xref: /linux/Documentation/kbuild/makefiles.rst (revision 8630c59e99363c4b655788fd01134aef9bcd9264)
1======================
2Linux Kernel Makefiles
3======================
4
5This document describes the Linux kernel Makefiles.
6
7Overview
8========
9
10The Makefiles have five parts::
11
12	Makefile                    the top Makefile.
13	.config                     the kernel configuration file.
14	arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile    the arch Makefile.
15	scripts/Makefile.*          common rules etc. for all kbuild Makefiles.
16	kbuild Makefiles            exist in every subdirectory
17
18The top Makefile reads the .config file, which comes from the kernel
19configuration process.
20
21The top Makefile is responsible for building two major products: vmlinux
22(the resident kernel image) and modules (any module files).
23It builds these goals by recursively descending into the subdirectories of
24the kernel source tree.
25
26The list of subdirectories which are visited depends upon the kernel
27configuration. The top Makefile textually includes an arch Makefile
28with the name arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile. The arch Makefile supplies
29architecture-specific information to the top Makefile.
30
31Each subdirectory has a kbuild Makefile which carries out the commands
32passed down from above. The kbuild Makefile uses information from the
33.config file to construct various file lists used by kbuild to build
34any built-in or modular targets.
35
36scripts/Makefile.* contains all the definitions/rules etc. that
37are used to build the kernel based on the kbuild makefiles.
38
39Who does what
40=============
41
42People have four different relationships with the kernel Makefiles.
43
44*Users* are people who build kernels.  These people type commands such as
45``make menuconfig`` or ``make``.  They usually do not read or edit
46any kernel Makefiles (or any other source files).
47
48*Normal developers* are people who work on features such as device
49drivers, file systems, and network protocols.  These people need to
50maintain the kbuild Makefiles for the subsystem they are
51working on.  In order to do this effectively, they need some overall
52knowledge about the kernel Makefiles, plus detailed knowledge about the
53public interface for kbuild.
54
55*Arch developers* are people who work on an entire architecture, such
56as sparc or x86.  Arch developers need to know about the arch Makefile
57as well as kbuild Makefiles.
58
59*Kbuild developers* are people who work on the kernel build system itself.
60These people need to know about all aspects of the kernel Makefiles.
61
62This document is aimed towards normal developers and arch developers.
63
64
65The kbuild files
66================
67
68Most Makefiles within the kernel are kbuild Makefiles that use the
69kbuild infrastructure. This chapter introduces the syntax used in the
70kbuild makefiles.
71
72The preferred name for the kbuild files are ``Makefile`` but ``Kbuild`` can
73be used and if both a ``Makefile`` and a ``Kbuild`` file exists, then the ``Kbuild``
74file will be used.
75
76Section `Goal definitions`_ is a quick intro; further chapters provide
77more details, with real examples.
78
79Goal definitions
80----------------
81
82Goal definitions are the main part (heart) of the kbuild Makefile.
83These lines define the files to be built, any special compilation
84options, and any subdirectories to be entered recursively.
85
86The most simple kbuild makefile contains one line:
87
88Example::
89
90  obj-y += foo.o
91
92This tells kbuild that there is one object in that directory, named
93foo.o. foo.o will be built from foo.c or foo.S.
94
95If foo.o shall be built as a module, the variable obj-m is used.
96Therefore the following pattern is often used:
97
98Example::
99
100  obj-$(CONFIG_FOO) += foo.o
101
102$(CONFIG_FOO) evaluates to either y (for built-in) or m (for module).
103If CONFIG_FOO is neither y nor m, then the file will not be compiled
104nor linked.
105
106Built-in object goals - obj-y
107-----------------------------
108
109The kbuild Makefile specifies object files for vmlinux
110in the $(obj-y) lists.  These lists depend on the kernel
111configuration.
112
113Kbuild compiles all the $(obj-y) files.  It then calls
114``$(AR) rcSTP`` to merge these files into one built-in.a file.
115This is a thin archive without a symbol table. It will be later
116linked into vmlinux by scripts/link-vmlinux.sh
117
118The order of files in $(obj-y) is significant.  Duplicates in
119the lists are allowed: the first instance will be linked into
120built-in.a and succeeding instances will be ignored.
121
122Link order is significant, because certain functions
123(module_init() / __initcall) will be called during boot in the
124order they appear. So keep in mind that changing the link
125order may e.g. change the order in which your SCSI
126controllers are detected, and thus your disks are renumbered.
127
128Example::
129
130  #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
131  # Makefile for the kernel ISDN subsystem and device drivers.
132  # Each configuration option enables a list of files.
133  obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_I4L)         += isdn.o
134  obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) += isdn_bsdcomp.o
135
136Loadable module goals - obj-m
137-----------------------------
138
139$(obj-m) specifies object files which are built as loadable
140kernel modules.
141
142A module may be built from one source file or several source
143files. In the case of one source file, the kbuild makefile
144simply adds the file to $(obj-m).
145
146Example::
147
148  #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
149  obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) += isdn_bsdcomp.o
150
151Note: In this example $(CONFIG_ISDN_PPP_BSDCOMP) evaluates to "m"
152
153If a kernel module is built from several source files, you specify
154that you want to build a module in the same way as above; however,
155kbuild needs to know which object files you want to build your
156module from, so you have to tell it by setting a $(<module_name>-y)
157variable.
158
159Example::
160
161  #drivers/isdn/i4l/Makefile
162  obj-$(CONFIG_ISDN_I4L) += isdn.o
163  isdn-y := isdn_net_lib.o isdn_v110.o isdn_common.o
164
165In this example, the module name will be isdn.o. Kbuild will
166compile the objects listed in $(isdn-y) and then run
167``$(LD) -r`` on the list of these files to generate isdn.o.
168
169Due to kbuild recognizing $(<module_name>-y) for composite objects,
170you can use the value of a ``CONFIG_`` symbol to optionally include an
171object file as part of a composite object.
172
173Example::
174
175  #fs/ext2/Makefile
176  obj-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS) += ext2.o
177  ext2-y := balloc.o dir.o file.o ialloc.o inode.o ioctl.o \
178    namei.o super.o symlink.o
179  ext2-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS_XATTR) += xattr.o xattr_user.o \
180    xattr_trusted.o
181
182In this example, xattr.o, xattr_user.o and xattr_trusted.o are only
183part of the composite object ext2.o if $(CONFIG_EXT2_FS_XATTR)
184evaluates to "y".
185
186Note: Of course, when you are building objects into the kernel,
187the syntax above will also work. So, if you have CONFIG_EXT2_FS=y,
188kbuild will build an ext2.o file for you out of the individual
189parts and then link this into built-in.a, as you would expect.
190
191Library file goals - lib-y
192--------------------------
193
194Objects listed with obj-* are used for modules, or
195combined in a built-in.a for that specific directory.
196There is also the possibility to list objects that will
197be included in a library, lib.a.
198All objects listed with lib-y are combined in a single
199library for that directory.
200Objects that are listed in obj-y and additionally listed in
201lib-y will not be included in the library, since they will
202be accessible anyway.
203For consistency, objects listed in lib-m will be included in lib.a.
204
205Note that the same kbuild makefile may list files to be built-in
206and to be part of a library. Therefore the same directory
207may contain both a built-in.a and a lib.a file.
208
209Example::
210
211  #arch/x86/lib/Makefile
212  lib-y    := delay.o
213
214This will create a library lib.a based on delay.o. For kbuild to
215actually recognize that there is a lib.a being built, the directory
216shall be listed in libs-y.
217
218See also `List directories to visit when descending`_.
219
220Use of lib-y is normally restricted to ``lib/`` and ``arch/*/lib``.
221
222Descending down in directories
223------------------------------
224
225A Makefile is only responsible for building objects in its own
226directory. Files in subdirectories should be taken care of by
227Makefiles in these subdirs. The build system will automatically
228invoke make recursively in subdirectories, provided you let it know of
229them.
230
231To do so, obj-y and obj-m are used.
232ext2 lives in a separate directory, and the Makefile present in fs/
233tells kbuild to descend down using the following assignment.
234
235Example::
236
237  #fs/Makefile
238  obj-$(CONFIG_EXT2_FS) += ext2/
239
240If CONFIG_EXT2_FS is set to either "y" (built-in) or "m" (modular)
241the corresponding obj- variable will be set, and kbuild will descend
242down in the ext2 directory.
243
244Kbuild uses this information not only to decide that it needs to visit
245the directory, but also to decide whether or not to link objects from
246the directory into vmlinux.
247
248When Kbuild descends into the directory with "y", all built-in objects
249from that directory are combined into the built-in.a, which will be
250eventually linked into vmlinux.
251
252When Kbuild descends into the directory with "m", in contrast, nothing
253from that directory will be linked into vmlinux. If the Makefile in
254that directory specifies obj-y, those objects will be left orphan.
255It is very likely a bug of the Makefile or of dependencies in Kconfig.
256
257Kbuild also supports dedicated syntax, subdir-y and subdir-m, for
258descending into subdirectories. It is a good fit when you know they
259do not contain kernel-space objects at all. A typical usage is to let
260Kbuild descend into subdirectories to build tools.
261
262Examples::
263
264  # scripts/Makefile
265  subdir-$(CONFIG_GCC_PLUGINS) += gcc-plugins
266  subdir-$(CONFIG_MODVERSIONS) += genksyms
267  subdir-$(CONFIG_SECURITY_SELINUX) += selinux
268
269Unlike obj-y/m, subdir-y/m does not need the trailing slash since this
270syntax is always used for directories.
271
272It is good practice to use a ``CONFIG_`` variable when assigning directory
273names. This allows kbuild to totally skip the directory if the
274corresponding ``CONFIG_`` option is neither "y" nor "m".
275
276Non-builtin vmlinux targets - extra-y
277-------------------------------------
278
279extra-y specifies targets which are needed for building vmlinux,
280but not combined into built-in.a.
281
282Examples are:
283
2841) vmlinux linker script
285
286   The linker script for vmlinux is located at
287   arch/$(SRCARCH)/kernel/vmlinux.lds
288
289Example::
290
291  # arch/x86/kernel/Makefile
292  extra-y	+= vmlinux.lds
293
294extra-y is now deprecated because this is equivalent to:
295
296  always-$(KBUILD_BUILTIN) += vmlinux.lds
297
298$(extra-y) should only contain targets needed for vmlinux.
299
300Kbuild skips extra-y when vmlinux is apparently not a final goal.
301(e.g. ``make modules``, or building external modules)
302
303If you intend to build targets unconditionally, always-y (explained
304in the next section) is the correct syntax to use.
305
306Always built goals - always-y
307-----------------------------
308
309always-y specifies targets which are literally always built when
310Kbuild visits the Makefile.
311
312Example::
313
314  # ./Kbuild
315  offsets-file := include/generated/asm-offsets.h
316  always-y += $(offsets-file)
317
318Compilation flags
319-----------------
320
321ccflags-y, asflags-y and ldflags-y
322  These three flags apply only to the kbuild makefile in which they
323  are assigned. They are used for all the normal cc, as and ld
324  invocations happening during a recursive build.
325
326  ccflags-y specifies options for compiling with $(CC).
327
328  Example::
329
330    # drivers/acpi/acpica/Makefile
331    ccflags-y				:= -Os -D_LINUX -DBUILDING_ACPICA
332    ccflags-$(CONFIG_ACPI_DEBUG)	+= -DACPI_DEBUG_OUTPUT
333
334  This variable is necessary because the top Makefile owns the
335  variable $(KBUILD_CFLAGS) and uses it for compilation flags for the
336  entire tree.
337
338  asflags-y specifies assembler options.
339
340  Example::
341
342    #arch/sparc/kernel/Makefile
343    asflags-y := -ansi
344
345  ldflags-y specifies options for linking with $(LD).
346
347  Example::
348
349    #arch/cris/boot/compressed/Makefile
350    ldflags-y += -T $(src)/decompress_$(arch-y).lds
351
352subdir-ccflags-y, subdir-asflags-y
353  The two flags listed above are similar to ccflags-y and asflags-y.
354  The difference is that the subdir- variants have effect for the kbuild
355  file where they are present and all subdirectories.
356  Options specified using subdir-* are added to the commandline before
357  the options specified using the non-subdir variants.
358
359  Example::
360
361    subdir-ccflags-y := -Werror
362
363ccflags-remove-y, asflags-remove-y
364  These flags are used to remove particular flags for the compiler,
365  assembler invocations.
366
367  Example::
368
369    ccflags-remove-$(CONFIG_MCOUNT) += -pg
370
371CFLAGS_$@, AFLAGS_$@
372  CFLAGS_$@ and AFLAGS_$@ only apply to commands in current
373  kbuild makefile.
374
375  $(CFLAGS_$@) specifies per-file options for $(CC).  The $@
376  part has a literal value which specifies the file that it is for.
377
378  CFLAGS_$@ has the higher priority than ccflags-remove-y; CFLAGS_$@
379  can re-add compiler flags that were removed by ccflags-remove-y.
380
381  Example::
382
383    # drivers/scsi/Makefile
384    CFLAGS_aha152x.o =   -DAHA152X_STAT -DAUTOCONF
385
386  This line specify compilation flags for aha152x.o.
387
388  $(AFLAGS_$@) is a similar feature for source files in assembly
389  languages.
390
391  AFLAGS_$@ has the higher priority than asflags-remove-y; AFLAGS_$@
392  can re-add assembler flags that were removed by asflags-remove-y.
393
394  Example::
395
396    # arch/arm/kernel/Makefile
397    AFLAGS_head.o        := -DTEXT_OFFSET=$(TEXT_OFFSET)
398    AFLAGS_crunch-bits.o := -Wa,-mcpu=ep9312
399    AFLAGS_iwmmxt.o      := -Wa,-mcpu=iwmmxt
400
401Dependency tracking
402-------------------
403
404Kbuild tracks dependencies on the following:
405
4061) All prerequisite files (both ``*.c`` and ``*.h``)
4072) ``CONFIG_`` options used in all prerequisite files
4083) Command-line used to compile target
409
410Thus, if you change an option to $(CC) all affected files will
411be re-compiled.
412
413Custom Rules
414------------
415
416Custom rules are used when the kbuild infrastructure does
417not provide the required support. A typical example is
418header files generated during the build process.
419Another example are the architecture-specific Makefiles which
420need custom rules to prepare boot images etc.
421
422Custom rules are written as normal Make rules.
423Kbuild is not executing in the directory where the Makefile is
424located, so all custom rules shall use a relative
425path to prerequisite files and target files.
426
427Two variables are used when defining custom rules:
428
429$(src)
430  $(src) is the directory where the Makefile is located. Always use $(src) when
431  referring to files located in the src tree.
432
433$(obj)
434  $(obj) is the directory where the target is saved. Always use $(obj) when
435  referring to generated files. Use $(obj) for pattern rules that need to work
436  for both generated files and real sources (VPATH will help to find the
437  prerequisites not only in the object tree but also in the source tree).
438
439  Example::
440
441    #drivers/scsi/Makefile
442    $(obj)/53c8xx_d.h: $(src)/53c7,8xx.scr $(src)/script_asm.pl
443    $(CPP) -DCHIP=810 - < $< | ... $(src)/script_asm.pl
444
445  This is a custom rule, following the normal syntax
446  required by make.
447
448  The target file depends on two prerequisite files. References
449  to the target file are prefixed with $(obj), references
450  to prerequisites are referenced with $(src) (because they are not
451  generated files).
452
453$(srcroot)
454  $(srcroot) refers to the root of the source you are building, which can be
455  either the kernel source or the external modules source, depending on whether
456  KBUILD_EXTMOD is set. This can be either a relative or an absolute path, but
457  if KBUILD_ABS_SRCTREE=1 is set, it is always an absolute path.
458
459$(srctree)
460  $(srctree) refers to the root of the kernel source tree. When building the
461  kernel, this is the same as $(srcroot).
462
463$(objtree)
464  $(objtree) refers to the root of the kernel object tree. It is ``.`` when
465  building the kernel, but it is different when building external modules.
466
467$(kecho)
468  echoing information to user in a rule is often a good practice
469  but when execution ``make -s`` one does not expect to see any output
470  except for warnings/errors.
471  To support this kbuild defines $(kecho) which will echo out the
472  text following $(kecho) to stdout except if ``make -s`` is used.
473
474  Example::
475
476    # arch/arm/Makefile
477    $(BOOT_TARGETS): vmlinux
478            $(Q)$(MAKE) $(build)=$(boot) MACHINE=$(MACHINE) $(boot)/$@
479            @$(kecho) '  Kernel: $(boot)/$@ is ready'
480
481  When kbuild is executing with KBUILD_VERBOSE unset, then only a shorthand
482  of a command is normally displayed.
483  To enable this behaviour for custom commands kbuild requires
484  two variables to be set::
485
486    quiet_cmd_<command> - what shall be echoed
487          cmd_<command> - the command to execute
488
489  Example::
490
491    # lib/Makefile
492    quiet_cmd_crc32 = GEN     $@
493          cmd_crc32 = $< > $@
494
495    $(obj)/crc32table.h: $(obj)/gen_crc32table
496            $(call cmd,crc32)
497
498  When updating the $(obj)/crc32table.h target, the line::
499
500    GEN     lib/crc32table.h
501
502  will be displayed with ``make KBUILD_VERBOSE=``.
503
504Command change detection
505------------------------
506
507When the rule is evaluated, timestamps are compared between the target
508and its prerequisite files. GNU Make updates the target when any of the
509prerequisites is newer than that.
510
511The target should be rebuilt also when the command line has changed
512since the last invocation. This is not supported by Make itself, so
513Kbuild achieves this by a kind of meta-programming.
514
515if_changed is the macro used for this purpose, in the following form::
516
517  quiet_cmd_<command> = ...
518        cmd_<command> = ...
519
520  <target>: <source(s)> FORCE
521          $(call if_changed,<command>)
522
523Any target that utilizes if_changed must be listed in $(targets),
524otherwise the command line check will fail, and the target will
525always be built.
526
527If the target is already listed in the recognized syntax such as
528obj-y/m, lib-y/m, extra-y/m, always-y/m, hostprogs, userprogs, Kbuild
529automatically adds it to $(targets). Otherwise, the target must be
530explicitly added to $(targets).
531
532Assignments to $(targets) are without $(obj)/ prefix. if_changed may be
533used in conjunction with custom rules as defined in `Custom Rules`_.
534
535Note: It is a typical mistake to forget the FORCE prerequisite.
536Another common pitfall is that whitespace is sometimes significant; for
537instance, the below will fail (note the extra space after the comma)::
538
539  target: source(s) FORCE
540
541**WRONG!**	$(call if_changed, objcopy)
542
543Note:
544  if_changed should not be used more than once per target.
545  It stores the executed command in a corresponding .cmd
546  file and multiple calls would result in overwrites and
547  unwanted results when the target is up to date and only the
548  tests on changed commands trigger execution of commands.
549
550$(CC) support functions
551-----------------------
552
553The kernel may be built with several different versions of
554$(CC), each supporting a unique set of features and options.
555kbuild provides basic support to check for valid options for $(CC).
556$(CC) is usually the gcc compiler, but other alternatives are
557available.
558
559as-option
560  as-option is used to check if $(CC) -- when used to compile
561  assembler (``*.S``) files -- supports the given option. An optional
562  second option may be specified if the first option is not supported.
563
564  Example::
565
566    #arch/sh/Makefile
567    cflags-y += $(call as-option,-Wa$(comma)-isa=$(isa-y),)
568
569  In the above example, cflags-y will be assigned the option
570  -Wa$(comma)-isa=$(isa-y) if it is supported by $(CC).
571  The second argument is optional, and if supplied will be used
572  if first argument is not supported.
573
574as-instr
575  as-instr checks if the assembler reports a specific instruction
576  and then outputs either option1 or option2
577  C escapes are supported in the test instruction
578  Note: as-instr-option uses KBUILD_AFLAGS for assembler options
579
580cc-option
581  cc-option is used to check if $(CC) supports a given option, and if
582  not supported to use an optional second option.
583
584  Example::
585
586    #arch/x86/Makefile
587    cflags-y += $(call cc-option,-march=pentium-mmx,-march=i586)
588
589  In the above example, cflags-y will be assigned the option
590  -march=pentium-mmx if supported by $(CC), otherwise -march=i586.
591  The second argument to cc-option is optional, and if omitted,
592  cflags-y will be assigned no value if first option is not supported.
593  Note: cc-option uses KBUILD_CFLAGS for $(CC) options
594
595cc-option-yn
596  cc-option-yn is used to check if $(CC) supports a given option
597  and return "y" if supported, otherwise "n".
598
599  Example::
600
601    #arch/ppc/Makefile
602    biarch := $(call cc-option-yn, -m32)
603    aflags-$(biarch) += -a32
604    cflags-$(biarch) += -m32
605
606  In the above example, $(biarch) is set to y if $(CC) supports the -m32
607  option. When $(biarch) equals "y", the expanded variables $(aflags-y)
608  and $(cflags-y) will be assigned the values -a32 and -m32,
609  respectively.
610
611  Note: cc-option-yn uses KBUILD_CFLAGS for $(CC) options
612
613cc-disable-warning
614  cc-disable-warning checks if $(CC) supports a given warning and returns
615  the commandline switch to disable it. This special function is needed,
616  because gcc 4.4 and later accept any unknown -Wno-* option and only
617  warn about it if there is another warning in the source file.
618
619  Example::
620
621    KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(call cc-disable-warning, unused-but-set-variable)
622
623  In the above example, -Wno-unused-but-set-variable will be added to
624  KBUILD_CFLAGS only if $(CC) really accepts it.
625
626gcc-min-version
627  gcc-min-version tests if the value of $(CONFIG_GCC_VERSION) is greater than
628  or equal to the provided value and evaluates to y if so.
629
630  Example::
631
632    cflags-$(call gcc-min-version, 110100) := -foo
633
634  In this example, cflags-y will be assigned the value -foo if $(CC) is gcc and
635  $(CONFIG_GCC_VERSION) is >= 11.1.
636
637clang-min-version
638  clang-min-version tests if the value of $(CONFIG_CLANG_VERSION) is greater
639  than or equal to the provided value and evaluates to y if so.
640
641  Example::
642
643    cflags-$(call clang-min-version, 110000) := -foo
644
645  In this example, cflags-y will be assigned the value -foo if $(CC) is clang
646  and $(CONFIG_CLANG_VERSION) is >= 11.0.0.
647
648cc-cross-prefix
649  cc-cross-prefix is used to check if there exists a $(CC) in path with
650  one of the listed prefixes. The first prefix where there exist a
651  prefix$(CC) in the PATH is returned - and if no prefix$(CC) is found
652  then nothing is returned.
653
654  Additional prefixes are separated by a single space in the
655  call of cc-cross-prefix.
656
657  This functionality is useful for architecture Makefiles that try
658  to set CROSS_COMPILE to well-known values but may have several
659  values to select between.
660
661  It is recommended only to try to set CROSS_COMPILE if it is a cross
662  build (host arch is different from target arch). And if CROSS_COMPILE
663  is already set then leave it with the old value.
664
665  Example::
666
667    #arch/m68k/Makefile
668    ifneq ($(SUBARCH),$(ARCH))
669            ifeq ($(CROSS_COMPILE),)
670                    CROSS_COMPILE := $(call cc-cross-prefix, m68k-linux-gnu-)
671            endif
672    endif
673
674$(RUSTC) support functions
675--------------------------
676
677rustc-min-version
678  rustc-min-version tests if the value of $(CONFIG_RUSTC_VERSION) is greater
679  than or equal to the provided value and evaluates to y if so.
680
681  Example::
682
683    rustflags-$(call rustc-min-version, 108500) := -Cfoo
684
685  In this example, rustflags-y will be assigned the value -Cfoo if
686  $(CONFIG_RUSTC_VERSION) is >= 1.85.0.
687
688$(LD) support functions
689-----------------------
690
691ld-option
692  ld-option is used to check if $(LD) supports the supplied option.
693  ld-option takes two options as arguments.
694
695  The second argument is an optional option that can be used if the
696  first option is not supported by $(LD).
697
698  Example::
699
700    #Makefile
701    LDFLAGS_vmlinux += $(call ld-option, -X)
702
703Script invocation
704-----------------
705
706Make rules may invoke scripts to build the kernel. The rules shall
707always provide the appropriate interpreter to execute the script. They
708shall not rely on the execute bits being set, and shall not invoke the
709script directly. For the convenience of manual script invocation, such
710as invoking ./scripts/checkpatch.pl, it is recommended to set execute
711bits on the scripts nonetheless.
712
713Kbuild provides variables $(CONFIG_SHELL), $(AWK), $(PERL),
714and $(PYTHON3) to refer to interpreters for the respective
715scripts.
716
717Example::
718
719  #Makefile
720  cmd_depmod = $(CONFIG_SHELL) $(srctree)/scripts/depmod.sh $(DEPMOD) \
721          $(KERNELRELEASE)
722
723Host Program support
724====================
725
726Kbuild supports building executables on the host for use during the
727compilation stage.
728
729Two steps are required in order to use a host executable.
730
731The first step is to tell kbuild that a host program exists. This is
732done utilising the variable ``hostprogs``.
733
734The second step is to add an explicit dependency to the executable.
735This can be done in two ways. Either add the dependency in a rule,
736or utilise the variable ``always-y``.
737Both possibilities are described in the following.
738
739Simple Host Program
740-------------------
741
742In some cases there is a need to compile and run a program on the
743computer where the build is running.
744
745The following line tells kbuild that the program bin2hex shall be
746built on the build host.
747
748Example::
749
750  hostprogs := bin2hex
751
752Kbuild assumes in the above example that bin2hex is made from a single
753c-source file named bin2hex.c located in the same directory as
754the Makefile.
755
756Composite Host Programs
757-----------------------
758
759Host programs can be made up based on composite objects.
760The syntax used to define composite objects for host programs is
761similar to the syntax used for kernel objects.
762$(<executable>-objs) lists all objects used to link the final
763executable.
764
765Example::
766
767  #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
768  hostprogs     := lxdialog
769  lxdialog-objs := checklist.o lxdialog.o
770
771Objects with extension .o are compiled from the corresponding .c
772files. In the above example, checklist.c is compiled to checklist.o
773and lxdialog.c is compiled to lxdialog.o.
774
775Finally, the two .o files are linked to the executable, lxdialog.
776Note: The syntax <executable>-y is not permitted for host-programs.
777
778Using C++ for host programs
779---------------------------
780
781kbuild offers support for host programs written in C++. This was
782introduced solely to support kconfig, and is not recommended
783for general use.
784
785Example::
786
787  #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
788  hostprogs     := qconf
789  qconf-cxxobjs := qconf.o
790
791In the example above the executable is composed of the C++ file
792qconf.cc - identified by $(qconf-cxxobjs).
793
794If qconf is composed of a mixture of .c and .cc files, then an
795additional line can be used to identify this.
796
797Example::
798
799  #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
800  hostprogs     := qconf
801  qconf-cxxobjs := qconf.o
802  qconf-objs    := check.o
803
804Using Rust for host programs
805----------------------------
806
807Kbuild offers support for host programs written in Rust. However,
808since a Rust toolchain is not mandatory for kernel compilation,
809it may only be used in scenarios where Rust is required to be
810available (e.g. when  ``CONFIG_RUST`` is enabled).
811
812Example::
813
814  hostprogs     := target
815  target-rust   := y
816
817Kbuild will compile ``target`` using ``target.rs`` as the crate root,
818located in the same directory as the ``Makefile``. The crate may
819consist of several source files (see ``samples/rust/hostprogs``).
820
821Controlling compiler options for host programs
822----------------------------------------------
823
824When compiling host programs, it is possible to set specific flags.
825The programs will always be compiled utilising $(HOSTCC) passed
826the options specified in $(KBUILD_HOSTCFLAGS).
827
828To set flags that will take effect for all host programs created
829in that Makefile, use the variable HOST_EXTRACFLAGS.
830
831Example::
832
833  #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
834  HOST_EXTRACFLAGS += -I/usr/include/ncurses
835
836To set specific flags for a single file the following construction
837is used:
838
839Example::
840
841  #arch/ppc64/boot/Makefile
842  HOSTCFLAGS_piggyback.o := -DKERNELBASE=$(KERNELBASE)
843
844It is also possible to specify additional options to the linker.
845
846Example::
847
848  #scripts/kconfig/Makefile
849  HOSTLDLIBS_qconf := -L$(QTDIR)/lib
850
851When linking qconf, it will be passed the extra option
852``-L$(QTDIR)/lib``.
853
854When host programs are actually built
855-------------------------------------
856
857Kbuild will only build host-programs when they are referenced
858as a prerequisite.
859
860This is possible in two ways:
861
862(1) List the prerequisite explicitly in a custom rule.
863
864    Example::
865
866      #drivers/pci/Makefile
867      hostprogs := gen-devlist
868      $(obj)/devlist.h: $(src)/pci.ids $(obj)/gen-devlist
869      ( cd $(obj); ./gen-devlist ) < $<
870
871    The target $(obj)/devlist.h will not be built before
872    $(obj)/gen-devlist is updated. Note that references to
873    the host programs in custom rules must be prefixed with $(obj).
874
875(2) Use always-y
876
877    When there is no suitable custom rule, and the host program
878    shall be built when a makefile is entered, the always-y
879    variable shall be used.
880
881    Example::
882
883      #scripts/lxdialog/Makefile
884      hostprogs     := lxdialog
885      always-y      := $(hostprogs)
886
887    Kbuild provides the following shorthand for this::
888
889      hostprogs-always-y := lxdialog
890
891    This will tell kbuild to build lxdialog even if not referenced in
892    any rule.
893
894Userspace Program support
895=========================
896
897Just like host programs, Kbuild also supports building userspace executables
898for the target architecture (i.e. the same architecture as you are building
899the kernel for).
900
901The syntax is quite similar. The difference is to use ``userprogs`` instead of
902``hostprogs``.
903
904Simple Userspace Program
905------------------------
906
907The following line tells kbuild that the program bpf-direct shall be
908built for the target architecture.
909
910Example::
911
912  userprogs := bpf-direct
913
914Kbuild assumes in the above example that bpf-direct is made from a
915single C source file named bpf-direct.c located in the same directory
916as the Makefile.
917
918Composite Userspace Programs
919----------------------------
920
921Userspace programs can be made up based on composite objects.
922The syntax used to define composite objects for userspace programs is
923similar to the syntax used for kernel objects.
924$(<executable>-objs) lists all objects used to link the final
925executable.
926
927Example::
928
929  #samples/seccomp/Makefile
930  userprogs      := bpf-fancy
931  bpf-fancy-objs := bpf-fancy.o bpf-helper.o
932
933Objects with extension .o are compiled from the corresponding .c
934files. In the above example, bpf-fancy.c is compiled to bpf-fancy.o
935and bpf-helper.c is compiled to bpf-helper.o.
936
937Finally, the two .o files are linked to the executable, bpf-fancy.
938Note: The syntax <executable>-y is not permitted for userspace programs.
939
940Controlling compiler options for userspace programs
941---------------------------------------------------
942
943When compiling userspace programs, it is possible to set specific flags.
944The programs will always be compiled utilising $(CC) passed
945the options specified in $(KBUILD_USERCFLAGS).
946
947To set flags that will take effect for all userspace programs created
948in that Makefile, use the variable userccflags.
949
950Example::
951
952  # samples/seccomp/Makefile
953  userccflags += -I usr/include
954
955To set specific flags for a single file the following construction
956is used:
957
958Example::
959
960  bpf-helper-userccflags += -I user/include
961
962It is also possible to specify additional options to the linker.
963
964Example::
965
966  # net/bpfilter/Makefile
967  bpfilter_umh-userldflags += -static
968
969To specify libraries linked to a userspace program, you can use
970``<executable>-userldlibs``. The ``userldlibs`` syntax specifies libraries
971linked to all userspace programs created in the current Makefile.
972
973When linking bpfilter_umh, it will be passed the extra option -static.
974
975From command line, :ref:`USERCFLAGS and USERLDFLAGS <userkbuildflags>` will also be used.
976
977When userspace programs are actually built
978------------------------------------------
979
980Kbuild builds userspace programs only when told to do so.
981There are two ways to do this.
982
983(1) Add it as the prerequisite of another file
984
985    Example::
986
987      #net/bpfilter/Makefile
988      userprogs := bpfilter_umh
989      $(obj)/bpfilter_umh_blob.o: $(obj)/bpfilter_umh
990
991    $(obj)/bpfilter_umh is built before $(obj)/bpfilter_umh_blob.o
992
993(2) Use always-y
994
995    Example::
996
997      userprogs := binderfs_example
998      always-y := $(userprogs)
999
1000    Kbuild provides the following shorthand for this::
1001
1002      userprogs-always-y := binderfs_example
1003
1004    This will tell Kbuild to build binderfs_example when it visits this
1005    Makefile.
1006
1007Kbuild clean infrastructure
1008===========================
1009
1010``make clean`` deletes most generated files in the obj tree where the kernel
1011is compiled. This includes generated files such as host programs.
1012Kbuild knows targets listed in $(hostprogs), $(always-y), $(always-m),
1013$(always-), $(extra-y), $(extra-) and $(targets). They are all deleted
1014during ``make clean``. Files matching the patterns ``*.[oas]``, ``*.ko``, plus
1015some additional files generated by kbuild are deleted all over the kernel
1016source tree when ``make clean`` is executed.
1017
1018Additional files or directories can be specified in kbuild makefiles by use of
1019$(clean-files).
1020
1021Example::
1022
1023  #lib/Makefile
1024  clean-files := crc32table.h
1025
1026When executing ``make clean``, the file ``crc32table.h`` will be deleted.
1027Kbuild will assume files to be in the same relative directory as the
1028Makefile.
1029
1030To exclude certain files or directories from make clean, use the
1031$(no-clean-files) variable.
1032
1033Usually kbuild descends down in subdirectories due to ``obj-* := dir/``,
1034but in the architecture makefiles where the kbuild infrastructure
1035is not sufficient this sometimes needs to be explicit.
1036
1037Example::
1038
1039  #arch/x86/boot/Makefile
1040  subdir- := compressed
1041
1042The above assignment instructs kbuild to descend down in the
1043directory compressed/ when ``make clean`` is executed.
1044
1045Note 1: arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile cannot use ``subdir-``, because that file is
1046included in the top level makefile. Instead, arch/$(SRCARCH)/Kbuild can use
1047``subdir-``.
1048
1049Note 2: All directories listed in core-y, libs-y, drivers-y and net-y will
1050be visited during ``make clean``.
1051
1052Architecture Makefiles
1053======================
1054
1055The top level Makefile sets up the environment and does the preparation,
1056before starting to descend down in the individual directories.
1057
1058The top level makefile contains the generic part, whereas
1059arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile contains what is required to set up kbuild
1060for said architecture.
1061
1062To do so, arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile sets up a number of variables and defines
1063a few targets.
1064
1065When kbuild executes, the following steps are followed (roughly):
1066
10671) Configuration of the kernel => produce .config
1068
10692) Store kernel version in include/linux/version.h
1070
10713) Updating all other prerequisites to the target prepare:
1072
1073   - Additional prerequisites are specified in arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile
1074
10754) Recursively descend down in all directories listed in
1076   init-* core* drivers-* net-* libs-* and build all targets.
1077
1078   - The values of the above variables are expanded in arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile.
1079
10805) All object files are then linked and the resulting file vmlinux is
1081   located at the root of the obj tree.
1082   The very first objects linked are listed in scripts/head-object-list.txt.
1083
10846) Finally, the architecture-specific part does any required post processing
1085   and builds the final bootimage.
1086
1087   - This includes building boot records
1088   - Preparing initrd images and the like
1089
1090Set variables to tweak the build to the architecture
1091----------------------------------------------------
1092
1093KBUILD_LDFLAGS
1094  Generic $(LD) options
1095
1096  Flags used for all invocations of the linker.
1097  Often specifying the emulation is sufficient.
1098
1099  Example::
1100
1101    #arch/s390/Makefile
1102    KBUILD_LDFLAGS         := -m elf_s390
1103
1104  Note: ldflags-y can be used to further customise
1105  the flags used. See `Non-builtin vmlinux targets - extra-y`_.
1106
1107LDFLAGS_vmlinux
1108  Options for $(LD) when linking vmlinux
1109
1110  LDFLAGS_vmlinux is used to specify additional flags to pass to
1111  the linker when linking the final vmlinux image.
1112
1113  LDFLAGS_vmlinux uses the LDFLAGS_$@ support.
1114
1115  Example::
1116
1117    #arch/x86/Makefile
1118    LDFLAGS_vmlinux := -e stext
1119
1120OBJCOPYFLAGS
1121  objcopy flags
1122
1123  When $(call if_changed,objcopy) is used to translate a .o file,
1124  the flags specified in OBJCOPYFLAGS will be used.
1125
1126  $(call if_changed,objcopy) is often used to generate raw binaries on
1127  vmlinux.
1128
1129  Example::
1130
1131    #arch/s390/Makefile
1132    OBJCOPYFLAGS := -O binary
1133
1134    #arch/s390/boot/Makefile
1135    $(obj)/image: vmlinux FORCE
1136            $(call if_changed,objcopy)
1137
1138  In this example, the binary $(obj)/image is a binary version of
1139  vmlinux. The usage of $(call if_changed,xxx) will be described later.
1140
1141KBUILD_AFLAGS
1142  Assembler flags
1143
1144  Default value - see top level Makefile.
1145
1146  Append or modify as required per architecture.
1147
1148  Example::
1149
1150    #arch/sparc64/Makefile
1151    KBUILD_AFLAGS += -m64 -mcpu=ultrasparc
1152
1153KBUILD_CFLAGS
1154  $(CC) compiler flags
1155
1156  Default value - see top level Makefile.
1157
1158  Append or modify as required per architecture.
1159
1160  Often, the KBUILD_CFLAGS variable depends on the configuration.
1161
1162  Example::
1163
1164    #arch/x86/boot/compressed/Makefile
1165    cflags-$(CONFIG_X86_32) := -march=i386
1166    cflags-$(CONFIG_X86_64) := -mcmodel=small
1167    KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(cflags-y)
1168
1169  Many arch Makefiles dynamically run the target C compiler to
1170  probe supported options::
1171
1172    #arch/x86/Makefile
1173
1174    ...
1175    cflags-$(CONFIG_MPENTIUMII)     += $(call cc-option,\
1176						-march=pentium2,-march=i686)
1177    ...
1178    # Disable unit-at-a-time mode ...
1179    KBUILD_CFLAGS += $(call cc-option,-fno-unit-at-a-time)
1180    ...
1181
1182
1183  The first example utilises the trick that a config option expands
1184  to "y" when selected.
1185
1186KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS
1187  $(RUSTC) compiler flags
1188
1189  Default value - see top level Makefile.
1190
1191  Append or modify as required per architecture.
1192
1193  Often, the KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS variable depends on the configuration.
1194
1195  Note that target specification file generation (for ``--target``)
1196  is handled in ``scripts/generate_rust_target.rs``.
1197
1198KBUILD_AFLAGS_KERNEL
1199  Assembler options specific for built-in
1200
1201  $(KBUILD_AFLAGS_KERNEL) contains extra C compiler flags used to compile
1202  resident kernel code.
1203
1204KBUILD_AFLAGS_MODULE
1205  Assembler options specific for modules
1206
1207  $(KBUILD_AFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch-specific options that
1208  are used for assembler.
1209
1210  From commandline AFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.rst).
1211
1212KBUILD_CFLAGS_KERNEL
1213  $(CC) options specific for built-in
1214
1215  $(KBUILD_CFLAGS_KERNEL) contains extra C compiler flags used to compile
1216  resident kernel code.
1217
1218KBUILD_CFLAGS_MODULE
1219  Options for $(CC) when building modules
1220
1221  $(KBUILD_CFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch-specific options that
1222  are used for $(CC).
1223
1224  From commandline CFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.rst).
1225
1226KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS_KERNEL
1227  $(RUSTC) options specific for built-in
1228
1229  $(KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS_KERNEL) contains extra Rust compiler flags used to
1230  compile resident kernel code.
1231
1232KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS_MODULE
1233  Options for $(RUSTC) when building modules
1234
1235  $(KBUILD_RUSTFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch-specific options that
1236  are used for $(RUSTC).
1237
1238  From commandline RUSTFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.rst).
1239
1240KBUILD_LDFLAGS_MODULE
1241  Options for $(LD) when linking modules
1242
1243  $(KBUILD_LDFLAGS_MODULE) is used to add arch-specific options
1244  used when linking modules. This is often a linker script.
1245
1246  From commandline LDFLAGS_MODULE shall be used (see kbuild.rst).
1247
1248KBUILD_LDS
1249  The linker script with full path. Assigned by the top-level Makefile.
1250
1251KBUILD_VMLINUX_OBJS
1252  All object files for vmlinux. They are linked to vmlinux in the same
1253  order as listed in KBUILD_VMLINUX_OBJS.
1254
1255  The objects listed in scripts/head-object-list.txt are exceptions;
1256  they are placed before the other objects.
1257
1258KBUILD_VMLINUX_LIBS
1259  All .a ``lib`` files for vmlinux. KBUILD_VMLINUX_OBJS and
1260  KBUILD_VMLINUX_LIBS together specify all the object files used to
1261  link vmlinux.
1262
1263Add prerequisites to archheaders
1264--------------------------------
1265
1266The archheaders: rule is used to generate header files that
1267may be installed into user space by ``make header_install``.
1268
1269It is run before ``make archprepare`` when run on the
1270architecture itself.
1271
1272Add prerequisites to archprepare
1273--------------------------------
1274
1275The archprepare: rule is used to list prerequisites that need to be
1276built before starting to descend down in the subdirectories.
1277
1278This is usually used for header files containing assembler constants.
1279
1280Example::
1281
1282  #arch/arm/Makefile
1283  archprepare: maketools
1284
1285In this example, the file target maketools will be processed
1286before descending down in the subdirectories.
1287
1288See also chapter XXX-TODO that describes how kbuild supports
1289generating offset header files.
1290
1291List directories to visit when descending
1292-----------------------------------------
1293
1294An arch Makefile cooperates with the top Makefile to define variables
1295which specify how to build the vmlinux file.  Note that there is no
1296corresponding arch-specific section for modules; the module-building
1297machinery is all architecture-independent.
1298
1299core-y, libs-y, drivers-y
1300  $(libs-y) lists directories where a lib.a archive can be located.
1301
1302  The rest list directories where a built-in.a object file can be
1303  located.
1304
1305  Then the rest follows in this order:
1306
1307    $(core-y), $(libs-y), $(drivers-y)
1308
1309  The top level Makefile defines values for all generic directories,
1310  and arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile only adds architecture-specific
1311  directories.
1312
1313  Example::
1314
1315    # arch/sparc/Makefile
1316    core-y                 += arch/sparc/
1317
1318    libs-y                 += arch/sparc/prom/
1319    libs-y                 += arch/sparc/lib/
1320
1321    drivers-$(CONFIG_PM) += arch/sparc/power/
1322
1323Architecture-specific boot images
1324---------------------------------
1325
1326An arch Makefile specifies goals that take the vmlinux file, compress
1327it, wrap it in bootstrapping code, and copy the resulting files
1328somewhere. This includes various kinds of installation commands.
1329The actual goals are not standardized across architectures.
1330
1331It is common to locate any additional processing in a boot/
1332directory below arch/$(SRCARCH)/.
1333
1334Kbuild does not provide any smart way to support building a
1335target specified in boot/. Therefore arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile shall
1336call make manually to build a target in boot/.
1337
1338The recommended approach is to include shortcuts in
1339arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile, and use the full path when calling down
1340into the arch/$(SRCARCH)/boot/Makefile.
1341
1342Example::
1343
1344  #arch/x86/Makefile
1345  boot := arch/x86/boot
1346  bzImage: vmlinux
1347          $(Q)$(MAKE) $(build)=$(boot) $(boot)/$@
1348
1349``$(Q)$(MAKE) $(build)=<dir>`` is the recommended way to invoke
1350make in a subdirectory.
1351
1352There are no rules for naming architecture-specific targets,
1353but executing ``make help`` will list all relevant targets.
1354To support this, $(archhelp) must be defined.
1355
1356Example::
1357
1358  #arch/x86/Makefile
1359  define archhelp
1360    echo  '* bzImage      - Compressed kernel image (arch/x86/boot/bzImage)'
1361  endif
1362
1363When make is executed without arguments, the first goal encountered
1364will be built. In the top level Makefile the first goal present
1365is all:.
1366
1367An architecture shall always, per default, build a bootable image.
1368In ``make help``, the default goal is highlighted with a ``*``.
1369
1370Add a new prerequisite to all: to select a default goal different
1371from vmlinux.
1372
1373Example::
1374
1375  #arch/x86/Makefile
1376  all: bzImage
1377
1378When ``make`` is executed without arguments, bzImage will be built.
1379
1380Commands useful for building a boot image
1381-----------------------------------------
1382
1383Kbuild provides a few macros that are useful when building a
1384boot image.
1385
1386ld
1387  Link target. Often, LDFLAGS_$@ is used to set specific options to ld.
1388
1389  Example::
1390
1391    #arch/x86/boot/Makefile
1392    LDFLAGS_bootsect := -Ttext 0x0 -s --oformat binary
1393    LDFLAGS_setup    := -Ttext 0x0 -s --oformat binary -e begtext
1394
1395    targets += setup setup.o bootsect bootsect.o
1396    $(obj)/setup $(obj)/bootsect: %: %.o FORCE
1397            $(call if_changed,ld)
1398
1399  In this example, there are two possible targets, requiring different
1400  options to the linker. The linker options are specified using the
1401  LDFLAGS_$@ syntax - one for each potential target.
1402
1403  $(targets) are assigned all potential targets, by which kbuild knows
1404  the targets and will:
1405
1406  1) check for commandline changes
1407  2) delete target during make clean
1408
1409  The ``: %: %.o`` part of the prerequisite is a shorthand that
1410  frees us from listing the setup.o and bootsect.o files.
1411
1412  Note:
1413  It is a common mistake to forget the ``targets :=`` assignment,
1414  resulting in the target file being recompiled for no
1415  obvious reason.
1416
1417objcopy
1418  Copy binary. Uses OBJCOPYFLAGS usually specified in
1419  arch/$(SRCARCH)/Makefile.
1420
1421  OBJCOPYFLAGS_$@ may be used to set additional options.
1422
1423gzip
1424  Compress target. Use maximum compression to compress target.
1425
1426  Example::
1427
1428    #arch/x86/boot/compressed/Makefile
1429    $(obj)/vmlinux.bin.gz: $(vmlinux.bin.all-y) FORCE
1430            $(call if_changed,gzip)
1431
1432dtc
1433  Create flattened device tree blob object suitable for linking
1434  into vmlinux. Device tree blobs linked into vmlinux are placed
1435  in an init section in the image. Platform code *must* copy the
1436  blob to non-init memory prior to calling unflatten_device_tree().
1437
1438  To use this command, simply add ``*.dtb`` into obj-y or targets, or make
1439  some other target depend on ``%.dtb``
1440
1441  A central rule exists to create ``$(obj)/%.dtb`` from ``$(src)/%.dts``;
1442  architecture Makefiles do no need to explicitly write out that rule.
1443
1444  Example::
1445
1446    targets += $(dtb-y)
1447    DTC_FLAGS ?= -p 1024
1448
1449Preprocessing linker scripts
1450----------------------------
1451
1452When the vmlinux image is built, the linker script
1453arch/$(SRCARCH)/kernel/vmlinux.lds is used.
1454
1455The script is a preprocessed variant of the file vmlinux.lds.S
1456located in the same directory.
1457
1458kbuild knows .lds files and includes a rule ``*lds.S`` -> ``*lds``.
1459
1460Example::
1461
1462  #arch/x86/kernel/Makefile
1463  extra-y := vmlinux.lds
1464
1465The assignment to extra-y is used to tell kbuild to build the
1466target vmlinux.lds.
1467
1468The assignment to $(CPPFLAGS_vmlinux.lds) tells kbuild to use the
1469specified options when building the target vmlinux.lds.
1470
1471When building the ``*.lds`` target, kbuild uses the variables::
1472
1473  KBUILD_CPPFLAGS      : Set in top-level Makefile
1474  cppflags-y           : May be set in the kbuild makefile
1475  CPPFLAGS_$(@F)       : Target-specific flags.
1476                         Note that the full filename is used in this
1477                         assignment.
1478
1479The kbuild infrastructure for ``*lds`` files is used in several
1480architecture-specific files.
1481
1482Generic header files
1483--------------------
1484
1485The directory include/asm-generic contains the header files
1486that may be shared between individual architectures.
1487
1488The recommended approach how to use a generic header file is
1489to list the file in the Kbuild file.
1490
1491See `generic-y`_ for further info on syntax etc.
1492
1493Post-link pass
1494--------------
1495
1496If the file arch/xxx/Makefile.postlink exists, this makefile
1497will be invoked for post-link objects (vmlinux and modules.ko)
1498for architectures to run post-link passes on. Must also handle
1499the clean target.
1500
1501This pass runs after kallsyms generation. If the architecture
1502needs to modify symbol locations, rather than manipulate the
1503kallsyms, it may be easier to add another postlink target for
1504.tmp_vmlinux? targets to be called from link-vmlinux.sh.
1505
1506For example, powerpc uses this to check relocation sanity of
1507the linked vmlinux file.
1508
1509Kbuild syntax for exported headers
1510==================================
1511
1512The kernel includes a set of headers that is exported to userspace.
1513Many headers can be exported as-is but other headers require a
1514minimal pre-processing before they are ready for user-space.
1515
1516The pre-processing does:
1517
1518- drop kernel-specific annotations
1519- drop include of compiler.h
1520- drop all sections that are kernel internal (guarded by ``ifdef __KERNEL__``)
1521
1522All headers under include/uapi/, include/generated/uapi/,
1523arch/<arch>/include/uapi/ and arch/<arch>/include/generated/uapi/
1524are exported.
1525
1526A Kbuild file may be defined under arch/<arch>/include/uapi/asm/ and
1527arch/<arch>/include/asm/ to list asm files coming from asm-generic.
1528
1529See subsequent chapter for the syntax of the Kbuild file.
1530
1531no-export-headers
1532-----------------
1533
1534no-export-headers is essentially used by include/uapi/linux/Kbuild to
1535avoid exporting specific headers (e.g. kvm.h) on architectures that do
1536not support it. It should be avoided as much as possible.
1537
1538generic-y
1539---------
1540
1541If an architecture uses a verbatim copy of a header from
1542include/asm-generic then this is listed in the file
1543arch/$(SRCARCH)/include/asm/Kbuild like this:
1544
1545Example::
1546
1547  #arch/x86/include/asm/Kbuild
1548  generic-y += termios.h
1549  generic-y += rtc.h
1550
1551During the prepare phase of the build a wrapper include
1552file is generated in the directory::
1553
1554  arch/$(SRCARCH)/include/generated/asm
1555
1556When a header is exported where the architecture uses
1557the generic header a similar wrapper is generated as part
1558of the set of exported headers in the directory::
1559
1560  usr/include/asm
1561
1562The generated wrapper will in both cases look like the following:
1563
1564Example: termios.h::
1565
1566  #include <asm-generic/termios.h>
1567
1568generated-y
1569-----------
1570
1571If an architecture generates other header files alongside generic-y
1572wrappers, generated-y specifies them.
1573
1574This prevents them being treated as stale asm-generic wrappers and
1575removed.
1576
1577Example::
1578
1579  #arch/x86/include/asm/Kbuild
1580  generated-y += syscalls_32.h
1581
1582mandatory-y
1583-----------
1584
1585mandatory-y is essentially used by include/(uapi/)asm-generic/Kbuild
1586to define the minimum set of ASM headers that all architectures must have.
1587
1588This works like optional generic-y. If a mandatory header is missing
1589in arch/$(SRCARCH)/include/(uapi/)/asm, Kbuild will automatically
1590generate a wrapper of the asm-generic one.
1591
1592Kbuild Variables
1593================
1594
1595The top Makefile exports the following variables:
1596
1597VERSION, PATCHLEVEL, SUBLEVEL, EXTRAVERSION
1598  These variables define the current kernel version.  A few arch
1599  Makefiles actually use these values directly; they should use
1600  $(KERNELRELEASE) instead.
1601
1602  $(VERSION), $(PATCHLEVEL), and $(SUBLEVEL) define the basic
1603  three-part version number, such as "2", "4", and "0".  These three
1604  values are always numeric.
1605
1606  $(EXTRAVERSION) defines an even tinier sublevel for pre-patches
1607  or additional patches.	It is usually some non-numeric string
1608  such as "-pre4", and is often blank.
1609
1610KERNELRELEASE
1611  $(KERNELRELEASE) is a single string such as "2.4.0-pre4", suitable
1612  for constructing installation directory names or showing in
1613  version strings.  Some arch Makefiles use it for this purpose.
1614
1615ARCH
1616  This variable defines the target architecture, such as "i386",
1617  "arm", or "sparc". Some kbuild Makefiles test $(ARCH) to
1618  determine which files to compile.
1619
1620  By default, the top Makefile sets $(ARCH) to be the same as the
1621  host system architecture.  For a cross build, a user may
1622  override the value of $(ARCH) on the command line::
1623
1624    make ARCH=m68k ...
1625
1626SRCARCH
1627  This variable specifies the directory in arch/ to build.
1628
1629  ARCH and SRCARCH may not necessarily match. A couple of arch
1630  directories are biarch, that is, a single ``arch/*/`` directory supports
1631  both 32-bit and 64-bit.
1632
1633  For example, you can pass in ARCH=i386, ARCH=x86_64, or ARCH=x86.
1634  For all of them, SRCARCH=x86 because arch/x86/ supports both i386 and
1635  x86_64.
1636
1637INSTALL_PATH
1638  This variable defines a place for the arch Makefiles to install
1639  the resident kernel image and System.map file.
1640  Use this for architecture-specific install targets.
1641
1642INSTALL_MOD_PATH, MODLIB
1643  $(INSTALL_MOD_PATH) specifies a prefix to $(MODLIB) for module
1644  installation.  This variable is not defined in the Makefile but
1645  may be passed in by the user if desired.
1646
1647  $(MODLIB) specifies the directory for module installation.
1648  The top Makefile defines $(MODLIB) to
1649  $(INSTALL_MOD_PATH)/lib/modules/$(KERNELRELEASE).  The user may
1650  override this value on the command line if desired.
1651
1652INSTALL_MOD_STRIP
1653  If this variable is specified, it will cause modules to be stripped
1654  after they are installed.  If INSTALL_MOD_STRIP is "1", then the
1655  default option --strip-debug will be used.  Otherwise, the
1656  INSTALL_MOD_STRIP value will be used as the option(s) to the strip
1657  command.
1658
1659INSTALL_DTBS_PATH
1660  This variable specifies a prefix for relocations required by build
1661  roots. It defines a place for installing the device tree blobs. Like
1662  INSTALL_MOD_PATH, it isn't defined in the Makefile, but can be passed
1663  by the user if desired. Otherwise it defaults to the kernel install
1664  path.
1665
1666Makefile language
1667=================
1668
1669The kernel Makefiles are designed to be run with GNU Make.  The Makefiles
1670use only the documented features of GNU Make, but they do use many
1671GNU extensions.
1672
1673GNU Make supports elementary list-processing functions.  The kernel
1674Makefiles use a novel style of list building and manipulation with few
1675``if`` statements.
1676
1677GNU Make has two assignment operators, ``:=`` and ``=``.  ``:=`` performs
1678immediate evaluation of the right-hand side and stores an actual string
1679into the left-hand side.  ``=`` is like a formula definition; it stores the
1680right-hand side in an unevaluated form and then evaluates this form each
1681time the left-hand side is used.
1682
1683There are some cases where ``=`` is appropriate.  Usually, though, ``:=``
1684is the right choice.
1685
1686Credits
1687=======
1688
1689- Original version made by Michael Elizabeth Chastain, <mailto:mec@shout.net>
1690- Updates by Kai Germaschewski <kai@tp1.ruhr-uni-bochum.de>
1691- Updates by Sam Ravnborg <sam@ravnborg.org>
1692- Language QA by Jan Engelhardt <jengelh@gmx.de>
1693
1694TODO
1695====
1696
1697- Generating offset header files.
1698- Add more variables to chapters 7 or 9?
1699