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<span id="openzim-page-title" class="mw-page-title-main"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Source-code compatibility</span></span>
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<b>Source-code compatibility</b> (source-compatible) means that a program can run on <a href="Central_processing_unit" title="Central processing unit">computers</a> (or <a href="Operating_system" title="Operating system">operating systems</a>), independently of <a href="Binary-code_compatibility" title="Binary-code compatibility">binary-code compatibility</a> and that the <a href="Source_code" title="Source code">source code</a> is needed for <a href="Software_portability" title="Software portability">portability</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Baron_Higbie_1992_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Baron_Higbie_1992-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>
</p><p>The source code must be <a href="Compiler" title="Compiler">compiled</a> before running, unless the computer used has an <a href="Interpreter_(computing)" title="Interpreter (computing)">interpreter</a> for the language at hand.<sup id="cite_ref-Data_Processing_Digest_1980_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Data_Processing_Digest_1980-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The term is also used for <a href="Assembly_language" title="Assembly language">assembly language</a> compatibility, where the source is a <a href="Human-readable" class="mw-redirect" title="Human-readable">human-readable</a> form of <a href="Machine_code" title="Machine code">machine code</a> that must be converted into numerical (i.e. executable) machine code by an <a href="Assembly_language#Assembler" title="Assembly language">assembler</a>. This is different from <a href="Binary-code_compatibility" title="Binary-code compatibility">binary-code compatibility</a>, where no recompilation (or assembly) is needed.<sup id="cite_ref-Stern_Monti_Bachmann_1998_3-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Stern_Monti_Bachmann_1998-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>
</p><p>Source compatibility is a major issue in the developing of computer programs. For example, most <a href="Unix" title="Unix">Unix</a> systems are source-compatible, as long as one uses only standard <a href="Library_(computing)" title="Library (computing)">libraries</a>. <a href="Microsoft_Windows" title="Microsoft Windows">Microsoft Windows</a> systems are source-compatible across one major family (the <a href="Windows_NT" title="Windows NT">Windows NT</a> family, from <a href="Windows_NT_3.1" title="Windows NT 3.1">NT 3.1</a> through <a href="Windows_11" title="Windows 11">Windows 11</a>, or the family that includes <a href="Windows_95" title="Windows 95">Windows 95</a>, <a href="Windows_98" title="Windows 98">Windows 98</a>, and <a href="Windows_Me" title="Windows Me">Windows Me</a>), with partial source compatibility between the two families.
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<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2></div>
<ul><li><a href="Backward_compatibility" title="Backward compatibility">Backward compatibility</a></li>
<li><a href="Source_upgrade" title="Source upgrade">Source upgrade</a></li></ul>
<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2></div>
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<li id="cite_note-Baron_Higbie_1992-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Baron_Higbie_1992_1-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">
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</style><cite id="CITEREFBaronHigbie1992" class="citation book cs1">Baron, R.J.; Higbie, L. (1992). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=CNdQAAAAMAAJ"><i>Computer Architecture</i></a>. Addison-Wesley series in electrical and computer engineering. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. p. 106. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-0-201-50923-6</bdi><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">9 May</span> 2018</span>.</cite></span>
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<li id="cite_note-Data_Processing_Digest_1980-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Data_Processing_Digest_1980_2-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite class="citation book cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=KaVIAAAAYAAJ"><i>Data Processing Digest</i></a>. Data Processing Digest, Incorporated. 1980. p. 21<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">9 May</span> 2018</span>.</cite></span>
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<li id="cite_note-Stern_Monti_Bachmann_1998-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Stern_Monti_Bachmann_1998_3-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><cite id="CITEREFSternMontiBachmann1998" class="citation book cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source">Stern, M.; Monti, G.; Bachmann, V. (1998). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Ixuh0wTZ4GwC"><i>NT Enterprise Network Design</i></a> (in Estonian). Sybex, Network Press. p. 17. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-0-7821-2156-8</bdi><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">9 May</span> 2018</span>.</cite></span>
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