Let’s Learn What A Compiler Program

Is And How It Works!

Compiler Definition

• A compiler is a special program used to convert code into natural language processing so that the computer can understand it. The conversion process that takes place is known as compilation.
• In this process, the compiler is tasked with executing the code and converting it into binary signals needed in the processor, especially in the arithmetic logic unit (ALU).

There are two types of compilers that are generally used by developers, namely:

• Source to source compiler or transcompiler is a compiler that is tasked with translating source code with one language and converting it into code from another language.
• Cross compiler is used to create new code so that it can be used on other platforms.
• It has been mentioned above that the compiler is tasked with translating code. However, the compiler also has other tasks such as:
• Dividing the program into several separate parts and applying the grammar structure to each part.
• Using an intermediary to build the target program and create a symbol table.
• Compiling the source code to find out the problems in it.
• Storage space management for all code and variables.
• Support for separate compilation.
• Reading and analyzing all programs, then translating them into semantic equivalents.
• Translate the source code into object code and adjust it to the type of machine used.
• Steps in the Language Processing System
• Before discussing further about the compiler, you should first understand how hardware understands code or programming language.
• The programming language is called high-level programming language (HLL). This language tends to be easier for humans to understand because the language is more familiar.
• Unfortunately, HLL cannot be understood by computers or machines. Therefore, the steps below are needed so that the machine can understand the code.

Pre-Processor

• At this stage, the compiler removes all code containing #include instructions and then adds file inclusion. After that, #define is also replaced with macro expansion. The result of this process is called assembly language. This language is between HLL and binary.
• Assembly language is an intermediary that can combine machine commands and some data that will be useful in the next process.

Assembler

• All hardware platforms have different assemblers. The function of the assembler is to convert assembly language code into machine language.
• The file produced by the assembler is called an object file. The file is the result of a combination of machine instructions with the data needed to store commands or instructions into memory.

Interpreter

The interpreter is useful for translating from HLL into machine language. However, the interpreter is different from the compiler. The interpreter takes longer to translate the code because the process is done at one time.

Relocatable Machine Code

Relocatable machine code can be run whenever needed. This process produces addresses in the program that will work together to drive the program.

Loader or Linker

• The linker or loader is useful for combining all object files into one executable file. The role of the linker is very important for uniting files compiled by the assembler.
• The linker is tasked with finding modules, calling them into the program, and finding a location to store all of these modules.

Phases in the Compiler

• There are two main phases in the compiler, namely the analysis phase and the synthesis phase.

1. Analysis Phase

The analysis or representation phase, created as an intermediary from the following code sources:

• Lexical analyzer to divide the program into tokens.
• Syntax analyzer is useful for recognizing sentences in a program using language syntax.
• Semantic analyzer functions to check static semantics in each construction.
• Intermediate code generator is useful for generating abstract codes.

2. Synthesis Phase

When entering the synthesis phase, the target program at the same level is created from an intermediate analysis that is divided into two phases.Code optimizer which functions to optimize the abstract code generated from the last process of the first phase.The code generator translates the intermediate code generator into more specific machine instructions that are ready to be executed.

Compiler Benefits

In addition to its primary use for translating HLL into machine language in creating applications or websites, there are many other benefits that can be felt when using a compiler, including:

• The compiler verifies all programs so that it is impossible to find semantic or syntax errors.
• Files can be executed faster because they have been optimized by the compiler.
• Allows the creation of internal structures in memory.
• The program does not have to be run on the machine used to build it.
• The entire program can be converted to another language.
• Files can be created on disk and made executable.
• Helps in handling language performance issues.

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