dlltool - Create files needed to build and use DLLs.
SYNOPSIS
dlltool [-d|--input-def def-file-name]
[-b|--base-file base-file-name]
[-e|--output-exp exports-file-name]
[-z|--output-def def-file-name]
[-l|--output-lib library-file-name]
[--export-all-symbols] [--no-export-all-symbols]
[--exclude-symbols list]
[--no-default-excludes]
[-S|--as path-to-assembler] [-f|--as-flags
options]
[-D|--dllname name] [-m|--machine machine]
[-a|--add-indirect] [-U|--add-underscore]
[-k|--kill-at]
[-A|--add-stdcall-alias]
[-x|--no-idata4] [-c|--no-idata5] [-i|--interwork]
[-n|--nodelete] [-v|--verbose] [-h|--help]
[-V|--version]
[object-file ...]
DESCRIPTION
`dlltool' reads its inputs, which can come from the -d and
-b options as well as object files specified on the com
mand line. It then processes these inputs and if the -e
option has been specified it creates a exports file. If
the -l option has been specified it creates a library file
and if the -z option has been specified it creates a def
file. Any or all of the -e, -l and -z options can be pre
sent in one invocation of dlltool.
When creating a DLL, along with the source for the DLL, it
is necessary to have three other files. `dlltool' can
help with the creation of these files.
The first file is a .def file which specifies which func
tions are exported from the DLL, which functions the DLL
imports, and so on. This is a text file and can be cre
ated by hand, or `dlltool' can be used to create it using
the -z option. In this case `dlltool' will scan the
object files specified on its command line looking for
those functions which have been specially marked as being
exported and put entries for them in the .def file it cre
ates.
In order to mark a function as being exported from a DLL,
it needs to have an -export:<name_of_function> entry in
the .drectve section of the object file. This can be done
in C by using the asm() operator:
asm (".section .drectve");
asm (".ascii \"-export:my_func\"");
The second file needed for DLL creation is an exports
file. This file is linked with the object files that make
up the body of the DLL and it handles the interface
between the DLL and the outside world. This is a binary
file and it can be created by giving the -e option to
`dlltool' when it is creating or reading in a .def file.
The third file needed for DLL creation is the library file
that programs will link with in order to access the func
tions in the DLL. This file can be created by giving the
-l option to dlltool when it is creating or reading in a
.def file.
`dlltool' builds the library file by hand, but it builds
the exports file by creating temporary files containing
assembler statements and then assembling these. The -S
command line option can be used to specify the path to the
assembler that dlltool will use, and the -f option can be
used to pass specific flags to that assembler. The -n can
be used to prevent dlltool from deleting these temporary
assembler files when it is done, and if -n is specified
twice then this will prevent dlltool from deleting the
temporary object files it used to build the library.
Here is an example of creating a DLL from a source file
dll.c and also creating a program (from an object file
called program.o) that uses that DLL:
gcc -c dll.c
dlltool -e exports.o -l dll.lib dll.o
gcc dll.o exports.o -o dll.dll
gcc program.o dll.lib -o program
OPTIONS
The command line options have the following meanings:
`-d filename'
`--input-def filename'
Specifies the name of a .def file to be read in and
processed.
`-b filename'
`--base-file filename'
Specifies the name of a base file to be read in and
processed. The contents of this file will be added to
the relocation section in the exports file generated
by dlltool.
`--output-exp filename'
Specifies the name of the export file to be created by
dlltool.
`-z filename'
`--output-def filename'
Specifies the name of the .def file to be created by
dlltool.
`-l filename'
`--output-lib filename'
Specifies the name of the library file to be created
by dlltool.
`--export-all-symbols'
Treat all global and weak defined symbols found in the
input object files as symbols to be exported. There
is a small list of symbols which are not exported by
default; see the `--no-default-excludes' option. You
may add to the list of symbols to not export by using
the `--exclude-symbols' option.
`--no-export-all-symbols'
Only export symbols explicitly listed in an input .def
file or in .drectve sections in the input object
files. This is the default behaviour. The .drectve
sections are created by dllexport attributes in the
source code.
`--exclude-symbols list'
Do not export the symbols in list. This is a list of
symbol names separated by comma or colon characters.
The symbol names should not contain a leading under
score. This is only meaningful when
`--export-all-symbols' is used.
`--no-default-excludes'
When `--export-all-symbols' is used, it will by
default avoid exporting certain special symbols. The
current list of symbols to avoid exporting is Dll
Main@12, DllEntryPoint@0, impure_ptr. You may use the
`--no-default-excludes' option to go ahead and export
these special symbols. This is only meaningful when
`--export-all-symbols' is used.
`-S path'
`--as path'
Specifies the path, including the filename, of the
assembler to be used to create the exports file.
`--as-flags switches'
Specifies any specific command line switches to be
passed to the assembler when building the exports
file. This option will work even if the -S option is
not used. This option only takes one argument, and if
it occurs more than once on the command line, then
later occurrences will override earlier occurrences.
So if it is necessary to pass multiple switches to the
assembler they should be enclosed in double quotes.
`-D name'
`--dll-name name'
Specifies the name to be stored in the .def file as
the name of the DLL when the -e option is used. If
this option is not present, then the filename given to
the -e option will be used as the name of the DLL.
`-m machine'
`-machine machine'
Specifies the type of machine for which the library
file should be built. `dlltool' has a built in
default type, depending upon how it was created, but
this option can be used to override that. This is
normally only useful when creating DLLs for an ARM
processor, when the contents of the DLL are actually
encode using THUMB instructions.
`-a'
`--add-indirect'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
file it should add a section which allows the exported
functions to be referenced without using the import
library. Whatever the hell that means!
`-U'
`--add-underscore'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
file it should prepend an underscore to the names of
the exported functions.
`-k'
`--kill-at'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
file it should not append the string @ <number>.
These numbers are called ordinal numbers and they rep
resent another way of accessing the function in a DLL,
other than by name.
`--add-stdcall-alias'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
file it should add aliases for stdcall symbols without
@ <number> in addition to the symbols with @ <number>.
`-x'
`--no-idata4'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
and library files it should omit the .idata4 section.
This is for compatibility with certain operating sys
tems.
`-c'
`--no-idata5'
Specifies that when `dlltool' is creating the exports
and library files it should omit the .idata5 section.
This is for compatibility with certain operating sys
tems.
`-i'
`--interwork'
Specifies that `dlltool' should mark the objects in
the library file and exports file that it produces as
supporting interworking between ARM and THUMB code.
`-n'
`--nodelete'
Makes `dlltool' preserve the temporary assembler files
it used to create the exports file. If this option is
repeated then dlltool will also preserve the temporary
object files it uses to create the library file.
`-v'
`--verbose'
Make dlltool describe what it is doing.
`-h'
`--help'
Displays a list of command line options and then
exits.
`-V'
`--version'
Displays dlltool's version number and then exits.
the Info entries for binutils.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (c) 1991, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 2000,
2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify
this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documenta
tion License, Version 1.1 or any later version published
by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sec
tions, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover
Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section
entitled "GNU Free Documentation License".
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