viewing C source

[prez]

how do i view a particular .exe file's source codes. what program do i need?
im using turbo c++ and djgpp. can both of these programs extract the C source??

[DrZaius]

Hi prez,

In order to view the source of EXE files you would need to de-compile it, which is a very complicated procedure, and the program may not have even been written in C. Once it has been compiled, it's impossible to get the original source files back.

[prez]

i know that the exe file is written in C. So whats the precedure to de compile it??

[HackinCowboy]

There's been rumors that there are a few C/C++ decompilers out there, but I've never actually seen any or known someone who has. Also, if you think about the structure of a compiled C program it seems almost impossible to decompile it.

[doctorgonzo]

Decompiling a program is next to impossible. There are infinite ways to write a program to do any one particular thing; even something as simple as a "Hello, world!" program. Trying to figure out which one of those infinite varieties you have with the executable is extremely difficult.

[Paul Victorey]

I've used some "C++ decompilers", but they give horrid results.

Most of the things we take for granted, like meaningful variable names and comments are gone. Classes and objects sometimes almost look OK, but then you get things like:

class c032468765 {
private:
int i098754309;
float f664590954;
public:
void F4287983932(int i35436, int i654927);
};

Personally, I find it easier to disassemble and work with it in assembly.

[Justin26k]

Paul you got any tips for me im trying ro learn assembly?

[Paul Victorey]

Best tip is start out not by reading others' stuff, but by working with examples and writing them yourself. A good book can be worth a thousand hours without.

Assembly languages tend to be easier to write than to read (unlike many higher-level languages). It's often easier to figure out how to do something than it is to figure out what someone was trying to do, because almost every task takes a lot of commands to complete, as the commands are pretty basic.

So, get a good assembler, a good book, and try out the examples. Comment your source files very well, because if you don't, it's hard to figure out what you were doing, at times.

[Justin26k]

I am using MASM as I assembler could you recommend a book?

[Paul Victorey]

MASM's a good assembler... man, it's been so long (probably about 10 years) since I purchased books on assembly, though, I can't even make a recommendation.

You can check out Amazon.com, they have a section for assembly language, you can ty to use their reviews to help you.

[Justin26k]

Ok Thanks Paul I would ask for a website but it's been ten years so you probably dont know any them either?

Thanks Again