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

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