TOC section and its relation with GOT

ELF processor-specific supplements normally define a GOT ("Global Offset Table") section used to hold addresses for position independent code. Some ELF processor-specific supplements, including the 32-bit PowerPC Processor Supplement, define a small data section. The same register is sometimes used to address both the GOT and the small data section.
The 64-bit PowerOpen ABI defines a TOC ("Table of Contents") section. The TOC combines the functions of the GOT and the small data section.
This ABI uses the term TOC. The TOC section defined here is intended to be similar to that defined by the 64-bit PowerOpen ABI. The TOC section contains a conventional ELF GOT, and may optionally contain a small data area. The GOT and the small data area may be intermingled in the TOC section.
The TOC section is accessed via the dedicated TOC pointer register, r2. Accesses are normally made using the register indirect with immediate index mode supported by the 64-bit PowerPC processor, which limits a single TOC section to 65,536 bytes, enough for 8,192 GOT entries.
The value of the TOC pointer register is called the TOC base. The TOC base is typically the first address in the TOC plus 0x8000, thus permitting a full 64 Kbyte TOC.
A relocatable object file must have a single TOC section and a single TOC base. However, when the link editor combines relocatable object files to form a single executable or shared object, it may create multiple TOC sections. The link editor is responsible for deciding how to associate TOC sections with object files. Normally the link editor will only create multiple TOC sections if it has more than 65,536 bytes to store in a TOC.
All link editors which support this ABI must support a single TOC section, but support for multiple TOC sections is optional.
Each shared object will have a separate TOC or TOCs.

	Note
	This ABI does not actually restrict the size of a TOC section. It is permissible to use a larger TOC section, if code uses a different addressing mode to access it. The AIX link editor, in particular, does not support multiple TOC sections, but instead inserts call out code at link time to support larger TOC sections.