Why Does Go Need Runtime Support Even Though It\'s Compiled?

Why Go Programs Still Require Runtime Support Even Though They Are Compiled

While Go is indeed a compiled language, its compilation process differs from that of traditional programming languages. When a Go program is compiled, it is translated into an intermediate representation known as the Go assembly language. This intermediate code is then processed by the Go Runtime Support for the target platform, which converts it into machine code.

The Go Runtime Support, often referred to as the "runtime," provides essential services for the Go program, including:

• Garbage collection: Automatically manages memory by reclaiming unused objects.
• Concurrency primitives: Supports goroutine scheduling and synchronization.
• Type information: Maintains type information at runtime to support reflection and interfaces.
• OS-specific functionality: Provides access to low-level system resources, such as file I/O and network communication.

Even though the Go binary contains compiled machine code, distributing it alone is insufficient because it still relies on the Go Runtime Support for these core services. Therefore, go install, go run, and other related commands are necessary for distributing and executing Go programs, as they ensure that the runtime is present on the target machine.

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