Compilers are the tool used to translate high-level programming language to low-level programming language. The simple compiler works in one system only, but what will happen if we need a compiler that can compile code from another platform, to perform such compilation, the cross compiler is introduced. In this article, we are going to discuss cross-compiler.
A cross compiler is a compiler capable of creating executable code for a platform other than the one on which the compiler is running. For example, a cross compiler executes on machine X and produces machine code for machine Y.
Where is the cross compiler used?
- In bootstrapping, a cross-compiler is used for transitioning to a new platform. When developing software for a new platform, a cross-compiler is used to compile necessary tools such as the operating system and a native compiler.
- For microcontrollers, we use cross compiler because it doesn’t support an operating system.
- It is useful for embedded computers which are with limited computing resources.
- To compile for a platform where it is not practical to do the compiling, a cross-compiler is used.
- When direct compilation on the target platform is not infeasible, so we can use the cross compiler.
- It helps to keep the target environment separate from the built environment.
T-Diagram for Cross-compiler
A compiler is characterized by three languages:
- The source language that is compiled.
- The target language T is generated.
- The implementation language that is used for writing the compiler.
How does cross-compilation work?
A cross compiler is a compiler capable of creating executable code for a platform other than the one on which the compiler is running. In paravirtualization, one computer runs multiple operating systems and a cross compiler could generate an executable for each of them from one main source.
Working of Cross-Compiler
What are the phases of the compiler?
- Lexical Analysis.
- Syntactic Analysis (i.e. Parsing)
- Intermediate Code Generation (and semantic analysis)
- Optimization (optional)
- Code Generation.
How compiler is different from a cross-compiler?
The native compiler is a compiler that generates code for the same platform on which it runs and on the other hand, a Cross compiler is a compiler that generates executable code for a platform other than one on which the compiler is running. Check out this article for more information Difference between Native compilers and Cross compilers.