#### Linux From Scratch - Version 12.0-rc1

### Chapter 8. Installing Basic System Software

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# 8.45. Autoconf-2.71

The Autoconf package contains programs for producing shell scripts that can automatically configure source code.

Approximate build time: less than 0.1 SBU (about 6.0 SBU with tests)
Required disk space: 24 MB

## 8.45.1. Installation of Autoconf

First, fix several problems with the tests caused by bash-5.2 and later:

    sed -e 's/SECONDS|/&SHLVL|/'               \
        -e '/BASH_ARGV=/a\        /^SHLVL=/ d' \
        -i.orig tests/local.at

Prepare Autoconf for compilation:

    ./configure --prefix=/usr

Compile the package:

    make

To test the results, issue:

    make check

### Note

The test time for autoconf can be reduced significantly on a system with multiple cores. To do this, append TESTSUITEFLAGS=-j<N> to the line above. For instance, using -j4 can reduce the test time by over 60 percent.

Install the package:

    make install

## 8.45.2. Contents of Autoconf

Installed programs: autoconf, autoheader, autom4te, autoreconf, autoscan, autoupdate, and ifnames
Installed directory: /usr/share/autoconf

### Short Descriptions

autoconf | Produces shell scripts that automatically configure software source code packages to adapt to many kinds of Unix-like systems; the configuration scripts it produces are independent—running them does not require the autoconf program
autoheader | A tool for creating template files of C #define statements for configure to use
autom4te | A wrapper for the M4 macro processor
autoreconf | Automatically runs autoconf, autoheader, aclocal, automake, gettextize, and libtoolize in the correct order to save time when changes are made to autoconf and automake template files
autoscan | Helps to create a `configure.in` file for a software package; it examines the source files in a directory tree, searching them for common portability issues, and creates a `configure.scan` file that serves as as a preliminary `configure.in` file for the package
autoupdate | Modifies a `configure.in` file that still calls autoconf macros by their old names to use the current macro names
ifnames | Helps when writing `configure.in` files for a software package; it prints the identifiers that the package uses in C preprocessor conditionals [If a package has already been set up to have some portability, this program can help determine what configure needs to check for. It can also fill in gaps in a `configure.in` file generated by autoscan.]

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