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authorNick Clifton <nickc@redhat.com>2001-07-19 10:43:13 +0000
committerNick Clifton <nickc@redhat.com>2001-07-19 10:43:13 +0000
commit173aa8171eaed5e01e2f8d61e0a3c13b6c104c91 (patch)
tree503c8f2def7617ec3ad9ee1760499d64fa756160 /binutils/README
parent740a8283a03d9b901f5a03f21da97da7ae369fc6 (diff)
downloadbinutils-redhat-173aa8171eaed5e01e2f8d61e0a3c13b6c104c91.tar.gz
Change bug reporting email address.
Diffstat (limited to 'binutils/README')
-rw-r--r--binutils/README71
1 files changed, 43 insertions, 28 deletions
diff --git a/binutils/README b/binutils/README
index 9157a145eb..e51b2a2cb5 100644
--- a/binutils/README
+++ b/binutils/README
@@ -1,26 +1,31 @@
-These are the GNU binutils. These are utilities of use when dealing
-with object files.
+ README for BINUTILS
-The linker (ld) is in a separate directory, which should be ../ld.
-Linker-specific notes are in ../ld/README.
+These are the GNU binutils. These are utilities of use when dealing
+with binary files, either object files or executables. These tools
+consist of the linker (ld), the assembler (gas), and the profiler
+(gprof) each of which have their own sub-directory named after them.
+There is also a collection of other binary tools, including the
+disassembler (objdump) in this directory. These tools make use of a
+pair of libraries (bfd and opcodes) and a common set of header files
+(include).
-As of version 2.5, the assembler (as) is also included in this package, in
-../gas. Assembler-specific notes can be found in ../gas/README.
+There are README and NEWS files in most of the program sub-directories
+which give more information about those specific programs.
-Recent changes are in ./NEWS, ../ld/NEWS, and ../gas/NEWS.
Unpacking and Installation -- quick overview
============================================
-When you unpack the binutils-2.9.tar.gz file, you'll get a directory
-called something like `binutils-2.9', which contains various files and
-directories. Most of the files in the top directory are for
-information and for configuration. The actual source code is in
-subdirectories.
+When you unpack the binutils archive file, you will get a directory
+called something like `binutils-XXX', where XXX is the number of the
+release. (Probably 2.11.2 or higher). This directory contains
+various files and sub-directories. Most of the files in the top
+directory are for information and for configuration. The actual
+source code is in sub-directories.
To build binutils, you can just do:
- cd binutils-2.9
+ cd binutils-XXX
./configure [options]
make
make install # copies the programs files into /usr/local/bin
@@ -33,7 +38,7 @@ If you have GNU make, we recommend building in a different directory:
mkdir objdir
cd objdir
- ../binutils-2.9/configure [options]
+ ../binutils-XXX/configure [options]
make
make install
@@ -41,7 +46,9 @@ This relies on the VPATH feature of GNU make.
By default, the binutils will be configured to support the system on
which they are built. When doing cross development, use the --target
-configure option to specify a different target.
+configure option to specify a different target, eg:
+
+ ./configure --target=foo-elf
The --enable-targets option adds support for more binary file formats
besides the default. List them as the argument to --enable-targets,
@@ -49,11 +56,15 @@ separated by commas. For example:
./configure --enable-targets=sun3,rs6000-aix,decstation
-The name 'all' compiles in support for all valid BFD targets (this was
-the default in releases before 2.3):
+The name 'all' compiles in support for all valid BFD targets:
./configure --enable-targets=all
+On 32-bit hosts though, this support will be restricted to 32-bit
+target unless the --enable-64-bit-bfd option is also used:
+
+ ./configure --enable-64-bit-bfd --enable-targets=all
+
You can also specify the --enable-shared option when you run
configure. This will build the BFD and opcodes libraries as shared
libraries. You can use arguments with the --enable-shared option to
@@ -62,7 +73,7 @@ example, --enable-shared=bfd. The only potential shared libraries in
a binutils release are bfd and opcodes.
The binutils will be linked against the shared libraries. The build
-step will attempt to place the correct library in the runtime search
+step will attempt to place the correct library in the run-time search
path for the binaries. However, in some cases, after you install the
binaries, you may have to set an environment variable, normally
LD_LIBRARY_PATH, so that the system can find the installed libbfd
@@ -71,10 +82,11 @@ shared library.
To build under openVMS/AXP, see the file makefile.vms in the top level
directory.
+
If you don't have ar
====================
-If your system does not already have an ar program, the normal
+If your system does not already have an 'ar' program, the normal
binutils build process will not work. In this case, run configure as
usual. Before running make, run this script:
@@ -98,10 +110,10 @@ the ranlib program in order to build the distribution.
Porting
=======
-Binutils-2.9 supports many different architectures, but there
+Binutils-2.11 supports many different architectures, but there
are many more not supported, including some that were supported
-by earlier versions. We are hoping for volunteers to
-improve this situation.
+by earlier versions. We are hoping for volunteers to improve this
+situation.
The major effort in porting binutils to a new host and/or target
architecture involves the BFD library. There is some documentation
@@ -111,10 +123,13 @@ with gdb-4.x) may also be of help.
Reporting bugs
==============
-Send bug reports and patches to bug-binutils@gnu.org. Always mention
-the version number you are running; this is printed by running any of
-the binutils with the --version option. We appreciate reports about
-bugs, but we do not promise to fix them.
+Send bug reports and patches to:
+
+ bug-gnu-utils@gnu.org.
+
+Always mention the version number you are running; this is printed by
+running any of the binutils with the --version option. We appreciate
+reports about bugs, but we do not promise to fix them.
VMS
===
@@ -156,7 +171,7 @@ makefile.vms. Either select CC=cc (for DEC C) or CC=gcc (for GNU C)
Installing the release
Provided that your directory setup conforms to the GNU on openVMS
-standard, you already have a concealed deviced named 'GNU_ROOT'.
+standard, you already have a concealed device named 'GNU_ROOT'.
In this case, a simple
$ gmake install
@@ -179,7 +194,7 @@ and [.binutils]strings.exe) and the gnu assembler and preprocessor
and define all programs as foreign commands.
-If you're satiesfied with the compilation, you may want to remove
+If you're satisfied with the compilation, you may want to remove
unneeded objects and libraries:
$ gmake clean