ar(CP)
ar --
maintain portable archive or library
Synopsis
ar [-V] -key [arg] [posname] afile [name . . . ]
Description
The ar command maintains groups of files combined into a single archive file.
Its main use is to create and update library files.
However, it can be used for any similar purpose.
If an archive is composed of printable files, the entire archive is
printable.
When ar creates an archive, it creates headers in a format that is portable across
all machines.
The archive symbol table
(described in
ar(F))
is used by the link editor ld
to effect multiple passes over libraries of
object files in an efficient manner.
An archive symbol table is only created and maintained by
ar when there is at least one object file in the archive.
The archive symbol table is in a specially named
file that is always the first file in the archive.
This file is never mentioned or accessible to the user.
Whenever the ar
command is used to create or update the contents of such an archive, the
symbol table is rebuilt.
The s argument to key, described below,
will force the symbol table to be rebuilt.
-V-
Cause ar to print its version number on standard error.
-key [arg]-
key
is formed with one of the following characters:
drqtpmx.
arg
is formed with one of more of the following letters:
vucs.
An additional single-character argument to key,
called the positioning character
(chosen from one of the following letters: abi),
can be used with key characters r and m.
key characters are described below.
posname-
Archive member name used as a reference point in positioning other
files in the archive.
afile-
Archive file.
name-
One or more constituent files in the archive file.
The meanings of the
key
characters are as follows:
-d-
Delete the named files from the archive file.
-m-
Move the named files to the end of the archive.
If an optional positioning character from the set
abi is used, the posname
argument must be present
and specifies that new files are to be placed
after a or before b
or i posname.
Otherwise new files are placed at the end.
-p-
Print the named files in the archive.
-q-
Quickly append the named files to the end of the archive file.
Optional positioning characters are invalid.
The command does not check whether the added members
are already in the archive.
This option is useful to avoid creating a large
archive piece-by-piece.
-r-
Replace the named files in the archive file.
If the optional argument u
is used with r,
replace only those files with
dates of modification later than the named files already in the archive.
If an optional positioning character from the set
abi is used, the posname
argument must be present
and specifies that new files are to be placed
after a or before b or i posname.
Otherwise new files are placed at the end.
-t-
Print a table of contents of the archive file.
If no names are given, all files in the archive are listed.
If names are given, only those files are listed.
-u-
Update older files. When used with the -r option, files within
the archive are replaced only if the corresponding file has
a modification time that is at least as new as the
modification time of the file within the archive.
-x-
Extract the named files.
If no names are given, all files in the archive are
extracted.
In neither case does x alter the archive file.
The meanings of the other key arguments are as follows:
v-
Give a verbose file-by-file
description of the making of a
new archive file from the old archive and the constituent files.
When used with the -t option,
give a long listing of all information about the files.
When used with
x,
d, or r,
print the name of the file preceding each extraction.
When used with p,
write the file to standard output.
c-
Suppress the message that is produced by default when
afile is created.
s-
Force the regeneration of the archive symbol table even if ar
is not invoked with a command which will modify the archive contents.
This command is useful to restore the archive symbol table after the
strip(C)
command has been used on the archive.
Files
/usr/lib/locale/locale/LC_MESSAGES/uxar-
language-specific message file
(See LANG on
environ(M).)
References
a.out(F),
ar(F),
ld(C),
lorder(C),
strip(C)
Notices
If the same file is mentioned twice in an argument list,
it may be put in the archive twice.
Since the archiver no longer uses temporary files, the
-l option is obsolete and will be removed in the
next release.
By convention, archives are suffixed with the characters .a.
Applications currently using options without the leading hyphen
must be changed to use the hyphen since non-hyphenated options may not
be supported in a future release.
© 2005 The SCO Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
SCO OpenServer Release 6.0.0 - 01 June 2005