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apt-build for Debian

WARNING

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-> Do not upload packages on Debian:

If you patch and compile your own packages with apt-build, you should not upload Debian packages built with a such system, because it can distort a program's behavior.

-> Please keep deb and deb-src line in sync in your sources.list.

-> About sources.list and apt/preferences:

The deb line of apt-build repository must be the first line if you want apt-get to prefer built packages than other packages. To avoid conflicts with the `/etc/apt/preferences' mechanism, you may add the following entry in the `/etc/apt/preferences' file:

Package: *
Pin: release a=apt-build
Pin-Priority: 800

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------------------------------ FAQ -----------------------------------

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Q: gcc and g++ do not seem to be called with good options!

1. *** They are called with them! *** What you see on your screen is the command called by make, but the wrapper wraps (yeah, it does) calls to gcc/g++ and adds options you specified in the apt-build configuration file. You won't see this on your screen. Try `ps ax | grep gcc' instead as a proof, while building.

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Q: Can I rebuild gcc or g++?

1. If you rebuild gcc, it seems that optimizations won't be applied because it uses its own compiler during building.

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Q: What should be the size of my build directory?

1. This directory should be large enough to contain packages and their build output. Some packages require at least 1 Go to be built.

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Q: How do I rebuild my whole system (apt-build world)?

1. You must create a package list first. The simplest way to do it, is to run: dpkg --get-selections | \

   awk '{if ($2=="install") print $1}' > /etc/apt/apt-build.list

You should edit this file to remove some packages like gcc, kernel...

Please not that using the --reinstall switch can be useful.

-- Julien Danjou <acid@debian.org>, Sun, 24 Apr 2005 14:23:16 +0200