load (idb mode only)

Syntax

load filename [corefilename]

Parameters

Description

This command specifies an executable, and optionally, a core file, for debugging.

This command reads the symbolic information for an executable file and the shared libraries it uses, if available. Objects compiled without debug information do not have symbols to load.

If you specify a core file, the debugger acts as though it is attached to the process at the point just before it died and generated the core file: The debugger uses the core file to enable debug operations such as printing variables and the stack and looking at source files, but because the core file is not an executable, you cannot use commands that require a runnable process, such as step or continue, or commands that try to evaluate function calls.

Loading a process makes the debugger aware of it and makes it the current process that the debugger controls.

The opposite of loading an executable file is unloading an executable file, during which the debugger removes all related symbol table information that the debugger associated with the debuggee.

Example

% idb /home/user/examples/x_list 
(idb) listobj
Program is not active 
(idb) load /home/user/examples/x_list
Reading symbolic information from /home/user/examples/test/idb/Examples/exp/i686-Linux-currstable/debuggable/x_list...done