Maximum size of unit: Internal Error 200205172

[Grahame Grieve]

I have a program that compiles ok, but I get an error during linking:

project1.lpr(81,1) Error: Internal Error 200205172

After spending some time investigating, I've narrowed the error down to a large generated unit with 182k lines. if I start commenting out code, I can eventually get it compile and link at about half that size. It doesn't appear be any specific line in the code - I can comment out different parts of the code.

It links at 21,737,733 bytes. It fails to link at 22,777,193 bytes

How big can units get before there's a problem?

details: Lazarus 2.10 on win10, compiling for win64. If you want to reproduce, grab the master of https://github.com/grahamegrieve/delphi-markdown to a directory called 'markdown' and grab the 'fpc-linking-fail' branch of  https://github.com/grahamegrieve/fhirserver
to a sibling directory of the markdown directory, and compile the program. It fails for me, but compiles ok if I disable the define {$DEFINE FHIR_NUTRITIONORDER} on line 61 of library/r2/fhir.r2.inc

[jamie]

I believe the compiler is still 32 bit in both cases but I could be wrong there..

you need to split your code up in units..

[Grahame Grieve]

I guess it's line 1557 at https://searchcode.com/total-file/27053136/

[Grahame Grieve]

> you need to split your code up in units..

That's pretty challenging. I have much bigger units. Delphi cmopiles them ok in both 32 and 64 bit.

Any actual documentation about maximum size?

[winni]

I've narrowed the error down to a large generated unit with 182k lines. if I start commenting out code, I can eventually get it compile and link at about half that size. It doesn't appear be any specific line in the code - I can comment out different parts of the code.

Hi!

It sounds like that you haven't understood the unit concept.
The number of units in your project is (nearly ) unlimited.

But as you see: such horrible amount of lines of code in one unit brings trouble.

And the error number makes not hope that this error will be fixed soon:
It is from May 2002.

Seems nobody except you needs a patch.

Winni

[jamie]

Ok..

I am just curious, have you got you debug info set as external file instead of it building on the end ?

It most likely won't matter in this case But I always use an external debug file.

[Grahame Grieve]

how do I do that?

[Grahame Grieve]

> It sounds like that you haven't understood the unit concept.

I've been programming in pascal for 35 year, and commercially for 27. I think I'm doing ok there

> But as you see: such horrible amount of lines of code in one unit brings trouble.

Welcome to industrial scale programming...

[jamie]

how do I do that?

go to your project Project:Project options:Debugging: Check mark use "External debug symbol file".

 It makes the file much smaller looking space but I can't say that it will fix your issue, most likely not but I always keep it that way.

[Grahame Grieve]

thanks. it doesn't make any difference.

[jamie]

I am not sure which version compiler started using it but there is a large Big obj COFF file format and looking at the fpc compiler switches It looks like it may be in 3.3.1 trunk
https://www.freepascal.org/docs-html/user/userap1.html

I thought maybe it was for the 32 bit target but it seems there.

Free Pascal Compiler version 3.3.1 [2020/02/05] for x86_64 
Copyright (c) 1993-2020 by Florian Klaempfl and others

So not sure what is happening there but it indicates it should already be in large mode.

[Grahame Grieve]

Looks like I should try with FPC 3.3.1 . Lazarus tells me that it's running on 3.2. Im not sure how to change that.

[jamie]

You may want to report this incident to the bug page

It's very possible it's an oversite, oh no, not that! 

[440bx]

project1.lpr(81,1) Error: Internal Error 200205172

I've been told in the past that _any_ internal error is considered a bug in the compiler (which makes sense.)  I believe that @Jamie is right when he suggests reporting it as a bug.

Hopefully, one of the FPC developers will see your post and state what the correct course of action is.

[Thaddy]

Yes, indeed *any* internal error is a bug and should be reported. This is still true and will likely always be true.