What is the process of converting a program in its executable form into an assembler language representation?

• A. Decompiling
• B. Interpreting
• C. Disassembling
• D. Compiling

Answer: (C)

Disassembling is the process of translating an executable back into assembly language. A disassembler reads the binary machine instructions and maps each opcode and its operands to the corresponding assembly mnemonic, producing a human-readable representation that reflects what the program does at the instruction level. This is different from compiling, which converts high-level source code into executable machine code; interpreting, which runs code directly rather than producing an assembly listing; and decompiling, which aims to recover higher-level source code from an executable. Keep in mind that the disassembled output may not perfectly reflect the original source due to optimizations, inlining, and other compilation choices, but it provides a concrete, architecture-specific view of the program’s behavior.