How can I see the assembly code for a C++ program?
C++AssemblyDisassemblyC++ Problem Overview
How can I see the assembly code for a C++ program?
What are the popular tools to do this?
C++ Solutions
Solution 1 - C++
Ask the compiler
If you are building the program yourself, you can ask your compiler to emit assembly source. For most UNIX compilers use the -S
switch.
-
If you are using the GNU assembler, compiling with
-g -Wa,-alh
will give intermixed source and assembly on stdout (-Wa
asks compiler driver to pass options to assembler,-al
turns on assembly listing, and-ah
adds "high-level source" listing):g++ -g -c -Wa,-alh foo.cc
-
For Visual Studio, use
/FAsc
.
Peek into a binary
If you have a compiled binary,
- use
objdump -d a.out
on UNIX (also works for cygwin), dumpbin /DISASM foo.exe
on Windows.
Use your debugger
Debuggers could also show disassembly.
-
Use
disas
command in GDB.
Useset disassembly-flavor intel
if you prefer Intel syntax. -
or the disassembly window of Visual Studio on Windows.
Solution 2 - C++
In GCC/G++, compile with -S
. That will output a something.s
file with the assembly code.
Edit: If you want the output to be in Intel syntax (which is IMO, much more readable, and most assembly tutorials use it), compile with -masm=intel
.
Solution 3 - C++
In Visual Studio;
- set a breakpoint
- run the program until it stops at the breakpoint
- rightclick on the sourcecode and pick "show dissasembly"
Solution 4 - C++
For gcc/g++
gcc -save-temps -fverbose-asm prog.c
This will generate prog.s with some comments on variables used in every asm line:
movl $42, -24(%ebp) #, readme
movl -16(%ebp), %eax # pid, pid
movl %eax, 4(%esp) # pid,
movl $.LC0, (%esp) #,
call printf #
Solution 5 - C++
This site is currently working for me (2017): https://godbolt.org/
Solution 6 - C++
Whatever debugger you're using should have an assembly view (Visual Studio, Borland IDE, gdb, etc.). If you are not using a debugger and you merely want to see what assembly is in a program, you can use a disassembler or alternatively, run the program and attach to it with a debugger and do the dump from there. See references to disassemblers for information on options.
Solution 7 - C++
Lots of people already told how to emit assembly code with a given compiler. Another solution is to compile an object file and dump it with a tool such objdump, readelf (on Unix) or DUMPBIN(link) (on Windows). You can also dump an executable, but it will be more difficult to read the output.
This has the advantage of working the same way with any compiler.
Solution 8 - C++
As someone else mentioned, your platform's debugger is a good starting point. For the jackhammer of all debuggers and disassemblers, take a look at IDA Pro.
On Unix/Linux platforms (including Cygwin) you can use objdump --disassemble <executable>
.
Solution 9 - C++
Most compilers have an option to output an assembly listing. E.g. with VisualStudio you can use something like:
cl.exe /FAfile.asm file.c
For best readability though, most debuggers will offer a view that interleaves the disassembly with the original source, so you can compare your code with the compiler's output line by line.
Solution 10 - C++
PE Explorer Disassembler for 32-bit PE files. IDA for others.
Solution 11 - C++
You can also try this site: http://assembly.ynh.io/
There, you can paste your C or C++ code and press a blue button to see the assembly equivalent version.
Solution 12 - C++
In Visual Studio you can generate the assembler listing for a C++ project.
Go to project properties, then to C++/Output Files and set Assembler Output setting and ASM list location to a file name.
Solution 13 - C++
On an Intel Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion) the -masm=intel
directive didn't work. However, if you have Xcode installed, it should have installed the tool named 'otool':
otool code.o -tV
You have to provide the compiled object code as a parameter.
Solution 14 - C++
If you're an Eclipse user, you can use the Disassembly view.
> The Disassembly view shows the loaded program as assembler > instructions mixed with source code for comparison. The currently > executing line is indicated by an arrow marker and highlighted in the > view. You can do the following tasks in the Disassembly view: > > - Set breakpoints at the start of any assembler instruction > - Enable and disable breakpoints and their set their properties > - Step through the disassembly instructions of your program > - Jump to specific instructions in the program