> The Linux people have read this in the gcc docs: > > Specifying this attribute [packed] for `struct' and `union' types is > equivalent to specifying the `packed' attribute on each of the structure or > union members. > > I think this is almost, but not quite, true - specifying the attribute > on the struct itself also affects packing when the struct is used, not > just the packing of the fields themselves. No it doesn't. The normal rules apply. The alignment of a structure is generally the maximum alignment of its members. In a packed structure all fields have byte alignment, therefore the structure as a whole also has byte alignment. IMHO this is the only definition that makes sense. Paul
