A common compiler optimization is the inclusion of a function’s code at the location(s) from where the function is called, instead of just having calls to the code located elsewhere: inlining. This provides a speed advantage, as the call/return sequence is eliminated, but may increase the memory footprint, if the function is more than a few instructions and is called more than once. I have written about this topic before, here and here.

I have an enduring interest in code generation and compiler optimizations and my consideration of inlining was piqued by a recent comment on one of my earlier posts. I realized that there are two implementation related aspects of inlining which are particularly relevant to embedded software developers …
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