13.3 Input/Output Files

The 32-bit archiver/librarian generates archive files (.a). An archive file is a single file holding a collection of other files in a structure that makes it possible to retrieve the original individual files (called members of the archive). All objects are processed in the ELF object-file format.

xc32-ar is considered a binary utility because archives of this sort are most often used as libraries holding commonly needed subroutines.