From:	Hans-Bernhard Broeker <broeker AT physik DOT rwth-aachen DOT de>
Newsgroups:	comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject:	Re: Reverse-compiler
Date:	3 Apr 2000 17:08:10 GMT
Organization:	Aachen University of Technology (RWTH)
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Ben Davis <ben AT vjpoole DOT freeserve DOT co DOT uk> wrote:

> In the future, I will keep backups before I start invoking GCC
> manually; 

I doubt that. Really. Forgetting to keep backups is even more like to
happen accidentally than mistyping a gcc command line that badly.

> but I should point out to anyone concerned that GCC should
> *not* have deleted a source file.

Well --- you asked it to. Unix-borne tools like gcc are in the habit
of doing exactly what you say, wherever possible. If you 'rm -rf /' on
a Unix box as root, that's what it'll do.

> Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention: I do have an object file, if it's any
> use.

Having the .o file makes it simpler to recover the source, sure, but
not simple enough to be tractable. The main problem is in the
transition between C and assembly, done by the compiler itself
('cc1.exe'). There, all information about details of the C source gets
spoilt to the point of being unrecoverable.



-- 
Hans-Bernhard Broeker (broeker AT physik DOT rwth-aachen DOT de)
Even if all the snow were burnt, ashes would remain.

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