SCAN-BUILD(1)

📦 version 15.0.7, in debian bookworm, ubuntu jammy, ubuntu noble

✨ SCAN-BUILD ✨

okay so bestie, welcome to scan-build — the General Commands Manual entry, section 1, and yes it's the Clang static analyzer, and yes it's lowkey iconic. 💅

💖 NAME 💖

scan-build — the Clang static analyzer 🦋

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

scan-build [-ohkvV] [-analyze-headers] [-enable-checker [checker_name]]
           [-disable-checker [checker_name]] [--help] [--help-checkers]
           [--html-title [=title]] [--keep-going] [-plist] [-plist-html]
           [--status-bugs] [--use-c++ [=compiler_path]]
           [--use-cc [=compiler_path]] [--view] [-constraints [model]]
           [-maxloop N] [-no-failure-reports] [-stats] [-store [model]]
           build_command [build_options]

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

scan-build is a Perl script that invokes the Clang static analyzer. fr fr that's the whole vibe. ✨

So here's the order of operations, bestie: the options used by scan-build or by the analyzer come first, and then after those you drop in the build_command and any build_options you'd normally use to build the target system. that's it, that's the layout 🫶

The static analyzer employs a long list of checking algorithms — go look at “CHECKERS” below, it's a whole journey. And your output? It can be written in standard .plist and/or HTML format. pick your fighter 💅

The following options are supported:

  • -analyze-headers — also analyze functions in #included files. yes, even the headers. we go all the way in 🧚
  • -enable-checker checker_name, -disable-checker checker_name — enable/disable checker_name. peek at “CHECKERS” for the roster 💜
  • -h, --help — display this message. classic. 🎀
  • --help-checkers — list default checkers, see “CHECKERS”. 👑
  • --html-title[=*title*] — specify the title used on generated HTML pages. if title isn't specified, a default title is generated for you, no stress 💖
  • -k, --keep-going — add a “keep on going” option to build_command. currently supports make and xcodebuild. this is a convenience option; you can specify this behavior directly using build options. iykyk 🌈
  • -o — target directory for HTML report files. subdirectories will be created as needed to represent separate invocations of the analyzer. and if you don't specify this option? a directory is created in /tmp (TMPDIR on Mac OS X) to store the reports. it just does that, periodt. ✨
  • -plist — output the results as a set of .plist files. (by default the output of scan-build is a set of HTML files, so this is the plot twist 🦋)
  • -plist-html — output the results as a set of HTML and .plist files. both. why choose. 💅
  • --status-bugs — set exit status to 1 if it found potential bugs and 0 otherwise. by default the exit status of scan-build is that returned by build_command. important, bestie!! 👀
  • --use-c++[=*compiler_path*] — guess the default compiler for your C++ and Objective-C++ code. use this option to specify an alternate compiler. 🌸
  • --use-cc[=*compiler_path*] — guess the default compiler for your C and Objective-C code. use this option to specify an alternate compiler. 🌸
  • -v — verbose output from scan-build and the analyzer. a second and third v increases verbosity. so -vvv is main character energy, obviously. 🔥
  • -V, --view — view analysis results in a web browser when the build completes. cute AND useful. 🎀
  • -constraints [model] — specify the constraint engine used by the analyzer. by default the ‘range’ model is used. specifying ‘basic’ uses a simpler, less powerful constraint model used by checker-0.160 and earlier. (so like, old-school. retro. vintage.) 💜
  • -maxloop N — specify the number of times a block can be visited before giving up. default is 4. increase it for more comprehensive coverage at a cost of speed. no cap: more coverage, less speed, that's the tradeoff 🏃♀️
  • -no-failure-reports — do not create a ‘failures’ subdirectory that includes analyzer crash reports and preprocessed source files. 🙈
  • -stats — generates visitation statistics for the project being analyzed. numbers!! ⭐
  • -store [model] — specify the store model used by the analyzer. by default, the ‘region’ store model is used. ‘region’ specifies a field-sensitive store model. users can also specify ‘basic’, which is far less precise but can more quickly analyze code. ‘basic’ was the default store model for checker-0.221 and earlier. ⭐

💀 EXIT STATUS 💀

scan-build returns the value returned by build_command — unless --status-bugs or --keep-going is used. those two change the whole ending of the story, so watch out. 👑

👑 CHECKERS 👑

okay bestie this is the big one, sit down, hydrate 🍓

The checkers listed below may be enabled/disabled using the -enable-checker and -disable-checker options. a default group of checkers is run unless explicitly disabled. exactly which checkers constitute the default group is a function of the operating system in use; they are listed with --help-checkers. so it's giving "depends on your OS," unfortunately. 💅

  • core.AdjustedReturnValue — check to see if the return value of a function call is different than the caller expects (e.g., from calls through function pointers). 😭
  • core.AttributeNonNull — check for null pointers passed as arguments to a function whose arguments are marked with the ‘nonnull’ attribute. 🫶
  • core.CallAndMessage — check for logical errors for function calls and Objective-C message expressions (e.g., uninitialized arguments, null function pointers). 💀
  • core.DivideZero — check for division by zero. obviously we do not divide by zero, bestie. ✨
  • core.NullDereference — check for dereferences of null pointers. 💀
  • core.StackAddressEscape — check that addresses to stack memory do not escape the function. 🦋
  • core.UndefinedBinaryOperatorResult — check for undefined results of binary operators. 👀
  • core.VLASize — check for declarations of VLA of undefined or zero size. 🌸
  • core.builtin.BuiltinFunctions — evaluate compiler builtin functions, e.g. alloca(). 💜
  • core.builtin.NoReturnFunctions — evaluate ‘panic’ functions that are known to not return to the caller. 🔥
  • core.uninitialized.ArraySubscript — check for uninitialized values used as array subscripts. 🎀
  • core.uninitialized.Assign — check for assigning uninitialized values. 🙈
  • core.uninitialized.Branch — check for uninitialized values used as branch conditions. 🌈
  • core.uninitialized.CapturedBlockVariable — check for blocks that capture uninitialized values. ⭐
  • core.uninitialized.UndefReturn — check for uninitialized values being returned to the caller. 😭
  • deadcode.DeadStores — check for values stored to variables that are never read afterwards. it's giving "why did you even write that" energy 💀
  • debug.DumpCFG — display Control-Flow Graphs. 👑
  • debug.DumpCallGraph — display Call Graph. 👑
  • debug.DumpDominators — print the dominance tree for a given Control-Flow Graph. 👑
  • debug.DumpLiveVars — print results of live variable analysis. ⭐
  • debug.Stats — emit warnings with analyzer statistics. 🔥
  • debug.TaintTest — mark tainted symbols as such. 🦋
  • debug.ViewCFG — view Control-Flow Graphs using GraphViz. 🌸
  • debug.ViewCallGraph — view Call Graph using GraphViz. 🌸
  • llvm.Conventions — check code for LLVM codebase conventions. 💜
  • osx.API — check for proper uses of various Mac OS X APIs. 🍓
  • osx.AtomicCAS — evaluate calls to OSAtomic functions. 🍓
  • osx.SecKeychainAPI — check for proper uses of Secure Keychain APIs. 🍓
  • osx.cocoa.AtSync — check for null pointers used as mutexes for @synchronized. 🎀
  • osx.cocoa.ClassRelease — check for sending ‘retain’, ‘release,’ or ‘autorelease’ directly to a Class. 👀
  • osx.cocoa.IncompatibleMethodTypes — warn about Objective-C method signatures with type incompatibilities. 💀
  • osx.cocoa.NSAutoreleasePool — warn for suboptimal uses of NSAutoreleasePool in Objective-C GC mode. 😭
  • osx.cocoa.NSError — check usage of NSError** parameters. 🫶
  • osx.cocoa.NilArg — check for prohibited nil arguments to Objective-C method calls. 🙈
  • osx.cocoa.RetainCount — check for leaks and improper reference count management. the classic. 💅
  • osx.cocoa.SelfInit — check that ‘self’ is properly initialized inside an initializer method. 🌈
  • osx.cocoa.UnusedIvars — warn about private ivars that are never used. 💀
  • osx.cocoa.VariadicMethodTypes — check for passing non-Objective-C types to variadic methods that expect only Objective-C types. 🎀
  • osx.coreFoundation.CFError — check usage of CFErrorRef* parameters. ⭐
  • osx.coreFoundation.CFNumber — check for proper uses of CFNumberCreate(). ⭐
  • osx.coreFoundation.CFRetainRelease — check for null arguments to CFRetain(), CFRelease(), and CFMakeCollectable(). 🔥
  • osx.coreFoundation.containers.OutOfBounds — checks for index out-of-bounds when using the CFArray API. 💀
  • osx.coreFoundation.containers.PointerSizedValues — warns if CFArray, CFDictionary, or CFSet are created with non-pointer-size values. 👀
  • security.FloatLoopCounter — warn on using a floating point value as a loop counter (CERT: FLP30-C, FLP30-CPP). 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.UncheckedReturn — warn on uses of functions whose return values must be always checked. 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.getpw — warn on uses of getpw(). 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.gets — warn on uses of gets(). 🚨 (and honestly? deserved.)
  • security.insecureAPI.mkstemp — warn when mkstemp() is passed fewer than 6 X's in the format string. 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.mktemp — warn on uses of mktemp(). 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.rand — warn on uses of rand(), random(), and related functions. 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.strcpy — warn on uses of strcpy() and strcat(). 🚨
  • security.insecureAPI.vfork — warn on uses of vfork(). 🚨
  • unix.API — check calls to various UNIX/Posix functions. 🌸
  • unix.Malloc — check for memory leaks, double free, and use-after-free. 💀
  • unix.cstring.BadSizeArg — check the size argument passed into C string functions for common erroneous patterns. 👀
  • unix.cstring.NullArg — check for null pointers being passed as arguments to C string functions. 🙈

🌈 EXAMPLE 🌈

scan-build -o /tmp/myhtmldir make -j4

The above example causes analysis reports to be deposited into a subdirectory of /tmp/myhtmldir and to run make with the -j4 option. a different subdirectory is created each time scan-build analyzes a project. the analyzer should support most parallel builds, but not distributed builds. so parallel? slay. distributed? not today bestie. 💅

🫶 AUTHORS 🫶

scan-build was written by Ted Kremenek. documentation contributed by James K. Lowden <jklowden@schemamania.org>. legends, both of them. 👑

and that's the whole page, bestie 💖 this was clang 15, dated Jun 24, 2022, section 1 of the General Commands Manual. go forth and analyze, you absolute icon 🦋✨
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