# ax, Qax

Tells the compiler to generate multiple, feature-specific auto-dispatch code paths for Intel® processors if there is a performance benefit.

## Syntax

Linux: | -ax code

macOS: | -ax code

Windows: | /Qax code

## Arguments

code | Indicates to the compiler a feature set that it may target, including which instruction sets it may generate. The following descriptions refer to Intel® Streaming SIMD Extensions (Intel® SSE) and Supplemental Streaming SIMD Extensions (SSSE). Possible values are:
ALDERLAKE AMBERLAKE BROADWELL CANNONLAKE CASCADELAKE COFFEELAKE COOPERLAKE GOLDMONT GOLDMONT-PLUS HASWELL ICELAKE-CLIENT (or ICELAKE) ICELAKE-SERVER IVYBRIDGE KABYLAKE KNL KNM ROCKETLAKE SANDYBRIDGE SAPPHIRERAPIDS SILVERMONT SKYLAKE SKYLAKE-AVX512 TIGERLAKE TREMONT WHISKEYLAKE | May generate instructions for processors that support the specified Intel® processor or microarchitecture code name. Keywords KNL and SILVERMONT are only available on Windows* and Linux* systems. Keyword ICELAKE is deprecated and may be removed in a future release.
COMMON-AVX512 | May generate Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions 512 (Intel® AVX-512) Foundation instructions, Intel® AVX-512 Conflict Detection Instructions (CDI), as well as the instructions enabled with CORE-AVX2.
CORE-AVX512 | May generate Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions 512 (Intel® AVX-512) Foundation instructions, Intel® AVX-512 Conflict Detection Instructions (CDI), Intel® AVX-512 Doubleword and Quadword Instructions (DQI), Intel® AVX-512 Byte and Word Instructions (BWI) and Intel® AVX-512 Vector Length extensions, as well as the instructions enabled with CORE-AVX2.
CORE-AVX2 | May generate Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions 2 (Intel® AVX2), Intel® AVX, SSE4.2, SSE4.1, SSE3, SSE2, SSE, and SSSE3 instructions for Intel® processors.
CORE-AVX-I | May generate Float-16 conversion instructions and the RDRND instruction, Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (Intel® AVX), Intel® SSE4.2, SSE4.1, SSE3, SSE2, SSE, and SSSE3 instructions for Intel® processors.
AVX | May generate Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (Intel® AVX), Intel® SSE4.2, SSE4.1, SSE3, SSE2, SSE, and SSSE3 instructions for Intel® processors.
SSE4.2 | May generate Intel® SSE4.2, SSE4.1, SSE3, SSE2, SSE, and SSSE3 instructions for Intel processors.
SSE4.1 | May generate Intel® SSE4.1, SSE3, SSE2, SSE, and SSSE3 instructions for Intel® processors.
SSSE3 | May generate SSSE3 instructions and Intel® SSE3, SSE2, and SSE instructions for Intel® processors. For macOS* systems, this value is only supported on Intel® 64 architecture. This replaces value T, which is deprecated.
SSE3 | May generate Intel® SSE3, SSE2, and SSE instructions for Intel® processors. This value is not available on macOS* systems.
SSE2 | May generate Intel® SSE2 and SSE instructions for Intel® processors. This value is not available on macOS* systems.

You can specify more than one code value. When specifying more than one code value, each value must be separated with a comma. See the Examples section below.

## Default

OFF | No auto-dispatch code is generated. Feature-specific code is generated and is controlled by the setting of the following compiler options: Linux*: -m and -x Windows*: /arch and /Qx macOS*: -x

## Description

This option tells the compiler to generate multiple, feature-specific auto-dispatch code paths for Intel® processors if there is a performance benefit. It also generates a baseline code path. The Intel feature-specific auto-dispatch path is usually more optimized than the baseline path. Other options, such as O3, control how much optimization is performed on the baseline path.

The baseline code path is determined by the architecture specified by options -m or -x (Linux* and macOS*) or options /arch or /Qx (Windows*). While there are defaults for the [Q]x option that depend on the operating system being used, you can specify an architecture and optimization level for the baseline code that is higher or lower than the default. The specified architecture becomes the effective minimum architecture for the baseline code path.

If you specify both the [Q]ax and [Q]x options, the baseline code will only execute on Intel® processors compatible with the setting specified for the [Q]x.

If you specify both the -ax and -m options (Linux and macOS*) or the /Qax and /arch options (Windows), the baseline code will execute on non-Intel processors compatible with the setting specified for the -m or /arch option.

If you specify both the -ax and -march options (Linux and macOS*), or the /Qax and /arch options (Windows), the compiler will not generate Intel-specific instructions. This is because specifying -march disables -ax and specifying /arch disables /Qax.

The [Q]ax option tells the compiler to find opportunities to generate separate versions of functions that take advantage of features of the specified instruction features.

If the compiler finds such an opportunity, it first checks whether generating a feature-specific version of a function is likely to result in a performance gain. If this is the case, the compiler generates both a feature-specific version of a function and a baseline version of the function. At run time, one of the versions is chosen to execute, depending on the Intel® processor in use. In this way, the program can benefit from performance gains on more advanced Intel processors, while still working properly on older processors and non-Intel processors. A non-Intel processor always executes the baseline code path.

You can use more than one of the feature values by combining them. For example, you can specify -axSSE4.1,SSSE3 (Linux and macOS*) or /QaxSSE4.1,SSSE3 (Windows). You cannot combine the old style, deprecated options and the new options. For example, you cannot specify -axSSE4.1,T (Linux and macOS*) or /QaxSSE4.1,T (Windows).

Product and Performance Information
Performance varies by use, configuration and other factors. Learn more at www.Intel.com/PerformanceIndex. Notice revision #20201201

## IDE Equivalent

Visual Studio: Code Generation > Add Processor-Optimized Code Path

Eclipse: Code Generation > Add Processor-Optimized Code Path

Xcode: Code Generation > Add Processor-Optimized Code Path

## Alternate Options

None

## Examples

The following shows an example of how to specify this option:

    icpc -axSKYLAKE file.cpp		! Linux* and macOS* systems
    icl /QaxSKYLAKE file.cpp		! Windows* systems

The following shows an example of how to specify more than one code value:

    icpc -axSKYLAKE,BROADWELL file.cpp	  ! Linux* and macOS* systems
    icl /QaxBROADWELL,SKYLAKE file.cpp	  ! Windows* systems

Note that the comma-separated list must have no spaces between the names.

Parent topic: Code Generation Options

## See Also

x, Qx compiler option
xHost, QxHost compiler option
march compiler option
arch compiler option
m compiler option