Chapter Overview

Assembly Language for Intel-Based

Computers, 4th Edition
Kip R. Irvine • Basic Elements of Assembly Language
• Example: Adding and Subtracting Integers
Chapter 3: Assembly Language • Assembling, Linking, and Running Programs
• Defining Data
Fundamentals
• Symbolic Constants
• Real-Address Mode Programming

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Basic Elements of Assembly Language Integer Constants

• Integer constants • Optional leading + or – sign

• Integer expressions • binary, decimal, hexadecimal, or octal digits
• Character and string constants • Common radix characters:
• h – hexadecimal
• Reserved words and identifiers
• d – decimal
• Directives and instructions
• b – binary
• Labels • r – encoded real
• Mnemonics and Operands
• Comments Examples: 30d, 6Ah, 42, 1101b
• Examples Hexadecimal beginning with letter: 0A5h

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Integer Expressions Character and String Constants

• Operators and precedence levels: • Enclose character in single or double quotes
• 'A', "x"
• ASCII character = 1 byte
• Enclose strings in single or double quotes
• "ABC"
• 'xyz'
• Each character occupies a single byte
• Examples:
• Embedded quotes:
• 'Say "Goodnight," Gracie'

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 Reserved Words and Identifiers Directives

• Reserved words (Appendix D) cannot be used as • Commands that are recognized and acted
identifiers upon by the assembler
• Instruction mnemonics, directives, type attributes, • Not part of the Intel instruction set
operators, predefined symbols • Used to declare code, data areas, select
• Identifiers memory model, declare procedures, etc.
• 1-247 characters, including digits • not case sensitive
• not case sensitive • Different assemblers have different directives
• first character must be a letter, _, @, ?, or $ • NASM not the same as MASM, for example

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Instructions Labels

• Assembled into machine code by assembler • Act as place markers

• Executed at runtime by the CPU • marks the address (offset) of code and data
• We use the Intel IA-32 instruction set • Follow identifer rules
• An instruction contains: • Data label
• Label (optional) • must be unique
• Mnemonic (required) • example: myArray (not followed by colon)
• Operand (depends on the instruction) • Code label
• Comment (optional) • target of jump and loop instructions
• example: L1: (followed by colon)

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Mnemonics and Operands Comments

• Comments are good!
• explain the program's purpose
• Instruction Mnemonics • when it was written, and by whom
• memory aid • revision information
• examples: MOV, ADD, SUB, MUL, INC, DEC • tricky coding techniques
• Operands • application-specific explanations
• constant • Single-line comments
• constant expression • begin with semicolon (;)
• register
• Multi-line comments
• memory (data label)
• begin with COMMENT directive and a programmer-
chosen character
Constants and constant expressions are often called
• end with the same programmer-chosen character
immediate values

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Instruction Format Examples Example: Adding and Subtracting Integers

• No operands TITLE Add and Subtract (AddSub.asm)

• stc ; set Carry flag ; This program adds and subtracts 32-bit integers.
• One operand
INCLUDE Irvine32.inc
• inc eax ; register .code
• inc myByte ; memory main PROC
• Two operands mov eax,10000h ; EAX = 10000h
add eax,40000h ; EAX = 50000h
• add ebx,ecx ; register, register sub eax,20000h ; EAX = 30000h
• sub myByte,25 ; memory, constant call DumpRegs ; display registers
• add eax,36 * 25 ; register, constant-expression exit
main ENDP
END main

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Example Output Suggested Coding Standards (1 of 2)

• Some approaches to capitalization

Program output, showing registers and flags: • capitalize nothing
• capitalize everything
EAX=00030000 EBX=7FFDF000 ECX=00000101 EDX=FFFFFFFF • capitalize all reserved words, including instruction
ESI=00000000 EDI=00000000 EBP=0012FFF0 ESP=0012FFC4 mnemonics and register names
EIP=00401024 EFL=00000206 CF=0 SF=0 ZF=0 OF=0
• capitalize only directives and operators
• Other suggestions
• descriptive identifier names
• spaces surrounding arithmetic operators
• blank lines between procedures

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 Suggested Coding Standards (2 of 2) Alternative Version of AddSub
TITLE Add and Subtract (AddSubAlt.asm)

• Indentation and spacing ; This program adds and subtracts 32-bit integers.
.386
• code and data labels – no indentation .MODEL flat,stdcall
• executable instructions – indent 4-5 spaces .STACK 4096
• comments: begin at column 40-45, aligned vertically ExitProcess PROTO, dwExitCode:DWORD
• 1-3 spaces between instruction and its operands DumpRegs PROTO
• ex: mov ax,bx .code
• 1-2 blank lines between procedures main PROC
mov eax,10000h ; EAX = 10000h
add eax,40000h ; EAX = 50000h
sub eax,20000h ; EAX = 30000h
call DumpRegs
INVOKE ExitProcess,0
main ENDP
END main

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Program Template
TITLE Program Template (Template.asm)

; Program Description:
; Author:
; Creation Date:
; Revisions:
; Date: Modified by:

INCLUDE Irvine32.inc
.data
; (insert variables here)
.code
main PROC
; (insert executable instructions here)
exit
main ENDP
; (insert additional procedures here)
END main

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Assembling, Linking, and Running Programs

• Assemble-Link-Execute Cycle
• make32.bat
• Listing File
• Map File

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 Assemble-Link Execute Cycle make32.bat
• The following diagram describes the steps from creating a • Called a batch file
source program through executing the compiled program.
• Run it to assemble and link programs
• If the source code is modified, Steps 2 through 4 must be
repeated. • Contains a command that executes ML.EXE (the
Microsoft Assembler)
Link • Contains a command that executes LINK32.EXE (the
Library
Step 2: Step 3: Step 4: 32-bit Microsoft Linker)
Source Object Executable
• Command-Line syntax:
assembler linker OS loader
Output
File File File
make32 progName
Listing Map
File File (progName does not include the .asm extension)
Step 1: text editor

Use make16.bat to assemble and link Real-mode programs

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Make32.bat Listing File

@echo off
REM make32.bat - Batch file for assembling/linking 32-bit Assembly programs
• Use it to see how your program is compiled
REM ************ MASMDIR should be defined *************
SET INCLUDE=%MASMDIR%\INCLUDE • Contains
SET LIB=%MASMDIR%\LIB
• source code
ML -Zi -c -Fl -Sg -coff %1.asm • addresses
if errorlevel 1 goto terminate
• object code (machine language)
LINK32 %1.obj Irvine32.lib user32.lib kernel32.lib /SUBSYSTEM:CONSOLE /DEBUG /MAP
• segment names
:terminate • symbols (variables, procedures, and constants)
• Example: addSub.lst

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Map File

• Information about each program segment:

• starting address
• ending address
• size
• segment type
• Example: addSub.map (16-bit version)

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 Defining Data
• Intrinsic Data Types
• Data Definition Statement
• Defining BYTE and SBYTE Data
• Defining WORD and SWORD Data
• Defining DWORD and SDWORD Data
• Defining QWORD Data
• Defining TBYTE Data
• Defining Real Number Data
• Little Endian Order
• Adding Variables to the AddSub Program
• Declaring Uninitialized Data

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Intrinsic Data Types (1 of 2) Intrinsic Data Types (2 of 2)

• BYTE, SBYTE
• 8-bit unsigned integer; 8-bit signed integer • REAL4
• WORD, SWORD • 4-byte IEEE short real
• 16-bit unsigned & signed integer • REAL8
• DWORD, SDWORD • 8-byte IEEE long real
• 32-bit unsigned & signed integer • REAL10
• QWORD • 10-byte IEEE extended real
• 64-bit integer
• TBYTE
• 80-bit integer

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Data Definition Statement Defining BYTE and SBYTE Data

Each of the following defines a single byte of storage:
• A data definition statement sets aside storage in memory for a
variable. value1 BYTE 'A' ; character constant
• May optionally assign a name (label) to the data value2 BYTE 0 ; smallest unsigned byte
• Syntax: value3 BYTE 255 ; largest unsigned byte
[name] directive initializer [,initializer] . . .
value4 SBYTE -128 ; smallest signed byte
value5 SBYTE +127 ; largest signed byte
value6 BYTE ? ; uninitialized byte
value1 BYTE 10

• All initializers become binary data in memory A variable name is a data label that implies an offset (an address).

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