Skip site navigation (1)Skip section navigation (2)

FreeBSD Manual Pages

  
 
  

home | help
CPROTO(1)			 User commands			     CPROTO(1)

NAME
       cproto  -  generate  C function prototypes and convert function defini-
       tions

SYNOPSIS
       cproto [	option ...  ] [	file ...  ]

DESCRIPTION
       Cproto generates	function prototypes for	functions defined in the spec-
       ified C source files to the standard output.  The function  definitions
       may  be in the old style	or ANSI	C style.  Optionally, cproto also out-
       puts declarations for variables defined in the files.  If no file argu-
       ment is given, cproto reads its input from the standard input.

       By giving a command line	option,	cproto will also convert function def-
       initions	in the specified files from the	old style to the ANSI C	style.
       The original source files along with files specified by

	      #include "file"

       directives appearing in the source code will be	overwritten  with  the
       converted  code.	  If no	file names are given on	the command line, then
       the program reads the source code from the standard input  and  outputs
       the converted source to the standard output.

       If any comments appear in the parameter declarations for	a function de-
       finition, such as in the	example,

	      main (argc, argv)
	      int argc;	      /* number	of arguments */
	      char *argv[];   /* arguments */
	      {
	      }

       then the	converted function definition will have	the form

	      int
	      main (
		  int argc,	  /* number of arguments */
		  char *argv[]	 /* arguments */
	      )
	      {
	      }

       Otherwise, the converted	function definition will look like

	      int
	      main (int	argc, char *argv[])
	      {
	      }

       Cproto  can optionally convert function definitions from	the ANSI style
       to the old style.  In this mode,	the program also converts function de-
       clarators and prototypes	that appear outside function bodies.  This  is
       not a complete ANSI C to	old C conversion.  The program does not	change
       anything	within function	bodies.

       Cproto  can optionally generate source in lint-library format.  This is
       useful in environments where the	lint utility  is  used	to  supplement
       prototype checking of your program.

OPTIONS
       -e     Output  the keyword extern in front of every generated prototype
	      or declaration that has global scope.

       -f n   Set the style of generated function prototypes where n is	a num-
	      ber from 0 to 3.	For example, consider the function definition

	      main (argc, argv)
	      int argc;
	      char *argv[];
	      {
	      }

	      If the value is 0, then no prototypes are	generated.   When  set
	      to 1, the	output is:

	      int main(/*int argc, char	*argv[]*/);

	      For a value of 2,	the output has the form:

	      int main(int /*argc*/, char */*argv*/[]);

	      The  default  value  is 3.  It produces the full function	proto-
	      type:

	      int main(int argc, char *argv[]);

       -l     Generate text for	a lint-library (overrides  the	"-f"  option).
	      The output includes the comment

	      /* LINTLIBRARY */

	      Special  comments	 LINT_EXTERN  and LINT_PREPRO (a la "VARARGS")
	      respectively turn	on the "-x" option and	copy  comment-text  to
	      the output (for preprocessing in lint).  Use the comment

	      /* LINT_EXTERN2 */

	      to  include externs defined in the first level of	include-files.
	      Use the comment

	      /* LINT_SHADOWED */

	      to cause cproto to put "#undef" directives before	each lint  li-
	      brary  declaration  (i.e.,  to  avoid conflicts with macros that
	      happen to	have to	have the same  name  as	 the  functions,  thus
	      causing syntax errors).

	      Note  that  these	 special  comments  are	 not  supported	 under
	      VAX/VMS, since there is no equivalent for	the "-C" option	of cpp
	      with VAX-C.

       -c     The parameter comments in	the prototypes generated  by  the  -f1
	      and  -f2 options are omitted by default.	Use this option	to en-
	      able the output of these comments.

       -m     Put a macro around the parameter list of every generated	proto-
	      type.  For example:

	      int main P_((int argc, char *argv[]));

       -M name
	      Set  the	name of	the macro used to surround prototype parameter
	      lists when option	-m is selected.	 The default is	"P_".

       -n     Rather than filling in "void" for	functions without  parameters,
	      use a comment "/*empty*/".

       -N name
	      Rather  than filling in "void" for functions without parameters,
	      use the given name.

       -d     Omit the definition of the prototype macro used by  the  -m  op-
	      tion.

       -o file
	      Specify the name of the output file (default: standard output).

       -O file
	      Specify the name of the error file (default: standard error).

       -p     Disable promotion	of formal parameters in	old style function de-
	      finitions.   By default, parameters of type char or short	in old
	      style function definitions are promoted to type int in the func-
	      tion prototype or	converted ANSI C function definition.  Parame-
	      ters of type float get promoted to double	as well.

       -q     Do not output any	error messages when the	 program  cannot  read
	      the file specified in an #include	directive.

       -s     By default, cproto only generates	declarations for functions and
	      variables	 having	 global	scope.	This option will output	static
	      declarations as well.

       -S     Output only static declarations.

       -i     By default, cproto only generates	declarations for functions and
	      variables	having global scope.  This option will	output	inline
	      declarations as well.

       -T     Copy  type  definitions  from  each  file.   (Definitions	in in-
	      cluded-files are copied, unlike the "-l" option).

       -v     Also output declarations for variables defined in	the source.

       -x     This option causes procedures and	variables which	 are  declared
	      "extern" to be included in the output.

       -X level
	      This  option  limits  the	include-file level from	which declara-
	      tions are	extracted by examining the preprocessor	output.

       -a     Convert function definitions from	the old	style to  the  ANSI  C
	      style.

       -t     Convert function definitions from	the ANSI C style to the	tradi-
	      tional style.

       -b     Rewrite  function	definition heads to include both old style and
	      new style	declarations separated by  a  conditional  compilation
	      directive.   For example,	the program can	generate this function
	      definition:

	      #ifdef ANSI_FUNC

	      int
	      main (int	argc, char *argv[])
	      #else

	      int
	      main (argc, argv)
	      int argc;
	      char *argv[]
	      #endif
	      {
	      }

       -B directive
	      Set the conditional compilation directive	to output at  the  be-
	      ginning of function definitions generated	by the -b option.  The
	      default is

	      #ifdef ANSI_FUNC

       -P template
       -F template
       -C template
	      Set the output format for	generated prototypes, function defini-
	      tions,  and function definitions with parameter comments respec-
	      tively.  The format is specified by a template in	the form

	      "	int f (	a, b )"

	      but you may replace each space in	this string with any number of
	      whitespace characters.  For example, the option

	      -F"int f(\n\ta,\n\tb\n\t)"

	      will produce

	      int main(
		      int argc,
		      char *argv[]
		      )

       -D name[=value]
	      This option is passed through to the preprocessor	and is used to
	      define symbols for use with conditionals such as #ifdef.

       -U name
	      This option is passed through to the preprocessor	and is used to
	      remove any definitions of	this symbol.

       -I directory
	      This option is passed through to the preprocessor	and is used to
	      specify a	directory to search for	files that are referenced with
	      #include.

       -E cpp Pipe the input files through the specified C  preprocessor  com-
	      mand  when  generating prototypes.  By default, the program uses
	      /lib/cpp.

       -E 0   Do not run the C preprocessor.

       -V     Print version information.

ENVIRONMENT
       The environment variable	CPROTO is scanned for a	list of	options	in the
       same format as the command line options.	 Options given on the  command
       line override any corresponding environment option.

BUGS
       If  an  un-tagged struct, union or enum declaration appears in a	gener-
       ated function prototype or converted function definition,  the  content
       of the declaration between the braces is	empty.

       The  program  does not pipe the source files through the	C preprocessor
       when it is converting function definitions.  Instead, it	tries to  han-
       dle  preprocessor  directives  and macros itself	and can	be confused by
       tricky macro expansions.	 The conversion	also discards some comments in
       the function definition head.

       The -v option does not generate declarations for	variables defined with
       the extern specifier.  This doesn't strictly conform to the C  language
       standard	 but  this rule	was implemented	because	include	files commonly
       declare variables this way.

       When the	program	encounters an error, it	usually	outputs	the  not  very
       descriptive  message "syntax error".  (Your configuration may allow the
       extended	error reporting	in yyerror.c).

       Options that take string	arguments only interpret the following charac-
       ter escape sequences:

	      \n   newline
	      \s   space
	      \t   tab

       VARARGS comments	don't get passed through on systems whose C preproces-
       sors don't support this (e.g., VAX/VMS, MS-DOS).

AUTHORS
       Chin Huang
       cthuang@vex.net
       cthuang@interlog.com

       Thomas E. Dickey
       dickey@invisible-island.net
       modifications to	support	lint library, type-copying, and	port to	VAX/VMS.

SEE ALSO
       cc(1), cpp(1)

Version	4.7x			  2024-12-31			     CPROTO(1)

Want to link to this manual page? Use this URL:
<https://man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=cproto&sektion=1&manpath=FreeBSD+Ports+15.0>

home | help