scan-build

Clang static analyzer build integration tool

TLDR

Analyze build

$ scan-build make

Analyze with output directory

$ scan-build -o [reports/] make

Use specific checkers

$ scan-build -enable-checker [alpha.security] make

Open results in browser

$ scan-build --view make

With CMake

$ scan-build cmake --build [build/]

List available checkers

$ scan-build --list-checkers

Verbose output

$ scan-build -v make

SYNOPSIS

scan-build [-o dir] [--view] [options] build-command

scan-build wraps build commands to run Clang's static analyzer on each compiled source file. It intercepts compilation, analyzing C, C++, and Objective-C code for bugs including null pointer dereferences, memory leaks, use-after-free errors, and API misuse without executing the code.Analysis results are presented as HTML reports with interactive path visualizations showing the exact sequence of events leading to each bug. Additional checker categories can be enabled with -enable-checker for deeper analysis including security vulnerabilities and experimental checks. The --status-bugs flag returns a non-zero exit code when bugs are found, useful for CI integration.

PARAMETERS

-o DIR

Output directory.

--view

Open results in browser.

-v

Verbose output.

-enable-checker CHECKER

Enable checker.

-disable-checker CHECKER

Disable checker.

--list-checkers

Show available checkers.

--status-bugs

Exit non-zero if bugs found.

-plist

Generate plist files.

INSTALL

sudo apt install clang-tools

sudo apk add clang22-analyzer

sudo zypper install clang-tools

nix profile install nixpkgs#clang-tools

CAVEATS

Increases build time significantly. False positives require tuning. C/C++ and Objective-C only.

HISTORY

scan-build is part of the Clang project. It provides an accessible interface to Clang's static analysis capabilities.