The following test should execute successfully (see C99 6.8.6.4#3 and #4: a return statement is not an assignment so can be used to copy between overlapping structures - added in C90 TC1 following DR#001). With 4.0 branch and mainline, it aborts when compiled at -O3 (maybe other levels as well) because the assignment via an inline function call has been wrongly optimized to a direct assignment. gcc.c-torture/execute/20010124-1.c used to test for such an issue, but it now all gets optimized away so a more complicated test such as this one is needed.
extern void abort (void); extern void exit (int); struct s { unsigned char a[256]; }; union u { struct { struct s b; int c; } d; struct { int c; struct s b; } e; }; union u v; union u v0; struct s *p = &v.d.b; struct s *q = &v.e.b; static inline struct s rp (void) { return *p; } static inline struct s rq (void) { return *q; } void pq (void) { *p = rq(); } void qp (void) { *q = rp(); } void init (struct s *sp) { int i; for (i = 0; i < 256; i++) sp->a[i] = i; } void check (struct s *sp) { int i; for (i = 0; i < 256; i++) if (sp->a[i] != i) abort (); } int main (void) { v = v0; init (p); qp (); check (q); v = v0; init (q); pq (); check (p); exit (0); } -- Summary: [4.0/4.1 Regression] struct copy inlining generates overlapping memcpy Product: gcc Version: 4.1.0 Status: UNCONFIRMED Severity: normal Priority: P2 Component: tree-optimization AssignedTo: unassigned at gcc dot gnu dot org ReportedBy: jsm28 at gcc dot gnu dot org CC: gcc-bugs at gcc dot gnu dot org http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=22237