Specifying Target Machine and Compiler Version

The usual way to run GCC is to run the executable called gcc, or <machine>-gcc when cross-compiling, or <machine>-gcc-<version> to run a version other than the one that was installed last. Sometimes this is inconvenient, so GCC provides options that will switch to another cross-compiler or version.
-b machine
The argument machine specifies the target machine for compilation.

The value to use for machine is the same as was specified as the machine type when configuring GCC as a cross-compiler. For example, if a cross-compiler was configured with configure i386v, meaning to compile for an 80386 running System V, then you would specify -b i386v to run that cross compiler.

-V version
The argument version specifies which version of GCC to run. This is useful when multiple versions are installed. For example, version might be 2.0, meaning to run GCC version 2.0.

The -V and -b options work by running the <machine>-gcc-<version> executable, so there's no real reason to use them if you can just run that directly.

 

Hardware Models and Configurations

Earlier we discussed the standard option -b which chooses among different installed compilers for completely different target machines, such as VAX vs. 68000 vs. 80386.

In addition, each of these target machine types can have its own special options, starting with -m, to choose among various hardware models or configurations---for example, 68010 vs 68020, floating coprocessor or none. A single installed version of the compiler can compile for any model or configuration, according to the options specified.

Some configurations of the compiler also support additional special options, usually for compatibility with other compilers on the same platform.

These options are defined by the macro "TARGET_SWITCHES" in the machine description. The default for the options is also defined by that macro, which enables you to change the defaults.

M680x0 Options

These are the -m options defined for the 68000 series. The default values for these options depends on which style of 68000 was selected when the compiler was configured; the defaults for the most common choices are given below.

-m68000
-mc68000
Generate output for a 68000. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68000-based systems.

Use this option for microcontrollers with a 68000 or EC000 core, including the 68008, 68302, 68306, 68307, 68322, 68328 and 68356.

-m68020
-mc68020
Generate output for a 68020. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68020-based systems.
-m68881
Generate output containing 68881 instructions for floating point. This is the default for most 68020 systems unless --nfp was specified when the compiler was configured.
-m68030
Generate output for a 68030. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68030-based systems.
-m68040
Generate output for a 68040. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68040-based systems.

This option inhibits the use of 68881/68882 instructions that have to be emulated by software on the 68040. Use this option if your 68040 does not have code to emulate those instructions.

-m68060
Generate output for a 68060. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68060-based systems.

This option inhibits the use of 68020 and 68881/68882 instructions that have to be emulated by software on the 68060. Use this option if your 68060 does not have code to emulate those instructions.

-mcpu32
Generate output for a CPU32. This is the default when the compiler is configured for CPU32-based systems.

Use this option for microcontrollers with a CPU32 or CPU32+ core, including the 68330, 68331, 68332, 68333, 68334, 68336, 68340, 68341, 68349 and 68360.

-m5200
Generate output for a 520X ``coldfire'' family cpu. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 520X-based systems.

Use this option for microcontroller with a 5200 core, including the MCF5202, MCF5203, MCF5204 and MCF5202.

-m68020-40
Generate output for a 68040, without using any of the new instructions. This results in code which can run relatively efficiently on either a 68020/68881 or a 68030 or a 68040. The generated code does use the 68881 instructions that are emulated on the 68040.
-m68020-60
Generate output for a 68060, without using any of the new instructions. This results in code which can run relatively efficiently on either a 68020/68881 or a 68030 or a 68040. The generated code does use the 68881 instructions that are emulated on the 68060.
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries are not available for all m68k targets. Normally the facilities of the machine's usual C compiler are used, but this can't be done directly in cross-compilation. You must make your own arrangements to provide suitable library functions for cross-compilation. The embedded targets m68k-*-aout and m68k-*-coff do provide software floating point support.
-mshort
Consider type "int" to be 16 bits wide, like "short int".
-mnobitfield
Do not use the bit-field instructions. The -m68000, -mcpu32 and -m5200 options imply -mnobitfield.
-mbitfield
Do use the bit-field instructions. The -m68020 option implies -mbitfield. This is the default if you use a configuration designed for a 68020.
-mrtd
Use a different function-calling convention, in which functions that take a fixed number of arguments return with the "rtd" instruction, which pops their arguments while returning. This saves one instruction in the caller since there is no need to pop the arguments there.

This calling convention is incompatible with the one normally used on Unix, so you cannot use it if you need to call libraries compiled with the Unix compiler.

Also, you must provide function prototypes for all functions that take variable numbers of arguments (including "printf"); otherwise incorrect code will be generated for calls to those functions.

In addition, seriously incorrect code will result if you call a function with too many arguments. (Normally, extra arguments are harmlessly ignored.)

The "rtd" instruction is supported by the 68010, 68020, 68030, 68040, 68060 and CPU32 processors, but not by the 68000 or 5200.

-malign-int
-mno-align-int
Control whether GCC aligns "int", "long", "long long", "float", "double", and "long double" variables on a 32-bit boundary (-malign-int) or a 16-bit boundary (-mno-align-int). Aligning variables on 32-bit boundaries produces code that runs somewhat faster on processors with 32-bit busses at the expense of more memory.

Warning: if you use the -malign-int switch, GCC will align structures containing the above types differently than most published application binary interface specifications for the m68k.

-mpcrel
Use the pc-relative addressing mode of the 68000 directly, instead of using a global offset table. At present, this option implies -fpic, allowing at most a 16-bit offset for pc-relative addressing. -fPIC is not presently supported with -mpcrel, though this could be supported for 68020 and higher processors.
-mno-strict-align
-mstrict-align
Do not (do) assume that unaligned memory references will be handled by the system.
-msep-data
Generate code that allows the data segment to be located in a different area of memory from the text segment. This allows for execute in place in an environment without virtual memory management. This option implies -fPIC.
-mno-sep-data
Generate code that assumes that the data segment follows the text segment. This is the default.
-mid-shared-library
Generate code that supports shared libraries via the library ID method. This allows for execute in place and shared libraries in an environment without virtual memory management. This option implies -fPIC.
-mno-id-shared-library
Generate code that doesn't assume ID based shared libraries are being used. This is the default.
-mshared-library-id=n
Specified the identification number of the ID based shared library being compiled. Specifying a value of 0 will generate more compact code, specifying other values will force the allocation of that number to the current library but is no more space or time efficient than omitting this option.

M68hc1x Options

These are the -m options defined for the 68hc11 and 68hc12 microcontrollers. The default values for these options depends on which style of microcontroller was selected when the compiler was configured; the defaults for the most common choices are given below.

-m6811
-m68hc11
Generate output for a 68HC11. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68HC11-based systems.
-m6812
-m68hc12
Generate output for a 68HC12. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 68HC12-based systems.
-m68S12
-m68hcs12
Generate output for a 68HCS12.
-mauto-incdec
Enable the use of 68HC12 pre and post auto-increment and auto-decrement addressing modes.
-minmax
-nominmax
Enable the use of 68HC12 min and max instructions.
-mlong-calls
-mno-long-calls
Treat all calls as being far away (near). If calls are assumed to be far away, the compiler will use the "call" instruction to call a function and the "rtc" instruction for returning.
-mshort
Consider type "int" to be 16 bits wide, like "short int".
-msoft-reg-count=count
Specify the number of pseudo-soft registers which are used for the code generation. The maximum number is 32. Using more pseudo-soft register may or may not result in better code depending on the program. The default is 4 for 68HC11 and 2 for 68HC12.

VAX Options

These -m options are defined for the VAX:

-munix
Do not output certain jump instructions ("aobleq" and so on) that the Unix assembler for the VAX cannot handle across long ranges.
-mgnu
Do output those jump instructions, on the assumption that you will assemble with the GNU assembler.
-mg
Output code for g-format floating point numbers instead of d-format.

SPARC Options

These -m options are supported on the SPARC:

-mno-app-regs
-mapp-regs
Specify -mapp-regs to generate output using the global registers 2 through 4, which the SPARC SVR4 ABI reserves for applications. This is the default, except on Solaris.

To be fully SVR4 ABI compliant at the cost of some performance loss, specify -mno-app-regs. You should compile libraries and system software with this option.

-mfpu
-mhard-float
Generate output containing floating point instructions. This is the default.
-mno-fpu
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries are not available for all SPARC targets. Normally the facilities of the machine's usual C compiler are used, but this cannot be done directly in cross-compilation. You must make your own arrangements to provide suitable library functions for cross-compilation. The embedded targets sparc-*-aout and sparclite-*-* do provide software floating point support.

-msoft-float changes the calling convention in the output file; therefore, it is only useful if you compile all of a program with this option. In particular, you need to compile libgcc.a, the library that comes with GCC, with -msoft-float in order for this to work.

-mhard-quad-float
Generate output containing quad-word (long double) floating point instructions.
-msoft-quad-float
Generate output containing library calls for quad-word (long double) floating point instructions. The functions called are those specified in the SPARC ABI. This is the default.

As of this writing, there are no SPARC implementations that have hardware support for the quad-word floating point instructions. They all invoke a trap handler for one of these instructions, and then the trap handler emulates the effect of the instruction. Because of the trap handler overhead, this is much slower than calling the ABI library routines. Thus the -msoft-quad-float option is the default.

-mno-flat
-mflat
With -mflat, the compiler does not generate save/restore instructions and will use a ``flat'' or single register window calling convention. This model uses %i7 as the frame pointer and is compatible with the normal register window model. Code from either may be intermixed. The local registers and the input registers (0--5) are still treated as ``call saved'' registers and will be saved on the stack as necessary.

With -mno-flat (the default), the compiler emits save/restore instructions (except for leaf functions) and is the normal mode of operation.

These options are deprecated and will be deleted in a future GCC release.

-mno-unaligned-doubles
-munaligned-doubles
Assume that doubles have 8 byte alignment. This is the default.

With -munaligned-doubles, GCC assumes that doubles have 8 byte alignment only if they are contained in another type, or if they have an absolute address. Otherwise, it assumes they have 4 byte alignment. Specifying this option avoids some rare compatibility problems with code generated by other compilers. It is not the default because it results in a performance loss, especially for floating point code.

-mno-faster-structs
-mfaster-structs
With -mfaster-structs, the compiler assumes that structures should have 8 byte alignment. This enables the use of pairs of "ldd" and "std" instructions for copies in structure assignment, in place of twice as many "ld" and "st" pairs. However, the use of this changed alignment directly violates the SPARC ABI. Thus, it's intended only for use on targets where the developer acknowledges that their resulting code will not be directly in line with the rules of the ABI.
-mimpure-text
-mimpure-text, used in addition to -shared, tells the compiler to not pass -z text to the linker when linking a shared object. Using this option, you can link position-dependent code into a shared object.

-mimpure-text suppresses the ``relocations remain against allocatable but non-writable sections'' linker error message. However, the necessary relocations will trigger copy-on-write, and the shared object is not actually shared across processes. Instead of using -mimpure-text, you should compile all source code with -fpic or -fPIC.

This option is only available on SunOS and Solaris.

-mv8
-msparclite
These two options select variations on the SPARC architecture. These options are deprecated and will be deleted in a future GCC release. They have been replaced with -mcpu=xxx.
-mcypress
-msupersparc
-mf930
-mf934
These four options select the processor for which the code is optimized. These options are deprecated and will be deleted in a future GCC release. They have been replaced with -mcpu=xxx.
-mcpu=cpu_type
Set the instruction set, register set, and instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type. Supported values for cpu_type are v7, cypress, v8, supersparc, sparclite, f930, f934, hypersparc, sparclite86x, sparclet, tsc701, v9, ultrasparc, and ultrasparc3.

Default instruction scheduling parameters are used for values that select an architecture and not an implementation. These are v7, v8, sparclite, sparclet, v9.

Here is a list of each supported architecture and their supported implementations.

            v7:             cypress
            v8:             supersparc, hypersparc
            sparclite:      f930, f934, sparclite86x
            sparclet:       tsc701
            v9:             ultrasparc, ultrasparc3

By default (unless configured otherwise), GCC generates code for the V7 variant of the SPARC architecture. With -mcpu=cypress, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the Cypress CY7C602 chip, as used in the SPARCStation/SPARCServer 3xx series. This is also appropriate for the older SPARCStation 1, 2, IPX etc.

With -mcpu=v8, GCC generates code for the V8 variant of the SPARC architecture. The only difference from V7 code is that the compiler emits the integer multiply and integer divide instructions which exist in SPARC-V8 but not in SPARC-V7. With -mcpu=supersparc, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the SuperSPARC chip, as used in the SPARCStation 10, 1000 and 2000 series.

With -mcpu=sparclite, GCC generates code for the SPARClite variant of the SPARC architecture. This adds the integer multiply, integer divide step and scan ("ffs") instructions which exist in SPARClite but not in SPARC-V7. With -mcpu=f930, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the Fujitsu MB86930 chip, which is the original SPARClite, with no FPU. With -mcpu=f934, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the Fujitsu MB86934 chip, which is the more recent SPARClite with FPU.

With -mcpu=sparclet, GCC generates code for the SPARClet variant of the SPARC architecture. This adds the integer multiply, multiply/accumulate, integer divide step and scan ("ffs") instructions which exist in SPARClet but not in SPARC-V7. With -mcpu=tsc701, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the TEMIC SPARClet chip.

With -mcpu=v9, GCC generates code for the V9 variant of the SPARC architecture. This adds 64-bit integer and floating-point move instructions, 3 additional floating-point condition code registers and conditional move instructions. With -mcpu=ultrasparc, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the Sun UltraSPARC I/II chips. With -mcpu=ultrasparc3, the compiler additionally optimizes it for the Sun UltraSPARC III chip.

-mtune=cpu_type
Set the instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type, but do not set the instruction set or register set that the option -mcpu=cpu_type would.

The same values for -mcpu=cpu_type can be used for -mtune=cpu_type, but the only useful values are those that select a particular cpu implementation. Those are cypress, supersparc, hypersparc, f930, f934, sparclite86x, tsc701, ultrasparc, and ultrasparc3.

-mv8plus
-mno-v8plus
With -mv8plus, GCC generates code for the SPARC-V8+ ABI. The difference from the V8 ABI is that the global and out registers are considered 64-bit wide. This is enabled by default on Solaris in 32-bit mode for all SPARC-V9 processors.
-mvis
-mno-vis
With -mvis, GCC generates code that takes advantage of the UltraSPARC Visual Instruction Set extensions. The default is -mno-vis.

These -m options are supported in addition to the above on SPARC-V9 processors in 64-bit environments:

-mlittle-endian
Generate code for a processor running in little-endian mode. It is only available for a few configurations and most notably not on Solaris and Linux.
-m32
-m64
Generate code for a 32-bit or 64-bit environment. The 32-bit environment sets int, long and pointer to 32 bits. The 64-bit environment sets int to 32 bits and long and pointer to 64 bits.
-mcmodel=medlow
Generate code for the Medium/Low code model: 64-bit addresses, programs must be linked in the low 32 bits of memory. Programs can be statically or dynamically linked.
-mcmodel=medmid
Generate code for the Medium/Middle code model: 64-bit addresses, programs must be linked in the low 44 bits of memory, the text and data segments must be less than 2GB in size and the data segment must be located within 2GB of the text segment.
-mcmodel=medany
Generate code for the Medium/Anywhere code model: 64-bit addresses, programs may be linked anywhere in memory, the text and data segments must be less than 2GB in size and the data segment must be located within 2GB of the text segment.
-mcmodel=embmedany
Generate code for the Medium/Anywhere code model for embedded systems: 64-bit addresses, the text and data segments must be less than 2GB in size, both starting anywhere in memory (determined at link time). The global register %g4 points to the base of the data segment. Programs are statically linked and PIC is not supported.
-mstack-bias
-mno-stack-bias
With -mstack-bias, GCC assumes that the stack pointer, and frame pointer if present, are offset by -2047 which must be added back when making stack frame references. This is the default in 64-bit mode. Otherwise, assume no such offset is present.

These switches are supported in addition to the above on Solaris:

-threads
Add support for multithreading using the Solaris threads library. This option sets flags for both the preprocessor and linker. This option does not affect the thread safety of object code produced by the compiler or that of libraries supplied with it.
-pthreads
Add support for multithreading using the POSIX threads library. This option sets flags for both the preprocessor and linker. This option does not affect the thread safety of object code produced by the compiler or that of libraries supplied with it.

ARM Options

These -m options are defined for Advanced RISC Machines (ARM) architectures:

-mapcs-frame
Generate a stack frame that is compliant with the ARM Procedure Call Standard for all functions, even if this is not strictly necessary for correct execution of the code. Specifying -fomit-frame-pointer with this option will cause the stack frames not to be generated for leaf functions. The default is -mno-apcs-frame.
-mapcs
This is a synonym for -mapcs-frame.
-mapcs-26
Generate code for a processor running with a 26-bit program counter, and conforming to the function calling standards for the APCS 26-bit option.

This option is deprecated. Future releases of the GCC will only support generating code that runs in apcs-32 mode.

-mapcs-32
Generate code for a processor running with a 32-bit program counter, and conforming to the function calling standards for the APCS 32-bit option.

This flag is deprecated. Future releases of GCC will make this flag unconditional.

-mthumb-interwork
Generate code which supports calling between the ARM and Thumb instruction sets. Without this option the two instruction sets cannot be reliably used inside one program. The default is -mno-thumb-interwork, since slightly larger code is generated when -mthumb-interwork is specified.
-mno-sched-prolog
Prevent the reordering of instructions in the function prolog, or the merging of those instruction with the instructions in the function's body. This means that all functions will start with a recognizable set of instructions (or in fact one of a choice from a small set of different function prologues), and this information can be used to locate the start if functions inside an executable piece of code. The default is -msched-prolog.
-mhard-float
Generate output containing floating point instructions. This is the default.
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries are not available for all ARM targets. Normally the facilities of the machine's usual C compiler are used, but this cannot be done directly in cross-compilation. You must make your own arrangements to provide suitable library functions for cross-compilation.

-msoft-float changes the calling convention in the output file; therefore, it is only useful if you compile all of a program with this option. In particular, you need to compile libgcc.a, the library that comes with GCC, with -msoft-float in order for this to work.

-mlittle-endian
Generate code for a processor running in little-endian mode. This is the default for all standard configurations.
-mbig-endian
Generate code for a processor running in big-endian mode; the default is to compile code for a little-endian processor.
-mwords-little-endian
This option only applies when generating code for big-endian processors. Generate code for a little-endian word order but a big-endian byte order. That is, a byte order of the form 32107654. Note: this option should only be used if you require compatibility with code for big-endian ARM processors generated by versions of the compiler prior to 2.8.
-malignment-traps
Generate code that will not trap if the MMU has alignment traps enabled. On ARM architectures prior to ARMv4, there were no instructions to access half-word objects stored in memory. However, when reading from memory a feature of the ARM architecture allows a word load to be used, even if the address is unaligned, and the processor core will rotate the data as it is being loaded. This option tells the compiler that such misaligned accesses will cause a MMU trap and that it should instead synthesize the access as a series of byte accesses. The compiler can still use word accesses to load half-word data if it knows that the address is aligned to a word boundary.

This option has no effect when compiling for ARM architecture 4 or later, since these processors have instructions to directly access half-word objects in memory.

-mno-alignment-traps
Generate code that assumes that the MMU will not trap unaligned accesses. This produces better code when the target instruction set does not have half-word memory operations (i.e. implementations prior to ARMv4).

Note that you cannot use this option to access unaligned word objects, since the processor will only fetch one 32-bit aligned object from memory.

The default setting is -malignment-traps, since this produces code that will also run on processors implementing ARM architecture version 6 or later.

This option is deprecated and will be removed in the next release of GCC.

-mcpu=name
This specifies the name of the target ARM processor. GCC uses this name to determine what kind of instructions it can emit when generating assembly code. Permissible names are: arm2, arm250, arm3, arm6, arm60, arm600, arm610, arm620, arm7, arm7m, arm7d, arm7dm, arm7di, arm7dmi, arm70, arm700, arm700i, arm710, arm710c, arm7100, arm7500, arm7500fe, arm7tdmi, arm8, strongarm, strongarm110, strongarm1100, arm8, arm810, arm9, arm9e, arm920, arm920t, arm926ejs, arm940t, arm9tdmi, arm10tdmi, arm1020t, arm1026ejs, arm1136js, arm1136jfs ,xscale, iwmmxt, ep9312.
-mtune=name
This option is very similar to the -mcpu= option, except that instead of specifying the actual target processor type, and hence restricting which instructions can be used, it specifies that GCC should tune the performance of the code as if the target were of the type specified in this option, but still choosing the instructions that it will generate based on the cpu specified by a -mcpu= option. For some ARM implementations better performance can be obtained by using this option.
-march=name
This specifies the name of the target ARM architecture. GCC uses this name to determine what kind of instructions it can emit when generating assembly code. This option can be used in conjunction with or instead of the -mcpu= option. Permissible names are: armv2, armv2a, armv3, armv3m, armv4, armv4t, armv5, armv5t, armv5te, armv6j, iwmmxt, ep9312.
-mfpe=number
-mfp=number
This specifies the version of the floating point emulation available on the target. Permissible values are 2 and 3. -mfp= is a synonym for -mfpe=, for compatibility with older versions of GCC.
-mstructure-size-boundary=n
The size of all structures and unions will be rounded up to a multiple of the number of bits set by this option. Permissible values are 8 and 32. The default value varies for different toolchains. For the COFF targeted toolchain the default value is 8. Specifying the larger number can produce faster, more efficient code, but can also increase the size of the program. The two values are potentially incompatible. Code compiled with one value cannot necessarily expect to work with code or libraries compiled with the other value, if they exchange information using structures or unions.
-mabort-on-noreturn
Generate a call to the function "abort" at the end of a "noreturn" function. It will be executed if the function tries to return.
-mlong-calls
-mno-long-calls
Tells the compiler to perform function calls by first loading the address of the function into a register and then performing a subroutine call on this register. This switch is needed if the target function will lie outside of the 64 megabyte addressing range of the offset based version of subroutine call instruction.

Even if this switch is enabled, not all function calls will be turned into long calls. The heuristic is that static functions, functions which have the short-call attribute, functions that are inside the scope of a #pragma no_long_calls directive and functions whose definitions have already been compiled within the current compilation unit, will not be turned into long calls. The exception to this rule is that weak function definitions, functions with the long-call attribute or the section attribute, and functions that are within the scope of a #pragma long_calls directive, will always be turned into long calls.

This feature is not enabled by default. Specifying -mno-long-calls will restore the default behavior, as will placing the function calls within the scope of a #pragma long_calls_off directive. Note these switches have no effect on how the compiler generates code to handle function calls via function pointers.

-mnop-fun-dllimport
Disable support for the "dllimport" attribute.
-msingle-pic-base
Treat the register used for PIC addressing as read-only, rather than loading it in the prologue for each function. The run-time system is responsible for initializing this register with an appropriate value before execution begins.
-mpic-register=reg
Specify the register to be used for PIC addressing. The default is R10 unless stack-checking is enabled, when R9 is used.
-mcirrus-fix-invalid-insns
Insert NOPs into the instruction stream to in order to work around problems with invalid Maverick instruction combinations. This option is only valid if the -mcpu=ep9312 option has been used to enable generation of instructions for the Cirrus Maverick floating point co-processor. This option is not enabled by default, since the problem is only present in older Maverick implementations. The default can be re-enabled by use of the -mno-cirrus-fix-invalid-insns switch.
-mpoke-function-name
Write the name of each function into the text section, directly preceding the function prologue. The generated code is similar to this:

             t0
                 .ascii "arm_poke_function_name", 0
                 .align
             t1
                 .word 0xff000000 + (t1 - t0)
             arm_poke_function_name
                 mov     ip, sp
                 stmfd   sp!, {fp, ip, lr, pc}
                 sub     fp, ip, #4

When performing a stack backtrace, code can inspect the value of "pc" stored at "fp + 0". If the trace function then looks at location "pc - 12" and the top 8 bits are set, then we know that there is a function name embedded immediately preceding this location and has length "((pc[-3]) & 0xff000000)".

-mthumb
Generate code for the 16-bit Thumb instruction set. The default is to use the 32-bit ARM instruction set.
-mtpcs-frame
Generate a stack frame that is compliant with the Thumb Procedure Call Standard for all non-leaf functions. (A leaf function is one that does not call any other functions.) The default is -mno-tpcs-frame.
-mtpcs-leaf-frame
Generate a stack frame that is compliant with the Thumb Procedure Call Standard for all leaf functions. (A leaf function is one that does not call any other functions.) The default is -mno-apcs-leaf-frame.
-mcallee-super-interworking
Gives all externally visible functions in the file being compiled an ARM instruction set header which switches to Thumb mode before executing the rest of the function. This allows these functions to be called from non-interworking code.
-mcaller-super-interworking
Allows calls via function pointers (including virtual functions) to execute correctly regardless of whether the target code has been compiled for interworking or not. There is a small overhead in the cost of executing a function pointer if this option is enabled.

MN10300 Options

These -m options are defined for Matsushita MN10300 architectures:

-mmult-bug
Generate code to avoid bugs in the multiply instructions for the MN10300 processors. This is the default.
-mno-mult-bug
Do not generate code to avoid bugs in the multiply instructions for the MN10300 processors.
-mam33
Generate code which uses features specific to the AM33 processor.
-mno-am33
Do not generate code which uses features specific to the AM33 processor. This is the default.
-mno-crt0
Do not link in the C run-time initialization object file.
-mrelax
Indicate to the linker that it should perform a relaxation optimization pass to shorten branches, calls and absolute memory addresses. This option only has an effect when used on the command line for the final link step.

This option makes symbolic debugging impossible.

M32R/D Options

These -m options are defined for Renesas M32R/D architectures:

-m32r2
Generate code for the M32R/2.
-m32rx
Generate code for the M32R/X.
-m32r
Generate code for the M32R. This is the default.
-mmodel=small
Assume all objects live in the lower 16MB of memory (so that their addresses can be loaded with the "ld24" instruction), and assume all subroutines are reachable with the "bl" instruction. This is the default.

The addressability of a particular object can be set with the "model" attribute.

-mmodel=medium
Assume objects may be anywhere in the 32-bit address space (the compiler will generate "seth/add3" instructions to load their addresses), and assume all subroutines are reachable with the "bl" instruction.
-mmodel=large
Assume objects may be anywhere in the 32-bit address space (the compiler will generate "seth/add3" instructions to load their addresses), and assume subroutines may not be reachable with the "bl" instruction (the compiler will generate the much slower "seth/add3/jl" instruction sequence).
-msdata=none
Disable use of the small data area. Variables will be put into one of .data, bss, or .rodata (unless the "section" attribute has been specified). This is the default.

The small data area consists of sections .sdata and .sbss. Objects may be explicitly put in the small data area with the "section" attribute using one of these sections.

-msdata=sdata
Put small global and static data in the small data area, but do not generate special code to reference them.
-msdata=use
Put small global and static data in the small data area, and generate special instructions to reference them.
-G num
Put global and static objects less than or equal to num bytes into the small data or bss sections instead of the normal data or bss sections. The default value of num is 8. The -msdata option must be set to one of sdata or use for this option to have any effect.

All modules should be compiled with the same -G num value. Compiling with different values of num may or may not work; if it doesn't the linker will give an error message---incorrect code will not be generated.

-mdebug
Makes the M32R specific code in the compiler display some statistics that might help in debugging programs.
-malign-loops
Align all loops to a 32-byte boundary.
-mno-align-loops
Do not enforce a 32-byte alignment for loops. This is the default.
-missue-rate=number
Issue number instructions per cycle. number can only be 1 or 2.
-mbranch-cost=number
number can only be 1 or 2. If it is 1 then branches will be preferred over conditional code, if it is 2, then the opposite will apply.
-mflush-trap=number
Specifies the trap number to use to flush the cache. The default is 12. Valid numbers are between 0 and 15 inclusive.
-mno-flush-trap
Specifies that the cache cannot be flushed by using a trap.
-mflush-func=name
Specifies the name of the operating system function to call to flush the cache. The default is _flush_cache, but a function call will only be used if a trap is not available.
-mno-flush-func
Indicates that there is no OS function for flushing the cache.

IBM RS/6000 and PowerPC Options

These -m options are defined for the IBM RS/6000 and PowerPC:

-mpower
-mno-power
-mpower2
-mno-power2
-mpowerpc
-mno-powerpc
-mpowerpc-gpopt
-mno-powerpc-gpopt
-mpowerpc-gfxopt
-mno-powerpc-gfxopt
-mpowerpc64
-mno-powerpc64
GCC supports two related instruction set architectures for the RS/6000 and PowerPC. The POWER instruction set are those instructions supported by the rios chip set used in the original RS/6000 systems and the PowerPC instruction set is the architecture of the Motorola MPC5xx, MPC6xx, MPC8xx microprocessors, and the IBM 4xx microprocessors.

Neither architecture is a subset of the other. However there is a large common subset of instructions supported by both. An MQ register is included in processors supporting the POWER architecture.

You use these options to specify which instructions are available on the processor you are using. The default value of these options is determined when configuring GCC. Specifying the -mcpu=cpu_type overrides the specification of these options. We recommend you use the -mcpu=cpu_type option rather than the options listed above.

The -mpower option allows GCC to generate instructions that are found only in the POWER architecture and to use the MQ register. Specifying -mpower2 implies -power and also allows GCC to generate instructions that are present in the POWER2 architecture but not the original POWER architecture.

The -mpowerpc option allows GCC to generate instructions that are found only in the 32-bit subset of the PowerPC architecture. Specifying -mpowerpc-gpopt implies -mpowerpc and also allows GCC to use the optional PowerPC architecture instructions in the General Purpose group, including floating-point square root. Specifying -mpowerpc-gfxopt implies -mpowerpc and also allows GCC to use the optional PowerPC architecture instructions in the Graphics group, including floating-point select.

The -mpowerpc64 option allows GCC to generate the additional 64-bit instructions that are found in the full PowerPC64 architecture and to treat GPRs as 64-bit, doubleword quantities. GCC defaults to -mno-powerpc64.

If you specify both -mno-power and -mno-powerpc, GCC will use only the instructions in the common subset of both architectures plus some special AIX common-mode calls, and will not use the MQ register. Specifying both -mpower and -mpowerpc permits GCC to use any instruction from either architecture and to allow use of the MQ register; specify this for the Motorola MPC601.

-mnew-mnemonics
-mold-mnemonics
Select which mnemonics to use in the generated assembler code. With -mnew-mnemonics, GCC uses the assembler mnemonics defined for the PowerPC architecture. With -mold-mnemonics it uses the assembler mnemonics defined for the POWER architecture. Instructions defined in only one architecture have only one mnemonic; GCC uses that mnemonic irrespective of which of these options is specified.

GCC defaults to the mnemonics appropriate for the architecture in use. Specifying -mcpu=cpu_type sometimes overrides the value of these option. Unless you are building a cross-compiler, you should normally not specify either -mnew-mnemonics or -mold-mnemonics, but should instead accept the default.

-mcpu=cpu_type
Set architecture type, register usage, choice of mnemonics, and instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type. Supported values for cpu_type are 401, 403, 405, 405fp, 440, 440fp, 505, 601, 602, 603, 603e, 604, 604e, 620, 630, 740, 7400, 7450, 750, 801, 821, 823, 860, 970, 8540, common, ec603e, G3, G4, G5, power, power2, power3, power4, power5, powerpc, powerpc64, rios, rios1, rios2, rsc, and rs64a.

-mcpu=common selects a completely generic processor. Code generated under this option will run on any POWER or PowerPC processor. GCC will use only the instructions in the common subset of both architectures, and will not use the MQ register. GCC assumes a generic processor model for scheduling purposes.

-mcpu=power, -mcpu=power2, -mcpu=powerpc, and -mcpu=powerpc64 specify generic POWER, POWER2, pure 32-bit PowerPC (i.e., not MPC601), and 64-bit PowerPC architecture machine types, with an appropriate, generic processor model assumed for scheduling purposes.

The other options specify a specific processor. Code generated under those options will run best on that processor, and may not run at all on others.

The -mcpu options automatically enable or disable the following options: -maltivec, -mhard-float, -mmfcrf, -mmultiple, -mnew-mnemonics, -mpower, -mpower2, -mpowerpc64, -mpowerpc-gpopt, -mpowerpc-gfxopt, -mstring. The particular options set for any particular CPU will vary between compiler versions, depending on what setting seems to produce optimal code for that CPU; it doesn't necessarily reflect the actual hardware's capabilities. If you wish to set an individual option to a particular value, you may specify it after the -mcpu option, like -mcpu=970 -mno-altivec.

On AIX, the -maltivec and -mpowerpc64 options are not enabled or disabled by the -mcpu option at present, since AIX does not have full support for these options. You may still enable or disable them individually if you're sure it'll work in your environment.

-mtune=cpu_type
Set the instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type, but do not set the architecture type, register usage, or choice of mnemonics, as -mcpu=cpu_type would. The same values for cpu_type are used for -mtune as for -mcpu. If both are specified, the code generated will use the architecture, registers, and mnemonics set by -mcpu, but the scheduling parameters set by -mtune.
-maltivec
-mno-altivec
These switches enable or disable the use of built-in functions that allow access to the AltiVec instruction set. You may also need to set -mabi=altivec to adjust the current ABI with AltiVec ABI enhancements.
-mabi=spe
Extend the current ABI with SPE ABI extensions. This does not change the default ABI, instead it adds the SPE ABI extensions to the current ABI.
-mabi=no-spe
Disable Booke SPE ABI extensions for the current ABI.
-misel=yes/no
-misel
This switch enables or disables the generation of ISEL instructions.
-mspe=yes/no
-mspe
This switch enables or disables the generation of SPE simd instructions.
-mfloat-gprs=yes/no
-mfloat-gprs
This switch enables or disables the generation of floating point operations on the general purpose registers for architectures that support it. This option is currently only available on the MPC8540.
-mfull-toc
-mno-fp-in-toc
-mno-sum-in-toc
-mminimal-toc
Modify generation of the TOC (Table Of Contents), which is created for every executable file. The -mfull-toc option is selected by default. In that case, GCC will allocate at least one TOC entry for each unique non-automatic variable reference in your program. GCC will also place floating-point constants in the TOC. However, only 16,384 entries are available in the TOC.

If you receive a linker error message that saying you have overflowed the available TOC space, you can reduce the amount of TOC space used with the -mno-fp-in-toc and -mno-sum-in-toc options. -mno-fp-in-toc prevents GCC from putting floating-point constants in the TOC and -mno-sum-in-toc forces GCC to generate code to calculate the sum of an address and a constant at run-time instead of putting that sum into the TOC. You may specify one or both of these options. Each causes GCC to produce very slightly slower and larger code at the expense of conserving TOC space.

If you still run out of space in the TOC even when you specify both of these options, specify -mminimal-toc instead. This option causes GCC to make only one TOC entry for every file. When you specify this option, GCC will produce code that is slower and larger but which uses extremely little TOC space. You may wish to use this option only on files that contain less frequently executed code.

-maix64
-maix32
Enable 64-bit AIX ABI and calling convention: 64-bit pointers, 64-bit "long" type, and the infrastructure needed to support them. Specifying -maix64 implies -mpowerpc64 and -mpowerpc, while -maix32 disables the 64-bit ABI and implies -mno-powerpc64. GCC defaults to -maix32.
-mxl-compat
-mno-xl-compat
Produce code that conforms more closely to IBM XLC semantics when using AIX-compatible ABI. Pass floating-point arguments to prototyped functions beyond the register save area (RSA) on the stack in addition to argument FPRs. Do not assume that most significant double in 128 bit long double value is properly rounded when comparing values.

The AIX calling convention was extended but not initially documented to handle an obscure K&R C case of calling a function that takes the address of its arguments with fewer arguments than declared. AIX XL compilers access floating point arguments which do not fit in the RSA from the stack when a subroutine is compiled without optimization. Because always storing floating-point arguments on the stack is inefficient and rarely needed, this option is not enabled by default and only is necessary when calling subroutines compiled by AIX XL compilers without optimization.

-mpe
Support IBM RS/6000 SP Parallel Environment (PE). Link an application written to use message passing with special startup code to enable the application to run. The system must have PE installed in the standard location (/usr/lpp/ppe.poe/), or the specs file must be overridden with the -specs= option to specify the appropriate directory location. The Parallel Environment does not support threads, so the -mpe option and the -pthread option are incompatible.
-malign-natural
-malign-power
On AIX, Darwin, and 64-bit PowerPC GNU/Linux, the option -malign-natural overrides the ABI-defined alignment of larger types, such as floating-point doubles, on their natural size-based boundary. The option -malign-power instructs GCC to follow the ABI-specified alignment rules. GCC defaults to the standard alignment defined in the ABI.
-msoft-float
-mhard-float
Generate code that does not use (uses) the floating-point register set. Software floating point emulation is provided if you use the -msoft-float option, and pass the option to GCC when linking.
-mmultiple
-mno-multiple
Generate code that uses (does not use) the load multiple word instructions and the store multiple word instructions. These instructions are generated by default on POWER systems, and not generated on PowerPC systems. Do not use -mmultiple on little endian PowerPC systems, since those instructions do not work when the processor is in little endian mode. The exceptions are PPC740 and PPC750 which permit the instructions usage in little endian mode.
-mstring
-mno-string
Generate code that uses (does not use) the load string instructions and the store string word instructions to save multiple registers and do small block moves. These instructions are generated by default on POWER systems, and not generated on PowerPC systems. Do not use -mstring on little endian PowerPC systems, since those instructions do not work when the processor is in little endian mode. The exceptions are PPC740 and PPC750 which permit the instructions usage in little endian mode.
-mupdate
-mno-update
Generate code that uses (does not use) the load or store instructions that update the base register to the address of the calculated memory location. These instructions are generated by default. If you use -mno-update, there is a small window between the time that the stack pointer is updated and the address of the previous frame is stored, which means code that walks the stack frame across interrupts or signals may get corrupted data.
-mfused-madd
-mno-fused-madd
Generate code that uses (does not use) the floating point multiply and accumulate instructions. These instructions are generated by default if hardware floating is used.
-mno-bit-align
-mbit-align
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems do not (do) force structures and unions that contain bit-fields to be aligned to the base type of the bit-field.

For example, by default a structure containing nothing but 8 "unsigned" bit-fields of length 1 would be aligned to a 4 byte boundary and have a size of 4 bytes. By using -mno-bit-align, the structure would be aligned to a 1 byte boundary and be one byte in size.

-mno-strict-align
-mstrict-align
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems do not (do) assume that unaligned memory references will be handled by the system.
-mrelocatable
-mno-relocatable
On embedded PowerPC systems generate code that allows (does not allow) the program to be relocated to a different address at runtime. If you use -mrelocatable on any module, all objects linked together must be compiled with -mrelocatable or -mrelocatable-lib.
-mrelocatable-lib
-mno-relocatable-lib
On embedded PowerPC systems generate code that allows (does not allow) the program to be relocated to a different address at runtime. Modules compiled with -mrelocatable-lib can be linked with either modules compiled without -mrelocatable and -mrelocatable-lib or with modules compiled with the -mrelocatable options.
-mno-toc
-mtoc
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems do not (do) assume that register 2 contains a pointer to a global area pointing to the addresses used in the program.
-mlittle
-mlittle-endian
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the processor in little endian mode. The -mlittle-endian option is the same as -mlittle.
-mbig
-mbig-endian
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the processor in big endian mode. The -mbig-endian option is the same as -mbig.
-mdynamic-no-pic
On Darwin and Mac OS X systems, compile code so that it is not relocatable, but that its external references are relocatable. The resulting code is suitable for applications, but not shared libraries.
-mprioritize-restricted-insns=priority
This option controls the priority that is assigned to dispatch-slot restricted instructions during the second scheduling pass. The argument priority takes the value 0/1/2 to assign no/highest/second-highest priority to dispatch slot restricted instructions.
-msched-costly-dep=dependence_type
This option controls which dependences are considered costly by the target during instruction scheduling. The argument dependence_type takes one of the following values: no: no dependence is costly, all: all dependences are costly, true_store_to_load: a true dependence from store to load is costly, store_to_load: any dependence from store to load is costly, number: any dependence which latency >= number is costly.
-minsert-sched-nops=scheme
This option controls which nop insertion scheme will be used during the second scheduling pass. The argument scheme takes one of the following values: no: Don't insert nops. pad: Pad with nops any dispatch group which has vacant issue slots, according to the scheduler's grouping. regroup_exact: Insert nops to force costly dependent insns into separate groups. Insert exactly as many nops as needed to force an insn to a new group, according to the estimated processor grouping. number: Insert nops to force costly dependent insns into separate groups. Insert number nops to force an insn to a new group.
-mcall-sysv
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code using calling conventions that adheres to the March 1995 draft of the System V Application Binary Interface, PowerPC processor supplement. This is the default unless you configured GCC using powerpc-*-eabiaix.
-mcall-sysv-eabi
Specify both -mcall-sysv and -meabi options.
-mcall-sysv-noeabi
Specify both -mcall-sysv and -mno-eabi options.
-mcall-solaris
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the Solaris operating system.
-mcall-linux
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the Linux-based GNU system.
-mcall-gnu
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the Hurd-based GNU system.
-mcall-netbsd
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems compile code for the NetBSD operating system.
-maix-struct-return
Return all structures in memory (as specified by the AIX ABI).
-msvr4-struct-return
Return structures smaller than 8 bytes in registers (as specified by the SVR4 ABI).
-mabi=altivec
Extend the current ABI with AltiVec ABI extensions. This does not change the default ABI, instead it adds the AltiVec ABI extensions to the current ABI.
-mabi=no-altivec
Disable AltiVec ABI extensions for the current ABI.
-mprototype
-mno-prototype
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems assume that all calls to variable argument functions are properly prototyped. Otherwise, the compiler must insert an instruction before every non prototyped call to set or clear bit 6 of the condition code register (CR) to indicate whether floating point values were passed in the floating point registers in case the function takes a variable arguments. With -mprototype, only calls to prototyped variable argument functions will set or clear the bit.
-msim
On embedded PowerPC systems, assume that the startup module is called sim-crt0.o and that the standard C libraries are libsim.a and libc.a. This is the default for powerpc-*-eabisim. configurations.
-mmvme
On embedded PowerPC systems, assume that the startup module is called crt0.o and the standard C libraries are libmvme.a and libc.a.
-mads
On embedded PowerPC systems, assume that the startup module is called crt0.o and the standard C libraries are libads.a and libc.a.
-myellowknife
On embedded PowerPC systems, assume that the startup module is called crt0.o and the standard C libraries are libyk.a and libc.a.
-mvxworks
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems, specify that you are compiling for a VxWorks system.
-mwindiss
Specify that you are compiling for the WindISS simulation environment.
-memb
On embedded PowerPC systems, set the PPC_EMB bit in the ELF flags header to indicate that eabi extended relocations are used.
-meabi
-mno-eabi
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems do (do not) adhere to the Embedded Applications Binary Interface (eabi) which is a set of modifications to the System V.4 specifications. Selecting -meabi means that the stack is aligned to an 8 byte boundary, a function "__eabi" is called to from "main" to set up the eabi environment, and the -msdata option can use both "r2" and "r13" to point to two separate small data areas. Selecting -mno-eabi means that the stack is aligned to a 16 byte boundary, do not call an initialization function from "main", and the -msdata option will only use "r13" to point to a single small data area. The -meabi option is on by default if you configured GCC using one of the powerpc*-*-eabi* options.
-msdata=eabi
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems, put small initialized "const" global and static data in the .sdata2 section, which is pointed to by register "r2". Put small initialized non-"const" global and static data in the .sdata section, which is pointed to by register "r13". Put small uninitialized global and static data in the .sbss section, which is adjacent to the .sdata section. The -msdata=eabi option is incompatible with the -mrelocatable option. The -msdata=eabi option also sets the -memb option.
-msdata=sysv
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems, put small global and static data in the .sdata section, which is pointed to by register "r13". Put small uninitialized global and static data in the .sbss section, which is adjacent to the .sdata section. The -msdata=sysv option is incompatible with the -mrelocatable option.
-msdata=default
-msdata
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems, if -meabi is used, compile code the same as -msdata=eabi, otherwise compile code the same as -msdata=sysv.
-msdata-data
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems, put small global and static data in the .sdata section. Put small uninitialized global and static data in the .sbss section. Do not use register "r13" to address small data however. This is the default behavior unless other -msdata options are used.
-msdata=none
-mno-sdata
On embedded PowerPC systems, put all initialized global and static data in the .data section, and all uninitialized data in the .bss section.
-G num
On embedded PowerPC systems, put global and static items less than or equal to num bytes into the small data or bss sections instead of the normal data or bss section. By default, num is 8. The -G num switch is also passed to the linker. All modules should be compiled with the same -G num value.
-mregnames
-mno-regnames
On System V.4 and embedded PowerPC systems do (do not) emit register names in the assembly language output using symbolic forms.
-mlongcall
-mno-longcall
Default to making all function calls via pointers, so that functions which reside further than 64 megabytes (67,108,864 bytes) from the current location can be called. This setting can be overridden by the "shortcall" function attribute, or by "#pragma longcall(0)".

Some linkers are capable of detecting out-of-range calls and generating glue code on the fly. On these systems, long calls are unnecessary and generate slower code. As of this writing, the AIX linker can do this, as can the GNU linker for PowerPC/64. It is planned to add this feature to the GNU linker for 32-bit PowerPC systems as well.

On Mach-O (Darwin) systems, this option directs the compiler emit to the glue for every direct call, and the Darwin linker decides whether to use or discard it.

In the future, we may cause GCC to ignore all longcall specifications when the linker is known to generate glue.

-pthread
Adds support for multithreading with the pthreads library. This option sets flags for both the preprocessor and linker.

Darwin Options

These options are defined for all architectures running the Darwin operating system. They are useful for compatibility with other Mac OS compilers.

-all_load
Loads all members of static archive libraries. See man ld(1) for more information.
-arch_errors_fatal
Cause the errors having to do with files that have the wrong architecture to be fatal.
-bind_at_load
Causes the output file to be marked such that the dynamic linker will bind all undefined references when the file is loaded or launched.
-bundle
Produce a Mach-o bundle format file. See man ld(1) for more information.
-bundle_loader executable
This specifies the executable that will be loading the build output file being linked. See man ld(1) for more information.
-allowable_client client_name
-arch_only
-client_name
-compatibility_version
-current_version
-dependency-file
-dylib_file
-dylinker_install_name
-dynamic
-dynamiclib
-exported_symbols_list
-filelist
-flat_namespace
-force_cpusubtype_ALL
-force_flat_namespace
-headerpad_max_install_names
-image_base
-init
-install_name
-keep_private_externs
-multi_module
-multiply_defined
-multiply_defined_unused
-noall_load
-nofixprebinding
-nomultidefs
-noprebind
-noseglinkedit
-pagezero_size
-prebind
-prebind_all_twolevel_modules
-private_bundle
-read_only_relocs
-sectalign
-sectobjectsymbols
-whyload
-seg1addr
-sectcreate
-sectobjectsymbols
-sectorder
-seg_addr_table
-seg_addr_table_filename
-seglinkedit
-segprot
-segs_read_only_addr
-segs_read_write_addr
-single_module
-static
-sub_library
-sub_umbrella
-twolevel_namespace
-umbrella
-undefined
-unexported_symbols_list
-weak_reference_mismatches
-whatsloaded
These options are available for Darwin linker. Darwin linker man page describes them in detail.

MIPS Options

-EB
Generate big-endian code.
-EL
Generate little-endian code. This is the default for mips*el-*-* configurations.
-march=arch
Generate code that will run on arch, which can be the name of a generic MIPS ISA, or the name of a particular processor. The ISA names are: mips1, mips2, mips3, mips4, mips32, mips32r2, and mips64. The processor names are: 4kc, 4kp, 5kc, 20kc, m4k, r2000, r3000, r3900, r4000, r4400, r4600, r4650, r6000, r8000, rm7000, rm9000, orion, sb1, vr4100, vr4111, vr4120, vr4300, vr5000, vr5400 and vr5500. The special value from-abi selects the most compatible architecture for the selected ABI (that is, mips1 for 32-bit ABIs and mips3 for 64-bit ABIs).

In processor names, a final 000 can be abbreviated as k (for example, -march=r2k). Prefixes are optional, and vr may be written r.

GCC defines two macros based on the value of this option. The first is _MIPS_ARCH, which gives the name of target architecture, as a string. The second has the form _MIPS_ARCH_foo, where foo is the capitalized value of _MIPS_ARCH. For example, -march=r2000 will set _MIPS_ARCH to ``r2000'' and define the macro _MIPS_ARCH_R2000.

Note that the _MIPS_ARCH macro uses the processor names given above. In other words, it will have the full prefix and will not abbreviate 000 as k. In the case of from-abi, the macro names the resolved architecture (either ``mips1'' or ``mips3''). It names the default architecture when no -march option is given.

-mtune=arch
Optimize for arch. Among other things, this option controls the way instructions are scheduled, and the perceived cost of arithmetic operations. The list of arch values is the same as for -march.

When this option is not used, GCC will optimize for the processor specified by -march. By using -march and -mtune together, it is possible to generate code that will run on a family of processors, but optimize the code for one particular member of that family.

-mtune defines the macros _MIPS_TUNE and _MIPS_TUNE_foo, which work in the same way as the -march ones described above.

-mips1
Equivalent to -march=mips1.
-mips2
Equivalent to -march=mips2.
-mips3
Equivalent to -march=mips3.
-mips4
Equivalent to -march=mips4.
-mips32
Equivalent to -march=mips32.
-mips32r2
Equivalent to -march=mips32r2.
-mips64
Equivalent to -march=mips64.
-mips16
-mno-mips16
Use (do not use) the MIPS16 ISA.
-mabi=32
-mabi=o64
-mabi=n32
-mabi=64
-mabi=eabi
Generate code for the given ABI.

Note that the EABI has a 32-bit and a 64-bit variant. GCC normally generates 64-bit code when you select a 64-bit architecture, but you can use -mgp32 to get 32-bit code instead.

-mabicalls
-mno-abicalls
Generate (do not generate) SVR4-style position-independent code. -mabicalls is the default for SVR4-based systems.
-mxgot
-mno-xgot
Lift (do not lift) the usual restrictions on the size of the global offset table.

GCC normally uses a single instruction to load values from the GOT. While this is relatively efficient, it will only work if the GOT is smaller than about 64k. Anything larger will cause the linker to report an error such as:

        relocation truncated to fit: R_MIPS_GOT16 foobar

If this happens, you should recompile your code with -mxgot. It should then work with very large GOTs, although it will also be less efficient, since it will take three instructions to fetch the value of a global symbol.

Note that some linkers can create multiple GOTs. If you have such a linker, you should only need to use -mxgot when a single object file accesses more than 64k's worth of GOT entries. Very few do.

These options have no effect unless GCC is generating position independent code.

-membedded-pic
-mno-embedded-pic
Generate (do not generate) position-independent code suitable for some embedded systems. All calls are made using PC relative addresses, and all data is addressed using the $gp register. No more than 65536 bytes of global data may be used. This requires GNU as and GNU ld, which do most of the work.
-mgp32
Assume that general-purpose registers are 32 bits wide.
-mgp64
Assume that general-purpose registers are 64 bits wide.
-mfp32
Assume that floating-point registers are 32 bits wide.
-mfp64
Assume that floating-point registers are 64 bits wide.
-mhard-float
Use floating-point coprocessor instructions.
-msoft-float
Do not use floating-point coprocessor instructions. Implement floating-point calculations using library calls instead.
-msingle-float
Assume that the floating-point coprocessor only supports single-precision operations.
-mdouble-float
Assume that the floating-point coprocessor supports double-precision operations. This is the default.
-mint64
Force "int" and "long" types to be 64 bits wide. See -mlong32 for an explanation of the default and the way that the pointer size is determined.
-mlong64
Force "long" types to be 64 bits wide. See -mlong32 for an explanation of the default and the way that the pointer size is determined.
-mlong32
Force "long", "int", and pointer types to be 32 bits wide.

The default size of "int"s, "long"s and pointers depends on the ABI. All the supported ABIs use 32-bit "int"s. The n64 ABI uses 64-bit "long"s, as does the 64-bit EABI; the others use 32-bit "long"s. Pointers are the same size as "long"s, or the same size as integer registers, whichever is smaller.

-G num
Put global and static items less than or equal to num bytes into the small data or bss section instead of the normal data or bss section. This allows the data to be accessed using a single instruction.

All modules should be compiled with the same -G num value.

-membedded-data
-mno-embedded-data
Allocate variables to the read-only data section first if possible, then next in the small data section if possible, otherwise in data. This gives slightly slower code than the default, but reduces the amount of RAM required when executing, and thus may be preferred for some embedded systems.
-muninit-const-in-rodata
-mno-uninit-const-in-rodata
Put uninitialized "const" variables in the read-only data section. This option is only meaningful in conjunction with -membedded-data.
-msplit-addresses
-mno-split-addresses
Enable (disable) use of the "%hi()" and "%lo()" assembler relocation operators. This option has been superceded by -mexplicit-relocs but is retained for backwards compatibility.
-mexplicit-relocs
-mno-explicit-relocs
Use (do not use) assembler relocation operators when dealing with symbolic addresses. The alternative, selected by -mno-explicit-relocs, is to use assembler macros instead.

-mexplicit-relocs is usually the default if GCC was configured to use an assembler that supports relocation operators. However, there are two exceptions:

*
GCC is not yet able to generate explicit relocations for the combination of -mabi=64 and -mno-abicalls. This will be addressed in a future release.
*
The combination of -mabicalls and -fno-unit-at-a-time implies -mno-explicit-relocs unless explicitly overridden. This is because, when generating abicalls, the choice of relocation depends on whether a symbol is local or global. In some rare cases, GCC will not be able to decide this until the whole compilation unit has been read.
-mrnames
-mno-rnames
Generate (do not generate) code that refers to registers using their software names. The default is -mno-rnames, which tells GCC to use hardware names like $4 instead of software names like a0. The only assembler known to support -rnames is the Algorithmics assembler.
-mcheck-zero-division
-mno-check-zero-division
Trap (do not trap) on integer division by zero. The default is -mcheck-zero-division.
-mmemcpy
-mno-memcpy
Force (do not force) the use of "memcpy()" for non-trivial block moves. The default is -mno-memcpy, which allows GCC to inline most constant-sized copies.
-mlong-calls
-mno-long-calls
Disable (do not disable) use of the "jal" instruction. Calling functions using "jal" is more efficient but requires the caller and callee to be in the same 256 megabyte segment.

This option has no effect on abicalls code. The default is -mno-long-calls.

-mmad
-mno-mad
Enable (disable) use of the "mad", "madu" and "mul" instructions, as provided by the R4650 ISA.
-mfused-madd
-mno-fused-madd
Enable (disable) use of the floating point multiply-accumulate instructions, when they are available. The default is -mfused-madd.

When multiply-accumulate instructions are used, the intermediate product is calculated to infinite precision and is not subject to the FCSR Flush to Zero bit. This may be undesirable in some circumstances.

-nocpp
Tell the MIPS assembler to not run its preprocessor over user assembler files (with a .s suffix) when assembling them.
-mfix-sb1
-mno-fix-sb1
Work around certain SB-1 CPU core errata. (This flag currently works around the SB-1 revision 2 ``F1'' and ``F2'' floating point errata.)
-mflush-func=func
-mno-flush-func
Specifies the function to call to flush the I and D caches, or to not call any such function. If called, the function must take the same arguments as the common "_flush_func()", that is, the address of the memory range for which the cache is being flushed, the size of the memory range, and the number 3 (to flush both caches). The default depends on the target GCC was configured for, but commonly is either _flush_func or __cpu_flush.
-mbranch-likely
-mno-branch-likely
Enable or disable use of Branch Likely instructions, regardless of the default for the selected architecture. By default, Branch Likely instructions may be generated if they are supported by the selected architecture. An exception is for the MIPS32 and MIPS64 architectures and processors which implement those architectures; for those, Branch Likely instructions will not be generated by default because the MIPS32 and MIPS64 architectures specifically deprecate their use.

Intel 386 and AMD x86-64 Options

These -m options are defined for the i386 and x86-64 family of computers:

-mtune=cpu-type
Tune to cpu-type everything applicable about the generated code, except for the ABI and the set of available instructions. The choices for cpu-type are:
i386
Original Intel's i386 CPU.
i486
Intel's i486 CPU. (No scheduling is implemented for this chip.)
i586, pentium
Intel Pentium CPU with no MMX support.
pentium-mmx
Intel PentiumMMX CPU based on Pentium core with MMX instruction set support.
i686, pentiumpro
Intel PentiumPro CPU.
pentium2
Intel Pentium2 CPU based on PentiumPro core with MMX instruction set support.
pentium3, pentium3m
Intel Pentium3 CPU based on PentiumPro core with MMX and SSE instruction set support.
pentium-m
Low power version of Intel Pentium3 CPU with MMX, SSE and SSE2 instruction set support. Used by Centrino notebooks.
pentium4, pentium4m
Intel Pentium4 CPU with MMX, SSE and SSE2 instruction set support.
prescott
Improved version of Intel Pentium4 CPU with MMX, SSE, SSE2 and SSE3 instruction set support.
nocona
Improved version of Intel Pentium4 CPU with 64-bit extensions, MMX, SSE, SSE2 and SSE3 instruction set support.
k6
AMD K6 CPU with MMX instruction set support.
k6-2, k6-3
Improved versions of AMD K6 CPU with MMX and 3dNOW! instruction set support.
athlon, athlon-tbird
AMD Athlon CPU with MMX, 3dNOW!, enhanced 3dNOW! and SSE prefetch instructions support.
athlon-4, athlon-xp, athlon-mp
Improved AMD Athlon CPU with MMX, 3dNOW!, enhanced 3dNOW! and full SSE instruction set support.
k8, opteron, athlon64, athlon-fx
AMD K8 core based CPUs with x86-64 instruction set support. (This supersets MMX, SSE, SSE2, 3dNOW!, enhanced 3dNOW! and 64-bit instruction set extensions.)
winchip-c6
IDT Winchip C6 CPU, dealt in same way as i486 with additional MMX instruction set support.
winchip2
IDT Winchip2 CPU, dealt in same way as i486 with additional MMX and 3dNOW! instruction set support.
c3
Via C3 CPU with MMX and 3dNOW! instruction set support. (No scheduling is implemented for this chip.)
c3-2
Via C3-2 CPU with MMX and SSE instruction set support. (No scheduling is implemented for this chip.)

While picking a specific cpu-type will schedule things appropriately for that particular chip, the compiler will not generate any code that does not run on the i386 without the -march=cpu-type option being used.

-march=cpu-type
Generate instructions for the machine type cpu-type. The choices for cpu-type are the same as for -mtune. Moreover, specifying -march=cpu-type implies -mtune=cpu-type.
-mcpu=cpu-type
A deprecated synonym for -mtune.
-m386
-m486
-mpentium
-mpentiumpro
These options are synonyms for -mtune=i386, -mtune=i486, -mtune=pentium, and -mtune=pentiumpro respectively. These synonyms are deprecated.
-mfpmath=unit
Generate floating point arithmetics for selected unit unit. The choices for unit are:
387
Use the standard 387 floating point coprocessor present majority of chips and emulated otherwise. Code compiled with this option will run almost everywhere. The temporary results are computed in 80bit precision instead of precision specified by the type resulting in slightly different results compared to most of other chips. See -ffloat-store for more detailed description.

This is the default choice for i386 compiler.

sse
Use scalar floating point instructions present in the SSE instruction set. This instruction set is supported by Pentium3 and newer chips, in the AMD line by Athlon-4, Athlon-xp and Athlon-mp chips. The earlier version of SSE instruction set supports only single precision arithmetics, thus the double and extended precision arithmetics is still done using 387. Later version, present only in Pentium4 and the future AMD x86-64 chips supports double precision arithmetics too.

For i387 you need to use -march=cpu-type, -msse or -msse2 switches to enable SSE extensions and make this option effective. For x86-64 compiler, these extensions are enabled by default.

The resulting code should be considerably faster in the majority of cases and avoid the numerical instability problems of 387 code, but may break some existing code that expects temporaries to be 80bit.

This is the default choice for the x86-64 compiler.

sse,387
Attempt to utilize both instruction sets at once. This effectively double the amount of available registers and on chips with separate execution units for 387 and SSE the execution resources too. Use this option with care, as it is still experimental, because the GCC register allocator does not model separate functional units well resulting in instable performance.
-masm=dialect
Output asm instructions using selected dialect. Supported choices are intel or att (the default one).
-mieee-fp
-mno-ieee-fp
Control whether or not the compiler uses IEEE floating point comparisons. These handle correctly the case where the result of a comparison is unordered.
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries are not part of GCC. Normally the facilities of the machine's usual C compiler are used, but this can't be done directly in cross-compilation. You must make your own arrangements to provide suitable library functions for cross-compilation.

On machines where a function returns floating point results in the 80387 register stack, some floating point opcodes may be emitted even if -msoft-float is used.

-mno-fp-ret-in-387
Do not use the FPU registers for return values of functions.

The usual calling convention has functions return values of types "float" and "double" in an FPU register, even if there is no FPU. The idea is that the operating system should emulate an FPU.

The option -mno-fp-ret-in-387 causes such values to be returned in ordinary CPU registers instead.

-mno-fancy-math-387
Some 387 emulators do not support the "sin", "cos" and "sqrt" instructions for the 387. Specify this option to avoid generating those instructions. This option is the default on FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD. This option is overridden when -march indicates that the target cpu will always have an FPU and so the instruction will not need emulation. As of revision 2.6.1, these instructions are not generated unless you also use the -funsafe-math-optimizations switch.
-malign-double
-mno-align-double
Control whether GCC aligns "double", "long double", and "long long" variables on a two word boundary or a one word boundary. Aligning "double" variables on a two word boundary will produce code that runs somewhat faster on a Pentium at the expense of more memory.

Warning: if you use the -malign-double switch, structures containing the above types will be aligned differently than the published application binary interface specifications for the 386 and will not be binary compatible with structures in code compiled without that switch.

-m96bit-long-double
-m128bit-long-double
These switches control the size of "long double" type. The i386 application binary interface specifies the size to be 96 bits, so -m96bit-long-double is the default in 32 bit mode.

Modern architectures (Pentium and newer) would prefer "long double" to be aligned to an 8 or 16 byte boundary. In arrays or structures conforming to the ABI, this would not be possible. So specifying a -m128bit-long-double will align "long double" to a 16 byte boundary by padding the "long double" with an additional 32 bit zero.

In the x86-64 compiler, -m128bit-long-double is the default choice as its ABI specifies that "long double" is to be aligned on 16 byte boundary.

Notice that neither of these options enable any extra precision over the x87 standard of 80 bits for a "long double".

Warning: if you override the default value for your target ABI, the structures and arrays containing "long double" variables will change their size as well as function calling convention for function taking "long double" will be modified. Hence they will not be binary compatible with arrays or structures in code compiled without that switch.

-msvr3-shlib
-mno-svr3-shlib
Control whether GCC places uninitialized local variables into the "bss" or "data" segments. -msvr3-shlib places them into "bss". These options are meaningful only on System V Release 3.
-mrtd
Use a different function-calling convention, in which functions that take a fixed number of arguments return with the "ret" num instruction, which pops their arguments while returning. This saves one instruction in the caller since there is no need to pop the arguments there.

You can specify that an individual function is called with this calling sequence with the function attribute stdcall. You can also override the -mrtd option by using the function attribute cdecl.

Warning: this calling convention is incompatible with the one normally used on Unix, so you cannot use it if you need to call libraries compiled with the Unix compiler.

Also, you must provide function prototypes for all functions that take variable numbers of arguments (including "printf"); otherwise incorrect code will be generated for calls to those functions.

In addition, seriously incorrect code will result if you call a function with too many arguments. (Normally, extra arguments are harmlessly ignored.)

-mregparm=num
Control how many registers are used to pass integer arguments. By default, no registers are used to pass arguments, and at most 3 registers can be used. You can control this behavior for a specific function by using the function attribute regparm.

Warning: if you use this switch, and num is nonzero, then you must build all modules with the same value, including any libraries. This includes the system libraries and startup modules.

-mpreferred-stack-boundary=num
Attempt to keep the stack boundary aligned to a 2 raised to num byte boundary. If -mpreferred-stack-boundary is not specified, the default is 4 (16 bytes or 128 bits), except when optimizing for code size (-Os), in which case the default is the minimum correct alignment (4 bytes for x86, and 8 bytes for x86-64).

On Pentium and PentiumPro, "double" and "long double" values should be aligned to an 8 byte boundary (see -malign-double) or suffer significant run time performance penalties. On Pentium III, the Streaming SIMD Extension (SSE) data type "__m128" suffers similar penalties if it is not 16 byte aligned.

To ensure proper alignment of this values on the stack, the stack boundary must be as aligned as that required by any value stored on the stack. Further, every function must be generated such that it keeps the stack aligned. Thus calling a function compiled with a higher preferred stack boundary from a function compiled with a lower preferred stack boundary will most likely misalign the stack. It is recommended that libraries that use callbacks always use the default setting.

This extra alignment does consume extra stack space, and generally increases code size. Code that is sensitive to stack space usage, such as embedded systems and operating system kernels, may want to reduce the preferred alignment to -mpreferred-stack-boundary=2.

-mmmx
-mno-mmx
-msse
-mno-sse
-msse2
-mno-sse2
-msse3
-mno-sse3
-m3dnow
-mno-3dnow
These switches enable or disable the use of built-in functions that allow direct access to the MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3 and 3Dnow extensions of the instruction set.

To have SSE/SSE2 instructions generated automatically from floating-point code, see -mfpmath=sse.

-mpush-args
-mno-push-args
Use PUSH operations to store outgoing parameters. This method is shorter and usually equally fast as method using SUB/MOV operations and is enabled by default. In some cases disabling it may improve performance because of improved scheduling and reduced dependencies.
-maccumulate-outgoing-args
If enabled, the maximum amount of space required for outgoing arguments will be computed in the function prologue. This is faster on most modern CPUs because of reduced dependencies, improved scheduling and reduced stack usage when preferred stack boundary is not equal to 2. The drawback is a notable increase in code size. This switch implies -mno-push-args.
-mthreads
Support thread-safe exception handling on Mingw32. Code that relies on thread-safe exception handling must compile and link all code with the -mthreads option. When compiling, -mthreads defines -D_MT; when linking, it links in a special thread helper library -lmingwthrd which cleans up per thread exception handling data.
-mno-align-stringops
Do not align destination of inlined string operations. This switch reduces code size and improves performance in case the destination is already aligned, but GCC doesn't know about it.
-minline-all-stringops
By default GCC inlines string operations only when destination is known to be aligned at least to 4 byte boundary. This enables more inlining, increase code size, but may improve performance of code that depends on fast memcpy, strlen and memset for short lengths.
-momit-leaf-frame-pointer
Don't keep the frame pointer in a register for leaf functions. This avoids the instructions to save, set up and restore frame pointers and makes an extra register available in leaf functions. The option -fomit-frame-pointer removes the frame pointer for all functions which might make debugging harder.
-mtls-direct-seg-refs
-mno-tls-direct-seg-refs
Controls whether TLS variables may be accessed with offsets from the TLS segment register (%gs for 32-bit, %fs for 64-bit), or whether the thread base pointer must be added. Whether or not this is legal depends on the operating system, and whether it maps the segment to cover the entire TLS area.

For systems that use GNU libc, the default is on.

These -m switches are supported in addition to the above on AMD x86-64 processors in 64-bit environments.

-m32
-m64
Generate code for a 32-bit or 64-bit environment. The 32-bit environment sets int, long and pointer to 32 bits and generates code that runs on any i386 system. The 64-bit environment sets int to 32 bits and long and pointer to 64 bits and generates code for AMD's x86-64 architecture.
-mno-red-zone
Do not use a so called red zone for x86-64 code. The red zone is mandated by the x86-64 ABI, it is a 128-byte area beyond the location of the stack pointer that will not be modified by signal or interrupt handlers and therefore can be used for temporary data without adjusting the stack pointer. The flag -mno-red-zone disables this red zone.
-mcmodel=small
Generate code for the small code model: the program and its symbols must be linked in the lower 2 GB of the address space. Pointers are 64 bits. Programs can be statically or dynamically linked. This is the default code model.
-mcmodel=kernel
Generate code for the kernel code model. The kernel runs in the negative 2 GB of the address space. This model has to be used for Linux kernel code.
-mcmodel=medium
Generate code for the medium model: The program is linked in the lower 2 GB of the address space but symbols can be located anywhere in the address space. Programs can be statically or dynamically linked, but building of shared libraries are not supported with the medium model.
-mcmodel=large
Generate code for the large model: This model makes no assumptions about addresses and sizes of sections. Currently GCC does not implement this model.

HPPA Options

These -m options are defined for the HPPA family of computers:

-march=architecture-type
Generate code for the specified architecture. The choices for architecture-type are 1.0 for PA 1.0, 1.1 for PA 1.1, and 2.0 for PA 2.0 processors. Refer to /usr/lib/sched.models on an HP-UX system to determine the proper architecture option for your machine. Code compiled for lower numbered architectures will run on higher numbered architectures, but not the other way around.

PA 2.0 support currently requires gas snapshot 19990413 or later. The next release of binutils (current is 2.9.1) will probably contain PA 2.0 support.

-mpa-risc-1-0
-mpa-risc-1-1
-mpa-risc-2-0
Synonyms for -march=1.0, -march=1.1, and -march=2.0 respectively.
-mbig-switch
Generate code suitable for big switch tables. Use this option only if the assembler/linker complain about out of range branches within a switch table.
-mjump-in-delay
Fill delay slots of function calls with unconditional jump instructions by modifying the return pointer for the function call to be the target of the conditional jump.
-mdisable-fpregs
Prevent floating point registers from being used in any manner. This is necessary for compiling kernels which perform lazy context switching of floating point registers. If you use this option and attempt to perform floating point operations, the compiler will abort.
-mdisable-indexing
Prevent the compiler from using indexing address modes. This avoids some rather obscure problems when compiling MIG generated code under MACH.
-mno-space-regs
Generate code that assumes the target has no space registers. This allows GCC to generate faster indirect calls and use unscaled index address modes.

Such code is suitable for level 0 PA systems and kernels.

-mfast-indirect-calls
Generate code that assumes calls never cross space boundaries. This allows GCC to emit code which performs faster indirect calls.

This option will not work in the presence of shared libraries or nested functions.

-mlong-load-store
Generate 3-instruction load and store sequences as sometimes required by the HP-UX 10 linker. This is equivalent to the +k option to the HP compilers.
-mportable-runtime
Use the portable calling conventions proposed by HP for ELF systems.
-mgas
Enable the use of assembler directives only GAS understands.
-mschedule=cpu-type
Schedule code according to the constraints for the machine type cpu-type. The choices for cpu-type are 700 7100, 7100LC, 7200, 7300 and 8000. Refer to /usr/lib/sched.models on an HP-UX system to determine the proper scheduling option for your machine. The default scheduling is 8000.
-mlinker-opt
Enable the optimization pass in the HP-UX linker. Note this makes symbolic debugging impossible. It also triggers a bug in the HP-UX 8 and HP-UX 9 linkers in which they give bogus error messages when linking some programs.
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries are not available for all HPPA targets. Normally the facilities of the machine's usual C compiler are used, but this cannot be done directly in cross-compilation. You must make your own arrangements to provide suitable library functions for cross-compilation. The embedded target hppa1.1-*-pro does provide software floating point support.

-msoft-float changes the calling convention in the output file; therefore, it is only useful if you compile all of a program with this option. In particular, you need to compile libgcc.a, the library that comes with GCC, with -msoft-float in order for this to work.

-msio
Generate the predefine, "_SIO", for server IO. The default is -mwsio. This generates the predefines, "__hp9000s700", "__hp9000s700__" and "_WSIO", for workstation IO. These options are available under HP-UX and HI-UX.
-mgnu-ld
Use GNU ld specific options. This passes -shared to ld when building a shared library. It is the default when GCC is configured, explicitly or implicitly, with the GNU linker. This option does not have any affect on which ld is called, it only changes what parameters are passed to that ld. The ld that is called is determined by the --with-ld configure option, GCC's program search path, and finally by the user's PATH. The linker used by GCC can be printed using which `gcc -print-prog-name=ld`. This option is only available on the 64 bit HP-UX GCC, i.e. configured with hppa*64*-*-hpux*.
-mhp-ld
Use HP ld specific options. This passes -b to ld when building a shared library and passes +Accept TypeMismatch to ld on all links. It is the default when GCC is configured, explicitly or implicitly, with the HP linker. This option does not have any affect on which ld is called, it only changes what parameters are passed to that ld. The ld that is called is determined by the --with-ld configure option, GCC's program search path, and finally by the user's PATH. The linker used by GCC can be printed using which `gcc -print-prog-name=ld`. This option is only available on the 64 bit HP-UX GCC, i.e. configured with hppa*64*-*-hpux*.
-mlong-calls
Generate code that uses long call sequences. This ensures that a call is always able to reach linker generated stubs. The default is to generate long calls only when the distance from the call site to the beginning of the function or translation unit, as the case may be, exceeds a predefined limit set by the branch type being used. The limits for normal calls are 7,600,000 and 240,000 bytes, respectively for the PA 2.0 and PA 1.X architectures. Sibcalls are always limited at 240,000 bytes.

Distances are measured from the beginning of functions when using the -ffunction-sections option, or when using the -mgas and -mno-portable-runtime options together under HP-UX with the SOM linker.

It is normally not desirable to use this option as it will degrade performance. However, it may be useful in large applications, particularly when partial linking is used to build the application.

The types of long calls used depends on the capabilities of the assembler and linker, and the type of code being generated. The impact on systems that support long absolute calls, and long pic symbol-difference or pc-relative calls should be relatively small. However, an indirect call is used on 32-bit ELF systems in pic code and it is quite long.

-nolibdld
Suppress the generation of link options to search libdld.sl when the -static option is specified on HP-UX 10 and later.
-static
The HP-UX implementation of setlocale in libc has a dependency on libdld.sl. There isn't an archive version of libdld.sl. Thus, when the -static option is specified, special link options are needed to resolve this dependency.

On HP-UX 10 and later, the GCC driver adds the necessary options to link with libdld.sl when the -static option is specified. This causes the resulting binary to be dynamic. On the 64-bit port, the linkers generate dynamic binaries by default in any case. The -nolibdld option can be used to prevent the GCC driver from adding these link options.

-threads
Add support for multithreading with the dce thread library under HP-UX. This option sets flags for both the preprocessor and linker.

Intel 960 Options

These -m options are defined for the Intel 960 implementations:

-mcpu-type
Assume the defaults for the machine type cpu-type for some of the other options, including instruction scheduling, floating point support, and addressing modes. The choices for cpu-type are ka, kb, mc, ca, cf, sa, and sb. The default is kb.
-mnumerics
-msoft-float
The -mnumerics option indicates that the processor does support floating-point instructions. The -msoft-float option indicates that floating-point support should not be assumed.
-mleaf-procedures
-mno-leaf-procedures
Do (or do not) attempt to alter leaf procedures to be callable with the "bal" instruction as well as "call". This will result in more efficient code for explicit calls when the "bal" instruction can be substituted by the assembler or linker, but less efficient code in other cases, such as calls via function pointers, or using a linker that doesn't support this optimization.
-mtail-call
-mno-tail-call
Do (or do not) make additional attempts (beyond those of the machine-independent portions of the compiler) to optimize tail-recursive calls into branches. You may not want to do this because the detection of cases where this is not valid is not totally complete. The default is -mno-tail-call.
-mcomplex-addr
-mno-complex-addr
Assume (or do not assume) that the use of a complex addressing mode is a win on this implementation of the i960. Complex addressing modes may not be worthwhile on the K-series, but they definitely are on the C-series. The default is currently -mcomplex-addr for all processors except the CB and CC.
-mcode-align
-mno-code-align
Align code to 8-byte boundaries for faster fetching (or don't bother). Currently turned on by default for C-series implementations only.
-mic-compat
-mic2.0-compat
-mic3.0-compat
Enable compatibility with iC960 v2.0 or v3.0.
-masm-compat
-mintel-asm
Enable compatibility with the iC960 assembler.
-mstrict-align
-mno-strict-align
Do not permit (do permit) unaligned accesses.
-mold-align
Enable structure-alignment compatibility with Intel's gcc release version 1.3 (based on gcc 1.37). This option implies -mstrict-align.
-mlong-double-64
Implement type long double as 64-bit floating point numbers. Without the option long double is implemented by 80-bit floating point numbers. The only reason we have it because there is no 128-bit long double support in fp-bit.c yet. So it is only useful for people using soft-float targets. Otherwise, we should recommend against use of it.

DEC Alpha Options

These -m options are defined for the DEC Alpha implementations:

-mno-soft-float
-msoft-float
Use (do not use) the hardware floating-point instructions for floating-point operations. When -msoft-float is specified, functions in libgcc.a will be used to perform floating-point operations. Unless they are replaced by routines that emulate the floating-point operations, or compiled in such a way as to call such emulations routines, these routines will issue floating-point operations. If you are compiling for an Alpha without floating-point operations, you must ensure that the library is built so as not to call them.

Note that Alpha implementations without floating-point operations are required to have floating-point registers.

-mfp-reg
-mno-fp-regs
Generate code that uses (does not use) the floating-point register set. -mno-fp-regs implies -msoft-float. If the floating-point register set is not used, floating point operands are passed in integer registers as if they were integers and floating-point results are passed in $0 instead of $f0. This is a non-standard calling sequence, so any function with a floating-point argument or return value called by code compiled with -mno-fp-regs must also be compiled with that option.

A typical use of this option is building a kernel that does not use, and hence need not save and restore, any floating-point registers.

-mieee
The Alpha architecture implements floating-point hardware optimized for maximum performance. It is mostly compliant with the IEEE floating point standard. However, for full compliance, software assistance is required. This option generates code fully IEEE compliant code except that the inexact-flag is not maintained (see below). If this option is turned on, the preprocessor macro "_IEEE_FP" is defined during compilation. The resulting code is less efficient but is able to correctly support denormalized numbers and exceptional IEEE values such as not-a-number and plus/minus infinity. Other Alpha compilers call this option -ieee_with_no_inexact.
-mieee-with-inexact
This is like -mieee except the generated code also maintains the IEEE inexact-flag. Turning on this option causes the generated code to implement fully-compliant IEEE math. In addition to "_IEEE_FP", "_IEEE_FP_EXACT" is defined as a preprocessor macro. On some Alpha implementations the resulting code may execute significantly slower than the code generated by default. Since there is very little code that depends on the inexact-flag, you should normally not specify this option. Other Alpha compilers call this option -ieee_with_inexact.
-mfp-trap-mode=trap-mode
This option controls what floating-point related traps are enabled. Other Alpha compilers call this option -fptm trap-mode. The trap mode can be set to one of four values:
n
This is the default (normal) setting. The only traps that are enabled are the ones that cannot be disabled in software (e.g., division by zero trap).
u
In addition to the traps enabled by n, underflow traps are enabled as well.
su
Like su, but the instructions are marked to be safe for software completion (see Alpha architecture manual for details).
sui
Like su, but inexact traps are enabled as well.
-mfp-rounding-mode=rounding-mode
Selects the IEEE rounding mode. Other Alpha compilers call this option -fprm rounding-mode. The rounding-mode can be one of:
n
Normal IEEE rounding mode. Floating point numbers are rounded towards the nearest machine number or towards the even machine number in case of a tie.
m
Round towards minus infinity.
c
Chopped rounding mode. Floating point numbers are rounded towards zero.
d
Dynamic rounding mode. A field in the floating point control register (fpcr, see Alpha architecture reference manual) controls the rounding mode in effect. The C library initializes this register for rounding towards plus infinity. Thus, unless your program modifies the fpcr, d corresponds to round towards plus infinity.
-mtrap-precision=trap-precision
In the Alpha architecture, floating point traps are imprecise. This means without software assistance it is impossible to recover from a floating trap and program execution normally needs to be terminated. GCC can generate code that can assist operating system trap handlers in determining the exact location that caused a floating point trap. Depending on the requirements of an application, different levels of precisions can be selected:
p
Program precision. This option is the default and means a trap handler can only identify which program caused a floating point exception.
f
Function precision. The trap handler can determine the function that caused a floating point exception.
i
Instruction precision. The trap handler can determine the exact instruction that caused a floating point exception.

Other Alpha compilers provide the equivalent options called -scope_safe and -resumption_safe.

-mieee-conformant
This option marks the generated code as IEEE conformant. You must not use this option unless you also specify -mtrap-precision=i and either -mfp-trap-mode=su or -mfp-trap-mode=sui. Its only effect is to emit the line .eflag 48 in the function prologue of the generated assembly file. Under DEC Unix, this has the effect that IEEE-conformant math library routines will be linked in.
-mbuild-constants
Normally GCC examines a 32- or 64-bit integer constant to see if it can construct it from smaller constants in two or three instructions. If it cannot, it will output the constant as a literal and generate code to load it from the data segment at runtime.

Use this option to require GCC to construct all integer constants using code, even if it takes more instructions (the maximum is six).

You would typically use this option to build a shared library dynamic loader. Itself a shared library, it must relocate itself in memory before it can find the variables and constants in its own data segment.

-malpha-as
-mgas
Select whether to generate code to be assembled by the vendor-supplied assembler (-malpha-as) or by the GNU assembler -mgas.
-mbwx
-mno-bwx
-mcix
-mno-cix
-mfix
-mno-fix
-mmax
-mno-max
Indicate whether GCC should generate code to use the optional BWX, CIX, FIX and MAX instruction sets. The default is to use the instruction sets supported by the CPU type specified via -mcpu= option or that of the CPU on which GCC was built if none was specified.
-mfloat-vax
-mfloat-ieee
Generate code that uses (does not use) VAX F and G floating point arithmetic instead of IEEE single and double precision.
-mexplicit-relocs
-mno-explicit-relocs
Older Alpha assemblers provided no way to generate symbol relocations except via assembler macros. Use of these macros does not allow optimal instruction scheduling. GNU binutils as of version 2.12 supports a new syntax that allows the compiler to explicitly mark which relocations should apply to which instructions. This option is mostly useful for debugging, as GCC detects the capabilities of the assembler when it is built and sets the default accordingly.
-msmall-data
-mlarge-data
When -mexplicit-relocs is in effect, static data is accessed via gp-relative relocations. When -msmall-data is used, objects 8 bytes long or smaller are placed in a small data area (the ".sdata" and ".sbss" sections) and are accessed via 16-bit relocations off of the $gp register. This limits the size of the small data area to 64KB, but allows the variables to be directly accessed via a single instruction.

The default is -mlarge-data. With this option the data area is limited to just below 2GB. Programs that require more than 2GB of data must use "malloc" or "mmap" to allocate the data in the heap instead of in the program's data segment.

When generating code for shared libraries, -fpic implies -msmall-data and -fPIC implies -mlarge-data.

-msmall-text
-mlarge-text
When -msmall-text is used, the compiler assumes that the code of the entire program (or shared library) fits in 4MB, and is thus reachable with a branch instruction. When -msmall-data is used, the compiler can assume that all local symbols share the same $gp value, and thus reduce the number of instructions required for a function call from 4 to 1.

The default is -mlarge-text.

-mcpu=cpu_type
Set the instruction set and instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type. You can specify either the EV style name or the corresponding chip number. GCC supports scheduling parameters for the EV4, EV5 and EV6 family of processors and will choose the default values for the instruction set from the processor you specify. If you do not specify a processor type, GCC will default to the processor on which the compiler was built.

Supported values for cpu_type are

ev4
ev45
21064
Schedules as an EV4 and has no instruction set extensions.
ev5
21164
Schedules as an EV5 and has no instruction set extensions.
ev56
21164a
Schedules as an EV5 and supports the BWX extension.
pca56
21164pc
21164PC
Schedules as an EV5 and supports the BWX and MAX extensions.
ev6
21264
Schedules as an EV6 and supports the BWX, FIX, and MAX extensions.
ev67
21264a
Schedules as an EV6 and supports the BWX, CIX, FIX, and MAX extensions.
-mtune=cpu_type
Set only the instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type. The instruction set is not changed.
-mmemory-latency=time
Sets the latency the scheduler should assume for typical memory references as seen by the application. This number is highly dependent on the memory access patterns used by the application and the size of the external cache on the machine.

Valid options for time are

number
A decimal number representing clock cycles.
L1
L2
L3
main
The compiler contains estimates of the number of clock cycles for ``typical'' EV4 & EV5 hardware for the Level 1, 2 & 3 caches (also called Dcache, Scache, and Bcache), as well as to main memory. Note that L3 is only valid for EV5.

DEC Alpha/VMS Options

These -m options are defined for the DEC Alpha/VMS implementations:

-mvms-return-codes
Return VMS condition codes from main. The default is to return POSIX style condition (e.g. error) codes.

H8/300 Options

These -m options are defined for the H8/300 implementations:

-mrelax
Shorten some address references at link time, when possible; uses the linker option -relax.
-mh
Generate code for the H8/300H.
-ms
Generate code for the H8S.
-mn
Generate code for the H8S and H8/300H in the normal mode. This switch must be used either with -mh or -ms.
-ms2600
Generate code for the H8S/2600. This switch must be used with -ms.
-mint32
Make "int" data 32 bits by default.
-malign-300
On the H8/300H and H8S, use the same alignment rules as for the H8/300. The default for the H8/300H and H8S is to align longs and floats on 4 byte boundaries. -malign-300 causes them to be aligned on 2 byte boundaries. This option has no effect on the H8/300.

SH Options

These -m options are defined for the SH implementations:

-m1
Generate code for the SH1.
-m2
Generate code for the SH2.
-m2e
Generate code for the SH2e.
-m3
Generate code for the SH3.
-m3e
Generate code for the SH3e.
-m4-nofpu
Generate code for the SH4 without a floating-point unit.
-m4-single-only
Generate code for the SH4 with a floating-point unit that only supports single-precision arithmetic.
-m4-single
Generate code for the SH4 assuming the floating-point unit is in single-precision mode by default.
-m4
Generate code for the SH4.
-mb
Compile code for the processor in big endian mode.
-ml
Compile code for the processor in little endian mode.
-mdalign
Align doubles at 64-bit boundaries. Note that this changes the calling conventions, and thus some functions from the standard C library will not work unless you recompile it first with -mdalign.
-mrelax
Shorten some address references at link time, when possible; uses the linker option -relax.
-mbigtable
Use 32-bit offsets in "switch" tables. The default is to use 16-bit offsets.
-mfmovd
Enable the use of the instruction "fmovd".
-mhitachi
Comply with the calling conventions defined by Renesas.
-mnomacsave
Mark the "MAC" register as call-clobbered, even if -mhitachi is given.
-mieee
Increase IEEE-compliance of floating-point code.
-misize
Dump instruction size and location in the assembly code.
-mpadstruct
This option is deprecated. It pads structures to multiple of 4 bytes, which is incompatible with the SH ABI.
-mspace
Optimize for space instead of speed. Implied by -Os.
-mprefergot
When generating position-independent code, emit function calls using the Global Offset Table instead of the Procedure Linkage Table.
-musermode
Generate a library function call to invalidate instruction cache entries, after fixing up a trampoline. This library function call doesn't assume it can write to the whole memory address space. This is the default when the target is "sh-*-linux*".

Options for System V

These additional options are available on System V Release 4 for compatibility with other compilers on those systems:

-G
Create a shared object. It is recommended that -symbolic or -shared be used instead.
-Qy
Identify the versions of each tool used by the compiler, in a ".ident" assembler directive in the output.
-Qn
Refrain from adding ".ident" directives to the output file (this is the default).
-YP,dirs
Search the directories dirs, and no others, for libraries specified with -l.
-Ym,dir
Look in the directory dir to find the M4 preprocessor. The assembler uses this option.

TMS320C3x/C4x Options

These -m options are defined for TMS320C3x/C4x implementations:

-mcpu=cpu_type
Set the instruction set, register set, and instruction scheduling parameters for machine type cpu_type. Supported values for cpu_type are c30, c31, c32, c40, and c44. The default is c40 to generate code for the TMS320C40.
-mbig-memory
-mbig
-msmall-memory
-msmall
Generates code for the big or small memory model. The small memory model assumed that all data fits into one 64K word page. At run-time the data page (DP) register must be set to point to the 64K page containing the .bss and .data program sections. The big memory model is the default and requires reloading of the DP register for every direct memory access.
-mbk
-mno-bk
Allow (disallow) allocation of general integer operands into the block count register BK.
-mdb
-mno-db
Enable (disable) generation of code using decrement and branch, DBcond(D), instructions. This is enabled by default for the C4x. To be on the safe side, this is disabled for the C3x, since the maximum iteration count on the C3x is 2^{23 + 1} (but who iterates loops more than 2^{23} times on the C3x?). Note that GCC will try to reverse a loop so that it can utilize the decrement and branch instruction, but will give up if there is more than one memory reference in the loop. Thus a loop where the loop counter is decremented can generate slightly more efficient code, in cases where the RPTB instruction cannot be utilized.
-mdp-isr-reload
-mparanoid
Force the DP register to be saved on entry to an interrupt service routine (ISR), reloaded to point to the data section, and restored on exit from the ISR. This should not be required unless someone has violated the small memory model by modifying the DP register, say within an object library.
-mmpyi
-mno-mpyi
For the C3x use the 24-bit MPYI instruction for integer multiplies instead of a library call to guarantee 32-bit results. Note that if one of the operands is a constant, then the multiplication will be performed using shifts and adds. If the -mmpyi option is not specified for the C3x, then squaring operations are performed inline instead of a library call.
-mfast-fix
-mno-fast-fix
The C3x/C4x FIX instruction to convert a floating point value to an integer value chooses the nearest integer less than or equal to the floating point value rather than to the nearest integer. Thus if the floating point number is negative, the result will be incorrectly truncated an additional code is necessary to detect and correct this case. This option can be used to disable generation of the additional code required to correct the result.
-mrptb
-mno-rptb
Enable (disable) generation of repeat block sequences using the RPTB instruction for zero overhead looping. The RPTB construct is only used for innermost loops that do not call functions or jump across the loop boundaries. There is no advantage having nested RPTB loops due to the overhead required to save and restore the RC, RS, and RE registers. This is enabled by default with -O2.
-mrpts=count
-mno-rpts
Enable (disable) the use of the single instruction repeat instruction RPTS. If a repeat block contains a single instruction, and the loop count can be guaranteed to be less than the value count, GCC will emit a RPTS instruction instead of a RPTB. If no value is specified, then a RPTS will be emitted even if the loop count cannot be determined at compile time. Note that the repeated instruction following RPTS does not have to be reloaded from memory each iteration, thus freeing up the CPU buses for operands. However, since interrupts are blocked by this instruction, it is disabled by default.
-mloop-unsigned
-mno-loop-unsigned
The maximum iteration count when using RPTS and RPTB (and DB on the C40) is 2^{31 + 1} since these instructions test if the iteration count is negative to terminate the loop. If the iteration count is unsigned there is a possibility than the 2^{31 + 1} maximum iteration count may be exceeded. This switch allows an unsigned iteration count.
-mti
Try to emit an assembler syntax that the TI assembler (asm30) is happy with. This also enforces compatibility with the API employed by the TI C3x C compiler. For example, long doubles are passed as structures rather than in floating point registers.
-mregparm
-mmemparm
Generate code that uses registers (stack) for passing arguments to functions. By default, arguments are passed in registers where possible rather than by pushing arguments on to the stack.
-mparallel-insns
-mno-parallel-insns
Allow the generation of parallel instructions. This is enabled by default with -O2.
-mparallel-mpy
-mno-parallel-mpy
Allow the generation of MPY||ADD and MPY||SUB parallel instructions, provided -mparallel-insns is also specified. These instructions have tight register constraints which can pessimize the code generation of large functions.

V850 Options

These -m options are defined for V850 implementations:

-mlong-calls
-mno-long-calls
Treat all calls as being far away (near). If calls are assumed to be far away, the compiler will always load the functions address up into a register, and call indirect through the pointer.
-mno-ep
-mep
Do not optimize (do optimize) basic blocks that use the same index pointer 4 or more times to copy pointer into the "ep" register, and use the shorter "sld" and "sst" instructions. The -mep option is on by default if you optimize.
-mno-prolog-function
-mprolog-function
Do not use (do use) external functions to save and restore registers at the prologue and epilogue of a function. The external functions are slower, but use less code space if more than one function saves the same number of registers. The -mprolog-function option is on by default if you optimize.
-mspace
Try to make the code as small as possible. At present, this just turns on the -mep and -mprolog-function options.
-mtda=n
Put static or global variables whose size is n bytes or less into the tiny data area that register "ep" points to. The tiny data area can hold up to 256 bytes in total (128 bytes for byte references).
-msda=n
Put static or global variables whose size is n bytes or less into the small data area that register "gp" points to. The small data area can hold up to 64 kilobytes.
-mzda=n
Put static or global variables whose size is n bytes or less into the first 32 kilobytes of memory.
-mv850
Specify that the target processor is the V850.
-mbig-switch
Generate code suitable for big switch tables. Use this option only if the assembler/linker complain about out of range branches within a switch table.
-mapp-regs
This option will cause r2 and r5 to be used in the code generated by the compiler. This setting is the default.
-mno-app-regs
This option will cause r2 and r5 to be treated as fixed registers.
-mv850e1
Specify that the target processor is the V850E1. The preprocessor constants __v850e1__ and __v850e__ will be defined if this option is used.
-mv850e
Specify that the target processor is the V850E. The preprocessor constant __v850e__ will be defined if this option is used.

If neither -mv850 nor -mv850e nor -mv850e1 are defined then a default target processor will be chosen and the relevant __v850*__ preprocessor constant will be defined.

The preprocessor constants __v850 and __v851__ are always defined, regardless of which processor variant is the target.

-mdisable-callt
This option will suppress generation of the CALLT instruction for the v850e and v850e1 flavors of the v850 architecture. The default is -mno-disable-callt which allows the CALLT instruction to be used.

ARC Options

These options are defined for ARC implementations:

-EL
Compile code for little endian mode. This is the default.
-EB
Compile code for big endian mode.
-mmangle-cpu
Prepend the name of the cpu to all public symbol names. In multiple-processor systems, there are many ARC variants with different instruction and register set characteristics. This flag prevents code compiled for one cpu to be linked with code compiled for another. No facility exists for handling variants that are ``almost identical''. This is an all or nothing option.
-mcpu=cpu
Compile code for ARC variant cpu. Which variants are supported depend on the configuration. All variants support -mcpu=base, this is the default.
-mtext=text-section
-mdata=data-section
-mrodata=readonly-data-section
Put functions, data, and readonly data in text-section, data-section, and readonly-data-section respectively by default. This can be overridden with the "section" attribute.

NS32K Options

These are the -m options defined for the 32000 series. The default values for these options depends on which style of 32000 was selected when the compiler was configured; the defaults for the most common choices are given below.

-m32032
-m32032
Generate output for a 32032. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 32032 and 32016 based systems.
-m32332
-m32332
Generate output for a 32332. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 32332-based systems.
-m32532
-m32532
Generate output for a 32532. This is the default when the compiler is configured for 32532-based systems.
-m32081
Generate output containing 32081 instructions for floating point. This is the default for all systems.
-m32381
Generate output containing 32381 instructions for floating point. This also implies -m32081. The 32381 is only compatible with the 32332 and 32532 cpus. This is the default for the pc532-netbsd configuration.
-mmulti-add
Try and generate multiply-add floating point instructions "polyF" and "dotF". This option is only available if the -m32381 option is in effect. Using these instructions requires changes to register allocation which generally has a negative impact on performance. This option should only be enabled when compiling code particularly likely to make heavy use of multiply-add instructions.
-mnomulti-add
Do not try and generate multiply-add floating point instructions "polyF" and "dotF". This is the default on all platforms.
-msoft-float
Generate output containing library calls for floating point. Warning: the requisite libraries may not be available.
-mieee-compare
-mno-ieee-compare
Control whether or not the compiler uses IEEE floating point comparisons. These handle correctly the case where the result of a comparison is unordered. Warning: the requisite kernel support may not be available.
-mnobitfield
Do not use the bit-field instructions. On some machines it is faster to use shifting and masking operations. This is the default for the pc532.
-mbitfield
Do use the bit-field instructions. This is the default for all platforms except the pc532.
-mrtd
Use a different function-calling convention, in which functions that take a fixed number of arguments return pop their arguments on return with the "ret" instruction.

This calling convention is incompatible with the one normally used on Unix, so you cannot use it if you need to call libraries compiled with the Unix compiler.

Also, you must provide function prototypes for all functions that take variable numbers of arguments (including "printf"); otherwise incorrect code will be generated for calls to those functions.

In addition, seriously incorrect code will result if you call a function with too many arguments. (Normally, extra arguments are harmlessly ignored.)

This option takes its name from the 680x0 "rtd" instruction.

-mregparam
Use a different function-calling convention where the first two arguments are passed in registers.

This calling convention is incompatible with the one normally used on Unix, so you cannot use it if you need to call libraries compiled with the Unix compiler.

-mnoregparam
Do not pass any arguments in registers. This is the default for all targets.
-msb
It is OK to use the sb as an index register which is always loaded with zero. This is the default for the pc532-netbsd target.
-mnosb
The sb register is not available for use or has not been initialized to zero by the run time system. This is the default for all targets except the pc532-netbsd. It is also implied whenever -mhimem or -fpic is set.
-mhimem
Many ns32000 series addressing modes use displacements of up to 512MB. If an address is above 512MB then displacements from zero can not be used. This option causes code to be generated which can be loaded above 512MB. This may be useful for operating systems or ROM code.
-mnohimem
Assume code will be loaded in the first 512MB of virtual address space. This is the default for all platforms.

AVR Options

These options are defined for AVR implementations:

-mmcu=mcu
Specify ATMEL AVR instruction set or MCU type.

Instruction set avr1 is for the minimal AVR core, not supported by the C compiler, only for assembler programs (MCU types: at90s1200, attiny10, attiny11, attiny12, attiny15, attiny28).

Instruction set avr2 (default) is for the classic AVR core with up to 8K program memory space (MCU types: at90s2313, at90s2323, attiny22, at90s2333, at90s2343, at90s4414, at90s4433, at90s4434, at90s8515, at90c8534, at90s8535).

Instruction set avr3 is for the classic AVR core with up to 128K program memory space (MCU types: atmega103, atmega603, at43usb320, at76c711).

Instruction set avr4 is for the enhanced AVR core with up to 8K program memory space (MCU types: atmega8, atmega83, atmega85).

Instruction set avr5 is for the enhanced AVR core with up to 128K program memory space (MCU types: atmega16, atmega161, atmega163, atmega32, atmega323, atmega64, atmega128, at43usb355, at94k).

-msize
Output instruction sizes to the asm file.
-minit-stack=N
Specify the initial stack address, which may be a symbol or numeric value, __stack is the default.
-mno-interrupts
Generated code is not compatible with hardware interrupts. Code size will be smaller.
-mcall-prologues
Functions prologues/epilogues expanded as call to appropriate subroutines. Code size will be smaller.
-mno-tablejump
Do not generate tablejump insns which sometimes increase code size.
-mtiny-stack
Change only the low 8 bits of the stack pointer.

MCore Options

These are the -m options defined for the Motorola M*Core processors.

-mhardlit
-mno-hardlit
Inline constants into the code stream if it can be done in two instructions or less.
-mdiv
-mno-div
Use the divide instruction. (Enabled by default).
-mrelax-immediate
-mno-relax-immediate
Allow arbitrary sized immediates in bit operations.
-mwide-bitfields
-mno-wide-bitfields
Always treat bit-fields as int-sized.
-m4byte-functions
-mno-4byte-functions
Force all functions to be aligned to a four byte boundary.
-mcallgraph-data
-mno-callgraph-data
Emit callgraph information.
-mslow-bytes
-mno-slow-bytes
Prefer word access when reading byte quantities.
-mlittle-endian
-mbig-endian
Generate code for a little endian target.
-m210
-m340
Generate code for the 210 processor.

IA-64 Options

These are the -m options defined for the Intel IA-64 architecture.

-mbig-endian
Generate code for a big endian target. This is the default for HP-UX.
-mlittle-endian
Generate code for a little endian target. This is the default for AIX5 and GNU/Linux.
-mgnu-as
-mno-gnu-as
Generate (or don't) code for the GNU assembler. This is the default.
-mgnu-ld
-mno-gnu-ld
Generate (or don't) code for the GNU linker. This is the default.
-mno-pic
Generate code that does not use a global pointer register. The result is not position independent code, and violates the IA-64 ABI.
-mvolatile-asm-stop
-mno-volatile-asm-stop
Generate (or don't) a stop bit immediately before and after volatile asm statements.
-mb-step
Generate code that works around Itanium B step errata.
-mregister-names
-mno-register-names
Generate (or don't) in, loc, and out register names for the stacked registers. This may make assembler output more readable.
-mno-sdata
-msdata
Disable (or enable) optimizations that use the small data section. This may be useful for working around optimizer bugs.
-mconstant-gp
Generate code that uses a single constant global pointer value. This is useful when compiling kernel code.
-mauto-pic
Generate code that is self-relocatable. This implies -mconstant-gp. This is useful when compiling firmware code.
-minline-float-divide-min-latency
Generate code for inline divides of floating point values using the minimum latency algorithm.
-minline-float-divide-max-throughput
Generate code for inline divides of floating point values using the maximum throughput algorithm.
-minline-int-divide-min-latency
Generate code for inline divides of integer values using the minimum latency algorithm.
-minline-int-divide-max-throughput
Generate code for inline divides of integer values using the maximum throughput algorithm.
-minline-sqrt-min-latency
Generate code for inline square roots using the minimum latency algorithm.
-minline-sqrt-max-throughput
Generate code for inline square roots using the maximum throughput algorithm.
-mno-dwarf2-asm
-mdwarf2-asm
Don't (or do) generate assembler code for the DWARF2 line number debugging info. This may be useful when not using the GNU assembler.
-mearly-stop-bits
-mno-early-stop-bits
Allow stop bits to be placed earlier than immediately preceding the instruction that triggered the stop bit. This can improve instruction scheduling, but does not always do so.
-mfixed-range=register-range
Generate code treating the given register range as fixed registers. A fixed register is one that the register allocator can not use. This is useful when compiling kernel code. A register range is specified as two registers separated by a dash. Multiple register ranges can be specified separated by a comma.
-mtls-size=tls-size
Specify bit size of immediate TLS offsets. Valid values are 14, 22, and 64.
-mtune=cpu-type
Tune the instruction scheduling for a particular CPU, Valid values are itanium, itanium1, merced, itanium2, and mckinley.
-mt
-pthread
Add support for multithreading using the POSIX threads library. This option sets flags for both the preprocessor and linker. It does not affect the thread safety of object code produced by the compiler or that of libraries supplied with it. These are HP-UX specific flags.
-milp32
-mlp64
Generate code for a 32-bit or 64-bit environment. The 32-bit environment sets int, long and pointer to 32 bits. The 64-bit environment sets int to 32 bits and long and pointer to 64 bits. These are HP-UX specific flags.

D30V Options

These -m options are defined for D30V implementations:

-mextmem
Link the .text, .data, .bss, .strings, .rodata, .rodata1, .data1 sections into external memory, which starts at location 0x80000000.
-mextmemory
Same as the -mextmem switch.
-monchip
Link the .text section into onchip text memory, which starts at location 0x0. Also link .data, .bss, .strings, .rodata, .rodata1, .data1 sections into onchip data memory, which starts at location 0x20000000.
-mno-asm-optimize
-masm-optimize
Disable (enable) passing -O to the assembler when optimizing. The assembler uses the -O option to automatically parallelize adjacent short instructions where possible.
-mbranch-cost=n
Increase the internal costs of branches to n. Higher costs means that the compiler will issue more instructions to avoid doing a branch. The default is 2.
-mcond-exec=n
Specify the maximum number of conditionally executed instructions that replace a branch. The default is 4.

S/390 and zSeries Options

These are the -m options defined for the S/390 and zSeries architecture.

-mhard-float
-msoft-float
Use (do not use) the hardware floating-point instructions and registers for floating-point operations. When -msoft-float is specified, functions in libgcc.a will be used to perform floating-point operations. When -mhard-float is specified, the compiler generates IEEE floating-point instructions. This is the default.
-mbackchain
-mno-backchain
Generate (or do not generate) code which maintains an explicit backchain within the stack frame that points to the caller's frame. This may be needed to allow debugging using tools that do not understand DWARF-2 call frame information. The default is not to generate the backchain.
-msmall-exec
-mno-small-exec
Generate (or do not generate) code using the "bras" instruction to do subroutine calls. This only works reliably if the total executable size does not exceed 64k. The default is to use the "basr" instruction instead, which does not have this limitation.
-m64
-m31
When -m31 is specified, generate code compliant to the GNU/Linux for S/390 ABI. When -m64 is specified, generate code compliant to the GNU/Linux for zSeries ABI. This allows GCC in particular to generate 64-bit instructions. For the s390 targets, the default is -m31, while the s390x targets default to -m64.
-mzarch
-mesa
When -mzarch is specified, generate code using the instructions available on z/Architecture. When -mesa is specified, generate code using the instructions available on ESA/390. Note that -mesa is not possible with -m64. When generating code compliant to the GNU/Linux for S/390 ABI, the default is -mesa. When generating code compliant to the GNU/Linux for zSeries ABI, the default is -mzarch.
-mmvcle
-mno-mvcle
Generate (or do not generate) code using the "mvcle" instruction to perform block moves. When -mno-mvcle is specified, use a "mvc" loop instead. This is the default.
-mdebug
-mno-debug
Print (or do not print) additional debug information when compiling. The default is to not print debug information.
-march=cpu-type
Generate code that will run on cpu-type, which is the name of a system representing a certain processor type. Possible values for cpu-type are g5, g6, z900, and z990. When generating code using the instructions available on z/Architecture, the default is -march=z900. Otherwise, the default is -march=g5.
-mtune=cpu-type
Tune to cpu-type everything applicable about the generated code, except for the ABI and the set of available instructions. The list of cpu-type values is the same as for -march. The default is the value used for -march.
-mfused-madd
-mno-fused-madd
Generate code that uses (does not use) the floating point multiply and accumulate instructions. These instructions are generated by default if hardware floating point is used.

CRIS Options

These options are defined specifically for the CRIS ports.

-march=architecture-type
-mcpu=architecture-type
Generate code for the specified architecture. The choices for architecture-type are v3, v8 and v10 for respectively ETRAX 4, ETRAX 100, and ETRAX 100 LX. Default is v0 except for cris-axis-linux-gnu, where the default is v10.
-mtune=architecture-type
Tune to architecture-type everything applicable about the generated code, except for the ABI and the set of available instructions. The choices for architecture-type are the same as for -march=architecture-type.
-mmax-stack-frame=n
Warn when the stack frame of a function exceeds n bytes.
-melinux-stacksize=n
Only available with the cris-axis-aout target. Arranges for indications in the program to the kernel loader that the stack of the program should be set to n bytes.
-metrax4
-metrax100
The options -metrax4 and -metrax100 are synonyms for -march=v3 and -march=v8 respectively.
-mmul-bug-workaround
-mno-mul-bug-workaround
Work around a bug in the "muls" and "mulu" instructions for CPU models where it applies. This option is active by default.
-mpdebug
Enable CRIS-specific verbose debug-related information in the assembly code. This option also has the effect to turn off the #NO_APP formatted-code indicator to the assembler at the beginning of the assembly file.
-mcc-init
Do not use condition-code results from previous instruction; always emit compare and test instructions before use of condition codes.
-mno-side-effects
Do not emit instructions with side-effects in addressing modes other than post-increment.
-mstack-align
-mno-stack-align
-mdata-align
-mno-data-align
-mconst-align
-mno-const-align
These options (no-options) arranges (eliminate arrangements) for the stack-frame, individual data and constants to be aligned for the maximum single data access size for the chosen CPU model. The default is to arrange for 32-bit alignment. ABI details such as structure layout are not affected by these options.
-m32-bit
-m16-bit
-m8-bit
Similar to the stack- data- and const-align options above, these options arrange for stack-frame, writable data and constants to all be 32-bit, 16-bit or 8-bit aligned. The default is 32-bit alignment.
-mno-prologue-epilogue
-mprologue-epilogue
With -mno-prologue-epilogue, the normal function prologue and epilogue that sets up the stack-frame are omitted and no return instructions or return sequences are generated in the code. Use this option only together with visual inspection of the compiled code: no warnings or errors are generated when call-saved registers must be saved, or storage for local variable needs to be allocated.
-mno-gotplt
-mgotplt
With -fpic and -fPIC, don't generate (do generate) instruction sequences that load addresses for functions from the PLT part of the GOT rather than (traditional on other architectures) calls to the PLT. The default is -mgotplt.
-maout
Legacy no-op option only recognized with the cris-axis-aout target.
-melf
Legacy no-op option only recognized with the cris-axis-elf and cris-axis-linux-gnu targets.
-melinux
Only recognized with the cris-axis-aout target, where it selects a GNU/linux-like multilib, include files and instruction set for -march=v8.
-mlinux
Legacy no-op option only recognized with the cris-axis-linux-gnu target.
-sim
This option, recognized for the cris-axis-aout and cris-axis-elf arranges to link with input-output functions from a simulator library. Code, initialized data and zero-initialized data are allocated consecutively.
-sim2
Like -sim, but pass linker options to locate initialized data at 0x40000000 and zero-initialized data at 0x80000000.

MMIX Options

These options are defined for the MMIX:

-mlibfuncs
-mno-libfuncs
Specify that intrinsic library functions are being compiled, passing all values in registers, no matter the size.
-mepsilon
-mno-epsilon
Generate floating-point comparison instructions that compare with respect to the "rE" epsilon register.
-mabi=mmixware
-mabi=gnu
Generate code that passes function parameters and return values that (in the called function) are seen as registers $0 and up, as opposed to the GNU ABI which uses global registers $231 and up.
-mzero-extend
-mno-zero-extend
When reading data from memory in sizes shorter than 64 bits, use (do not use) zero-extending load instructions by default, rather than sign-extending ones.
-mknuthdiv
-mno-knuthdiv
Make the result of a division yielding a remainder have the same sign as the divisor. With the default, -mno-knuthdiv, the sign of the remainder follows the sign of the dividend. Both methods are arithmetically valid, the latter being almost exclusively used.
-mtoplevel-symbols
-mno-toplevel-symbols
Prepend (do not prepend) a : to all global symbols, so the assembly code can be used with the "PREFIX" assembly directive.
-melf
Generate an executable in the ELF format, rather than the default mmo format used by the mmix simulator.
-mbranch-predict
-mno-branch-predict
Use (do not use) the probable-branch instructions, when static branch prediction indicates a probable branch.
-mbase-addresses
-mno-base-addresses
Generate (do not generate) code that uses base addresses. Using a base address automatically generates a request (handled by the assembler and the linker) for a constant to be set up in a global register. The register is used for one or more base address requests within the range 0 to 255 from the value held in the register. The generally leads to short and fast code, but the number of different data items that can be addressed is limited. This means that a program that uses lots of static data may require -mno-base-addresses.
-msingle-exit
-mno-single-exit
Force (do not force) generated code to have a single exit point in each function.

PDP-11 Options

These options are defined for the PDP-11:

-mfpu
Use hardware FPP floating point. This is the default. (FIS floating point on the PDP-11/40 is not supported.)
-msoft-float
Do not use hardware floating point.
-mac0
Return floating-point results in ac0 (fr0 in Unix assembler syntax).
-mno-ac0
Return floating-point results in memory. This is the default.
-m40
Generate code for a PDP-11/40.
-m45
Generate code for a PDP-11/45. This is the default.
-m10
Generate code for a PDP-11/10.
-mbcopy-builtin
Use inline "movstrhi" patterns for copying memory. This is the default.
-mbcopy
Do not use inline "movstrhi" patterns for copying memory.
-mint16
-mno-int32
Use 16-bit "int". This is the default.
-mint32
-mno-int16
Use 32-bit "int".
-mfloat64
-mno-float32
Use 64-bit "float". This is the default.
-mfloat32
-mno-float64
Use 32-bit "float".
-mabshi
Use "abshi2" pattern. This is the default.
-mno-abshi
Do not use "abshi2" pattern.
-mbranch-expensive
Pretend that branches are expensive. This is for experimenting with code generation only.
-mbranch-cheap
Do not pretend that branches are expensive. This is the default.
-msplit
Generate code for a system with split I&D.
-mno-split
Generate code for a system without split I&D. This is the default.
-munix-asm
Use Unix assembler syntax. This is the default when configured for pdp11-*-bsd.
-mdec-asm
Use DEC assembler syntax. This is the default when configured for any PDP-11 target other than pdp11-*-bsd.

Xstormy16 Options

These options are defined for Xstormy16:

-msim
Choose startup files and linker script suitable for the simulator.

FRV Options

-mgpr-32
Only use the first 32 general purpose registers.
-mgpr-64
Use all 64 general purpose registers.
-mfpr-32
Use only the first 32 floating point registers.
-mfpr-64
Use all 64 floating point registers
-mhard-float
Use hardware instructions for floating point operations.
-msoft-float
Use library routines for floating point operations.
-malloc-cc
Dynamically allocate condition code registers.
-mfixed-cc
Do not try to dynamically allocate condition code registers, only use "icc0" and "fcc0".
-mdword
Change ABI to use double word insns.
-mno-dword
Do not use double word instructions.
-mdouble
Use floating point double instructions.
-mno-double
Do not use floating point double instructions.
-mmedia
Use media instructions.
-mno-media
Do not use media instructions.
-mmuladd
Use multiply and add/subtract instructions.
-mno-muladd
Do not use multiply and add/subtract instructions.
-mlibrary-pic
Enable PIC support for building libraries
-macc-4
Use only the first four media accumulator registers.
-macc-8
Use all eight media accumulator registers.
-mpack
Pack VLIW instructions.
-mno-pack
Do not pack VLIW instructions.
-mno-eflags
Do not mark ABI switches in e_flags.
-mcond-move
Enable the use of conditional-move instructions (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-cond-move
Disable the use of conditional-move instructions.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mscc
Enable the use of conditional set instructions (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-scc
Disable the use of conditional set instructions.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mcond-exec
Enable the use of conditional execution (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-cond-exec
Disable the use of conditional execution.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mvliw-branch
Run a pass to pack branches into VLIW instructions (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-vliw-branch
Do not run a pass to pack branches into VLIW instructions.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mmulti-cond-exec
Enable optimization of "&&" and "||" in conditional execution (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-multi-cond-exec
Disable optimization of "&&" and "||" in conditional execution.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mnested-cond-exec
Enable nested conditional execution optimizations (default).

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mno-nested-cond-exec
Disable nested conditional execution optimizations.

This switch is mainly for debugging the compiler and will likely be removed in a future version.

-mtomcat-stats
Cause gas to print out tomcat statistics.
-mcpu=cpu
Select the processor type for which to generate code. Possible values are simple, tomcat, fr500, fr400, fr300, frv.

Xtensa Options

These options are supported for Xtensa targets:

-mconst16
-mno-const16
Enable or disable use of "CONST16" instructions for loading constant values. The "CONST16" instruction is currently not a standard option from Tensilica. When enabled, "CONST16" instructions are always used in place of the standard "L32R" instructions. The use of "CONST16" is enabled by default only if the "L32R" instruction is not available.
-mfused-madd
-mno-fused-madd
Enable or disable use of fused multiply/add and multiply/subtract instructions in the floating-point option. This has no effect if the floating-point option is not also enabled. Disabling fused multiply/add and multiply/subtract instructions forces the compiler to use separate instructions for the multiply and add/subtract operations. This may be desirable in some cases where strict IEEE 754-compliant results are required: the fused multiply add/subtract instructions do not round the intermediate result, thereby producing results with more bits of precision than specified by the IEEE standard. Disabling fused multiply add/subtract instructions also ensures that the program output is not sensitive to the compiler's ability to combine multiply and add/subtract operations.
-mtext-section-literals
-mno-text-section-literals
Control the treatment of literal pools. The default is -mno-text-section-literals, which places literals in a separate section in the output file. This allows the literal pool to be placed in a data RAM/ROM, and it also allows the linker to combine literal pools from separate object files to remove redundant literals and improve code size. With -mtext-section-literals, the literals are interspersed in the text section in order to keep them as close as possible to their references. This may be necessary for large assembly files.
-mtarget-align
-mno-target-align
When this option is enabled, GCC instructs the assembler to automatically align instructions to reduce branch penalties at the expense of some code density. The assembler attempts to widen density instructions to align branch targets and the instructions following call instructions. If there are not enough preceding safe density instructions to align a target, no widening will be performed. The default is -mtarget-align. These options do not affect the treatment of auto-aligned instructions like "LOOP", which the assembler will always align, either by widening density instructions or by inserting no-op instructions.
-mlongcalls
-mno-longcalls
When this option is enabled, GCC instructs the assembler to translate direct calls to indirect calls unless it can determine that the target of a direct call is in the range allowed by the call instruction. This translation typically occurs for calls to functions in other source files. Specifically, the assembler translates a direct "CALL" instruction into an "L32R" followed by a "CALLX" instruction. The default is -mno-longcalls. This option should be used in programs where the call target can potentially be out of range. This option is implemented in the assembler, not the compiler, so the assembly code generated by GCC will still show direct call instructions---look at the disassembled object code to see the actual instructions. Note that the assembler will use an indirect call for every cross-file call, not just those that really will be out of range.