# Building SWI-Prolog using cmake
As of version 7.7.20, SWI-Prolog ships with `cmake` `CMakeLists.txt`
configuration files that cover the entire project.
The build has been tested with the "Unix Makefiles" and "Ninja"
generators. We use [Ninja](https://ninja-build.org/) as it builds
faster, avoids warning from being cluttered and better facilitates
debugging dependency issues. It can be selected using `cmake -G Ninja
..`, after which the usual `make` _target_ can be replaced by `ninja`
_target_. The examples below all use Ninja. Drop `-G Ninja` to use
classical Unix make.
## Getting cmake
Building SWI-Prolog requires cmake version 3.9 or later (*). Many Linux
systems ship with a cmake package. On MacOS we use the Macport version.
If the shipped cmake version is too old you may wish to download cmake
from https://cmake.org/download/ On Linux systems, installing e.g.,
cmake 3.12 (please pick the latest stable version) is as simple as:
wget https://cmake.org/files/v3.12/cmake-3.12.0-Linux-x86_64.sh
sudo sh cmake-3.12.0-Linux-x86_64.sh --prefix=/usr/local --exclude-subdir
(*) The ODBC package requires 3.9. For the rest 3.5 should suffice.
## Native build
### Getting the source
The source may be downloaded as a tar ball from
http://www.swi-prolog.org or downloaded using git. The git sequence is:
git clone --recursive https://github.com/SWI-Prolog/swipl-devel.git
### Building from source
The typical sequence to build SWI-Prolog and install in `/usr/local` is
as follows:
cd swipl-devel
mkdir build
cd build
cmake -G Ninja ..
ninja
ctest -j 8
ninja install
### Upgrading
In most cases the following should update an installed system to the
latest version:
git pull
git submodule update --init
cd build
ninja
ninja
ctest -j 8
ninja install
Note that `ninja` is called twice. Under some situations not everything
is properly updated after the first run. This is a bug.
If the build fails, one could try to remove the entire `build` directory
and re-create it as above. Note that the build process makes no
modifications outside the `build` directory.
## Build types
The default build type is `RelWithDebInfo`. Alternatives may be selected
using e.g., See [Profile Guided Optimization](#PGO) for details on the
PGO build for maximum performance.
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug -G Ninja ..
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -G Ninja ..
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=PGO -G Ninja ..
## Install location
To install in a particular location, use `-DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX`. For
example, this will build SWI to be installed in ``~/bin``.
cmake -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=$HOME -G Ninja ..
After `ninja install`, `swipl` will be in `~/bin/swipl`.
## Customizing SWI-Prolog
By default the system configures all features. Several cmake _options_
allow for restricting the system, define the layout of the filesystem
and libraries that are built.
| Option | Description |
| ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `-DMULTI_THREADED=OFF` | Drop support for Prolog threads |
| `-DUSE_SIGNALS=OFF` | Drop signal support |
| `-DUSE_GMP=ON` | Use GMP instead of bundled LibBF |
| `-DUSE_TCMALLOC=OFF` | Do not link against `-ltcmalloc` |
| `-DVMI_FUNCTIONS=ON` | Use functions for the VM instructions |
| `-DSWIPL_SHARED_LIB=OFF` | Build Prolog kernel as static lib |
| `-DSWIPL_STATIC_LIB=ON` | Also build `libswipl_static.a` |
| `-DSTATIC_EXTENSIONS=ON` | Include packages into the main system |
| `-DSWIPL_INSTALL_IN_LIB=ON` | Install libswipl.so in `<prefix>/lib` |
| `-DSWIPL_INSTALL_IN_SHARE=ON` | Install docs in `<prefix>/share` |
| `-DSWIPL_M32=ON` | Make 32-bit version on 64-bit Linux |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGES=OFF` | Only build the core system |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGES_BASIC=OFF` | Drop all basic packages |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGES_ODBC=OFF` | Drop ODBC and CQL packages |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGES_JAVA=OFF` | Drop JPL Java interface |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGES_X=OFF` | Drop graphics (xpce) |
| `-DSWIPL_PACKAGE_LIST=List` | ;-separated list of packages |
| `-DBUILD_TESTING=OFF` | Do not setup for ctest unit tests |
| `-DINSTALL_TESTS=ON` | Add tests to installed system |
| `-DINSTALL_DOCUMENTATION=OFF` | Drop generating the HTML docs |
Note that packages for which the prerequisites cannot be found are
dropped automatically, as are packages for which the sources are not
installed.
Note that many combinations of these options are not properly supported.
You are strongly encouraged to install the full system for desktop
usage. When installing in lightweight and server environments one may
drop one or more of ``SWIPL_PACKAGES_X``, ``SWIPL_PACKAGES_JAVA``,
``SWIPL_PACKAGES_ODBC`` and ``INSTALL_DOCUMENTATION``.
A specific list of packages can be requestion using
`DSWIPL_PACKAGE_LIST` set to a list of package. The list is checked for
missing dependencies, which are automatically added. Typically the
documentation should be disabled in this scenario because including it
includes many packages. For example:
cmake -DINSTALL_DOCUMENTATION=OFF -DSWIPL_PACKAGE_LIST="clib;plunit"
## Embedding SWI-Prolog in Java, C, C++, etc.
If SWI-Prolog is to be embedded in another executable it must be able to
find its home directory and the main application must be able to find
the SWI-Prolog shared library `libswipl.so` (extension depends on the
platform). The following environment variables are commonly used:
- `SWI_HOME_DIR` should point at SWI-Prolog's main directory, e.g.
``${CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX}/lib/swipl``
- The shared object search path should include the directory where
`libswipl.{so,dll,...}` resides. The variable depends on the
platform. Some popular names:
- `LD_LIBRARY_PATH` (ELF based systems such as Linux)
- `DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH` (MacOS)
- `PATH` (Windows)
If you build SWI-Prolog you must __remove these variables from the
environment when building__. Failure to do so may cause the build
process to use parts of an incompatible installed system. Running
`cmake` warns if such an environment variable is found, but the
environment must be cleaned when running `ninja` or `make`.
## Profile Guided Optimization {#PGO}
When using Ninja and GCC, the system may be built using _Profile Guided
Optimization_ (PGO). This first builds the system instrumented to
collect profile information, then runs a benchmark suite and finally
recompiles it using the benchmark suite output to help (notably) branch
prediction. The performance improvement using modern GCC versions is
about 30-40%
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=PGO -G Ninja ..
ninja
Older versions provided a helper script in `scripts/pgo-compile.sh`.
This is now a dummy script that runs `cmake --build`. Note that this
simply builds the system. The build type must be set beforehand
explicitly as indicated above.
## Cross build
Cross building for Windows is supported by means of a Docker
specification that can be found at the location below. We advice to use
the docker. Of course you can use the recipies in the Dockerfile to
perform the process on your host Linux system.
https://github.com/SWI-Prolog/docker-swipl-build-mingw
### WASM (Emscripten)
See https://www.swi-prolog.org/build/WebAssembly.html for details.
For latest news on the WASM version see the [Wiki
page](https://swi-prolog.discourse.group/t/swi-prolog-in-the-browser-using-wasm).
This page also discusses how to use the WASM version with Node.js and
in a browser.
### Building a 32-bit version on 64-bit Debian based Linux
Building the 32-bit version on a 64 bit platform can be useful for
testing and creating 32-bit .qlf files or saved states. A fairly
complete system is created using the configuration command below.
cmake -DSWIPL_M32=ON \
-DSWIPL_PACKAGES_JAVA=OFF -DSWIPL_PACKAGES_QT=OFF \
-G Ninja ..
### Cross-building for targets without an emulator
In the above scenarios we have an emulator (Wine, Node.js) that can run
the compiled Prolog system so we can do the Prolog steps of the
installation such as building the boot file, building .qlf files,
library indexes and the documentation. On some systems we do not have a
suitable emulator. Experimental support is provided using the following
steps:
- Build a native Prolog system in a directory, say `native`. This
version must have the same _word-size_ (32 or 64-bits) as the
cross-compiled target. One the core Prolog system (no packages)
is required and the system only needs to be build, i.e., the
_install_ step is allowed but not needed. See above.
- Specify `-DSWIPL_NATIVE_FRIEND=native` for the cross-compilation.
This will cause the above system to be used for the cross
compilation steps.
## Development
When building SWI-Prolog using cmake a complete installation is created
in the cmake _build_ directory. If possible, the files from the source
tree that do not need modification are created as _symbolic links_ to
the real sources. This implies that `src/swipl` can be used as a
complete development environment and library and system predicates can
be edited using edit/1 and friends.
The script `scripts/swi-activate` may be used to create symlinks from
$HOME/bin to the version in the current working directory. It may be
used to activate the system in the build directory or where it is
installed. It is called from the build directory as one of:
../scripts/swipl-activate
../scripts/swipl-activate --installed
Developers may wish to set the environment variable
`SWIPL_INSTALL_PREFIX`, which is used as the default for
`CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX`. Moreover, if this variable includes `@builddir@`
this string is replaced with the basename of the current build
directory. This aims at the following scenario:
1. Set e.g. `export SWIPL_INSTALL_PREFIX=$HOME/cmake/@builddir@`
2. Use multiple build directories for debug, different targets or
different configurations. Typically these are called
`build.<config>`, for example `build.single-threaded`.
3. Configure without specifying a `CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX`
4. Build, test and install. Optionally use `swipl-activate` to use
this version as default.
When developing on the core system one often does not want to
re-generate documentation and possible package dependencies. This can be
achieved using the target `core`, which builds `swipl`, `libswipl` and
`boot.prc`:
ninja core
### Testing
Tests are registered for use with `ctest`. To run all tests, simply run
this in the build directory. Tests can be run concurrently (`-j 8`
below).
% ctest -j 8
Note that there seem to be few tests. This is misleading. Each ctest
test loads a Prolog file that may run hundreds of tests. If a test
fails, run the command below to get details. Tests are named
_package_:_name_, so `ctest -V -R clib:` runs the tests for the `clib`
package.
% ctest -V -R name
Note that all tests can be executed interactively by loading the test
file and calling the entry point as illustrated. The entry point is
always the base name of the file (without directory and without
extension).
% src/swipl ../src/Tests/core/test_arith.pl
?- test_arith.
% PL-Unit: div ... done
...
### Trapping memory issues using AddressSanitizer
[AddressSanitizer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AddressSanitizer) is an
extension to Clang and GCC to instrument executables for finding common
memory management issues. It traps similar bugs as
[Valgrind](http://valgrind.org/), but if a suspected bug does not show
up using one tool it might be worthwhile to try the other. A nice
property of Valgrind is that it can be used directly on the executable
without recompilation. The downside is that Valgrind makes the program
run about 20 times slower. The slowdown by AddressSanitizer is about a
factor two. To compile for using with AddressSanitizer, do e.g.,
% mkdir build.asan
% cd build.asan
% cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Sanitize -G Ninja ..
% ninja
See also `cmake/BuildType.cmake` and `PL_halt()` in `src/pl-fli.c`.
You can run the tests normally using `ctest`. Note that the `swipl:GC`
test requires more stack than the default when using AddressSanitizer.
To fix this run (bash) `ulimit -s unlimited` before running `ctest`. The
test `jpl:prolog_in_java` will fail because Java is not loaded with
AddressSanitizer preloaded. All other tests should pass (about 4 times
slower than normal).
By default, memory leak checking is disabled by defining
`__asan_default_options()` in `pl-main.c`. Leak checking may be enabled
by setting `ASAN_OPTIONS`:
% ASAN_OPTIONS=detect_leaks=1 src/swipl ...
This option also causes Prolog __not__ to unload foreign extensions,
which is needed to make ASAN properly report locations in foreign
extensions.
AddressSanitizer is reported (by Alessandro Bartolucci) not to work on
Apple using the xCode AppleClang. It should work with a non-Apple Clang
or GCC version.
## Packaging
### Windows
The windows installer is created from the cross-compiled version using a
Linux native port of the NSIS installer generator. Ensure `makensis` is
installed (`apt-get install nsis`) and run the commands below in the
build directory to create the installer:
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=../cmake/cross/linux_win64.cmake -G Ninja ..
ninja
cpack
And, for the 32-bit version:
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=../cmake/cross/linux_win32.cmake -G Ninja ..
ninja
cpack
### Debian based Linux systems (.deb or .rpm)
The following commands create `swipl-<version>-<nr>.<cpu>.deb/rpm` file
with SWI-Prolog to be installed in /usr. The process creates a
monolithic installer for a particular configuration of SWI-Prolog. This
is *not* what is typically used to create packages for distributions.
Distro package maintainers are referred to _Modular packages for Linux_
below. The procedure here is intended to create custom Debian packages
for in-house deployment.
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -G Ninja ..
ninja
cpack -G DEB
for generating an RPM, use `cpack -G RPM`. The cmake configure run
selects a default packager depending on the availability of the package
installer `apt` (assuming DEB) or `dnf` (assuming RPM).
#### Modular packages for Linux
Most Linux distributions with to install SWI-Prolog using multiple
packages, notably to reduce dependencies. For example, the xpce package
os normally provided by a package `swi-prolog-x` and the core of
SWI-Prolog as `swi-prolog-nox`. This allows installing `swi-prolog-nox`
on headless servers without installing X11.
Modular installation can be based on cmake _COMPONENTS_. The files for a
particular component can be installed using, for example (note this is
a one-line command):
DESTDIR=$(pwd)/<component> \
cmake -DCMAKE_INSTALL_COMPONENT=<component> \
-P cmake_install.cmake
The defined components are:
| Component | Description |
| -------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
| Core_system | Compiler and core libraries |
| Core_packages | Packages with few dependencies |
| Archive_interface | Libarchive binding |
| Commandline_editors | Readline and libedit interfaces |
| ODBC_interface | ODBC binding |
| BerkeleyDB_interface | BDB interface |
| Perl_regex | PCRE2 library binding |
| YAML_support | Libyaml binding |
| Java_interface | Java interface (JPL) |
| OpenSSL_interface | Binding to OpenSSL/LibreSSL |
| TIPC_networking | Linux TIPC network support |
| Qt_console | Qt windowed interface |
| Graphics_subsystem | The xpce graphics system (needs X11) |
| Documentation | System HTML documentation |
| Examples | Example files |
See the `debian` subdirectory for the complete set of rules we use to
generate the Ubuntu PPA releases.
### Create a MacOSX Bundle
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DBUILD_MACOS_BUNDLE=ON -G Ninja ..
ninja
cpack
## Issues
- Provide a FindSWIPL.cmake?
- Problem compiling SWI when another SWI is installed already and you
have environment variables set to facilitate e.g., embedding in Java.
The variable names and possibly conflicting values depend on the OS.
See [issue](https://github.com/SWI-Prolog/swipl-devel/issues/435)