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Comparison of executable file formats: Difference between revisions

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m →Notes: WP:LINKs: update-standardizes, needless WP:PIPEs > WP:NOPIPEs. MOS:FIRSTABBReviation clarify, define before WP:ABBR in parentheses.
The processor declarations are by file, but multiple files can be combined into a multi-architecture binary, with different encapsulated files having different processor declarations (fat binary).
 
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{{Short description|none}} <!-- This short description is INTENTIONALLY "none" - please see WP:SDNONE before you consider changing it! -->
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2014}}
This is a comparison of binary [[executable]] [[file format]]s which, once loaded by a suitable executable [[Loader (computing)|loader]], can be directly executed by the CPU rather than being interpreted by software. In addition to the binary application code, the executables may contain headers and tables with relocation and fixup information as well as various kinds of meta data. Among those formats listed, the ones in most common use are [[Portable Executable|PE]] (on [[Microsoft Windows]]), [[Executable and Linkable Format|ELF]] (on [[Linux]] and most other versions of [[Unix]]), [[Mach-O]] (on [[macOS]] and [[iOS]]) and [[DOS MZ executable|MZ]] (on [[DOS]]).
 
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! scope="col" | Format name
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| {{Yes}}
|-
! scope="row" | [[Mach-O]]<ref name=macosx>{{cite web|url=https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/documentation/DeveloperToolsdevelopertools/Conceptualconceptual/MachORuntime/Reference/reference.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/20001298-BAJIHABI |title=Mac OS X ABI Mach-O File Format Reference |publisher=Apple Inc. |date=42009-02-04 February|url-status=dead 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140904004108/https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/documentation/developertools/conceptual/MachORuntime/Reference/reference.html |accessarchive-date=9September July4, 20122014}}</ref>
| [[NeXTSTEP]], [[macOS]], [[iOS]], [[iPadOS]], [[watchOS]], [[tvOS]], [[visionOS]]
| style="text-align: center;" | none
| {{Yes}} by file or subfile of a [[Fat binary#NeXT's/Apple's multi-architecture binaries|multi-architecture binary]]
| {{Yes}} by section
| {{Some}} <small>(limited to max. 256 sections)</small>
| {{Yes}}
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| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}} ([[Fat binary#NeXT's/Apple's multi-architecture binaries|multi-architecture binary]])
| {{Yes}}
| {{No}}
|-
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| [[MS-DOS 4.0 (multitasking)]], [[OS/2]], [[Windows]], [[HX&nbsp;DOS&nbsp;Extender]]
| style="text-align: center;" | <code>[[.EXE]]</code>
| {{No}} <small>([[Intel x86|x86]] only)</small>
| {{unk}}
| {{unkYes}}
| {{unkYes}}
| {{No}}
| {{unkNo}}
| {{unkYes}}
| {{No}}
| {{some|Only [[DOS MZ executable|MZ (DOS)]]<ref>[[New_Executable#DOS_stub|DOS stub of New Executable]]</ref>}}
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