cc

View documentation for the original command

$ tldr gcc

cc [option]... filename... [-o output]

-c
    Compile to object file (.o), suppress linking

-E
    Preprocess only, output to stdout

-g
    Generate debugging information

-O[level]
    Optimization level (0-3, default 1 with -O)

-o file
    Specify output file name

-Wall
    Enable most common warnings

-Werror
    Treat warnings as errors

-std=standard
    Specify ISO C standard (e.g., c99, c11)

-Idir
    Add include directory

-Ldir
    Add library search directory

-llib
    Link with library lib

-Dmacro[=def]
    Define macro for preprocessor

-shared
    Create shared object

-v
    Verbose output, show commands

-pedantic
    Issue warnings for standard violations

cc is the traditional Unix command for invoking the C compiler. On modern Linux systems, it is usually a symbolic link to gcc from the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC), though it may point to clang or other implementations. It compiles C source files into object code or executables, handling preprocessing, compilation, assembly, and linking stages unless specified otherwise.

Key features include support for ISO C standards, optimization, debugging symbols, and extensive warnings. Users specify input files (typically .c or .i), options for behavior control, and output via flags. For simple programs: cc file.c -o file produces an executable. Complex projects use it with make or build systems.

It processes multiple files, libraries (-l), include paths (-I), and macros (-D). Output defaults to a.out without -o. cc ensures portability across Unix-like systems per POSIX standards, but actual capabilities depend on the backend compiler.

Options and behavior depend on underlying compiler (gcc, clang); check man cc or cc --help. Not all flags are portable across systems.

cc -Wall -g -O2 -o prog prog.c
Compiles with warnings, debug, optimization.

cc -c file1.c file2.c
Produces file1.o, file2.o.

0: success
Non-zero: compiler errors or warnings (if -Werror)

Originated in Version 7 Unix (1979) as the first C compiler by Bell Labs. Standardized in POSIX.1-1988; evolved with GCC (1987) for GNU/Linux, supporting modern C11/C17 standards and extensions.

gcc(1), clang(1), ld(1), as(1), make(1)