If you allow gdb to set range checking automatically, it
defaults to off whenever the working language changes to
C or C++. This happens regardless of whether you or gdb
selects the working language.
If you allow gdb to set the language automatically, it recognizes source files whose names end with .c, .C, or .cc, etc, and when gdb enters code compiled from one of these files, it sets the working language to C or C++. See Having gdb Infer the Source Language, for further details.