• Background
• How to create a library
  • Example library project
  • Example library header file
• How to test a library

Background

To understand how libraries are created and may be used in a project, it is important to understand some details about how a project is built [Figure 1]. In a typical application, source code is compiled into object files (one object file for each source file). Object files contain compiled code where none of the variables or code blocks have been assigned addresses in the device's memory map. In other words, an object file is relocatable because, in theory, all of its items may be located anywhere in the device's memory. The job of assigning addresses falls to the linker. It takes the information in the object file and device memory map information from a linker script file and assigns variables to specific addresses and arranges code blocks to best fit in the available memory. The linker script provides all of the fixed addresses of a device's registers and program memory regions. The linker is the tool that creates the HEX file that will ultimately be programmed into the device.

All of the above is true for assembly programming too, as long as you write relocatable assembly code which uses a different set of directives from absolute assembly code. Absolute assembly code specifies addresses in the code itself (using directives likeorg,equ, orcblock) and therefore is never passed to the linker. This means that absolute assembly projects cannot use libraries generated as outlined below or be used to implement libraries. Relocatable assembly uses directives likecode andres which are handled in much the same way as C variables and functions, making it possible for code written in this fashion to be used for and with libraries.

When you create a library project [Figure 2], the build process is slightly different. After the compiler generates the object files, they are not passed to the linker. Instead, they are passed to the librarian (sometimes called the archiver). The librarian collects all of the object files generated by the compiler and puts them into a single "container" file called a library (or archive). None of these object files in the library have been through the link step, so all of their objects (variables, functions, etc.) have not been assigned an address in memory. This means that these objects can easily be mixed with another project's code where both that project's objects and the library's objects will be assigned addresses when the project is built and they are all passed through the linker.

Once you have created a library file, it is ready to be used in a project [Figure 3]. In a typical project, you will have some code specific to that project that calls functions included in the library. The glue that makes this possible is a header file associated with the library that contains function prototypes for any functions in the library that you wish to make available to users of the library. These function prototypes expose the functions to the outside world by telling the compiler what the function looks like (declaration), even though the implementation (definition) of the function is in the library and not seen by the compiler. The compiler generates its object files with names referring to these library objects, and the linker cleans up everything in the end by tying all the appropriate items together.

Everything above describes the mechanics of how the compiler, linker, and librarian interact with each other. Next, let's look at a real example of how to create a library and use it in a project.

How to create a library

There are two main parts of a library:

1. The library project
2. The header file that you will provide to those who will use the pre-compiled library in their own projects

Example Library Project

1

Launch the new project wizard

Toolbar:
Keyboard:	Ctrl+Shift+N
Menu:	File > New Project…

2

Choose Project Type

ChooseLibrary Project from the list on the right and clickNext >.

This will create a project that will generate a library file (*.lib or *.a depending on which compiler you use) instead of a hex file. This project will not be able to run on its own as it will not have amain() function. The resulting library will be used in another project that has its ownmain() function.

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3

Select Device

Select the device family and device that are in the same family for which you wish to use this library. ClickNext >.

As a general rule, libraries may be used on any device that shares the architecture of its original target. In this example, we are choosing a PIC24FJ128GA010 because it is a fairly generic "superset" device that has a little bit of everything that the PIC24F family has to offer. This doesn't mean that we can only use this library with this device. On the contrary, we should be able to use it with any PIC24F device as long as we don't use some feature that is unique to the PIC24FJ128GA010. The key is that if our library references any on chip hardware by its register names, this library may only be used with devices whose registers share the same names. The reason this works is because this library project will not be linked. So, register names will NOT be equated to their hardware addresses. Rather they are left "floating" until this library is used in a different, standalone project where the linker will finally connect the names used here to the hardware addresses of the standalone project's target device.

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4

Select Header

Leave this checkbox unchecked. This only affects debugging, which cannot be done directly with a library project. ClickNext >.

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5

Select Tool

Since a library project cannot be debugged on its own, choose nothing or choose the simulator. It really doesn't matter. ClickNext >.

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6

Select Compiler

Choose the appropriate compiler or assembler for your target architecture. ClickNext >.

The choice of compiler here not only determines which tool will build the object files for the library, but also determines which compiler this library may be used with when included in other projects. However, you are not tied down to a particular version number in most circumstances. For example, if I choose the XC16 compiler, I cannot use this library with Hi-Tech, CCS, nor any other compiler that supports this device family, but I should be able to use it with subsequent versions of the XC16 compiler.

Libraries may also be written in and used in assembly language, but they must be written as relocatable code. If you wish to mix assembly and C, then assembly libraries must be written to be both relocatable and C callable. This requires a thorough understanding of your compiler's parameter passing conventions.

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7

Select Project Name and Folder

Choose a name and location for your project. ClickFinish.

The name you give your project will be the name of the library file it generates. In this example the project name is MyLib and the library file it generates will be MyLib.x.a. The ".a" suffix is the library suffix used by XC16 and XC32. The ".x" is automatically inserted to indicate that this library was built using the MPLAB^® X IDE. The name isn't critical and you can always change the name of the generated library file in your file manager before using it in another project.

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8

Add Source Files

To add blank source files to the project, right click on theSource Files folder of the project tree and selectNew > Empty File… from the pop-up menu. This will prompt you to provide a filename and location for the files. Do this twice to create two new source files namedadd.c andsub.c. In both cases, keep the default location, which is inside the project directory.

Each of these files will contain a single function. When the project is compiled, the library will contain two object files,add.o andsub.o. Putting each function into a separate file will make the library more efficient for you. If your code only uses the function insideadd.o, then only the code fromadd.o will be compiled into the HEX file. This means you can create huge libraries of related functions, but only the code from the functions that are actually used will be compiled into the HEX file, so memory will not be wasted on code that never gets called.

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Once you have added the source files, your project will look like following image.

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// This function takes two parameters, adds them together and returns the resultint add(int a, int b){    return (a + b);}

// This function takes two parameters, subtracts the second from the first and returns the resultint sub(int a, int b){    return (a - b);}

10

Build the Library

Once you have added all the code to the sources files, the project is ready to be built. Click on theBuild button on the toolbar.

If the build was successful, click on theFiles tab in theProject window and navigate down the tree toMyLib > dist > default. You should see your library filemylib.x.a here. This is the file you will include in other projects.

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Example Library Header File

The header file is not used in the library itself, but in any project that will use the library. This is a file you must create to expose the functions in your library that you want to make available to your library's users. An example of a function you mightnot want to make available via the header file is one that is itself called by one of the library's functions, but you don't want the end-user of the library to call directly. In the simple library we created above, there are only two functions available, so our header file will have two function prototypes. The function prototype is nothing more than the function header (first line) of each function in the library terminated with a semicolon. Although not required, it is customary to give the header file the same name as the library file. Since our library is calledMyLib.x.a, we will call the headerMyLib.h (orMyLib.x.h if you prefer).

MyLib.h

int add(int a, int b);int sub(int a, int b);

Your library's users must include this header file (for example,#include "MyLib.h") in every file of their project where they make calls to one of the library's functions.

How to test a library

When you create a library, you will need to test it in a standalone project. The easiest way to do this is to create a test project that is open at the same time as the library project in MPLAB X. This makes it very easy to switch back and forth as you make changes to the library and then test those changes. So, without closing the library project, create a new project to test the library:

1

Toolbar:
Keyboard:	Ctrl+Shift+N
Menu:	File > New Project…

2

Choose Project Type

ChooseStandalone Project from the list on the right and clickNext >.

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4

Add Files

1. Right click onHeader Files and selectNew > Empty File… from the pop-up menu. Name the fileMyLib.h.
2. Right click onSource Files and selectNew > Empty File… from the pop-up menu. Name the filemain.c.
3. Right click onLibrary Files and selectAdd Existing Item… In the file dialog that pops up, navigate to and select your library file from the MyLib project. In this example, it is at:..\MyLib.X\dist\default\mylib.x.a (go to wherever your MyLib.X folder was created from the library project above).

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By adding the library file from the location where it is generated by the MyLib project, we can switch back and forth between these projects to tweak the library very easily. Every time the MyLib project is built, a newmylib.x.a is generated. Because the MyLibTest project references this file's location, MyLibTest will always have the latest build ofmylib.x.a.

If this weren't a test project, it would be better to copy themylib.x.a file into this project's directory. Then add the copy in this project's directory to the project tree instead. Once the library is tested, there is no need to always reference the original project. All you need is a copy ofmylib.x.a and the header fileMyLib.h that we are about to write.

Once you have added the files, your project will look like the previous image

5

Add Code

Add the following code to their respective files in your project:

MyLib.h

int add(int a, int b);int sub(int a, int b);

main.c

#include "MyLib.h"int sum, difference;  // Variables to hold results of function callsint main(void){    sum = add(5, 3);          // sum = 5 + 3    difference = sub(5, 3);   // difference = 5 - 3    while(1);                 // loop forever}

The first line ofmain.c,#include "MyLib.h", and the file it references are critical. Without these, the compiler will not recognizeadd() andsub() as valid functions. Remember, the library contains pre-compiled code, so the compiler doesn't know anything about it. This header file is essentially telling the compiler, "you will see this program make calls toadd() andsub() which aren't implemented here. All you need to do is generate the appropriate parameter passing code based on the template of these function prototypes. The linker will be made aware of where to find the implementations of these functions so that it can make the appropriate connections between these function calls and their implementations."

If this project only made a call to one of the functions, only the code that implemented that function would be added to the HEX file. It works this way because all of the functions in the library were implemented in their own source files. If the library code were implemented as a single source file, then a call to just one function would result in the code for all of the functions being added to the HEX file.

6

Build Project

Make sure that you have selected theMyLibTest project by clicking on it in the project tree. Then click theDebug Project button on the toolbar to build the project and run it in the debugger you selected in step 2.

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