BTXLD(8)

📦 version 15.1, in freebsd 14.5, freebsd 15.1

ok so first things first, bestie: this is a page from the System Manager's Manual, and the star of the show is btxld, the link editor for BTX clients. buckle up 🎀

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

btxld [-qv] [-b file] [-E address] [-e address] [-f format] [-l file]
      [-o filename] [-P page] [-W page] file

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

okay so here's the vibe: btxld takes the client executable you point it at, binds it together with a BTX loader program and the BTX kernel, and pops out a composite object file that's suitable for loading during the boot process. it's giving matchmaker, honestly — three things become one 💖

here are the options, no cap:

  • -q — Quiet mode: it inhibits warnings. shush era 🤫
  • -v — Verbose mode: it displays information about the files processed. tell me everything, i'm invested 👀
  • -b file — Specifies the BTX kernel to be bound with the client.
  • -E address — Sets the client entry point.
  • -e address — Sets the BTX loader entry point.
  • -f format — Specifies the output format, where format is one of 'bin', 'aout', or 'elf'. pick your fighter 🥊
  • -l file — Specifies the BTX loader to be bound with the client.
  • -o filename — Names the output file. the default is "a.out". yes, the classic, iconic, main-character default 💅
  • -P page — Specifies the first page of the client's segment to be marked 'present', where page may be 0 or 1.
  • -W page — Specifies the first page of the client's segment to be marked 'writable', where page may be 0, and should not exceed the number of pages occupied by the combined .text and .data segments of the client image.
fr fr on that -W one — page may be 0, and it should not exceed the number of pages taken up by the combined .text and .data segments of the client image. keep it in range or things get weird, iykyk 😭

🔥 EXIT STATUS 🔥

btxld exits 0 on success, and >0 if an error occurs. clean exit = slay, nonzero = something went sideways 💀

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

👑 AUTHORS 👑

Robert Nordier <rnordier@FreeBSD.org> — thank you for your service, king 🫶

and that's the whole page, bestie! this copy is from Debian, dated September 12, 1998 — vintage but still iconic, mwah 🍓✨

📦 where this page comes from