What is a Return Stack?

[massakrienen]

Hello,

 

Can someone please tell me what a return stack is, or suggest me some useful links? I could not find anything useful on the internet. Is it also called as "call stack"?

 

Thank you.

[Spyman]

In computer science, a call stack is a stack data structure that stores information about the active subroutines of a computer program.

/Snip/

A call stack is used for several related purposes, but the main reason for having one is to keep track of the point to which each active subroutine should return control when it finishes executing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_stack

[massakrienen]

So, call stack and return stack are the same thing?

[Spyman]

It depends on what programming language you use, I normally don't use this type of high level language so I can't say for certain, but:

 

In the Forth programming language, for example, ordinarily only the return address, counted loop parameters and indexes, and possibly local variables are stored on the call stack (which in that environment is named the return stack)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_stack#Functions_of_the_call_stack