LLVM's Clang C/C++ Compiler Is Still Having Problems With ~5% Of Debian Packages

[phoronix]

Phoronix: LLVM's Clang C/C++ Compiler Is Still Having Problems With ~5% Of Debian Packages

Debian developer and LLVM/Clang enthusiast Sylvestre Ledru has provided an update regarding the build results for trying to compile the Debian archive using this GCC compiler alternative...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Debian-2017-Clang-Fails

[Marc Driftmeyer]

Debian should build clean with ICC, GCC, Clang and any other C/C++ compliant compiler. The onus is on Debian to rip out any GCC customizations.

[gigaplex]

Debian should build clean with ICC, GCC, Clang and any other C/C++ compliant compiler. The onus is on Debian to rip out any GCC customizations.

The onus is really on the upstream projects, although if debian want to help out with submitting patches that's up to them.

[chithanh]

GCC is free software, so there is no problem for Debian packages to depend on it. But it is of course always better to allow a wide range of compilers to build your code.

Also calling ICC "C/C++ compliant" would be pushing it. ICC is known to take shortcuts by default, especially with floating point code (relaxed conformance or how they call it).

[bkor]

The onus is really on the upstream projects, although if debian want to help out with submitting patches that's up to them.

Actually just filing bugreports would already be helpful. Debian has an amazing amount of software, not every upstream is going to 100% at testing it with different compilers, etc.

[discordian]

How is the linux kernel nowadays? There was some effort getting it to compile under clang, but apparently it died of.

[janisozaur]

Actually just filing bugreports would already be helpful. Debian has an amazing amount of software, not every upstream is going to 100% at testing it with different compilers, etc.

I would imagine KDE to do test with different compilers. Just look at http://clang.debian.net/status.php?v...CARD_ATTRIBUTE which was pointed out as a big source of build errors.

[Scellow]

Probably some buggy, badly written 20 years old packages, just drop them

[garegin]

Why does the whole OS have to be compiled with one compiler? In Windows and MacOS, the dev of the app decides on the tools. Maybe I like the features of the Intel compiler.

[Inopia]

Debian should build clean with ICC, GCC, Clang and any other C/C++ compliant compiler. The onus is on Debian to rip out any GCC customizations.

ICC is proprietary and thus out of scope for Debian. They should waste no effort on supporting it.

Why does the whole OS have to be compiled with one compiler? In Windows and MacOS, the dev of the app decides on the tools. Maybe I like the features of the Intel compiler.

The Debian project aims to create a libre operating system so it's natural that they require the compiler to be free software as well. Up until recently there were no other fully featured free C/C++ compilers other than GCC. I hope they'll eventually support Clang too.