# Frequently Asked Questions

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- [Why isn't `bindgen` generating methods for this allowlisted class?](#why-isnt-bindgen-generating-methods-for-this-allowlisted-class)
- [Why isn't `bindgen` generating bindings to inline functions?](#why-isnt-bindgen-generating-bindings-to-inline-functions)
- [Does `bindgen` support the C++ Standard Template Library (STL)?](#does-bindgen-support-the-c-standard-template-library-stl)
- [How to deal with bindgen generated padding fields?](#how-to-deal-with-bindgen-generated-padding-fields)
- [How to generate bindings for a custom target?](#how-to-generate-bindings-for-a-custom-target)
- [How can I normalize `#[doc]` attributes?](#how-can-i-normalize-doc-attributes)

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### Why isn't `bindgen` generating methods for this allowlisted class?

Are the methods `inline` methods, or defined inline in the class? For example:

```c++
class Dooder {
  public:
    // Function defined inline in the class.
    int example_one() { return 1; }

    // `inline` function whose definition is supplied later in the header, or in
    // another header.
    inline bool example_two();
};

inline bool Dooder::example_two() {
    return true;
}
```

If so, see
["Why isn't `bindgen` generating bindings to inline functions?"](#why-isnt-bindgen-generating-bindings-to-inline-functions)

If not, consider filing an issue!

### Why isn't `bindgen` generating bindings to inline functions?

These functions don't typically end up in object files or shared libraries with
symbols that we can reliably link to, since they are instead inlined into each
of their call sites. Therefore, we don't generate bindings to them, since that
creates linking errors.

However, if you are compiling the C/C++ yourself (rather than using a system
shared library, for example), then you can pass `-fkeep-inline-functions` or
`-fno-inline-functions` to `gcc` or `clang`, and invoke `bindgen` with either
the `bindgen::Builder::generate_inline_functions` method or the
`--generate-inline-functions` flag.

Note that these functions and methods are usually marked inline for a reason:
they tend to be hot. The above workaround makes them an out-of-line call, which
might not provide acceptable performance.

### Does `bindgen` support the C++ Standard Template Library (STL)?

Sort of. A little. Depends what you mean by "support".

Most functions, methods, constructors, and destructors are inline in the
STL. That ties our hands when it comes to linking: ["Why isn't `bindgen` generating bindings to inline functions?"](#why-isnt-bindgen-generating-bindings-to-inline-functions)

As far as generating opaque blobs of bytes with the correct size and alignment,
`bindgen` can do pretty well. This is typically enough to let you use types that
transitively contain STL things. We generally recommend marking `std::.*` as
opaque, and then allowlisting only the specific things you need from the library
you're binding to that is pulling in STL headers.

### How to deal with bindgen generated padding fields?

Depending the architecture, toolchain versions and source struct, it is
possible that bindgen will generate padding fields named `__bindgen_padding_N`.
As these fields might be present when compiling for one architecture but not
for an other, you should not initialize these fields manually when initializing
the struct. Instead, use the `Default` trait. You can either enable this when
constructing the `Builder` using the `derive_default` method, or you can
implement this per struct using:

```rust,ignore
impl Default for SRC_DATA {
    fn default() -> Self {
        unsafe { std::mem::zeroed() }
    }
}
```

This makes it possible to initialize `SRC_DATA` by:

```rust,ignore
SRC_DATA {
    field_a: "foo",
    field_b: "bar",
    ..Default::default()
}
```

In the case bindgen generates a padding field, then this field will
be automatically initialized by `..Default::default()`.

### How to generate bindings for a custom target?

To generate bindings for a custom target you only need to pass the `--target`
argument to `libclang`. For example, if you want to generate bindings for the
`armv7a-none-eabi` target using the command line, you need to invoke `bindgen`
like so:
```bash
$ bindgen <input_headers> -- --target=armv7a-none-eabi
```
If you are using `bindgen` as a library, you should call
`builder.clang_arg("--target=armv7a-none-eabi")` on your `builder`.

### How can I normalize `#[doc]` attributes?

`bindgen` emits all the documentation using `#[doc]` attributes by default. If
you want to use the more user-friendly `///` syntax, you have to create a
`rustfmt.toml` file with the following contents:

```toml
normalize_doc_attributes = true
```

Then, you have set up bindgen so it passes this file to `rustfmt`. Given that
the `normalize_doc_attributes` option is
[unstable](https://github.com/rust-lang/rustfmt/issues/3351), you also have to
set up bindgen to use a `nightly` release of `rustfmt`. Please check the [code
formatting](./code-formatting.md) section for further information.