[patch cygwin]: Replace inline-assembler in string.h by C implementation

[Corinna Vinschen]

On Oct 25 10:17, Christopher Faylor wrote:
> On Thu, Oct 25, 2012 at 10:48:39AM +0200, Corinna Vinschen wrote:
> >On Oct 24 18:02, Kai Tietz wrote:
> >>2012/10/24 Christopher Faylor wrote:
> >>>On Wed, Oct 24, 2012 at 11:07:47AM -0400, Ryan Johnson wrote:
> >>>>On 24/10/2012 5:16 AM, Kai Tietz wrote:
> >>>>>Hello,
> >>>>>
> >>>>>this patch replaces the inline-assember used in string.h by C
> >>>>>implementation.  There are three reasons why I want to suggest this.
> >>>>>First, the C-code might be optimized further by fixed (constant)
> >>>>>arguments.  Secondly, it is architecture independent and so we just
> >>>>>need to maintain on code-path.  And as third point, by inspecting
> >>>>>generated assembly code produced by compiler out of C code vs.
> >>>>>inline-assembler it shows that compiler produces better code.  It
> >>>>>handles jump-threading better, and also improves average executed
> >>>>>instructions.
> >>>>Devil's advocate: better-looking code isn't always faster code.
> >>>>
> >>>>However, I'm surprised that code was inline asm in the first place --
> >>>>no special instructions or unusual control flow -- and would not be at
> >>>>all surprised if the compiler does a better job.
> >>>>
> >>>>Also, the portability issue is relevant now that cygwin is starting the
> >>>>move toward 64-bit support.
> >>>
> >>>Yes, that's exactly why Kai is proposing this.
> >>>
> >>>I haven't looked at the code but I almost always have one response to a
> >>>"I want to rewrite a standard function" patches:
> >>>
> >>>Have you looked at other implementations?  The current one was based on
> >>>a linux implementation.  A C version of these functions has likely been
> >>>written before, possibly even in newlib.  Were those considered?
> >>
> >>Sure, I have looked up standard-implementation of
> >>stricmp/strnicmp/strchr as code-base.  We could of course simply use
> >>C-runtime-funktions here, but well, those wouldn't be inlined.  The
> >>latter seems to me the only cause why string.h implements them at all.
> >>They are defined there as 'static inline', which makes them pure
> >>inlines.
> >
> >Right, that's what I forgot entirely in my reply.  From my POV they are
> >good to go.  Chris?
> 
> Ok.  I wonder if newlib should be investigating make some of these inline
> but that's not something that we have to worry about I guess.

As for strechr, does gcc have an inline implementation of strchrnul, by
any chance?  Oh, btw., wouldn't it make sense to rename strechr to
strchrnul inside Cygwin as well?  It's kind of the "right" name for
the function...


Corinna

-- 
Corinna Vinschen                  Please, send mails regarding Cygwin to
Cygwin Project Co-Leader          cygwin AT cygwin DOT com
Red Hat