Re: Self-modifying code

[anon <anon@anon.org>]

ferrariv65@gmail.com wrote in
news:eb2440ca-06d4-4192-bdca-0444c2953eb9@googlegroups.com: 

> Is it possible to write self-modifying code in Ada?
> More in detail: is it possible compile some code at runtime and inject
> it into the running program, on the fly? The ability to remove that
> code after it is no longer needed would also be important, to prevent
> hogging up the system memory which may result. Thank you
> 
> Serg
> 

This question comes up once or twice a year, and with USA network cable 
channel showing "Mr. Robot" this question is on every hackers mind. How 
to hide code and build a "Rootkit" or "Virus" during run-time.

Ada was designed with a number of overriding concerns, One being 
program reliability and maintenance. That means it was designed to 
prevent "Erroneous Execution" such as self-modifying code, So the RM 
by its definition of "Erroneous Execution" means that self-modifying 
code is illegal in Ada.

So, except for shared (loaded at runtime) or dynamic (loaded on demand) 
libraries, the answer is NO!

And, I hope that the maintainers of Ada never wants Ada to be associated 
with "Rootkits" or "Viruses" type of code. So, the answer should always 
be NO!


Note: Dynamic libraries are normally a complete sub-system of routines 
not just a simple single function type plug-in.