Mercurial > pub > dyncall > dyncall
annotate doc/manual/manual_overview.tex @ 208:f8d9b31975f9
- marked off netbsd/sparc64 as completely supported in manual (tested it)
| author | Tassilo Philipp |
|---|---|
| date | Mon, 27 Mar 2017 01:13:48 +0200 |
| parents | 5edaf22a261e |
| children | b593e57b82a5 |
| rev | line source |
|---|---|
| 0 | 1 %////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// |
| 2 % | |
| 3 % Copyright (c) 2007,2009 Daniel Adler <dadler@uni-goettingen.de>, | |
| 4 % Tassilo Philipp <tphilipp@potion-studios.com> | |
| 5 % | |
| 6 % Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute this software for any | |
| 7 % purpose with or without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above | |
| 8 % copyright notice and this permission notice appear in all copies. | |
| 9 % | |
| 10 % THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE AUTHOR DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES | |
| 11 % WITH REGARD TO THIS SOFTWARE INCLUDING ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF | |
| 12 % MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR | |
| 13 % ANY SPECIAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES | |
| 14 % WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN AN | |
| 15 % ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF | |
| 16 % OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE. | |
| 17 % | |
| 18 %////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// | |
| 19 | |
| 20 \newpage | |
| 21 | |
| 22 \section{Overview} | |
| 23 | |
| 24 The \product{dyncall} library encapsulates architecture-, OS- and compiler-specific | |
| 72 | 25 function call semantics in a virtual % |
| 26 % | |
| 73 | 27 \casehtml{\Tg<span class="marker">}{\begin{center}}% |
| 0 | 28 \emph{bind argument parameters from left to right and then call} |
| 72 | 29 \casehtml{\Tg</span>}{\end{center}}% |
| 30 % | |
| 0 | 31 interface allowing programmers to call C functions |
| 32 in a completely dynamic manner. In other words, instead of calling a function | |
| 33 directly, the \product{dyncall} library provides a mechanism to push the function parameters | |
| 34 manually and to issue the call afterwards.\\ | |
| 35 Since the idea behind this concept is similar to call dispatching mechanisms | |
| 36 of virtual machines, the object that can be dynamically loaded with arguments, | |
| 37 and then used to actually invoke the call, is called CallVM. It is possible to | |
| 38 change the calling convention used by the CallVM at run-time. | |
| 39 Due to the fact that nearly every platform comes with one or more distinct calling | |
| 40 conventions, the \product{dyncall} library project intends to be a portable and open-source | |
| 41 approach to the variety of compiler-specific binary interfaces, platform specific | |
| 42 subtleties, and so on\ldots\\ | |
| 43 \\ | |
| 44 The core of the library consists of dynamic implementations of different | |
| 45 calling conventions written in assembler. | |
| 46 Although the library aims to be highly portable, some assembler code needs to | |
| 47 be written for nearly every platform/compiler/OS combination. | |
| 48 Unfortunately, there are architectures we just don't have at home or work. If | |
| 49 you want to see \product{dyncall} running on such a platform, feel free to send | |
| 50 in code and patches, or even to donate hardware you don't need anymore. | |
| 73 | 51 Check the \textbf{supported platforms} section for an overview of the supported |
| 0 | 52 platforms and the different calling convention sections for details about the |
| 53 support. | |
| 54 \\ | |
| 55 \begin{comment} | |
| 56 @@@ | |
| 57 A typical binary library consists of symbolic names that map to variables and | |
| 58 functions, the latter being pre-compiled for a | |
| 59 specific calling convention and architecture. Given \product{dyncall} has been ported to | |
| 60 that binary platform, it is possible to call such a function dynamically | |
| 61 without writing glue code or prototypes or even knowing its C declaration - | |
| 62 all that is needed is a pointer to it.\\ | |
| 63 To avoid confusion, note that from the point of view of the library all | |
| 64 parameters are handled the same way, even though the implementation might use | |
| 65 other ways to pass parameters in order to suit specific calling conventions.\\ | |
| 66 \end{comment} | |
| 67 | |
| 68 | |
| 69 \subsection{Features} | |
| 70 | |
| 71 \begin{itemize} | |
| 72 \item A portable and extendable function call interface for the C programming | |
| 73 language. | |
| 74 \item Ports to major platforms including Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, BSD derivates, iPhone and embedded devices and more, including lesser known and/or older platforms like Plan 9, Playstation Portable, Nintendo DS, etc.. | |
| 75 \item Add-on language bindings to Python, R, Ruby, Go, Erlang, Java, Lua, sh, ... | |
| 76 \item High-level state machine design using C to model calling convention | |
| 77 parameter transfer. | |
| 78 \item One assembly \emph{hybrid} call routine per calling convention. | |
| 79 \item Formatted call, vararg function API. | |
| 80 \item Comprehensive test suite. | |
| 81 \end{itemize} | |
| 82 | |
| 83 \pagebreak | |
| 84 | |
| 85 \subsection{Showcase} | |
| 86 | |
| 87 \paragraph{Foreign function call in C} | |
| 88 This section demonstrates how the foreign function call is issued without, and then | |
| 89 with, the help of the \product{dyncall} library and scripting language | |
| 90 bindings. | |
| 91 | |
| 92 \begin{lstlisting}[language=c,caption=Foreign function call in C] | |
| 93 double call_as_sqrt(void* funptr, double x) | |
| 94 { | |
| 95 return ( ( double (*)(double) )funptr)(x); | |
| 96 } | |
| 97 \end{lstlisting} | |
| 98 | |
| 99 \paragraph{\product{Dyncall} C library example} | |
| 100 | |
| 101 The same operation can be broken down into atomic pieces | |
| 102 (specify calling convention, binding arguments, invoking the call) | |
| 103 using the \dc\ library. | |
| 104 | |
| 105 \begin{lstlisting}[language=c,caption=Dyncall C library example] | |
| 106 #include <dyncall.h> | |
| 107 double call_as_sqrt(void* funptr, double x) | |
| 108 { | |
| 109 double r; | |
| 110 DCCallVM* vm = dcNewCallVM(4096); | |
| 111 dcMode(vm, DC_CALL_C_DEFAULT); | |
| 112 dcReset(vm); | |
| 113 dcArgDouble(vm, x); | |
| 114 r = dcCallDouble(vm, funptr); | |
| 115 dcFree(vm); | |
| 116 return r; | |
| 117 } | |
| 118 \end{lstlisting} | |
| 119 | |
| 120 As you can see, this is more code after all, but completely dynamic. | |
| 121 And definitely less than generated glue-code for each function call, if | |
| 122 used correctly. | |
| 123 | |
| 124 The following are examples from script bindings: | |
| 125 | |
| 126 \paragraph{Python example} | |
| 127 | |
| 128 \begin{lstlisting}[language=python,caption=Dyncall Python bindings example] | |
| 129 import pydc | |
| 130 def call_as_sqrt(funptr,x): | |
| 131 return pydc.call(funptr,"d)d", x) | |
| 132 \end{lstlisting} | |
| 133 | |
| 134 | |
| 135 \paragraph{R example} | |
| 136 | |
| 137 \begin{lstlisting}[language=R,caption=Dyncall R bindings example,escapeinside={TEX}{XET}] % escapeinside is a workaround for issues with '<' in lstlisting+tex4ht | |
| 138 library(rdyncall) | |
| 139 call.as.sqrt TEX\textlessXET- function(funptr,x) | |
| 140 .dyncall(funptr,"d)d", x) | |
| 141 \end{lstlisting} | |
| 142 | |
| 143 | |
| 144 \pagebreak | |
| 145 | |
| 146 \subsection{Supported platforms/architectures} | |
| 147 | |
| 148 The feature matrix below gives a brief overview of the currently supported | |
| 149 platforms. Different colors are used, where a green cell indicates a supported | |
| 150 platform, yellow a platform that might work (but is untested) and red a platform | |
| 151 that is currently unsupported. Gray cells are combinations that don't exist | |
| 152 at the time of writing, or that are not taken into account.\\ | |
| 153 Light green cells mark complete feature support, as in dyncall and dyncallback. Dark green means basic support but lacking features (e.g. dyncall support, but not dyncallback). | |
| 154 Please note that a green cell (even a light-green one) doesn't imply that all existing calling conventions/features/build tools are supported for that platform (but the most | |
| 155 important). | |
| 156 For detailed info about a platform's support consult the calling convention appendix. | |
| 157 | |
| 158 \begin{table}[h] | |
|
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159 \begin{tabular}{r|*{3}{c!{\color{gray2}\vrule}}*{4}{c!{\color{gray2}\vrule}}*{10}{c!{\color{gray2}\vrule}}} |
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160 & \ninety{\bf Alpha} & \ninety{\bf ARM} & \ninety{\bf ARM64} & \multicolumn{2}{c!{\color{gray2}\vrule}}{\ninety{\bf MIPS}} & \multicolumn{2}{c!{\color{gray2}\vrule}}{\ninety{\bf MIPS64}} & \ninety{\bf SuperH} & \ninety{\bf PowerPC} & \ninety{\bf PowerPC64} & \ninety{\bf m68k} & \ninety{\bf m88k} & \ninety{\bf x86} & \ninety{\bf x64} & \ninety{\bf Itanium} & \ninety{\bf SPARC} & \ninety{\bf SPARC64} \\ |
| 139 | 161 % also include hardfloat, here@@@ |
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162 & & & & \ninety{\tiny EB} & \ninety{\tiny EL} & \ninety{\tiny EB} & \ninety{\tiny EL} & & & & & & & & & & \\ |
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163 \hline |
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164 {\bf Windows family} & \marknotx & \markunkn & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknimp & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
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199
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165 {\bf Linux} & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \markunkn & \markunkn & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl \\ |
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132
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166 {\bf macOS / iOS / Darwin} & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markunkn & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
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167 {\bf FreeBSD} & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \markunkn & \markunkn & \markunkn & \markunkn & \marknimp & \markimpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknimp & \markunkn & \markunkn \\ |
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208
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168 {\bf NetBSD} & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \markunkn & \markcmpl & \markunkn & \markunkn & \marknimp & \markimpl & \marknotx & \marknimp & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl \\ |
| 205 | 169 {\bf OpenBSD} & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \markunkn & \markunkn & \markcmpl & \markunkn & \marknimp & \markunkn & \marknotx & \marknimp & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknimp & \markcmpl & \markcmpl \\ |
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132
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170 {\bf DragonFlyBSD} & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
| 172 | 171 {\bf Solaris / SunOS} & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \markimpl \\ |
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132
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172 {\bf Plan 9 / 9front} & \marknimp & \marknimp & \marknotx & \marknimp & \marknimp & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknimp & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \marknimp & \marknotx & \marknimp & \marknotx \\ |
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173 {\bf Haiku / BeOS} & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
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174 {\bf Minix} & \marknotx & \markunkn & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
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175 {\bf Playstation Portable} & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
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176 {\bf Nintendo DS} & \marknotx & \markcmpl & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx & \marknotx \\ |
| 0 | 177 \end{tabular} |
| 92 | 178 \caption{Supported platforms}% |
| 0 | 179 \end{table} |
| 180 |