8.6. Flag reference

This section is a quick-reference for GHC’s command-line flags. For each flag, we also list its mode/dynamic status (see Dynamic and Mode options), and the flag’s opposite (if available).

8.6.1. Verbosity options

More details in Verbosity options

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fabstract-refinement-hole-fits default: off. Toggles whether refinements where one or more of the holes are abstract are reported. dynamic -fno-abstract-refinement-hole-fits
-fdiagnostics-color=⟨always|auto|never⟩ Use colors in error messages dynamic
-fdiagnostics-show-caret Whether to show snippets of original source code dynamic -fno-diagnostics-show-caret
-ferror-spans Output full span in error messages dynamic
-fhide-source-paths hide module source and object paths dynamic
-fmax-refinement-hole-fits=⟨n⟩ default: 6. Set the maximum number of refinement hole fits for typed holes to display in type error messages. dynamic -fno-max-refinement-hole-fits
-fmax-relevant-binds=⟨n⟩ default: 6. Set the maximum number of bindings to display in type error messages. dynamic -fno-max-relevant-bindings
-fmax-valid-hole-fits=⟨n⟩ default: 6. Set the maximum number of valid hole fits for typed holes to display in type error messages. dynamic -fno-max-valid-hole-fits
-fno-show-valid-hole-fits Disables showing a list of valid hole fits for typed holes in type error messages. dynamic
-fno-sort-valid-hole-fits Disables the sorting of the list of valid hole fits for typed holes in type error messages. dynamic
-fprint-equality-relations Distinguish between equality relations when printing dynamic -fno-print-equality-relations
-fprint-expanded-synonyms In type errors, also print type-synonym-expanded types. dynamic -fno-print-expanded-synonyms
-fprint-explicit-coercions Print coercions in types dynamic -fno-print-explicit-coercions
-fprint-explicit-foralls Print explicit forall quantification in types. See also -XExplicitForAll dynamic -fno-print-explicit-foralls
-fprint-explicit-kinds Print explicit kind foralls and kind arguments in types. See also -XKindSignatures dynamic -fno-print-explicit-kinds
-fprint-explicit-runtime-reps Print RuntimeRep variables in types which are runtime-representation polymorphic. dynamic -fno-print-explicit-runtime-reps
-fprint-explicit-runtime-reps Print RuntimeRep variables in types which are runtime-representation polymorphic. dynamic -fno-print-explicit-runtime-reps
-fprint-potential-instances display all available instances in type error messages dynamic -fno-print-potential-instances
-fprint-typechecker-elaboration Print extra information from typechecker. dynamic -fno-print-typechecker-elaboration
-fprint-unicode-syntax Use unicode syntax when printing expressions, types and kinds. See also -XUnicodeSyntax dynamic -fno-print-unicode-syntax
-frefinement-level-hole-fits=⟨n⟩ default: off. Sets the level of refinement of the refinement hole fits, where level n means that hole fits of up to n holes will be considered. dynamic -fno-refinement-level-hole-fits
-freverse-errors Output errors in reverse order dynamic -fno-reverse-errors
-fshow-docs-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show the documentation of the valid hole fits in the output. dynamic -fno-show-docs-of-hole-fits
-fshow-hole-constraints Show constraints when reporting typed holes. dynamic
-fshow-hole-matches-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show the type of the additional holes in refinement hole fits. dynamic -fno-show-hole-matches-of-hole-fits
-fshow-provenance-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show the provenance of the valid hole fits in the output. dynamic -fno-show-provenance-of-hole-fits
-fshow-type-app-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show the type application of the valid hole fits in the output. dynamic -fno-show-type-app-of-hole-fits
-fshow-type-app-vars-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show what type each quantified variable takes in a valid hole fit. dynamic -fno-show-type-app-vars-of-hole-fits
-fshow-type-of-hole-fits Toggles whether to show the type of the valid hole fits in the output. dynamic -fno-type-of-hole-fits
-funclutter-valid-hole-fits Unclutter the list of valid hole fits by not showing provenance nor type applications of suggestions. dynamic
-Rghc-timing Summarise timing stats for GHC (same as +RTS -tstderr). dynamic
-v verbose mode (equivalent to -v3) dynamic
-v⟨n⟩ set verbosity level dynamic

8.6.2. Alternative modes of operation

More details in Modes of operation

Flag Description Type Reverse
--frontend ⟨module⟩ run GHC with the given frontend plugin; see Frontend plugins for details. mode
--help, -? Display help mode
--info display information about the compiler mode
--interactive Interactive mode - normally used by just running ghci; see Using GHCi for details. mode
--make Build a multi-module Haskell program, automatically figuring out dependencies. Likely to be much easier, and faster, than using make; see Using ghc –make for details. mode
--mk-dll DLL-creation mode (Windows only) mode
--numeric-version display GHC version (numeric only) mode
--print-libdir display GHC library directory mode
--show-iface ⟨file⟩ display the contents of an interface file. mode
--show-options display the supported command line options mode
--supported-extensions, --supported-languages display the supported language extensions mode
--version, -V display GHC version mode
-e ⟨expr⟩ Evaluate expr; see Expression evaluation mode for details. mode
-M generate dependency information suitable for use in a Makefile; see Dependency generation for details. mode

8.6.3. Which phases to run

More details in Batch compiler mode

Flag Description Type Reverse
-C Stop after generating C (.hc file) mode
-c Stop after generating object (.o) file mode
-E Stop after preprocessing (.hspp file) mode
-F Enable the use of a pre-processor (set with -pgmF ⟨cmd⟩) dynamic
-S Stop after generating assembly (.s file) mode
-x ⟨suffix⟩ Override default behaviour for source files dynamic

8.6.4. Redirecting output

More details in Redirecting the compilation output(s)

Flag Description Type Reverse
--exclude-module=⟨file⟩ Regard ⟨file⟩ as “stable”; i.e., exclude it from having dependencies on it. dynamic
-ddump-mod-cycles Dump module cycles dynamic
-dep-makefile ⟨file⟩ Use ⟨file⟩ as the makefile dynamic
-dep-suffix ⟨suffix⟩ Make dependencies that declare that files with suffix .⟨suf⟩⟨osuf⟩ depend on interface files with suffix .⟨suf⟩hi dynamic
-dumpdir ⟨dir⟩ redirect dump files dynamic
-hcsuf ⟨suffix⟩ set the suffix to use for intermediate C files dynamic
-hidir ⟨dir⟩ set directory for interface files dynamic
-hiedir ⟨dir⟩ set directory for extended interface files dynamic
-hiesuf ⟨suffix⟩ set the suffix to use for extended interface files dynamic
-hisuf ⟨suffix⟩ set the suffix to use for interface files dynamic
-include-pkg-deps Regard modules imported from packages as unstable dynamic
-o ⟨file⟩ set output filename dynamic
-odir ⟨dir⟩ set directory for object files dynamic
-ohi ⟨file⟩ set the filename in which to put the interface dynamic
-osuf ⟨suffix⟩ set the output file suffix dynamic
-outputdir ⟨dir⟩ set output directory dynamic
-stubdir ⟨dir⟩ redirect FFI stub files dynamic

8.6.5. Keeping intermediate files

More details in Keeping Intermediate Files

Flag Description Type Reverse
-keep-hc-file, -keep-hc-files Retain intermediate .hc files. dynamic
-keep-hi-files Retain intermediate .hi files (the default). dynamic -no-keep-hi-files
-keep-hscpp-file, -keep-hscpp-files Retain intermediate .hscpp files. dynamic
-keep-llvm-file, -keep-llvm-files Retain intermediate LLVM .ll files. Implies -fllvm. dynamic
-keep-o-files Retain intermediate .o files (the default). dynamic -no-keep-o-files
-keep-s-file, -keep-s-files Retain intermediate .s files. dynamic
-keep-tmp-files Retain all intermediate temporary files. dynamic

8.6.6. Temporary files

More details in Redirecting temporary files

Flag Description Type Reverse
-tmpdir ⟨dir⟩ set the directory for temporary files dynamic

8.6.7. Finding imports

More details in The search path

Flag Description Type Reverse
-i Empty the import directory list dynamic
-i⟨dir⟩[:⟨dir⟩]* add ⟨dir⟩, ⟨dir2⟩, etc. to import path dynamic

8.6.8. Interface file options

More details in Other options related to interface files

Flag Description Type Reverse
--show-iface ⟨file⟩ See Modes of operation. mode
-ddump-hi Dump the new interface to stdout dynamic
-ddump-hi-diffs Show the differences vs. the old interface dynamic
-ddump-minimal-imports Dump a minimal set of imports dynamic

8.6.9. Recompilation checking

More details in The recompilation checker

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fforce-recomp Turn off recompilation checking. This is implied by any -ddump-X option when compiling a single file (i.e. when using -c). dynamic -fno-force-recomp
-fignore-hpc-changes Do not recompile modules just to match changes to HPC flags. This is especially useful for avoiding recompilation when using GHCi, and is enabled by default for GHCi. dynamic -fno-ignore-hpc-changes
-fignore-optim-changes Do not recompile modules just to match changes to optimisation flags. This is especially useful for avoiding recompilation when using GHCi, and is enabled by default for GHCi. dynamic -fno-ignore-optim-changes

8.6.10. Interactive-mode options

More details in The .ghci and .haskeline files

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fbreak-on-error Break on uncaught exceptions and errors dynamic -fno-break-on-error
-fbreak-on-exception Break on any exception thrown dynamic -fno-break-on-exception
-fghci-hist-size=⟨n⟩ Set the number of entries GHCi keeps for :history. See The GHCi Debugger. dynamic
-fghci-leak-check (Debugging only) check for space leaks when loading new modules in GHCi. dynamic -fno-ghci-leak-check
-flocal-ghci-history Use current directory for the GHCi command history file .ghci-history. dynamic -fno-local-ghci-history
-fno-it No longer set the special variable it. dynamic -fno-no-it
-fprint-bind-result Turn on printing of binding results in GHCi dynamic -fno-print-bind-result
-fshow-loaded-modules Show the names of modules that GHCi loaded after a :load command. dynamic
-ghci-script Read additional .ghci files dynamic
-ignore-dot-ghci Disable reading of .ghci files dynamic
-interactive-print ⟨expr⟩ Select the function to use for printing evaluated expressions in GHCi dynamic

8.6.11. Packages

More details in Packages

Flag Description Type Reverse
-clear-package-db Clear the package db stack. dynamic
-distrust ⟨pkg⟩ Expose package ⟨pkg⟩ and set it to be distrusted. See Safe Haskell. dynamic
-distrust-all-packages Distrust all packages by default. See Safe Haskell. dynamic
-fpackage-trust Enable Safe Haskell trusted package requirement for trustworthy modules. dynamic
-global-package-db Add the global package db to the stack. dynamic
-hide-all-packages Hide all packages by default dynamic
-hide-package ⟨pkg⟩ Hide package ⟨pkg⟩ dynamic
-ignore-package ⟨pkg⟩ Ignore package ⟨pkg⟩ dynamic
-no-auto-link-packages Don’t automatically link in the base and rts packages. dynamic
-no-global-package-db Remove the global package db from the stack. dynamic
-no-user-package-db Remove the user’s package db from the stack. dynamic
-package ⟨pkg⟩ Expose package ⟨pkg⟩ dynamic
-package-db ⟨file⟩ Add ⟨file⟩ to the package db stack. dynamic
-package-env ⟨file⟩|⟨name⟩ Use the specified package environment. dynamic
-package-id ⟨unit-id⟩ Expose package by id ⟨unit-id⟩ dynamic
-this-unit-id ⟨unit-id⟩ Compile to be part of unit (i.e. package) ⟨unit-id⟩ dynamic
-trust ⟨pkg⟩ Expose package ⟨pkg⟩ and set it to be trusted. See Safe Haskell. dynamic
-user-package-db Add the user’s package db to the stack. dynamic

8.6.12. Language options

Language options can be enabled either by a command-line option -Xblah, or by a {-# LANGUAGE blah #-} pragma in the file itself. See Language options.

8.6.13. Warnings

More details in Warnings and sanity-checking

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fdefer-out-of-scope-variables Convert variable out of scope variables errors into warnings. Implied by -fdefer-type-errors. See also -Wdeferred-out-of-scope-variables. dynamic -fno-defer-out-of-scope-variables
-fdefer-type-errors Turn type errors into warnings, deferring the error until runtime. Implies -fdefer-typed-holes and -fdefer-out-of-scope-variables. See also -Wdeferred-type-errors dynamic -fno-defer-type-errors
-fdefer-typed-holes Convert typed hole errors into warnings, deferring the error until runtime. Implied by -fdefer-type-errors. See also -Wtyped-holes. dynamic -fno-defer-typed-holes
-fhelpful-errors Make suggestions for mis-spelled names. dynamic -fno-helpful-errors
-fmax-pmcheck-iterations=⟨n⟩ the iteration limit for the pattern match checker dynamic
-fshow-warning-groups show which group an emitted warning belongs to. dynamic -fno-show-warning-groups
-W enable normal warnings dynamic -w
-w disable all warnings dynamic
-Wall enable almost all warnings (details in Warnings and sanity-checking) dynamic -w
-Wall-missed-specialisations warn when specialisation of any overloaded function fails. dynamic -Wno-all-missed-specialisations
-Wcompat enable future compatibility warnings (details in Warnings and sanity-checking) dynamic -Wno-compat
-Wcpp-undef warn on uses of the #if directive on undefined identifiers dynamic
-Wdeferred-out-of-scope-variables Report warnings when variable out-of-scope errors are deferred until runtime. See -fdefer-out-of-scope-variables. dynamic -Wno-deferred-out-of-scope-variables
-Wdeferred-type-errors Report warnings when deferred type errors are enabled. This option is enabled by default. See -fdefer-type-errors. dynamic -Wno-deferred-type-errors
-Wdeprecated-flags warn about uses of commandline flags that are deprecated dynamic -Wno-deprecated-flags
-Wdeprecations warn about uses of functions & types that have warnings or deprecated pragmas. Alias for -Wwarnings-deprecations dynamic -Wno-deprecations
-Wdodgy-exports warn about dodgy exports dynamic -Wno-dodgy-exports
-Wdodgy-foreign-imports warn about dodgy foreign imports dynamic -Wno-dodgy-foreign-import
-Wdodgy-imports warn about dodgy imports dynamic -Wno-dodgy-imports
-Wduplicate-constraints warn when a constraint appears duplicated in a type signature dynamic -Wno-duplicate-constraints
-Wduplicate-exports warn when an entity is exported multiple times dynamic -Wno-duplicate-exports
-Wempty-enumerations warn about enumerations that are empty dynamic -Wno-empty-enumerations
-Werror make warnings fatal dynamic -Wwarn
-Weverything enable all warnings supported by GHC dynamic
-Whi-shadowing warn when a .hi file in the current directory shadows a library dynamic -Wno-hi-shadowing
-Widentities warn about uses of Prelude numeric conversions that are probably the identity (and hence could be omitted) dynamic -Wno-identities
-Wimplicit-kind-vars warn when kind variables are brought into scope implicitly despite the “forall-or-nothing” rule dynamic -Wno-implicit-kind-vars
-Wimplicit-prelude warn when the Prelude is implicitly imported dynamic -Wno-implicit-prelude
-Winaccessible-code warn about inaccessible code dynamic -Wno-inaccessible-code
-Wincomplete-patterns warn when a pattern match could fail dynamic -Wno-incomplete-patterns
-Wincomplete-record-updates warn when a record update could fail dynamic -Wno-incomplete-record-updates
-Wincomplete-uni-patterns warn when a pattern match in a lambda expression or pattern binding could fail dynamic -Wno-incomplete-uni-patterns
-Winline-rule-shadowing Warn if a rewrite RULE might fail to fire because the function might be inlined before the rule has a chance to fire. See How rules interact with INLINE/NOINLINE pragmas. dynamic -Wno-inline-rule-shadowing
-Wmissed-extra-shared-lib Warn when GHCi can’t load a shared lib. dynamic -Wno-missed-extra-shared-lib
-Wmissed-specialisations warn when specialisation of an imported, overloaded function fails. dynamic -Wno-missed-specialisations
-Wmissing-deriving-strategies warn when a deriving clause is missing a deriving strategy dynamic -Wno-missing-deriving-strategies
-Wmissing-export-lists warn when a module declaration does not explicitly list all exports dynamic -fnowarn-missing-export-lists
-Wmissing-exported-signatures warn about top-level functions without signatures, only if they are exported. takes precedence over -Wmissing-signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-exported-signatures
-Wmissing-exported-sigs (deprecated) warn about top-level functions without signatures, only if they are exported. takes precedence over -Wmissing-signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-exported-sigs
-Wmissing-fields warn when fields of a record are uninitialised dynamic -Wno-missing-fields
-Wmissing-home-modules warn when encountering a home module imported, but not listed on the command line. Useful for cabal to ensure GHC won’t pick up modules, not listed neither in exposed-modules, nor in other-modules. dynamic -Wno-missing-home-modules
-Wmissing-import-lists warn when an import declaration does not explicitly list all the names brought into scope dynamic -fnowarn-missing-import-lists
-Wmissing-local-signatures warn about polymorphic local bindings without signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-local-signatures
-Wmissing-local-sigs (deprecated) warn about polymorphic local bindings without signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-local-sigs
-Wmissing-methods warn when class methods are undefined dynamic -Wno-missing-methods
-Wmissing-monadfail-instances Warn when a failable pattern is used in a do-block that does not have a MonadFail instance. dynamic -Wno-missing-monadfail-instances
-Wmissing-pattern-synonym-signatures warn when pattern synonyms do not have type signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-pattern-synonym-signatures
-Wmissing-signatures warn about top-level functions without signatures dynamic -Wno-missing-signatures
-Wmonomorphism-restriction warn when the Monomorphism Restriction is applied dynamic -Wno-monomorphism-restriction
-Wname-shadowing warn when names are shadowed dynamic -Wno-name-shadowing
-Wno-compat Disables all warnings enabled by -Wcompat. dynamic -Wcompat
-Wnoncanonical-monad-instances warn when Applicative or Monad instances have noncanonical definitions of return, pure, (>>), or (*>). See flag description in Warnings and sanity-checking for more details. dynamic -Wno-noncanonical-monad-instances
-Wnoncanonical-monadfail-instances warn when Monad or MonadFail instances have noncanonical definitions of fail. See flag description in Warnings and sanity-checking for more details. dynamic -Wno-noncanonical-monadfail-instances
-Wnoncanonical-monoid-instances warn when Semigroup or Monoid instances have noncanonical definitions of (<>) or mappend. See flag description in Warnings and sanity-checking for more details. dynamic -Wno-noncanonical-monoid-instances
-Worphans warn when the module contains orphan instance declarations or rewrite rules dynamic -Wno-orphans
-Woverflowed-literals warn about literals that will overflow their type dynamic -Wno-overflowed-literals
-Woverlapping-patterns warn about overlapping patterns dynamic -Wno-overlapping-patterns
-Wpartial-fields warn when defining a partial record field. dynamic -Wno-partial-fields
-Wpartial-type-signatures warn about holes in partial type signatures when -XPartialTypeSignatures is enabled. Not applicable when -XPartialTypesignatures is not enabled, in which case errors are generated for such holes. See Partial Type Signatures. dynamic -Wno-partial-type-signatures
-Wredundant-constraints Have the compiler warn about redundant constraints in type signatures. dynamic -Wno-redundant-constraints
-Wsafe warn if the module being compiled is regarded to be safe. dynamic -Wno-safe
-Wsemigroup warn when a Monoid is not Semigroup, and on non- Semigroup definitions of (<>)? dynamic -Wno-semigroup
-Wsimplifiable-class-constraints Warn about class constraints in a type signature that can be simplified using a top-level instance declaration. dynamic -Wno-simplifiable-class-constraints
-Wspace-after-bang warn for missing space before the second argument of an infix definition of (!) when -XBangPatterns are not enabled dynamic -Wno-missing-space-after-bang
-Wstar-binder warn about binding the (*) type operator despite -XStarIsType dynamic -Wno-star-binder
-Wstar-is-type warn when * is used to mean Data.Kind.Type dynamic -Wno-star-is-type
-Wtabs warn if there are tabs in the source file dynamic -Wno-tabs
-Wtrustworthy-safe warn if the module being compiled is marked as Trustworthy but it could instead be marked as Safe, a more informative bound. dynamic -Wno-safe
-Wtype-defaults warn when defaulting happens dynamic -Wno-type-defaults
-Wtyped-holes Report warnings when typed hole errors are deferred until runtime. See -fdefer-typed-holes. dynamic -Wno-typed-holes
-Wunbanged-strict-patterns warn on pattern bind of unlifted variable that is neither bare nor banged dynamic -Wno-unbanged-strict-patterns
-Wunrecognised-pragmas warn about uses of pragmas that GHC doesn’t recognise dynamic -Wno-unrecognised-pragmas
-Wunrecognised-warning-flags throw a warning when an unreconised -W... flag is encountered on the command line. dynamic -Wno-unrecognised-warning-flags
-Wunsafe warn if the module being compiled is regarded to be unsafe. See Safe Haskell dynamic -Wno-unsafe
-Wunsupported-calling-conventions warn about use of an unsupported calling convention dynamic -Wno-unsupported-calling-conventions
-Wunsupported-llvm-version Warn when using -fllvm with an unsupported version of LLVM. dynamic -Wno-monomorphism-restriction
-Wunticked-promoted-constructors warn if promoted constructors are not ticked dynamic -Wno-unticked-promoted-constructors
-Wunused-binds warn about bindings that are unused. Alias for -Wunused-top-binds, -Wunused-local-binds and -Wunused-pattern-binds dynamic -Wno-unused-binds
-Wunused-do-bind warn about do bindings that appear to throw away values of types other than () dynamic -Wno-unused-do-bind
-Wunused-foralls warn about type variables in user-written forall\s that are unused dynamic -Wno-unused-foralls
-Wunused-imports warn about unnecessary imports dynamic -Wno-unused-imports
-Wunused-local-binds warn about local bindings that are unused dynamic -Wno-unused-local-binds
-Wunused-matches warn about variables in patterns that aren’t used dynamic -Wno-unused-matches
-Wunused-pattern-binds warn about pattern match bindings that are unused dynamic -Wno-unused-pattern-binds
-Wunused-top-binds warn about top-level bindings that are unused dynamic -Wno-unused-top-binds
-Wunused-type-patterns warn about unused type variables which arise from patterns in in type family and data family instances dynamic -Wno-unused-type-patterns
-Wwarn make warnings non-fatal dynamic -Werror
-Wwarnings-deprecations warn about uses of functions & types that have warnings or deprecated pragmas dynamic -Wno-warnings-deprecations
-Wwrong-do-bind warn about do bindings that appear to throw away monadic values that you should have bound instead dynamic -Wno-wrong-do-bind

8.6.14. Optimisation levels

These options are described in more detail in Optimisation (code improvement).

See Individual optimisations for a list of optimisations enabled on level 1 and level 2.

Flag Description Type Reverse
-O, -O1 Enable level 1 optimisations dynamic -O0
-O0 Disable optimisations (default) dynamic
-O2 Enable level 2 optimisations dynamic -O0

8.6.15. Individual optimisations

These options are described in more detail in -f*: platform-independent flags. If a flag is implied by -O then it is also implied by -O2 (unless flag description explicitly says otherwise). If a flag is implied by -O0 only then the flag is not implied by -O and -O2.

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fasm-shortcutting Enable shortcutting on assembly. Implied by -O2. dynamic -fno-asm-shortcutting
-fblock-layout-cfg Use the new cfg based block layout algorithm. dynamic -fno-block-layout-cfg
-fblock-layout-weightless Ignore cfg weights for code layout. dynamic -fno-block-layout-weightless
-fblock-layout-weights Sets edge weights used by the new code layout algorithm. dynamic
-fcall-arity Enable call-arity optimisation. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-call-arity
-fcase-folding Enable constant folding in case expressions. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-case-folding
-fcase-merge Enable case-merging. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-case-merge
-fcmm-elim-common-blocks Enable Cmm common block elimination. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-cmm-elim-common-blocks
-fcmm-sink Enable Cmm sinking. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-cmm-sink
-fcpr-anal Turn on CPR analysis in the demand analyser. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-cpr-anal
-fcross-module-specialise Turn on specialisation of overloaded functions imported from other modules. dynamic -fno-cross-module-specialise
-fcse Enable common sub-expression elimination. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-cse
-fdicts-cheap Make dictionary-valued expressions seem cheap to the optimiser. dynamic -fno-dicts-cheap
-fdicts-strict Make dictionaries strict dynamic -fno-dicts-strict
-fdmd-tx-dict-sel Use a special demand transformer for dictionary selectors. Always enabled by default. dynamic -fno-dmd-tx-dict-sel
-fdo-eta-reduction Enable eta-reduction. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-do-eta-reduction
-fdo-lambda-eta-expansion Enable lambda eta-expansion. Always enabled by default. dynamic -fno-do-lambda-eta-expansion
-feager-blackholing Turn on eager blackholing dynamic
-fenable-rewrite-rules Switch on all rewrite rules (including rules generated by automatic specialisation of overloaded functions). Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-enable-rewrite-rules
-fexcess-precision Enable excess intermediate precision dynamic -fno-excess-precision
-fexitification Enables exitification optimisation. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-exitification
-fexpose-all-unfoldings Expose all unfoldings, even for very large or recursive functions. dynamic -fno-expose-all-unfoldings
-ffloat-in Turn on the float-in transformation. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-float-in
-ffull-laziness Turn on full laziness (floating bindings outwards). Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-full-laziness
-ffun-to-thunk Allow worker-wrapper to convert a function closure into a thunk if the function does not use any of its arguments. Off by default. dynamic -fno-fun-to-thunk
-fignore-asserts Ignore assertions in the source. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-ignore-asserts
-fignore-interface-pragmas Ignore pragmas in interface files. Implied by -O0 only. dynamic -fno-ignore-interface-pragmas
-flate-dmd-anal Run demand analysis again, at the end of the simplification pipeline dynamic -fno-late-dmd-anal
-flate-specialise Run a late specialisation pass dynamic -fno-late-specialise
-fliberate-case Turn on the liberate-case transformation. Implied by -O2. dynamic -fno-liberate-case
-fliberate-case-threshold=⟨n⟩ default: 2000. Set the size threshold for the liberate-case transformation to ⟨n⟩ dynamic -fno-liberate-case-threshold
-fllvm-pass-vectors-in-regs Pass vector value in vector registers for function calls dynamic -fno-llvm-pass-vectors-in-regs
-floopification Turn saturated self-recursive tail-calls into local jumps in the generated assembly. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-loopification
-fmax-inline-alloc-size=⟨n⟩ default: 128. Set the maximum size of inline array allocations to ⟨n⟩ bytes (default: 128). dynamic
-fmax-inline-memcpy-insns=⟨n⟩ default: 32. Inline memcpy calls if they would generate no more than ⟨n⟩ pseudo instructions. dynamic
-fmax-inline-memset-insns=⟨n⟩ default: 32. Inline memset calls if they would generate no more than ⟨n⟩ pseudo instructions dynamic
-fmax-simplifier-iterations=⟨n⟩ default: 4. Set the max iterations for the simplifier. dynamic
-fmax-uncovered-patterns=⟨n⟩ default: 4. Set the maximum number of patterns to display in warnings about non-exhaustive ones. dynamic
-fmax-worker-args=⟨n⟩ default: 10. If a worker has that many arguments, none will be unpacked anymore. dynamic
-fno-opt-coercion Turn off the coercion optimiser dynamic
-fno-pre-inlining Turn off pre-inlining dynamic
-fno-state-hack Turn off the state hackwhereby any lambda with a real-world state token as argument is considered to be single-entry. Hence OK to inline things inside it. dynamic
-fomit-interface-pragmas Don’t generate interface pragmas. Implied by -O0 only. dynamic -fno-omit-interface-pragmas
-fomit-yields Omit heap checks when no allocation is being performed. dynamic -fno-omit-yields
-foptimal-applicative-do Use a slower but better algorithm for ApplicativeDo dynamic -fno-optimal-applicative-do
-fpedantic-bottoms Make GHC be more precise about its treatment of bottom (but see also -fno-state-hack). In particular, GHC will not eta-expand through a case expression. dynamic -fno-pedantic-bottoms
-fregs-graph Use the graph colouring register allocator for register allocation in the native code generator. Implied by -O2. dynamic -fno-regs-graph
-fregs-iterative Use the iterative coalescing graph colouring register allocator in the native code generator. dynamic -fno-regs-iterative
-fsimpl-tick-factor=⟨n⟩ default: 100. Set the percentage factor for simplifier ticks. dynamic
-fsimplifier-phases=⟨n⟩ default: 2. Set the number of phases for the simplifier. Ignored with -O0. dynamic
-fsolve-constant-dicts When solving constraints, try to eagerly solve super classes using available dictionaries. dynamic -fno-solve-constant-dicts
-fspec-constr Turn on the SpecConstr transformation. Implied by -O2. dynamic -fno-spec-constr
-fspec-constr-count=⟨n⟩ default: 3.* Set to ⟨n⟩ the maximum number of specialisations that will be created for any one function by the SpecConstr transformation. dynamic -fno-spec-constr-count
-fspec-constr-keen Specialize a call with an explicit constructor argument, even if the argument is not scrutinised in the body of the function dynamic -fno-spec-constr-keen
-fspec-constr-threshold=⟨n⟩ default: 2000. Set the size threshold for the SpecConstr transformation to ⟨n⟩. dynamic -fno-spec-constr-threshold
-fspecialise Turn on specialisation of overloaded functions. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-specialise
-fspecialise-aggressively Turn on specialisation of overloaded functions regardless of size, if unfolding is available dynamic -fno-specialise-aggressively
-fstatic-argument-transformation Turn on the static argument transformation. dynamic -fno-static-argument-transformation
-fstg-cse Enable common sub-expression elimination on the STG intermediate language dynamic -fno-stg-cse
-fstg-lift-lams Enable late lambda lifting on the STG intermediate language. Implied by -O2. dynamic -fno-stg-lift-lams
-fstg-lift-lams-known Allow turning known into unknown calls while performing late lambda lifting. dynamic -fno-stg-lift-lams-known
-fstg-lift-lams-non-rec-args Create top-level non-recursive functions with at most <n> parameters while performing late lambda lifting. dynamic -fno-stg-lift-lams-non-rec-args-any
-fstg-lift-lams-rec-args Create top-level recursive functions with at most <n> parameters while performing late lambda lifting. dynamic -fno-stg-lift-lams-rec-args-any
-fstrictness Turn on strictness analysis. Implied by -O. Implies -fworker-wrapper dynamic -fno-strictness
-fstrictness-before=⟨n⟩ Run an additional strictness analysis before simplifier phase ⟨n⟩ dynamic
-funbox-small-strict-fields Flatten strict constructor fields with a pointer-sized representation. Implied by -O. dynamic -fno-unbox-small-strict-fields
-funbox-strict-fields Flatten strict constructor fields dynamic -fno-unbox-strict-fields
-funfolding-creation-threshold=⟨n⟩ default: 750. Tweak unfolding settings. dynamic
-funfolding-dict-discount=⟨n⟩ default: 30. Tweak unfolding settings. dynamic
-funfolding-fun-discount=⟨n⟩ default: 60. Tweak unfolding settings. dynamic
-funfolding-keeness-factor=⟨n⟩ default: 1.5. Tweak unfolding settings. dynamic
-funfolding-use-threshold=⟨n⟩ default: 60. Tweak unfolding settings. dynamic

8.6.16. Profiling options

More details in Profiling

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fno-prof-auto Disables any previous -fprof-auto, -fprof-auto-top, or -fprof-auto-exported options. dynamic -fprof-auto
-fno-prof-cafs Disables any previous -fprof-cafs option. dynamic -fprof-cafs
-fno-prof-count-entries Do not collect entry counts dynamic -fprof-count-entries
-fprof-auto Auto-add SCC\ s to all bindings not marked INLINE dynamic -fno-prof-auto
-fprof-auto-calls Auto-add SCC\ s to all call sites dynamic -fno-prof-auto-calls
-fprof-auto-exported Auto-add SCC\ s to all exported bindings not marked INLINE dynamic -fno-prof-auto
-fprof-auto-top Auto-add SCC\ s to all top-level bindings not marked INLINE dynamic -fno-prof-auto
-fprof-cafs Auto-add SCC\ s to all CAFs dynamic -fno-prof-cafs
-prof Turn on profiling dynamic
-ticky Turn on ticky-ticky profiling dynamic

8.6.17. Program coverage options

More details in Observing Code Coverage

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fhpc Turn on Haskell program coverage instrumentation dynamic

8.6.18. C pre-processor options

More details in Options affecting the C pre-processor

Flag Description Type Reverse
-cpp Run the C pre-processor on Haskell source files dynamic
-D⟨symbol⟩[=⟨value⟩] Define a symbol in the C pre-processor dynamic -U⟨symbol⟩
-I⟨dir⟩ Add ⟨dir⟩ to the directory search list for #include files dynamic
-U⟨symbol⟩ Undefine a symbol in the C pre-processor dynamic

8.6.19. Code generation options

More details in Options affecting code generation

Flag Description Type Reverse
-dynamic-too Build dynamic object files as well as static object files during compilation dynamic
-fasm Use the native code generator dynamic -fllvm
-fbyte-code Generate byte-code dynamic
-fexternal-dynamic-refs Generate code for linking against dynamic libraries dynamic
-fllvm Compile using the LLVM code generator dynamic -fasm
-fno-code Omit code generation dynamic
-fobject-code Generate object code dynamic
-fPIC Generate position-independent code (where available) dynamic
-fPIE Generate code for a position-independent executable (where available) dynamic
-fwrite-interface Always write interface files dynamic

8.6.20. Linking options

More details in Options affecting linking

Flag Description Type Reverse
-c Stop after generating object (.o) file mode
-debug Use the debugging runtime dynamic
-dylib-install-name ⟨path⟩ Set the install name (via -install_name passed to Apple’s linker), specifying the full install path of the library file. Any libraries or executables that link with it later will pick up that path as their runtime search location for it. (Darwin/OS X only) dynamic
-dynamic Build dynamically-linked object files and executables dynamic
-dynload Selects one of a number of modes for finding shared libraries at runtime. dynamic
-eventlog Enable runtime event tracing dynamic
-fno-embed-manifest Do not embed the manifest in the executable (Windows only) dynamic
-fno-gen-manifest Do not generate a manifest file (Windows only) dynamic
-fno-shared-implib Don’t generate an import library for a DLL (Windows only) dynamic
-framework ⟨name⟩ On Darwin/OS X/iOS only, link in the framework ⟨name⟩. This option corresponds to the -framework option for Apple’s Linker. dynamic
-framework-path ⟨dir⟩ On Darwin/OS X/iOS only, add ⟨dir⟩ to the list of directories searched for frameworks. This option corresponds to the -F option for Apple’s Linker. dynamic
-fwhole-archive-hs-libs When linking a binary executable, this inserts the flag -Wl,--whole-archive before any -l flags for Haskell libraries, and -Wl,--no-whole-archive afterwards dynamic
-keep-cafs Do not garbage-collect CAFs (top-level expressions) at runtime dynamic
-L ⟨dir⟩ Add ⟨dir⟩ to the list of directories searched for libraries dynamic
-l ⟨lib⟩ Link in library ⟨lib⟩ dynamic
-main-is ⟨thing⟩ Set main module and function dynamic
-no-hs-main Don’t assume this program contains main dynamic
-no-rtsopts-suggestions Don’t print RTS suggestions about linking with -rtsopts[=⟨none|some|all|ignore|ignoreAll⟩]. dynamic
-package ⟨name⟩ Expose package ⟨pkg⟩ dynamic
-pie Instruct the linker to produce a position-independent executable. dynamic
-rdynamic This instructs the linker to add all symbols, not only used ones, to the dynamic symbol table. Currently Linux and Windows/MinGW32 only. This is equivalent to using -optl -rdynamic on Linux, and -optl -export-all-symbols on Windows. dynamic
-rtsopts[=⟨none|some|all|ignore|ignoreAll⟩] Control whether the RTS behaviour can be tweaked via command-line flags and the GHCRTS environment variable. Using none means no RTS flags can be given; some means only a minimum of safe options can be given (the default); all (or no argument at all) means that all RTS flags are permitted; ignore means RTS flags can be given, but are treated as regular arguments and passed to the Haskell program as arguments; ignoreAll is the same as ignore, but GHCRTS is also ignored. -rtsopts does not affect -with-rtsopts behavior; flags passed via -with-rtsopts are used regardless of -rtsopts. dynamic
-shared Generate a shared library (as opposed to an executable) dynamic
-split-objs Split objects (for libraries) dynamic
-split-sections Split sections for link-time dead-code stripping dynamic
-static Use static Haskell libraries dynamic
-staticlib Generate a standalone static library (as opposed to an executable). This is useful when cross compiling. The library together with all its dependencies ends up in in a single static library that can be linked against. dynamic
-threaded Use the threaded runtime dynamic
-with-rtsopts=⟨opts⟩ Set the default RTS options to ⟨opts⟩. dynamic

8.6.21. Plugin options

More details in Compiler Plugins

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fclear-plugins Clear the list of active plugins dynamic
-fplugin-opt=⟨module⟩:⟨args⟩ Give arguments to a plugin module; module must be specified with -fplugin=⟨module⟩ dynamic
-fplugin=⟨module⟩ Load a plugin exported by a given module dynamic
-hide-all-plugin-packages Hide all packages for plugins by default dynamic
-plugin-package ⟨pkg⟩ Expose ⟨pkg⟩ for plugins dynamic
-plugin-package-id ⟨pkg-id⟩ Expose ⟨pkg-id⟩ for plugins dynamic

8.6.22. Replacing phases

More details in Replacing the program for one or more phases

Flag Description Type Reverse
-pgma ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the assembler dynamic
-pgmc ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the C compiler dynamic
-pgmdll ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the DLL generator dynamic
-pgmF ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the pre-processor (with -F only) dynamic
-pgmi ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the external interpreter command. dynamic
-pgmL ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the literate pre-processor dynamic
-pgml ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the linker dynamic
-pgmlc ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the LLVM compiler dynamic
-pgmlibtool ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the command for libtool (with -staticlib only). dynamic
-pgmlo ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the LLVM optimiser dynamic
-pgmP ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the C pre-processor (with -cpp only) dynamic
-pgms ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the splitter dynamic
-pgmwindres ⟨cmd⟩ Use ⟨cmd⟩ as the program for embedding manifests on Windows. dynamic

8.6.23. Forcing options to particular phases

More details in Forcing options to a particular phase

Flag Description Type Reverse
-opta ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the assembler dynamic
-optc ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the C compiler dynamic
-optdll ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the DLL generator dynamic
-optF ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the custom pre-processor dynamic
-opti ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the interpreter sub-process. dynamic
-optL ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the literate pre-processor dynamic
-optl ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the linker dynamic
-optlc ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the LLVM compiler dynamic
-optlo ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to the LLVM optimiser dynamic
-optP ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to cpp (with -cpp only) dynamic
-optwindres ⟨option⟩ pass ⟨option⟩ to windres. dynamic

8.6.24. Platform-specific options

More details in Platform-specific Flags

Flag Description Type Reverse
-msse2 (x86 only) Use SSE2 for floating-point operations dynamic
-msse4.2 (x86 only) Use SSE4.2 for floating-point operations dynamic

8.6.25. Compiler debugging options

More details in Debugging the compiler

Flag Description Type Reverse
-dcmm-lint C-\- pass sanity checking dynamic
-dcore-lint Turn on internal sanity checking dynamic
-ddump-asm Dump final assembly dynamic
-ddump-asm-expanded Dump the result of the synthetic instruction expansion pass. dynamic
-ddump-asm-liveness Dump assembly augmented with register liveness dynamic
-ddump-asm-native Dump initial assembly dynamic
-ddump-asm-regalloc Dump the result of register allocation dynamic
-ddump-asm-regalloc-stages Dump the build/spill stages of the -fregs-graph register allocator. dynamic
-ddump-asm-stats Dump statistics from the register allocator. dynamic
-ddump-bcos Dump interpreter byte code dynamic
-ddump-cfg-weights Dump the assumed weights of the CFG. dynamic
-ddump-cmm Dump the final C-\- output dynamic
-ddump-cmm-caf Dump the results of the C-\- CAF analysis pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-cbe Dump the results of common block elimination dynamic
-ddump-cmm-cfg Dump the results of the C-\- control flow optimisation pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-cps Dump the results of the CPS pass dynamic
-ddump-cmm-from-stg Dump STG-to-C-\- output dynamic
-ddump-cmm-info Dump the results of the C-\- info table augmentation pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-proc Dump the results of proc-point analysis dynamic
-ddump-cmm-procmap Dump the results of the C-\- proc-point map pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-raw Dump raw C-\- dynamic
-ddump-cmm-sink Dump the results of the C-\- sinking pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-sp Dump the results of the C-\- stack layout pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-split Dump the results of the C-\- proc-point splitting pass. dynamic
-ddump-cmm-switch Dump the results of switch lowering passes dynamic
-ddump-cmm-verbose Show output from main C-\- pipeline passes dynamic
-ddump-core-stats Print a one-line summary of the size of the Core program at the end of the optimisation pipeline dynamic
-ddump-cse Dump CSE output dynamic
-ddump-deriv Dump deriving output dynamic
-ddump-ds, -ddump-ds-preopt Dump desugarer output. dynamic
-ddump-ec-trace Trace exhaustiveness checker dynamic
-ddump-file-prefix=⟨str⟩ Set the prefix of the filenames used for debugging output. dynamic
-ddump-foreign Dump foreign export stubs dynamic
-ddump-hpc An alias for -ddump-ticked. dynamic
-ddump-if-trace Trace interface files dynamic
-ddump-inlinings Dump inlining info dynamic
-ddump-json Dump error messages as JSON documents dynamic
-ddump-llvm Dump LLVM intermediate code. dynamic
-ddump-mod-map Dump the state of the module mapping database. dynamic
-ddump-occur-anal Dump occurrence analysis output dynamic
-ddump-opt-cmm Dump the results of C-\- to C-\- optimising passes dynamic
-ddump-parsed Dump parse tree dynamic
-ddump-parsed-ast Dump parser output as a syntax tree dynamic
-ddump-prep Dump prepared core dynamic
-ddump-rn Dump renamer output dynamic
-ddump-rn-ast Dump renamer output as a syntax tree dynamic
-ddump-rn-stats Renamer stats dynamic
-ddump-rn-trace Trace renamer dynamic
-ddump-rtti Trace runtime type inference dynamic
-ddump-rule-firings Dump rule firing info dynamic
-ddump-rule-rewrites Dump detailed rule firing info dynamic
-ddump-rules Dump rewrite rules dynamic
-ddump-simpl Dump final simplifier output dynamic
-ddump-simpl-iterations Dump output from each simplifier iteration dynamic
-ddump-simpl-stats Dump simplifier stats dynamic
-ddump-spec Dump specialiser output dynamic
-ddump-splices Dump TH spliced expressions, and what they evaluate to dynamic
-ddump-stg Dump final STG dynamic
-ddump-str-signatures Dump strictness signatures dynamic
-ddump-stranal Dump strictness analyser output dynamic
-ddump-tc Dump typechecker output dynamic
-ddump-tc-ast Dump typechecker output as a syntax tree dynamic
-ddump-tc-trace Trace typechecker dynamic
-ddump-ticked Dump the code instrumented by HPC (Observing Code Coverage). dynamic
-ddump-timings Dump per-pass timing and allocation statistics dynamic
-ddump-to-file Dump to files instead of stdout dynamic
-ddump-types Dump type signatures dynamic
-ddump-worker-wrapper Dump worker-wrapper output dynamic
-dfaststring-stats Show statistics for fast string usage when finished dynamic
-dhex-word-literals Print values of type Word# in hexadecimal. dynamic
-dinitial-unique=⟨s⟩ Start UniqSupply allocation from ⟨s⟩. dynamic
-dinline-check=⟨str⟩ Dump information about inlining decisions dynamic
-dno-debug-output Suppress unsolicited debugging output dynamic -ddebug-output
-dppr-case-as-let Print single alternative case expressions as strict lets. dynamic
-dppr-cols=⟨n⟩ Set the width of debugging output. For example -dppr-cols200 dynamic
-dppr-debug Turn on debug printing (more verbose) dynamic
-dppr-user-length Set the depth for printing expressions in error msgs dynamic
-drule-check=⟨str⟩ Dump information about potential rule application dynamic
-dshow-passes Print out each pass name as it happens dynamic
-dstg-lint STG pass sanity checking dynamic
-dsuppress-all In dumps, suppress everything (except for uniques) that is suppressible. dynamic
-dsuppress-coercions Suppress the printing of coercions in Core dumps to make them shorter dynamic
-dsuppress-idinfo Suppress extended information about identifiers where they are bound dynamic
-dsuppress-module-prefixes Suppress the printing of module qualification prefixes dynamic
-dsuppress-stg-free-vars Suppress the printing of closure free variable lists in STG output dynamic
-dsuppress-ticks Suppress “ticks” in the pretty-printer output. dynamic
-dsuppress-timestamps Suppress timestamps in dumps dynamic
-dsuppress-type-applications Suppress type applications dynamic
-dsuppress-type-signatures Suppress type signatures dynamic
-dsuppress-unfoldings Suppress the printing of the stable unfolding of a variable at its binding site dynamic
-dsuppress-uniques Suppress the printing of uniques in debug output (easier to use diff) dynamic
-dsuppress-var-kinds Suppress the printing of variable kinds dynamic
-dth-dec-file Dump evaluated TH declarations into *.th.hs files dynamic
-dunique-increment=⟨i⟩ Set the increment for the generated Unique‘s to ⟨i⟩. dynamic
-dverbose-core2core Show output from each core-to-core pass dynamic
-dverbose-stg2stg Show output from each STG-to-STG pass dynamic
-falignment-sanitisation Compile with alignment checks for all info table dereferences. dynamic
-fcatch-bottoms Insert error expressions after bottoming expressions; useful when debugging the compiler. dynamic
-fllvm-fill-undef-with-garbage Intruct LLVM to fill dead STG registers with garbage dynamic
-fproc-alignment Align functions at given boundary. dynamic
-g, -g⟨n⟩ Produce DWARF debug information in compiled object files. ⟨n⟩ can be 0, 1, or 2, with higher numbers producing richer output. If ⟨n⟩ is omitted, level 2 is assumed. dynamic

8.6.26. Miscellaneous compiler options

Flag Description Type Reverse
-fexternal-interpreter Run interpreted code in a separate process dynamic
-fglasgow-exts Deprecated. Enable most language extensions; see Language options for exactly which ones. dynamic -fno-glasgow-exts
-ghcversion-file ⟨path to ghcversion.h⟩ (GHC as a C compiler only) Use this ghcversion.h file dynamic
-H ⟨size⟩ Set the minimum size of the heap to ⟨size⟩ dynamic
-j[⟨n⟩] When compiling with --make, compile ⟨n⟩ modules in parallel. dynamic