In the previous chapter, we studied how gas-costly coding patterns are classified into two categories in terms of smart contract optimization. In this section, we will try to understand how the internal optimizer of the solidity compiler works. The sole aim of this optimizer is to generate assembly opcodes and, subsequently, machine code from high-level programming constructs in a way that reduces the gas cost during runtime.
We will go through a high-level view of the optimizer, take on a simple contract, and see how our assembly opcodes are generated in the presence and absence of an optimizer. This will also serve as an option to debugging a solidity smart contract for better performance in terms of gas-cost.
So what happens in a solidity optimizer when it is fed with a piece of code? It basically splits the sequence of instructions into blocks of atomic instructions at JUMPs and JUMPDESTs opcodes. It operates on the assembly so that it can be used by other...