Missing autoconf system requirement?

[mikesd]

I'm installing LFS 6.3 and at step 5.14.1 BASH-3.2 I recieved an error during the make step due to missing autoconf. autoconf wasn't listed as a system requirement. I simply installed autoconf on the host system and all was well. Not a major drama but thought it was worth mentioning.

Mike

[Chris Staub]

I just uninstalled Autoconf from my system and have no problems building all of Chapter 5, including Bash. My guess is you saw some error and mistook it for meaning that Autoconf was missing, or it's possible that something else like bison was missing and installing Autoconf happened to provide the *real* needed dependency at the same time. Double-check the make error(s) and see whether it really is Autoconf that's the issue. If so, you'll need to provide more information, like the exact make output.

[dnicholson@…]

The only reason autoconf would ever be needed in Ch. 5 is because

1. A tarball is shipped with broken packaging (possible, but unlikely).

2. We're deliberately patching one of the autotools files, such as configure.in.

In the case of bash, 2. is a definite possibility since we do apply a large set of patches to bash. However, someone else would have undoubtedly run into that error before.

So, I tend to think that a real need for autoconf would be totally reproducible. On the other hand, you can easily introduce a need for autoconf by running touch configure.in.

[bdubbs@…]

I'm going to mark this ticket as invalid as Chapter 5 would only need this if someone was deviating from the book's instructions. As Dan says, if we do introduce something that makes autoconf a requirement, then this ticket should be reopened.