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Core · Module 4

Composite Types and Dynamic Memory Allocation

Design composite data structures, inspect compiler struct padding, and manage heap memory with custom allocators.

Start the modulePro9 lessons · about 152 minutes

Structures, unions, and dynamic memory allocation bridge the gap between primitive scalar variables and scalable systems data models. This module explores hardware memory alignment, padding rules, and heap allocator chunk management. Mastering these mechanisms allows you to construct memory-efficient composite types, prevent fragmentation, and implement custom allocators.

  1. 1Structures, Alignment, and PaddingPro — members onlyInspect hardware memory alignment, calculate compiler struct padding and trailing bytes, and optimize composite data layouts.16 min
  2. 2Unions, Bitfields, and Type PunningPro — members onlyMaster shared memory overlays with unions, pack hardware register flags using bitfields, and inspect object representations without violating aliasing rules.16 min
  3. 3Enumerations and Typedef AbstractionsPro — members onlyStructure domain models using integer enumerations, avoid namespace collisions, and build maintainable type abstractions with typedef.15 min
  4. 4Heap Allocation with malloc, calloc, and reallocPro — members onlyMaster dynamic heap memory lifecycles, inspect allocator chunk metadata, and resize memory buffers safely with realloc.17 min
  5. 5Dynamic Memory Lifecycles and Leak PreventionPro — members onlyTrack heap ownership semantics, eliminate memory leaks, use AddressSanitizer and Valgrind, and prevent dangling pointer bugs.16 min
  6. 6Arena and Pool Memory AllocatorsPro — members onlyBypass general-purpose malloc overhead by designing O(1) linear bump arenas and fixed-size chunk pool allocators.16 min
  7. 7Dynamic Arrays and Linked Node StructuresPro — members onlyContrast contiguous geometric growth with non-contiguous node traversal, evaluate pointer chasing against cache locality, and build dynamic data containers.16 min
  8. 8Opaque Pointers and API EncapsulationPro — members onlyEnforce information hiding using incomplete struct declarations, guarantee ABI stability across library updates, and design opaque handle APIs.15 min
  9. 9Project: Memory-Safe Collections with Slab and Arena AllocatorsPro — members onlyEngineer a high-performance C dynamic collections library backed by custom bump arenas, fixed-size slab allocators, and bounds-checked containers.25 min