3 ms·
One alternative would be to define an ABI for using the x86-64 processor with 32-bit pointers. This would let everyone leave the processor in the more modern 64
by willglynn 8y ago
One alternative would be to define an ABI for using the x86-64 processor with 32-bit pointers. This would let everyone leave the processor in the more modern 64-bit mode without increasing pressure on the memory subsystem.
Such a thing exists:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X32_ABI https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X32_ABI
It's been available in the mainline Linux kernel and in glibc for ages. It also breaks any code which assumes #ifdef __x86_64__ means 64-bit pointers, and the concept doesn't seem to attract a lot of excitement:
https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=MTU1MjE https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=MTU1MjE