Microchip Technology MA330031-2 Data Sheet

DS70000657H-page 398

 2011-2013 Microchip Technology Inc.

The MPLAB XC Compilers are complete ANSI C
compilers for all of Microchip’s 8, 16 and 32-bit MCU
and DSC devices. These compilers provide powerful
integration capabilities, superior code optimization and
ease of use. MPLAB XC Compilers run on Windows,
Linux or MAC OS X.
For easy source level debugging, the compilers provide
debug information that is optimized to the MPLAB X
IDE.
The free MPLAB XC Compiler editions support all
devices and commands, with no time or memory
restrictions, and offer sufficient code optimization for
most applications.
MPLAB XC Compilers include an assembler, linker and
utilities. The assembler generates relocatable object
files that can then be archived or linked with other
relocatable object files and archives to create an exe-
cutable file. MPLAB XC Compiler uses the assembler
to produce its object file. Notable features of the
assembler include:
• Support for the entire device instruction set
• Support for fixed-point and floating-point data
• Command-line interface
• Rich directive set
• Flexible macro language
• MPLAB X IDE compatibility

The MPASM Assembler is a full-featured, universal
macro assembler for PIC10/12/16/18 MCUs. 
The MPASM Assembler generates relocatable object
files for the MPLINK Object Linker, Intel

®

 standard HEX

files, MAP files to detail memory usage and symbol
reference, absolute LST files that contain source lines
and generated machine code, and COFF files for
debugging.
The MPASM Assembler features include:
• Integration into MPLAB X IDE projects
• User-defined macros to streamline 

assembly code

• Conditional assembly for multipurpose 

source files

• Directives that allow complete control over the 

assembly process

The MPLINK Object Linker combines relocatable
objects created by the MPASM Assembler. It can link
relocatable objects from precompiled libraries, using
directives from a linker script. 
The MPLIB Object Librarian manages the creation and
modification of library files of precompiled code. When
a routine from a library is called from a source file, only
the modules that contain that routine will be linked in
with the application. This allows large libraries to be
used efficiently in many different applications. 
The object linker/library features include:
• Efficient linking of single libraries instead of many 

smaller files

• Enhanced code maintainability by grouping 

related modules together

• Flexible creation of libraries with easy module 

listing, replacement, deletion and extraction

MPLAB Assembler produces relocatable machine
code from symbolic assembly language for PIC24,
PIC32 and dsPIC DSC devices. MPLAB XC Compiler
uses the assembler to produce its object file. The
assembler generates relocatable object files that can
then be archived or linked with other relocatable object
files and archives to create an executable file. Notable
features of the assembler include:
• Support for the entire device instruction set
• Support for fixed-point and floating-point data
• Command-line interface
• Rich directive set
• Flexible macro language
• MPLAB X IDE compatibility