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prologue / epilogue

The small bookkeeping code the compiler inserts at the start and end of every function to set up and tear down its workspace.

When a function is called, its prologue saves registers and reserves stack space; when it returns, its epilogue restores everything and hands control back. This standard entry/exit code is what makes nested calls and returns work reliably. Precisely where execution sits relative to these — for example whether a newly created thread resumes inside or outside a timer-interrupt's epilogue — determines whether the machine state is consistent on resume.