Static Executables

The creation of static executables has been discouraged for many releases. In fact, 64–bit system archive libraries have never been provided. Because a static executable is built against system archive libraries, the executable contains system implementation details. This self-containment has a number of drawbacks.

• The executable is immune to the benefits of system patches delivered as shared objects. The executable therefore, must be rebuilt to take advantage of many system improvements.

• The ability of the executable to run on future releases can be compromised.

• The duplication of system implementation details negatively affects system performance.

Beginning with the Solaris 10 release, the OS no longer includes 32–bit system archive libraries. Without these libraries, specifically libc.a, the creation of a static executable is no longer achievable without specialized system knowledge. Note, that the link-editors ability to process static linking options, and the processing of archive libraries, remains unchanged.