GNU build system

GNU build system

The GNU build system is a suite of tools produced by the GNU project that assist in making packages portable to many UNIX-like systems.

It comprises of

GNU Autoconf
GNU Automake
GNU Libtool

Other related tools include

GNU make
GNU gettext
The pkg-config tool used in several GNOME packages
GNU Compiler Collection

The GNU build system is widely used in many free software and open source packages. While the tools comprising the GNU build system themselves are GPL-ed free software, there are no restrictions in using them in making non-free software portable.

External Links

The book GNU Autoconf, Automake and Libtool, by Gary V. Vaughan, Ben Elliston, Tom Tromey, and Ian Lance Taylor.

ISBN 1578701902

available online at http://sources.redhat.com/autobook under the terms of the Open Publication License (with none of the options exercised).

The GNU Coding Standards (especially the chapter on The Release Process).

The pkg-config package