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(ld.info)Input Section Wildcards

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Input section wildcard patterns
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   In an input section description, either the file name or the section
name or both may be wildcard patterns.

   The file name of `*' seen in many examples is a simple wildcard
pattern for the file name.

   The wildcard patterns are like those used by the Unix shell.

`*'
     matches any number of characters

`?'
     matches any single character

`[CHARS]'
     matches a single instance of any of the CHARS; the `-' character
     may be used to specify a range of characters, as in `[a-z]' to
     match any lower case letter

`\'
     quotes the following character

   When a file name is matched with a wildcard, the wildcard characters
will not match a `/' character (used to separate directory names on
Unix).  A pattern consisting of a single `*' character is an exception;
it will always match any file name, whether it contains a `/' or not.
In a section name, the wildcard characters will match a `/' character.

   File name wildcard patterns only match files which are explicitly
specified on the command line or in an `INPUT' command.  The linker
does not search directories to expand wildcards.

   If a file name matches more than one wildcard pattern, or if a file
name appears explicitly and is also matched by a wildcard pattern, the
linker will use the first match in the linker script.  For example, this
sequence of input section descriptions is probably in error, because the
`data.o' rule will not be used:
     .data : { *(.data) }
     .data1 : { data.o(.data) }

   Normally, the linker will place files and sections matched by
wildcards in the order in which they are seen during the link.  You can
change this by using the `SORT' keyword, which appears before a wildcard
pattern in parentheses (e.g., `SORT(.text*)').  When the `SORT' keyword
is used, the linker will sort the files or sections into ascending
order by name before placing them in the output file.

   If you ever get confused about where input sections are going, use
the `-M' linker option to generate a map file.  The map file shows
precisely how input sections are mapped to output sections.

   This example shows how wildcard patterns might be used to partition
files.  This linker script directs the linker to place all `.text'
sections in `.text' and all `.bss' sections in `.bss'.  The linker will
place the `.data' section from all files beginning with an upper case
character in `.DATA'; for all other files, the linker will place the
`.data' section in `.data'.
     SECTIONS {
       .text : { *(.text) }
       .DATA : { [A-Z]*(.data) }
       .data : { *(.data) }
       .bss : { *(.bss) }
     }