llvm dev - Jul 2008 - [LLVMdev] Generating machine code directly to memory

Hello,

Is it possible to produce machine code directly to memory buffer so that 
it could be called immediately? What I would like to do is something 
like this:

Compiler:
Scripting language (Antlr) ->
LLVM IR ->
(Optimization) ->
Raw Machine code ->
(Transport media) ->
Execution

The idea is that I could compile my scripts directly to asm without any 
extra steps and in run-time. Then those asm pieces could be loaded back 
later without need to use Antrl/LLVM at all.

I've already been able to turn script into asm files using antlr/llvm 
but there's an extra step to compile the asm... Is it possible to emit 
code directly to memory and then execute it somehow?

LLVM BC with JIT is just fine, but I really would like to release my 
soft without LLVM at all.

Thanks!

- Sampsa

On Wed, 9 Jul 2008, Sampsa Lehtonen wrote:
> LLVM BC with JIT is just fine, but I really would like to release my
> soft without LLVM at all.
It seems that this is off topic for this list then... no?

-Chris

-- 
http://nondot.org/sabre/
http://llvm.org/

On Jul 9, 2008, at 1:48 PM, Sampsa Lehtonen wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Is it possible to produce machine code directly to memory buffer so  
> that
> it could be called immediately?
>
Sampsa,

The problem is that statically compiled programs (other than code that  
runs directly on the hardware, like firmware code) are not just a blob  
on binary instructions.  They are wrapped in complicated linker  
formats (ELF, Mach-O, PE, etc.) containing metadata, dynamic linker  
instructions, and lots of other stuff.  Hence the problem is a lot  
more complicated than just dumping out, say, the hex output of the JIT.

--Owen

On Jul 9, 2008, at 1:48 PM, Sampsa Lehtonen wrote:
> Is it possible
Yes, just compile to a .s file normally, then assemble that, then you  
can use ld and objcopy (binutils) to convert to something approaching  
raw machine code.