3 This document describes the Linux kernel Makefiles.
10 --- 3.1 Goal definitions
11 --- 3.2 Built-in object goals - obj-y
12 --- 3.3 Loadable module goals - obj-m
13 --- 3.4 Objects which export symbols
14 --- 3.5 Library file goals - lib-y
15 --- 3.6 Descending down in directories
16 --- 3.7 Compilation flags
17 --- 3.8 Command line dependency
18 --- 3.9 Dependency tracking
19 --- 3.10 Special Rules
20 --- 3.11 $(CC) support functions
21 --- 3.12 $(LD) support functions
23 === 4 Host Program support
24 --- 4.1 Simple Host Program
25 --- 4.2 Composite Host Programs
26 --- 4.3 Defining shared libraries
27 --- 4.4 Using C++ for host programs
28 --- 4.5 Controlling compiler options for host programs
29 --- 4.6 When host programs are actually built
30 --- 4.7 Using hostprogs-$(CONFIG_FOO)
32 === 5 Kbuild clean infrastructure
34 === 6 Architecture Makefiles
35 --- 6.1 Set variables to tweak the build to the architecture
36 --- 6.2 Add prerequisites to archprepare:
37 --- 6.3 List directories to visit when descending
38 --- 6.4 Architecture-specific boot images
39 --- 6.5 Building non-kbuild targets
40 --- 6.6 Commands useful for building a boot image
41 --- 6.7 Custom kbuild commands
42 --- 6.8 Preprocessing linker scripts
43 --- 6.9 Generic header files
45 === 7 Kbuild syntax for exported headers
51 === 8 Kbuild Variables
52 === 9 Makefile language
58 The Makefiles have five parts:
60 Makefile the top Makefile.
61 .config the kernel configuration file.
62 arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile the arch Makefile.
63 scripts/Makefile.* common rules etc. for all kbuild Makefiles.
64 kbuild Makefiles there are about 500 of these.
66 The top Makefile reads the .config file, which comes from the kernel
67 configuration process.
69 The top Makefile is responsible for building two major products: vmlinux
70 (the resident kernel image) and modules (any module files).
71 It builds these goals by recursively descending into the subdirectories of
72 the kernel source tree.
73 The list of subdirectories which are visited depends upon the kernel
74 configuration. The top Makefile textually includes an arch Makefile
75 with the name arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile. The arch Makefile supplies
76 architecture-specific information to the top Makefile.
78 Each subdirectory has a kbuild Makefile which carries out the commands
79 passed down from above. The kbuild Makefile uses information from the
80 .config file to construct various file lists used by kbuild to build
81 any built-in or modular targets.
83 scripts/Makefile.* contains all the definitions/rules etc. that
84 are used to build the kernel based on the kbuild makefiles.
89 People have four different relationships with the kernel Makefiles.
91 *Users* are people who build kernels. These people type commands such as
92 "make menuconfig" or "make". They usually do not read or edit
93 any kernel Makefiles (or any other source files).
95 *Normal developers* are people who work on features such as device
96 drivers, file systems, and network protocols. These people need to
97 maintain the kbuild Makefiles for the subsystem they are
98 working on. In order to do this effectively, they need some overall
99 knowledge about the kernel Makefiles, plus detailed knowledge about the
100 public interface for kbuild.
102 *Arch developers* are people who work on an entire architecture, such
103 as sparc or ia64. Arch developers need to know about the arch Makefile
104 as well as kbuild Makefiles.
106 *Kbuild developers* are people who work on the kernel build system itself.
107 These people need to know about all aspects of the kernel Makefiles.
109 This document is aimed towards normal developers and arch developers.
112 === 3 The kbuild files
114 Most Makefiles within the kernel are kbuild Makefiles that use the
115 kbuild infrastructure. This chapter introduces the syntax used in the
117 The preferred name for the kbuild files are 'Makefile' but 'Kbuild' can
118 be used and if both a 'Makefile' and a 'Kbuild' file exists, then the 'Kbuild'
121 Section 3.1 "Goal definitions" is a quick intro, further chapters provide
122 more details, with real examples.
124 --- 3.1 Goal definitions
126 Goal definitions are the main part (heart) of the kbuild Makefile.
127 These lines define the files to be built, any special compilation
128 options, and any subdirectories to be entered recursively.
130 The most simple kbuild makefile contains one line:
135 This tells kbuild that there is one object in that directory, named
136 foo.o. foo.o will be built from foo.c or foo.S.
138 If foo.o shall be built as a module, the variable obj-m is used.
139 Therefore the following pattern is often used:
142 obj-$(CONFIG_FOO) += foo.o
144 $(CONFIG_FOO) evaluates to either y (for built-in) or m (for module).
145 If CONFIG_FOO is neither y nor m, then the file will not be compiled
148 --- 3.2 Built-in object goals - obj-y
150 The kbuild Makefile specifies object files for vmlinux
151 in the $(obj-y) lists. These lists depend on the kernel
154 Kbuild compiles all the $(obj-y) files. It then calls
155 "$(LD) -r" to merge these files into one built-in.o file.
156 built-in.o is later linked into vmlinux by the parent Makefile.
158 The order of files in $(obj-y) is significant. Duplicates in
159 the lists are allowed: the first instance will be linked into
160 built-in.o and succeeding instances will be ignored.
162 Link order is significant, because certain functions
163 (module_init() / __initcall) will be called during boot in the
164 order they appear. So keep in mind that changing the link
165 order may e.g. change the order in which your SCSI
166 controllers are detected, and thus your disks are renumbered.
169 #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
170 # Makefile for the kernel ISDN subsystem and device drivers.
171 # Each configuration option enables a list of files.
172 obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_I4L) += isdn.o
173 obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) += isdn_bsdcomp.o
175 --- 3.3 Loadable module goals - obj-m
177 $(obj-m) specify object files which are built as loadable
180 A module may be built from one source file or several source
181 files. In the case of one source file, the kbuild makefile
182 simply adds the file to $(obj-m).
185 #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
186 obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) += isdn_bsdcomp.o
188 Note: In this example $(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) evaluates to 'm'
190 If a kernel module is built from several source files, you specify
191 that you want to build a module in the same way as above; however,
192 kbuild needs to know which object files you want to build your
193 module from, so you have to tell it by setting a $(<module_name>-y)
197 #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
198 obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_I4L) += isdn.o
199 isdn-y := isdn_net_lib.o isdn_v110.o isdn_common.o
201 In this example, the module name will be isdn.o. Kbuild will
202 compile the objects listed in $(isdn-y) and then run
203 "$(LD) -r" on the list of these files to generate isdn.o.
205 Due to kbuild recognizing $(<module_name>-y) for composite objects,
206 you can use the value of a CONFIG_ symbol to optionally include an
207 object file as part of a composite object.
211 obj-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS) += ext2.o
212 ext2-y := balloc.o dir.o file.o ialloc.o inode.o ioctl.o \
213 namei.o super.o symlink.o
214 ext2-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS_XATTR) += xattr.o xattr_user.o \
217 In this example, xattr.o, xattr_user.o and xattr_trusted.o are only
218 part of the composite object ext2.o if $(CONFIG_EXT2_FS_XATTR)
221 Note: Of course, when you are building objects into the kernel,
222 the syntax above will also work. So, if you have CONFIG_EXT2_FS=y,
223 kbuild will build an ext2.o file for you out of the individual
224 parts and then link this into built-in.o, as you would expect.
226 --- 3.4 Objects which export symbols
228 No special notation is required in the makefiles for
229 modules exporting symbols.
231 --- 3.5 Library file goals - lib-y
233 Objects listed with obj-* are used for modules, or
234 combined in a built-in.o for that specific directory.
235 There is also the possibility to list objects that will
236 be included in a library, lib.a.
237 All objects listed with lib-y are combined in a single
238 library for that directory.
239 Objects that are listed in obj-y and additionally listed in
240 lib-y will not be included in the library, since they will
241 be accessible anyway.
242 For consistency, objects listed in lib-m will be included in lib.a.
244 Note that the same kbuild makefile may list files to be built-in
245 and to be part of a library. Therefore the same directory
246 may contain both a built-in.o and a lib.a file.
249 #arch/x86/lib/Makefile
252 This will create a library lib.a based on delay.o. For kbuild to
253 actually recognize that there is a lib.a being built, the directory
254 shall be listed in libs-y.
255 See also "6.3 List directories to visit when descending".
257 Use of lib-y is normally restricted to lib/ and arch/*/lib.
259 --- 3.6 Descending down in directories
261 A Makefile is only responsible for building objects in its own
262 directory. Files in subdirectories should be taken care of by
263 Makefiles in these subdirs. The build system will automatically
264 invoke make recursively in subdirectories, provided you let it know of
267 To do so, obj-y and obj-m are used.
268 ext2 lives in a separate directory, and the Makefile present in fs/
269 tells kbuild to descend down using the following assignment.
273 obj-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS) += ext2/
275 If CONFIG_EXT2_FS is set to either 'y' (built-in) or 'm' (modular)
276 the corresponding obj- variable will be set, and kbuild will descend
277 down in the ext2 directory.
278 Kbuild only uses this information to decide that it needs to visit
279 the directory, it is the Makefile in the subdirectory that
280 specifies what is modules and what is built-in.
282 It is good practice to use a CONFIG_ variable when assigning directory
283 names. This allows kbuild to totally skip the directory if the
284 corresponding CONFIG_ option is neither 'y' nor 'm'.
286 --- 3.7 Compilation flags
288 ccflags-y, asflags-y and ldflags-y
289 These three flags apply only to the kbuild makefile in which they
290 are assigned. They are used for all the normal cc, as and ld
291 invocations happening during a recursive build.
292 Note: Flags with the same behaviour were previously named:
293 EXTRA_CFLAGS, EXTRA_AFLAGS and EXTRA_LDFLAGS.
294 They are still supported but their usage is deprecated.
296 ccflags-y specifies options for compiling with $(CC).
299 # drivers/acpi/Makefile
301 ccflags-$(CONFIG_ACPI_DEBUG) += -DACPI_DEBUG_OUTPUT
303 This variable is necessary because the top Makefile owns the
304 variable $(KBUILD_CFLAGS) and uses it for compilation flags for the
307 asflags-y specifies options for assembling with $(AS).
310 #arch/sparc/kernel/Makefile
313 ldflags-y specifies options for linking with $(LD).
316 #arch/cris/boot/compressed/Makefile
317 ldflags-y += -T $(srctree)/$(src)/decompress_$(arch-y).lds
319 subdir-ccflags-y, subdir-asflags-y
320 The two flags listed above are similar to ccflags-y and asflags-y.
321 The difference is that the subdir- variants have effect for the kbuild
322 file where they are present and all subdirectories.
323 Options specified using subdir-* are added to the commandline before
324 the options specified using the non-subdir variants.
327 subdir-ccflags-y := -Werror
331 CFLAGS_$@ and AFLAGS_$@ only apply to commands in current
334 $(CFLAGS_$@) specifies per-file options for $(CC). The $@
335 part has a literal value which specifies the file that it is for.
338 # drivers/scsi/Makefile
339 CFLAGS_aha152x.o = -DAHA152X_STAT -DAUTOCONF
340 CFLAGS_gdth.o = # -DDEBUG_GDTH=2 -D__SERIAL__ -D__COM2__ \
343 These two lines specify compilation flags for aha152x.o and gdth.o.
345 $(AFLAGS_$@) is a similar feature for source files in assembly
349 # arch/arm/kernel/Makefile
350 AFLAGS_head.o := -DTEXT_OFFSET=$(TEXT_OFFSET)
351 AFLAGS_crunch-bits.o := -Wa,-mcpu=ep9312
352 AFLAGS_iwmmxt.o := -Wa,-mcpu=iwmmxt
355 --- 3.9 Dependency tracking
357 Kbuild tracks dependencies on the following:
358 1) All prerequisite files (both *.c and *.h)
359 2) CONFIG_ options used in all prerequisite files
360 3) Command-line used to compile target
362 Thus, if you change an option to $(CC) all affected files will
365 --- 3.10 Special Rules
367 Special rules are used when the kbuild infrastructure does
368 not provide the required support. A typical example is
369 header files generated during the build process.
370 Another example are the architecture-specific Makefiles which
371 need special rules to prepare boot images etc.
373 Special rules are written as normal Make rules.
374 Kbuild is not executing in the directory where the Makefile is
375 located, so all special rules shall provide a relative
376 path to prerequisite files and target files.
378 Two variables are used when defining special rules:
381 $(src) is a relative path which points to the directory
382 where the Makefile is located. Always use $(src) when
383 referring to files located in the src tree.
386 $(obj) is a relative path which points to the directory
387 where the target is saved. Always use $(obj) when
388 referring to generated files.
391 #drivers/scsi/Makefile
392 $(obj)/53c8xx_d.h: $(src)/53c7,8xx.scr $(src)/script_asm.pl
393 $(CPP) -DCHIP=810 - < $< | ... $(src)/script_asm.pl
395 This is a special rule, following the normal syntax
397 The target file depends on two prerequisite files. References
398 to the target file are prefixed with $(obj), references
399 to prerequisites are referenced with $(src) (because they are not
403 echoing information to user in a rule is often a good practice
404 but when execution "make -s" one does not expect to see any output
405 except for warnings/errors.
406 To support this kbuild define $(kecho) which will echo out the
407 text following $(kecho) to stdout except if "make -s" is used.
410 #arch/blackfin/boot/Makefile
411 $(obj)/vmImage: $(obj)/vmlinux.gz
412 $(call if_changed,uimage)
413 @$(kecho) 'Kernel: $@ is ready'
416 --- 3.11 $(CC) support functions
418 The kernel may be built with several different versions of
419 $(CC), each supporting a unique set of features and options.
420 kbuild provide basic support to check for valid options for $(CC).
421 $(CC) is usually the gcc compiler, but other alternatives are
425 as-option is used to check if $(CC) -- when used to compile
426 assembler (*.S) files -- supports the given option. An optional
427 second option may be specified if the first option is not supported.
431 cflags-y += $(call as-option,-Wa$(comma)-isa=$(isa-y),)
433 In the above example, cflags-y will be assigned the option
434 -Wa$(comma)-isa=$(isa-y) if it is supported by $(CC).
435 The second argument is optional, and if supplied will be used
436 if first argument is not supported.
439 cc-ldoption is used to check if $(CC) when used to link object files
440 supports the given option. An optional second option may be
441 specified if first option are not supported.
444 #arch/x86/kernel/Makefile
445 vsyscall-flags += $(call cc-ldoption, -Wl$(comma)--hash-style=sysv)
447 In the above example, vsyscall-flags will be assigned the option
448 -Wl$(comma)--hash-style=sysv if it is supported by $(CC).
449 The second argument is optional, and if supplied will be used
450 if first argument is not supported.
453 as-instr checks if the assembler reports a specific instruction
454 and then outputs either option1 or option2
455 C escapes are supported in the test instruction
456 Note: as-instr-option uses KBUILD_AFLAGS for $(AS) options
459 cc-option is used to check if $(CC) supports a given option, and not
460 supported to use an optional second option.
464 cflags-y += $(call cc-option,-march=pentium-mmx,-march=i586)
466 In the above example, cflags-y will be assigned the option
467 -march=pentium-mmx if supported by $(CC), otherwise -march=i586.
468 The second argument to cc-option is optional, and if omitted,
469 cflags-y will be assigned no value if first option is not supported.
470 Note: cc-option uses KBUILD_CFLAGS for $(CC) options
473 cc-option-yn is used to check if gcc supports a given option
474 and return 'y' if supported, otherwise 'n'.
478 biarch := $(call cc-option-yn, -m32)
479 aflags-$(biarch) += -a32
480 cflags-$(biarch) += -m32
482 In the above example, $(biarch) is set to y if $(CC) supports the -m32
483 option. When $(biarch) equals 'y', the expanded variables $(aflags-y)
484 and $(cflags-y) will be assigned the values -a32 and -m32,
486 Note: cc-option-yn uses KBUILD_CFLAGS for $(CC) options
489 gcc versions >= 3.0 changed the type of options used to specify
490 alignment of functions, loops etc. $(cc-option-align), when used
491 as prefix to the align options, will select the right prefix:
493 cc-option-align = -malign
495 cc-option-align = -falign
498 KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(cc-option-align)-functions=4
500 In the above example, the option -falign-functions=4 is used for
501 gcc >= 3.00. For gcc < 3.00, -malign-functions=4 is used.
502 Note: cc-option-align uses KBUILD_CFLAGS for $(CC) options
505 cc-disable-warning checks if gcc supports a given warning and returns
506 the commandline switch to disable it. This special function is needed,
507 because gcc 4.4 and later accept any unknown -Wno-* option and only
508 warn about it if there is another warning in the source file.
511 KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(call cc-disable-warning, unused-but-set-variable)
513 In the above example, -Wno-unused-but-set-variable will be added to
514 KBUILD_CFLAGS only if gcc really accepts it.
517 cc-version returns a numerical version of the $(CC) compiler version.
518 The format is <major><minor> where both are two digits. So for example
519 gcc 3.41 would return 0341.
520 cc-version is useful when a specific $(CC) version is faulty in one
521 area, for example -mregparm=3 was broken in some gcc versions
522 even though the option was accepted by gcc.
526 cflags-y += $(shell \
527 if [ $(call cc-version) -ge 0300 ] ; then \
528 echo "-mregparm=3"; fi ;)
530 In the above example, -mregparm=3 is only used for gcc version greater
531 than or equal to gcc 3.0.
534 cc-ifversion tests the version of $(CC) and equals last argument if
535 version expression is true.
538 #fs/reiserfs/Makefile
539 ccflags-y := $(call cc-ifversion, -lt, 0402, -O1)
541 In this example, ccflags-y will be assigned the value -O1 if the
542 $(CC) version is less than 4.2.
543 cc-ifversion takes all the shell operators:
544 -eq, -ne, -lt, -le, -gt, and -ge
545 The third parameter may be a text as in this example, but it may also
546 be an expanded variable or a macro.
549 cc-fullversion is useful when the exact version of gcc is needed.
550 One typical use-case is when a specific GCC version is broken.
551 cc-fullversion points out a more specific version than cc-version does.
554 #arch/powerpc/Makefile
555 $(Q)if test "$(call cc-fullversion)" = "040200" ; then \
556 echo -n '*** GCC-4.2.0 cannot compile the 64-bit powerpc ' ; \
560 In this example for a specific GCC version the build will error out explaining
561 to the user why it stops.
564 cc-cross-prefix is used to check if there exists a $(CC) in path with
565 one of the listed prefixes. The first prefix where there exist a
566 prefix$(CC) in the PATH is returned - and if no prefix$(CC) is found
567 then nothing is returned.
568 Additional prefixes are separated by a single space in the
569 call of cc-cross-prefix.
570 This functionality is useful for architecture Makefiles that try
571 to set CROSS_COMPILE to well-known values but may have several
572 values to select between.
573 It is recommended only to try to set CROSS_COMPILE if it is a cross
574 build (host arch is different from target arch). And if CROSS_COMPILE
575 is already set then leave it with the old value.
579 ifneq ($(SUBARCH),$(ARCH))
580 ifeq ($(CROSS_COMPILE),)
581 CROSS_COMPILE := $(call cc-cross-prefix, m68k-linux-gnu-)
585 --- 3.12 $(LD) support functions
588 ld-option is used to check if $(LD) supports the supplied option.
589 ld-option takes two options as arguments.
590 The second argument is an optional option that can be used if the
591 first option is not supported by $(LD).
595 LDFLAGS_vmlinux += $(call really-ld-option, -X)
598 === 4 Host Program support
600 Kbuild supports building executables on the host for use during the
602 Two steps are required in order to use a host executable.
604 The first step is to tell kbuild that a host program exists. This is
605 done utilising the variable hostprogs-y.
607 The second step is to add an explicit dependency to the executable.
608 This can be done in two ways. Either add the dependency in a rule,
609 or utilise the variable $(always).
610 Both possibilities are described in the following.
612 --- 4.1 Simple Host Program
614 In some cases there is a need to compile and run a program on the
615 computer where the build is running.
616 The following line tells kbuild that the program bin2hex shall be
617 built on the build host.
620 hostprogs-y := bin2hex
622 Kbuild assumes in the above example that bin2hex is made from a single
623 c-source file named bin2hex.c located in the same directory as
626 --- 4.2 Composite Host Programs
628 Host programs can be made up based on composite objects.
629 The syntax used to define composite objects for host programs is
630 similar to the syntax used for kernel objects.
631 $(<executable>-objs) lists all objects used to link the final
635 #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
636 hostprogs-y := lxdialog
637 lxdialog-objs := checklist.o lxdialog.o
639 Objects with extension .o are compiled from the corresponding .c
640 files. In the above example, checklist.c is compiled to checklist.o
641 and lxdialog.c is compiled to lxdialog.o.
642 Finally, the two .o files are linked to the executable, lxdialog.
643 Note: The syntax <executable>-y is not permitted for host-programs.
645 --- 4.3 Defining shared libraries
647 Objects with extension .so are considered shared libraries, and
648 will be compiled as position independent objects.
649 Kbuild provides support for shared libraries, but the usage
651 In the following example the libkconfig.so shared library is used
652 to link the executable conf.
655 #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
657 conf-objs := conf.o libkconfig.so
658 libkconfig-objs := expr.o type.o
660 Shared libraries always require a corresponding -objs line, and
661 in the example above the shared library libkconfig is composed by
662 the two objects expr.o and type.o.
663 expr.o and type.o will be built as position independent code and
664 linked as a shared library libkconfig.so. C++ is not supported for
667 --- 4.4 Using C++ for host programs
669 kbuild offers support for host programs written in C++. This was
670 introduced solely to support kconfig, and is not recommended
674 #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
676 qconf-cxxobjs := qconf.o
678 In the example above the executable is composed of the C++ file
679 qconf.cc - identified by $(qconf-cxxobjs).
681 If qconf is composed by a mixture of .c and .cc files, then an
682 additional line can be used to identify this.
685 #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
687 qconf-cxxobjs := qconf.o
688 qconf-objs := check.o
690 --- 4.5 Controlling compiler options for host programs
692 When compiling host programs, it is possible to set specific flags.
693 The programs will always be compiled utilising $(HOSTCC) passed
694 the options specified in $(HOSTCFLAGS).
695 To set flags that will take effect for all host programs created
696 in that Makefile, use the variable HOST_EXTRACFLAGS.
699 #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
700 HOST_EXTRACFLAGS += -I/usr/include/ncurses
702 To set specific flags for a single file the following construction
706 #arch/ppc64/boot/Makefile
707 HOSTCFLAGS_piggyback.o := -DKERNELBASE=$(KERNELBASE)
709 It is also possible to specify additional options to the linker.
712 #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
713 HOSTLOADLIBES_qconf := -L$(QTDIR)/lib
715 When linking qconf, it will be passed the extra option
718 --- 4.6 When host programs are actually built
720 Kbuild will only build host-programs when they are referenced
722 This is possible in two ways:
724 (1) List the prerequisite explicitly in a special rule.
727 #drivers/pci/Makefile
728 hostprogs-y := gen-devlist
729 $(obj)/devlist.h: $(src)/pci.ids $(obj)/gen-devlist
730 ( cd $(obj); ./gen-devlist ) < $<
732 The target $(obj)/devlist.h will not be built before
733 $(obj)/gen-devlist is updated. Note that references to
734 the host programs in special rules must be prefixed with $(obj).
737 When there is no suitable special rule, and the host program
738 shall be built when a makefile is entered, the $(always)
739 variable shall be used.
742 #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
743 hostprogs-y := lxdialog
744 always := $(hostprogs-y)
746 This will tell kbuild to build lxdialog even if not referenced in
749 --- 4.7 Using hostprogs-$(CONFIG_FOO)
751 A typical pattern in a Kbuild file looks like this:
755 hostprogs-$(CONFIG_KALLSYMS) += kallsyms
757 Kbuild knows about both 'y' for built-in and 'm' for module.
758 So if a config symbol evaluate to 'm', kbuild will still build
759 the binary. In other words, Kbuild handles hostprogs-m exactly
760 like hostprogs-y. But only hostprogs-y is recommended to be used
761 when no CONFIG symbols are involved.
763 === 5 Kbuild clean infrastructure
765 "make clean" deletes most generated files in the obj tree where the kernel
766 is compiled. This includes generated files such as host programs.
767 Kbuild knows targets listed in $(hostprogs-y), $(hostprogs-m), $(always),
768 $(extra-y) and $(targets). They are all deleted during "make clean".
769 Files matching the patterns "*.[oas]", "*.ko", plus some additional files
770 generated by kbuild are deleted all over the kernel src tree when
771 "make clean" is executed.
773 Additional files can be specified in kbuild makefiles by use of $(clean-files).
776 #drivers/pci/Makefile
777 clean-files := devlist.h classlist.h
779 When executing "make clean", the two files "devlist.h classlist.h" will
780 be deleted. Kbuild will assume files to be in same relative directory as the
781 Makefile except if an absolute path is specified (path starting with '/').
783 To delete a directory hierarchy use:
786 #scripts/package/Makefile
787 clean-dirs := $(objtree)/debian/
789 This will delete the directory debian, including all subdirectories.
790 Kbuild will assume the directories to be in the same relative path as the
791 Makefile if no absolute path is specified (path does not start with '/').
793 To exclude certain files from make clean, use the $(no-clean-files) variable.
794 This is only a special case used in the top level Kbuild file:
798 no-clean-files := $(bounds-file) $(offsets-file)
800 Usually kbuild descends down in subdirectories due to "obj-* := dir/",
801 but in the architecture makefiles where the kbuild infrastructure
802 is not sufficient this sometimes needs to be explicit.
805 #arch/x86/boot/Makefile
806 subdir- := compressed/
808 The above assignment instructs kbuild to descend down in the
809 directory compressed/ when "make clean" is executed.
811 To support the clean infrastructure in the Makefiles that builds the
812 final bootimage there is an optional target named archclean:
817 $(Q)$(MAKE) $(clean)=arch/x86/boot
819 When "make clean" is executed, make will descend down in arch/x86/boot,
820 and clean as usual. The Makefile located in arch/x86/boot/ may use
821 the subdir- trick to descend further down.
823 Note 1: arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile cannot use "subdir-", because that file is
824 included in the top level makefile, and the kbuild infrastructure
825 is not operational at that point.
827 Note 2: All directories listed in core-y, libs-y, drivers-y and net-y will
828 be visited during "make clean".
830 === 6 Architecture Makefiles
832 The top level Makefile sets up the environment and does the preparation,
833 before starting to descend down in the individual directories.
834 The top level makefile contains the generic part, whereas
835 arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile contains what is required to set up kbuild
836 for said architecture.
837 To do so, arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile sets up a number of variables and defines
840 When kbuild executes, the following steps are followed (roughly):
841 1) Configuration of the kernel => produce .config
842 2) Store kernel version in include/linux/version.h
843 3) Symlink include/asm to include/asm-$(ARCH)
844 4) Updating all other prerequisites to the target prepare:
845 - Additional prerequisites are specified in arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile
846 5) Recursively descend down in all directories listed in
847 init-* core* drivers-* net-* libs-* and build all targets.
848 - The values of the above variables are expanded in arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile.
849 6) All object files are then linked and the resulting file vmlinux is
850 located at the root of the obj tree.
851 The very first objects linked are listed in head-y, assigned by
852 arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile.
853 7) Finally, the architecture-specific part does any required post processing
854 and builds the final bootimage.
855 - This includes building boot records
856 - Preparing initrd images and the like
859 --- 6.1 Set variables to tweak the build to the architecture
861 LDFLAGS Generic $(LD) options
863 Flags used for all invocations of the linker.
864 Often specifying the emulation is sufficient.
868 LDFLAGS := -m elf_s390
869 Note: ldflags-y can be used to further customise
870 the flags used. See chapter 3.7.
872 LDFLAGS_MODULE Options for $(LD) when linking modules
874 LDFLAGS_MODULE is used to set specific flags for $(LD) when
875 linking the .ko files used for modules.
876 Default is "-r", for relocatable output.
878 LDFLAGS_vmlinux Options for $(LD) when linking vmlinux
880 LDFLAGS_vmlinux is used to specify additional flags to pass to
881 the linker when linking the final vmlinux image.
882 LDFLAGS_vmlinux uses the LDFLAGS_$@ support.
886 LDFLAGS_vmlinux := -e stext
888 OBJCOPYFLAGS objcopy flags
890 When $(call if_changed,objcopy) is used to translate a .o file,
891 the flags specified in OBJCOPYFLAGS will be used.
892 $(call if_changed,objcopy) is often used to generate raw binaries on
897 OBJCOPYFLAGS := -O binary
899 #arch/s390/boot/Makefile
900 $(obj)/image: vmlinux FORCE
901 $(call if_changed,objcopy)
903 In this example, the binary $(obj)/image is a binary version of
904 vmlinux. The usage of $(call if_changed,xxx) will be described later.
906 KBUILD_AFLAGS $(AS) assembler flags
908 Default value - see top level Makefile
909 Append or modify as required per architecture.
912 #arch/sparc64/Makefile
913 KBUILD_AFLAGS += -m64 -mcpu=ultrasparc
915 KBUILD_CFLAGS $(CC) compiler flags
917 Default value - see top level Makefile
918 Append or modify as required per architecture.
920 Often, the KBUILD_CFLAGS variable depends on the configuration.
924 cflags-$(CONFIG_M386) += -march=i386
925 KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(cflags-y)
927 Many arch Makefiles dynamically run the target C compiler to
928 probe supported options:
933 cflags-$(CONFIG_MPENTIUMII) += $(call cc-option,\
934 -march=pentium2,-march=i686)
936 # Disable unit-at-a-time mode ...
937 KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(call cc-option,-fno-unit-at-a-time)
941 The first example utilises the trick that a config option expands
942 to 'y' when selected.
944 KBUILD_AFLAGS_KERNEL $(AS) options specific for built-in
946 $(KBUILD_AFLAGS_KERNEL) contains extra C compiler flags used to compile
947 resident kernel code.
949 KBUILD_AFLAGS_MODULE Options for $(AS) when building modules
951 $(KBUILD_AFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch specific options that
953 From commandline AFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.txt).
955 KBUILD_CFLAGS_KERNEL $(CC) options specific for built-in
957 $(KBUILD_CFLAGS_KERNEL) contains extra C compiler flags used to compile
958 resident kernel code.
960 KBUILD_CFLAGS_MODULE Options for $(CC) when building modules
962 $(KBUILD_CFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch specific options that
964 From commandline CFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.txt).
966 KBUILD_LDFLAGS_MODULE Options for $(LD) when linking modules
968 $(KBUILD_LDFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch specific options
969 used when linking modules. This is often a linker script.
970 From commandline LDFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.txt).
972 KBUILD_ARFLAGS Options for $(AR) when creating archives
974 $(KBUILD_ARFLAGS) set by the top level Makefile to "D" (deterministic
975 mode) if this option is supported by $(AR).
977 --- 6.2 Add prerequisites to archprepare:
979 The archprepare: rule is used to list prerequisites that need to be
980 built before starting to descend down in the subdirectories.
981 This is usually used for header files containing assembler constants.
985 archprepare: maketools
987 In this example, the file target maketools will be processed
988 before descending down in the subdirectories.
989 See also chapter XXX-TODO that describe how kbuild supports
990 generating offset header files.
993 --- 6.3 List directories to visit when descending
995 An arch Makefile cooperates with the top Makefile to define variables
996 which specify how to build the vmlinux file. Note that there is no
997 corresponding arch-specific section for modules; the module-building
998 machinery is all architecture-independent.
1001 head-y, init-y, core-y, libs-y, drivers-y, net-y
1003 $(head-y) lists objects to be linked first in vmlinux.
1004 $(libs-y) lists directories where a lib.a archive can be located.
1005 The rest list directories where a built-in.o object file can be
1008 $(init-y) objects will be located after $(head-y).
1009 Then the rest follows in this order:
1010 $(core-y), $(libs-y), $(drivers-y) and $(net-y).
1012 The top level Makefile defines values for all generic directories,
1013 and arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile only adds architecture-specific directories.
1016 #arch/sparc64/Makefile
1017 core-y += arch/sparc64/kernel/
1018 libs-y += arch/sparc64/prom/ arch/sparc64/lib/
1019 drivers-$(CONFIG_OPROFILE) += arch/sparc64/oprofile/
1022 --- 6.4 Architecture-specific boot images
1024 An arch Makefile specifies goals that take the vmlinux file, compress
1025 it, wrap it in bootstrapping code, and copy the resulting files
1026 somewhere. This includes various kinds of installation commands.
1027 The actual goals are not standardized across architectures.
1029 It is common to locate any additional processing in a boot/
1030 directory below arch/$(ARCH)/.
1032 Kbuild does not provide any smart way to support building a
1033 target specified in boot/. Therefore arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile shall
1034 call make manually to build a target in boot/.
1036 The recommended approach is to include shortcuts in
1037 arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile, and use the full path when calling down
1038 into the arch/$(ARCH)/boot/Makefile.
1042 boot := arch/x86/boot
1044 $(Q)$(MAKE) $(build)=$(boot) $(boot)/$@
1046 "$(Q)$(MAKE) $(build)=<dir>" is the recommended way to invoke
1047 make in a subdirectory.
1049 There are no rules for naming architecture-specific targets,
1050 but executing "make help" will list all relevant targets.
1051 To support this, $(archhelp) must be defined.
1056 echo '* bzImage - Image (arch/$(ARCH)/boot/bzImage)'
1059 When make is executed without arguments, the first goal encountered
1060 will be built. In the top level Makefile the first goal present
1062 An architecture shall always, per default, build a bootable image.
1063 In "make help", the default goal is highlighted with a '*'.
1064 Add a new prerequisite to all: to select a default goal different
1071 When "make" is executed without arguments, bzImage will be built.
1073 --- 6.5 Building non-kbuild targets
1077 extra-y specify additional targets created in the current
1078 directory, in addition to any targets specified by obj-*.
1080 Listing all targets in extra-y is required for two purposes:
1081 1) Enable kbuild to check changes in command lines
1082 - When $(call if_changed,xxx) is used
1083 2) kbuild knows what files to delete during "make clean"
1086 #arch/x86/kernel/Makefile
1087 extra-y := head.o init_task.o
1089 In this example, extra-y is used to list object files that
1090 shall be built, but shall not be linked as part of built-in.o.
1093 --- 6.6 Commands useful for building a boot image
1095 Kbuild provides a few macros that are useful when building a
1100 if_changed is the infrastructure used for the following commands.
1103 target: source(s) FORCE
1104 $(call if_changed,ld/objcopy/gzip)
1106 When the rule is evaluated, it is checked to see if any files
1107 need an update, or the command line has changed since the last
1108 invocation. The latter will force a rebuild if any options
1109 to the executable have changed.
1110 Any target that utilises if_changed must be listed in $(targets),
1111 otherwise the command line check will fail, and the target will
1113 Assignments to $(targets) are without $(obj)/ prefix.
1114 if_changed may be used in conjunction with custom commands as
1115 defined in 6.7 "Custom kbuild commands".
1117 Note: It is a typical mistake to forget the FORCE prerequisite.
1118 Another common pitfall is that whitespace is sometimes
1119 significant; for instance, the below will fail (note the extra space
1121 target: source(s) FORCE
1122 #WRONG!# $(call if_changed, ld/objcopy/gzip)
1125 Link target. Often, LDFLAGS_$@ is used to set specific options to ld.
1128 Copy binary. Uses OBJCOPYFLAGS usually specified in
1129 arch/$(ARCH)/Makefile.
1130 OBJCOPYFLAGS_$@ may be used to set additional options.
1133 Compress target. Use maximum compression to compress target.
1136 #arch/x86/boot/Makefile
1137 LDFLAGS_bootsect := -Ttext 0x0 -s --oformat binary
1138 LDFLAGS_setup := -Ttext 0x0 -s --oformat binary -e begtext
1140 targets += setup setup.o bootsect bootsect.o
1141 $(obj)/setup $(obj)/bootsect: %: %.o FORCE
1142 $(call if_changed,ld)
1144 In this example, there are two possible targets, requiring different
1145 options to the linker. The linker options are specified using the
1146 LDFLAGS_$@ syntax - one for each potential target.
1147 $(targets) are assigned all potential targets, by which kbuild knows
1148 the targets and will:
1149 1) check for commandline changes
1150 2) delete target during make clean
1152 The ": %: %.o" part of the prerequisite is a shorthand that
1153 free us from listing the setup.o and bootsect.o files.
1154 Note: It is a common mistake to forget the "target :=" assignment,
1155 resulting in the target file being recompiled for no
1159 Create flattend device tree blob object suitable for linking
1160 into vmlinux. Device tree blobs linked into vmlinux are placed
1161 in an init section in the image. Platform code *must* copy the
1162 blob to non-init memory prior to calling unflatten_device_tree().
1165 #arch/x86/platform/ce4100/Makefile
1166 clean-files := *dtb.S
1168 DTC_FLAGS := -p 1024
1171 $(obj)/%.dtb: $(src)/%.dts
1174 --- 6.7 Custom kbuild commands
1176 When kbuild is executing with KBUILD_VERBOSE=0, then only a shorthand
1177 of a command is normally displayed.
1178 To enable this behaviour for custom commands kbuild requires
1179 two variables to be set:
1180 quiet_cmd_<command> - what shall be echoed
1181 cmd_<command> - the command to execute
1185 quiet_cmd_image = BUILD $@
1186 cmd_image = $(obj)/tools/build $(BUILDFLAGS) \
1187 $(obj)/vmlinux.bin > $@
1190 $(obj)/bzImage: $(obj)/vmlinux.bin $(obj)/tools/build FORCE
1191 $(call if_changed,image)
1192 @echo 'Kernel: $@ is ready'
1194 When updating the $(obj)/bzImage target, the line
1196 BUILD arch/x86/boot/bzImage
1198 will be displayed with "make KBUILD_VERBOSE=0".
1201 --- 6.8 Preprocessing linker scripts
1203 When the vmlinux image is built, the linker script
1204 arch/$(ARCH)/kernel/vmlinux.lds is used.
1205 The script is a preprocessed variant of the file vmlinux.lds.S
1206 located in the same directory.
1207 kbuild knows .lds files and includes a rule *lds.S -> *lds.
1210 #arch/x86/kernel/Makefile
1211 always := vmlinux.lds
1214 export CPPFLAGS_vmlinux.lds += -P -C -U$(ARCH)
1216 The assignment to $(always) is used to tell kbuild to build the
1218 The assignment to $(CPPFLAGS_vmlinux.lds) tells kbuild to use the
1219 specified options when building the target vmlinux.lds.
1221 When building the *.lds target, kbuild uses the variables:
1222 KBUILD_CPPFLAGS : Set in top-level Makefile
1223 cppflags-y : May be set in the kbuild makefile
1224 CPPFLAGS_$(@F) : Target specific flags.
1225 Note that the full filename is used in this
1228 The kbuild infrastructure for *lds file are used in several
1229 architecture-specific files.
1231 --- 6.9 Generic header files
1233 The directory include/asm-generic contains the header files
1234 that may be shared between individual architectures.
1235 The recommended approach how to use a generic header file is
1236 to list the file in the Kbuild file.
1237 See "7.4 generic-y" for further info on syntax etc.
1239 === 7 Kbuild syntax for exported headers
1241 The kernel include a set of headers that is exported to userspace.
1242 Many headers can be exported as-is but other headers require a
1243 minimal pre-processing before they are ready for user-space.
1244 The pre-processing does:
1245 - drop kernel specific annotations
1246 - drop include of compiler.h
1247 - drop all sections that are kernel internal (guarded by ifdef __KERNEL__)
1249 Each relevant directory contains a file name "Kbuild" which specifies the
1250 headers to be exported.
1251 See subsequent chapter for the syntax of the Kbuild file.
1255 header-y specify header files to be exported.
1258 #include/linux/Kbuild
1260 header-y += aio_abi.h
1262 The convention is to list one file per line and
1263 preferably in alphabetic order.
1265 header-y also specify which subdirectories to visit.
1266 A subdirectory is identified by a trailing '/' which
1267 can be seen in the example above for the usb subdirectory.
1269 Subdirectories are visited before their parent directories.
1273 objhdr-y specifies generated files to be exported.
1274 Generated files are special as they need to be looked
1275 up in another directory when doing 'make O=...' builds.
1278 #include/linux/Kbuild
1279 objhdr-y += version.h
1281 --- 7.3 destination-y
1283 When an architecture have a set of exported headers that needs to be
1284 exported to a different directory destination-y is used.
1285 destination-y specify the destination directory for all exported
1286 headers in the file where it is present.
1289 #arch/xtensa/platforms/s6105/include/platform/Kbuild
1290 destination-y := include/linux
1292 In the example above all exported headers in the Kbuild file
1293 will be located in the directory "include/linux" when exported.
1297 If an architecture uses a verbatim copy of a header from
1298 include/asm-generic then this is listed in the file
1299 arch/$(ARCH)/include/asm/Kbuild like this:
1302 #arch/x86/include/asm/Kbuild
1303 generic-y += termios.h
1306 During the prepare phase of the build a wrapper include
1307 file is generated in the directory:
1309 arch/$(ARCH)/include/generated/asm
1311 When a header is exported where the architecture uses
1312 the generic header a similar wrapper is generated as part
1313 of the set of exported headers in the directory:
1317 The generated wrapper will in both cases look like the following:
1320 #include <asm-generic/termios.h>
1322 === 8 Kbuild Variables
1324 The top Makefile exports the following variables:
1326 VERSION, PATCHLEVEL, SUBLEVEL, EXTRAVERSION
1328 These variables define the current kernel version. A few arch
1329 Makefiles actually use these values directly; they should use
1330 $(KERNELRELEASE) instead.
1332 $(VERSION), $(PATCHLEVEL), and $(SUBLEVEL) define the basic
1333 three-part version number, such as "2", "4", and "0". These three
1334 values are always numeric.
1336 $(EXTRAVERSION) defines an even tinier sublevel for pre-patches
1337 or additional patches. It is usually some non-numeric string
1338 such as "-pre4", and is often blank.
1342 $(KERNELRELEASE) is a single string such as "2.4.0-pre4", suitable
1343 for constructing installation directory names or showing in
1344 version strings. Some arch Makefiles use it for this purpose.
1348 This variable defines the target architecture, such as "i386",
1349 "arm", or "sparc". Some kbuild Makefiles test $(ARCH) to
1350 determine which files to compile.
1352 By default, the top Makefile sets $(ARCH) to be the same as the
1353 host system architecture. For a cross build, a user may
1354 override the value of $(ARCH) on the command line:
1361 This variable defines a place for the arch Makefiles to install
1362 the resident kernel image and System.map file.
1363 Use this for architecture-specific install targets.
1365 INSTALL_MOD_PATH, MODLIB
1367 $(INSTALL_MOD_PATH) specifies a prefix to $(MODLIB) for module
1368 installation. This variable is not defined in the Makefile but
1369 may be passed in by the user if desired.
1371 $(MODLIB) specifies the directory for module installation.
1372 The top Makefile defines $(MODLIB) to
1373 $(INSTALL_MOD_PATH)/lib/modules/$(KERNELRELEASE). The user may
1374 override this value on the command line if desired.
1378 If this variable is specified, will cause modules to be stripped
1379 after they are installed. If INSTALL_MOD_STRIP is '1', then the
1380 default option --strip-debug will be used. Otherwise,
1381 INSTALL_MOD_STRIP value will be used as the option(s) to the strip
1385 === 9 Makefile language
1387 The kernel Makefiles are designed to be run with GNU Make. The Makefiles
1388 use only the documented features of GNU Make, but they do use many
1391 GNU Make supports elementary list-processing functions. The kernel
1392 Makefiles use a novel style of list building and manipulation with few
1395 GNU Make has two assignment operators, ":=" and "=". ":=" performs
1396 immediate evaluation of the right-hand side and stores an actual string
1397 into the left-hand side. "=" is like a formula definition; it stores the
1398 right-hand side in an unevaluated form and then evaluates this form each
1399 time the left-hand side is used.
1401 There are some cases where "=" is appropriate. Usually, though, ":="
1402 is the right choice.
1406 Original version made by Michael Elizabeth Chastain, <mailto:mec@shout.net>
1407 Updates by Kai Germaschewski <kai@tp1.ruhr-uni-bochum.de>
1408 Updates by Sam Ravnborg <sam@ravnborg.org>
1409 Language QA by Jan Engelhardt <jengelh@gmx.de>
1413 - Describe how kbuild supports shipped files with _shipped.
1414 - Generating offset header files.
1415 - Add more variables to section 7?