Monistode Binutils: A Simple Assembly Language Binutils

Monistode Binutils is a toolset created for the purpose of learning and building a basic assembly language assembler, linker and disassembler. This meta-repo serves as the central hub for Monistode Binutils, allowing you to easily access and use the tool.

Getting Started

You can get started with Monistode Binutils by following these steps:

Installation

You can install Monistode Binutils using pipx, which ensures that it runs in an isolated environment:

pipx install monistode-binutils

Assembling Code

Once you've installed Monistode Binutils, you can assemble your code using the mstas command:

mstas config.yaml your-assembly-file.s output-file.o

Make sure to replace config.yaml, your-assembly-file.s, and output-file.o with the appropriate file names and paths.

Disassembling Code

You can also disassemble code with the mstdas command:

mstdas config.yaml input-file.o

Again, replace config.yaml and input-file.o with the actual configuration and input file you want to disassemble.

Example Assembly Language

Here's an example of a simple assembly language that Monistode Binutils supports:

opcode_length: 6
opcode_offset: 0
text_byte_length: 6
data_byte_length: 8
text_address_size: 16
data_address_size: 16
commands:
  - mnemonic: yelp
    opcode: !!int 0b1
    arguments:
      - type: padding
        bits: 2
      - type: immediate
        bits: 16
  - mnemonic: jmp
    opcode: !!int 0b10
    arguments:
      - type: padding
        bits: 2
      - type: text_addr
        bits: 16

Example Usage

You can create and assemble an assembly file:

.text

_start:
YELP $512
YELP $2
YELP $43
YELP $17

JMP main + 138

main:
YELP $24

After assembly, you can disassemble it to see the machine code:

Object file:
Parameters:
  Opcode size: 6
  Text byte: 6
  Data byte: 8
  Text address: 16
  Data address: 16
Sections:
  Name: text
  Size: 24 entries (18 bytes of disk)

  Name: symbol_table
  Size: 2 entries (36 bytes of disk)

  Name: relocation_table
  Size: 1 entries (33 bytes of disk)


.text
    _start:
0000: yelp  $512      # 000001 000000 001000 000000
0004: yelp  $2        # 000001 000000 000000 000010
0008: yelp  $43       # 000001 000000 000000 101011
000c: yelp  $17       # 000001 000000 000000 010001
0010: jmp  main + 138 # 000010 000000 000010 000111
    main:
0014: yelp  $24       # 000001 000000 000000 011000

.symbol_table
      text:00000000        _start
      text:00000014        main

.relocation_table
      text:00000011 + 2bits (16-bit)        text -> main, relative