Chapter 6. Special Considerations

This section explains the most common things to consider when creating a port.

6.1. Splitting long files

Sometimes, port Makefiles can be really long. For example, rust ports can have a very long CARGO_CRATES list. In other cases, the Makefile might have code that varies depending on the architecture. In such cases, it can be convenient to split the original Makefile into several files. bsd.port.mk automatically includes some types of Makefiles into the main port Makefile.

These are the files that the framework handles automatically if they are found:

  • Makefile.crates. An example can be found in audio/ebur128.

  • Makefile.inc. An example can be found in net/ntp.

  • Makefile.${ARCH}-${OPSYS}

  • Makefile.${OPSYS}. An example can be found in net/cvsup-static.

  • Makefile.${ARCH}

  • Makefile.local

It is also usual practice to split the packaging list of the port into several files if the list varies a lot from one architecture to another or depends on the selected flavor. In this case, the pkg-plist file for each architecture is named following the pattern pkg-plist.${ARCH} or pkg-plist.${FLAVOR}. The framework does not create the packaging list automatically if multiple pkg-plist files exist. It is the responsibility of the porter to select the proper pkg-plist and assign it to the PLIST variable. Examples on how to deal with this can be found in audio/logitechmediaserver and deskutils/libportal.

6.2. Staging

bsd.port.mk expects ports to work with a "stage directory". This means that a port must not install files directly to the regular destination directories (that is, under PREFIX, for example) but instead into a separate directory from which the package is then built. In many cases, this does not require root privileges, making it possible to build packages as an unprivileged user. With staging, the port is built and installed into the stage directory, STAGEDIR. A package is created from the stage directory and then installed on the system. Automake tools refer to this concept as DESTDIR, but in FreeBSD, DESTDIR has a different meaning (see PREFIX and DESTDIR).

No port really needs to be root. It can mostly be avoided by using USES=uidfix. If the port still runs commands like chown(8), chgrp(1), or forces owner or group with install(1) then use USES=fakeroot to fake those calls. Some patching of the port’s Makefiles will be needed.

Meta ports, or ports that do not install files themselves but only depend on other ports, must avoid needlessly extracting the mtree(8) to the stage directory. This is the basic directory layout of the package, and these empty directories will be seen as orphans. To prevent mtree(8) extraction, add this line:

NO_MTREE=	yes

Metaports should use USES=metaport. It sets up defaults for ports that do not fetch, build, or install anything.

Staging is enabled by prepending STAGEDIR to paths used in the pre-install, do-install, and post-install targets (see the examples through the book). Typically, this includes PREFIX, ETCDIR, DATADIR, EXAMPLESDIR, DOCSDIR, and so on. Directories should be created as part of the post-install target. Avoid using absolute paths whenever possible.

Ports that install kernel modules must prepend STAGEDIR to their destination, by default /boot/modules.

When creating a symbolic link, relative ones are strongly recommended. Use ${RLN} to create relative symbolic links. It uses install(1) under the hood to automatically figure out the relative link to create.

Example 1. Create Relative Symbolic Links Automatically

${RLN} uses install(1)'s relative symbolic feature which frees the porter of computing the relative path.

${RLN} ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/lib/libfoo.so.42 ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/lib/libfoo.so
${RLN} ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/libexec/foo/bar ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/bin/bar
${RLN} ${STAGEDIR}/var/cache/foo ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/share/foo

Will generate:

% ls -lF ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/lib
lrwxr-xr-x  1 nobody  nobody    181 Aug  3 11:27 libfoo.so@ -> libfoo.so.42
-rwxr-xr-x  1 nobody  nobody     15 Aug  3 11:24 libfoo.so.42*
% ls -lF ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX}/bin
lrwxr-xr-x  1 nobody  nobody    181 Aug  3 11:27 bar@ -> ../libexec/foo/bar
% ls -lF ${STAGEDIRDIR}${PREFIX}/share
lrwxr-xr-x  1 nobody  nobody    181 Aug  3 11:27 foo@ -> ../../../var/cache/foo

6.3. Bundled Libraries

This section explains why bundled dependencies are considered bad and what to do about them.

6.3.1. Why Bundled Libraries Are Bad

Some software requires the porter to locate third-party libraries and add the required dependencies to the port. Other software bundles all necessary libraries into the distribution file. The second approach seems easier at first, but there are some serious drawbacks:

This list is loosely based on the Fedora and Gentoo wikis, both licensed under the CC-BY-SA 3.0 license.

Security

If vulnerabilities are found in the upstream library and fixed there, they might not be fixed in the library bundled with the port. One reason could be that the author is not aware of the problem. This means that the porter must fix them, or upgrade to a non-vulnerable version, and send a patch to the author. This all takes time, which results in software being vulnerable longer than necessary. This in turn makes it harder to coordinate a fix without unnecessarily leaking information about the vulnerability.

Bugs

This problem is similar to the problem with security in the last paragraph, but generally less severe.

Forking

It is easier for the author to fork the upstream library once it is bundled. While convenient on first sight, it means that the code diverges from upstream making it harder to address security or other problems with the software. A reason for this is that patching becomes harder.

Another problem of forking is that because code diverges from upstream, bugs get solved over and over again instead of just once at a central location. This defeats the idea of open source software in the first place.

Symbol collision

When a library is installed on the system, it might collide with the bundled version. This can cause immediate errors at compile or link time. It can also cause errors when running the program which might be harder to track down. The latter problem could be caused because the versions of the two libraries are incompatible.

Licensing

When bundling projects from different sources, license issues can arise more easily, especially when licenses are incompatible.

Waste of resources

Bundled libraries waste resources on several levels. It takes longer to build the actual application, especially if these libraries are already present on the system. At run-time, they can take up unnecessary memory when the system-wide library is already loaded by one program and the bundled library is loaded by another program.

Waste of effort

When a library needs patches for FreeBSD, these patches have to be duplicated again in the bundled library. This wastes developer time because the patches might not apply cleanly. It can also be hard to notice that these patches are required in the first place.

6.3.2. What to do About Bundled Libraries

Whenever possible, use the unbundled version of the library by adding a LIB_DEPENDS to the port. If such a port does not exist yet, consider creating it.

Only use bundled libraries if the upstream has a good track record on security and using unbundled versions leads to overly complex patches.

In some very special cases, for example emulators, like Wine, a port has to bundle libraries, because they are in a different architecture, or they have been modified to fit the software’s use. In that case, those libraries should not be exposed to other ports for linking. Add BUNDLE_LIBS=yes to the port’s Makefile. This will tell pkg(8) to not compute provided libraries. Always ask the Ports Management Team <portmgr@FreeBSD.org> before adding this to a port.

6.4. Shared Libraries

If the port installs one or more shared libraries, define a USE_LDCONFIG make variable, which will instruct a bsd.port.mk to run ${LDCONFIG} -m on the directory where the new library is installed (usually PREFIX/lib) during post-install target to register it into the shared library cache. This variable, when defined, will also facilitate addition of an appropriate @exec /sbin/ldconfig -m and @unexec /sbin/ldconfig -R pair into pkg-plist, so that a user who installed the package can start using the shared library immediately and de-installation will not cause the system to still believe the library is there.

USE_LDCONFIG=	yes

The default directory can be overridden by setting USE_LDCONFIG to a list of directories into which shared libraries are to be installed. For example, if the port installs shared libraries into PREFIX/lib/foo and PREFIX/lib/bar use this in Makefile:

USE_LDCONFIG=	${PREFIX}/lib/foo ${PREFIX}/lib/bar

Please double-check, often this is not necessary at all or can be avoided through -rpath or setting LD_RUN_PATH during linking (see lang/mosml for an example), or through a shell-wrapper which sets LD_LIBRARY_PATH before invoking the binary, like www/seamonkey does.

When installing 32-bit libraries on a 64-bit system, use USE_LDCONFIG32 instead.

If the software uses autotools, and specifically libtool, add USES=libtool.

When the major library version number increments in the update to the new port version, all other ports that link to the affected library must have their PORTREVISION incremented, to force recompilation with the new library version.

6.5. Ports with Distribution Restrictions or Legal Concerns

Licenses vary, and some of them place restrictions on how the application can be packaged, whether it can be sold for profit, and so on.

It is the responsibility of a porter to read the licensing terms of the software and make sure that the FreeBSD project will not be held accountable for violating them by redistributing the source or compiled binaries either via FTP/HTTP or CD-ROM. If in doubt, please contact the FreeBSD ports mailing list.

In situations like this, the variables described in the next sections can be set.

6.5.1. NO_PACKAGE

This variable indicates that we may not generate a binary package of the application. For instance, the license may disallow binary redistribution, or it may prohibit distribution of packages created from patched sources.

However, the port’s DISTFILES may be freely mirrored on FTP/HTTP. They may also be distributed on a CD-ROM (or similar media) unless NO_CDROM is set as well.

If the binary package is not generally useful, and the application must always be compiled from the source code, use NO_PACKAGE. For example, if the application has configuration information that is site specific hard coded into it at compile time, set NO_PACKAGE.

Set NO_PACKAGE to a string describing the reason why the package cannot be generated.

6.5.2. NO_CDROM

This variable alone indicates that, although we are allowed to generate binary packages, we may put neither those packages nor the port’s DISTFILES onto a CD-ROM (or similar media) for resale. However, the binary packages and the port’s DISTFILES will still be available via FTP/HTTP.

If this variable is set along with NO_PACKAGE, then only the port’s DISTFILES will be available, and only via FTP/HTTP.

Set NO_CDROM to a string describing the reason why the port cannot be redistributed on CD-ROM. For instance, use this if the port’s license is for "non-commercial" use only.

6.5.3. NOFETCHFILES

Files defined in NOFETCHFILES are not fetchable from any of MASTER_SITES. An example of such a file is when the file is supplied on CD-ROM by the vendor.

Tools which check for the availability of these files on MASTER_SITES have to ignore these files and not report about them.

6.5.4. RESTRICTED

Set this variable alone if the application’s license permits neither mirroring the application’s DISTFILES nor distributing the binary package in any way.

Do not set NO_CDROM or NO_PACKAGE along with RESTRICTED, since the latter variable implies the former ones.

Set RESTRICTED to a string describing the reason why the port cannot be redistributed. Typically, this indicates that the port contains proprietary software and that the user will need to manually download the DISTFILES, possibly after registering for the software or agreeing to accept the terms of an EULA.

6.5.5. RESTRICTED_FILES

When RESTRICTED or NO_CDROM is set, this variable defaults to ${DISTFILES} ${PATCHFILES}, otherwise it is empty. If only some of the distribution files are restricted, then set this variable to list them.

If the port has legal concerns not addressed by the above variables, set LEGAL_TEXT to a string explaining the concern. For example, if special permission was obtained for FreeBSD to redistribute the binary, this variable must indicate so.

A port which sets any of the above variables must also be added to /usr/ports/LEGAL. The first column is a glob which matches the restricted distfiles. The second column is the port’s origin. The third column is the output of make -VLEGAL.

6.5.8. Examples

The preferred way to state "the distfiles for this port must be fetched manually" is as follows:

.if !exists(${DISTDIR}/${DISTNAME}${EXTRACT_SUFX})
IGNORE=	may not be redistributed because of licensing reasons. Please visit some-website to accept their license and download ${DISTFILES} into ${DISTDIR}
.endif

This both informs the user, and sets the proper metadata on the user’s machine for use by automated programs.

Note that this stanza must be preceded by an inclusion of bsd.port.pre.mk.

6.6. Building Mechanisms

6.6.1. Building Ports in Parallel

The FreeBSD ports framework supports parallel building using multiple make sub-processes, which allows SMP systems to utilize all of their available CPU power, allowing port builds to be faster and more effective.

This is achieved by passing -jX flag to make(1) running on vendor code. This is the default build behavior of ports. Unfortunately, not all ports handle parallel building well and it may be required to explicitly disable this feature by adding the MAKE_JOBS_UNSAFE=yes variable. It is used when a port is known to be broken with -jX due to race conditions causing intermittent build failures.

When setting MAKE_JOBS_UNSAFE, it is very important to explain either with a comment in the Makefile, or at least in the commit message, why the port does not build when enabling. Otherwise, it is almost impossible to either fix the problem, or test if it has been fixed when committing an update at a later date.

6.6.2. make, gmake, and imake

Several differing make implementations exist. Ported software often requires a particular implementation, like GNU make, known in FreeBSD as gmake.

If the port uses GNU make, add gmake to USES.

MAKE_CMD can be used to reference the specific command configured by the USES setting in the port’s Makefile. Only use MAKE_CMD within the application Makefiles in WRKSRC to call the make implementation expected by the ported software.

If the port is an X application that uses imake to create Makefiles from Imakefiles, set USES= imake. See the USES=imake section of Using USES Macros for more details.

If the port’s source Makefile has something other than all as the main build target, set ALL_TARGET accordingly. The same goes for install and INSTALL_TARGET.

6.6.3. configure Script

If the port uses the configure script to generate Makefile from Makefile.in, set GNU_CONFIGURE=yes. To give extra arguments to the configure script (the default argument is --prefix=${PREFIX} --infodir=${PREFIX}/${INFO_PATH} --mandir=${PREFIX}/man --build=${CONFIGURE_TARGET}), set those extra arguments in CONFIGURE_ARGS. Extra environment variables can be passed using CONFIGURE_ENV.

Table 1. Variables for Ports That Use configure
VariableMeans

GNU_CONFIGURE

The port uses configure script to prepare build.

HAS_CONFIGURE

Same as GNU_CONFIGURE, except default configure target is not added to CONFIGURE_ARGS.

CONFIGURE_ARGS

Additional arguments passed to configure script.

CONFIGURE_ENV

Additional environment variables to be set for configure script run.

CONFIGURE_TARGET

Override default configure target. Default value is ${MACHINE_ARCH}-portbld-freebsd${OSREL}.

6.6.4. Using cmake

For ports that use CMake, define USES= cmake.

Table 2. Variables for Ports That Use cmake
VariableMeans

CMAKE_ARGS

Port specific CMake flags to be passed to the cmake binary.

CMAKE_ON

For each entry in CMAKE_ON, an enabled boolean value is added to CMAKE_ARGS. See CMAKE_ON and CMAKE_OFF.

CMAKE_OFF

For each entry in CMAKE_OFF, a disabled boolean value is added to CMAKE_ARGS. See CMAKE_ON and CMAKE_OFF.

CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE

Type of build (CMake predefined build profiles). Default is Release, or Debug if WITH_DEBUG is set.

CMAKE_SOURCE_PATH

Path to the source directory. Default is ${WRKSRC}.

CONFIGURE_ENV

Additional environment variables to be set for the cmake binary.

Table 3. Variables the Users Can Define for cmake Builds
VariableMeans

CMAKE_NOCOLOR

Disables color build output. Default not set, unless BATCH or PACKAGE_BUILDING are set.

CMake supports these build profiles: Debug, Release, RelWithDebInfo and MinSizeRel. Debug and Release profiles respect system *FLAGS, RelWithDebInfo and MinSizeRel will set CFLAGS to -O2 -g and -Os -DNDEBUG correspondingly. The lower-cased value of CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE is exported to PLIST_SUB and must be used if the port installs *.cmake depending on the build type (see devel/kf5-kcrash for an example). Please note that some projects may define their own build profiles and/or force particular build type by setting CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE in CMakeLists.txt. To make a port for such a project respect CFLAGS and WITH_DEBUG, the CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE definitions must be removed from those files.

Most CMake-based projects support an out-of-source method of building. The out-of-source build for a port is the default setting. An in-source build can be requested by using the :insource suffix. With out-of-source builds, CONFIGURE_WRKSRC, BUILD_WRKSRC and INSTALL_WRKSRC will be set to ${WRKDIR}/.build and this directory will be used to keep all files generated during configuration and build stages, leaving the source directory intact.

Example 2. USES= cmake Example

This snippet demonstrates the use of CMake for a port. CMAKE_SOURCE_PATH is not usually required, but can be set when the sources are not located in the top directory, or if only a subset of the project is intended to be built by the port.

USES=			cmake
CMAKE_SOURCE_PATH=	${WRKSRC}/subproject
Example 3. CMAKE_ON and CMAKE_OFF

When adding boolean values to CMAKE_ARGS, it is easier to use the CMAKE_ON and CMAKE_OFF variables instead. This:

CMAKE_ON=	VAR1 VAR2
CMAKE_OFF=	VAR3

Is equivalent to:

CMAKE_ARGS=	-DVAR1:BOOL=TRUE -DVAR2:BOOL=TRUE -DVAR3:BOOL=FALSE

This is only for the default values off CMAKE_ARGS. The helpers described in OPT_CMAKE_BOOL and OPT_CMAKE_BOOL_OFF use the same semantics, but for optional values.

6.6.5. Using scons

If the port uses SCons, define USES=scons.

To make third party SConstruct respect everything that is passed to SCons in the environment (that is, most importantly, CC/CXX/CFLAGS/CXXFLAGS), patch SConstruct so build Environment is constructed like this:

env = Environment(**ARGUMENTS)

It may be then modified with env.Append and env.Replace.

6.6.6. Building Rust Applications with cargo

For ports that use Cargo, define USES=cargo.

Table 4. Variables the Users Can Define for cargo Builds
VariableDefaultDescription

CARGO_CRATES

List of crates the port depends on. Each entry needs to have a format like cratename-semver for example, libc-0.2.40. Port maintainers can generate this list from Cargo.lock using make cargo-crates. Manually bumping crate versions is possible but be mindful of transitive dependencies. If the list generated by make cargo-crates is big, it might be convenient to place it inside a Makefile.crates file in the top-level port directory. If present, the ports framework sources that file automatically. This help keep the main port Makefile within a manageable size.

CARGO_FEATURES

List of application features to build (space separated list). To deactivate all default features add the special token --no-default-features to CARGO_FEATURES. Manually passing it to CARGO_BUILD_ARGS, CARGO_INSTALL_ARGS, and CARGO_TEST_ARGS is not needed.

CARGO_CARGOTOML

${WRKSRC}/Cargo.toml

The path to the Cargo.toml to use.

CARGO_CARGOLOCK

${WRKSRC}/Cargo.lock

The path to the Cargo.lock to use for make cargo-crates. It is possible to specify more than one lock file when necessary.

CARGO_ENV

A list of environment variables to pass to Cargo similar to MAKE_ENV.

RUSTFLAGS

Flags to pass to the Rust compiler.

CARGO_CONFIGURE

yes

Use the default do-configure.

CARGO_UPDATE_ARGS

Extra arguments to pass to Cargo during the configure phase. Valid arguments can be looked up with cargo update --help.

CARGO_BUILDDEP

yes

Add a build dependency on lang/rust.

CARGO_CARGO_BIN

${LOCALBASE}/bin/cargo

Location of the cargo binary.

CARGO_BUILD

yes

Use the default do-build.

CARGO_BUILD_ARGS

Extra arguments to pass to Cargo during the build phase. Valid arguments can be looked up with cargo build --help.

CARGO_INSTALL

yes

Use the default do-install.

CARGO_INSTALL_ARGS

Extra arguments to pass to Cargo during the install phase. Valid arguments can be looked up with cargo install --help.

CARGO_INSTALL_PATH

.

Path to the crate to install. This is passed to cargo install via its --path argument. When multiple paths are specified cargo install is run multiple times.

CARGO_TEST

yes

Use the default do-test.

CARGO_TEST_ARGS

Extra arguments to pass to Cargo during the test phase. Valid arguments can be looked up with cargo test --help.

CARGO_TARGET_DIR

${WRKDIR}/target

Location of the cargo output directory.

CARGO_DIST_SUBDIR

rust/crates

Directory relative to DISTDIR where the crate distribution files will be stored.

CARGO_VENDOR_DIR

${WRKSRC}/cargo-crates

Location of the vendor directory where all crates will be extracted to. Try to keep this under PATCH_WRKSRC, so that patches can be applied easily.

CARGO_USE_GITHUB

no

Enable fetching of crates locked to specific Git commits on GitHub via GH_TUPLE. This will try to patch all Cargo.toml under WRKDIR to point to the offline sources instead of fetching them from a Git repository during the build.

CARGO_USE_GITLAB

no

Same as CARGO_USE_GITHUB but for GitLab instances and GL_TUPLE.

Example 4. Creating a Port for a Simple Rust Application

Creating a Cargo based port is a three stage process. First we need to provide a ports template that fetches the application distribution file:

PORTNAME=	tokei
DISTVERSIONPREFIX=	v
DISTVERSION=	7.0.2
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	tobik@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Display statistics about your code
WWW=		https://github.com/XAMPPRocky/tokei/

USES=		cargo
USE_GITHUB=	yes
GH_ACCOUNT=	Aaronepower

.include <bsd.port.mk>

Generate an initial distinfo:

% make makesum
=> Aaronepower-tokei-v7.0.2_GH0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://codeload.github.com/Aaronepower/tokei/tar.gz/v7.0.2?dummy=/Aaronepower-tokei-v7.0.2_GH0.tar.gz
fetch: https://codeload.github.com/Aaronepower/tokei/tar.gz/v7.0.2?dummy=/Aaronepower-tokei-v7.0.2_GH0.tar.gz: size of remote file is not known
Aaronepower-tokei-v7.0.2_GH0.tar.gz                     45 kB  239 kBps 00m00s

Now the distribution file is ready to use and we can go ahead and extract crate dependencies from the bundled Cargo.lock:

% make cargo-crates
CARGO_CRATES=   aho-corasick-0.6.4 \
                ansi_term-0.11.0 \
                arrayvec-0.4.7 \
                atty-0.2.9 \
                bitflags-1.0.1 \
                byteorder-1.2.2 \
                [...]

The output of this command needs to be pasted directly into the Makefile:

PORTNAME=	tokei
DISTVERSIONPREFIX=	v
DISTVERSION=	7.0.2
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	tobik@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Display statistics about your code
WWW=		https://github.com/XAMPPRocky/tokei/

USES=		cargo
USE_GITHUB=	yes
GH_ACCOUNT=	Aaronepower

CARGO_CRATES=   aho-corasick-0.6.4 \
                ansi_term-0.11.0 \
                arrayvec-0.4.7 \
                atty-0.2.9 \
                bitflags-1.0.1 \
                byteorder-1.2.2 \
                [...]

.include <bsd.port.mk>

distinfo needs to be regenerated to contain all the crate distribution files:

% make makesum
=> rust/crates/aho-corasick-0.6.4.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/aho-corasick/0.6.4/download?dummy=/rust/crates/aho-corasick-0.6.4.tar.gz
rust/crates/aho-corasick-0.6.4.tar.gz         100% of   24 kB 6139 kBps 00m00s
=> rust/crates/ansi_term-0.11.0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/ansi_term/0.11.0/download?dummy=/rust/crates/ansi_term-0.11.0.tar.gz
rust/crates/ansi_term-0.11.0.tar.gz           100% of   16 kB   21 MBps 00m00s
=> rust/crates/arrayvec-0.4.7.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/arrayvec/0.4.7/download?dummy=/rust/crates/arrayvec-0.4.7.tar.gz
rust/crates/arrayvec-0.4.7.tar.gz             100% of   22 kB 3237 kBps 00m00s
=> rust/crates/atty-0.2.9.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/atty/0.2.9/download?dummy=/rust/crates/atty-0.2.9.tar.gz
rust/crates/atty-0.2.9.tar.gz                 100% of 5898  B   81 MBps 00m00s
=> rust/crates/bitflags-1.0.1.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
[...]

The port is now ready for a test build and further adjustments like creating a plist, writing a description, adding license information, options, etc. as normal.

If you are not testing your port in a clean environment like with poudriere, remember to run make clean before any testing.

Example 5. Enabling Additional Application Features

Some applications define additional features in their Cargo.toml. They can be compiled in by setting CARGO_FEATURES in the port.

Here we enable Tokei’s json and yaml features:

CARGO_FEATURES=	json yaml
Example 6. Encoding Application Features As Port Options

An example [features] section in Cargo.toml could look like this:

[features]
pulseaudio_backend = ["librespot-playback/pulseaudio-backend"]
portaudio_backend = ["librespot-playback/portaudio-backend"]
default = ["pulseaudio_backend"]

pulseaudio_backend is a default feature. It is always enabled unless we explicitly turn off default features by adding --no-default-features to CARGO_FEATURES. Here we turn the portaudio_backend and pulseaudio_backend features into port options:

CARGO_FEATURES=	--no-default-features

OPTIONS_DEFINE=	PORTAUDIO PULSEAUDIO

PORTAUDIO_VARS=		CARGO_FEATURES+=portaudio_backend
PULSEAUDIO_VARS=	CARGO_FEATURES+=pulseaudio_backend
Example 7. Listing Crate Licenses

Crates have their own licenses. It is important to know what they are when adding a LICENSE block to the port (see Licenses). The helper target cargo-crates-licenses will try to list all the licenses of all crates defined in CARGO_CRATES.

% make cargo-crates-licenses
aho-corasick-0.6.4  Unlicense/MIT
ansi_term-0.11.0    MIT
arrayvec-0.4.7      MIT/Apache-2.0
atty-0.2.9          MIT
bitflags-1.0.1      MIT/Apache-2.0
byteorder-1.2.2     Unlicense/MIT
[...]

The license names make cargo-crates-licenses outputs are SPDX 2.1 licenses expression which do not match the license names defined in the ports framework. They need to be translated to the names from Predefined License List.

6.6.7. Using meson

For ports that use Meson, define USES=meson.

Table 5. Variables for Ports That Use meson
VariableDescription

MESON_ARGS

Port specific Meson flags to be passed to the meson binary.

MESON_BUILD_DIR

Path to the build directory relative to WRKSRC. Default is _build.

Example 8. USES=meson Example

This snippet demonstrates the use of Meson for a port.

USES=		meson
MESON_ARGS=	-Dfoo=enabled

6.6.8. Building Go Applications

For ports that use Go, define USES=go. Refer to go for a list of variables that can be set to control the build process.

Example 9. Creating a Port for a Go Modules Based Application

In most cases, it is sufficient to set the GO_MODULE variable to the value specified by the module directive in go.mod:

PORTNAME=       hey
DISTVERSIONPREFIX=	v
DISTVERSION=    0.1.4
CATEGORIES=     benchmarks

MAINTAINER=     dmgk@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=        Tiny program that sends some load to a web application
WWW=            https://github.com/rakyll/hey/

LICENSE=        APACHE20
LICENSE_FILE=   ${WRKSRC}/LICENSE

USES=           go:modules
GO_MODULE=      github.com/rakyll/hey

PLIST_FILES=    bin/hey

.include <bsd.port.mk>

If the "easy" way is not adequate or more control over dependencies is needed, the full porting process is described below.

Creating a Go-based port is a five-stage process. First we need to provide a ports template that fetches the application distribution file:

PORTNAME=	ghq
DISTVERSIONPREFIX=	v
DISTVERSION=	0.12.5
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	tobik@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Remote repository management made easy
WWW=		https://github.com/x-motemen/ghq/

USES=		go:modules
USE_GITHUB=	yes
GH_ACCOUNT=	motemen

.include <bsd.port.mk>

Generate an initial distinfo:

% make makesum
===>  License MIT accepted by the user
=> motemen-ghq-v0.12.5_GH0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://codeload.github.com/motemen/ghq/tar.gz/v0.12.5?dummy=/motemen-ghq-v0.12.5_GH0.tar.gz
fetch: https://codeload.github.com/motemen/ghq/tar.gz/v0.12.5?dummy=/motemen-ghq-v0.12.5_GH0.tar.gz: size of remote file is not known
motemen-ghq-v0.12.5_GH0.tar.gz                          32 kB  177 kBps    00s

Now the distribution file is ready to use and we can extract the required Go module dependencies. This step requires having ports-mgmt/modules2tuple installed:

% make gomod-vendor
[...]
GH_TUPLE=	\
		Songmu:gitconfig:v0.0.2:songmu_gitconfig/vendor/github.com/Songmu/gitconfig \
		daviddengcn:go-colortext:186a3d44e920:daviddengcn_go_colortext/vendor/github.com/daviddengcn/go-colortext \
		go-yaml:yaml:v2.2.2:go_yaml_yaml/vendor/gopkg.in/yaml.v2 \
		golang:net:3ec191127204:golang_net/vendor/golang.org/x/net \
		golang:sync:112230192c58:golang_sync/vendor/golang.org/x/sync \
		golang:xerrors:3ee3066db522:golang_xerrors/vendor/golang.org/x/xerrors \
		motemen:go-colorine:45d19169413a:motemen_go_colorine/vendor/github.com/motemen/go-colorine \
		urfave:cli:v1.20.0:urfave_cli/vendor/github.com/urfave/cli

The output of this command needs to be pasted directly into the Makefile:

PORTNAME=	ghq
DISTVERSIONPREFIX=	v
DISTVERSION=	0.12.5
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	tobik@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Remote repository management made easy
WWW=		https://github.com/x-motemen/ghq/

USES=		go:modules
USE_GITHUB=	yes
GH_ACCOUNT=	motemen
GH_TUPLE=	Songmu:gitconfig:v0.0.2:songmu_gitconfig/vendor/github.com/Songmu/gitconfig \
		daviddengcn:go-colortext:186a3d44e920:daviddengcn_go_colortext/vendor/github.com/daviddengcn/go-colortext \
		go-yaml:yaml:v2.2.2:go_yaml_yaml/vendor/gopkg.in/yaml.v2 \
		golang:net:3ec191127204:golang_net/vendor/golang.org/x/net \
		golang:sync:112230192c58:golang_sync/vendor/golang.org/x/sync \
		golang:xerrors:3ee3066db522:golang_xerrors/vendor/golang.org/x/xerrors \
		motemen:go-colorine:45d19169413a:motemen_go_colorine/vendor/github.com/motemen/go-colorine \
		urfave:cli:v1.20.0:urfave_cli/vendor/github.com/urfave/cli

.include <bsd.port.mk>

distinfo needs to be regenerated to contain all the distribution files:

% make makesum
=> Songmu-gitconfig-v0.0.2_GH0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://codeload.github.com/Songmu/gitconfig/tar.gz/v0.0.2?dummy=/Songmu-gitconfig-v0.0.2_GH0.tar.gz
fetch: https://codeload.github.com/Songmu/gitconfig/tar.gz/v0.0.2?dummy=/Songmu-gitconfig-v0.0.2_GH0.tar.gz: size of remote file is not known
Songmu-gitconfig-v0.0.2_GH0.tar.gz                    5662  B  936 kBps    00s
=> daviddengcn-go-colortext-186a3d44e920_GH0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/ports/distfiles/.
=> Attempting to fetch https://codeload.github.com/daviddengcn/go-colortext/tar.gz/186a3d44e920?dummy=/daviddengcn-go-colortext-186a3d44e920_GH0.tar.gz
fetch: https://codeload.github.com/daviddengcn/go-colortext/tar.gz/186a3d44e920?dummy=/daviddengcn-go-colortext-186a3d44e920_GH0.tar.gz: size of remote file is not known
daviddengcn-go-colortext-186a3d44e920_GH0.tar.        4534  B 1098 kBps    00s
[...]

The port is now ready for a test build and further adjustments like creating a plist, writing a description, adding license information, options, etc. as normal.

If you are not testing your port in a clean environment like with poudriere, remember to run make clean before any testing.

Example 10. Setting Output Binary Name or Installation Path

Some ports need to install the resulting binary under a different name or to a path other than the default ${PREFIX}/bin. This can be done by using GO_TARGET tuple syntax, for example:

GO_TARGET=  ./cmd/ipfs:ipfs-go

will install ipfs binary as ${PREFIX}/bin/ipfs-go and

GO_TARGET=  ./dnscrypt-proxy:${PREFIX}/sbin/dnscrypt-proxy

will install dnscrypt-proxy to ${PREFIX}/sbin.

6.6.9. Building Haskell Applications with cabal

For ports that use Cabal, build system defines USES=cabal. Refer to cabal for a list of variables that can be set to control the build process.

Example 11. Creating a Port for a Hackage-hosted Haskell Application

When preparing a Haskell Cabal port, devel/hs-cabal-install and ports-mgmt/hs-cabal2tuple programs are required, so make sure they are installed beforehand. First we need to define common ports variables that allow cabal-install to fetch the package distribution file:

PORTNAME=	ShellCheck
DISTVERSION=	0.6.0
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	haskell@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Shell script analysis tool
WWW=		https://www.shellcheck.net/

USES=		cabal

.include <bsd.port.mk>

This minimal Makefile fetches the distribution file with the cabal-extract helper target:

% make cabal-extract
[...]
Downloading the latest package list from hackage.haskell.org
cabal get ShellCheck-0.6.0
Downloading  ShellCheck-0.6.0
Downloaded   ShellCheck-0.6.0
Unpacking to ShellCheck-0.6.0/

Now that we have ShellCheck.cabal package description file under ${WRKSRC}, we can use cabal-configure to generate the build plan:

% make cabal-configure
[...]
Resolving dependencies...
Build profile: -w ghc-8.10.7 -O1
In order, the following would be built (use -v for more details):
 - Diff-0.4.1 (lib) (requires download & build)
 - OneTuple-0.3.1 (lib) (requires download & build)
[...]

Once done, a list of required dependencies can generated:

% make make-use-cabal
USE_CABAL=	QuickCheck-2.12.6.1 \
		hashable-1.3.0.0 \
		integer-logarithms-1.0.3 \
[...]

Haskell packages may contain revisions, just like FreeBSD ports. Revisions can affect .cabal files only. Note additional version numbers after the _ symbol. Put newly generated USE_CABAL list instead of an old one.

Finally, distinfo needs to be regenerated to contain all the distribution files:

% make makesum
=> ShellCheck-0.6.0.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/local/poudriere/ports/git/distfiles/cabal.
=> Attempting to fetch https://hackage.haskell.org/package/ShellCheck-0.6.0/ShellCheck-0.6.0.tar.gz
ShellCheck-0.6.0.tar.gz                                136 kB  642 kBps    00s
=> QuickCheck-2.12.6.1/QuickCheck-2.12.6.1.tar.gz doesn't seem to exist in /usr/local/poudriere/ports/git/distfiles/cabal.
=> Attempting to fetch https://hackage.haskell.org/package/QuickCheck-2.12.6.1/QuickCheck-2.12.6.1.tar.gz
QuickCheck-2.12.6.1/QuickCheck-2.12.6.1.tar.gz          65 kB  361 kBps    00s
[...]

The port is now ready for a test build and further adjustments like creating a plist, writing a description, adding license information, options, etc. as normal.

If you are not testing your port in a clean environment like with poudriere, remember to run make clean before any testing.

Some Haskell ports install various data files under share/${PORTNAME}. For such cases special handling is required on the port side. The port should define the CABAL_WRAPPER_SCRIPTS knob listing each executable that is going to use data files. Moreover, in rare cases the program being ported uses data files of other Haskell packages, in which case the FOO_DATADIR_VARS comes to the rescue.

Example 12. Handling Data Files in a Haskell Port

devel/hs-profiteur is a Haskell application that generates a single-page HTML with some content.

PORTNAME=	profiteur

[...]

USES=		cabal

USE_CABAL=	OneTuple-0.3.1_2 \
		QuickCheck-2.14.2 \
		[...]

.include <bsd.port.mk>

It installs HTML templates under share/profiteur, so we need to add CABAL_WRAPPER_SCRIPTS knob:

[...]

USE_CABAL=	OneTuple-0.3.1_2 \
		QuickCheck-2.14.2 \
		[...]


CABAL_WRAPPER_SCRIPTS=		${CABAL_EXECUTABLES}

.include <bsd.port.mk>

The program also tries to access the jquery.js file, which is a part of js-jquery-3.3.1 Haskell package. For that file to be found, we need to make the wrapper script to look for js-jquery data files in share/profiteur too. We use profiteur_DATADIR_VARS for this:

[...]

CABAL_WRAPPER_SCRIPTS=		${CABAL_EXECUTABLES}
profiteur_DATADIR_VARS=		js-jquery

.include <bsd.port.mk>

Now the port will install the actual binary into libexec/cabal/profiteur and the script into bin/profiteur.

There is no easy way to find out a proper value for the FOO_DATADIR_VARS knob apart from running the program and checking that everything works. Luckily, the need to use FOO_DATADIR_VARS is very rare.

Another corner case when porting complex Haskell programs is the presence of VCS dependencies in the cabal.project file.

Example 13. Porting Haskell Applications with VCS Dependencies

net-p2p/cardano-node is an extremely complex piece of software. In its cabal.project there are a lot of blocks like this:

[...]
source-repository-package
  type: git
  location: https://github.com/input-output-hk/cardano-crypto
  tag: f73079303f663e028288f9f4a9e08bcca39a923e
[...]

Dependencies of type source-repository-package are automatically pulled in by cabal during the build process. Unfortunately, this makes use of the network after the fetch stage. This is disallowed by the ports framework. These sources need to be listed in the port’s Makefile. The make-use-cabal helper target can make it easy for packages hosted on GitHub. Running this target after the usual cabal-extract and cabal-configure will produce not only the USE_CABAL knob, but also GH_TUPLE:

% make make-use-cabal
USE_CABAL=	Diff-0.4.1 \
		Glob-0.10.2_3 \
		HUnit-1.6.2.0 \
		[...]

GH_TUPLE=		input-output-hk:cardano-base:0f3a867493059e650cda69e20a5cbf1ace289a57:cardano_base/dist-newstyle/src/cardano-b_-c8db9876882556ed \
		input-output-hk:cardano-crypto:f73079303f663e028288f9f4a9e08bcca39a923e:cardano_crypto/dist-newstyle/src/cardano-c_-253fd88117badd8f \
		[...]

It might be useful to separate the GH_TUPLE items coming from make-use-cabal from the other ones to make it easy to update the port:

GH_TUPLE=	input-output-hk:cardano-base:0f3a867493059e650cda69e20a5cbf1ace289a57:cardano_base/dist-newstyle/src/cardano-b_-c8db9876882556ed \
		input-output-hk:cardano-crypto:f73079303f663e028288f9f4a9e08bcca39a923e:cardano_crypto/dist-newstyle/src/cardano-c_-253fd88117badd8f \
		[...]

GH_TUPLE+=	bitcoin-core:secp256k1:ac83be33d0956faf6b7f61a60ab524ef7d6a473a:secp

Haskell ports with VCS dependencies also require the following hack for the time being:

BINARY_ALIAS=	git=true

6.7. Using GNU Autotools

If a port needs any of the GNU Autotools software, add USES=autoreconf. See autoreconf for more information.

6.8. Using GNU gettext

6.8.1. Basic Usage

If the port requires gettext, set USES= gettext, and the port will inherit a dependency on libintl.so from devel/gettext. Other values for gettext usage are listed in USES=gettext.

A rather common case is a port using gettext and configure. Generally, GNU configure should be able to locate gettext automatically.

USES=	gettext
GNU_CONFIGURE=	yes

If it ever fails to, hints at the location of gettext can be passed in CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS using localbase as follows:

USES=	gettext localbase:ldflags
GNU_CONFIGURE=	yes

6.8.2. Optional Usage

Some software products allow for disabling NLS. For example, through passing --disable-nls to configure. In that case, the port must use gettext conditionally, depending on the status of the NLS option. For ports of low to medium complexity, use this idiom:

GNU_CONFIGURE=		yes

OPTIONS_DEFINE=		NLS
OPTIONS_SUB=		yes

NLS_USES=		gettext
NLS_CONFIGURE_ENABLE=	nls

.include <bsd.port.mk>

Or using the older way of using options:

GNU_CONFIGURE=		yes

OPTIONS_DEFINE=		NLS

.include <bsd.port.options.mk>

.if ${PORT_OPTIONS:MNLS}
USES+=			gettext
PLIST_SUB+=		NLS=""
.else
CONFIGURE_ARGS+=	--disable-nls
PLIST_SUB+=		NLS="@comment "
.endif

.include <bsd.port.mk>

The next item on the to-do list is to arrange so that the message catalog files are included in the packing list conditionally. The Makefile part of this task is already provided by the idiom. It is explained in the section on advanced pkg-plist practices. In a nutshell, each occurrence of %%NLS%% in pkg-plist will be replaced by "`@comment " if NLS is disabled, or by a null string if NLS is enabled. Consequently, the lines prefixed by `%%NLS%% will become mere comments in the final packing list if NLS is off; otherwise the prefix will be just left out. Then insert %%NLS%% before each path to a message catalog file in pkg-plist. For example:

%%NLS%%share/locale/fr/LC_MESSAGES/foobar.mo
%%NLS%%share/locale/no/LC_MESSAGES/foobar.mo

In high complexity cases, more advanced techniques may be needed, such as dynamic packing list generation.

6.8.3. Handling Message Catalog Directories

There is a point to note about installing message catalog files. The target directories for them, which reside under LOCALBASE/share/locale, must not be created and removed by a port. The most popular languages have their respective directories listed in PORTSDIR/Templates/BSD.local.dist. The directories for many other languages are governed by the devel/gettext port. Consult its pkg-plist and see whether the port is going to install a message catalog file for a unique language.

6.9. Using Perl

If MASTER_SITES is set to CPAN, the correct subdirectory is usually selected automatically. If the default subdirectory is wrong, CPAN/Module can be used to change it. MASTER_SITES can also be set to the old MASTER_SITE_PERL_CPAN, then the preferred value of MASTER_SITE_SUBDIR is the top-level hierarchy name. For example, the recommended value for p5-Module-Name is Module. The top-level hierarchy can be examined at cpan.org. This keeps the port working when the author of the module changes.

The exception to this rule is when the relevant directory does not exist or the distfile does not exist in that directory. In such case, using author’s id as MASTER_SITE_SUBDIR is allowed. The CPAN:AUTHOR macro can be used, which will be translated to the hashed author directory. For example, CPAN:AUTHOR will be converted to authors/id/A/AU/AUTHOR.

When a port needs Perl support, it must set USES=perl5 with the optional USE_PERL5 described in the perl5 USES description.

Table 6. Read-Only Variables for Ports That Use Perl
Read only variablesMeans

PERL

The full path of the Perl 5 interpreter, either in the system or installed from a port, but without the version number. Use this when the software needs the path to the Perl interpreter. To replace "#!"lines in scripts, use shebangfix.

PERL_VERSION

The full version of Perl installed (for example, 5.8.9).

PERL_LEVEL

The installed Perl version as an integer of the form MNNNPP (for example, 500809).

PERL_ARCH

Where Perl stores architecture dependent libraries. Defaults to ${ARCH}-freebsd.

PERL_PORT

Name of the Perl port that is installed (for example, perl5).

SITE_PERL

Directory name where site specific Perl packages go. This value is added to PLIST_SUB.

Ports of Perl modules which do not have an official website must link to cpan.org in the WWW line of Makefile. The preferred URL form is https://search.cpan.org/dist/Module-Name/ (including the trailing slash).

Do not use ${SITE_PERL} in dependency declarations. Doing so assumes that perl5.mk has been included, which is not always true. Ports depending on this port will have incorrect dependencies if this port’s files move later in an upgrade. The right way to declare Perl module dependencies is shown in the example below.

Example 14. Perl Dependency Example
p5-IO-Tee>=0.64:devel/p5-IO-Tee

For Perl ports that install manual pages, the macro PERL5_MAN3 and PERL5_MAN1 can be used inside pkg-plist. For example,

lib/perl5/5.14/man/man1/event.1.gz
lib/perl5/5.14/man/man3/AnyEvent::I3.3.gz

can be replaced with

%%PERL5_MAN1%%/event.1.gz
%%PERL5_MAN3%%/AnyEvent::I3.3.gz

There are no PERL5_MAN_x_ macros for the other sections (x in 2 and 4 to 9) because those get installed in the regular directories.

Example 15. A Port Which Only Requires Perl to Build

As the default USE_PERL5 value is build and run, set it to:

USES=		perl5
USE_PERL5=	build
Example 16. A Port Which Also Requires Perl to Patch

From time to time, using sed(1) for patching is not enough. When using perl(1) is easier, use:

USES=		perl5
USE_PERL5=	patch build run
Example 17. A Perl Module Which Needs ExtUtils::MakeMaker to Build

Most Perl modules come with a Makefile.PL configure script. In this case, set:

USES=		perl5
USE_PERL5=	configure
Example 18. A Perl Module Which Needs Module::Build to Build

When a Perl module comes with a Build.PL configure script, it can require Module::Build, in which case, set

USES=		perl5
USE_PERL5=	modbuild

If it instead requires Module::Build::Tiny, set

USES=		perl5
USE_PERL5=	modbuildtiny

6.10. Using X11

6.10.1. X.Org Components

The X11 implementation available in The Ports Collection is X.Org. If the application depends on X components, add USES= xorg and set USE_XORG to the list of required components. A full list can be found in xorg.

The Mesa Project is an effort to provide free OpenGL implementation. To specify a dependency on various components of this project, use USES= gl and USE_GL. See gl for a full list of available components. For backwards compatibility, the value of yes maps to glu.

Example 19. USE_XORG Example
USES=		gl xorg
USE_GL=		glu
USE_XORG=	xrender xft xkbfile xt xaw
Table 7. Variables for Ports That Use X

USES= imake

The port uses imake.

XMKMF

Set to the path of xmkmf if not in the PATH. Defaults to xmkmf -a.

Example 20. Using X11-Related Variables
# Use some X11 libraries
USES=		xorg
USE_XORG=	x11 xpm

6.10.2. Ports That Require Motif

If the port requires a Motif library, define USES= motif in the Makefile. Default Motif implementation is x11-toolkits/open-motif. Users can choose x11-toolkits/lesstif instead by setting WANT_LESSTIF in their make.conf. Similarly x11-toolkits/open-motif-devel can be chosen by setting WANT_OPEN_MOTIF_DEVEL in make.conf.

MOTIFLIB will be set by motif.mk to reference the appropriate Motif library. Please patch the source of the port to use ${MOTIFLIB} wherever the Motif library is referenced in the original Makefile or Imakefile.

There are two common cases:

  • If the port refers to the Motif library as -lXm in its Makefile or Imakefile, substitute ${MOTIFLIB} for it.

  • If the port uses XmClientLibs in its Imakefile, change it to ${MOTIFLIB} ${XTOOLLIB} ${XLIB}.

Note that MOTIFLIB (usually) expands to -L/usr/local/lib -lXm -lXp or /usr/local/lib/libXm.a, so there is no need to add -L or -l in front.

6.10.3. X11 Fonts

If the port installs fonts for the X Window System, put them in LOCALBASE/lib/X11/fonts/local.

6.10.4. Getting a Fake DISPLAY with Xvfb

Some applications require a working X11 display for compilation to succeed. This poses a problem for machines that operate headless. When this variable is used, the build infrastructure will start the virtual framebuffer X server. The working DISPLAY is then passed to the build. See USES=display for the possible arguments.

USES=	display

6.10.5. Desktop Entries

Desktop entries (a Freedesktop standard) provide a way to automatically adjust desktop features when a new program is installed, without requiring user intervention. For example, newly-installed programs automatically appear in the application menus of compatible desktop environments. Desktop entries originated in the GNOME desktop environment, but are now a standard and also work with KDE and Xfce. This bit of automation provides a real benefit to the user, and desktop entries are encouraged for applications which can be used in a desktop environment.

6.10.5.1. Using Predefined .desktop Files

Ports that include predefined *.desktop must include those files in pkg-plist and install them in the $LOCALBASE/share/applications directory. The INSTALL_DATA macro is useful for installing these files.

6.10.5.2. Updating Desktop Database

If a port has a MimeType entry in its portname.desktop, the desktop database must be updated after install and deinstall. To do this, define USES= desktop-file-utils.

6.10.5.3. Creating Desktop Entries with DESKTOP_ENTRIES

Desktop entries can be easily created for applications by using DESKTOP_ENTRIES. A file named name.desktop will be created, installed, and added to pkg-plist automatically. Syntax is:

DESKTOP_ENTRIES=	"NAME" "COMMENT" "ICON" "COMMAND" "CATEGORY" StartupNotify

The list of possible categories is available on the Freedesktop website. StartupNotify indicates whether the application is compatible with startup notifications. These are typically a graphic indicator like a clock that appear at the mouse pointer, menu, or panel to give the user an indication when a program is starting. A program that is compatible with startup notifications clears the indicator after it has started. Programs that are not compatible with startup notifications would never clear the indicator (potentially confusing and infuriating the user), and must have StartupNotify set to false so the indicator is not shown at all.

Example:

DESKTOP_ENTRIES=	"ToME" "Roguelike game based on JRR Tolkien's work" \
			"${DATADIR}/xtra/graf/tome-128.png" \
			"tome -v -g" "Application;Game;RolePlaying;" \
			false

DESKTOP_ENTRIES are installed in the directory pointed to by the DESKTOPDIR variable. DESKTOPDIR defaults to ${PREFIX}/share/applications

6.11. Using GNOME

6.11.1. Introduction

This chapter explains the GNOME framework as used by ports. The framework can be loosely divided into the base components, GNOME desktop components, and a few special macros that simplify the work of port maintainers.

6.11.2. Using USE_GNOME

Adding this variable to the port allows the use of the macros and components defined in bsd.gnome.mk. The code in bsd.gnome.mk adds the needed build-time, run-time or library dependencies or the handling of special files. GNOME applications under FreeBSD use the USE_GNOME infrastructure. Include all the needed components as a space-separated list. The USE_GNOME components are divided into these virtual lists: basic components, GNOME 3 components and legacy components. If the port needs only GTK3 libraries, this is the shortest way to define it:

USE_GNOME=	gtk30

USE_GNOME components automatically add the dependencies they need. Please see GNOME Components for an exhaustive list of all USE_GNOME components and which other components they imply and their dependencies.

Here is an example Makefile for a GNOME port that uses many of the techniques outlined in this document. Please use it as a guide for creating new ports.

PORTNAME=	regexxer
DISTVERSION=	0.10
CATEGORIES=	devel textproc gnome
MASTER_SITES=	GNOME

MAINTAINER=	kwm@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Interactive tool for performing search and replace operations
WWW=		http://regexxer.sourceforge.net/

USES=		gettext gmake localbase:ldflags pathfix pkgconfig tar:xz
GNU_CONFIGURE=	yes
USE_GNOME=	gnomeprefix intlhack gtksourceviewmm3

GLIB_SCHEMAS=	org.regexxer.gschema.xml

.include <bsd.port.mk>

The USE_GNOME macro without any arguments does not add any dependencies to the port. USE_GNOME cannot be set after bsd.port.pre.mk.

6.11.3. Variables

This section explains which macros are available and how they are used. Like they are used in the above example. The GNOME Components has a more in-depth explanation. USE_GNOME has to be set for these macros to be of use.

GLIB_SCHEMAS

List of all the glib schema files the port installs. The macro will add the files to the port plist and handle the registration of these files on install and deinstall.

The glib schema files are written in XML and end with the gschema.xml extension. They are installed in the share/glib-2.0/schemas/ directory. These schema files contain all application config values with their default settings. The actual database used by the applications is built by glib-compile-schema, which is run by the GLIB_SCHEMAS macro.

GLIB_SCHEMAS=foo.gschema.xml

Do not add glib schemas to the pkg-plist. If they are listed in pkg-plist, they will not be registered and the applications might not work properly.

GCONF_SCHEMAS

List all the gconf schema files. The macro will add the schema files to the port plist and will handle their registration on install and deinstall.

GConf is the XML-based database that virtually all GNOME applications use for storing their settings. These files are installed into the etc/gconf/schemas directory. This database is defined by installed schema files that are used to generate %gconf.xml key files. For each schema file installed by the port, there must be an entry in the Makefile:

GCONF_SCHEMAS=my_app.schemas my_app2.schemas my_app3.schemas

Gconf schemas are listed in the GCONF_SCHEMAS macro rather than pkg-plist. If they are listed in pkg-plist, they will not be registered and the applications might not work properly.

INSTALLS_OMF

Open Source Metadata Framework (OMF) files are commonly used by GNOME 2 applications. These files contain the application help file information, and require special processing by ScrollKeeper/rarian. To properly register OMF files when installing GNOME applications from packages, make sure that omf files are listed in pkg-plist and that the port Makefile has INSTALLS_OMF defined:

INSTALLS_OMF=yes

When set, bsd.gnome.mk automatically scans pkg-plist and adds appropriate @exec and @unexec directives for each .omf to track in the OMF registration database.

6.12. GNOME Components

For further help with a GNOME port, look at some of the existing ports for examples. The FreeBSD GNOME page has contact information if more help is needed. The components are divided into GNOME components that are currently in use and legacy components. If the component supports argument, they are listed between parenthesis in the description. The first is the default. "Both" is shown if the component defaults to adding to both build and run dependencies.

Table 8. GNOME Components
ComponentAssociated programDescription

atk

accessibility/atk

Accessibility toolkit (ATK)

atkmm

accessibility/atkmm

c++ bindings for atk

cairo

graphics/cairo

Vector graphics library with cross-device output support

cairomm

graphics/cairomm

c++ bindings for cairo

dconf

devel/dconf

Configuration database system (both, build, run)

evolutiondataserver3

databases/evolution-data-server

Data backends for the Evolution integrated mail/PIM suite

gdkpixbuf2

graphics/gdk-pixbuf2

Graphics library for GTK+

glib20

devel/glib20

GNOME core library glib20

glibmm

devel/glibmm

c++ bindings for glib20

gnomecontrolcenter3

sysutils/gnome-control-center

GNOME 3 Control Center

gnomedesktop3

x11/gnome-desktop

GNOME 3 desktop UI library

gsound

audio/gsound

GObject library for playing system sounds (both, build, run)

gtk-update-icon-cache

graphics/gtk-update-icon-cache

Gtk-update-icon-cache utility from the Gtk+ toolkit

gtk20

x11-toolkits/gtk20

Gtk+ 2 toolkit

gtk30

x11-toolkits/gtk30

Gtk+ 3 toolkit

gtkmm20

x11-toolkits/gtkmm20

c++ bindings 2.0 for the gtk20 toolkit

gtkmm24

x11-toolkits/gtkmm24

c++ bindings 2.4 for the gtk20 toolkit

gtkmm30

x11-toolkits/gtkmm30

c++ bindings 3.0 for the gtk30 toolkit

gtksourceview2

x11-toolkits/gtksourceview2

Widget that adds syntax highlighting to GtkTextView

gtksourceview3

x11-toolkits/gtksourceview3

Text widget that adds syntax highlighting to the GtkTextView widget

gtksourceviewmm3

x11-toolkits/gtksourceviewmm3

c++ bindings for the gtksourceview3 library

gvfs

devel/gvfs

GNOME virtual file system

intltool

textproc/intltool

Tool for internationalization (also see intlhack)

introspection

devel/gobject-introspection

Basic introspection bindings and tools to generate introspection bindings. Most of the time :build is enough, :both/:run is only need for applications that use introspection bindings. (both, build, run)

libgda5

databases/libgda5

Provides uniform access to different kinds of data sources

libgda5-ui

databases/libgda5-ui

UI library from the libgda5 library

libgdamm5

databases/libgdamm5

c++ bindings for the libgda5 library

libgsf

devel/libgsf

Extensible I/O abstraction for dealing with structured file formats

librsvg2

graphics/librsvg2

Library for parsing and rendering SVG vector-graphic files

libsigc++20

devel/libsigc++20

Callback Framework for C++

libxml++26

textproc/libxml++26

c++ bindings for the libxml2 library

libxml2

textproc/libxml2

XML parser library (both, build, run)

libxslt

textproc/libxslt

XSLT C library (both, build, run)

metacity

x11-wm/metacity

Window manager from GNOME

nautilus3

x11-fm/nautilus

GNOME file manager

pango

x11-toolkits/pango

Open-source framework for the layout and rendering of i18n text

pangomm

x11-toolkits/pangomm

c++ bindings for the pango library

py3gobject3

devel/py3-gobject3

Python 3, GObject 3.0 bindings

pygobject3

devel/py-gobject3

Python 2, GObject 3.0 bindings

vte3

x11-toolkits/vte3

Terminal widget with improved accessibility and I18N support

Table 9. GNOME Macro Components
ComponentDescription

gnomeprefix

Supply configure with some default locations.

intlhack

Same as intltool, but patches to make sure share/locale/ is used. Please only use when intltool alone is not enough.

referencehack

This macro is there to help splitting of the API or reference documentation into its own port.

Table 10. GNOME Legacy Components
ComponentAssociated programDescription

atspi

accessibility/at-spi

Assistive Technology Service Provider Interface

esound

audio/esound

Enlightenment sound package

gal2

x11-toolkits/gal2

Collection of widgets taken from GNOME 2 gnumeric

gconf2

devel/gconf2

Configuration database system for GNOME 2

gconfmm26

devel/gconfmm26

c++ bindings for gconf2

gdkpixbuf

graphics/gdk-pixbuf

Graphics library for GTK+

glib12

devel/glib12

glib 1.2 core library

gnomedocutils

textproc/gnome-doc-utils

GNOME doc utils

gnomemimedata

misc/gnome-mime-data

MIME and Application database for GNOME 2

gnomesharp20

x11-toolkits/gnome-sharp20

GNOME 2 interfaces for the .NET runtime

gnomespeech

accessibility/gnome-speech

GNOME 2 text-to-speech API

gnomevfs2

devel/gnome-vfs

GNOME 2 Virtual File System

gtk12

x11-toolkits/gtk12

Gtk+ 1.2 toolkit

gtkhtml3

www/gtkhtml3

Lightweight HTML rendering/printing/editing engine

gtkhtml4

www/gtkhtml4

Lightweight HTML rendering/printing/editing engine

gtksharp20

x11-toolkits/gtk-sharp20

GTK+ and GNOME 2 interfaces for the .NET runtime

gtksourceview

x11-toolkits/gtksourceview

Widget that adds syntax highlighting to GtkTextView

libartgpl2

graphics/libart_lgpl

Library for high-performance 2D graphics

libbonobo

devel/libbonobo

Component and compound document system for GNOME 2

libbonoboui

x11-toolkits/libbonoboui

GUI frontend to the libbonobo component of GNOME 2

libgda4

databases/libgda4

Provides uniform access to different kinds of data sources

libglade2

devel/libglade2

GNOME 2 glade library

libgnome

x11/libgnome

Libraries for GNOME 2, a GNU desktop environment

libgnomecanvas

graphics/libgnomecanvas

Graphics library for GNOME 2

libgnomekbd

x11/libgnomekbd

GNOME 2 keyboard shared library

libgnomeprint

print/libgnomeprint

Gnome 2 print support library

libgnomeprintui

x11-toolkits/libgnomeprintui

Gnome 2 print support library

libgnomeui

x11-toolkits/libgnomeui

Libraries for the GNOME 2 GUI, a GNU desktop environment

libgtkhtml

www/libgtkhtml

Lightweight HTML rendering/printing/editing engine

libgtksourceviewmm

x11-toolkits/libgtksourceviewmm

c++ binding of GtkSourceView

libidl

devel/libIDL

Library for creating trees of CORBA IDL file

libsigc++12

devel/libsigc++12

Callback Framework for C++

libwnck

x11-toolkits/libwnck

Library used for writing pagers and taskslists

libwnck3

x11-toolkits/libwnck3

Library used for writing pagers and taskslists

orbit2

devel/ORBit2

High-performance CORBA ORB with support for the C language

pygnome2

x11-toolkits/py-gnome2

Python bindings for GNOME 2

pygobject

devel/py-gobject

Python 2, GObject 2.0 bindings

pygtk2

x11-toolkits/py-gtk2

Set of Python bindings for GTK+

pygtksourceview

x11-toolkits/py-gtksourceview

Python bindings for GtkSourceView 2

vte

x11-toolkits/vte

Terminal widget with improved accessibility and I18N support

Table 11. Deprecated Components: Do Not Use
ComponentDescription

pangox-compat

pangox-compat has been deprecated and split off from the pango package.

6.13. Using Qt

For ports that are part of Qt itself, see qt-dist.

6.13.1. Ports That Require Qt

The Ports Collection provides support for Qt 5 and Qt 6 with USES+=qt:5 and USES+=qt:6 respectively. Set USE_QT to the list of required Qt components (libraries, tools, plugins).

The Qt framework exports a number of variables which can be used by ports, some of them listed below:

Table 12. Variables Provided to Ports That Use Qt

QMAKE

Full path to qmake binary.

LRELEASE

Full path to lrelease utility.

MOC

Full path to moc.

RCC

Full path to rcc.

UIC

Full path to uic.

QT_INCDIR

Qt include directory.

QT_LIBDIR

Qt libraries path.

QT_PLUGINDIR

Qt plugins path.

6.13.2. Component Selection

Individual Qt tool and library dependencies must be specified in USE_QT. Every component can be suffixed with _build or _run, the suffix indicating whether the dependency on the component is at buildtime or runtime. If unsuffixed, the component will be depended on at both build- and runtime. Usually, library components are specified unsuffixed, tool components are mostly specified with the _build suffix and plugin components are specified with the _run suffix. The most commonly used components are listed below (all available components are listed in _USE_QT_ALL, which is generated from _USE_QT_COMMON and _USE_QT[56]_ONLY in /usr/ports/Mk/Uses/qt.mk):

Table 13. Available Qt Library Components
NameDescription

3d

Qt3D module

5compat

Qt 5 compatibility module for Qt 6

assistant

Qt 5 documentation browser

base

Qt 6 base module

canvas3d

Qt canvas3d module

charts

Qt 5 charts module

concurrent

Qt multi-threading module

connectivity

Qt connectivity (Bluetooth/NFC) module

core

Qt core non-graphical module

datavis3d

Qt 5 3D data visualization module

dbus

Qt D-Bus inter-process communication module

declarative

Qt declarative framework for dynamic user interfaces

designer

Qt 5 graphical user interface designer

diag

Tool for reporting diagnostic information about Qt and its environment

doc

Qt 5 documentation

examples

Qt 5 examples sourcecode

gamepad

Qt 5 Gamepad Module

graphicaleffects

Qt Quick graphical effects

gui

Qt graphical user interface module

help

Qt online help integration module

l10n

Qt localized messages

languageserver

Qt 6 Language Server Protocol implementation

linguist

Qt 5 translation tool

location

Qt location module

lottie

Qt 6 QML API for rendering graphics and animations

multimedia

Qt audio, video, radio and camera support module

network

Qt network module

networkauth

Qt network auth module

opengl

Qt 5-compatible OpenGL support module

paths

Command line client to QStandardPaths

phonon4

KDE multimedia framework

pixeltool

Qt 5 screen magnifier

plugininfo

Qt 5 plugin metadata dumper

positioning

Qt 6 positioning API from sources such as satellite, wifi or text files.

printsupport

Qt print support module

qdbus

Qt command-line interface to D-Bus

qdbusviewer

Qt 5 graphical interface to D-Bus

qdoc

Qt documentation generator

qdoc-data

QDoc configuration files

qev

Qt QWidget events introspection tool

qmake

Qt Makefile generator

quickcontrols

Set of controls for building complete interfaces in Qt Quick

quickcontrols2

Set of controls for building complete interfaces in Qt Quick

remoteobjects

Qt 5 SXCML module

script

Qt 4-compatible scripting module

scripttools

Qt Script additional components

scxml

Qt 5 SXCML module

sensors

Qt sensors module

serialbus

Qt functions to access industrial bus systems

serialport

Qt functions to access serial ports

shadertools

Qt 6 tools for the cross-platform Qt shader pipeline

speech

Accessibility features for Qt5

sql

Qt SQL database integration module

sql-ibase

Qt InterBase/Firebird database plugin

sql-mysql

Qt MySQL database plugin

sql-odbc

Qt Open Database Connectivity plugin

sql-pgsql

Qt PostgreSQL database plugin

sql-sqlite2

Qt SQLite 2 database plugin

sql-sqlite3

Qt SQLite 3 database plugin

sql-tds

Qt TDS Database Connectivity database plugin

svg

Qt SVG support module

testlib

Qt unit testing module

tools

Qt 6 assorted tools

translations

Qt 6 translation module

uiplugin

Custom Qt widget plugin interface for Qt Designer

uitools

Qt Designer UI forms support module

virtualkeyboard

Qt 5 Virtual Keyboard Module

wayland

Qt 5 wrapper for Wayland

webchannel

Qt 5 library for integration of C++/QML with HTML/js clients

webengine

Qt 5 library to render web content

webkit

QtWebKit with a more modern WebKit code base

websockets

Qt implementation of WebSocket protocol

websockets-qml

Qt implementation of WebSocket protocol (QML bindings)

webview

Qt component for displaying web content

widgets

Qt C++ widgets module

x11extras

Qt platform-specific features for X11-based systems

xml

Qt SAX and DOM implementations

xmlpatterns

Qt support for XPath, XQuery, XSLT and XML Schema

To determine the libraries an application depends on, run ldd on the main executable after a successful compilation.

Table 14. Available Qt Tool Components
NameDescription

buildtools

build tools (moc, rcc), needed for almost every Qt application.

linguisttools

localization tools: lrelease, lupdate

qmake

Makefile generator/build utility

Table 15. Available Qt Plugin Components
NameDescription

imageformats

plugins for TGA, TIFF, and MNG image formats

Example 21. Selecting Qt 5 Components

In this example, the ported application uses the Qt 5 graphical user interface library, the Qt 5 core library, all of the Qt 5 code generation tools and Qt 5’s Makefile generator. Since the gui library implies a dependency on the core library, core does not need to be specified. The Qt 5 code generation tools moc, uic and rcc, as well as the Makefile generator qmake are only needed at buildtime, thus they are specified with the _build suffix:

USES=	qt:5
USE_QT=	gui buildtools_build qmake_build

6.13.3. Using qmake

If the application provides a qmake project file (*.pro), define USES= qmake along with USE_QT. USES= qmake already implies a build dependency on qmake, therefore the qmake component can be omitted from USE_QT. Similar to CMake, qmake supports out-of-source builds, which can be enabled by specifying the outsource argument (see USES= qmake example). Also see Possible Arguments for USES= qmake.

Table 16. Possible Arguments for USES= qmake
VariableDescription

no_configure

Do not add the configure target. This is implied by HAS_CONFIGURE=yes and GNU_CONFIGURE=yes. It is required when the build only needs the environment setup from USES= qmake, but otherwise runs qmake on its own.

no_env

Suppress modification of the configure and make environments. It is only required when qmake is used to configure the software and the build fails to understand the environment setup by USES= qmake.

norecursive

Do not pass the -recursive argument to qmake.

outsource

Perform an out-of-source build.

Table 17. Variables for Ports That Use qmake
VariableDescription

QMAKE_ARGS

Port specific qmake flags to be passed to the qmake binary.

QMAKE_ENV

Environment variables to be set for the qmake binary. The default is ${CONFIGURE_ENV}.

QMAKE_SOURCE_PATH

Path to qmake project files (.pro). The default is ${WRKSRC} if an out-of-source build is requested, empty otherwise.

When using USES= qmake, these settings are deployed:

CONFIGURE_ARGS+=	--with-qt-includes=${QT_INCDIR} \
			--with-qt-libraries=${QT_LIBDIR} \
			--with-extra-libs=${LOCALBASE}/lib \
			--with-extra-includes=${LOCALBASE}/include

CONFIGURE_ENV+=	QTDIR="${QT_PREFIX}" QMAKE="${QMAKE}" \
		MOC="${MOC}" RCC="${RCC}" UIC="${UIC}" \
		QMAKESPEC="${QMAKESPEC}"

PLIST_SUB+=	QT_INCDIR=${QT_INCDIR_REL} \
		QT_LIBDIR=${QT_LIBDIR_REL} \
		QT_PLUGINDIR=${QT_PLUGINDIR_REL}

Some configure scripts do not support the arguments above. To suppress modification of CONFIGURE_ENV and CONFIGURE_ARGS, set USES= qmake:no_env.

Example 22. USES= qmake Example

This snippet demonstrates the use of qmake for a Qt 5 port:

USES=	qmake:outsource qt:5
USE_QT=	buildtools_build

Qt applications are often written to be cross-platform and often X11/Unix is not the platform they are developed on, which in turn leads to certain loose ends, like:

  • Missing additional include paths. Many applications come with system tray icon support, but neglect to look for includes and/or libraries in the X11 directories. To add directories to `qmake’s include and library search paths via the command line, use:

    QMAKE_ARGS+=	INCLUDEPATH+=${LOCALBASE}/include \
    		LIBS+=-L${LOCALBASE}/lib
  • Bogus installation paths. Sometimes data such as icons or .desktop files are by default installed into directories which are not scanned by XDG-compatible applications. editors/texmaker is an example for this - look at patch-texmaker.pro in the files directory of that port for a template on how to remedy this directly in the qmake project file.

6.14. Using KDE

6.14.1. KDE Variable Definitions

If the application depends on KDE, set USES+=kde:5 and USE_KDE to the list of required components. _build and _run suffixes can be used to force components dependency type (for example, baseapps_run). If no suffix is set, a default dependency type will be used. To force both types, add the component twice with both suffixes (for example, ecm_build ecm_run). Available components are listed below (up-to-date components are also listed in /usr/ports/Mk/Uses/kde.mk):

Table 18. Available KDE Components
NameDescription

activities

KF5 runtime and library to organize work in separate activities

activities-stats

KF5 statistics for activities

activitymanagerd

System service to manage user’s activities, track the usage patterns

akonadi

Storage server for KDE-Pim

akonadicalendar

Akonadi Calendar Integration

akonadiconsole

Akonadi management and debugging console

akonadicontacts

Libraries and daemons to implement Contact Management in Akonadi

akonadiimportwizard

Import data from other mail clients to KMail

akonadimime

Libraries and daemons to implement basic email handling

akonadinotes

KDE library for accessing mail storages in MBox format

akonadisearch

Libraries and daemons to implement searching in Akonadi

akregator

A Feed Reader by KDE

alarmcalendar

KDE API for KAlarm alarms

apidox

KF5 API Documentation Tools

archive

KF5 library that provides classes for handling archive formats

attica

Open Collaboration Services API library KDE5 version

attica5

Open Collaboration Services API library KDE5 version

auth

KF5 abstraction to system policy and authentication features

baloo

KF5 Framework for searching and managing user metadata

baloo-widgets

BalooWidgets library

baloo5

KF5 Framework for searching and managing user metadata

blog

KDE API for weblogging access

bookmarks

KF5 library for bookmarks and the XBEL format

breeze

Plasma5 artwork, styles and assets for the Breeze visual style

breeze-gtk

Plasma5 Breeze visual style for Gtk

breeze-icons

Breeze icon theme for KDE

calendarcore

KDE calendar access library

calendarsupport

Calendar support libraries for KDEPim

calendarutils

KDE utility and user interface functions for accessing calendar

codecs

KF5 library for string manipulation

completion

KF5 text completion helpers and widgets

config

KF5 widgets for configuration dialogs

configwidgets

KF5 widgets for configuration dialogs

contacts

KDE api to manage contact information

coreaddons

KF5 addons to QtCore

crash

KF5 library to handle crash analysis and bug report from apps

dbusaddons

KF5 addons to QtDBus

decoration

Plasma5 library to create window decorations

designerplugin

KF5 integration of Frameworks widgets in Qt Designer/Creator

discover

Plasma5 package management tools

dnssd

KF5 abstraction to system DNSSD features

doctools

KF5 documentation generation from docbook

drkonqi

Plasma5 crash handler

ecm

Extra modules and scripts for CMake

emoticons

KF5 library to convert emoticons

eventviews

Event view libriares for KDEPim

filemetadata

KF5 library for extracting file metadata

frameworkintegration

KF5 workspace and cross-framework integration plugins

gapi

KDE based library to access google services

globalaccel

KF5 library to add support for global workspace shortcuts

grantlee-editor

Editor for Grantlee themes

grantleetheme

KDE PIM grantleetheme

gravatar

Library for gravatar support

guiaddons

KF5 addons to QtGui

holidays

KDE library for calendar holidays

hotkeys

Plasma5 library for hotkeys

i18n

KF5 advanced internationalization framework

iconthemes

KF5 library for handling icons in applications

identitymanagement

KDE pim identities

idletime

KF5 library for monitoring user activity

imap

KDE API for IMAP support

incidenceeditor

Incidence editor libriares for KDEPim

infocenter

Plasma5 utility providing system information

init

KF5 process launcher to speed up launching KDE applications

itemmodels

KF5 models for Qt Model/View system

itemviews

KF5 widget addons for Qt Model/View

jobwidgets

KF5 widgets for tracking KJob instance

js

KF5 library providing an ECMAScript interpreter

jsembed

KF5 library for binding JavaScript objects to QObjects

kaddressbook

KDE contact manager

kalarm

Personal alarm scheduler

kalarm

Personal alarm scheduler

kate

Basic editor framework for the KDE system

kcmutils

KF5 utilities for working with KCModules

kde-cli-tools

Plasma5 non-interactive system tools

kde-gtk-config

Plasma5 GTK2 and GTK3 configurator

kdeclarative

KF5 library providing integration of QML and KDE Frameworks

kded

KF5 extensible daemon for providing system level services

kdelibs4support

KF5 porting aid from KDELibs4

kdepim-addons

KDE PIM addons

kdepim-apps-libs

KDE PIM mail related libraries

kdepim-runtime5

KDE PIM tools and services

kdeplasma-addons

Plasma5 addons to improve the Plasma experience

kdesu

KF5 integration with su for elevated privileges

kdewebkit

KF5 library providing integration of QtWebKit

kgamma5

Plasma5 monitor’s gamma settings

khtml

KF5 KTHML rendering engine

kimageformats

KF5 library providing support for additional image formats

kio

KF5 resource and network access abstraction

kirigami2

QtQuick based components set

kitinerary

Data Model and Extraction System for Travel Reservation information

kmail

KDE mail client

kmail

KDE mail client

kmail-account-wizard

KDE mail account wizard

kmenuedit

Plasma5 menu editor

knotes

Popup notes

kontact

KDE Personal Information Manager

kontact

KDE Personal Information Manager

kontactinterface

KDE glue for embedding KParts into Kontact

korganizer

Calendar and scheduling Program

kpimdav

A DAV protocol implementation with KJobs

kpkpass

Library to deal with Apple Wallet pass files

kross

KF5 multi-language application scripting

kscreen

Plasma5 screen management library

kscreenlocker

Plasma5 secure lock screen architecture

ksmtp

Job-based library to send email through an SMTP server

ksshaskpass

Plasma5 ssh-add frontend

ksysguard

Plasma5 utility to track and control the running processes

kwallet-pam

Plasma5 KWallet PAM Integration

kwayland-integration

Integration plugins for a Wayland-based desktop

kwin

Plasma5 window manager

kwrited

Plasma5 daemon listening for wall and write messages

ldap

LDAP access API for KDE

libkcddb

KDE CDDB library

libkcompactdisc

KDE library for interfacing with audio CDs

libkdcraw

LibRaw interface for KDE

libkdegames

Libraries used by KDE games

libkdepim

KDE PIM Libraries

libkeduvocdocument

Library for reading and writing vocabulary files

libkexiv2

Exiv2 library interface for KDE

libkipi

KDE Image Plugin Interface

libkleo

Certificate manager for KDE

libksane

SANE library interface for KDE

libkscreen

Plasma5 screen management library

libksieve

Sieve libriares for KDEPim

libksysguard

Plasma5 library to track and control running processes

mailcommon

Common libriares for KDEPim

mailimporter

Import mbox files to KMail

mailtransport

KDE library to managing mail transport

marble

Virtual globe and world atlas for KDE

mbox

KDE library for accessing mail storages in MBox format

mbox-importer

Import mbox files to KMail

mediaplayer

KF5 plugin interface for media player features

messagelib

Library for handling messages

milou

Plasma5 Plasmoid for search

mime

Library for handling MIME data

newstuff

KF5 library for downloading application assets from the network

notifications

KF5 abstraction for system notifications

notifyconfig

KF5 configuration system for KNotify

okular

KDE universal document viewer

oxygen

Plasma5 Oxygen style

oxygen-icons5

The Oxygen icon theme for KDE

package

KF5 library to load and install packages

parts

KF5 document centric plugin system

people

KF5 library providing access to contacts

pim-data-exporter

Import and export KDE PIM settings

pimcommon

Common libriares for KDEPim

pimtextedit

KDE library for PIM-specific text editing utilities

plasma-browser-integration

Plasma5 components to integrate browsers into the desktop

plasma-desktop

Plasma5 plasma desktop

plasma-framework

KF5 plugin based UI runtime used to write user interfaces

plasma-integration

Qt Platform Theme integration plugins for the Plasma workspaces

plasma-pa

Plasma5 Plasma pulse audio mixer

plasma-sdk

Plasma5 applications useful for Plasma development

plasma-workspace

Plasma5 Plasma workspace

plasma-workspace-wallpapers

Plasma5 wallpapers

plotting

KF5 lightweight plotting framework

polkit-kde-agent-1

Plasma5 daemon providing a polkit authentication UI

powerdevil

Plasma5 tool to manage the power consumption settings

prison

API to produce barcodes

pty

KF5 pty abstraction

purpose

Offers available actions for a specific purpose

qqc2-desktop-style

Qt QuickControl2 style for KDE

runner

KF5 parallelized query system

service

KF5 advanced plugin and service introspection

solid

KF5 hardware integration and detection

sonnet

KF5 plugin-based spell checking library

syndication

KDE RSS feed handling library

syntaxhighlighting

KF5 syntax highlighting engine for structured text and code

systemsettings

Plasma5 system settings

texteditor

KF5 advanced embeddable text editor

textwidgets

KF5 advanced text editing widgets

threadweaver

KF5 addons to QtDBus

tnef

KDE API for the handling of TNEF data

unitconversion

KF5 library for unit conversion

user-manager

Plasma5 user manager

wallet

KF5 secure and unified container for user passwords

wayland

KF5 Client and Server library wrapper for the Wayland libraries

widgetsaddons

KF5 addons to QtWidgets

windowsystem

KF5 library for access to the windowing system

xmlgui

KF5 user configurable main windows

xmlrpcclient

KF5 interaction with XMLRPC services

Example 23. USE_KDE Example

This is a simple example for a KDE port. USES= cmake instructs the port to utilize CMake, a configuration tool widely used by KDE projects (see Using cmake for detailed usage). USE_KDE brings dependency on KDE libraries. Required KDE components and other dependencies can be determined through the configure log. USE_KDE does not imply USE_QT. If a port requires some Qt components, specify them in USE_QT.

USES=		cmake kde:5 qt:5
USE_KDE=	ecm
USE_QT=		core buildtools_build qmake_build

6.15. Using LXQt

Applications depending on LXQt should set USES+= lxqt and set USE_LXQT to the list of required components from the table below

Table 19. Available LXQt Components
NameDescription

buildtools

Helpers for additional CMake modules

libfmqt

Libfm Qt bindings

lxqt

LXQt core library

qtxdg

Qt implementation of freedesktop.org XDG specifications

Example 24. USE_LXQT Example

This is a simple example, USE_LXQT adds a dependency on LXQt libraries. Required LXQt components and other dependencies can be determined from the configure log.

USES=	cmake lxqt qt:5 tar:xz
USE_QT=		core dbus widgets buildtools_build qmake_build
USE_LXQT=	buildtools libfmqt

6.16. Using Java

6.16.1. Variable Definitions

If the port needs a Java™ Development Kit (JDK™) to either build, run or even extract the distfile, then define USE_JAVA.

There are several JDKs in the ports collection, from various vendors, and in several versions. If the port must use a particular version, specify it using the JAVA_VERSION variable. The most current version is java/openjdk18, with java/openjdk17, java/openjdk16, java/openjdk15, java/openjdk14, java/openjdk13, java/openjdk12, java/openjdk11, java/openjdk8, and java/openjdk7 also available.

Table 20. Variables Which May be Set by Ports That Use Java
VariableMeans

USE_JAVA

Define for the remaining variables to have any effect.

JAVA_VERSION

List of space-separated suitable Java versions for the port. An optional + allows specifying a range of versions (allowed values: 8[+] 11[+] 17[+] 18[+] 19[+] 20[+] 21[+]).

JAVA_OS

List of space-separated suitable JDK port operating systems for the port (allowed values: native linux).

JAVA_VENDOR

List of space-separated suitable JDK port vendors for the port (allowed values: openjdk oracle).

JAVA_BUILD

When set, add the selected JDK port to the build dependencies.

JAVA_RUN

When set, add the selected JDK port to the run dependencies.

JAVA_EXTRACT

When set, add the selected JDK port to the extract dependencies.

Below is the list of all settings a port will receive after setting USE_JAVA:

Table 21. Variables Provided to Ports That Use Java
VariableValue

JAVA_PORT

The name of the JDK port (for example, java/openjdk6).

JAVA_PORT_VERSION

The full version of the JDK port (for example, 1.6.0). Only the first two digits of this version number are needed, use ${JAVA_PORT_VERSION:C/^([0-9])\.([0-9])(.*)$/\1.\2/}.

JAVA_PORT_OS

The operating system used by the JDK port (for example, 'native').

JAVA_PORT_VENDOR

The vendor of the JDK port (for example, 'openjdk').

JAVA_PORT_OS_DESCRIPTION

Description of the operating system used by the JDK port (for example, 'Native').

JAVA_PORT_VENDOR_DESCRIPTION

Description of the vendor of the JDK port (for example, 'OpenJDK BSD Porting Team').

JAVA_HOME

Path to the installation directory of the JDK (for example, '/usr/local/openjdk6').

JAVAC

Path to the Java compiler to use (for example, '/usr/local/openjdk6/bin/javac').

JAR

Path to the jar tool to use (for example, '/usr/local/openjdk6/bin/jar' or '/usr/local/bin/fastjar').

APPLETVIEWER

Path to the appletviewer utility (for example, '/usr/local/openjdk6/bin/appletviewer').

JAVA

Path to the java executable. Use this for executing Java programs (for example, '/usr/local/openjdk6/bin/java').

JAVADOC

Path to the javadoc utility program.

JAVAH

Path to the javah program.

JAVAP

Path to the javap program.

JAVA_KEYTOOL

Path to the keytool utility program.

JAVA_N2A

Path to the native2ascii tool.

JAVA_POLICYTOOL

Path to the policytool program.

JAVA_SERIALVER

Path to the serialver utility program.

RMIC

Path to the RMI stub/skeleton generator, rmic.

RMIREGISTRY

Path to the RMI registry program, rmiregistry.

RMID

Path to the RMI daemon program rmid.

JAVA_CLASSES

Path to the archive that contains the JDK class files, ${JAVA_HOME}/jre/lib/rt.jar.

Use the java-debug make target to get information for debugging the port. It will display the value of many of the previously listed variables.

Additionally, these constants are defined so all Java ports may be installed in a consistent way:

Table 22. Constants Defined for Ports That Use Java
ConstantValue

JAVASHAREDIR

The base directory for everything related to Java. Default: ${PREFIX}/share/java.

JAVAJARDIR

The directory where JAR files is installed. Default: ${JAVASHAREDIR}/classes.

JAVALIBDIR

The directory where JAR files installed by other ports are located. Default: ${LOCALBASE}/share/java/classes.

The related entries are defined in both PLIST_SUB (documented in Changing pkg-plist Based on Make Variables) and SUB_LIST.

6.16.2. Building with Ant

When the port is to be built using Apache Ant, it has to define USE_ANT. Ant is thus considered to be the sub-make command. When no do-build target is defined by the port, a default one will be set that runs Ant according to MAKE_ENV, MAKE_ARGS and ALL_TARGET. This is similar to the USES= gmake mechanism, which is documented in Building Mechanisms.

6.16.3. Best Practices

When porting a Java library, the port has to install the JAR file(s) in ${JAVAJARDIR}, and everything else under ${JAVASHAREDIR}/${PORTNAME} (except for the documentation, see below). To reduce the packing file size, reference the JAR file(s) directly in the Makefile. Use this statement (where myport.jar is the name of the JAR file installed as part of the port):

PLIST_FILES+=	${JAVAJARDIR}/myport.jar

When porting a Java application, the port usually installs everything under a single directory (including its JAR dependencies). The use of ${JAVASHAREDIR}/${PORTNAME} is strongly encouraged in this regard. It is up the porter to decide whether the port installs the additional JAR dependencies under this directory or uses the already installed ones (from ${JAVAJARDIR}).

When porting a Java™ application that requires an application server such as www/tomcat7 to run the service, it is quite common for a vendor to distribute a .war. A .war is a Web application ARchive and is extracted when called by the application. Avoid adding a .war to pkg-plist. It is not considered best practice. An application server will expand war archive, but not clean it up properly if the port is removed. A more desirable way of working with this file is to extract the archive, then install the files, and lastly add these files to pkg-plist.

TOMCATDIR=	${LOCALBASE}/apache-tomcat-7.0
WEBAPPDIR=	myapplication

post-extract:
	@${MKDIR} ${WRKDIR}/${PORTDIRNAME}
	@${TAR} xf ${WRKDIR}/myapplication.war -C ${WRKDIR}/${PORTDIRNAME}

do-install:
	cd ${WRKDIR} && \
	${INSTALL} -d -o ${WWWOWN} -g ${WWWGRP} ${TOMCATDIR}/webapps/${PORTDIRNAME}
	cd ${WRKDIR}/${PORTDIRNAME} && ${COPYTREE_SHARE} \* ${WEBAPPDIR}/${PORTDIRNAME}

Regardless of the type of port (library or application), the additional documentation is installed in the same location as for any other port. The Javadoc tool is known to produce a different set of files depending on the version of the JDK that is used. For ports that do not enforce the use of a particular JDK, it is therefore a complex task to specify the packing list (pkg-plist). This is one reason why porters are strongly encouraged to use PORTDOCS. Moreover, even if the set of files that will be generated by javadoc can be predicted, the size of the resulting pkg-plist advocates for the use of PORTDOCS.

The default value for DATADIR is ${PREFIX}/share/${PORTNAME}. It is a good idea to override DATADIR to ${JAVASHAREDIR}/${PORTNAME} for Java ports. Indeed, DATADIR is automatically added to PLIST_SUB (documented in Changing pkg-plist Based on Make Variables) so use %%DATADIR%% directly in pkg-plist.

As for the choice of building Java ports from source or directly installing them from a binary distribution, there is no defined policy at the time of writing. However, people from the FreeBSD Java Project encourage porters to have their ports built from source whenever it is a trivial task.

All the features that have been presented in this section are implemented in bsd.java.mk. If the port needs more sophisticated Java support, please first have a look at the bsd.java.mk Git log as it usually takes some time to document the latest features. Then, if the needed support that is lacking would be beneficial to many other Java ports, feel free to discuss it on the freebsd-java.

Although there is a java category for PRs, it refers to the JDK porting effort from the FreeBSD Java project. Therefore, submit the Java port in the ports category as for any other port, unless the issue is related to either a JDK implementation or bsd.java.mk.

Similarly, there is a defined policy regarding the CATEGORIES of a Java port, which is detailed in Categorization.

6.17. Web Applications, Apache and PHP

6.17.1. Apache

Table 23. Variables for Ports That Use Apache

USE_APACHE

The port requires Apache. Possible values: yes (gets any version), 22, 24, 22-24, 22+, etc. The default APACHE version is 22. More details are available in ports/Mk/bsd.apache.mk and at wiki.freebsd.org/Apache/.

APXS

Full path to the apxs binary. Can be overridden in the port.

HTTPD

Full path to the httpd binary. Can be overridden in the port.

APACHE_VERSION

The version of present Apache installation (read-only variable). This variable is only available after inclusion of bsd.port.pre.mk. Possible values: 22, 24.

APACHEMODDIR

Directory for Apache modules. This variable is automatically expanded in pkg-plist.

APACHEINCLUDEDIR

Directory for Apache headers. This variable is automatically expanded in pkg-plist.

APACHEETCDIR

Directory for Apache configuration files. This variable is automatically expanded in pkg-plist.

Table 24. Useful Variables for Porting Apache Modules

MODULENAME

Name of the module. Default value is PORTNAME. Example: mod_hello

SHORTMODNAME

Short name of the module. Automatically derived from MODULENAME, but can be overridden. Example: hello

AP_FAST_BUILD

Use apxs to compile and install the module.

AP_GENPLIST

Also automatically creates a pkg-plist.

AP_INC

Adds a directory to a header search path during compilation.

AP_LIB

Adds a directory to a library search path during compilation.

AP_EXTRAS

Additional flags to pass to apxs.

6.17.2. Web Applications

Web applications must be installed into PREFIX/www/appname. This path is available both in Makefile and in pkg-plist as WWWDIR, and the path relative to PREFIX is available in Makefile as WWWDIR_REL.

The user and group of web server process are available as WWWOWN and WWWGRP, in case the ownership of some files needs to be changed. The default values of both are www. Use WWWOWN?= myuser and WWWGRP?= mygroup if the port needs different values. This allows the user to override them easily.

Use WWWOWN and WWWGRP sparingly. Remember that every file the web server can write to is a security risk waiting to happen.

Do not depend on Apache unless the web app explicitly needs Apache. Respect that users may wish to run a web application on a web server other than Apache.

6.17.3. PHP

PHP web applications declare their dependency on it with USES=php. See php for more information.

6.17.4. PEAR Modules

Porting PEAR modules is a very simple process.

Add USES=pear to the port’s Makefile. The framework will install the relevant files in the right places and automatically generate the plist at install time.

Example 25. Example Makefile for PEAR Class
PORTNAME=       Date
DISTVERSION=	1.4.3
CATEGORIES=	devel www pear

MAINTAINER=	someone@example.org
COMMENT=	PEAR Date and Time Zone Classes
WWW=		https://pear.php.net/package/Date/

USES=	pear

.include <bsd.port.mk>

PEAR modules will automatically be flavorized using PHP flavors.

If a non default PEAR_CHANNEL is used, the build and run-time dependencies will automatically be added.

PEAR modules do not need to defined PKGNAMESUFFIX it is automatically filled in using PEAR_PKGNAMEPREFIX. If a port needs to add to PKGNAMEPREFIX, it must also use PEAR_PKGNAMEPREFIX to differentiate between different flavors.

6.17.4.1. Horde Modules

In the same way, porting Horde modules is a simple process.

Add USES=horde to the port’s Makefile. The framework will install the relevant files in the right places and automatically generate the plist at install time.

The USE_HORDE_BUILD and USE_HORDE_RUN variables can be used to add buildtime and runtime dependencies on other Horde modules. See Mk/Uses/horde.mk for a complete list of available modules.

Example 26. Example Makefile for Horde Module
PORTNAME=	Horde_Core
DISTVERSION=	2.14.0
CATEGORIES=	devel www pear

MAINTAINER=	horde@FreeBSD.org
COMMENT=	Horde Core Framework libraries
WWW=		https://pear.horde.org/

OPTIONS_DEFINE=	KOLAB SOCKETS
KOLAB_DESC=	Enable Kolab server support
SOCKETS_DESC=	Depend on sockets PHP extension

USES=	horde
USE_PHP=	session

USE_HORDE_BUILD=	Horde_Role
USE_HORDE_RUN=	Horde_Role Horde_History Horde_Pack \
		Horde_Text_Filter Horde_View

KOLAB_USE=	HORDE_RUN=Horde_Kolab_Server,Horde_Kolab_Session
SOCKETS_USE=	PHP=sockets

.include <bsd.port.mk>

As Horde modules are also PEAR modules they will also automatically be flavorized using PHP flavors.

6.18. Using Python

The Ports Collection supports parallel installation of multiple Python versions. Ports must use a correct python interpreter, according to the user-settable PYTHON_VERSION. Most prominently, this means replacing the path to python executable in scripts with the value of PYTHON_CMD.

Ports that install files under PYTHON_SITELIBDIR must use the pyXY- package name prefix, so their package name embeds the version of Python they are installed into.

PKGNAMEPREFIX=	${PYTHON_PKGNAMEPREFIX}
Table 25. Most Useful Variables for Ports That Use Python

USES=python

The port needs Python. The minimal required version can be specified with values such as 3.10+. Version ranges can also be specified by separating two version numbers with a dash: USES=python:3.8-3.9. Note that USES=python does not cover Python 2.7, it needs to be requested explicitly with USES=python:2.7+.

USE_PYTHON=distutils

Use Python distutils for configuring, compiling, and installing. This is required when the port comes with setup.py. This overrides the do-build and do-install targets and may also override do-configure if GNU_CONFIGURE is not defined. Additionally, it implies USE_PYTHON=flavors.

USE_PYTHON=autoplist

Create the packaging list automatically. This also requires USE_PYTHON=distutils to be set.

USE_PYTHON=concurrent

The port will use an unique prefix, typically PYTHON_PKGNAMEPREFIX for certain directories, such as EXAMPLESDIR and DOCSDIR and also will append a suffix, the python version from PYTHON_VER, to binaries and scripts to be installed. This allows ports to be installed for different Python versions at the same time, which otherwise would install conflicting files.

USE_PYTHON=flavors

The port does not use distutils but still supports multiple Python versions. FLAVORS will be set to the supported Python versions. See USES=python and Flavors for more information.

USE_PYTHON=optsuffix

If the current Python version is not the default version, the port will gain PKGNAMESUFFIX=${PYTHON_PKGNAMESUFFIX}. Only useful with flavors.

PYTHON_PKGNAMEPREFIX

Used as a PKGNAMEPREFIX to distinguish packages for different Python versions. Example: py27-

PYTHON_SITELIBDIR

Location of the site-packages tree, that contains installation path of Python (usually LOCALBASE). PYTHON_SITELIBDIR can be very useful when installing Python modules.

PYTHONPREFIX_SITELIBDIR

The PREFIX-clean variant of PYTHON_SITELIBDIR. Always use %%PYTHON_SITELIBDIR%% in pkg-plist when possible. The default value of %%PYTHON_SITELIBDIR%% is lib/python%%PYTHON_VERSION%%/site-packages

PYTHON_CMD

Python interpreter command line, including version number.

Table 26. Python Module Dependency Helpers

PYNUMERIC

Dependency line for numeric extension.

PYNUMPY

Dependency line for the new numeric extension, numpy. (PYNUMERIC is deprecated by upstream vendor).

PYXML

Dependency line for XML extension (not needed for Python 2.0 and higher as it is also in base distribution).

PY_ENUM34

Conditional dependency on devel/py-enum34 depending on the Python version.

PY_ENUM_COMPAT

Conditional dependency on devel/py-enum-compat depending on the Python version.

PY_PATHLIB

Conditional dependency on devel/py-pathlib depending on the Python version.

PY_IPADDRESS

Conditional dependency on net/py-ipaddress depending on the Python version.

PY_FUTURES

Conditional dependency on devel/py-futures depending on the Python version.

A complete list of available variables can be found in /usr/ports/Mk/Uses/python.mk.

All dependencies to Python ports using Python flavors (either with USE_PYTHON=distutils or USE_PYTHON=flavors) must have the Python flavor appended to their origin using @${PY_FLAVOR}. See Makefile for a Simple Python Module.

Example 27. Makefile for a Simple Python Module
PORTNAME=	sample
DISTVERSION=	1.2.3
CATEGORIES=	devel

MAINTAINER=	fred.bloggs@example.com
COMMENT=	Python sample module
WWW=		https://example.com/project/sample/

RUN_DEPENDS=	${PYTHON_PKGNAMEPREFIX}six>0:devel/py-six@${PY_FLAVOR}

USES=		python
USE_PYTHON=	autoplist distutils

.include <bsd.port.mk>

Some Python applications claim to have DESTDIR support (which would be required for staging) but it is broken (Mailman up to 2.1.16, for instance). This can be worked around by recompiling the scripts. This can be done, for example, in the post-build target. Assuming the Python scripts are supposed to reside in PYTHONPREFIX_SITELIBDIR after installation, this solution can be applied:

(cd ${STAGEDIR}${PREFIX} \
  && ${PYTHON_CMD} ${PYTHON_LIBDIR}/compileall.py \
   -d ${PREFIX} -f ${PYTHONPREFIX_SITELIBDIR:S;${PREFIX}/;;})

This recompiles the sources with a path relative to the stage directory, and prepends the value of PREFIX to the file name recorded in the byte-compiled output file by -d. -f is required to force recompilation, and the :S;${PREFIX}/;; strips prefixes from the value of PYTHONPREFIX_SITELIBDIR to make it relative to PREFIX.

6.19. Using Tcl/Tk

The Ports Collection supports parallel installation of multiple Tcl/Tk versions. Ports should try to support at least the default Tcl/Tk version and higher with USES=tcl. It is possible to specify the desired version of tcl by appending :_xx_, for example, USES=tcl:85.

Table 27. The Most Useful Read-Only Variables for Ports That Use Tcl/Tk

TCL_VER

chosen major.minor version of Tcl

TCLSH

full path of the Tcl interpreter

TCL_LIBDIR

path of the Tcl libraries

TCL_INCLUDEDIR

path of the Tcl C header files

TK_VER

chosen major.minor version of Tk

WISH

full path of the Tk interpreter

TK_LIBDIR

path of the Tk libraries

TK_INCLUDEDIR

path of the Tk C header files

See the USES=tcl and USES=tk of Using USES Macros for a full description of those variables. A complete list of those variables is available in /usr/ports/Mk/Uses/tcl.mk.

6.20. Using SDL

USE_SDL is used to autoconfigure the dependencies for ports which use an SDL based library like devel/sdl12 and graphics/sdl_image.

These SDL libraries for version 1.2 are recognized:

These SDL libraries for version 2.0 are recognized:

Therefore, if a port has a dependency on net/sdl_net and audio/sdl_mixer, the syntax will be:

USE_SDL=	net mixer

The dependency devel/sdl12, which is required by net/sdl_net and audio/sdl_mixer, is automatically added as well.

Using USE_SDL with entries for SDL 1.2, it will automatically:

  • Add a dependency on sdl12-config to BUILD_DEPENDS

  • Add the variable SDL_CONFIG to CONFIGURE_ENV

  • Add the dependencies of the selected libraries to LIB_DEPENDS

Using USE_SDL with entries for SDL 2.0, it will automatically:

  • Add a dependency on sdl2-config to BUILD_DEPENDS

  • Add the variable SDL2_CONFIG to CONFIGURE_ENV

  • Add the dependencies of the selected libraries to LIB_DEPENDS

6.21. Using wxWidgets

This section describes the status of the wxWidgets libraries in the ports tree and its integration with the ports system.

6.21.1. Introduction

There are many versions of the wxWidgets libraries which conflict between them (install files under the same name). In the ports tree this problem has been solved by installing each version under a different name using version number suffixes.

The obvious disadvantage of this is that each application has to be modified to find the expected version. Fortunately, most of the applications call the wx-config script to determine the necessary compiler and linker flags. The script is named differently for every available version. Majority of applications respect an environment variable, or accept a configure argument, to specify which wx-config script to call. Otherwise they have to be patched.

6.21.2. Version Selection

To make the port use a specific version of wxWidgets there are two variables available for defining (if only one is defined the other will be set to a default value):

Table 28. Variables to Select wxWidgets Versions
VariableDescriptionDefault value

USE_WX

List of versions the port can use

All available versions

USE_WX_NOT

List of versions the port cannot use

None

The available wxWidgets versions and the corresponding ports in the tree are:

Table 29. Available wxWidgets Versions
VersionPort

2.8

x11-toolkits/wxgtk28

3.0

x11-toolkits/wxgtk30

The variables in Variables to Select wxWidgets Versions can be set to one or more of these combinations separated by spaces:

Table 30. wxWidgets Version Specifications
DescriptionExample

Single version

2.8

Ascending range

2.8+

Descending range

3.0-

Full range (must be ascending)

2.8-3.0

There are also some variables to select the preferred versions from the available ones. They can be set to a list of versions, the first ones will have higher priority.

Table 31. Variables to Select Preferred wxWidgets Versions
NameDesigned for

WANT_WX_VER

the port

WITH_WX_VER

the user

6.21.3. Component Selection

There are other applications that, while not being wxWidgets libraries, are related to them. These applications can be specified in WX_COMPS. These components are available:

Table 32. Available wxWidgets Components
NameDescriptionVersion restriction

wx

main library

none

contrib

contributed libraries

none

python

wxPython (Python bindings)

2.8-3.0

The dependency type can be selected for each component by adding a suffix separated by a semicolon. If not present then a default type will be used (see Default wxWidgets Dependency Types). These types are available:

Table 33. Available wxWidgets Dependency Types
NameDescription

build

Component is required for building, equivalent to BUILD_DEPENDS

run

Component is required for running, equivalent to RUN_DEPENDS

lib

Component is required for building and running, equivalent to LIB_DEPENDS

The default values for the components are detailed in this table:

Table 34. Default wxWidgets Dependency Types
ComponentDependency type

wx

lib

contrib

lib

python

run

mozilla

lib

svg

lib

Example 28. Selecting wxWidgets Components

This fragment corresponds to a port which uses wxWidgets version 2.4 and its contributed libraries.

USE_WX=		2.8
WX_COMPS=	wx contrib

6.21.4. Detecting Installed Versions

To detect an installed version, define WANT_WX. If it is not set to a specific version then the components will have a version suffix. HAVE_WX will be filled after detection.

Example 29. Detecting Installed wxWidgets Versions and Components

This fragment can be used in a port that uses wxWidgets if it is installed, or an option is selected.

WANT_WX=	yes

.include <bsd.port.pre.mk>

.if defined(WITH_WX) || !empty(PORT_OPTIONS:MWX) || !empty(HAVE_WX:Mwx-2.8)
USE_WX=			2.8
CONFIGURE_ARGS+=	--enable-wx
.endif

This fragment can be used in a port that enables wxPython support if it is installed or if an option is selected, in addition to wxWidgets, both version 2.8.

USE_WX=		2.8
WX_COMPS=	wx
WANT_WX=	2.8

.include <bsd.port.pre.mk>

.if defined(WITH_WXPYTHON) || !empty(PORT_OPTIONS:MWXPYTHON) || !empty(HAVE_WX:Mpython)
WX_COMPS+=		python
CONFIGURE_ARGS+=	--enable-wxpython
.endif

6.21.5. Defined Variables

These variables are available in the port (after defining one from Variables to Select wxWidgets Versions).

Table 35. Variables Defined for Ports That Use wxWidgets
NameDescription

WX_CONFIG

The path to the wxWidgets`wx-config` script (with different name)

WXRC_CMD

The path to the wxWidgets`wxrc` program (with different name)

WX_VERSION

The wxWidgets version that is going to be used (for example, 2.6)

6.21.6. Processing in bsd.port.pre.mk

Define WX_PREMK to be able to use the variables right after including bsd.port.pre.mk.

When defining WX_PREMK, then the version, dependencies, components and defined variables will not change if modifying the wxWidgets port variables after including bsd.port.pre.mk.

Example 30. Using wxWidgets Variables in Commands

This fragment illustrates the use of WX_PREMK by running the wx-config script to obtain the full version string, assign it to a variable and pass it to the program.

USE_WX=		2.8
WX_PREMK=	yes

.include <bsd.port.pre.mk>

.if exists(${WX_CONFIG})
VER_STR!=	${WX_CONFIG} --release

PLIST_SUB+=	VERSION="${VER_STR}"
.endif

The wxWidgets variables can be safely used in commands when they are inside targets without the need of WX_PREMK.

6.21.7. Additional configure Arguments

Some GNU configure scripts cannot find wxWidgets with just the WX_CONFIG environment variable set, requiring additional arguments. WX_CONF_ARGS can be used for provide them.

Table 36. Legal Values for WX_CONF_ARGS
Possible valueResulting argument

absolute

--with-wx-config=${WX_CONFIG}

relative

--with-wx=${LOCALBASE} --with-wx-config=${WX_CONFIG:T}

6.22. Using Lua

This section describes the status of the Lua libraries in the ports tree and its integration with the ports system.

6.22.1. Introduction

There are many versions of the Lua libraries and corresponding interpreters, which conflict between them (install files under the same name). In the ports tree this problem has been solved by installing each version under a different name using version number suffixes.

The obvious disadvantage of this is that each application has to be modified to find the expected version. But it can be solved by adding some additional flags to the compiler and linker.

Applications that use Lua should normally build for just one version. However, loadable modules for Lua are built in a separate flavor for each Lua version that they support, and dependencies on such modules should specify the flavor using the @${LUA_FLAVOR} suffix on the port origin.

6.22.2. Version Selection

A port using Lua should have a line of this form:

USES=	lua

If a specific version of Lua, or range of versions, is needed, it can be specified as a parameter in the form XY (which may be used multiple times), XY+, -XY, or XY-ZA. The default version of Lua as set via DEFAULT_VERSIONS will be used if it falls in the requested range, otherwise the closest requested version to the default will be used. For example:

USES=	lua:52-53

Note that no attempt is made to adjust the version selection based on the presence of any already-installed Lua version.

The XY+ form of version specification should not be used without careful consideration; the Lua API changes to some extent in every version, and configuration tools like CMake or Autoconf will often fail to work on future versions of Lua until updated to do so.

6.22.3. Configuration and Compiler flags

Software that uses Lua may have been written to auto-detect the Lua version in use. In general ports should override this assumption, and force the use of the specific Lua version selected as described above. Depending on the software being ported, this might require any or all of:

  • Using LUA_VER as part of a parameter to the software’s configuration script via CONFIGURE_ARGS or CONFIGURE_ENV (or equivalent for other build systems);

  • Adding -I${LUA_INCDIR}, -L${LUA_LIBDIR}, and -llua-${LUA_VER} to CFLAGS, LDFLAGS, LIBS respectively as appropriate;

  • Patch the software’s configuration or build files to select the correct version.

6.22.4. Version Flavors

A port which installs a Lua module (rather than an application that simply makes use of Lua) should build a separate flavor for each supported Lua version. This is done by adding the module parameter:

USES=	lua:module

A version number or range of versions can be specified as well; use a comma to separate parameters.

Since each flavor must have a different package name, the variable LUA_PKGNAMEPREFIX is provided which will be set to an appropriate value; the intended usage is:

PKGNAMEPREFIX=	${LUA_PKGNAMEPREFIX}

Module ports should normally install files only to LUA_MODLIBDIR, LUA_MODSHAREDIR, LUA_DOCSDIR, and LUA_EXAMPLESDIR, all of which are set up to refer to version-specific subdirectories. Installing any other files must be done with care to avoid conflicts between versions.

A port (other than a Lua module) which wishes to build a separate package for each Lua version should use the flavors parameter:

USES=	lua:flavors

This operates the same way as the module parameter described above, but without the assumption that the package should be documented as a Lua module (so LUA_DOCSDIR and LUA_EXAMPLESDIR are not defined by default). However, the port may choose to define LUA_DOCSUBDIR as a suitable subdirectory name (usually the port’s PORTNAME as long as this does not conflict with the PORTNAME of any module), in which case the framework will define both LUA_DOCSDIR and LUA_EXAMPLESDIR.

As with module ports, a flavored port should avoid installing files that would conflict between versions. Typically this is done by adding LUA_VER_STR as a suffix to program names (e.g. using uniquefiles), and otherwise using either LUA_VER or LUA_VER_STR as part of any other files or subdirectories used outside of LUA_MODLIBDIR and LUA_MODSHAREDIR.

6.22.5. Defined Variables

These variables are available in the port.

Table 37. Variables Defined for Ports That Use Lua
NameDescription

LUA_VER

The Lua version that is going to be used (for example, 5.4)

LUA_VER_STR

The Lua version without the dots (for example, 54)

LUA_FLAVOR

The flavor name corresponding to the selected Lua version, to be used for specifying dependencies

LUA_BASE

The prefix that should be used to locate Lua (and components) that are already installed

LUA_PREFIX

The prefix where Lua (and components) are to be installed by this port

LUA_INCDIR

The directory where Lua header files are installed

LUA_LIBDIR

The directory where Lua libraries are installed

LUA_REFMODLIBDIR

The directory where Lua module libraries (.so) that are already installed are to be found

LUA_REFMODSHAREDIR

The directory where Lua modules (.lua) that are already installed are to be found

LUA_MODLIBDIR

The directory where Lua module libraries (.so) are to be installed by this port

LUA_MODSHAREDIR

The directory where Lua modules (.lua) are to be installed by this port

LUA_PKGNAMEPREFIX

The package name prefix used by Lua modules

LUA_CMD

The name of the Lua interpreter (e.g. lua54)

LUAC_CMD

The name of the Lua compiler (e.g. luac54)

These additional variables are available for ports that specified the module parameter:

Table 38. Variables Defined for Lua Module Ports
NameDescription

LUA_DOCSDIR

the directory to which the module’s documentation should be installed.

LUA_EXAMPLESDIR

the directory to which the module’s example files should be installed.

6.22.6. Examples

Example 31. Makefile for an application using Lua

This example shows how to reference a Lua module required at run time. Notice that the reference must specify a flavor.

PORTNAME=	sample
DISTVERSION=	1.2.3
CATEGORIES=	whatever

MAINTAINER=	fred.bloggs@example.com
COMMENT=	Sample
WWW=		https://example.com/lua_sample/sample/

RUN_DEPENDS=	${LUA_REFMODLIBDIR}/lpeg.so:devel/lua-lpeg@${LUA_FLAVOR}

USES=		lua

.include <bsd.port.mk>
Example 32. Makefile for a simple Lua module
PORTNAME=	sample
DISTVERSION=	1.2.3
CATEGORIES=	whatever
PKGNAMEPREFIX=	${LUA_PKGNAMEPREFIX}

MAINTAINER=	fred.bloggs@example.com
COMMENT=	Sample
WWW=		https://example.com/lua_sample/sample/

USES=		lua:module

DOCSDIR=	${LUA_DOCSDIR}

.include <bsd.port.mk>

6.23. Using Guile

This section describes the status of Guile in the ports tree and its integration with the ports system.

6.23.1. Introduction

There are multiple versions of the Guile libraries and corresponding interpreters, which conflict between them (install files under the same name). In the ports tree this problem has been solved by installing each version under a different name using version number suffixes. In most cases, applications should detect the correct version from the configuration variables provided and use pkg-config to determine the name and associated paths. However, some applications (especially those using their own configuration rules for cmake or meson) will always try to use the latest available version. In this case, either patch the port or declare a build conflict (see the conflicts option below) to ensure that the correct dependency is generated when building outside of poudriere.

Applications that use Guile should normally build for just one version, preferably the one specified in DEFAULT_VERSIONS, or failing that the latest version that they support. However, Guile or Scheme libraries, or extension modules for Guile are built in a separate flavor for each Guile version that they support, and dependencies on such ports should specify the flavor using the @${GUILE_FLAVOR} suffix on the port origin.

6.23.2. Version Selection

A port using Guile should define USES=guile:arg,arg…​ with appropriate arguments as follows:

Table 39. Arguments Defined for Ports That Use Guile
NameDescription

X.Y

Declare compatibility with Guile version X.Y. Currently available versions are 1.8 (obsolete), 2.2 and 3.0. Multiple versions may be specified.

flavors

Create a flavor for every Guile version specified. The version specified by DEFAULT_VERSIONS will become the default flavor. Flavor names are of the form guileXY.

build

Add the Guile interpreter as a build dependency only, rather than a library dependency. build and run may both be specified.

run

Add the Guile interpreter as a runtime dependency only, rather than a library dependency. build and run may both be specified.

alias

Add BINARY_ALIAS values for the interpreter and tools.

conflicts

Declare CONFLICTS_BUILD for Guile versions newer than the one selected. Use this when the port cannot be configured to use a specific Guile version.

Some additional arguments are available for handling unusual cases; see Mk/Uses/guile.mk for details.

Unless build or run is specified, then LIB_DEPENDS receives both the libguile library dependency and also any additional dependencies required by the guile version, e.g. libgc. Normally the port should not need any additional dependencies related to its use of Guile.

6.23.3. Configuration flags

Software that uses Guile should be using the pkg-config mechanism to obtain compiler and linker flags. Some older or esoteric ports may be using guile-config or obtaining values directly from guile instead, which should also work (the alias argument may be useful in some of these cases).

The framework tries to inform the port of the desired Guile version using the following methods:

  • GUILE_EFFECTIVE_VERSION is added to CONFIGURE_ENV;

  • The full path to the Guile binary is specified in the GUILE variable in CONFIGURE_ENV and MAKE_ENV;

  • If the alias option is used, the desired Guile version’s binaries are the ones aliased;

  • If the alias option is not used, paths to the desired Guile version’s tools (guild, guile-config, etc.) are added to CONFIGURE_ENV and MAKE_ENV as variables GUILD, GUILE_CONFIG, etc.

For some ports, it may be necessary to specify the version in additional ways, such as via CONFIGURE_ARGS or MESON_ARGS, depending on the port.

If none of these methods cause the port to select the specified Guile version when other versions are present, then preferably patch it to do so. If that is not feasible, specify the conflicts option to prevent building the port under conditions where it will detect the wrong version.

6.23.4. Version Flavors

A port which installs a Guile extension or library, or a Scheme library that precompiles for Guile, should build a separate flavor for each supported Guile version. This is done by adding the flavors option.

Since each flavor must have a different package name, such ports must set PKGNAMESUFFIX, typically:

PKGNAMESUFFIX=	-${FLAVOR}

Such ports must install Scheme files to GUILE_SITE_DIR rather than to GUILE_GLOBAL_SITE_DIR even when the files are not version-specific. This often requires patching the port.

Additionally, if such a port installs a .pc file, it must be placed in GUILE_PKGCONFIG_PATH rather than in the global pkgconfig directory. This allows dependent ports to find a correct configuration for the specific Guile version in use.

If a Guile extension port installs a .so file, then it must usually be placed in the Guile-version-specific extensions directory. USE_LDCONFIG should usually not be used.

Any other files installed by a flavored port must likewise be in version-specific directories or use version-specific filenames. For documentation and examples, GUILE_DOCS_DIR and GUILE_EXAMPLES_DIR specify suitable locations in which the port should create a subdirectory, see below.

6.23.5. Defined Variables

These variables are available in the port.

Table 40. Variables Defined for Ports That Use Guile
NameSample ValueDescription

GUILE_VER

3.0

Guile version in use.

GUILE_SFX

3

Short suffix used on some names. Use only with care; may be non-unique or may change in the future.

GUILE_FLAVOR

guile30

Flavor name corresponding to the selected version.

GUILE_PORT

lang/guile3

Port origin of the specified Guile version.

GUILE_PREFIX

${PREFIX}

Directory prefix to be used for installation.

GUILE_CMD

guile-3.0

Name of the Guile interpreter, with version suffix.

GUILE_CMDPATH

${LOCALBASE}/bin/guile-3.0

Full path to the Guile interpreter.

GUILD_CMD

guild-3.0

Name of the Guild tool, with version suffix.

GUILD_CMDPATH

${LOCALBASE}/bin/guild-3.0

Full path to the Guild tool.

GUILE_*_CMD
GUILE_*_CMDPATH

Like GUILE_CMD and GUILE_CMDPATH, but for other tool binaries.

GUILE_PKGCONFIG_PATH

${LOCALBASE}/libdata/pkgconfig/guile/3.0

Where packages using flavors should install .pc files.

GUILE_INFO_PATH

share/info/guile3

A suitable value for INFO_PATH for ports using the flavors option.

The following are defined as variables and as PLIST_SUB entries. The variable form is suffixed with _DIR and is a full path (prefixed with GUILE_PREFIX).

Table 41. Path Substitutions Defined for Ports That Use Guile
NameSample ValueDescription

GUILE_GLOBAL_SITE

share/guile/site

Site directory shared by all guile versions; this should not usually be used.

GUILE_SITE

share/guile/3.0/site

Site directory for the selected Guile version.

GUILE_SITE_CCACHE

lib/guile/3.0/site-ccache

Directory for compiled bytecode files.

GUILE_DOCS

share/doc/guile30

Parent directory for version-specific documentation.

GUILE_EXAMPLES

share/examples/guile30

Parent directory for version-specific examples.

6.23.6. Examples

Example 33. Makefile for an application using Guile

This example shows how to reference a Guile library required at build and run time. Notice that the reference must specify a flavor. This example assumes that the application is using pkg-config to locate dependencies.

PORTNAME=	sample
DISTVERSION=	1.2.3
CATEGORIES=	whatever

MAINTAINER=	fred.bloggs@example.com
COMMENT=	Sample
WWW=		https://example.com/guile_sample/sample/

BUILD_DEPENDS=	guile-lib-${GUILE_FLAVOR}>=0.2.5:devel/guile-lib@${GUILE_FLAVOR}
RUN_DEPENDS=	guile-lib-${GUILE_FLAVOR}>=0.2.5:devel/guile-lib@${GUILE_FLAVOR}

USES=		guile:2.2,3.0 pkgconfig

.include <bsd.port.mk>

6.24. Using iconv

FreeBSD has a native iconv in the operating system.

For software that needs iconv, define USES=iconv.

When a port defines USES=iconv, these variables will be available:

Variable namePurposePort iconv (when using WCHAR_T or //TRANSLIT extensions)Base iconv

ICONV_CMD

Directory where the iconv binary resides

${LOCALBASE}/bin/iconv

/usr/bin/iconv

ICONV_LIB

ld argument to link to libiconv (if needed)

-liconv

(empty)

ICONV_PREFIX

Directory where the iconv implementation resides (useful for configure scripts)

${LOCALBASE}

/usr

ICONV_CONFIGURE_ARG

Preconstructed configure argument for configure scripts

--with-libiconv-prefix=${LOCALBASE}

(empty)

ICONV_CONFIGURE_BASE

Preconstructed configure argument for configure scripts

--with-libiconv=${LOCALBASE}

(empty)

These two examples automatically populate the variables with the correct value for systems using converters/libiconv or the native iconv respectively:

Example 34. Simple iconv Usage
USES=		iconv
LDFLAGS+=	-L${LOCALBASE}/lib ${ICONV_LIB}
Example 35. iconv Usage with configure
USES=		iconv
CONFIGURE_ARGS+=${ICONV_CONFIGURE_ARG}

As shown above, ICONV_LIB is empty when a native iconv is present. This can be used to detect the native iconv and respond appropriately.

Sometimes a program has an ld argument or search path hardcoded in a Makefile or configure script. This approach can be used to solve that problem:

Example 36. Fixing Hardcoded -liconv
USES=		iconv

post-patch:
	@${REINPLACE_CMD} -e 's/-liconv/${ICONV_LIB}/' ${WRKSRC}/Makefile

In some cases it is necessary to set alternate values or perform operations depending on whether there is a native iconv. bsd.port.pre.mk must be included before testing the value of ICONV_LIB:

Example 37. Checking for Native iconv Availability
USES=		iconv

.include <bsd.port.pre.mk>

post-patch:
.if empty(ICONV_LIB)
	# native iconv detected
	@${REINPLACE_CMD} -e 's|iconv||' ${WRKSRC}/Config.sh
.endif

.include <bsd.port.post.mk>

6.25. Using Xfce

Ports that need Xfce libraries or applications set USES=xfce.

Specific Xfce library and application dependencies are set with values assigned to USE_XFCE. They are defined in /usr/ports/Mk/Uses/xfce.mk. The possible values are:

Example 38. USES=xfce Example
USES=		xfce
USE_XFCE=	libmenu
Example 39. Using Xfce’s Own GTK2 Widgets

In this example, the ported application uses the GTK2-specific widgets x11/libxfce4menu and x11/xfce4-conf.

USES=		xfce:gtk2
USE_XFCE=	libmenu xfconf

Xfce components included this way will automatically include any dependencies they need. It is no longer necessary to specify the entire list. If the port only needs x11-wm/xfce4-panel, use:

USES=		xfce
USE_XFCE=	panel

There is no need to list the components x11-wm/xfce4-panel needs itself like this:

USES=		xfce
USE_XFCE=	libexo libmenu libutil panel

However, Xfce components and non-Xfce dependencies of the port must be included explicitly. Do not count on an Xfce component to provide a sub-dependency other than itself for the main port.

6.26. Using Budgie

Applications or libraries depending on the Budgie desktop should set USES= budgie and set USE_BUDGIE to the list of required components.

NameDescription

libbudgie

Desktop core (library)

libmagpie

Budgie’s X11 window manager and compositor library

raven

All-in-one center in panel for accessing different applications widgets

screensaver

Desktop-specific screensaver

All application widgets communicate through the org.budgie_desktop.Raven service.

The default dependency is lib- and run-time, it can be changed with :build or :run, for example:

USES=		budgie
USE_BUDGIE=	screensaver:build
Example 40. USE_BUDGIE Example
USES=		budgie gettext gnome meson pkgconfig
USE_BUDGIE=	libbudgie

6.27. Using Databases

Use one of the USES macros from Database USES Macros to add a dependency on a database.

Table 42. Database USES Macros
DatabaseUSES Macro

Berkeley DB

bdb

MariaDB, MySQL, Percona

mysql

PostgreSQL

pgsql

SQLite

sqlite

Example 41. Using Berkeley DB 6
USES=	bdb:6

See bdb for more information.

Example 42. Using MySQL

When a port needs the MySQL client library add

USES=	mysql

See mysql for more information.

Example 43. Using PostgreSQL

When a port needs the PostgreSQL server version 9.6 or later add

USES=		pgsql:9.6+
WANT_PGSQL=	server

See pgsql for more information.

Example 44. Using SQLite 3
USES=	sqlite:3

See sqlite for more information.

6.28. Starting and Stopping Services (rc Scripts)

rc.d scripts are used to start services on system startup, and to give administrators a standard way of stopping, starting and restarting the service. Ports integrate into the system rc.d framework. Details on its usage can be found in the rc.d Handbook chapter. Detailed explanation of the available commands is provided in rc(8) and rc.subr(8). Finally, there is an article on practical aspects of rc.d scripting.

With a mythical port called doorman, which needs to start a doormand daemon. Add the following to the Makefile:

USE_RC_SUBR=	doormand

Multiple scripts may be listed and will be installed. Scripts must be placed in the files subdirectory and a .in suffix must be added to their filename. Standard SUB_LIST expansions will be ran against this file. Use of the %%PREFIX%% and %%LOCALBASE%% expansions is strongly encouraged as well. More on SUB_LIST in the relevant section.

As of FreeBSD 6.1-RELEASE, local rc.d scripts (including those installed by ports) are included in the overall rcorder(8) of the base system.

An example simple rc.d script to start the doormand daemon:

#!/bin/sh

# PROVIDE: doormand
# REQUIRE: LOGIN
# KEYWORD: shutdown
#
# Add these lines to /etc/rc.conf.local or /etc/rc.conf
# to enable this service:
#
# doormand_enable (bool):	Set to NO by default.
#				Set it to YES to enable doormand.
# doormand_config (path):	Set to %%PREFIX%%/etc/doormand/doormand.cf
#				by default.

. /etc/rc.subr

name=doormand
rcvar=doormand_enable

load_rc_config $name

: ${doormand_enable:="NO"}
: ${doormand_config="%%PREFIX%%/etc/doormand/doormand.cf"}

command=%%PREFIX%%/sbin/${name}
pidfile=/var/run/${name}.pid

command_args="-p $pidfile -f $doormand_config"

run_rc_command "$1"

Unless there is a very good reason to start the service earlier, or it runs as a particular user (other than root), all ports scripts must use:

REQUIRE: LOGIN

If the startup script launches a daemon that must be shutdown, the following will trigger a stop of the service on system shutdown:

KEYWORD: shutdown

If the script is not starting a persistent service this is not necessary.

For optional configuration elements the "=" style of default variable assignment is preferable to the ":=" style here, since the former sets a default value only if the variable is unset, and the latter sets one if the variable is unset or null. A user might very well include something like:

doormand_flags=""

in their rc.conf.local, and a variable substitution using ":=" would inappropriately override the user’s intention. The _enable variable is not optional, and must use the ":" for the default.

Ports must not start and stop their services when installing and deinstalling. Do not abuse the plist keywords described in the @preexec command,@postexec command,@preunexec command,@postunexec command section by running commands that modify the currently running system, including starting or stopping services.

6.28.1. Pre-Commit Checklist

Before contributing a port with an rc.d script, and more importantly, before committing one, please consult this checklist to be sure that it is ready.

The devel/rclint port can check for most of these, but it is not a substitute for proper review.

  1. If this is a new file, does it have a .sh extension? If so, that must be changed to just file.in since rc.d files may not end with that extension.

  2. Do the name of the file (minus .in), the PROVIDE line, and $ name all match? The file name matching PROVIDE makes debugging easier, especially for rcorder(8) issues. Matching the file name and `$`name makes it easier to figure out which variables are relevant in rc.conf[.local]. It is also a policy for all new scripts, including those in the base system.

  3. Is the REQUIRE line set to LOGIN? This is mandatory for scripts that run as a non-root user. If it runs as root, is there a good reason for it to run prior to LOGIN? If not, it must run after so that local scrips can be loosely grouped to a point in rcorder(8) after most everything in the base is already running.

  4. Does the script start a persistent service? If so, it must have KEYWORD: shutdown.

  5. Make sure there is no KEYWORD: FreeBSD present. This has not been necessary nor desirable for years. It is also an indication that the new script was copy/pasted from an old script, so extra caution must be given to the review.

  6. If the script uses an interpreted language like perl, python, or ruby, make certain that command_interpreter is set appropriately, for example, for Perl, by adding PERL=${PERL} to SUB_LIST and using %%PERL%%. Otherwise,

    # service name stop

    will probably not work properly. See service(8) for more information.

  7. Have all occurrences of /usr/local been replaced with %%PREFIX%%?

  8. Do the default variable assignments come after load_rc_config?

  9. Are there default assignments to empty strings? They should be removed, but double-check that the option is documented in the comments at the top of the file.

  10. Are things that are set in variables actually used in the script?

  11. Are options listed in the default name`_flags` things that are actually mandatory? If so, they must be in command_args. -d is a red flag (pardon the pun) here, since it is usually the option to "daemonize" the process, and therefore is actually mandatory.

  12. _name__flags must never be included in command_args (and vice versa, although that error is less common).

  13. Does the script execute any code unconditionally? This is frowned on. Usually these things must be dealt with through a start_precmd.

  14. All boolean tests must use the checkyesno function. No hand-rolled tests for [Yy][Ee][Ss], etc.

  15. If there is a loop (for example, waiting for something to start) does it have a counter to terminate the loop? We do not want the boot to be stuck forever if there is an error.

  16. Does the script create files or directories that need specific permissions, for example, a pid that needs to be owned by the user that runs the process? Rather than the traditional touch(1)/chown(8)/chmod(1) routine, consider using install(1) with the proper command line arguments to do the whole procedure with one step.

6.29. Adding Users and Groups

Some ports require a particular user account to be present, usually for daemons that run as that user. For these ports, choose a unique UID from 50 to 999 and register it in ports/UIDs (for users) and ports/GIDs (for groups). The unique identification should be the same for users and groups.

Please include a patch against these two files when requiring a new user or group to be created for the port.

Then use USERS and GROUPS in Makefile, and the user will be automatically created when installing the port.

USERS=	pulse
GROUPS=	pulse pulse-access pulse-rt

The current list of reserved UIDs and GIDs can be found in ports/UIDs and ports/GIDs.

6.30. Ports That Rely on Kernel Sources

Some ports (such as kernel loadable modules) need the kernel source files so that the port can compile. Here is the correct way to determine if the user has them installed:

USES=	kmod

Apart from this check, the kmod feature takes care of most items that these ports need to take into account.

6.31. Go Libraries

Ports must not package or install Go libs or source code. Go ports must fetch the required deps at the normal fetch time and should only install the programs and things users need, not the things Go developers would need.

Ports should (in order of preference):

  • Use vendored dependencies included with the package source.

  • Fetch the versions of deps specified by upstream (in the case of go.mod, vendor.json or similar).

  • As a last resort (deps are not included nor versions specified exactly) fetch versions of dependencies available at the time of upstream development/release.

6.32. Haskell Libraries

Just like in case of Go language, Ports must not package or install Haskell libraries. Haskell ports must link statically to their dependencies and fetch all distribution files on fetch stage.

6.33. Shell Completion Files

Many modern shells (including bash, fish, tcsh and zsh) support parameter and/or option tab-completion. This support usually comes from completion files, which contain the definitions for how tab completion will work for a certain command. Ports sometimes ship with their own completion files, or porters may have created them themselves.

When available, completion files should always be installed. It is not necessary to make an option for it. If an option is used, though, always enable it in OPTIONS_DEFAULT.

Table 43. Full shell completion file names

bash

${PREFIX}/etc/bash_completion.d or ${PREFIX}/share/bash-completion/completions

(any unique file names in one of these folders)

fish

${PREFIX}/share/fish/completions/${PORTNAME}.fish

zsh

${PREFIX}/share/zsh/site-functions/_${PORTNAME}

Do not register any dependencies on the shells themselves.


Last modified on: January 29, 2024 by Muhammad Moinur Rahman