[comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc] Symbolic info in .EXE files

peter@atlas.abccomp.oz.au (Peter Barker) (05/31/91)

Does anyone know a source of information about the method used by linkers
to store symbol information in .EXE files. I have done some snooping,
but I cannot find the secret. Codeview and Turbo debugger use different
formats, but I cannot find the details.

The reason I want to know is that I am writing an overlay manager,
using DOS function 4B03h (load overlay). I want to append some information
to the overlay file so the program can read it, but have it ignored by the
DOS load overlay function (4B03h). I originally assumed that the
DOS loader obtained all its information about the contents of the file 
being loaded from the header at the start of the .EXE file. In this case
I could append information to the end of the file, and the loader
would ignore it, as it does with symbol information provided by the linker
for CodeView. Unfortunately this is not the case - the file does not load
correctly. Does anyone have any information about how symbolic information
is stored in the .EXE by linkers?

Please help if you have any idea, or suggestion of where some help may be
found, as I am getting desperate.

Thankyou,
-- 
Peter Barker               |   Internet   peter@atlas.abccomp.oz.au
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