Preface

The dbx command-line debugger is an interactive, source-level debugging tool.

Who Should Use This Book

Debugging a Program With dbx is intended for programmers who want to debug an application using dbx commands. Users of dbx need with a working knowledge of Fortran, C, or C++, and some understanding of the Solaris^TM Operating System (Solaris OS), or the Linux operating system, and UNIX® commands.

Typographic Conventions

The following table describes the typographic conventions that are used in this book.

Table P–1 Typographic Conventions

Typeface	Meaning	Example
AaBbCc123	The names of commands, files, and directories, and onscreen computer output	Edit your .login file. Use ls -a to list all files. machine_name% you have mail.
AaBbCc123	What you type, contrasted with onscreen computer output	machine_name% su Password:
aabbcc123	Placeholder: replace with a real name or value	The command to remove a file is rm filename.
AaBbCc123	Book titles, new terms, and terms to be emphasized	Read Chapter 6 in the User's Guide. A cache is a copy that is stored locally. Do not save the file. Note: Some emphasized items appear bold online.

The following table describes the code conventions that are used in this book.

Table P–2 Code Conventions

Code Symbol	Meaning	Notation	Code Example
[]	Brackets contain arguments that are optional.	xO[n]	xO4,0
{}	Braces contain a set of choices for a required option.	d{y|n}	dy
|	The “pipe” or “bar” symbol separates arguments, only one of which may be chosen.	B{dynamic|static}	Bstatic
:	The colon, like the comma, is sometimes used to separate arguments.	Rdir[:dir ]	R/local/libs:/U/a
...	The ellipsis indicates omission in a series.	xinline=f1[,...fn]	xinline=alpha,dos

Shell Prompts in Command Examples

The following table shows the default UNIX system prompt and superuser prompt for the C shell, Bourne shell, and Korn shell.

Table P–3 Shell Prompts

Shell	Prompt
C shell	machine_name%
C shell for superuser	machine_name#
Bourne shell and Korn shell	$
Bourne shell and Korn shell for superuser	#

Supported Platforms

This Sun^TM Studio release supports systems that use the SPARC® and x86 families of processor architectures: UltraSPARC®, SPARC64, AMD64, Pentium, and Xeon EM64T. The supported systems for the version of the Solaris Operating System you are running are available in the hardware compatibility lists at http://www.sun.com/bigadmin/hcl. These documents cite any implementation differences between the platform types.

In this document, these x86 related terms mean the following:

• “x86” refers to the larger family of 64–bit and 32–bit x86 compatible products.

• “x64” points out specific 64–bit information about AMD64 or EM64T systems.

• “32–bit x86” points out specific 32–bit information about x86 based systems.

For supported systems, see the hardware compatibility lists.

Accessing Sun Studio Documentation

You can access the documentation at the following locations:

• The documentation is available from the documentation index that is installed with the software on your local system or network at file:/opt/SUNWspro/docs/index.html on Solaris platforms and at file:/opt/sun/sunstudio12/docs/index.html on Linux platforms.

  If your software is not installed in the /opt directory on a Solaris platform or the /opt/sun directory on a Linux platform, ask your system administrator for the equivalent path on your system.

• Most manuals are available from the docs.sun.com^SM web site. The following titles are available through your installed software on Solaris platforms only:

  • Standard C++ Library Class Reference

  • Standard C++ Library User’s Guide

  • Tools.h++ Class Library Reference

  • Tools.h++ User’s Guide

  The release notes are available from the docs.sun.com web site.

• Online help for all components of the IDE is available through the Help menu, as well as through Help buttons on many windows and dialog boxes, in the IDE.

The docs.sun.com web site (http://docs.sun.com) enables you to read, print, and buy Sun Microsystems manuals through the Internet. If you cannot find a manual, see the documentation index that is installed with the software on your local system or network.

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Note –

Sun is not responsible for the availability of third-party Web sites mentioned in this document. Sun does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products, or other materials that are available on or through such sites or resources. Sun will not be responsible or liable for any actual or alleged damage or loss caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any such content, goods, or services that are available on or through such sites or resources.

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Documentation in Accessible Formats

The documentation is provided in accessible formats that are readable by assistive technologies for users with disabilities. You can find accessible versions of documentation as described in the following table. If your software is not installed in the /opt directory, ask your system administrator for the equivalent path on your system.

Table P–4 Documentation in Accessible Formats

Type of Documentation	Format and Location of Accessible Version
Manuals (except third-party manuals)	HTML at http://docs.sun.com
Third-party manuals: Standard C++ Library Class Reference Standard C++ Library User’s Guide Tools.h++ Class Library Reference Tools.h++ User’s Guide	HTML in the installed software on Solaris platforms through the documentation index at file:/opt/SUNWspro/docs/index.html
Readmes	HTML on the developer portal at http://developers.sun.com/sunstudio/documentation/ss12/mr
Man pages	HTML in the installed software through the documentation index at file:/opt/SUNWspro/docs/index.html on Solaris platforms, and at file:/opt/sun/sunstudio12/docs/index.html on Linux platforms
Online help	HTML available through the Help menu and Help buttons in the IDE
Release notes	HTML at http://docs.sun.com

Related Sun Studio Documentation

The following table describes related documentation that is available at file:/opt/SUNWspro/docs/index.html and http://docs.sun.com. If your software is not installed in the /opt directory, ask your system administrator for the equivalent path on your system.

Table P–5 Related Sun Studio Documentation

Document	Description
dbx Readme	Lists new features, known problems, limitations, and incompatibilities of dbx.
dbx(1) man page	Describes the dbx command.
C User's Guide	Describes the Sun Studio 12 C programming language compiler along with ANSI C compiler-specific information.
C++ User's Guide	Instructs you in the use of the Sun Studio 12 C++ compiler and provides detailed information on command-line compiler options.
Fortran User's Guide	Describes the compile-time environment and command-line options for the Sun Studio 12 Fortran compiler.
OpenMP API User's Guide	Summarizes the OpenMP Fortran 95, C, and C++ application program interface (API) for building multiprocessing applications. Sun Studio compilers support the OpenMP API.
Performance Analyzer	Describes the performance analysis tools that are available with Sun Studio 12.

Accessing Related Solaris Documentation

The following table describes related documentation that is available through the docs.sun.com web site.

Table P–6 Related Solaris Documentation

Document Collection	Document Title	Description
Solaris Reference Manual Collection	See the titles of man page sections.	Provides information about the Solaris OS.
Solaris Software Developer Collection	Linker and Libraries Guide	Describes the operations of the Solaris link-editor and runtime linker.
Solaris Software Developer Collection	Multithreaded Programming Guide	Covers the POSIX and Solaris threads APIs, programming with synchronization objects, compiling multithreaded programs, and finding tools for multithreaded programs.
Solaris Software Developer Collection	SPARC Assembly Language Reference Manual	Describes the assembler that runs on the SPARC architecture and translates source files that are in assembly language format into object files in linking format.

Resources for Developers

Visit http://developers.sun.com/sunstudio to find these frequently updated resources:

• Articles on programming techniques and best practices

• Documentation of the software, as well as corrections to the documentation that is installed with your software

• Information on support levels

• User forums

• Downloadable code samples

• New technology previews

The Sun Studio portal is one of a number of additional resources for developers at the Sun Developer Network website, http://developers.sun.com.

Contacting Technical Support

If you have technical questions about this product that are not answered in this document, go to http://www.sun.com/service/contacting

Sun Welcomes Your Comments

Sun is interested in improving its documentation and welcomes your comments and suggestions. Submit your comments to Sun at this URL: http://www.sun.com/hwdocs/feedback.

Please include the part number of the document in the subject line of your email. For example, the part number for this document is 819–5257–10.