1 Tiny Code Generator - Fabrice Bellard.
5 TCG (Tiny Code Generator) began as a generic backend for a C
6 compiler. It was simplified to be used in QEMU. It also has its roots
7 in the QOP code generator written by Paul Brook.
11 The TCG "target" is the architecture for which we generate the
12 code. It is of course not the same as the "target" of QEMU which is
13 the emulated architecture. As TCG started as a generic C backend used
14 for cross compiling, it is assumed that the TCG target is different
15 from the host, although it is never the case for QEMU.
17 A TCG "function" corresponds to a QEMU Translated Block (TB).
19 A TCG "temporary" is a variable only live in a basic
20 block. Temporaries are allocated explicitly in each function.
22 A TCG "local temporary" is a variable only live in a function. Local
23 temporaries are allocated explicitly in each function.
25 A TCG "global" is a variable which is live in all the functions
26 (equivalent of a C global variable). They are defined before the
27 functions defined. A TCG global can be a memory location (e.g. a QEMU
28 CPU register), a fixed host register (e.g. the QEMU CPU state pointer)
29 or a memory location which is stored in a register outside QEMU TBs
30 (not implemented yet).
32 A TCG "basic block" corresponds to a list of instructions terminated
33 by a branch instruction.
35 3) Intermediate representation
39 TCG instructions operate on variables which are temporaries, local
40 temporaries or globals. TCG instructions and variables are strongly
41 typed. Two types are supported: 32 bit integers and 64 bit
42 integers. Pointers are defined as an alias to 32 bit or 64 bit
43 integers depending on the TCG target word size.
45 Each instruction has a fixed number of output variable operands, input
46 variable operands and always constant operands.
48 The notable exception is the call instruction which has a variable
49 number of outputs and inputs.
51 In the textual form, output operands usually come first, followed by
52 input operands, followed by constant operands. The output type is
53 included in the instruction name. Constants are prefixed with a '$'.
55 add_i32 t0, t1, t2 (t0 <- t1 + t2)
61 - Basic blocks end after branches (e.g. brcond_i32 instruction),
62 goto_tb and exit_tb instructions.
63 - Basic blocks start after the end of a previous basic block, or at a
64 set_label instruction.
66 After the end of a basic block, the content of temporaries is
67 destroyed, but local temporaries and globals are preserved.
69 * Floating point types are not supported yet
71 * Pointers: depending on the TCG target, pointer size is 32 bit or 64
72 bit. The type TCG_TYPE_PTR is an alias to TCG_TYPE_I32 or
77 Using the tcg_gen_helper_x_y it is possible to call any function
78 taking i32, i64 or pointer types. By default, before calling a helper,
79 all globals are stored at their canonical location and it is assumed
80 that the function can modify them. This can be overridden by the
81 TCG_CALL_CONST function modifier. By default, the helper is allowed to
82 modify the CPU state or raise an exception. This can be overridden by
83 the TCG_CALL_PURE function modifier, in which case the call to the
84 function is removed if the return value is not used.
86 On some TCG targets (e.g. x86), several calling conventions are
91 Use the instruction 'br' to jump to a label. Use 'jmp' to jump to an
92 explicit address. Conditional branches can only jump to labels.
94 3.3) Code Optimizations
96 When generating instructions, you can count on at least the following
99 - Single instructions are simplified, e.g.
101 and_i32 t0, t0, $0xffffffff
105 - A liveness analysis is done at the basic block level. The
106 information is used to suppress moves from a dead variable to
107 another one. It is also used to remove instructions which compute
108 dead results. The later is especially useful for condition code
109 optimization in QEMU.
111 In the following example:
117 only the last instruction is kept.
119 3.4) Instruction Reference
121 ********* Function call
123 * call <ret> <params> ptr
125 call function 'ptr' (pointer type)
127 <ret> optional 32 bit or 64 bit return value
128 <params> optional 32 bit or 64 bit parameters
130 ********* Jumps/Labels
134 Absolute jump to address t0 (pointer type).
138 Define label 'label' at the current program point.
144 * brcond_i32/i64 cond, t0, t1, label
146 Conditional jump if t0 cond t1 is true. cond can be:
149 TCG_COND_LT /* signed */
150 TCG_COND_GE /* signed */
151 TCG_COND_LE /* signed */
152 TCG_COND_GT /* signed */
153 TCG_COND_LTU /* unsigned */
154 TCG_COND_GEU /* unsigned */
155 TCG_COND_LEU /* unsigned */
156 TCG_COND_GTU /* unsigned */
160 * add_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
164 * sub_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
170 t0=-t1 (two's complement)
172 * mul_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
176 * div_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
178 t0=t1/t2 (signed). Undefined behavior if division by zero or overflow.
180 * divu_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
182 t0=t1/t2 (unsigned). Undefined behavior if division by zero.
184 * rem_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
186 t0=t1%t2 (signed). Undefined behavior if division by zero or overflow.
188 * remu_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
190 t0=t1%t2 (unsigned). Undefined behavior if division by zero.
194 * and_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
198 * or_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
202 * xor_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
210 * andc_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
214 * eqv_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
216 t0=~(t1^t2), or equivalently, t0=t1^~t2
218 * nand_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
222 * nor_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
226 * orc_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
230 ********* Shifts/Rotates
232 * shl_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
234 t0=t1 << t2. Undefined behavior if t2 < 0 or t2 >= 32 (resp 64)
236 * shr_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
238 t0=t1 >> t2 (unsigned). Undefined behavior if t2 < 0 or t2 >= 32 (resp 64)
240 * sar_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
242 t0=t1 >> t2 (signed). Undefined behavior if t2 < 0 or t2 >= 32 (resp 64)
244 * rotl_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
246 Rotation of t2 bits to the left. Undefined behavior if t2 < 0 or t2 >= 32 (resp 64)
248 * rotr_i32/i64 t0, t1, t2
250 Rotation of t2 bits to the right. Undefined behavior if t2 < 0 or t2 >= 32 (resp 64)
258 Move t1 to t0 (both operands must have the same type).
260 * ext8s_i32/i64 t0, t1
262 ext16s_i32/i64 t0, t1
263 ext16u_i32/i64 t0, t1
267 8, 16 or 32 bit sign/zero extension (both operands must have the same type)
269 * bswap16_i32/i64 t0, t1
271 16 bit byte swap on a 32/64 bit value. It assumes that the two/six high order
272 bytes are set to zero.
274 * bswap32_i32/i64 t0, t1
276 32 bit byte swap on a 32/64 bit value. With a 64 bit value, it assumes that
277 the four high order bytes are set to zero.
285 Indicate that the value of t0 won't be used later. It is useful to
286 force dead code elimination.
288 * deposit_i32/i64 dest, t1, t2, pos, len
290 Deposit T2 as a bitfield into T1, placing the result in DEST.
291 The bitfield is described by POS/LEN, which are immediate values:
293 LEN - the length of the bitfield
294 POS - the position of the first bit, counting from the LSB
296 For example, pos=8, len=4 indicates a 4-bit field at bit 8.
297 This operation would be equivalent to
299 dest = (t1 & ~0x0f00) | ((t2 << 8) & 0x0f00)
302 ********* Conditional moves
304 * setcond_i32/i64 cond, dest, t1, t2
308 Set DEST to 1 if (T1 cond T2) is true, otherwise set to 0.
310 ********* Type conversions
313 Convert t1 (32 bit) to t0 (64 bit) and does sign extension
315 * extu_i32_i64 t0, t1
316 Convert t1 (32 bit) to t0 (64 bit) and does zero extension
318 * trunc_i64_i32 t0, t1
319 Truncate t1 (64 bit) to t0 (32 bit)
321 * concat_i32_i64 t0, t1, t2
322 Construct t0 (64-bit) taking the low half from t1 (32 bit) and the high half
325 * concat32_i64 t0, t1, t2
326 Construct t0 (64-bit) taking the low half from t1 (64 bit) and the high half
331 * ld_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
332 ld8s_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
333 ld8u_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
334 ld16s_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
335 ld16u_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
336 ld32s_i64 t0, t1, offset
337 ld32u_i64 t0, t1, offset
339 t0 = read(t1 + offset)
340 Load 8, 16, 32 or 64 bits with or without sign extension from host memory.
341 offset must be a constant.
343 * st_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
344 st8_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
345 st16_i32/i64 t0, t1, offset
346 st32_i64 t0, t1, offset
348 write(t0, t1 + offset)
349 Write 8, 16, 32 or 64 bits to host memory.
351 ********* 64-bit target on 32-bit host support
353 The following opcodes are internal to TCG. Thus they are to be implemented by
354 32-bit host code generators, but are not to be emitted by guest translators.
355 They are emitted as needed by inline functions within "tcg-op.h".
357 * brcond2_i32 cond, t0_low, t0_high, t1_low, t1_high, label
359 Similar to brcond, except that the 64-bit values T0 and T1
360 are formed from two 32-bit arguments.
362 * add2_i32 t0_low, t0_high, t1_low, t1_high, t2_low, t2_high
363 * sub2_i32 t0_low, t0_high, t1_low, t1_high, t2_low, t2_high
365 Similar to add/sub, except that the 64-bit inputs T1 and T2 are
366 formed from two 32-bit arguments, and the 64-bit output T0
367 is returned in two 32-bit outputs.
369 * mulu2_i32 t0_low, t0_high, t1, t2
371 Similar to mul, except two 32-bit (unsigned) inputs T1 and T2 yielding
372 the full 64-bit product T0. The later is returned in two 32-bit outputs.
374 * setcond2_i32 cond, dest, t1_low, t1_high, t2_low, t2_high
376 Similar to setcond, except that the 64-bit values T1 and T2 are
377 formed from two 32-bit arguments. The result is a 32-bit value.
379 ********* QEMU specific operations
383 Exit the current TB and return the value t0 (word type).
387 Exit the current TB and jump to the TB index 'index' (constant) if the
388 current TB was linked to this TB. Otherwise execute the next
391 * qemu_ld8u t0, t1, flags
392 qemu_ld8s t0, t1, flags
393 qemu_ld16u t0, t1, flags
394 qemu_ld16s t0, t1, flags
395 qemu_ld32 t0, t1, flags
396 qemu_ld32u t0, t1, flags
397 qemu_ld32s t0, t1, flags
398 qemu_ld64 t0, t1, flags
400 Load data at the QEMU CPU address t1 into t0. t1 has the QEMU CPU address
401 type. 'flags' contains the QEMU memory index (selects user or kernel access)
404 Note that "qemu_ld32" implies a 32-bit result, while "qemu_ld32u" and
405 "qemu_ld32s" imply a 64-bit result appropriately extended from 32 bits.
407 * qemu_st8 t0, t1, flags
408 qemu_st16 t0, t1, flags
409 qemu_st32 t0, t1, flags
410 qemu_st64 t0, t1, flags
412 Store the data t0 at the QEMU CPU Address t1. t1 has the QEMU CPU
413 address type. 'flags' contains the QEMU memory index (selects user or
414 kernel access) for example.
416 Note 1: Some shortcuts are defined when the last operand is known to be
417 a constant (e.g. addi for add, movi for mov).
419 Note 2: When using TCG, the opcodes must never be generated directly
420 as some of them may not be available as "real" opcodes. Always use the
421 function tcg_gen_xxx(args).
425 tcg-target.h contains the target specific definitions. tcg-target.c
426 contains the target specific code.
430 The target word size (TCG_TARGET_REG_BITS) is expected to be 32 bit or
431 64 bit. It is expected that the pointer has the same size as the word.
433 On a 32 bit target, all 64 bit operations are converted to 32 bits. A
434 few specific operations must be implemented to allow it (see add2_i32,
435 sub2_i32, brcond2_i32).
437 Floating point operations are not supported in this version. A
438 previous incarnation of the code generator had full support of them,
439 but it is better to concentrate on integer operations first.
441 On a 64 bit target, no assumption is made in TCG about the storage of
442 the 32 bit values in 64 bit registers.
446 GCC like constraints are used to define the constraints of every
447 instruction. Memory constraints are not supported in this
448 version. Aliases are specified in the input operands as for GCC.
450 The same register may be used for both an input and an output, even when
451 they are not explicitly aliased. If an op expands to multiple target
452 instructions then care must be taken to avoid clobbering input values.
453 GCC style "early clobber" outputs are not currently supported.
455 A target can define specific register or constant constraints. If an
456 operation uses a constant input constraint which does not allow all
457 constants, it must also accept registers in order to have a fallback.
459 The movi_i32 and movi_i64 operations must accept any constants.
461 The mov_i32 and mov_i64 operations must accept any registers of the
464 The ld/st instructions must accept signed 32 bit constant offsets. It
465 can be implemented by reserving a specific register to compute the
466 address if the offset is too big.
468 The ld/st instructions must accept any destination (ld) or source (st)
471 4.3) Function call assumptions
473 - The only supported types for parameters and return value are: 32 and
474 64 bit integers and pointer.
475 - The stack grows downwards.
476 - The first N parameters are passed in registers.
477 - The next parameters are passed on the stack by storing them as words.
478 - Some registers are clobbered during the call.
479 - The function can return 0 or 1 value in registers. On a 32 bit
480 target, functions must be able to return 2 values in registers for
483 5) Recommended coding rules for best performance
485 - Use globals to represent the parts of the QEMU CPU state which are
486 often modified, e.g. the integer registers and the condition
487 codes. TCG will be able to use host registers to store them.
489 - Avoid globals stored in fixed registers. They must be used only to
490 store the pointer to the CPU state and possibly to store a pointer
491 to a register window.
493 - Use temporaries. Use local temporaries only when really needed,
494 e.g. when you need to use a value after a jump. Local temporaries
495 introduce a performance hit in the current TCG implementation: their
496 content is saved to memory at end of each basic block.
498 - Free temporaries and local temporaries when they are no longer used
499 (tcg_temp_free). Since tcg_const_x() also creates a temporary, you
500 should free it after it is used. Freeing temporaries does not yield
501 a better generated code, but it reduces the memory usage of TCG and
502 the speed of the translation.
504 - Don't hesitate to use helpers for complicated or seldom used target
505 instructions. There is little performance advantage in using TCG to
506 implement target instructions taking more than about twenty TCG
509 - Use the 'discard' instruction if you know that TCG won't be able to
510 prove that a given global is "dead" at a given program point. The
511 x86 target uses it to improve the condition codes optimisation.