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9 - Procedures and Macros

The document discusses procedures, macros, and the CALL and RET instructions in assembly language. It provides details on: 1. Using procedures to avoid duplicating code by calling a subprogram. The CALL instruction stores the return address and jumps to the procedure. RET copies the address back to resume the calling code. 2. The different types of CALL instructions for calling procedures within the same segment or a different segment. 3. How macros are expanded directly into the code instead of using CALL/RET. This avoids overhead but increases code size if used frequently. 4. Techniques for passing parameters to procedures and macros, handling reentrancy, recursion, and accessing procedures in different segments.

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NarasimhaPrasad
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158 views23 pages

9 - Procedures and Macros

The document discusses procedures, macros, and the CALL and RET instructions in assembly language. It provides details on: 1. Using procedures to avoid duplicating code by calling a subprogram. The CALL instruction stores the return address and jumps to the procedure. RET copies the address back to resume the calling code. 2. The different types of CALL instructions for calling procedures within the same segment or a different segment. 3. How macros are expanded directly into the code instead of using CALL/RET. This avoids overhead but increases code size if used frequently. 4. Techniques for passing parameters to procedures and macros, handling reentrancy, recursion, and accessing procedures in different segments.

Uploaded by

NarasimhaPrasad
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Procedures and Macros

from Microprocessors and Interfacing by Douglas Hall


Writing and using procedures

• Avoid writing the same sequence of instruction again and again.

• Write it in a separate subprogram and call that subprogram


whenever necessary.

• For that CALL instruction is used.


The CALL and RET instructions(contd.)
The CALL Instruction:
• Stores the address of the next instruction to be executed after the
CALL instruction to stack. This address is called as the return address.
• Then it changes the content of the instruction pointer register and in
some cases the content of the code segment register to contain the
starting address of the procedure.
The CALL and RET instructions(contd.)

Chart for CALL and


RET instruction 
The CALL and RET instructions(contd.)
Types of CALL instructions:
• DIRECT WITHIN-SEGMENT NEAR CALL: produce the starting address of the
procedure by adding a 16-bit signed displacement to the contents of the
instruction pointer.
• INDIRECT WITHIN-SEGMENT NEAR CALL: the instruction pointer is
replaced with the 16-bit value stored in the register or memory location.
• THE DIRECT INTERSEGMENT FAR CALL: used when the called procedure is
in different segment. The new value of the instruction pointer is written as
bytes 2 and 3 of the instruction code. The low byte of the new IP value is
written before the high byte.
• THE INDIRECT INTERSEGMENT FAR CALL: replaces the instruction pointer
and the contents of the segment register with the two 16-bit values from
the memory.
The CALL and RET instructions
The 8086 RET instruction:
• When 8086 does near call it saves the instruction pointer value after
the CALL instruction on to the stack.
• RET at the end of the procedure copies this value from stack back to
the instruction pointer (IP).
Advantages:
1.Programming becomes simple.
2.Reduced development time as each module can be implemented by different persons.
3.Debugging of smaller programs and procedures is easy.
4.Reuse of procedures is possible.
5.A library of procedures can be created to use and distribute

Disadvantages:
1.Extra code may be required to integrate procedures.
2.Liking of procedures may be required.

3.Processor needs to do extra work to save status of current procedure and load status of
called procedure. The queue must be emptied so that instructions of the procedure can be filled in
the queue.
The 8086 Stack
• Section of memory you set
aside for storing return
addresses.
• Also used to store the
contents of the registers for
the calling program while a
procedure executes.
• Hold data or address that will
be acted upon by
procedures.
Using PUSH and POP

• The PUSH register/memory instruction decrements the stack pointer


by 2 and copies he contents of the specified 16-bit register or
memory location to memory at the new top-of-stack location.

• The POP register/memory instruction copies the word on the top-of-


stack to the specified 16-bit register or memory location and
increments the stack pointer by 2.
Passing parameters to and from procedures
Major ways of passing parameters to and from a procedure:
• In register
• In dedicated memory locations accessed by name
• With pointers passed in registers
• With the stack
Writing and debugging programs containing
procedures
• Carefully workout the overall structure of the program and break it
down into modules which can easily be written as procedures.
• Simulate each procedure with few instructions which simply pass test
values to the mainline program. This is called as dummy or stubs.
• Check that number of PUSH and POP operations are same.
• Use breakpoints before CALL, RET and start of the program or any key
points in the program.
Reentrant and Recursive procedures

• Reentrant procedures: The procedure which can be interrupted, used


and “reentered” without losing or writing over anything.

• Recursive procedure: It is the procedure which call itself.


Writing and Calling Far procedures
• It is the procedure that is located in a segment which has different
name from the segment containing the CALL instruction.
Accessing Procedure
Accessing a procedure in another segment
• Put mainline program in one segment and all the procedures in different
segment.
• Using FAR calls the procedures can accessed as discuss above.
Accessing procedure and data in separate assembly module
• Divide the program in the series of module.
• The object code files of each module can be linked together.
• In the module where variables or procedures are declared, you must use
PUBLIC directive to let the linker know that it can be accessed from other
modules.
• In a module which calls procedure or accesses a variable in another
module, you must use the EXTERN directive.
Writing and using Assembler Macros
Comparison Macros and Procedures
• A big advantage of using procedures is that the machine codes for the
group of instruction in the procedures needs to be loaded in to main
memory only once.
• Disadvantage using the procedures is the need for the stack.
• A macro is the group of instruction we bracket and give a name to at
the start of the program.
• Using macro avoids the overhead time involved in calling and
returning from a procedures.
• Disadvantage is that this will make the program take up more
memory than using a procedure.
Defining and calling a Macro without
parameters
Passing parameters to Macros
• The words NUMBER,
SOURCE and DESTINATION
are called as the dummy
variables. When we call
the macro, values from the
calling statements will be
put in the instruction in
place of the dummies.
Macros vs Procedures (cont.)

• Advantage of using macros


• execution of MACRO expansion is usually faster (no call and ret) than the
execution of the same code implemented with procedures

• Disadvantage
• assembler copies the macro code into the program at each macro invocation
• if the number of macro invocations within the program is large then the
program will be much larger than when using procedures
Macros and Procedures
1. When you want to use a procedure you should
use CALL instruction, for example:
CALL MyProc
 When you want to use a macro, you can just type its name. For
example:
MyMacro
2. You should use stack or any general purpose registers to pass
parameters to procedure.
 To pass parameters to macro, you can just type them after the macro
name. For example: MyMacro 1, 2, 3

20
Macros and Procedures
3. Macros end with ENDM directive and procedures end with ENDP
directive.
4. Procedures are located at some specific address in memory but
macros are expanded directly in program's code.

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Labels in Macros
• Macros are expanded directly in code, therefore if there are labels
inside the macro definition you may get "Duplicate declaration" error
when macro is used for twice or more.
• To avoid such problem, use LOCAL directive followed by names of
variables, labels or procedure names.

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Example
MyMacro2 MACRO
LOCAL label1, label2, stop
CMP AX, 2
JE label1
CMP AX, 3
JE label2
label1:
INC AX
JMP STOP
label2:
ADD AX, 2
Stop:
ENDM

ORG 100h
Mov Ax, 2
MyMacro2
MyMacro2
RET
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