[NTLUG:Discuss] re-linking????

[Kevin Brannen]

Steve Baker wrote:
> 
> aal wrote:
> 
> > ok
> > so re-linking is just another word for recompiling??
> 
> No - it isn't - the process of going from source code to executable is
> a two-step deal:
...
> 
> Generally though, these two steps are hidden in one 'build' or 'install'
> script or 'Makefile' - so it's a lot easier to recompile AND relink a
> program by just rerunning the build instructions than it is to figure
> out how to run just the linker step by itself.
...

Yep, but the reason I said "recompile" is that many times, just
relinking isn't good enough.  That's because the library headers have
changed the size of structs, and possibly changed other stuff too.  To
really know if you *need* to compile or just re-link, you'd need to
get the CHANGE-LOG from the library; it _should_ be documented in
there as to what the correct action is.

However, with all that said, it's often just a whole lot easier (and
safer) to recompile/link (or build) the app from original source. (as
Steve pointed out :-)

Kevin