Wild branch

 ( Control Flow ) 

In computer programming, a wild branch is a GOTO instruction where the target address is indeterminate, random or otherwise unintended. Debug Aid for Wild Branch Conditions It is usually the result of a software bug causing the accidental corruption of a pointer or array index. It is "wild" in the sense that it cannot be predicted to behave consistently. In other words, a wild branch is a function pointer that is wild (dangling).

Detection of wild branches is frequently difficult; they are normally identified by erroneous results (where the unintended target address is nevertheless a valid instruction enabling the program to continue despite the error) or a hardware interrupt, which may change depending upon register contents. and monitor programs such as Instruction set simulators can sometimes be used to determine the location of the original wild branch.

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See also

• Dangling pointer

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