Dynamic Memory Allocator

Dynamic memory allocator project to implement malloc and free functions in C to perform like the built-int functions in malloc Package of C.
Hint: The base code for this project is taken from Computer Systems_ A Programmer’s Perspective by Randal E. Bryant, David R. O’Hallaron

Assumptions

Our allocator uses a model of the memory system provided by the memlib.c .The purpose of the model is to allow us to run our allocator without interfering with the existing system-level malloc package.
The mem_init function models the virtual memory available to the heap as a large double-word aligned array of bytes.
The bytes between mem_heap and mem_brk represent allocated virtual memory. The bytes following mem_brk represent unallocated virtual memory.
The allocator requests additional heap memory by calling the mem_sbrk function, which has the same interface as the system’s sbrk function, as well as the same semantics, except that it rejects requests to shrink the heap.
The minimum block size is 16 bytes.
The free list is organized as an implicit free list (The initial Commit Only will have another efficient lists like explicit lists or segregatted lists).
In heap : The first word is an unused padding word aligned to a double-word boundary.
In heap : The padding is followed by a special prologue block, which is an 8-byte allocated block consisting of only a header and a footer.
In heap : Always ends with a special epilogue block, which is a zero-size allocated block that consists of only a header.
HINT : The prologue and epilogue blocks are tricks that eliminate the edge conditions during merging free blocks.
The allocator uses a single private (static) global variable heap_listp that always points to the prologue block.

mem_allocator.c

This is the file in which mm_malloc and mm_free are implemented

Functions Description

int mm_init() : Creates the heap and initializes it with free block
void *mm_malloc(size_t size) : Allocates block in memory of size (size_t size) . Returns (void *) pointer to the address of the block beginning
void mm_free(void *bp) : Frees the requested block (bp) and then merges adjacent free blocks using the boundary-tags merging technique
static void *extend_heap(size_t words) : The extend_heap function is invoked in two different circumstances: 1st: When the heap is initialized 2nd: when mm_malloc is unable to find a suitable fit To maintain alignment, extend_heap rounds up the requested size to the nearest multiple of 2 words (8 bytes) and then requests the additional heap space from the memory system.
static void *merge(void *bp) : Returns Address of merged free blocks
static void *find_fit(size_t asize) : First-fit search of the implicit free list to find free block
void place (void *bp, size_t asize) : Places the requested block at the beginning of the free block, splitting only if the size of the remainder would equal or exceed the minimum block size.