IFC Format Specification

The IFC specification aims to formally define a binary format for describing the semantics of C++ programs (or program fragments) at a high level of abstraction, before lowering to machine code or similar.

This format is designed to offer a persistent form of the in-memory Internal Program Representation (IPR) of C++ programs originally developed by Gabriel Dos Reis and Bjarne Stroustrup. As such, it follows the same principles as the IPR:

Completeness: Represents the semantics of all Standard C++ constructs
Generality: Suitable for every kind of application, rather than targeted to a particular application area
Regularity: Does not mimic C++ language irregularities; general rules are used, rather than long lists of special cases
Typefulness: Every expression has a type
Minimality: No redundant values, and traversal involves no redundant indirections
Compiler neutrality: Not tied to a particular compiler
Scalability: Able to represent hundreds of thousands of lines of codes on common machines

Downloading

The latest IFC draft specification can be downloaded here.

Official releases can be found on the releases page.

Contribute

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This project has adopted the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct. For more information see the Code of Conduct FAQ or contact opencode@microsoft.com with any additional questions or comments.

Building

In order to build the PDF rendering of the specification, ensure that you have a modern LaTeX processor installed.

Clone a copy of the repo

git clone https://github.com/microsoft/ifc-spec.git

Change to the LaTeX directory

cd ltx

Issue the command

pdflatex ifc

followed by

bibtex ifc

and possibly two more times

pdflatex ifc