Creating a portfile for gmtl

[Doug McCorkle]

On Dec 31, 2006, at 2:31 PM, Mark Duling wrote:

> Doug McCorkle <mccdo at iastate.edu> on Saturday, December 30, 2006 at  
> 6:38
> PM -0800 wrote:
>> Hello,
>>     I am trying to create a Portfile for gmtl and am getting an
>> error on the archive step.
>>
>> DEBUG: Skipping completed com.apple.destroot (gmtl)
>> --->  Packaging tgz archive for gmtl 0.4.12_0
>> DEBUG: Executing com.apple.archive (gmtl)
>> Error: Target com.apple.archive returned: error copying "/opt/local/
>> var/db/dports/build/_Volumes_data_dports-dev_devel_gmtl/
>> work/.darwinports.gmtl.state" to "/opt/local/var/db/dports/build/
>> _Volumes_data_dports-dev_devel_gmtl/work/destroot/+STATE": no such
>> file or directory
>> Warning: the following items did not execute (for gmtl):
>> com.apple.activate com.apple.archive com.apple.install
>> Error: Status 1 encountered during processing.
>>
>> From above the destroot dir is not present in the work dir.
>>
>> I have followed the tutorial instructions and looked at some examples
>> but can not seem to make it work. Any suggestions on how to make the
>> file work is appreciated. Thanks.
>
> If destdir is not present in the workdir then something is wrong  
> with the
> app's makefile.  Look at the verbose output of the build and see if  
> you
> can tell why.  You may use -vdt, the -t tells you if the files are  
> writing
> outside of destroot stright into ${prefix} as happens with poorly  
> written
> apps.  So you can either figure out the problem and patch the  
> Makefile or
> whatever scripts do the installing (and submit the patches upstream  
> for
> later inclusion), or if the app is very simple and/or the routines  
> more
> complex than you'd like to deal with now you can just  
> simultaneously turn
> off the developers install and copy the files that should be  
> installed via
> MacPorts.
>
> Like this:
>
> destroot {
>         xinstall ${worksrcpath}/lib/foo1  ${destroot}${prefix}/lib/ 
> foo1
>         etc
> }
>
> I just did exactly that just now with a new port named nspr.  And
> sometimes I do the latter and later realize or figure out what is the
> problem and go back and revise the port with a patched Makefile and  
> send
> the patch upstream to the developers so they can fix it more  
> permanently
> and our portfiles get cleaned up over time.  Using the Makefile is  
> always
> better if you can, but some Makefiles are so broken and the app so  
> trival
> or old that it isn't always feasible or worth the time to fix them.
>
> Mark
>

Thanks for the pointers Mark. I think part of the issue here is that  
the library is just header files so there is nothing really compiled  
only installed. I think the SConscripts are well written so I do not  
believe those are the problems. I think in this case your example  
will   help solve the problem.

Doug