (10*0.01 seconds), or ten
   1410 percent of the observed value.  Again, if the sampling period is 0.01
   1411 seconds and `bar''s run-time is 100 seconds, N is 10000 samples,
   1412 sqrt(N) is 100 samples, so the expected error in `bar''s run-time is 1
   1413 second, or one percent of the observed value.  It is likely to vary
   1414 this much _on the average_ from one profiling run to the next.
   1415 (_Sometimes_ it will vary more.)
   1416 
   1417    This does not mean that a small run-time figure is devoid of
   1418 information.  If the program's _total_ run-time is large, a small
   1419 run-time for one function does tell you that that function used an
   1420 insignificant fraction of the whole program's time.  Usually this means
   1421 it is not worth optimizing.
   1422 
   1423    One way to get more accuracy is to give your program more (but
   1424 similar) input data so it will take longer.  Another way is to combine
   1425 the data from several runs, using the `-s' option of `gprof'.  Here is
   1426 how:
   1427 
   1428   1. Run your program once.
   1429 
   1430   2. Issue the command `mv gmon.out gmon.sum'.
   1431 
   1432   3. Run your program again, the same as before.
   1433 
   1434   4. Merge the new data in `gmon.out' into `gmon.sum' with this command:
   1435 
   1436           gprof -s EXECUTABLE-FILE gmon.out gmon.sum
   1437 
   1438   5. Repeat the last two steps as often as you wish.
   1439 
   1440   6. Analyze the cumulative data using this command:
   1441 
   1442           gprof EXECUTABLE-FILE gmon.sum > OUTPUT-FILE
   1443 
   1444 
   1445 File: gprof.info,  Node: Assumptions,  Prev: Sampling Error,  Up: Inaccuracy
   1446 
   1447 6.2 Estimating `children' Times
   1448 ===============================
   1449 
   1450 Some of the figures in the call graph are estimates--for example, the
   1451 `children' time values and all the time figures in caller and
   1452 subroutine lines.
   1453 
   1454    There is no direct information about these measurements in the
   1455 profile data itself.  Instead, `gprof' estimates them by making an
   1456 assumption about your program that might or might not be true.
   1457 
   1458    The assumption made is that the average time spent in each call to
   1459 any function `foo' is not correlated with who called `foo'.  If `foo'
   1460 used 5 seconds in all, and 2/5 of the calls to `foo' came from `a',
   1461 then `foo' contributes 2 seconds to `a''s `children' time, by
   1462 assumption.
   1463 
   1464    This assumption is usually true enough, but for some programs it is
   1465 far from true.  Suppose that `foo' returns very quickly when its
   1466 argument is zero; suppose that `a' always passes zero as an argument,
   1467 while other callers of `foo' pass other arguments.  In this program,
   1468 all the time spent in `foo' is in the calls from callers other than `a'.
   1469 But `gprof' has no way of knowing this; it will blindly and incorrectly
   1470 charge 2 seconds of time in `foo' to the children of `a'.
   1471 
   1472    We hope some day to put more complete data into `gmon.out', so that
   1473 this assumption is no longer needed, if we can figure out how.  For the
   1474 novice, the estimated figures are usually more useful than misleading.
   1475 
   1476 
   1477 File: gprof.info,  Node: How do I?,  Next: Incompatibilities,  Prev: Inaccuracy,  Up: Top
   1478 
   1479 7 Answers to Common Questions
   1480 *****************************
   1481 
   1482 How can I get more exact information about hot spots in my program?
   1483      Looking at the per-line call counts only tells part of the story.
   1484      Because `gprof' can only report call times and counts by function,
   1485      the best way to get finer-grained information on where the program
   1486      is spending its time is to re-factor large functions into sequences
   1487      of calls to smaller ones.  Beware however that this can introduce
   1488      artificial hot spots since compiling with `-pg' adds a significant
   1489      overhead to function calls.  An alternative solution is to use a
   1490      non-intrusive profiler, e.g. oprofile.
   1491 
   1492 How do I find which lines in my program were executed the most times?
   1493      Use the `gcov' program.
   1494 
   1495 How do I find which lines in my program called a particular function?
   1496      Use `gprof -l' and lookup the function in the call graph.  The
   1497      callers will be broken down by function and line number.
   1498 
   1499 How do I analyze a program that runs for less than a second?
   1500      Try using a shell script like this one:
   1501 
   1502           for i in `seq 1 100`; do
   1503             fastprog
   1504             mv gmon.out gmon.out.$i
   1505           done
   1506 
   1507           gprof -s fastprog gmon.out.*
   1508 
   1509           gprof fastprog gmon.sum
   1510 
   1511      If your program is completely deterministic, all the call counts
   1512      will be simple multiples of 100 (i.e., a function called once in
   1513      each run will appear with a call count of 100).
   1514 
   1515 
   1516 
   1517 File: gprof.info,  Node: Incompatibilities,  Next: Details,  Prev: How do I?,  Up: Top
   1518 
   1519 8 Incompatibilities with Unix `gprof'
   1520 *************************************
   1521 
   1522 GNU `gprof' and Berkeley Unix `gprof' use the same data file
   1523 `gmon.out', and provide essentially the same information.  But there
   1524 are a few differences.
   1525 
   1526    * GNU `gprof' uses a new, generalized file format with support for
   1527      basic-block execution counts and non-realtime histograms.  A magic
   1528      cookie and version number allows `gprof' to easily identify new
   1529      style files.  Old BSD-style files can still be read.  *Note
   1530      Profiling Data File Format: File Format.
   1531 
   1532    * For a recursive function, Unix `gprof' lists the function as a
   1533      parent and as a child, with a `calls' field that lists the number
   1534      of recursive calls.  GNU `gprof' omits these lines and puts the
   1535      number of recursive calls in the primary line.
   1536 
   1537    * When a function is suppressed from the call graph with `-e', GNU
   1538      `gprof' still lists it as a subroutine of functions that call it.
   1539 
   1540    * GNU `gprof' accepts the `-k' with its argument in the form
   1541      `from/to', instead of `from to'.
   1542 
   1543    * In the annotated source listing, if there are multiple basic
   1544      blocks on the same line, GNU `gprof' prints all of their counts,
   1545      separated by commas.
   1546 
   1547    * The blurbs, field widths, and output formats are different.  GNU
   1548      `gprof' prints blurbs after the tables, so that you can see the
   1549      tables without skipping the blurbs.
   1550 
   1551 
   1552 File: gprof.info,  Node: Details,  Next: GNU Free Documentation License,  Prev: Incompatibilities,  Up: Top
   1553 
   1554 9 Details of Profiling
   1555 **********************
   1556 
   1557 * Menu:
   1558 
   1559 * Implementation::      How a program collects profiling information
   1560 * File Format::         Format of `gmon.out' files
   1561 * Internals::           `gprof''s internal operation
   1562 * Debugging::           Using `gprof''s `-d' option
   1563 
   1564 
   1565 File: gprof.info,  Node: Implementation,  Next: File Format,  Up: Details
   1566 
   1567 9.1 Implementation of Profiling
   1568 ===============================
   1569 
   1570 Profiling works by changing how every function in your program is
   1571 compiled so that when it is called, it will stash away some information
   1572 about where it was called from.  From this, the profiler can figure out
   1573 what function called it, and can count how many times it was called.
   1574 This change is made by the compiler when your program is compiled with
   1575 the `-pg' option, which causes every function to call `mcount' (or
   1576 `_mcount', or `__mcount', depending on the OS and compiler) as one of
   1577 its first operations.
   1578 
   1579    The `mcount' routine, included in the profiling library, is
   1580 responsible for recording in an in-memory call graph table both its
   1581 parent routine (the child) and its parent's parent.  This is typically
   1582 done by examining the stack frame to find both the address of the
   1583 child, and the return address in the original parent.  Since this is a
   1584 very machine-dependent operation, `mcount' itself is typically a short
   1585 assembly-language stub routine that extracts the required information,
   1586 and then calls `__mcount_internal' (a normal C function) with two
   1587 arguments--`frompc' and `selfpc'.  `__mcount_internal' is responsible
   1588 for maintaining the in-memory call graph, which records `frompc',
   1589 `selfpc', and the number of times each of these call arcs was traversed.
   1590 
   1591    GCC Version 2 provides a magical function
   1592 (`__builtin_return_address'), which allows a generic `mcount' function
   1593 to extract the required information from the stack frame.  However, on
   1594 some architectures, most notably the SPARC, using this builtin can be
   1595 very computationally expensive, and an assembly language version of
   1596 `mcount' is used for performance reasons.
   1597 
   1598    Number-of-calls information for library routines is collected by
   1599 using a special version of the C library.  The programs in it are the
   1600 same as in the usual C library, but they were compiled with `-pg'.  If
   1601 you link your program with `gcc ... -pg', it automatically uses the
   1602 profiling version of the library.
   1603 
   1604    Profiling also involves watching your program as it runs, and
   1605 keeping a histogram of where the program counter happens to be every
   1606 now and then.  Typically the program counter is looked at around 100
   1607 times per second of run time, but the exact frequency may vary from
   1608 system to system.
   1609 
   1610    This is done is one of two ways.  Most UNIX-like operating systems
   1611 provide a `profil()' system call, which registers a memory array with
   1612 the kernel, along with a scale factor that determines how the program's
   1613 address space maps into the array.  Typical scaling values cause every
   1614 2 to 8 bytes of address space to map into a single array slot.  On
   1615 every tick of the system clock (assuming the profiled program is
   1616 running), the value of the program counter is examined and the
   1617 corresponding slot in the memory array is incremented.  Since this is
   1618 done in the kernel, which had to interrupt the process anyway to handle
   1619 the clock interrupt, very little additional system overhead is required.
   1620 
   1621    However, some operating systems, most notably Linux 2.0 (and
   1622 earlier), do not provide a `profil()' system call.  On such a system,
   1623 arrangements are made for the kernel to periodically deliver a signal
   1624 to the process (typically via `setitimer()'), which then performs the
   1625 same operation of examining the program counter and incrementing a slot
   1626 in the memory array.  Since this method requires a signal to be
   1627 delivered to user space every time a sample is taken, it uses
   1628 considerably more overhead than kernel-based profiling.  Also, due to
   1629 the added delay required to deliver the signal, this method is less
   1630 accurate as well.
   1631 
   1632    A special startup routine allocates memory for the histogram and
   1633 either calls `profil()' or sets up a clock signal handler.  This
   1634 routine (`monstartup') can be invoked in several ways.  On Linux
   1635 systems, a special profiling startup file `gcrt0.o', which invokes
   1636 `monstartup' before `main', is used instead of the default `crt0.o'.
   1637 Use of this special startup file is one of the effects of using `gcc
   1638 ... -pg' to link.  On SPARC systems, no special startup files are used.
   1639 Rather, the `mcount' routine, when it is invoked for the first time
   1640 (typically when `main' is called), calls `monstartup'.
   1641 
   1642    If the compiler's `-a' option was used, basic-block counting is also
   1643 enabled.  Each object file is then compiled with a static array of
   1644 counts, initially zero.  In the executable code, every time a new
   1645 basic-block begins (i.e., when an `if' statement appears), an extra
   1646 instruction is inserted to increment the corresponding count in the
   1647 array.  At compile time, a paired array was constructed that recorded
   1648 the starting address of each basic-block.  Taken together, the two
   1649 arrays record the starting address of every basic-block, along with the
   1650 number of times it was executed.
   1651 
   1652    The profiling library also includes a function (`mcleanup') which is
   1653 typically registered using `atexit()' to be called as the program
   1654 exits, and is responsible for writing the file `gmon.out'.  Profiling
   1655 is turned off, various headers are output, and the histogram is
   1656 written, followed by the call-graph arcs and the basic-block counts.
   1657 
   1658    The output from `gprof' gives no indication of parts of your program
   1659 that are limited by I/O or swapping bandwidth.  This is because samples
   1660 of the program counter are taken at fixed intervals of the program's
   1661 run time.  Therefore, the time measurements in `gprof' output say
   1662 nothing about time that your program was not running.  For example, a
   1663 part of the program that creates so much data that it cannot all fit in
   1664 physical memory at once may run very slowly due to thrashing, but
   1665 `gprof' will say it uses little time.  On the other hand, sampling by
   1666 run time has the advantage that the amount of load due to other users
   1667 won't directly affect the output you get.
   1668 
   1669 
   1670 File: gprof.info,  Node: File Format,  Next: Internals,  Prev: Implementation,  Up: Details
   1671 
   1672 9.2 Profiling Data File Format
   1673 ==============================
   1674 
   1675 The old BSD-derived file format used for profile data does not contain a
   1676 magic cookie that allows to check whether a data file really is a
   1677 `gprof' file.  Furthermore, it does not provide a version number, thus
   1678 rendering changes to the file format almost impossible.  GNU `gprof'
   1679 uses a new file format that provides these features.  For backward
   1680 compatibility, GNU `gprof' continues to support the old BSD-derived
   1681 format, but not all features are supported with it.  For example,
   1682 basic-block execution counts cannot be accommodated by the old file
   1683 format.
   1684 
   1685    The new file format is defined in header file `gmon_out.h'.  It
   1686 consists of a header containing the magic cookie and a version number,
   1687 as well as some spare bytes available for future extensions.  All data
   1688 in a profile data file is in the native format of the target for which
   1689 the profile was collected.  GNU `gprof' adapts automatically to the
   1690 byte-order in use.
   1691 
   1692    In the new file format, the header is followed by a sequence of
   1693 records.  Currently, there are three different record types: histogram
   1694 records, call-graph arc records, and basic-block execution count
   1695 records.  Each file can contain any number of each record type.  When
   1696 reading a file, GNU `gprof' will ensure records of the same type are
   1697 compatible with each other and compute the union of all records.  For
   1698 example, for basic-block execution counts, the union is simply the sum
   1699 of all execution counts for each basic-block.
   1700 
   1701 9.2.1 Histogram Records
   1702 -----------------------
   1703 
   1704 Histogram records consist of a header that is followed by an array of
   1705 bins.  The header contains the text-segment range that the histogram
   1706 spans, the size of the histogram in bytes (unlike in the old BSD
   1707 format, this does not include the size of the header), the rate of the
   1708 profiling clock, and the physical dimension that the bin counts
   1709 represent after being scaled by the profiling clock rate.  The physical
   1710 dimension is specified in two parts: a long name of up to 15 characters
   1711 and a single character abbreviation.  For example, a histogram
   1712 representing real-time would specify the long name as "seconds" and the
   1713 abbreviation as "s".  This feature is useful for architectures that
   1714 support performance monitor hardware (which, fortunately, is becoming
   1715 increasingly common).  For example, under DEC OSF/1, the "uprofile"
   1716 command can be used to produce a histogram of, say, instruction cache
   1717 misses.  In this case, the dimension in the histogram header could be
   1718 set to "i-cache misses" and the abbreviation could be set to "1"
   1719 (because it is simply a count, not a physical dimension).  Also, the
   1720 profiling rate would have to be set to 1 in this case.
   1721 
   1722    Histogram bins are 16-bit numbers and each bin represent an equal
   1723 amount of text-space.  For example, if the text-segment is one thousand
   1724 bytes long and if there are ten bins in the histogram, each bin
   1725 represents one hundred bytes.
   1726 
   1727 9.2.2 Call-Graph Records
   1728 ------------------------
   1729 
   1730 Call-graph records have a format that is identical to the one used in
   1731 the BSD-derived file format.  It consists of an arc in the call graph
   1732 and a count indicating the number of times the arc was traversed during
   1733 program execution.  Arcs are specified by a pair of addresses: the
   1734 first must be within caller's function and the second must be within
   1735 the callee's function.  When performing profiling at the function
   1736 level, these addresses can point anywhere within the respective
   1737 function.  However, when profiling at the line-level, it is better if
   1738 the addresses are as close to the call-site/entry-point as possible.
   1739 This will ensure that the line-level call-graph is able to identify
   1740 exactly which line of source code performed calls to a function.
   1741 
   1742 9.2.3 Basic-Block Execution Count Records
   1743 -----------------------------------------
   1744 
   1745 Basic-block execution count records consist of a header followed by a
   1746 sequence of address/count pairs.  The header simply specifies the
   1747 length of the sequence.  In an address/count pair, the address
   1748 identifies a basic-block and the count specifies the number of times
   1749 that basic-block was executed.  Any address within the basic-address can
   1750 be used.
   1751 
   1752 
   1753 File: gprof.info,  Node: Internals,  Next: Debugging,  Prev: File Format,  Up: Details
   1754 
   1755 9.3 `gprof''s Internal Operation
   1756 ================================
   1757 
   1758 Like most programs, `gprof' begins by processing its options.  During
   1759 this stage, it may building its symspec list (`sym_ids.c:sym_id_add'),
   1760 if options are specified which use symspecs.  `gprof' maintains a
   1761 single linked list of symspecs, which will eventually get turned into
   1762 12 symbol tables, organized into six include/exclude pairs--one pair
   1763 each for the flat profile (INCL_FLAT/EXCL_FLAT), the call graph arcs
   1764 (INCL_ARCS/EXCL_ARCS), printing in the call graph
   1765 (INCL_GRAPH/EXCL_GRAPH), timing propagation in the call graph
   1766 (INCL_TIME/EXCL_TIME), the annotated source listing
   1767 (INCL_ANNO/EXCL_ANNO), and the execution count listing
   1768 (INCL_EXEC/EXCL_EXEC).
   1769 
   1770    After option processing, `gprof' finishes building the symspec list
   1771 by adding all the symspecs in `default_excluded_list' to the exclude
   1772 lists EXCL_TIME and EXCL_GRAPH, and if line-by-line profiling is
   1773 specified, EXCL_FLAT as well.  These default excludes are not added to
   1774 EXCL_ANNO, EXCL_ARCS, and EXCL_EXEC.
   1775 
   1776    Next, the BFD library is called to open the object file, verify that
   1777 it is an object file, and read its symbol table (`core.c:core_init'),
   1778 using `bfd_canonicalize_symtab' after mallocing an appropriately sized
   1779 array of symbols.  At this point, function mappings are read (if the
   1780 `--file-ordering' option has been specified), and the core text space
   1781 is read into memory (if the `-c' option was given).
   1782 
   1783    `gprof''s own symbol table, an array of Sym structures, is now built.
   1784 This is done in one of two ways, by one of two routines, depending on
   1785 whether line-by-line profiling (`-l' option) has been enabled.  For
   1786 normal profiling, the BFD canonical symbol table is scanned.  For
   1787 line-by-line profiling, every text space address is examined, and a new
   1788 symbol table entry gets created every time the line number changes.  In
   1789 either case, two passes are made through the symbol table--one to count
   1790 the size of the symbol table required, and the other to actually read
   1791 the symbols.  In between the two passes, a single array of type `Sym'
   1792 is created of the appropriate length.  Finally,
   1793 `symtab.c:symtab_finalize' is called to sort the symbol table and
   1794 remove duplicate entries (entries with the same memory address).
   1795 
   1796    The symbol table must be a contiguous array for two reasons.  First,
   1797 the `qsort' library function (which sorts an array) will be used to
   1798 sort the symbol table.  Also, the symbol lookup routine
   1799 (`symtab.c:sym_lookup'), which finds symbols based on memory address,
   1800 uses a binary search algorithm which requires the symbol table to be a
   1801 sorted array.  Function symbols are indicated with an `is_func' flag.
   1802 Line number symbols have no special flags set.  Additionally, a symbol
   1803 can have an `is_static' flag to indicate that it is a local symbol.
   1804 
   1805    With the symbol table read, the symspecs can now be translated into
   1806 Syms (`sym_ids.c:sym_id_parse').  Remember that a single symspec can
   1807 match multiple symbols.  An array of symbol tables (`syms') is created,
   1808 each entry of which is a symbol table of Syms to be included or
   1809 excluded from a particular listing.  The master symbol table and the
   1810 symspecs are examined by nested loops, and every symbol that matches a
   1811 symspec is inserted into the appropriate syms table.  This is done
   1812 twice, once to count the size of each required symbol table, and again
   1813 to build the tables, which have been malloced between passes.  From now
   1814 on, to determine whether a symbol is on an include or exclude symspec
   1815 list, `gprof' simply uses its standard symbol lookup routine on the
   1816 appropriate table in the `syms' array.
   1817 
   1818    Now the profile data file(s) themselves are read
   1819 (`gmon_io.c:gmon_out_read'), first by checking for a new-style
   1820 `gmon.out' header, then assuming this is an old-style BSD `gmon.out' if
   1821 the magic number test failed.
   1822 
   1823    New-style histogram records are read by `hist.c:hist_read_rec'.  For
   1824 the first histogram record, allocate a memory array to hold all the
   1825 bins, and read them in.  When multiple profile data files (or files
   1826 with multiple histogram records) are read, the memory ranges of each
   1827 pair of histogram records must be either equal, or non-overlapping.
   1828 For each pair of histogram records, the resolution (memory region size
   1829 divided by the number of bins) must be the same.  The time unit must be
   1830 the same for all histogram records. If the above containts are met, all
   1831 histograms for the same memory range are merged.
   1832 
   1833    As each call graph record is read (`call_graph.c:cg_read_rec'), the
   1834 parent and child addresses are matched to symbol table entries, and a
   1835 call graph arc is created by `cg_arcs.c:arc_add', unless the arc fails
   1836 a symspec check against INCL_ARCS/EXCL_ARCS.  As each arc is added, a
   1837 linked list is maintained of the parent's child arcs, and of the child's
   1838 parent arcs.  Both the child's call count and the arc's call count are
   1839 incremented by the record's call count.
   1840 
   1841    Basic-block records are read (`basic_blocks.c:bb_read_rec'), but
   1842 only if line-by-line profiling has been selected.  Each basic-block
   1843 address is matched to a corresponding line symbol in the symbol table,
   1844 and an entry made in the symbol's bb_addr and bb_calls arrays.  Again,
   1845 if multiple basic-block records are present for the same address, the
   1846 call counts are cumulative.
   1847 
   1848    A gmon.sum file is dumped, if requested (`gmon_io.c:gmon_out_write').
   1849 
   1850    If histograms were present in the data files, assign them to symbols
   1851 (`hist.c:hist_assign_samples') by iterating over all the sample bins
   1852 and assigning them to symbols.  Since the symbol table is sorted in
   1853 order of ascending memory addresses, we can simple follow along in the
   1854 symbol table as we make our pass over the sample bins.  This step
   1855 includes a symspec check against INCL_FLAT/EXCL_FLAT.  Depending on the
   1856 histogram scale factor, a sample bin may span multiple symbols, in
   1857 which case a fraction of the sample count is allocated to each symbol,
   1858 proportional to the degree of overlap.  This effect is rare for normal
   1859 profiling, but overlaps are more common during line-by-line profiling,
   1860 and can cause each of two adjacent lines to be credited with half a
   1861 hit, for example.
   1862 
   1863    If call graph data is present, `cg_arcs.c:cg_assemble' is called.
   1864 First, if `-c' was specified, a machine-dependent routine (`find_call')
   1865 scans through each symbol's machine code, looking for subroutine call
   1866 instructions, and adding them to the call graph with a zero call count.
   1867 A topological sort is performed by depth-first numbering all the
   1868 symbols (`cg_dfn.c:cg_dfn'), so that children are always numbered less
   1869 than their parents, then making a array of pointers into the symbol
   1870 table and sorting it into numerical order, which is reverse topological
   1871 order (children appear before parents).  Cycles are also detected at
   1872 this point, all members of which are assigned the same topological
   1873 number.  Two passes are now made through this sorted array of symbol
   1874 pointers.  The first pass, from end to beginning (parents to children),
   1875 computes the fraction of child time to propagate to each parent and a
   1876 print flag.  The print flag reflects symspec handling of
   1877 INCL_GRAPH/EXCL_GRAPH, with a parent's include or exclude (print or no
   1878 print) property being propagated to its children, unless they
   1879 themselves explicitly appear in INCL_GRAPH or EXCL_GRAPH.  A second
   1880 pass, from beginning to end (children to parents) actually propagates
   1881 the timings along the call graph, subject to a check against
   1882 INCL_TIME/EXCL_TIME.  With the print flag, fractions, and timings now
   1883 stored in the symbol structures, the topological sort array is now
   1884 discarded, and a new array of pointers is assembled, this time sorted
   1885 by propagated time.
   1886 
   1887    Finally, print the various outputs the user requested, which is now
   1888 fairly straightforward.  The call graph (`cg_print.c:cg_print') and
   1889 flat profile (`hist.c:hist_print') are regurgitations of values already
   1890 computed.  The annotated source listing
   1891 (`basic_blocks.c:print_annotated_source') uses basic-block information,
   1892 if present, to label each line of code with call counts, otherwise only
   1893 the function call counts are presented.
   1894 
   1895    The function ordering code is marginally well documented in the
   1896 source code itself (`cg_print.c').  Basically, the functions with the
   1897 most use and the most parents are placed first, followed by other
   1898 functions with the most use, followed by lower use functions, followed
   1899 by unused functions at the end.
   1900 
   1901 
   1902 File: gprof.info,  Node: Debugging,  Prev: Internals,  Up: Details
   1903 
   1904 9.4 Debugging `gprof'
   1905 =====================
   1906 
   1907 If `gprof' was compiled with debugging enabled, the `-d' option
   1908 triggers debugging output (to stdout) which can be helpful in
   1909 understanding its operation.  The debugging number specified is
   1910 interpreted as a sum of the following options:
   1911 
   1912 2 - Topological sort
   1913      Monitor depth-first numbering of symbols during call graph analysis
   1914 
   1915 4 - Cycles
   1916      Shows symbols as they are identified as cycle heads
   1917 
   1918 16 - Tallying
   1919      As the call graph arcs are read, show each arc and how the total
   1920      calls to each function are tallied
   1921 
   1922 32 - Call graph arc sorting
   1923      Details sorting individual parents/children within each call graph
   1924      entry
   1925 
   1926 64 - Reading histogram and call graph records
   1927      Shows address ranges of histograms as they are read, and each call
   1928      graph arc
   1929 
   1930 128 - Symbol table
   1931      Reading, classifying, and sorting the symbol table from the object
   1932      file.  For line-by-line profiling (`-l' option), also shows line
   1933      numbers being assigned to memory addresses.
   1934 
   1935 256 - Static call graph
   1936      Trace operation of `-c' option
   1937 
   1938 512 - Symbol table and arc table lookups
   1939      Detail operation of lookup routines
   1940 
   1941 1024 - Call graph propagation
   1942      Shows how function times are propagated along the call graph
   1943 
   1944 2048 - Basic-blocks
   1945      Shows basic-block records as they are read from profile data (only
   1946      meaningful with `-l' option)
   1947 
   1948 4096 - Symspecs
   1949      Shows symspec-to-symbol pattern matching operation
   1950 
   1951 8192 - Annotate source
   1952      Tracks operation of `-A' option
   1953 
   1954 
   1955 File: gprof.info,  Node: GNU Free Documentation License,  Prev: Details,  Up: Top
   1956 
   1957 Appendix A GNU Free Documentation License
   1958 *****************************************
   1959 
   1960                      Version 1.3, 3 November 2008
   1961 
   1962      Copyright (C) 2000, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2008 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
   1963      `http://fsf.org/'
   1964 
   1965      Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies
   1966      of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.
   1967 
   1968   0. PREAMBLE
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   1977 
   1978      This License is a kind of "copyleft", which means that derivative
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   1981      license designed for free software.
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   1983      We have designed this License in order to use it for manuals for
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   2084   2. VERBATIM COPYING
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   2130      this Transparent copy will remain thus accessible at the stated
   2131      location until at least one year after the last time you
   2132      distribute an Opaque copy (directly or through your agents or
   2133      retailers) of that edition to the public.
   2134 
   2135      It is requested, but not required, that you contact the authors of
   2136      the Document well before redistributing any large number of
   2137      copies, to give them a chance to provide you with an updated
   2138      version of the Document.
   2139 
   2140   4. MODIFICATIONS
   2141 
   2142      You may copy and distribute a Modified Version of the Document
   2143      under the conditions of sections 2 and 3 above, provided that you
   2144      release the Modified Version under precisely this License, with
   2145      the Modified Version filling the role of the Document, thus
   2146      licensing distribution and modification of the Modified Version to
   2147      whoever possesses a copy of it.  In addition, you must do these
   2148      things in the Modified Version:
   2149 
   2150        A. Use in the Title Page (and on the covers, if any) a title
   2151           distinct from that of the Document, and from those of
   2152           previous versions (which should, if there were any, be listed
   2153           in the History section of the Document).  You may use the
   2154           same title as a previous version if the original publisher of
   2155           that version gives permission.
   2156 
   2157        B. List on the Title Page, as authors, one or more persons or
   2158           entities responsible for authorship of the modifications in
   2159           the Modified Version, together with at least five of the
   2160           principal authors of the Document (all of its principal
   2161           authors, if it has fewer than five), unless they release you
   2162           from this requirement.
   2163 
   2164        C. State on the Title page the name of the publisher of the
   2165           Modified Version, as the publisher.
   2166 
   2167        D. Preserve all the copyright notices of the Document.
   2168 
   2169        E. Add an appropriate copyright notice for your modifications
   2170           adjacent to the other copyright notices.
   2171 
   2172        F. Include, immediately after the copyright notices, a license
   2173           notice giving the public permission to use the Modified
   2174           Version under the terms of this License, in the form shown in
   2175           the Addendum below.
   2176 
   2177        G. Preserve in that license notice the full lists of Invariant
   2178           Sections and required Cover Texts given in the Document's
   2179           license notice.
   2180 
   2181        H. Include an unaltered copy of this License.
   2182 
   2183        I. Preserve the section Entitled "History", Preserve its Title,
   2184           and add to it an item stating at least the title, year, new
   2185           authors, and publisher of the Modified Version as given on
   2186           the Title Page.  If there is no section Entitled "History" in
   2187           the Document, create one stating the title, year, authors,
   2188           and publisher of the Document as given on its Title Page,
   2189           then add an item describing the Modified Version as stated in
   2190           the previous sentence.
   2191 
   2192        J. Preserve the network location, if any, given in the Document
   2193           for public access to a Transparent copy of the Document, and
   2194           likewise the network locations given in the Document for
   2195           previous versions it was based on.  These may be placed in
   2196           the "History" section.  You may omit a network location for a
   2197           work that was published at least four years before the
   2198           Document itself, or if the original publisher of the version
   2199           it refers to gives permission.
   2200 
   2201        K. For any section Entitled "Acknowledgements" or "Dedications",
   2202           Preserve the Title of the section, and preserve in the
   2203           section all the substance and tone of each of the contributor
   2204           acknowledgements and/or dedications given therein.
   2205 
   2206        L. Preserve all the Invariant Sections of the Document,
   2207           unaltered in their text and in their titles.  Section numbers
   2208           or the equivalent are not considered part of the section
   2209           titles.
   2210 
   2211        M. Delete any section Entitled "Endorsements".  Such a section
   2212           may not be included in the Modified Version.
   2213 
   2214        N. Do not retitle any existing section to be Entitled
   2215           "Endorsements" or to conflict in title with any Invariant
   2216           Section.
   2217 
   2218        O. Preserve any Warranty Disclaimers.
   2219 
   2220      If the Modified Version includes new front-matter sections or
   2221      appendices that qualify as Secondary Sections and contain no
   2222      material copied from the Document, you may at your option
   2223      designate some or all of these sections as invariant.  To do this,
   2224      add their titles to the list of Invariant Sections in the Modified
   2225      Version's license notice.  These titles must be distinct from any
   2226      other section titles.
   2227 
   2228      You may add a section Entitled "Endorsements", provided it contains
   2229      nothing but endorsements of your Modified Version by various
   2230      parties--for example, statements of peer review or that the text
   2231      has been approved by an organization as the authoritative
   2232      definition of a standard.
   2233 
   2234      You may add a passage of up to five words as a Front-Cover Text,
   2235      and a passage of up to 25 words as a Back-Cover Text, to the end
   2236      of the list of Cover Texts in the Modified Version.  Only one
   2237      passage of Front-Cover Text and one of Back-Cover Text may be
   2238      added by (or through arrangements made by) any one entity.  If the
   2239      Document already includes a cover text for the same cover,
   2240      previously added by you or by arrangement made by the same entity
   2241      you are acting on behalf of, you may not add another; but you may
   2242      replace the old one, on explicit permission from the previous
   2243      publisher that added the old one.
   2244 
   2245      The author(s) and publisher(s) of the Document do not by this
   2246      License give permission to use their names for publicity for or to
   2247      assert or imply endorsement of any Modified Version.
   2248 
   2249   5. COMBINING DOCUMENTS
   2250 
   2251      You may combine the Document with other documents released under
   2252      this License, under the terms defined in section 4 above for
   2253      modified versions, provided that you include in the combination
   2254      all of the Invariant Sections of all of the original documents,
   2255      unmodified, and list them all as Invariant Sections of your
   2256      combined work in its license notice, and that you preserve all
   2257      their Warranty Disclaimers.
   2258 
   2259      The combined work need only contain one copy of this License, and
   2260      multiple identical Invariant Sections may be replaced with a single
   2261      copy.  If there are multiple Invariant Sections with the same name
   2262      but different contents, make the title of each such section unique
   2263      by adding at the end of it, in parentheses, the name of the
   2264      original author or publisher of that section if known, or else a
   2265      unique number.  Make the same adjustment to the section titles in
   2266      the list of Invariant Sections in the license notice of the
   2267      combined work.
   2268 
   2269      In the combination, you must combine any sections Entitled
   2270      "History" in the various original documents, forming one section
   2271      Entitled "History"; likewise combine any sections Entitled
   2272      "Acknowledgements", and any sections Entitled "Dedications".  You
   2273      must delete all sections Entitled "Endorsements."
   2274 
   2275   6. COLLECTIONS OF DOCUMENTS
   2276 
   2277      You may make a collection consisting of the Document and other
   2278      documents released under this License, and replace the individual
   2279      copies of this License in the various documents with a single copy
   2280      that is included in the collection, provided that you follow the
   2281      rules of this License for verbatim copying of each of the
   2282      documents in all other respects.
   2283 
   2284      You may extract a single document from such a collection, and
   2285      distribute it individually under this License, provided you insert
   2286      a copy of this License into the extracted document, and follow
   2287      this License in all other respects regarding verbatim copying of
   2288      that document.
   2289 
   2290   7. AGGREGATION WITH INDEPENDENT WORKS
   2291 
   2292      A compilation of the Document or its derivatives with other
   2293      separate and independent documents or works, in or on a volume of
   2294      a storage or distribution medium, is called an "aggregate" if the
   2295      copyright resulting from the compilation is not used to limit the
   2296      legal rights of the compilation's users beyond what the individual
   2297      works permit.  When the Document is included in an aggregate, this
   2298      License does not apply to the other works in the aggregate which
   2299      are not themselves derivative works of the Document.
   2300 
   2301      If the Cover Text requirement of section 3 is applicable to these
   2302      copies of the Document, then if the Document is less than one half
   2303      of the entire aggregate, the Document's Cover Texts may be placed
   2304      on covers that bracket the Document within the aggregate, or the
   2305      electronic equivalent of covers if the Document is in electronic
   2306      form.  Otherwise they must appear on printed covers that bracket
   2307      the whole aggregate.
   2308 
   2309   8. TRANSLATION
   2310 
   2311      Translation is considered a kind of modification, so you may
   2312      distribute translations of the Document under the terms of section
   2313      4.  Replacing Invariant Sections with translations requires special
   2314      permission from their copyright holders, but you may include
   2315      translations of some or all Invariant Sections in addition to the
   2316      original versions of these Invariant Sections.  You may include a
   2317      translation of this License, and all the license notices in the
   2318      Document, and any Warranty Disclaimers, provided that you also
   2319      include the original English version of this License and the
   2320      original versions of those notices and disclaimers.  In case of a
   2321      disagreement between the translation and the original version of
   2322      this License or a notice or disclaimer, the original version will
   2323      prevail.
   2324 
   2325      If a section in the Document is Entitled "Acknowledgements",
   2326      "Dedications", or "History", the requirement (section 4) to
   2327      Preserve its Title (section 1) will typically require changing the
   2328      actual title.
   2329 
   2330   9. TERMINATION
   2331 
   2332      You may not copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute the Document
   2333      except as expressly provided under this License.  Any attempt
   2334      otherwise to copy, modify, sublicense, or distribute it is void,
   2335      and will automatically terminate your rights under this License.
   2336 
   2337      However, if you cease all violation of this License, then your
   2338      license from a particular copyright holder is reinstated (a)
   2339      provisionally, unless and until the copyright holder explicitly
   2340      and finally terminates your license, and (b) permanently, if the
   2341      copyright holder fails to notify you of the violation by some
   2342      reasonable means prior to 60 days after the cessation.
   2343 
   2344      Moreover, your license from a particular copyright holder is
   2345      reinstated permanently if the copyright holder notifies you of the
   2346      violation by some reasonable means, this is the first time you have
   2347      received notice of violation of this License (for any work) from
   2348      that copyright holder, and you cure the violation prior to 30 days
   2349      after your receipt of the notice.
   2350 
   2351      Termination of your rights under this section does not terminate
   2352      the licenses of parties who have received copies or rights from
   2353      you under this License.  If your rights have been terminated and
   2354      not permanently reinstated, receipt of a copy of some or all of
   2355      the same material does not give you any rights to use it.
   2356 
   2357  10. FUTURE REVISIONS OF THIS LICENSE
   2358 
   2359      The Free Software Foundation may publish new, revised versions of
   2360      the GNU Free Documentation License from time to time.  Such new
   2361      versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may
   2362      differ in detail to address new problems or concerns.  See
   2363      `http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/'.
   2364 
   2365      Each version of the License is given a distinguishing version
   2366      number.  If the Document specifies that a particular numbered
   2367      version of this License "or any later version" applies to it, you
   2368      have the option of following the terms and conditions either of
   2369      that specified version or of any later version that has been
   2370      published (not as a draft) by the Free Software Foundation.  If
   2371      the Document does not specify a version number of this License,
   2372      you may choose any version ever published (not as a draft) by the
   2373      Free Software Foundation.  If the Document specifies that a proxy
   2374      can decide which future versions of this License can be used, that
   2375      proxy's public statement of acceptance of a version permanently
   2376      authorizes you to choose that version for the Document.
   2377 
   2378  11. RELICENSING
   2379 
   2380      "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration Site" (or "MMC Site") means any
   2381      World Wide Web server that publishes copyrightable works and also
   2382      provides prominent facilities for anybody to edit those works.  A
   2383      public wiki that anybody can edit is an example of such a server.
   2384      A "Massive Multiauthor Collaboration" (or "MMC") contained in the
   2385      site means any set of copyrightable works thus published on the MMC
   2386      site.
   2387 
   2388      "CC-BY-SA" means the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
   2389      license published by Creative Commons Corporation, a not-for-profit
   2390      corporation with a principal place of business in San Francisco,
   2391      California, as well as future copyleft versions of that license
   2392      published by that same organization.
   2393 
   2394      "Incorporate" means to publish or republish a Document, in whole or
   2395      in part, as part of another Document.
   2396 
   2397      An MMC is "eligible for relicensing" if it is licensed under this
   2398      License, and if all works that were first published under this
   2399      License somewhere other than this MMC, and subsequently
   2400      incorporated in whole or in part into the MMC, (1) had no cover
   2401      texts or invariant sections, and (2) were thus incorporated prior
   2402      to November 1, 2008.
   2403 
   2404      The operator of an MMC Site may republish an MMC contained in the
   2405      site under CC-BY-SA on the same site at any time before August 1,
   2406      2009, provided the MMC is eligible for relicensing.
   2407 
   2408 
   2409 ADDENDUM: How to use this License for your documents
   2410 ====================================================
   2411 
   2412 To use this License in a document you have written, include a copy of
   2413 the License in the document and put the following copyright and license
   2414 notices just after the title page:
   2415 
   2416        Copyright (C)  YEAR  YOUR NAME.
   2417        Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
   2418        under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3
   2419        or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
   2420        with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover
   2421        Texts.  A copy of the license is included in the section entitled ``GNU
   2422        Free Documentation License''.
   2423 
   2424    If you have Invariant Sections, Front-Cover Texts and Back-Cover
   2425 Texts, replace the "with...Texts." line with this:
   2426 
   2427          with the Invariant Sections being LIST THEIR TITLES, with
   2428          the Front-Cover Texts being LIST, and with the Back-Cover Texts
   2429          being LIST.
   2430 
   2431    If you have Invariant Sections without Cover Texts, or some other
   2432 combination of the three, merge those two alternatives to suit the
   2433 situation.
   2434 
   2435    If your document contains nontrivial examples of program code, we
   2436 recommend releasing these examples in parallel under your choice of
   2437 free software license, such as the GNU General Public License, to
   2438 permit their use in free software.
   2439 
   2440 
   2441 
   2442 Tag Table:
   2443 Node: Top777
   2444 Node: Introduction2103
   2445 Node: Compiling4595
   2446 Node: Executing8651
   2447 Node: Invoking11439
   2448 Node: Output Options12854
   2449 Node: Analysis Options19943
   2450 Node: Miscellaneous Options23641
   2451 Node: Deprecated Options24896
   2452 Node: Symspecs26965
   2453 Node: Output28791
   2454 Node: Flat Profile29831
   2455 Node: Call Graph34784
   2456 Node: Primary38016
   2457 Node: Callers40604
   2458 Node: Subroutines42721
   2459 Node: Cycles44562
   2460 Node: Line-by-line51339
   2461 Node: Annotated Source55412
   2462 Node: Inaccuracy58411
   2463 Node: Sampling Error58669
   2464 Node: Assumptions61573
   2465 Node: How do I?63043
   2466 Node: Incompatibilities64597
   2467 Node: Details66091
   2468 Node: Implementation66484
   2469 Node: File Format72381
   2470 Node: Internals76671
   2471 Node: Debugging85166
   2472 Node: GNU Free Documentation License86767
   2473 
   2474 End Tag Table
   2475