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1 | If you read this file _as_is_, just ignore the funny characters you |
2 | see. It is written in the POD format (see pod/perlpod.pod) which is |
3 | specially designed to be readable as is. |
4 | |
5 | =head1 NAME |
6 | |
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7 | perlwin32 - Perl under Win32 |
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8 | |
9 | =head1 SYNOPSIS |
10 | |
11 | These are instructions for building Perl under WindowsNT (versions |
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12 | 3.51 or 4.0), using Visual C++ (versions 2.0 through 5.0). Currently, |
13 | this port may also build under Windows95, but you can expect problems |
14 | stemming from the unmentionable command shell that infests that |
15 | platform. Note this caveat is only about B<building> perl. Once |
16 | built, you should be able to B<use> it on either Win32 platform (modulo |
17 | the problems arising from the inferior command shell). |
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18 | |
19 | =head1 DESCRIPTION |
20 | |
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21 | Before you start, you should glance through the README file |
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22 | found in the top-level directory where the Perl distribution |
23 | was extracted. Make sure you read and understand the terms under |
24 | which this software is being distributed. |
25 | |
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26 | Also make sure you read the L<BUGS AND CAVEATS> section below for the |
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27 | known limitations of this port. |
28 | |
29 | The INSTALL file in the perl top-level has much information that is |
30 | only relevant to people building Perl on Unix-like systems. In |
31 | particular, you can safely ignore any information that talks about |
32 | "Configure". |
33 | |
34 | You should probably also read the README.os2 file, which gives a |
35 | different set of rules to build a Perl that will work on Win32 |
36 | platforms. That method will probably enable you to build a more |
37 | Unix-compatible perl, but you will also need to download and use |
38 | various other support software described in that file. |
39 | |
40 | This set of instructions is meant to describe a so-called "native" |
41 | port of Perl to Win32 platforms. The resulting Perl requires no |
42 | additional software to run (other than what came with your operating |
43 | system). Currently, this port is only capable of using Microsoft's |
44 | Visual C++ compiler. The ultimate goal is to support the other major |
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45 | compilers that can be used to build Win32 applications. |
46 | |
47 | This port currently supports MakeMaker (the set of modules that |
48 | is used to build extensions to perl). Therefore, you should be |
49 | able to build and install most extensions found in the CPAN sites. |
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50 | |
51 | =head2 Setting Up |
52 | |
53 | =over 4 |
54 | |
55 | =item * |
56 | |
57 | Use the default "cmd" shell that comes with NT. In particular, do |
58 | *not* use the 4DOS/NT shell. The Makefile has commands that are not |
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59 | compatible with that shell. You are mostly on your own if you can |
60 | muster the temerity to attempt this with Windows95. |
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61 | |
62 | =item * |
63 | |
64 | Run the VCVARS32.BAT file usually found somewhere like C:\MSDEV4.2\BIN. |
65 | This will set your build environment. |
66 | |
67 | =item * |
68 | |
69 | Depending on how you extracted the distribution, you have to make sure |
70 | all the files are writable by you. The easiest way to make sure of |
71 | this is to execute: |
72 | |
73 | attrib -R *.* /S |
74 | |
75 | from the perl toplevel directory. You don't I<have> to do this if you |
76 | used the right tools to extract the files in the standard distribution, |
77 | but it doesn't hurt to do so. |
78 | |
79 | =back |
80 | |
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81 | =head2 Building |
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82 | |
83 | =over 4 |
84 | |
85 | =item * |
86 | |
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87 | Make sure you are in the "win32" subdirectory under the perl toplevel. |
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88 | This directory contains a "Makefile" that will work with |
89 | versions of NMAKE that come with Visual C++ ver. 2.0 and above. |
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90 | |
91 | =item * |
92 | |
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93 | Edit the Makefile and change the values of INST_DRV and INST_TOP |
94 | if you want perl to be installed in a location other than "C:\PERL". |
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95 | |
96 | =item * |
97 | |
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98 | If you are using Visual C++ ver. 4.0 and above: type "nmake". |
99 | If you are using a Visual C++ ver. 2.0: type "nmake CCTYPE=MSVC20". |
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100 | |
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101 | This should build everything. Specifically, it will create perl.exe, |
102 | perl.dll, and perlglob.exe at the perl toplevel, and various other |
103 | extension dll's under the lib\auto directory. If the make fails for |
104 | any reason, make sure you have done the previous steps correctly. |
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105 | |
106 | =back |
107 | |
108 | =head2 Testing |
109 | |
110 | Type "nmake test". This will run most of the tests from the |
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111 | testsuite (many tests will be skipped, and but no test should fail). |
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112 | |
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113 | If some tests do fail, it may be because you are using a different command |
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114 | shell than the native "cmd.exe". |
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115 | |
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116 | Please report any failures as described under L<BUGS AND CAVEATS>. |
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117 | |
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118 | =head2 Installation |
119 | |
120 | Type "nmake install". This will put the newly built perl and the |
121 | libraries under "C:\PERL" (actually whatever you set INST_TOP to |
122 | in the Makefile). To use the Perl you just installed, set your |
123 | PATH environment variable to "C:\PERL\BIN" (or $(INST_TOP)\BIN, if you |
124 | changed the default as above). |
125 | |
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126 | =head1 BUGS AND CAVEATS |
127 | |
128 | This is still very much an experimental port, and should be considered |
129 | alpha quality software. You can expect changes in virtually all of |
130 | these areas: build process, installation structure, supported |
131 | utilities/modules, and supported perl functionality. Specifically, |
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132 | functionality specific to the Win32 environment may ultimately |
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133 | be supported as either core modules or extensions. |
134 | |
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135 | If you have had prior exposure to Perl on Unix platforms, you will notice |
136 | this port exhibits behavior different from what is documented. Most of the |
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137 | differences fall under one of these categories. |
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138 | |
139 | =over 8 |
140 | |
141 | =item * |
142 | |
143 | C<stat()> and C<lstat()> functions may not behave as documented. They |
144 | may return values that bear no resemblance to those reported on Unix |
145 | platforms, and some fields may be completely bogus. |
146 | |
147 | =item * |
148 | |
149 | The following functions are currently unavailable: C<fork()>, C<exec()>, |
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150 | C<dump()>, C<chown()>, C<link()>, C<symlink()>, C<chroot()>, |
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151 | C<setpgrp()>, C<getpgrp()>, C<setpriority()>, C<getpriority()>, |
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152 | C<syscall()>, C<fcntl()>, C<flock()>. This list is possibly very |
153 | incomplete. |
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154 | |
155 | =item * |
156 | |
157 | Various C<socket()> related calls are supported, but they may not |
158 | behave as on Unix platforms. |
159 | |
160 | =item * |
161 | |
162 | The four-argument C<select()> call is only supported on sockets. |
163 | |
164 | =item * |
165 | |
166 | The behavior of C<system()> or the C<qx[]> operator (a.k.a. "backticks"), |
167 | when used to call interactive commands, is ill-defined. |
168 | |
169 | =item * |
170 | |
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171 | C<$?> ends up with the exitstatus of the subprocess (this is different |
172 | from Unix, where the exitstatus is actually given by "$? >> 8"). |
173 | Failure to spawn() the subprocess is indicated by setting $? to |
174 | "255<<8". This is subject to change. |
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175 | |
176 | =item * |
177 | |
178 | Building modules available on CPAN is mostly supported, but this |
179 | hasn't been tested much yet. Expect strange problems, and be |
180 | prepared to deal with the consequences. |
181 | |
182 | =item * |
183 | |
184 | C<utime()>, C<times()> and process-related functions may not |
185 | behave as described in the documentation, and some of the |
186 | returned values or effects may be bogus. |
187 | |
188 | =item * |
189 | |
190 | Signal handling may not behave as on Unix platforms. |
191 | |
192 | =item * |
193 | |
194 | File globbing may not behave as on Unix platforms. |
195 | |
196 | =item * |
197 | |
198 | Not all of the utilities that come with the Perl distribution |
199 | are supported yet. |
200 | |
201 | =back |
202 | |
203 | Please send detailed descriptions of any problems and solutions that |
204 | you may find to <F<perlbug@perl.com>>, along with the output produced |
205 | by C<perl -V>. |
206 | |
207 | =head1 AUTHORS |
208 | |
209 | =over 4 |
210 | |
211 | =item Gary Ng <F<71564.1743@CompuServe.COM>> |
212 | |
213 | =item Gurusamy Sarathy <F<gsar@umich.edu>> |
214 | |
215 | =item Nick Ing-Simmons <F<nick@ni-s.u-net.com>> |
216 | |
217 | =back |
218 | |
219 | =head1 SEE ALSO |
220 | |
221 | L<perl> |
222 | |
223 | =head1 HISTORY |
224 | |
225 | This port was originally contributed by Gary Ng around 5.003_24, |
226 | and borrowed from the Hip Communications port that was available |
227 | at the time. |
228 | |
229 | Nick Ing-Simmons and Gurusamy Sarathy have made numerous and |
230 | sundry hacks since then. |
231 | |
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232 | Last updated: 13 April 1997 |
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233 | |
234 | =cut |