.
always refers to
a location in an output section, it must always appear in an
expression within a SECTIONS
command. The .
symbol
may appear anywhere that an ordinary symbol is allowed in an
expression, but its assignments have a side effect. Assigning a value
to the .
symbol will cause the location counter to be moved.
This may be used to create holes in the output section. The location
counter may never be moved backwards.
SECTIONS { output : { file1(.text) . = . + 1000; file2(.text) . += 1000; file3(.text) } = 0x1234; }In the previous example,
file1
is located at the beginning of the
output section, then there is a 1000 byte gap. Then file2
appears, also with a 1000 byte gap following before file3
is
loaded. The notation `= 0x1234' specifies what data to write in
the gaps (see section Optional Section Attributes).