What is static linking

Static linking refers to the process of including all necessary library code directly into the executable at compile time. This means that the resulting binary contains all the code it needs to run, without requiring external libraries to be present on the system where it is executed. This can be particularly useful in environments where you want to ensure that your application has all its dependencies bundled together, such as when deploying to a system that may not have the required libraries installed.

In the context of WWDC, static linking was mentioned in the session titled "What’s new in Swift" where a fully static Linux SDK for Swift was introduced. This SDK allows developers to cross-compile from macOS to Linux, producing statically linked binaries that can run on any Linux machine without needing additional packages. This is particularly useful for deploying applications to environments where you want to minimize external dependencies.

For more details, you can refer to the session What’s new in Swift (07:37).