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diff --git a/README.win32 b/README.win32 new file mode 100644 index 0000000..04ea456 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.win32 @@ -0,0 +1,52 @@ +pkg-config on Win32 +=================== + +This file describes pkg-config for "native" Win32. (On Cygwin, +pkg-config builds fine right out of the box. Cygwin is just another +Unix variant, as far as pkg-config is concerned.) I don't call this +"native" Win32 target MinGW, as pkg-config on Windows is supposed to +be useable also by MSVC users. + +There should be no compile-time paths built into the executable of +pkg-config. Likewise, not in the libraries it describes either. + +pkg-config uses some optional entries in the Registry: Firstly, the +path to the pkgconfig installation prefix. This can be either +user-specific in HKCU\Software\pkgconfig\InstallationDirectory or for +the whole machine in HKLM\Software\pkgconfig\InstallationDirectory. + +If pkg-config.exe is invoked from the "bin" subdirectory of a +directory with a lib/pkgconfig subdirectory, no Registry entry is even +needed, as pkgconfig figures out the directory by itself. (The +g_win32_get_package_installation_directory() function in GLib.) + +Additionally, in addition to the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment +variables, any string value in the Registry key +HKLM\Software\pkgconfig\PKG_CONFIG_PATH (or HKCU\...) is assumed to be +a directory name and is searched for .pc files. + +When pkg-config is invoked on Windows, it tries to set the "prefix" +variable for each .pc file read to "top" of the directory tree where +the .pc file is located. This is done only if the .pc file is in a +path that ends in "lib/pkgconfig". Thus, if an end-user (developer) +installs headers, import libraries and .pc files in the normal +subdirectories under some random directory, everything should just +work, even if the .pc file for that software doesn't know the true +directory name, but contains the path used on the packager's +site. This works as long as the .pc file uses the variable name +"prefix" for its installation prefix. At least GLib, ATK, Pango and +GTK does this. + +On Unix, pkg-config is built using its own copy of GLib 1.2.8. On +Windows, we use the normal GLib available for Windows (2.0.x). Yes, +this does introduce a kind of circular dependency. But, that can be +worked around. The circular dependency only appears if one uses the +configure mechanism to build GLib. GLib's configure script checks for +pkg-config. pkg-config depends on GLib. Thus, starting from scratch, +with no GLib and no pkg-config, using configure, there would indeed be +a Catch-22 situation. However, GLib can be built just fine using the +manually written makefiles for mingw or MSVC. And if somebody does +want to build GLib on Win32 using configure, she can first install a +prebuilt pkgconfig. + +--Tor Lillqvist <tml@iki.fi> |