5 @node Installation, Maintenance, Library Summary, Top
8 @c %MENU% How to install the GNU C Library
9 @appendix Installing @theglibc{}
11 Before you do anything else, you should read the FAQ at
12 @url{https://sourceware.org/glibc/wiki/FAQ}. It answers common
13 questions and describes problems you may experience with compilation
16 You will need recent versions of several GNU tools: definitely GCC and
17 GNU Make, and possibly others. @xref{Tools for Compilation}, below.
21 * Configuring and compiling:: How to compile and test GNU libc.
22 * Running make install:: How to install it once you've got it
24 * Tools for Compilation:: You'll need these first.
25 * Linux:: Specific advice for GNU/Linux systems.
26 * Reporting Bugs:: So they'll get fixed.
30 @node Configuring and compiling
31 @appendixsec Configuring and compiling @theglibc{}
35 @Theglibc{} cannot be compiled in the source directory. You must build
36 it in a separate build directory. For example, if you have unpacked
37 the @glibcadj{} sources in @file{/src/gnu/glibc-@var{version}},
39 @file{/src/gnu/glibc-build} to put the object files in. This allows
40 removing the whole build directory in case an error occurs, which is
41 the safest way to get a fresh start and should always be done.
43 From your object directory, run the shell script @file{configure} located
44 at the top level of the source tree. In the scenario above, you'd type
47 $ ../glibc-@var{version}/configure @var{args@dots{}}
50 Please note that even though you're building in a separate build
51 directory, the compilation may need to create or modify files and
52 directories in the source directory.
55 @code{configure} takes many options, but the only one that is usually
56 mandatory is @samp{--prefix}. This option tells @code{configure}
57 where you want @theglibc{} installed. This defaults to @file{/usr/local},
58 but the normal setting to install as the standard system library is
59 @samp{--prefix=/usr} for @gnulinuxsystems{} and @samp{--prefix=} (an
60 empty prefix) for @gnuhurdsystems{}.
62 It may also be useful to pass @samp{CC=@var{compiler}} and
63 @code{CFLAGS=@var{flags}} arguments to @code{configure}. @code{CC}
64 selects the C compiler that will be used, and @code{CFLAGS} sets
65 optimization options for the compiler. Any compiler options required
66 for all compilations, such as options selecting an ABI or a processor
67 for which to generate code, should be included in @code{CC}. Options
68 that may be overridden by the @glibcadj{} build system for particular
69 files, such as for optimization and debugging, should go in
70 @code{CFLAGS}. The default value of @code{CFLAGS} is @samp{-g -O2},
71 and @theglibc{} cannot be compiled without optimization, so if
72 @code{CFLAGS} is specified it must enable optimization. For example:
75 $ ../glibc-@var{version}/configure CC="gcc -m32" CFLAGS="-O3"
78 The following list describes all of the available options for
82 @item --prefix=@var{directory}
83 Install machine-independent data files in subdirectories of
84 @file{@var{directory}}. The default is to install in @file{/usr/local}.
86 @item --exec-prefix=@var{directory}
87 Install the library and other machine-dependent files in subdirectories
88 of @file{@var{directory}}. The default is to the @samp{--prefix}
89 directory if that option is specified, or @file{/usr/local} otherwise.
91 @item --with-headers=@var{directory}
92 Look for kernel header files in @var{directory}, not
93 @file{/usr/include}. @Theglibc{} needs information from the kernel's header
94 files describing the interface to the kernel. @Theglibc{} will normally
95 look in @file{/usr/include} for them,
96 but if you specify this option, it will look in @var{DIRECTORY} instead.
98 This option is primarily of use on a system where the headers in
99 @file{/usr/include} come from an older version of @theglibc{}. Conflicts can
100 occasionally happen in this case. You can also use this option if you want to
101 compile @theglibc{} with a newer set of kernel headers than the ones found in
104 @item --enable-kernel=@var{version}
105 This option is currently only useful on @gnulinuxsystems{}. The
106 @var{version} parameter should have the form X.Y.Z and describes the
107 smallest version of the Linux kernel the generated library is expected
108 to support. The higher the @var{version} number is, the less
109 compatibility code is added, and the faster the code gets.
111 @item --with-binutils=@var{directory}
112 Use the binutils (assembler and linker) in @file{@var{directory}}, not
113 the ones the C compiler would default to. You can use this option if
114 the default binutils on your system cannot deal with all the constructs
115 in @theglibc{}. In that case, @code{configure} will detect the
116 problem and suppress these constructs, so that the library will still be
117 usable, but functionality may be lost---for example, you can't build a
118 shared libc with old binutils.
120 @item --with-default-link
121 With @code{--with-default-link}, the build system does not use a custom
122 linker script for linking shared objects. The default is
123 @code{--without-default-link}, because the custom linker script is
124 needed for full RELRO protection.
126 @item --with-nonshared-cflags=@var{cflags}
127 Use additional compiler flags @var{cflags} to build the parts of the
128 library which are always statically linked into applications and
129 libraries even with shared linking (that is, the object files contained
130 in @file{lib*_nonshared.a} libraries). The build process will
131 automatically use the appropriate flags, but this option can be used to
132 set additional flags required for building applications and libraries,
133 to match local policy. For example, if such a policy requires that all
134 code linked into applications must be built with source fortification,
135 @samp{--with-nonshared-cflags=-Wp,-D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=2} will make sure
136 that the objects in @file{libc_nonshared.a} are compiled with this flag
137 (although this will not affect the generated code in this particular
138 case and potentially change debugging information and metadata only).
140 @item --with-rtld-early-cflags=@var{cflags}
141 Use additional compiler flags @var{cflags} to build the early startup
142 code of the dynamic linker. These flags can be used to enable early
143 dynamic linker diagnostics to run on CPUs which are not compatible with
144 the rest of @theglibc{}, for example, due to compiler flags which target
145 a later instruction set architecture (ISA).
147 @item --with-timeoutfactor=@var{NUM}
148 Specify an integer @var{NUM} to scale the timeout of test programs.
149 This factor can be changed at run time using @env{TIMEOUTFACTOR}
150 environment variable.
152 @c disable static doesn't work currently
153 @c @item --disable-static
154 @c Don't build static libraries. Static libraries aren't that useful these
155 @c days, but we recommend you build them in case you need them.
157 @item --disable-shared
158 Don't build shared libraries even if it is possible. Not all systems
159 support shared libraries; you need ELF support and (currently) the GNU
162 @item --disable-default-pie
163 Don't build glibc programs and the testsuite as position independent
164 executables (PIE). By default, glibc programs and tests are created as
165 position independent executables on targets that support it. If the toolchain
166 and architecture support it, static executables are built as static PIE and the
167 resulting glibc can be used with the GCC option, -static-pie, which is
168 available with GCC 8 or above, to create static PIE.
171 @itemx --enable-cet=permissive
172 Enable Intel Control-flow Enforcement Technology (CET) support. When
173 @theglibc{} is built with @option{--enable-cet} or
174 @option{--enable-cet=permissive}, the resulting library
175 is protected with indirect branch tracking (IBT) and shadow stack
176 (SHSTK)@. When CET is enabled, @theglibc{} is compatible with all
177 existing executables and shared libraries. This feature is currently
178 supported on i386, x86_64 and x32 with GCC 8 and binutils 2.29 or later.
179 Note that when CET is enabled, @theglibc{} requires CPUs capable of
180 multi-byte NOPs, like x86-64 processors as well as Intel Pentium Pro or
181 newer. With @option{--enable-cet}, it is an error to dlopen a non CET
182 enabled shared library in CET enabled application. With
183 @option{--enable-cet=permissive}, CET is disabled when dlopening a
184 non CET enabled shared library in CET enabled application.
186 NOTE: @option{--enable-cet} has been tested for i686, x86_64 and x32
187 on non-CET processors. @option{--enable-cet} has been tested for
188 i686, x86_64 and x32 on CET processors.
190 @item --enable-memory-tagging
191 Enable memory tagging support if the architecture supports it. When
192 @theglibc{} is built with this option then the resulting library will
193 be able to control the use of tagged memory when hardware support is
194 present by use of the tunable @samp{glibc.mem.tagging}. This includes
195 the generation of tagged memory when using the @code{malloc} APIs.
197 At present only AArch64 platforms with MTE provide this functionality,
198 although the library will still operate (without memory tagging) on
199 older versions of the architecture.
201 The default is to disable support for memory tagging.
203 @item --disable-profile
204 Don't build libraries with profiling information. You may want to use
205 this option if you don't plan to do profiling.
207 @item --enable-static-nss
208 Compile static versions of the NSS (Name Service Switch) libraries.
209 This is not recommended because it defeats the purpose of NSS; a program
210 linked statically with the NSS libraries cannot be dynamically
211 reconfigured to use a different name database.
213 @item --enable-hardcoded-path-in-tests
214 By default, dynamic tests are linked to run with the installed C library.
215 This option hardcodes the newly built C library path in dynamic tests
216 so that they can be invoked directly.
218 @item --disable-timezone-tools
219 By default, timezone related utilities (@command{zic}, @command{zdump},
220 and @command{tzselect}) are installed with @theglibc{}. If you are building
221 these independently (e.g. by using the @samp{tzcode} package), then this
222 option will allow disabling the install of these.
224 Note that you need to make sure the external tools are kept in sync with
225 the versions that @theglibc{} expects as the data formats may change over
226 time. Consult the @file{timezone} subdirectory for more details.
228 @item --enable-stack-protector
229 @itemx --enable-stack-protector=strong
230 @itemx --enable-stack-protector=all
231 Compile the C library and all other parts of the glibc package
232 (including the threading and math libraries, NSS modules, and
233 transliteration modules) using the GCC @option{-fstack-protector},
234 @option{-fstack-protector-strong} or @option{-fstack-protector-all}
235 options to detect stack overruns. Only the dynamic linker and a small
236 number of routines called directly from assembler are excluded from this
239 @item --enable-bind-now
240 Disable lazy binding for installed shared objects and programs. This
241 provides additional security hardening because it enables full RELRO
242 and a read-only global offset table (GOT), at the cost of slightly
243 increased program load times.
247 @item --enable-pt_chown
248 The file @file{pt_chown} is a helper binary for @code{grantpt}
249 (@pxref{Allocation, Pseudo-Terminals}) that is installed setuid root to
250 fix up pseudo-terminal ownership on GNU/Hurd. It is not required on
251 GNU/Linux, and @theglibc{} will not use the installed @file{pt_chown}
252 program when configured with @option{--enable-pt_chown}.
254 @item --disable-werror
255 By default, @theglibc{} is built with @option{-Werror}. If you wish
256 to build without this option (for example, if building with a newer
257 version of GCC than this version of @theglibc{} was tested with, so
258 new warnings cause the build with @option{-Werror} to fail), you can
259 configure with @option{--disable-werror}.
261 @item --disable-mathvec
262 By default for x86_64, @theglibc{} is built with the vector math library.
263 Use this option to disable the vector math library.
265 @item --enable-tunables
266 Tunables support allows additional library parameters to be customized at
267 runtime. This feature is enabled by default. This option can take the
272 This is the default if no option is passed to configure. This enables tunables
273 and selects the default frontend (currently @samp{valstring}).
276 This option disables tunables.
279 This enables tunables and selects the @samp{valstring} frontend for tunables.
280 This frontend allows users to specify tunables as a colon-separated list in a
281 single environment variable @env{GLIBC_TUNABLES}.
284 @item --disable-crypt
285 Do not install the passphrase-hashing library @file{libcrypt} or the
286 header file @file{crypt.h}. @file{unistd.h} will still declare the
287 function @code{crypt}. Using this option does not change the set of
288 programs that may need to be linked with @option{-lcrypt}; it only
289 means that @theglibc{} will not provide that library.
291 This option is for hackers and distributions experimenting with
292 independently-maintained implementations of libcrypt. It may become
293 the default in a future release.
295 @item --disable-experimental-malloc
296 By default, a per-thread cache is enabled in @code{malloc}. While
297 this cache can be disabled on a per-application basis using tunables
298 (set glibc.malloc.tcache_count to zero), this option can be used to
299 remove it from the build completely.
302 Disable using @code{scv} instruction for syscalls. All syscalls will use
303 @code{sc} instead, even if the kernel supports @code{scv}. PowerPC only.
305 @item --build=@var{build-system}
306 @itemx --host=@var{host-system}
307 These options are for cross-compiling. If you specify both options and
308 @var{build-system} is different from @var{host-system}, @code{configure}
309 will prepare to cross-compile @theglibc{} from @var{build-system} to be used
310 on @var{host-system}. You'll probably need the @samp{--with-headers}
311 option too, and you may have to override @var{configure}'s selection of
312 the compiler and/or binutils.
314 If you only specify @samp{--host}, @code{configure} will prepare for a
315 native compile but use what you specify instead of guessing what your
316 system is. This is most useful to change the CPU submodel. For example,
317 if @code{configure} guesses your machine as @code{i686-pc-linux-gnu} but
318 you want to compile a library for 586es, give
319 @samp{--host=i586-pc-linux-gnu} or just @samp{--host=i586-linux} and add
320 the appropriate compiler flags (@samp{-mcpu=i586} will do the trick) to
323 If you specify just @samp{--build}, @code{configure} will get confused.
325 @item --with-pkgversion=@var{version}
326 Specify a description, possibly including a build number or build
327 date, of the binaries being built, to be included in
328 @option{--version} output from programs installed with @theglibc{}.
329 For example, @option{--with-pkgversion='FooBar GNU/Linux glibc build
330 123'}. The default value is @samp{GNU libc}.
332 @item --with-bugurl=@var{url}
333 Specify the URL that users should visit if they wish to report a bug,
334 to be included in @option{--help} output from programs installed with
335 @theglibc{}. The default value refers to the main bug-reporting
336 information for @theglibc{}.
339 To build the library and related programs, type @code{make}. This will
340 produce a lot of output, some of which may look like errors from
341 @code{make} but aren't. Look for error messages from @code{make}
342 containing @samp{***}. Those indicate that something is seriously wrong.
344 The compilation process can take a long time, depending on the
345 configuration and the speed of your machine. Some complex modules may
346 take a very long time to compile, as much as several minutes on slower
347 machines. Do not panic if the compiler appears to hang.
349 If you want to run a parallel make, simply pass the @samp{-j} option
350 with an appropriate numeric parameter to @code{make}. You need a recent
351 GNU @code{make} version, though.
353 To build and run test programs which exercise some of the library
354 facilities, type @code{make check}. If it does not complete
355 successfully, do not use the built library, and report a bug after
356 verifying that the problem is not already known. @xref{Reporting Bugs},
357 for instructions on reporting bugs. Note that some of the tests assume
358 they are not being run by @code{root}. We recommend you compile and
359 test @theglibc{} as an unprivileged user.
361 Before reporting bugs make sure there is no problem with your system.
362 The tests (and later installation) use some pre-existing files of the
363 system such as @file{/etc/passwd}, @file{/etc/nsswitch.conf} and others.
364 These files must all contain correct and sensible content.
366 Normally, @code{make check} will run all the tests before reporting
367 all problems found and exiting with error status if any problems
368 occurred. You can specify @samp{stop-on-test-failure=y} when running
369 @code{make check} to make the test run stop and exit with an error
370 status immediately when a failure occurs.
372 To format the @cite{GNU C Library Reference Manual} for printing, type
373 @w{@code{make dvi}}. You need a working @TeX{} installation to do
374 this. The distribution builds the on-line formatted version of the
375 manual, as Info files, as part of the build process. You can build
376 them manually with @w{@code{make info}}.
378 The library has a number of special-purpose configuration parameters
379 which you can find in @file{Makeconfig}. These can be overwritten with
380 the file @file{configparms}. To change them, create a
381 @file{configparms} in your build directory and add values as appropriate
382 for your system. The file is included and parsed by @code{make} and has
383 to follow the conventions for makefiles.
385 It is easy to configure @theglibc{} for cross-compilation by
386 setting a few variables in @file{configparms}. Set @code{CC} to the
387 cross-compiler for the target you configured the library for; it is
388 important to use this same @code{CC} value when running
389 @code{configure}, like this: @samp{configure @var{target}
390 CC=@var{target}-gcc}. Set @code{BUILD_CC} to the compiler to use for programs
391 run on the build system as part of compiling the library. You may need to
392 set @code{AR} to cross-compiling versions of @code{ar}
393 if the native tools are not configured to work with
394 object files for the target you configured for. When cross-compiling
395 @theglibc{}, it may be tested using @samp{make check
396 test-wrapper="@var{srcdir}/scripts/cross-test-ssh.sh @var{hostname}"},
397 where @var{srcdir} is the absolute directory name for the main source
398 directory and @var{hostname} is the host name of a system that can run
399 the newly built binaries of @theglibc{}. The source and build
400 directories must be visible at the same locations on both the build
401 system and @var{hostname}.
402 The @samp{cross-test-ssh.sh} script requires @samp{flock} from
403 @samp{util-linux} to work when @var{glibc_test_allow_time_setting}
404 environment variable is set.
406 It is also possible to execute tests, which require setting the date on
407 the target machine. Following use cases are supported:
410 @code{GLIBC_TEST_ALLOW_TIME_SETTING} is set in the environment in
411 which eligible tests are executed and have the privilege to run
412 @code{clock_settime}. In this case, nothing prevents those tests from
413 running in parallel, so the caller shall assure that those tests
414 are serialized or provide a proper wrapper script for them.
417 The @code{cross-test-ssh.sh} script is used and one passes the
418 @option{--allow-time-setting} flag. In this case, both sets
419 @code{GLIBC_TEST_ALLOW_TIME_SETTING} and serialization of test
420 execution are assured automatically.
423 In general, when testing @theglibc{}, @samp{test-wrapper} may be set
424 to the name and arguments of any program to run newly built binaries.
425 This program must preserve the arguments to the binary being run, its
426 working directory and the standard input, output and error file
427 descriptors. If @samp{@var{test-wrapper} env} will not work to run a
428 program with environment variables set, then @samp{test-wrapper-env}
429 must be set to a program that runs a newly built program with
430 environment variable assignments in effect, those assignments being
431 specified as @samp{@var{var}=@var{value}} before the name of the
432 program to be run. If multiple assignments to the same variable are
433 specified, the last assignment specified must take precedence.
434 Similarly, if @samp{@var{test-wrapper} env -i} will not work to run a
435 program with an environment completely empty of variables except those
436 directly assigned, then @samp{test-wrapper-env-only} must be set; its
437 use has the same syntax as @samp{test-wrapper-env}, the only
438 difference in its semantics being starting with an empty set of
439 environment variables rather than the ambient set.
441 For AArch64 with SVE, when testing @theglibc{}, @samp{test-wrapper}
442 may be set to "@var{srcdir}/sysdeps/unix/sysv/linux/aarch64/vltest.py
443 @var{vector-length}" to change Vector Length.
445 @node Running make install
446 @appendixsec Installing the C Library
449 To install the library and its header files, and the Info files of the
450 manual, type @code{make install}. This will
451 build things, if necessary, before installing them; however, you should
452 still compile everything first. If you are installing @theglibc{} as your
453 primary C library, we recommend that you shut the system down to
454 single-user mode first, and reboot afterward. This minimizes the risk
455 of breaking things when the library changes out from underneath.
457 @samp{make install} will do the entire job of upgrading from a
458 previous installation of @theglibc{} version 2.x. There may sometimes
460 left behind from the previous installation, but those are generally
461 harmless. If you want to avoid leaving headers behind you can do
462 things in the following order.
464 You must first build the library (@samp{make}), optionally check it
465 (@samp{make check}), switch the include directories and then install
466 (@samp{make install}). The steps must be done in this order. Not moving
467 the directory before install will result in an unusable mixture of header
468 files from both libraries, but configuring, building, and checking the
469 library requires the ability to compile and run programs against the old
470 library. The new @file{/usr/include}, after switching the include
471 directories and before installing the library should contain the Linux
472 headers, but nothing else. If you do this, you will need to restore
473 any headers from libraries other than @theglibc{} yourself after installing the
476 You can install @theglibc{} somewhere other than where you configured
477 it to go by setting the @code{DESTDIR} GNU standard make variable on
478 the command line for @samp{make install}. The value of this variable
479 is prepended to all the paths for installation. This is useful when
480 setting up a chroot environment or preparing a binary distribution.
481 The directory should be specified with an absolute file name. Installing
482 with the @code{prefix} and @code{exec_prefix} GNU standard make variables
483 set is not supported.
485 @Theglibc{} includes a daemon called @code{nscd}, which you
486 may or may not want to run. @code{nscd} caches name service lookups; it
487 can dramatically improve performance with NIS+, and may help with DNS as
490 One auxiliary program, @file{/usr/libexec/pt_chown}, is installed setuid
491 @code{root} if the @samp{--enable-pt_chown} configuration option is used.
492 This program is invoked by the @code{grantpt} function; it sets the
493 permissions on a pseudoterminal so it can be used by the calling process.
494 If you are using a Linux kernel with the @code{devpts} filesystem enabled
495 and mounted at @file{/dev/pts}, you don't need this program.
497 After installation you should configure the timezone and install locales
498 for your system. The time zone configuration ensures that your system
499 time matches the time for your current timezone. The locales ensure that
500 the display of information on your system matches the expectations of
501 your language and geographic region.
503 @Theglibc{} is able to use two kinds of localization information sources, the
504 first is a locale database named @file{locale-archive} which is generally
505 installed as @file{/usr/lib/locale/locale-archive}. The locale archive has the
506 benefit of taking up less space and being very fast to load, but only if you
507 plan to install sixty or more locales. If you plan to install one or two
508 locales you can instead install individual locales into their self-named
509 directories e.g.@: @file{/usr/lib/locale/en_US.utf8}. For example to install
510 the German locale using the character set for UTF-8 with name @code{de_DE} into
511 the locale archive issue the command @samp{localedef -i de_DE -f UTF-8 de_DE},
512 and to install just the one locale issue the command @samp{localedef
513 --no-archive -i de_DE -f UTF-8 de_DE}. To configure all locales that are
514 supported by @theglibc{}, you can issue from your build directory the command
515 @samp{make localedata/install-locales} to install all locales into the locale
516 archive or @samp{make localedata/install-locale-files} to install all locales
517 as files in the default configured locale installation directory (derived from
518 @samp{--prefix} or @code{--localedir}). To install into an alternative system
519 root use @samp{DESTDIR} e.g.@: @samp{make localedata/install-locale-files
520 DESTDIR=/opt/glibc}, but note that this does not change the configured prefix.
522 To configure the locally used timezone, set the @code{TZ} environment
523 variable. The script @code{tzselect} helps you to select the right value.
524 As an example, for Germany, @code{tzselect} would tell you to use
525 @samp{TZ='Europe/Berlin'}. For a system wide installation (the given
526 paths are for an installation with @samp{--prefix=/usr}), link the
527 timezone file which is in @file{/usr/share/zoneinfo} to the file
528 @file{/etc/localtime}. For Germany, you might execute @samp{ln -s
529 /usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/Berlin /etc/localtime}.
531 @node Tools for Compilation
532 @appendixsec Recommended Tools for Compilation
533 @cindex installation tools
534 @cindex tools, for installing library
536 We recommend installing the following GNU tools before attempting to
541 GNU @code{make} 4.0 or newer
543 As of relase time, GNU @code{make} 4.3 is the newest verified to work
544 to build @theglibc{}.
549 GCC 6.2 or higher is required. In general it is recommended to use
550 the newest version of the compiler that is known to work for building
551 @theglibc{}, as newer compilers usually produce better code. As of
552 release time, GCC 12.0 is the newest compiler verified to work to build
555 For PowerPC 64-bits little-endian (powerpc64le), a GCC version with support
556 for @option{-mno-gnu-attribute}, @option{-mabi=ieeelongdouble}, and
557 @option{-mabi=ibmlondouble} is required. Likewise, the compiler must also
558 support passing @option{-mlong-double-128} with the preceding options. As
559 of release, this implies GCC 7.4 and newer (excepting GCC 7.5.0, see GCC
560 PR94200). These additional features are required for building the GNU C
561 Library with support for IEEE long double.
563 @c powerpc64le performs an autoconf test to verify the compiler compiles with
564 @c commands like "$CC -c foo.c -mabi=ibmlongdouble -mlong-double-128".
566 For ARC architecture builds, GCC 8.3 or higher is needed.
568 For s390x architecture builds, GCC 7.1 or higher is needed (See gcc Bug 98269).
570 For multi-arch support it is recommended to use a GCC which has been built with
571 support for GNU indirect functions. This ensures that correct debugging
572 information is generated for functions selected by IFUNC resolvers. This
573 support can either be enabled by configuring GCC with
574 @samp{--enable-gnu-indirect-function}, or by enabling it by default by setting
575 @samp{default_gnu_indirect_function} variable for a particular architecture in
576 the GCC source file @file{gcc/config.gcc}.
578 You can use whatever compiler you like to compile programs that use
581 Check the FAQ for any special compiler issues on particular platforms.
584 GNU @code{binutils} 2.25 or later
586 You must use GNU @code{binutils} (as and ld) to build @theglibc{}.
587 No other assembler or linker has the necessary functionality at the
588 moment. As of release time, GNU @code{binutils} 2.37 is the newest
589 verified to work to build @theglibc{}.
591 For PowerPC 64-bits little-endian (powerpc64le), @command{objcopy} is required
592 to support @option{--update-section}. This option requires binutils 2.26 or
595 ARC architecture needs @code{binutils} 2.32 or higher for TLS related fixes.
598 GNU @code{texinfo} 4.7 or later
600 To correctly translate and install the Texinfo documentation you need
601 this version of the @code{texinfo} package. Earlier versions do not
602 understand all the tags used in the document, and the installation
603 mechanism for the info files is not present or works differently.
604 As of release time, @code{texinfo} 6.8 is the newest verified to work
605 to build @theglibc{}.
608 GNU @code{awk} 3.1.2, or higher
610 @code{awk} is used in several places to generate files.
611 Some @code{gawk} extensions are used, including the @code{asorti}
612 function, which was introduced in version 3.1.2 of @code{gawk}.
613 As of release time, @code{gawk} version 5.1.1 is the newest verified
614 to work to build @theglibc{}.
617 GNU @code{bison} 2.7 or later
619 @code{bison} is used to generate the @code{yacc} parser code in the @file{intl}
620 subdirectory. As of release time, @code{bison} version 3.8.2 is the newest
621 verified to work to build @theglibc{}.
626 Perl is not required, but if present it is used in some tests and the
627 @code{mtrace} program, to build the @glibcadj{} manual. As of release
628 time @code{perl} version 5.34.0 is the newest verified to work to
632 GNU @code{sed} 3.02 or newer
634 @code{Sed} is used in several places to generate files. Most scripts work
635 with any version of @code{sed}. As of release time, @code{sed} version
636 4.8 is the newest verified to work to build @theglibc{}.
641 Python is required to build @theglibc{}. As of release time, Python
642 3.10.2 is the newest verified to work for building and testing
647 The pretty printer tests drive GDB through test programs and compare
648 its output to the printers'. PExpect is used to capture the output of
649 GDB, and should be compatible with the Python version in your system.
650 As of release time PExpect 4.8.0 is the newest verified to work to test
654 GDB 7.8 or later with support for Python 2.7/3.4 or later
656 GDB itself needs to be configured with Python support in order to use
657 the pretty printers. Notice that your system having Python available
658 doesn't imply that GDB supports it, nor that your system's Python and
659 GDB's have the same version. As of release time GNU @code{debugger}
660 11.1 is the newest verified to work to test the pretty printers.
662 Unless Python, PExpect and GDB with Python support are present, the
663 printer tests will report themselves as @code{UNSUPPORTED}. Notice
664 that some of the printer tests require @theglibc{} to be compiled with
669 If you change any of the @file{configure.ac} files you will also need
673 GNU @code{autoconf} 2.69 (exactly)
677 and if you change any of the message translation files you will need
681 GNU @code{gettext} 0.10.36 or later
683 As of release time, GNU @code{gettext} version 0.21 is the newest
684 version verified to work to build @theglibc{}.
689 You may also need these packages if you upgrade your source tree using
690 patches, although we try to avoid this.
693 @appendixsec Specific advice for @gnulinuxsystems{}
694 @cindex kernel header files
696 If you are installing @theglibc{} on @gnulinuxsystems{}, you need to have
697 the header files from a 3.2 or newer kernel around for reference.
698 (For the ia64 architecture, you need version 3.2.18 or newer because this
699 is the first version with support for the @code{accept4} system call.)
700 These headers must be installed using @samp{make headers_install}; the
701 headers present in the kernel source directory are not suitable for
702 direct use by @theglibc{}. You do not need to use that kernel, just have
703 its headers installed where @theglibc{} can access them, referred to here as
704 @var{install-directory}. The easiest way to do this is to unpack it
705 in a directory such as @file{/usr/src/linux-@var{version}}. In that
706 directory, run @samp{make headers_install
707 INSTALL_HDR_PATH=@var{install-directory}}. Finally, configure @theglibc{}
708 with the option @samp{--with-headers=@var{install-directory}/include}.
709 Use the most recent kernel you can get your hands on. (If you are
710 cross-compiling @theglibc{}, you need to specify
711 @samp{ARCH=@var{architecture}} in the @samp{make headers_install}
712 command, where @var{architecture} is the architecture name used by the
713 Linux kernel, such as @samp{x86} or @samp{powerpc}.)
715 After installing @theglibc{}, you may need to remove or rename
716 directories such as @file{/usr/include/linux} and
717 @file{/usr/include/asm}, and replace them with copies of directories
718 such as @file{linux} and @file{asm} from
719 @file{@var{install-directory}/include}. All directories present in
720 @file{@var{install-directory}/include} should be copied, except that
721 @theglibc{} provides its own version of @file{/usr/include/scsi}; the
722 files provided by the kernel should be copied without replacing those
723 provided by @theglibc{}. The @file{linux}, @file{asm} and
724 @file{asm-generic} directories are required to compile programs using
725 @theglibc{}; the other directories describe interfaces to the kernel but
726 are not required if not compiling programs using those interfaces.
727 You do not need to copy kernel headers if you did not specify an
728 alternate kernel header source using @samp{--with-headers}.
730 The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard for @gnulinuxsystems{} expects some
731 components of the @glibcadj{} installation to be in
732 @file{/lib} and some in @file{/usr/lib}. This is handled automatically
733 if you configure @theglibc{} with @samp{--prefix=/usr}. If you set some other
734 prefix or allow it to default to @file{/usr/local}, then all the
735 components are installed there.
737 As of release time, Linux version 5.16 is the newest version verified
738 to work to build @theglibc{}.
741 @appendixsec Reporting Bugs
742 @cindex reporting bugs
743 @cindex bugs, reporting
745 There are probably bugs in @theglibc{}. There are certainly
746 errors and omissions in this manual. If you report them, they will get
747 fixed. If you don't, no one will ever know about them and they will
748 remain unfixed for all eternity, if not longer.
750 It is a good idea to verify that the problem has not already been
751 reported. Bugs are documented in two places: The file @file{BUGS}
752 describes a number of well known bugs and the central @glibcadj{}
753 bug tracking system has a
755 @url{https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/}. The WWW
756 interface gives you access to open and closed reports. A closed report
757 normally includes a patch or a hint on solving the problem.
759 To report a bug, first you must find it. With any luck, this will be the
760 hard part. Once you've found a bug, make sure it's really a bug. A
761 good way to do this is to see if @theglibc{} behaves the same way
762 some other C library does. If so, probably you are wrong and the
763 libraries are right (but not necessarily). If not, one of the libraries
764 is probably wrong. It might not be @theglibc{}. Many historical
765 Unix C libraries permit things that we don't, such as closing a file
768 If you think you have found some way in which @theglibc{} does not
769 conform to the ISO and POSIX standards (@pxref{Standards and
770 Portability}), that is definitely a bug. Report it!
772 Once you're sure you've found a bug, try to narrow it down to the
773 smallest test case that reproduces the problem. In the case of a C
774 library, you really only need to narrow it down to one library
775 function call, if possible. This should not be too difficult.
777 The final step when you have a simple test case is to report the bug.
778 Do this at @value{REPORT_BUGS_TO}.
780 If you are not sure how a function should behave, and this manual
781 doesn't tell you, that's a bug in the manual. Report that too! If the
782 function's behavior disagrees with the manual, then either the library
783 or the manual has a bug, so report the disagreement. If you find any
784 errors or omissions in this manual, please report them to the
785 bug database. If you refer to specific
786 sections of the manual, please include the section names for easier