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diff --git a/gdb/NEWS b/gdb/NEWS new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c189965 --- /dev/null +++ b/gdb/NEWS @@ -0,0 +1,596 @@ + What has changed since GDB-3.5? + (Organized release by release) + +*** Changes in GDB-4.6: + + * Better support for C++ function names + +GDB now accepts as input the "demangled form" of C++ overloaded function +names and member function names, and can do command completion on such names +(using TAB, TAB-TAB, and ESC-?). The names have to be quoted with a pair of +single quotes. Examples are 'func (int, long)' and 'obj::operator==(obj&)'. +Make use of command completion, it is your friend. + +GDB also now accepts a variety of C++ mangled symbol formats. They are +the GNU g++ style, the Cfront (ARM) style, and the Lucid (lcc) style. +You can tell GDB which format to use by doing a 'set demangle-style {gnu, +lucid, cfront, auto}'. 'gnu' is the default. Do a 'set demangle-style foo' +for the list of formats. + + * G++ symbol mangling problem + +Recent versions of gcc have a bug in how they emit debugging information for +C++ methods (when using dbx-style stabs). The file 'gcc.patch' (in this +directory) can be applied to gcc to fix the problem. Alternatively, if you +can't fix gcc, you can #define GCC_MANGLE_BUG when compling gdb/symtab.c. The +usual symptom is difficulty with setting breakpoints on methods. GDB complains +about the method being non-existent. (We believe that version 2.2.2 of GCC has +this problem.) + + * New 'maintenance' command + +All of the commands related to hacking GDB internals have been moved out of +the main command set, and now live behind the 'maintenance' command. This +can also be abbreviated as 'mt'. The following changes were made: + + dump-me -> maintenance dump-me + info all-breakpoints -> maintenance info breakpoints + printmsyms -> maintenance print msyms + printobjfiles -> maintenance print objfiles + printpsyms -> maintenance print psymbols + printsyms -> maintenance print symbols + +The following commands are new: + + maintenance demangle Call internal GDB demangler routine to + demangle a C++ link name and prints the result. + maintenance print type Print a type chain for a given symbol + + * Change to .gdbinit file processing + +We now read the $HOME/.gdbinit file before processing the argv arguments +(e.g. reading symbol files or core files). This allows global parameters to +be set, which will apply during the symbol reading. The ./.gdbinit is still +read after argv processing. + + * New hosts supported + +Solaris-2.0 !!! sparc-sun-solaris2 or sun4sol2 + +Linux support i386-unknown-linux or linux + +We are also including code to support the HP/PA running BSD and HPUX. This +is almost guaranteed not to work, as we didn't have time to test or build it +for this release. We are including it so that the more adventurous (or +masochistic) of you can play with it. We also had major problems with the +fact that the compiler that we got from HP doesn't support the -g option. +It costs extra. + + * New targets supported + +Hitachi H8/300 h8300-hitachi-hms or h8300hms + + * More smarts about finding #include files + +GDB now remembers the compilation directory for all include files, and for +all files from which C is generated (like yacc and lex sources). This +greatly improves GDB's ability to find yacc/lex sources, and include files, +especially if you are debugging your program from a directory different from +the one that contains your sources. + +We also fixed a bug which caused difficulty with listing and setting +breakpoints in include files which contain C code. (In the past, you had to +try twice in order to list an include file that you hadn't looked at before.) + + * Interesting infernals change + +GDB now deals with arbitrary numbers of sections, where the symbols for each +section must be relocated relative to that section's landing place in the +target's address space. This work was needed to support ELF with embedded +stabs used by Solaris-2.0. + + * Bug fixes (of course!) + +There have been loads of fixes for the following things: + mips, rs6000, 29k/udi, m68k, g++, type handling, elf/dwarf, m88k, + i960, stabs, DOS(GO32), procfs, etc... + +See the ChangeLog for details. + +*** Changes in GDB-4.5: + + * New machines supported (host and target) + +IBM RS6000 running AIX rs6000-ibm-aix or rs6000 + +SGI Irix-4.x mips-sgi-irix4 or iris4 + + * New malloc package + +GDB now uses a new memory manager called mmalloc, based on gmalloc. +Mmalloc is capable of handling mutiple heaps of memory. It is also +capable of saving a heap to a file, and then mapping it back in later. +This can be used to greatly speedup the startup of GDB by using a +pre-parsed symbol table which lives in a mmalloc managed heap. For +more details, please read mmalloc/mmalloc.texi. + + * info proc + +The 'info proc' command (SVR4 only) has been enhanced quite a bit. See +'help info proc' for details. + + * MIPS ecoff symbol table format + +The code that reads MIPS symbol table format is now supported on all hosts. +Thanks to MIPS for releasing the sym.h and symconst.h files to make this +possible. + + * File name changes for MS-DOS + +Many files in the config directories have been renamed to make it easier to +support GDB on MS-DOSe systems (which have very restrictive file name +conventions :-( ). MS-DOSe host support (under DJ Delorie's GO32 +environment) is close to working but has some remaining problems. Note +that debugging of DOS programs is not supported, due to limitations +in the ``operating system'', but it can be used to host cross-debugging. + + * Cross byte order fixes + +Many fixes have been made to support cross debugging of Sparc and MIPS +targets from hosts whose byte order differs. + + * New -mapped and -readnow options + +If memory-mapped files are available on your system through the 'mmap' +system call, you can use the -mapped option on the `file' or +`symbol-file' commands to cause GDB to write the symbols from your +program into a reusable file. If the program you are debugging is +called `/path/fred', the mapped symbol file will be `./fred.syms'. +Future GDB debugging sessions will notice the presence of this file, +and will quickly map in symbol information from it, rather than reading +the symbol table from the executable program. Using the '-mapped' +option in a GDB `file' or `symbol-file' command has the same effect as +starting GDB with the '-mapped' command-line option. + +You can cause GDB to read the entire symbol table immediately by using +the '-readnow' option with any of the commands that load symbol table +information (or on the GDB command line). This makes the command +slower, but makes future operations faster. + +The -mapped and -readnow options are typically combined in order to +build a `fred.syms' file that contains complete symbol information. +A simple GDB invocation to do nothing but build a `.syms' file for future +use is: + + gdb -batch -nx -mapped -readnow programname + +The `.syms' file is specific to the host machine on which GDB is run. +It holds an exact image of GDB's internal symbol table. It cannot be +shared across multiple host platforms. + + * longjmp() handling + +GDB is now capable of stepping and nexting over longjmp(), _longjmp(), and +siglongjmp() without losing control. This feature has not yet been ported to +all systems. It currently works on many 386 platforms, all MIPS-based +platforms (SGI, DECstation, etc), and Sun3/4. + + * Solaris 2.0 + +Preliminary work has been put in to support the new Solaris OS from Sun. At +this time, it can control and debug processes, but it is not capable of +reading symbols. + + * Bug fixes + +As always, many many bug fixes. The major areas were with g++, and mipsread. +People using the MIPS-based platforms should experience fewer mysterious +crashes and trashed symbol tables. + +*** Changes in GDB-4.4: + + * New machines supported (host and target) + +SCO Unix on i386 IBM PC clones i386-sco-sysv or i386sco + (except core files) +BSD Reno on Vax vax-dec-bsd +Ultrix on Vax vax-dec-ultrix + + * New machines supported (target) + +AMD 29000 embedded, using EBMON a29k-none-none + + * C++ support + +GDB continues to improve its handling of C++. `References' work better. +The demangler has also been improved, and now deals with symbols mangled as +per the Annotated C++ Reference Guide. + +GDB also now handles `stabs' symbol information embedded in MIPS +`ecoff' symbol tables. Since the ecoff format was not easily +extensible to handle new languages such as C++, this appeared to be a +good way to put C++ debugging info into MIPS binaries. This option +will be supported in the GNU C compiler, version 2, when it is +released. + + * New features for SVR4 + +GDB now handles SVR4 shared libraries, in the same fashion as SunOS +shared libraries. Debugging dynamically linked programs should present +only minor differences from debugging statically linked programs. + +The `info proc' command will print out information about any process +on an SVR4 system (including the one you are debugging). At the moment, +it prints the address mappings of the process. + +If you bring up GDB on another SVR4 system, please send mail to +bug-gdb@prep.ai.mit.edu to let us know what changes were reqired (if any). + + * Better dynamic linking support in SunOS + +Reading symbols from shared libraries which contain debugging symbols +now works properly. However, there remain issues such as automatic +skipping of `transfer vector' code during function calls, which +make it harder to debug code in a shared library, than to debug the +same code linked statically. + + * New Getopt + +GDB is now using the latest `getopt' routines from the FSF. This +version accepts the -- prefix for options with long names. GDB will +continue to accept the old forms (-option and +option) as well. +Various single letter abbreviations for options have been explicity +added to the option table so that they won't get overshadowed in the +future by other options that begin with the same letter. + + * Bugs fixed + +The `cleanup_undefined_types' bug that many of you noticed has been squashed. +Many assorted bugs have been handled. Many more remain to be handled. +See the various ChangeLog files (primarily in gdb and bfd) for details. + + +*** Changes in GDB-4.3: + + * New machines supported (host and target) + +Amiga 3000 running Amix m68k-cbm-svr4 or amix +NCR 3000 386 running SVR4 i386-ncr-svr4 or ncr3000 +Motorola Delta 88000 running Sys V m88k-motorola-sysv or delta88 + + * Almost SCO Unix support + +We had hoped to support: +SCO Unix on i386 IBM PC clones i386-sco-sysv or i386sco +(except for core file support), but we discovered very late in the release +that it has problems with process groups that render gdb unusable. Sorry +about that. I encourage people to fix it and post the fixes. + + * Preliminary ELF and DWARF support + +GDB can read ELF object files on System V Release 4, and can handle +debugging records for C, in DWARF format, in ELF files. This support +is preliminary. If you bring up GDB on another SVR4 system, please +send mail to bug-gdb@prep.ai.mit.edu to let us know what changes were +reqired (if any). + + * New Readline + +GDB now uses the latest `readline' library. One user-visible change +is that two tabs will list possible command completions, which previously +required typing M-? (meta-question mark, or ESC ?). + + * Bugs fixed + +The `stepi' bug that many of you noticed has been squashed. +Many bugs in C++ have been handled. Many more remain to be handled. +See the various ChangeLog files (primarily in gdb and bfd) for details. + + * State of the MIPS world (in case you wondered): + +GDB can understand the symbol tables emitted by the compilers +supplied by most vendors of MIPS-based machines, including DEC. These +symbol tables are in a format that essentially nobody else uses. + +Some versions of gcc come with an assembler post-processor called +mips-tfile. This program is required if you want to do source-level +debugging of gcc-compiled programs. I believe FSF does not ship +mips-tfile with gcc version 1, but it will eventually come with gcc +version 2. + +Debugging of g++ output remains a problem. g++ version 1.xx does not +really support it at all. (If you're lucky, you should be able to get +line numbers and stack traces to work, but no parameters or local +variables.) With some work it should be possible to improve the +situation somewhat. + +When gcc version 2 is released, you will have somewhat better luck. +However, even then you will get confusing results for inheritance and +methods. + +We will eventually provide full debugging of g++ output on +DECstations. This will probably involve some kind of stabs-in-ecoff +encapulation, but the details have not been worked out yet. + + +*** Changes in GDB-4.2: + + * Improved configuration + +Only one copy of `configure' exists now, and it is not self-modifying. +Porting BFD is simpler. + + * Stepping improved + +The `step' and `next' commands now only stop at the first instruction +of a source line. This prevents the multiple stops that used to occur +in switch statements, for-loops, etc. `Step' continues to stop if a +function that has debugging information is called within the line. + + * Bug fixing + +Lots of small bugs fixed. More remain. + + * New host supported (not target) + +Intel 386 PC clone running Mach i386-none-mach + + +*** Changes in GDB-4.1: + + * Multiple source language support + +GDB now has internal scaffolding to handle several source languages. +It determines the type of each source file from its filename extension, +and will switch expression parsing and number formatting to match the +language of the function in the currently selected stack frame. +You can also specifically set the language to be used, with +`set language c' or `set language modula-2'. + + * GDB and Modula-2 + +GDB now has preliminary support for the GNU Modula-2 compiler, +currently under development at the State University of New York at +Buffalo. Development of both GDB and the GNU Modula-2 compiler will +continue through the fall of 1991 and into 1992. + +Other Modula-2 compilers are currently not supported, and attempting to +debug programs compiled with them will likely result in an error as the +symbol table is read. Feel free to work on it, though! + +There are hooks in GDB for strict type checking and range checking, +in the `Modula-2 philosophy', but they do not currently work. + + * set write on/off + +GDB can now write to executable and core files (e.g. patch +a variable's value). You must turn this switch on, specify +the file ("exec foo" or "core foo"), *then* modify it, e.g. +by assigning a new value to a variable. Modifications take +effect immediately. + + * Automatic SunOS shared library reading + +When you run your program, GDB automatically determines where its +shared libraries (if any) have been loaded, and reads their symbols. +The `share' command is no longer needed. This also works when +examining core files. + + * set listsize + +You can specify the number of lines that the `list' command shows. +The default is 10. + + * New machines supported (host and target) + +SGI Iris (MIPS) running Irix V3: mips-sgi-irix or iris +Sony NEWS (68K) running NEWSOS 3.x: m68k-sony-sysv or news +Ultracomputer (29K) running Sym1: a29k-nyu-sym1 or ultra3 + + * New hosts supported (not targets) + +IBM RT/PC: romp-ibm-aix or rtpc + + * New targets supported (not hosts) + +AMD 29000 embedded with COFF a29k-none-coff +AMD 29000 embedded with a.out a29k-none-aout +Ultracomputer remote kernel debug a29k-nyu-kern + + * New remote interfaces + +AMD 29000 Adapt +AMD 29000 Minimon + + +*** Changes in GDB-4.0: + + * New Facilities + +Wide output is wrapped at good places to make the output more readable. + +Gdb now supports cross-debugging from a host machine of one type to a +target machine of another type. Communication with the target system +is over serial lines. The ``target'' command handles connecting to the +remote system; the ``load'' command will download a program into the +remote system. Serial stubs for the m68k and i386 are provided. Gdb +also supports debugging of realtime processes running under VxWorks, +using SunRPC Remote Procedure Calls over TCP/IP to talk to a debugger +stub on the target system. + +New CPUs supported include the AMD 29000 and Intel 960. + +GDB now reads object files and symbol tables via a ``binary file'' +library, which allows a single copy of GDB to debug programs of multiple +object file types such as a.out and coff. + +There is now a GDB reference card in "doc/refcard.tex". (Make targets +refcard.dvi and refcard.ps are available to format it). + + + * Control-Variable user interface simplified + +All variables that control the operation of the debugger can be set +by the ``set'' command, and displayed by the ``show'' command. + +For example, ``set prompt new-gdb=>'' will change your prompt to new-gdb=>. +``Show prompt'' produces the response: +Gdb's prompt is new-gdb=>. + +What follows are the NEW set commands. The command ``help set'' will +print a complete list of old and new set commands. ``help set FOO'' +will give a longer description of the variable FOO. ``show'' will show +all of the variable descriptions and their current settings. + +confirm on/off: Enables warning questions for operations that are + hard to recover from, e.g. rerunning the program while + it is already running. Default is ON. + +editing on/off: Enables EMACS style command line editing + of input. Previous lines can be recalled with + control-P, the current line can be edited with control-B, + you can search for commands with control-R, etc. + Default is ON. + +history filename NAME: NAME is where the gdb command history + will be stored. The default is .gdb_history, + or the value of the environment variable + GDBHISTFILE. + +history size N: The size, in commands, of the command history. The + default is 256, or the value of the environment variable + HISTSIZE. + +history save on/off: If this value is set to ON, the history file will + be saved after exiting gdb. If set to OFF, the + file will not be saved. The default is OFF. + +history expansion on/off: If this value is set to ON, then csh-like + history expansion will be performed on + command line input. The default is OFF. + +radix N: Sets the default radix for input and output. It can be set + to 8, 10, or 16. Note that the argument to "radix" is interpreted + in the current radix, so "set radix 10" is always a no-op. + +height N: This integer value is the number of lines on a page. Default + is 24, the current `stty rows'' setting, or the ``li#'' + setting from the termcap entry matching the environment + variable TERM. + +width N: This integer value is the number of characters on a line. + Default is 80, the current `stty cols'' setting, or the ``co#'' + setting from the termcap entry matching the environment + variable TERM. + +Note: ``set screensize'' is obsolete. Use ``set height'' and +``set width'' instead. + +print address on/off: Print memory addresses in various command displays, + such as stack traces and structure values. Gdb looks + more ``symbolic'' if you turn this off; it looks more + ``machine level'' with it on. Default is ON. + +print array on/off: Prettyprint arrays. New convenient format! Default + is OFF. + +print demangle on/off: Print C++ symbols in "source" form if on, + "raw" form if off. + +print asm-demangle on/off: Same, for assembler level printouts + like instructions. + +print vtbl on/off: Prettyprint C++ virtual function tables. Default is OFF. + + + * Support for Epoch Environment. + +The epoch environment is a version of Emacs v18 with windowing. One +new command, ``inspect'', is identical to ``print'', except that if you +are running in the epoch environment, the value is printed in its own +window. + + + * Support for Shared Libraries + +GDB can now debug programs and core files that use SunOS shared libraries. +Symbols from a shared library cannot be referenced +before the shared library has been linked with the program (this +happens after you type ``run'' and before the function main() is entered). +At any time after this linking (including when examining core files +from dynamically linked programs), gdb reads the symbols from each +shared library when you type the ``sharedlibrary'' command. +It can be abbreviated ``share''. + +sharedlibrary REGEXP: Load shared object library symbols for files + matching a unix regular expression. No argument + indicates to load symbols for all shared libraries. + +info sharedlibrary: Status of loaded shared libraries. + + + * Watchpoints + +A watchpoint stops execution of a program whenever the value of an +expression changes. Checking for this slows down execution +tremendously whenever you are in the scope of the expression, but is +quite useful for catching tough ``bit-spreader'' or pointer misuse +problems. Some machines such as the 386 have hardware for doing this +more quickly, and future versions of gdb will use this hardware. + +watch EXP: Set a watchpoint (breakpoint) for an expression. + +info watchpoints: Information about your watchpoints. + +delete N: Deletes watchpoint number N (same as breakpoints). +disable N: Temporarily turns off watchpoint number N (same as breakpoints). +enable N: Re-enables watchpoint number N (same as breakpoints). + + + * C++ multiple inheritance + +When used with a GCC version 2 compiler, GDB supports multiple inheritance +for C++ programs. + + * C++ exception handling + +Gdb now supports limited C++ exception handling. Besides the existing +ability to breakpoint on an exception handler, gdb can breakpoint on +the raising of an exception (before the stack is peeled back to the +handler's context). + +catch FOO: If there is a FOO exception handler in the dynamic scope, + set a breakpoint to catch exceptions which may be raised there. + Multiple exceptions (``catch foo bar baz'') may be caught. + +info catch: Lists all exceptions which may be caught in the + current stack frame. + + + * Minor command changes + +The command ``call func (arg, arg, ...)'' now acts like the print +command, except it does not print or save a value if the function's result +is void. This is similar to dbx usage. + +The ``up'' and ``down'' commands now always print the frame they end up +at; ``up-silently'' and `down-silently'' can be used in scripts to change +frames without printing. + + * New directory command + +'dir' now adds directories to the FRONT of the source search path. +The path starts off empty. Source files that contain debug information +about the directory in which they were compiled can be found even +with an empty path; Sun CC and GCC include this information. If GDB can't +find your source file in the current directory, type "dir .". + + * Configuring GDB for compilation + +For normal use, type ``./configure host''. See README or gdb.texinfo +for more details. + +GDB now handles cross debugging. If you are remotely debugging between +two different machines, type ``./configure host -target=targ''. +Host is the machine where GDB will run; targ is the machine +where the program that you are debugging will run. |