Trying to build with MinGW

[Bram Moolenaar]

I want to try debugging on MS-Windows with gdb. I normally build with
MSVC, but I don't see a way to use that executable with gdb (perhaps
it's possible with some compiler flag?).

So I'll use MinGW for compiling. MinGW provides gcc and make, so I
expect this to work:
make -f Make_ming.mak GUI=no DEBUG=yes

This gives an error in diff.c:
storage size of 'st' isn't known.

Hmm. I can work around it by changing the condition in vim.h:

/* Use 64-bit stat structure if available. */
#if (defined(_MSC_VER) && (_MSC_VER >= 1300)) || defined(__MINGW32__)
# define HAVE_STAT64
typedef struct _stat64 stat_T;
#else
typedef struct stat stat_T;
#endif

So use "struct stat". I wonder why this change is needed. perhaps the
#ifdef is wrong?

Then it compiles many files but fails when building iscygpty.c .
It complains that _WIN32_WINNT and WINVER differ. That's because the
build file has:

$(OUTDIR)/iscygpty.o: iscygpty.c $(CUI_INCL)
$(CC) -c $(CFLAGS) iscygpty.c -o $(OUTDIR)/iscygpty.o -U_WIN32_WINNT -D_WIN32_WINNT=0x0600 -DUSE_DYNFILEID -DENABLE_STUB_IMPL

Overruling _WIN32_WINNT for one file seems like a bad idea, why was this
added? But building iscygpty.c with WINVER set to 0x0501 apparently
doesn't work.

So instead I specify WINVER to be 0x0600. I wonder how it can ever work
without that. Perhaps we should make it the default?

--
If you don't get everything you want, think of
everything you didn't get and don't want.

/// Bram Moolenaar -- Br...@Moolenaar.net -- http://www.Moolenaar.net \\\
/// sponsor Vim, vote for features -- http://www.Vim.org/sponsor/ \\\
\\\ an exciting new programming language -- http://www.Zimbu.org ///
\\\ help me help AIDS victims -- http://ICCF-Holland.org ///

[Michael Soyka]

In my opinion, the fundamental question appears to be should Vim
continue to support the XP platform.  The data structures that are
generating compiler errors are defined only for Vista or later (see
winbase.h).

That said, I have been building 32-bit vim/gvim on an XP platform using
mingw without a problem.  Unbeknownst to me, I been doing that before
and after the patches v7.4.2016 and v7.4.1963.  If I remove the -U and
-D options from the target, I get, I assume, the same compilation errors
that you do.  In other words, the resulting executable (with patches)
works fine under XP.

-mike

[Bram Moolenaar]

Perhaps some features, such as using pty's, won't work on Windows XP.
Those features should be optional then.
And since compiling for XP is not the most often used target, I think
it's more important that the build works "out of the box".
With some comments about how to make the target work on XP.

I am unsure how we ended up with a Makefile that defines one WINVER in
one place and another in another place, that doesn't seem right.

--
Hanson's Treatment of Time:
There are never enough hours in a day, but always too
many days before Saturday.

[Michael Soyka]

I looked a bit more into this after I posted above.  The purpose of the
earlier patch apparently was to detect when vim is being launched in a
mintty window and, in that case, print something that says "sorry, vim
no work here".

On my XP machine, vim 8.0 will not launch in a cygwin window nor in the
mintty window that is packaged with "Git for Windows" nor does it print
the diagnostic.  This makes me think that vim is failing before it can
check the terminal type (just my guess).  However, version 7.4 patch 131
works fine.

I have no such problem for Windows 10 with vim 8.0 launching in mintty
from "Git for Windows".

-mike

[Ken Takata]

Hi Bram,

For iscygpty.c, how about adding `-UWINVER -DWINVER=0x0600`? (Not tested.)
iscygpty requires new Win32 APIs which were added in Windows Vista.

For the other problem, I think your MinGW is too old. (The above problem
should be caused by the same reason, though.)
I highly recommend you to use MinGW-w64 instead of the original MinGW (which
looks dead).
There are some distributions which provide binary packages of MinGW-w64,
and I think MSYS2 is the best. (https://www.msys2.org/)

If we still need to support the original MinGW, we might need some modifications
to the codes and makefiles. However, I can't help it, because I have already
uninstalled the original MinGW.

Regards,
Ken Takata

[Bram Moolenaar]

Does it make sense to require WINVER 0x0600 here while 0x501 is the
default above? Doesn't it mean the binary won't work properly on
Windows XP anyway? Then we might as well make 0x0600 the default. And
add a comment to use 0x0501 for XP, and the need to disable using
iscygpty.

> For the other problem, I think your MinGW is too old. (The above problem
> should be caused by the same reason, though.)
> I highly recommend you to use MinGW-w64 instead of the original MinGW (which
> looks dead).

I ran the installer to update, but it appears nothing happened.

> There are some distributions which provide binary packages of MinGW-w64,
> and I think MSYS2 is the best. (https://www.msys2.org/)
>
> If we still need to support the original MinGW, we might need some
> modifications to the codes and makefiles. However, I can't help it,
> because I have already uninstalled the original MinGW.

I think the main use of MinGW is to build without MSVC. And since it's
freely available there shouldn't be much problem getting the latest
version.

So how about updating the instructions to add a step-by-step
explanation how to build Vim with MinGW? Including hints how to get the
latest version (and possibly deleting the old one, if that is needed).

--
If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the
human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its
full potential, that word would be "meetings."

[Ken Takata]

Hi Bram,

Sorry for the late reply.

I set up iscygpty to use dynamic loading so that it can be executed on XP.
Even though, it uses some definitions for Vista APIs, therefore it requires
WINVER=0x0600. This doesn't affect other parts of Vim, so we can use other
value for the default of WINVER (if needed).

> > For the other problem, I think your MinGW is too old. (The above problem
> > should be caused by the same reason, though.)
> > I highly recommend you to use MinGW-w64 instead of the original MinGW (which
> > looks dead).
>
> I ran the installer to update, but it appears nothing happened.
>
> > There are some distributions which provide binary packages of MinGW-w64,
> > and I think MSYS2 is the best. (https://www.msys2.org/)
> >
> > If we still need to support the original MinGW, we might need some
> > modifications to the codes and makefiles. However, I can't help it,
> > because I have already uninstalled the original MinGW.
>
> I think the main use of MinGW is to build without MSVC. And since it's
> freely available there shouldn't be much problem getting the latest
> version.
>
> So how about updating the instructions to add a step-by-step
> explanation how to build Vim with MinGW? Including hints how to get the
> latest version (and possibly deleting the old one, if that is needed).

Okay, we might need a step-by-step instruction how to setup MSYS2 for
building Vim. The msys2 installer just installs a basic environment.
Each user need to install GCC and other development packages by using
the `pacman` command.

# Setup msys2 environment for building Vim

1. Setup the basic msys2 environment

Go to the official page of MSYS2: https://www.msys2.org
Download an installer:

* msys2-x86_64-YYYYMMDD.exe for 64-bit Windows
(Even if you want to build 32-bit Vim)
* msys2-i686-YYYYMMDD.exe for 32-bit Windows

Follow the official instructions to update basic packages. Execute
`pacman -Syu` and restart MSYS2 window (select "MSYS2 MSYS" icon from the
Start Menu), then execute `pacman -Su`.
If pacman complains that `catgets` and `libcatgets` conflict with another
package, select `y` to remove them.

2. Install additional packages for building Vim

The following package groups are required for building Vim:

* base-devel
* mingw-w64-i686-toolchain (for building 32-bit Vim)
* mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain (for building 64-bit Vim)

Open the "MSYS2 MSYS" icon from the Start Menu, then you can use the following
command to install them:

pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-i686-toolchain mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain

Or you can use the `pacboy` command to avoid long package names:

pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:m

(See `pacboy help` for the help.)

3. Keep the build environment up-to-date

After you have installed the build environment, you may want to keep it
up-to-date (E.g. always use the latest GCC).
In that case, you just need to execute the command `pacman -Syu` once or twice.

# Build Vim

Select one of the following icon from the Start Menu:

* MSYS2 MinGW 32-bit (To build 32-bit versions of Vim)
* MSYS2 MinGW 64-bit (To build 64-bit versions of Vim)

Go to the source directory of Vim, then execute the make command. E.g.:

make -f Make_mingw.mak GUI=yes

Regards,
Ken Takata

[Bram Moolenaar]

Ken Takata wrote:

> > Does it make sense to require WINVER 0x0600 here while 0x501 is the
> > default above? Doesn't it mean the binary won't work properly on
> > Windows XP anyway? Then we might as well make 0x0600 the default. And
> > add a comment to use 0x0501 for XP, and the need to disable using
> > iscygpty.
>
> I set up iscygpty to use dynamic loading so that it can be executed on XP.
> Even though, it uses some definitions for Vista APIs, therefore it requires
> WINVER=0x0600. This doesn't affect other parts of Vim, so we can use other
> value for the default of WINVER (if needed).

My point is that as it is now it doesn't build. So we should probably
make 0x0600 the default.

This asks what packages to install. Should this install "all"?
It installs an awful lot of stuff, it says it uses 1.5 Gbyte.
My laptop is almost full...

> (See `pacboy help` for the help.)
>
> 3. Keep the build environment up-to-date
>
> After you have installed the build environment, you may want to keep it
> up-to-date (E.g. always use the latest GCC).
> In that case, you just need to execute the command `pacman -Syu` once or twice.
>
>
> # Build Vim
>
> Select one of the following icon from the Start Menu:
>
> * MSYS2 MinGW 32-bit (To build 32-bit versions of Vim)
> * MSYS2 MinGW 64-bit (To build 64-bit versions of Vim)
>
> Go to the source directory of Vim, then execute the make command. E.g.:
>
> make -f Make_mingw.mak GUI=yes

Hmm, I get "make: command not found". I guess I should have selected
"all" when using pacboy.

That uses the MSYS console, where just about nothing works. "git pull"
doesn't work. Can't even run the Vim I just build in it. How to build
Vim in a normal Windows console?

I tried prepending "c:\msys64\usr\bin" to $PATH and that appears to
work. No wait, that picks up an old MinGW version of gcc. OK, this
seems to work: also prepend c:\msys64\mingw32\bin".

I'll make a patch with these hints, we can further improve it afterwards.

--
hundred-and-one symptoms of being an internet addict:
144. You eagerly await the update of the "Cool Site of the Day."

[Ken Takata]

Hi Bram,

If you only want to build 32-bit Vim, you don't need to install the x86_64
toolchain. In this case, you can use one of the following commands:

pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-i686-toolchain
or:
pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:i
(The ":i" suffix means i686 only.)

If you only want to build 64-bit Vim, you don't need to install the i686
toolchain. In this case, you can use one of the following commands:

pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain
or:
pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:x
(The ":x" suffix means x86_64 only.)

Some of the package might not be needed for building Vim, but I haven't
checked which is necessary and which is not.
The above package groups are generally useful for building many kind of
programs.

> > (See `pacboy help` for the help.)
> >
> > 3. Keep the build environment up-to-date
> >
> > After you have installed the build environment, you may want to keep it
> > up-to-date (E.g. always use the latest GCC).
> > In that case, you just need to execute the command `pacman -Syu` once or twice.
> >
> >
> > # Build Vim
> >
> > Select one of the following icon from the Start Menu:
> >
> > * MSYS2 MinGW 32-bit (To build 32-bit versions of Vim)
> > * MSYS2 MinGW 64-bit (To build 64-bit versions of Vim)
> >
> > Go to the source directory of Vim, then execute the make command. E.g.:
> >
> > make -f Make_mingw.mak GUI=yes
>
> Hmm, I get "make: command not found". I guess I should have selected
> "all" when using pacboy.

The make command is included in the base-devel package group. Of course,
you can install the make package separately:
pacman -S make
or:
pacboy -S make:

> That uses the MSYS console, where just about nothing works. "git pull"
> doesn't work. Can't even run the Vim I just build in it. How to build
> Vim in a normal Windows console?

When the MSYS2 console is executed, MSYS2 stops exporting the current $PATH
by default. If you want to use git in MSYS2 console, there are two ways.

1. Change the MSYS2 setting to export the current $PATH
See C:\msys64\msys2_shell.cmd for detail.
2. Install the MSYS2 version of git
MSYS2 has its own version of git. You can install it by pacman/pacboy.

> I tried prepending "c:\msys64\usr\bin" to $PATH and that appears to
> work. No wait, that picks up an old MinGW version of gcc. OK, this
> seems to work: also prepend c:\msys64\mingw32\bin".

The gcc installed in C:\msys64\usr\bin is MSYS2's self compiler.
If you want to build Vim running in the MSYS2 console, you need to use this.
(This is almost the same as Cygwin, so Unix-like configure/make style is used.)

> I'll make a patch with these hints, we can further improve it afterwards.

Regards,
Ken Takata

[Bram Moolenaar]

Ken Takata wrote:

[...]

> > > Open the "MSYS2 MSYS" icon from the Start Menu, then you can use the following
> > > command to install them:
> > >
> > > pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-i686-toolchain mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain
> > >
> > > Or you can use the `pacboy` command to avoid long package names:
> > >
> > > pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:m
> >
> > This asks what packages to install. Should this install "all"?
> > It installs an awful lot of stuff, it says it uses 1.5 Gbyte.
> > My laptop is almost full...
>
> If you only want to build 32-bit Vim, you don't need to install the x86_64
> toolchain. In this case, you can use one of the following commands:
>
> pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-i686-toolchain
> or:
> pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:i
> (The ":i" suffix means i686 only.)
>
> If you only want to build 64-bit Vim, you don't need to install the i686
> toolchain. In this case, you can use one of the following commands:
>
> pacman -S base-devel mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain
> or:
> pacboy -S base-devel: toolchain:x
> (The ":x" suffix means x86_64 only.)
>
>
> Some of the package might not be needed for building Vim, but I haven't
> checked which is necessary and which is not.
> The above package groups are generally useful for building many kind of
> programs.

I deleted the 64 bit directory, that was 700 Mbyte. Now the 32 bit
directory is still taking 700 Mbyte. It would be useful to find out how
to reduce that.

> > That uses the MSYS console, where just about nothing works. "git pull"
> > doesn't work. Can't even run the Vim I just build in it. How to build
> > Vim in a normal Windows console?
>
> When the MSYS2 console is executed, MSYS2 stops exporting the current $PATH
> by default. If you want to use git in MSYS2 console, there are two ways.
>
> 1. Change the MSYS2 setting to export the current $PATH
> See C:\msys64\msys2_shell.cmd for detail.
> 2. Install the MSYS2 version of git
> MSYS2 has its own version of git. You can install it by pacman/pacboy.

I don't really want to use the MSYS2 console, it's like using Linux on a
Windows system. When doing "pwd" I see a different home directory,
among other surprises. I prefer using the Windows console, since that
is what most people will be using.

--
hundred-and-one symptoms of being an internet addict:

157. You fum through a magazine, you first check to see if it has a web
address.

[Ken Takata]

Hi Bram,

You can refer Arch Wiki for general usage of the pacman command:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/pacman

To remove x64_86 toolchain, try:
pacman -R mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain
or:
pacman -R toolchain:x

Also you can clean the package cache. The downloaded packages are stored in
the C:\msys64\var\cache\pacman\pkg directory.
See the following part for how to clean it:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/pacman#Cleaning_the_package_cache
(Or you can remove the files manually. It is not recommended, though.)

> > > That uses the MSYS console, where just about nothing works. "git pull"
> > > doesn't work. Can't even run the Vim I just build in it. How to build
> > > Vim in a normal Windows console?
> >
> > When the MSYS2 console is executed, MSYS2 stops exporting the current $PATH
> > by default. If you want to use git in MSYS2 console, there are two ways.
> >
> > 1. Change the MSYS2 setting to export the current $PATH
> > See C:\msys64\msys2_shell.cmd for detail.
> > 2. Install the MSYS2 version of git
> > MSYS2 has its own version of git. You can install it by pacman/pacboy.
>
> I don't really want to use the MSYS2 console, it's like using Linux on a
> Windows system. When doing "pwd" I see a different home directory,
> among other surprises. I prefer using the Windows console, since that
> is what most people will be using.

Okay, but some other people want to use the MSYS2 console.
We might be able to improve the instructions for those people.

Regards,
Ken Takata

[Bram Moolenaar]

I just deleted the directory contents, that's probably not the right way
to do it.

> Also you can clean the package cache. The downloaded packages are stored in
> the C:\msys64\var\cache\pacman\pkg directory.
> See the following part for how to clean it:
> https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/pacman#Cleaning_the_package_cache
> (Or you can remove the files manually. It is not recommended, though.)

Thanks, that cleaned 330 Mbyte. I think it's pretty bad to take up so
much storage. My laptop disk is 95% full

Still, the 32 bit compiler takes up 750 Mbyte. We should really have
instructions to make that as small as possible. People who just want to
build Vim and nothing else should not need that much space on disk.


--
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