Program Interpreter

A dynamic executable or shared object that initiates dynamic linking can have one PT_INTERP program header element. During exec(2), the system retrieves a path name from the PT_INTERP segment and creates the initial process image from the interpreter file's segments. The interpreter is responsible for receiving control from the system and providing an environment for the application program.

In the Oracle Solaris OS, the interpreter is known as the runtime linker, ld.so.1(1).