Question

How do I compile to check syntax without attempting to run the program? (Language = C)

Answer 1

I haven't seen a compile-only feature in Online GDB.

However, you can always just put a return statement as the first line of your main() so the code compiles and runs, but it will exit immediately and not do anything. ;)

Answer 2

To check for syntax errors in a C program without actually running it, you can use a compiler like gcc with the -fsyntax-only option. This tells the compiler to only check for syntax issues and skip linking or execution.

gcc -fsyntax-only your_file.c

Comments

If you click the gear in the upper right of OnlineGDB (just to the right of the language choice) then choose "Other Compiler Flags" you can enter -fsyntax-only into the box.