2.7 Object File Signatures

The MPLAB XC-DSC compiler supports many different processor architectures and device families. In some cases, library functions must contain instruction sequences that vary depending on the target device family. The compiler uses an internal mechanism called object file signature to manage this diversity and select the correct library function for a specified target device.

When a C or assembly language program is compiled, a signature is automatically created and encoded into the resulting object file. The linker examines and validates the signature of every object file included in a project or loaded from a library to ensure compatibility. It is not necessary for a programmer to decode or understand specific object file signatures; that task is handled automatically by the compiler and linker.

Object file signatures make it possible to create a generic library that can be reused for many different target device families without recompilation. This process is examined in the next section.