GNU bug report logs - #67539
GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Dennis Clarke <dclarke <at> blastwave.org>
To: bug-automake <at> gnu.org
Subject: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2023 16:42:54 -0500

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

Not a bad result .... just one bad test result and it looks to be
related to something weird with libtool :


/bin/bash ./libtool    --mode=compile gcc -DHAVE_CONFIG_H -I. 
-D_LARGEFILE64_SOURCE  -g -O2 -MT fooo.lo -MD -MP -MF .d
eps/fooo.Tpo -c -o fooo.lo fooo.m
libtool: compile: unable to infer tagged configuration
libtool:   error: specify a tag with '--tag'
make[1]: *** [Makefile:661: fooo.lo] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory 
'/opt/bw/build/automake-1.16.5_linux_pentium_G4500.002/t/objc-megademo.dir'
make: *** [Makefile:439: all] Error 2

I have attached the test-suite.log but really, this looks to be a fairly 
decent result.


Dennis Clarke
RISC-V/SPARC/PPC/ARM/CISC
UNIX and Linux spoken

[automake-1.16.5_linux_pentium_G4500_test-suite.log.gz (application/gzip, attachment)]

Message #8 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
To: dclarke <at> blastwave.org
Cc: 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2023 19:46:40 -0700

Hi Dennis,

    libtool: compile: unable to infer tagged configuration

Thanks for the report.

As you surmise, apparently this needs to be reported to
libtool. (Although afaik libtool is currently unmaintained, so I don't
know when or if anything will get fixed.) At least, I have no idea what
to do about, or even work around, that error :(.

What is the os version + hardware? If it's easy for you to try the
automake development sources, that could be worth a try. Else hopefully
there will be a pretest+release soon. --best, karl.

Message #11 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Nick Bowler <nbowler <at> draconx.ca>
To: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
Cc: libtool <at> gnu.org, 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, dclarke <at> blastwave.org
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2023 22:45:05 -0500

On 2023-11-30 21:46, Karl Berry wrote:
> Hi Dennis,
> 
>      libtool: compile: unable to infer tagged configuration
> 
> Thanks for the report.
> 
> As you surmise, apparently this needs to be reported to
> libtool. (Although afaik libtool is currently unmaintained, so I don't
> know when or if anything will get fixed.) At least, I have no idea what
> to do about, or even work around, that error :(.

This could still be (partially) an Automake issue, since the problem 
appears partially related to how Automake is calling libtool from the 
build rules (it is missing the --tag option), and I think those are 
coming from Automake.

However it looks like there is no tag defined for Objective C[1] 
(presumably it would be --tag=OBJC).  Adding this option does appear to 
make things "work" in the sense that libtool just complains about the 
unknown tag but then proceeds to actually do stuff, rather than exiting 
outright with a fatal error.

Interestingly the libtool manual also says "If [libtool] can't infer a 
tag, then it defaults to the configuration for the C language", which is 
clearly not the case (it seems what actually happens is that if libtool 
can't infer a tag then it exits with a fatal error).  So I wonder if
this is actually a regression in libtool.

[1] https://www.gnu.org/software/libtool/manual/libtool.html#Tags

Cheers,
  Nick

Message #14 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
To: nbowler <at> draconx.ca
Cc: 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, dclarke <at> blastwave.org
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Sat, 2 Dec 2023 14:43:00 -0700

    However it looks like there is no tag defined for Objective C[1]
    (presumably it would be --tag=OBJC).  Adding this option does appear
    to make things "work" in the sense that libtool just complains about
    the unknown tag but then proceeds to actually do stuff, rather than
    exiting outright with a fatal error.

Thanks Nick.

Does libtool actually work (well enough) with Objective C, then? Apart
from the warning about the tag. I don't see it mentioned in the libtool
sources.

Anyway, I guess it's easy enough to add the tag, if that makes things
better.  Why not, I guess? Patch below look right? (Plus maybe something
in the manual.)

BTW, I've been unable to install objc on my systems (Alma 8, Rocky 9) 
since installing the gcc-objc + libobjc packages does not suffice.
The result is still:
gcc: error: foo.m: Objective-C compiler not installed on this system

I see some ideas about how to proceed on the net, but ... time.

From the lack of reports about this test failure (yours was the first,
Dennis, as far as I can recall), I surmise that hardly anyone (who cares
about automake anyway) has objc installed. --thanks, karl.

--- a/bin/automake.in
+++ b/bin/automake.in
@@ -739,6 +739,7 @@ register_language ('name' => 'objc',
 		   'compiler' => 'OBJCCOMPILE',
 		   'compile_flag' => '-c',
 		   'output_flag' => '-o',
+		   'libtool_flag' => 'OBJC',
 		   'lder' => 'OBJCLD',
 		   'ld' => '$(OBJC)',
 		   'pure' => 1,
@@ -757,6 +758,7 @@ register_language ('name' => 'objcxx',
 		   'compiler' => 'OBJCXXCOMPILE',
 		   'compile_flag' => '-c',
 		   'output_flag' => '-o',
+		   'libtool_flag' => 'OBJCXX',
 		   'lder' => 'OBJCXXLD',
 		   'ld' => '$(OBJCXX)',
 		   'pure' => 1,

Message #17 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Mike Frysinger <vapier <at> gentoo.org>
To: Nick Bowler <nbowler <at> draconx.ca>
Cc: libtool <at> gnu.org, 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, dclarke <at> blastwave.org,
 Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Sat, 2 Dec 2023 21:11:28 -0500

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

On 30 Nov 2023 22:45, Nick Bowler wrote:
> Interestingly the libtool manual also says "If [libtool] can't infer a 
> tag, then it defaults to the configuration for the C language", which is 
> clearly not the case (it seems what actually happens is that if libtool 
> can't infer a tag then it exits with a fatal error).  So I wonder if
> this is actually a regression in libtool.

i'm fairly certain libtool used to do this aaaaaaaaaages ago, and i *think*
it stopping was intentional.  i recall a lot of pain in Gentoo from that
switchup, but tbh, i don't think any of it was "wrong" ... all the fixes we
landed were because the code was being misused/abused, and silently doing
the wrong thing (especially when cross-compiling).  so i personally prefer
the new world order, and would say we should lobby for the manual to change
rather than rollback the behavior.
-mike

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Message #20 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
To: 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, dclarke <at> blastwave.org
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Sun, 10 Dec 2023 14:35:42 -0700

    partially related to how Automake is calling libtool from the 
    build rules (it is missing the --tag option), 

I added the tags to automake as previously posted here.
(https://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=67539)

    no tag defined for Objective C[1] (presumably it would be --tag=OBJC)
    ...
    "If [libtool] can't infer a tag, then it defaults to the
    configuration for the C language"
    ...
    lobby for the manual to change rather than rollback the behavior.

I wrote bug-libtool about these things.
https://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=67754

Thanks,
Karl

Message #23 received at 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
To: 67539 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#67539: GNU Automake 1.16.5 FAILS one test objc-megademo
Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2023 16:38:59 -0700

Closing this since there's nothing left to do on the automake side.

(Someone new volunteered to take over libtool, BTW, but I see no changes
in the maintainers file as yet. Not sure where that stands.) --best, karl.

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