GDB-ADD-INDEX(1)

📦
version 7.2.4 · 2 versions
, in arch rolling

💅 gdb-add-index — like, the manual page but make it cute

okay so this is gdb-add-index from the GNU Development Tools collection, and honestly? it's a whole vibe. it's the little script that makes ROCGDB start up fast, and you're gonna love her. let's get into it 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

gdb-add-index — adds index files so GDB starts up quicker. that's it. that's the whole job. iconic behavior only 💅

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

gdb-add-index [-dwarf-5] filename

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

okay so picture this: when ROCGDB finds a symbol file, it literally has to scan all the symbols in that file to build its own internal symbol table. and like — that's what makes most ROCGDB operations feel fast, but the tradeoff is there's this delay at the very beginning. for big programs? that delay can be so lengthy, bestie. genuinely painful. so ROCGDB gives you a way to build an index ahead of time, and that speeds up startup. main character energy: the index did that 💖

wanna know if a file already has an index? run readelf -S filename — the index lives in a section named .gdb_index (pre-DWARF 5) or .debug_names and .debug_str (DWARF 5). easy check, no cap.

heads up: indexes can only be produced on systems that use ELF binaries and DWARF debug information (i.e., sections named .debug_*). so if that's not your setup, this whole thing is a no 💀

by default, gdb-add-index will add a pre-DWARF 5 .gdb_index section to filename. but if you pass -dwarf-5, then DWARF 5 sections get added instead. glow-up ✨

filename must be writable. like, non-negotiable. it's writing into your file, so yeah 🫶

gdb-add-index uses ROCGDB, objcopy, and readelf found in the PATH environment variable. if you want different versions of these programs, you can specify them through the appropriate environment variables (see below 👇).

and the exit status? gdb-add-index exits with status 0 if it succeeds in creating the index for filename, or greater than 0 if an error occurs. clean and simple, we love a binary outcome 🎀

there's more lore in the ROCGDB manual, in the node "Index Files" — shell command:

info -f gdb -n "Index Files"

go read it, iykyk 📖

⭐ OPTIONS ⭐

  • -dwarf-5 — add DWARF 5 sections instead of the previous .debug_index section. new-gen sections, basically 🔥

🦋 ENVIRONMENT 🦋

  • GDB — full file name of the "gdb" program to use for index generation. if it's not set, the PATH will be searched for a "gdb" program.
  • OBJCOPY — full file name of the "objcopy" program used to copy section information into the given file. if it's not set, the PATH will be searched for a "objcopy" program.
  • READELF — full file name of the "readelf" program used to inspect properties of the given file. if it's not set, the PATH will be searched for a "readelf" program.

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

the full documentation for ROCGDB is maintained as a Texinfo manual. if the "info" and "gdb" programs and ROCGDB's Texinfo documentation are properly installed at your site, then this command:

info gdb

should give you access to the complete manual. slay 💜

also, Using GDB: A Guide to the GNU Source-Level Debugger, by Richard M. Stallman and Roland H. Pesch, July 1991. vintage. we respect the classics 👑

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(a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: "You are free to copy and modify this GNU Manual. Buying copies from GNU Press supports the FSF in developing GNU and promoting software freedom."

AMD ROCm software is made available by Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. under the open source license identified in the top-level directory for the library in the repository on @url{https://github.com/ROCm/,Github.com} (Portions of AMD ROCm software are licensed under MITx11 and UIL/NCSA. For more information on the license, review the license.txt in the top-level directory for the library on @url{https://github.com/ROCm/,Github.com}). The additional terms and conditions below apply to your use of AMD ROCm technical documentation.

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💀 bestie that disclaimer was long but we got through it together, and that's what matters

and that's the whole page! this one's from gdb-16.3, dated 2026-05-31 — go forth and index responsibly, you absolute icon 🧚‍♀️🍓💖

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