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[bpt/emacs.git] / INSTALL
1 GNU Emacs Installation Guide
2 Copyright (c) 1992, 1994 Free software Foundation, Inc.
3
4 Permission is granted to anyone to make or distribute verbatim copies
5 of this document as received, in any medium, provided that the
6 copyright notice and permission notice are preserved,
7 and that the distributor grants the recipient permission
8 for further redistribution as permitted by this notice.
9
10 Permission is granted to distribute modified versions
11 of this document, or of portions of it,
12 under the above conditions, provided also that they
13 carry prominent notices stating who last changed them,
14 and that any new or changed statements about the activities
15 of the Free Software Foundation are approved by the Foundation.
16
17
18 BUILDING AND INSTALLATION:
19 (This is for a Unix or Unix-like system. For MSDOS, see below;
20 search for MSDOG.)
21
22 1) Make sure your system has enough swapping space allocated to handle
23 a program whose pure code is 900k bytes and whose data area is at
24 least 400k and can reach 8Mb or more. If the swapping space is
25 insufficient, you will get an error in the command `temacs -batch -l
26 loadup dump', found in `./src/Makefile.in.in', or possibly when
27 running the final dumped Emacs.
28
29 Building Emacs requires about 50 Mb of disk space (including the Emacs
30 sources). Once installed, Emacs occupies about 20 Mb in the file
31 system where it is installed; this includes the executable files, Lisp
32 libraries, miscellaneous data files, and on-line documentation. If
33 the building and installation take place in different directories,
34 then the installation procedure momentarily requires 50+20 Mb.
35
36 2) Consult `./etc/MACHINES' to see what configuration name you should
37 give to the `configure' program. That file offers hints for
38 getting around some possible installation problems.
39
40 3) In the top directory of the Emacs distribution, run the program
41 `configure' as follows:
42
43 ./configure CONFIGURATION-NAME [--OPTION[=VALUE]] ...
44
45 The CONFIGURATION-NAME argument should be a configuration name given
46 in `./etc/MACHINES'. If omitted, `configure' will try to guess your
47 system type; if it cannot, you must find the appropriate configuration
48 name in `./etc/MACHINES' and specify it explicitly.
49
50 If you don't want X support, specify `--with-x=no'. If you omit this
51 option, `configure' will try to figure out for itself whether your
52 system has X, and arrange to use it if present.
53
54 The `--x-includes=DIR' and `--x-libraries=DIR' options tell the build
55 process where the compiler should look for the include files and
56 object libraries used with the X Window System. Normally, `configure'
57 is able to find them; these options are necessary if you have your X
58 Window System files installed in unusual places.
59
60 To get more attractive menus, you can specify an X toolkit when you
61 configure Emacs; use the option `--with-x-toolkit=TOOLKIT', where
62 TOOLKIT is `athena' or `motif' (`yes' and `lucid' are synonyms for
63 `athena'). On some systems, it does not work to use a toolkit with
64 shared libraries.
65
66 The `--with-gcc' option specifies that the build process should
67 compile Emacs using GCC. If you don't want to use GCC, specify
68 `--with-gcc=no'. If you omit this option, `configure' will search
69 for GCC in your path, and use it if present.
70
71 You can build Emacs for several different machine types from a single
72 source directory. To do this, you must use a version of `make' that
73 supports the `VPATH' variable, such as GNU `make'. Make separate
74 build directories for the different configuration types, and in each
75 one, run the Emacs `configure' script. `configure' looks for the
76 Emacs source code in the directory that `configure' is in.
77
78 The `--prefix=PREFIXDIR' option specifies where the installation process
79 should put emacs and its data files. This defaults to `/usr/local'.
80 - Emacs (and the other utilities users run) go in PREFIXDIR/bin
81 (unless the `--exec-prefix' option says otherwise).
82 - The architecture-independent files go in PREFIXDIR/share/emacs/VERSION
83 (where VERSION is the version number of Emacs, like `19.27').
84 - The architecture-dependent files go in
85 PREFIXDIR/libexec/emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION
86 (where CONFIGURATION is the configuration name, like mips-dec-ultrix4.2),
87 unless the `--exec-prefix' option says otherwise.
88
89 The `--exec-prefix=EXECDIR' option allows you to specify a separate
90 portion of the directory tree for installing architecture-specific
91 files, like executables and utility programs. If specified,
92 - Emacs (and the other utilities users run) go in EXECDIR/bin, and
93 - The architecture-dependent files go in
94 EXECDIR/libexec/emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION.
95 EXECDIR/bin should be a directory that is normally in users' PATHs.
96
97 For example, the command
98
99 ./configure mips-dec-ultrix --with-x11
100
101 configures Emacs to build for a DECstation running Ultrix, with
102 support for the X11 window system.
103
104 `configure' doesn't do any compilation or installation
105 itself. It just creates the files that influence those things:
106 `./Makefile', `lib-src/Makefile', `oldXMenu/Makefile',
107 `lwlib/Makefile', `src/Makefile', and `./src/config.h'. For details
108 on exactly what it does, see the section called `CONFIGURATION BY
109 HAND', below.
110
111 When it is done, `configure' prints a description of what it did and
112 creates a shell script `config.status' which, when run, recreates the
113 same configuration. If `configure' exits with an error after
114 disturbing the status quo, it removes `config.status'. `configure'
115 also creates a file `config.cache' that saves the results of its tests
116 to make reconfiguring faster, and a file `config.log' containing compiler
117 output (useful mainly for debugging `configure'). You can give
118 `configure' the option `--cache-file=FILE' to use the results of the
119 tests in FILE instead of `config.cache'. Set FILE to `/dev/null' to
120 disable caching, for debugging `configure'.
121
122 The work of `configure' can be done by editing various files in the
123 distribution, but using `configure' is supposed to be simpler. See
124 the section called "CONFIGURATION BY HAND" below if you want to do the
125 configuration yourself.
126
127 4) Look at `./lisp/paths.el'; if some of those values are not right
128 for your system, edit the file `./lisp/site-init.el' containing Emacs
129 Lisp code to override them; you probably don't want to edit paths.el
130 itself. YOU MUST USE THE LISP FUNCTION `setq' TO ASSIGN VALUES,
131 rather than `defvar', as used by `./lisp/paths.el'. For example,
132
133 (setq news-inews-program "/usr/bin/inews")
134
135 is how you would override the default value of the variable
136 news-inews-program (which is "/usr/local/inews").
137
138 Note that, on some systems, the code you place in site-init.el must
139 not use expand-file-name or any other function which may look
140 something up in the system's password and user information database.
141 See `./PROBLEMS' for more details on which systems this affects.
142
143 5) Put into `./lisp/site-init.el' or `./lisp/site-load.el' any Emacs
144 Lisp code you want Emacs to load before it is dumped out. Use
145 site-load.el for additional libraries if you arrange for their
146 documentation strings to be in the etc/DOC file (see
147 src/Makefile.in.in if you wish to figure out how to do that). For all
148 else, use site-init.el.
149
150 If you set load-path in site-init.el or site-load.el, Emacs will use
151 *precisely* the resulting path when it starts up again. If you do this,
152 you are on your own!
153
154 Note that, on some systems, the code you place in site-init.el must
155 not use expand-file-name or any other function which may look
156 something up in the system's password and user information database.
157 See `./PROBLEMS' for more details on which systems this affects.
158
159 The `site-*.el' files are nonexistent in the distribution. You do not
160 need to create them if you have nothing to put in them.
161
162 6) Refer to the file `./etc/TERMS' for information on fields you may
163 wish to add to various termcap entries. The files `./etc/termcap.ucb'
164 and `./etc/termcap.dat' may already contain appropriately-modified
165 entries.
166
167 7) Run `make' in the top directory of the Emacs distribution to finish
168 building Emacs in the standard way. The final executable file will be
169 named `src/emacs'. If you want to have Emacs's executable programs
170 and data files installed as well, run `make install'.
171
172 By default, Emacs installs its files in the following directories:
173
174 `/usr/local/bin' holds the executable programs users normally run -
175 `emacs', `etags', `ctags', `b2m', `emacsclient',
176 and `rcs-checkin'.
177
178 `/usr/local/share/emacs/VERSION/lisp' holds the Emacs Lisp library;
179 `VERSION' stands for the number of the Emacs version
180 you are installing, like `18.59' or `19.27'. Since the
181 lisp library changes from one version of Emacs to
182 another, including the version number in the path
183 allows you to have several versions of Emacs installed
184 at the same time; this means that you don't have to
185 make Emacs unavailable while installing a new
186 version.
187
188 Emacs searches for its lisp files in
189 `/usr/local/share/emacs/site-lisp', then in this
190 directory.
191
192 `/usr/local/share/emacs/VERSION/etc' holds the Emacs tutorial, the DOC
193 file, the `yow' database, and other
194 architecture-independent files Emacs might need while
195 running. VERSION is as specified for `.../lisp'.
196
197 `/usr/local/com/emacs/lock' contains files indicating who is editing
198 what, so Emacs can detect editing clashes between
199 users.
200
201 `/usr/local/libexec/emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION-NAME' contains executable
202 programs used by Emacs that users are not expected to
203 run themselves.
204 `VERSION' is the number of the Emacs version you are
205 installing, and `CONFIGURATION-NAME' is the argument
206 you gave to the `configure' program to identify the
207 architecture and operating system of your machine,
208 like `mips-dec-ultrix' or `sparc-sun-sunos'. Since
209 these files are specific to the version of Emacs,
210 operating system, and architecture in use, including
211 the configuration name in the path allows you to have
212 several versions of Emacs for any mix of machines and
213 operating systems installed at the same time; this is
214 useful for sites at which different kinds of machines
215 share the file system Emacs is installed on.
216
217 `/usr/local/info' holds the on-line documentation for Emacs, known as
218 "info files". Many other GNU programs are documented
219 using info files as well, so this directory stands
220 apart from the other, Emacs-specific directories.
221
222 `/usr/local/man/man1' holds the man pages for the programs installed
223 in `/usr/local/bin'.
224
225 If these directories are not what you want, you can specify where to
226 install Emacs's libraries and data files or where Emacs should search
227 for its lisp files by giving values for `make' variables as part of
228 the command. See the section below called `MAKE VARIABLES' for more
229 information on this.
230
231 8) Check the file `dir' in your site's info directory (usually
232 /usr/local/info) to make sure that it has a menu entry for the Emacs
233 info files.
234
235 9) If your system uses lock files to interlock access to mailer inbox files,
236 then you might need to make the movemail program setuid or setgid
237 to enable it to write the lock files. We believe this is safe.
238
239 10) You are done!
240
241
242 MAKE VARIABLES
243
244 You can change where the build process installs Emacs and its data
245 files by specifying values for `make' variables as part of the `make'
246 command line. For example, if you type
247
248 make install bindir=/usr/local/gnubin
249
250 the `bindir=/usr/local/gnubin' argument indicates that the Emacs
251 executable files should go in `/usr/local/gnubin', not
252 `/usr/local/bin'.
253
254 Here is a complete list of the variables you may want to set.
255
256 `bindir' indicates where to put executable programs that users can
257 run. This defaults to /usr/local/bin.
258
259 `datadir' indicates where to put the architecture-independent
260 read-only data files that Emacs refers to while it runs; it
261 defaults to /usr/local/share. We create the following
262 subdirectories under `datadir':
263 - `emacs/VERSION/lisp', containing the Emacs lisp library, and
264 - `emacs/VERSION/etc', containing the Emacs tutorial, the DOC
265 file, and the `yow' database.
266 `VERSION' is the number of the Emacs version you are installing,
267 like `18.59' or `19.0'. Since these files vary from one version
268 of Emacs to another, including the version number in the path
269 allows you to have several versions of Emacs installed at the
270 same time; this means that you don't have to make Emacs
271 unavailable while installing a new version.
272
273 `sharedstatedir' indicates where to put architecture-independent data files
274 that Emacs modifies while it runs; it defaults to
275 /usr/local/com. We create the following
276 subdirectories under `sharedstatedir':
277 - `emacs/lock', containing files indicating who is editing
278 what, so Emacs can detect editing clashes between
279 users.
280
281 `libexecdir' indicates where to put architecture-specific data files that
282 Emacs refers to as it runs; it defaults to `/usr/local/libexec'.
283 We create the following subdirectories under `libexecdir':
284 - `emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION-NAME', containing executable
285 programs used by Emacs that users are not expected to run
286 themselves.
287 `VERSION' is the number of the Emacs version you are installing,
288 and `CONFIGURATION-NAME' is the argument you gave to the
289 `configure' program to identify the architecture and operating
290 system of your machine, like `mips-dec-ultrix' or
291 `sparc-sun-sunos'. Since these files are specific to the version
292 of Emacs, operating system, and architecture in use, including
293 the configuration name in the path allows you to have several
294 versions of Emacs for any mix of machines and operating systems
295 installed at the same time; this is useful for sites at which
296 different kinds of machines share the file system Emacs is
297 installed on.
298
299 `infodir' indicates where to put the info files distributed with
300 Emacs; it defaults to `/usr/local/info'.
301
302 `mandir' indicates where to put the man pages for Emacs and its
303 utilities (like `etags'); it defaults to
304 `/usr/local/man/man1'.
305
306 `manext' gives the extension the man pages should be installed with.
307 It should contain a period, followed by the appropriate
308 digit. It defaults to `.1'. For example given the default
309 values for `mandir' and `manext', the Emacs man page would be
310 installed as `/usr/local/man/man1/emacs.1'.
311
312 `prefix' doesn't give a path for any specific part of Emacs; instead,
313 its value is used to determine the defaults for all the
314 architecture-independent path variables - `datadir',
315 `sharedstatedir', `infodir', and `mandir'. Its default value is
316 `/usr/local'; the other variables add on `lib' or `man' to it
317 by default.
318
319 For example, suppose your site generally places GNU software
320 under `/usr/users/software/gnusoft' instead of `/usr/local'.
321 By including
322 `prefix=/usr/users/software/gnusoft'
323 in the arguments to `make', you can instruct the build process
324 to place all of the Emacs data files in the appropriate
325 directories under that path.
326
327 `exec_prefix' serves the same purpose as `prefix', but instead
328 determines the default values for the architecture-dependent
329 path variables - `bindir' and `libexecdir'.
330
331 The above variables serve analogous purposes in the makefiles for all
332 GNU software; here are some variables specific to Emacs.
333
334 `lispdir' indicates where Emacs installs and expects its lisp
335 library. Its default value, based on `datadir' (see above),
336 is `/usr/local/lib/emacs/VERSION/lisp' (where `VERSION' is as
337 described above).
338
339 `locallisppath' indicates where Emacs should search for lisp files
340 specific to your site. It should be a colon-separated list of
341 directories; Emacs checks them in order before checking
342 `lispdir'. Its default value, based on `datadir' (see above),
343 is `/usr/local/lib/emacs/site-lisp'.
344
345 `lisppath' is the complete list of directories Emacs should search for
346 its lisp files; its default value is the concatenation of
347 `lispdir' and `locallisppath'. It should be a colon-separated
348 list of directories; Emacs checks them in the order they
349 appear.
350
351 `etcdir' indicates where Emacs should install and expect the rest of
352 its architecture-independent data, like the tutorial, DOC
353 file, and yow database. Its default value, based on `datadir'
354 (which see), is `/usr/local/lib/emacs/VERSION/etc'.
355
356 `lockdir' indicates the directory where Emacs keeps track of its
357 locking information. Its default value, based on `sharedstatedir'
358 (which see), is `/usr/local/lib/emacs/lock'.
359
360 `archlibdir' indicates where Emacs installs and expects the
361 executable files and other architecture-dependent data it uses
362 while running. Its default value, based on `libexecdir' (which
363 see), is `/usr/local/lib/emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION-NAME'
364 (where VERSION and CONFIGURATION-NAME are as described above).
365
366 Remember that you must specify any variable values you need each time
367 you run `make' in the top directory. If you run `make' once to build
368 emacs, test it, and then run `make' again to install the files, you
369 must provide the same variable settings each time. To make the
370 settings persist, you can edit them into the `Makefile' in the top
371 directory, but be aware that running the `configure' program erases
372 `Makefile' and rebuilds it from `Makefile.in'.
373
374 The top-level Makefile stores the variable settings it used in the
375 Makefiles for the subdirectories, so you don't have to specify them
376 when running make in the subdirectories.
377
378
379 CONFIGURATION BY HAND
380
381 Instead of running the `configure' program, you have to perform the
382 following steps.
383
384 1) Copy `./src/config.h.in' to `./src/config.h'.
385
386 2) Consult `./etc/MACHINES' to see what configuration name you should
387 use for your system. Look at the code of the `configure' script to
388 see which operating system and architecture description files from
389 `src/s' and `src/m' should be used for that configuration name. Edit
390 `src/config.h', and change the two `#include' directives to include
391 the appropriate system and architecture description files.
392
393 2) Edit `./src/config.h' to set the right options for your system. If
394 you need to override any of the definitions in the s/*.h and m/*.h
395 files for your system and machine, do so by editing config.h, not by
396 changing the s/*.h and m/*.h files. Occasionally you may need to
397 redefine parameters used in `./lib-src/movemail.c'.
398
399 3) Create src/Makefile and lib-src/Makefile from the corresponding
400 `Makefile.in.in' files. First copy `Makefile.in.in' to `Makefile.in',
401 then edit in appropriate substituions for the @...@ constructs,
402 and then copy the shell commands near the end of `configure'
403 that run cpp to construct `Makefile'.
404
405 4) Create `Makefile' files in various other directories
406 from the corresponding `Makefile.in' files. This isn't so hard,
407 just a matter of substitution.
408
409 The `configure' script is built from `configure.in' by the `autoconf'
410 program. You need version 2.0 or newer of `autoconf' to rebuild `configure'.
411
412 BUILDING GNU EMACS BY HAND
413
414 Once Emacs is configured, running `make' in the top directory performs
415 the following steps.
416
417 1) Run `make src/paths.h' in the top directory. This produces
418 `./src/paths.h' from the template file `./src/paths.h.in', changing
419 the paths to the values specified in `./Makefile'.
420
421 2) Go to directory `./lib-src' and run `make'. This creates
422 executables named `ctags' and `etags' and `wakeup' and `make-docfile'
423 and `digest-doc' and `test-distrib'. And others.
424
425 3) Go to directory `./src' and Run `make'. This refers to files in
426 the `./lisp' and `./lib-src' subdirectories using names `../lisp' and
427 `../lib-src'.
428
429 This creates a file `./src/emacs' which is the runnable Emacs,
430 which has another name that contains a version number.
431 Each time you do this, that version number increments in the last place.
432
433 It also creates a file in `./etc' whose name is `DOC' followed by the
434 current Emacs version. This file contains documentation strings for
435 all the functions in Emacs. Each time you run make to make a new
436 emacs, a new DOC file with a new name is made. You must keep the DOC
437 file for an Emacs version as long as you keep using that Emacs
438 version.
439
440
441 INSTALLATION BY HAND
442
443 The steps below are done by running `make install' in the main
444 directory of the Emacs distribution.
445
446 1) Copy `./lisp' and its subdirectories, `./etc', and the executables
447 in `./lib-src' to their final destinations, as selected in `./src/paths.h'.
448
449 Strictly speaking, not all of the executables in `./lib-src' need be copied.
450 - The programs `cvtmail', `emacsserver', `fakemail', `hexl',
451 `movemail', `profile', `rcs2log', `timer', `vcdiff', `wakeup',
452 and `yow' are used by Emacs; they do need to be copied.
453 - The programs `etags', `ctags', `emacsclient', `b2m', and `rcs-checkin'
454 are intended to be run by users; they are handled below.
455 - The programs `make-docfile' and `test-distrib' were
456 used in building Emacs, and are not needed any more.
457 - The programs `digest-doc' and `sorted-doc' convert a `DOC' file into
458 a file for users to read. There is no important reason to move them.
459
460 2) Copy the files in `./info' to the place specified in
461 `./lisp/site-init.el' or `./lisp/paths.el'. Note that if the
462 destination directory already contains a file named `dir', you
463 probably don't want to replace it with the `dir' file in the Emacs
464 distribution. Instead, you should make sure that the existing `dir'
465 file contains an appropriate menu entry for the Emacs info.
466
467 3) Create a directory for Emacs to use for clash detection, named as
468 indicated by the PATH_LOCK macro in `./src/paths.h'.
469
470 4) Copy `./src/emacs' to `/usr/local/bin', or to some other directory
471 in users' search paths. `./src/emacs' has an alternate name
472 `./src/emacs-EMACSVERSION'; you may wish to make a symbolic link named
473 `/usr/local/bin/emacs' pointing to that alternate name, as an easy way
474 of installing different versions.
475
476 You can delete `./src/temacs'.
477
478 5) Copy the programs `b2m', `emacsclient', `ctags', `etags', and
479 `rcs-checkin' from `./lib-src' to `/usr/local/bin'. These programs are
480 intended for users to run.
481
482 6) Copy the man pages in `./etc' for emacs, ctags, and etags into the
483 appropriate man directories.
484
485 7) The files in the `./src' subdirectory, except for `emacs', are not
486 used by Emacs once it is built. However, it is very desirable to keep
487 the source on line for debugging.
488
489
490 PROBLEMS
491
492 See the file PROBLEMS in this directory for a list of various
493 problems sometimes encountered, and what to do about them.
494
495
496 Installation on MSDOG (a.k.a. MSDOS)
497
498 To install on MSDOG, you need to have the GNU C compiler for MSDOG
499 (also known as djgpp), GNU Make, rm, mv, chmod, and sed. Type these
500 commands:
501
502 config msdos
503 make install
504
505 To save disk space, Emacs is built with the idea that you will execute
506 it from the same place in the file system where you built it. As the
507 /usr/local/ subtree does not exist on most MSDOG systems, the
508 executables are placed in /emacs/bin/.
509
510 MSDOG is a not a multitasking operating system, so Emacs features such
511 as asynchronous subprocesses that depend on multitasking will not
512 work. Synchronous subprocesses do work.