DWZ 0.17 released
DWZ, a tool for optimizing DWARF debugging information, has released version 0.17, adding support for compressed debug sections.
Mark Wielaard announced the release of DWZ version 0.17. DWZ optimizes DWARF debugging information for size by replacing duplicated information with equivalent representations and using compilation units. This release adds support for handling compressed debug sections on input.
In Details
DWZ (DWARF Optimization and Duplicate Removal tool) is a utility that processes DWARF debugging information within ELF binaries and shared libraries. It aims to reduce the size of debug sections by deduplicating information using DWARF v5's macro extension features (partial units and imported units). This release (0.17) adds support for input ELF files that use compressed debug sections (e.g., zlib, zstd).
- DWZ
- DWARF Optimization and Duplicate Removal tool. A utility that reduces the size of DWARF debugging information by identifying and consolidating duplicated data and optimizing its representation.
- DWARF
- A standardized debugging data format used by many compilers and debuggers. It provides information about variables, types, functions, and source code locations.
- ELF
- Executable and Linkable Format. A common standard file format for executables, object code, shared libraries, and core dumps on Unix-like systems.
- compilation unit (CU)
- A logical unit of source code, typically a single source file, for which the compiler generates a distinct set of DWARF debugging information.
- DW_TAG_partial_unit
- A DWARF debugging information entry type that represents a compilation unit containing only a subset of the debugging information, often used for deduplication.
- DW_TAG_imported_unit
- A DWARF debugging information entry type that imports debugging information from another compilation unit, used in conjunction with DW_TAG_partial_unit for deduplication.
- compressed debug sections
- ELF sections containing DWARF debugging information that have been compressed using algorithms like zlib or zstd to reduce file size. DWZ 0.17 can now process these.