Autoconf - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)





Autoconf

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Table of Contents

Introduction to Autoconf
Downloading Autoconf
Autoconf Mailing Lists
Related Software






Introduction to Autoconf


Autoconf is an extensible package of m4 macros that produce shell
scripts to automatically configure software source code packages.
These scripts can adapt the packages to many kinds of UNIX-like
systems without manual user intervention.  Autoconf creates a
configuration script for a package from a template file that lists the
operating system features that the package can use, in the form of m4
macro calls.


Producing configuration scripts using Autoconf requires GNU m4.  You
must install GNU m4 (version 1.4 or later) before configuring Autoconf,
so that Autoconf's configure script can find it.  The configuration scripts
produced by Autoconf are self-contained, so their users do not need to
have Autoconf (or GNU m4).


Some optional utilities that come with Autoconf use Perl.  However, none
of those are required in order to use the main Autoconf program.  If perl
is not present, the affected Autoconf utilities will not be installed.


Online Manual is available at 
www.gnu.org/manual/autoconf/index.html


Downloading Autoconf


GNU Autoconf releases can be found on 
http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/ or one of the
mirrors.
You can also order a CD-ROM from the FSF
or use other methods
to obtain a copy.


Third party macros can be downloaded from
The GNU Autoconf Macro Archive.



Alpha/beta releases of Autoconf can be found in
ftp://alpha.gnu.org/pub/gnu/autoconf/, and the latest
in-development sources for Autoconf can always be fetched through CVS from 
:pserver:anoncvs@subversions.gnu.org:/cvsroot/autoconf, module
"autoconf", with blank password.  DO NOT use Autoconf sources from these
locations for production use.



Autoconf Mailing Lists


For general Autoconf discussions, use
autoconf AT gnu.org.
More information, like how to subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, can
be found here.



If you have found a bug in Autoconf that hasn't yet been fixed in
the latest CVS sources of Autoconf, you should send a patch (made
for the CVS sources, not the release sources) to
autoconf-patches AT gnu.org.
More information, like how to subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, can
be found
here.


If you want to keep track of the changes made in the development repository
for Autoconf, commit-autoconf AT gnu.org is
the list for you.
More information, like how to subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, can
be found
here.


Archives of the mailing lists can be found here:

Autoconf
Autoconf Patches
Autoconf CVS Commits



Related Software


Autoconf is often used together with the following software systems:


GNU Automake
GNU Libtool



The following software packages are either required to use Autoconf
or optional to take full advantage of Autoconf:


GNU m4
Perl





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Copyright (C) 1998, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
59 Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA  02111,  USA


Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is
permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.

Updated:

17 Apr 2001 larsa