[petsc-dev] bad BuildSystem output

[Jed Brown]

On Thu, Mar 22, 2012 at 17:20, Barry Smith <bsmith at mcs.anl.gov> wrote:

>
>  configure output
>
> sh: mpicc  -o /tmp/petsc-jZ4A3c/config.setCompilers/conftest
>  /tmp/petsc-jZ4A3c/config.setCompilers/conftest.o
> Executing: mpicc  -o /tmp/petsc-jZ4A3c/config.setCompilers/conftest
>  /tmp/petsc-jZ4A3c/config.setCompilers/conftest.o
> sh:
> ERROR while running executable:
> /tmp/petsc-jZ4A3c/config.setCompilers/conftest is not executablesh: mpicc
> --help
> Executing: mpicc --help
> sh: Usage: gcc [options] file...
>
>
>   The relevant source
>
>  def outputRun(self, includes, body, cleanup = 1, defaultOutputArg = '',
> executor = None):
>    if not self.checkLink(includes, body, cleanup = 0): return ('', 1)
>    if not os.path.isfile(self.linkerObj) or not os.access(self.linkerObj,
> os.X_OK):
>      self.framework.log.write('ERROR while running executable:
> '+self.linkerObj+' is not executable')
>      return ('', 1)
>
>
> 1) The error is not "while running" the executable. It is while checking
> if the executable file exists or has the x bit, error message is bd
>
> 2) It  should produce a different error message if the executable doesn't
> exist vs does not have the x bit
>
> 3) Why TF is :" mpicc --help" on the same line of the very informative
> configure log with the error message?
>

I only fixed this one

http://petsc.cs.iit.edu/petsc/BuildSystem/rev/aae8f08a1f67


>
> 4) Just before the "ERROR while running exe" line why doesn't it have a
> line "Testing executable NAME to see if it can be run" or some similar
> message? Reading the configure file I see oh it is compiling something, oh
> executable cannot be run, they don't fit well together for an inexperienced
> reader.
>
>  5)  The output printed for the end user is not bad
>
> Cannot run executables created with C. If this machine uses a batch system
> to submit jobs you will need to configure using ./configure with the
> additional option  --with-batch.
>  Otherwise there is problem with the compilers. Can you compile and run
> code with your C/C++ (and maybe Fortran) compilers?
>
> except it has the bad vague phrasing "with your C/C++ (and maybe Fortran)
> compilers?" it should tell the user EXACTLY what compiler it was trying to
> run (which may not be the compiler the user thinks is their "user's
> compiler". )
>
> It is sloppy output like this that makes debugging configure failures more
> painful than they need be.  Remember people are going to still be using
> this stuff in 20 years but we are not going to be here to interpret the
> error conditions.
>
>   Barry
>
>
>
>
>
> Begin forwarded message:
>
> > From: mahesh natarajan <mn1729 at gmail.com>
> > Date: March 22, 2012 4:46:24 PM CDT
> > To: Matthew Knepley <petsc-maint at mcs.anl.gov>
> > Subject: [petsc-maint #110458] Re : Configuring petsc
> > Reply-To: petsc-maint at mcs.anl.gov, mahesh natarajan <mn1729 at gmail.com>
> >
> > Hi,
> >
> >   I am trying to install petsc on my laptop. But I get an error. PFA log
> > files. Any fixes ? Thanks.
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Regards
> > Mahesh Natarajan
> >
> [see attached file: log_summary.dat] [see attached file: configure.log]
>
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