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Instructions for Fedora 20 and 19
First ensure that your compiler toolchain and Gecko build dependencies are installed.
sudo yum install \ ccache cmake gcc gcc-c++ glibc-devel.i686 \ libstdc++-devel libstdc++-devel.i686 \ autoconf213 \ gtk2-devel.i686 gtk+-devel.i686 gtk+extra-devel.i686 \ glib-devel.i686 glib2-devel.i686 \ dbus-devel.i686 dbus-glib-devel.i686 \ alsa-lib-devel.i686 yasm-devel.i686 \ gstreamer-devel.i686 gstreamer-plugins-devel.i686 \ gstreamer-plugins-base-devel.i686 \ libxml2-devel.i686 zlib-devel.i686 \ freetype-devel.i686 \ atk-devel.i686 pango-devel.i686 fontconfig-devel.i686 \ cairo-devel.i686 gdk-pixbuf2-devel.i686 \ libX11-devel.i686 libXt-devel.i686 libXext-devel.i686 \ libXrender-devel.i686 libXau-devel.i686 libxcb-devel.i686 \ pulseaudio-libs-devel.i686 harfbuzz-devel.i686 \ mesa-libGL-devel.i686 libXxf86vm-devel.i686 \ libXfixes-devel.i686 libdrm-devel-2.4.49-2.fc19.i686 \ mesa-libEGL-devel libXdamage-devel.i686 libXcomposite-devel.i686
Then you need to use a .mozconfig that looks like the following example.
# Flags set for targeting x86. export CROSS_COMPILE=1 export PKG_CONFIG_PATH=/usr/lib/pkgconfig CC="ccache gcc -m32" CXX="ccache g++ -m32" AR=ar ac_add_options --target=i686-pc-linux # Normal build flags. These make a debug browser build. ac_add_options --enable-application=browser mk_add_options MOZ_MAKE_FLAGS="-s -j6" mk_add_options MOZ_OBJDIR=@TOPSRCDIR@/../ff-dbg ac_add_options --enable-debug ac_add_options --disable-optimize
Instructions for Ubuntu 13.10
WARNING: all evidence suggests that x86 cross-builds are not a first-class support target for Canonical. Packages are missing, package dependencies are broken, and some apt commands don't work for :i386 packages. Further, it doesn't appear possible to have a 32-bit development environment co-exist with a 64-bit development environment. It's not known whether it's possible to switch back and forth. So if you're going to follow the instructions below, expect that your 64-bit developement environment will be broken. There appears to be multiarch cross compiling plan that should help fix this.
Alternatively, follow the instructions below for setting up a chroot environment. Or, switch to Fedora for development, which is a better environment overall and has much better x86 cross-build support.
But if you haven't been scared off yet, here are the instructions. First ensure that your compiler toolchain and gecko build deps are installed
sudo apt-get install zip unzip git g++ ccache cmake make autoconf2.13 yasm \ gcc-multilib g++-multilib \ libgtk2.0-dev:i386 libglib2.0-dev:i386 libdbus-1-dev:i386 \ libdbus-glib-1-dev:i386 libasound2-dev:i386 \ libcurl4-openssl-dev:i386 libiw-dev:i386 libxt-dev:i386 \ mesa-common-dev:i386 libgstreamer0.10-dev:i386 \ libgstreamer-plugins-base0.10-dev:i386 libpulse-dev:i386 \ gir1.2-gtk-2.0:i386 libgdk-pixbuf2.0-dev:i386 \ libpango1.0-dev:i386 libatk1.0-dev:i386 \ gir1.2-atk-1.0:i386 gir1.2-freedesktop:i386 \ gir1.2-gdkpixbuf-2.0:i386 gir1.2-glib-2.0:i386 \ gir1.2-pango-1.0:i386 \ libgirepository-1.0-1:i386 \ pkg-config:i386
Finally, you need to use a .mozconfig that looks like the following example.
# Flags set for targeting x86. export CROSS_COMPILE=1 CC="ccache gcc -m32" CXX="ccache g++ -m32" AR=ar ac_add_options --x-libraries=/usr/lib32 ac_add_options --target=i686-pc-linux # Normal build flags. These make a prof browser build. ac_add_options --enable-application=browser mk_add_options MOZ_MAKE_FLAGS="-s -j6" mk_add_options MOZ_OBJDIR=@TOPSRCDIR@/../ff-prof ac_add_options --disable-gstreamer ac_add_options --enable-profiling
Instructions for Ubuntu
Method 1: True Cross-Compiling
This method is actually cross-compiling: you take a 64-bit toolchain and produce 32-bit binaries. This is ideally how you cross-compile.
sudo apt-get install ia32-libs gcc-multilib g++-multilib lib32*- (I had to open Synaptic afterwards, search for package names beginning with lib32, and install the ones that apt-get missed)
- Use a
.mozconfiglike below. make -f client.mk build
export CROSS_COMPILE=1 mk_add_options MOZ_OBJDIR=@TOPSRCDIR@/objdir-ff-dbg32 mk_add_options MOZ_MAKE_FLAGS="-s -j4" ac_add_options --enable-application=browser CC="gcc -m32" CXX="g++ -m32" AR=ar ac_add_options --x-libraries=/usr/lib32 ac_add_options --target=i686-pc-linux ac_add_options --disable-crashreporter # needed because I couldn't find a 32-bit curl-dev lib ac_add_options --disable-libnotify # needed because I couldn't find a 32-bit libinotify-dev ac_add_options --disable-gnomevfs # needed because I couldn't find a 32-bit libgnomevfs-dev ac_add_options --disable-gstreamer # needed because I couldn't find a 32-bit gstreamer lib
If you are getting an error as follows:
error: Can't find header fontconfig/fcfreetype.h
Add these configuration options to your .mozconfig:
ac_add_options --disable-freetypetest ac_add_options --disable-pango
Method 2: Create a 32-bit chroot Environment
In this method, we effectively create a wholly-contained 32-bit operating system within a 64-bit operating system using schroot. This isn't technically cross-compiling, but it yields the same result: 32-bit binaries.
This method is arguably more reliable than true cross-compiling because the newly-created environment is completely isolated from the 64-bit operating system and it won't be susceptible to common issues with cross-compiling, such as unavailability of 32-bit libraries/packages when running in 64-bit mode. Additionally, since your 32-bit environment is completely isolated, to clean up from it, you just rm -rf the chroot directory. Contrast this with removing dozens of 32-bit packages from your primary operating system.
The downside to this method is size and complexity. Since you will be effectively creating a whole operating system within your primary operating system, there will be lots of redundant files. You'll probably need at least 1GB for all the new files. Additionally, the steps for initially creating the 32-bit environment are more involved. See the bottom of this page for a script capable of automating the whole process of cross-compilation.
To create a 32-bit chroot Ubuntu environment, follow the DebootstrapChroot instructions. Here is an example config file which works in Ubuntu 13.10:
# /etc/schroot/chroot.d/saucy_i386 [saucy_i386] description=Ubuntu 13.10 for i386 directory=/srv/chroot/saucy_i386 root-users=gps type=directory personality=linux32 users=gps
Once you have changed the root-users and users entries to include your username and verified that $ schroot -c saucy_i386 works, $ exit back to your regular operating system and copy your APT's sources list to the new environment:
$ sudo cp /etc/apt/sources.list /srv/chroot/saucy_i386/etc/apt/sources.list
Note: this assumes a generic sources list. If you have modified this file yourself, you may wish to ensure the contents are accurate when you perform the copy.
The reason we copy the APT sources is because debootstrap does not appear to configure all the sources by default (it doesn't define the "sources" sources, for example).
Once your sources list is copied over, enter your new environment and configure things:
# Update the APT sources and install sudo into the new environment and exit back out $ schroot -c saucy_i386 -u root (precise_i386) # apt-get update (precise_i386) # apt-get install sudo (precise_i386) # exit # re-enter the environment as a regular user $ schroot -c saucy_i386 # Install Firefox build dependencies $ sudo apt-get build-dep firefox
Now, your new 32-bit operating system should be ready for building Firefox!
One last step is ensuring that configure detects the proper system type. Since you are technically running on a 64-bit kernel, things could still be fooled.
Run the following program from your mozilla source tree:
$ ./build/autoconf/config.guess
If this prints anything with x86_64, the system type is being incorrectly detected and you must override it. You can fix things by adding the following to your mozconfig:
ac_add_options --host=i686-pc-linux-gnu ac_add_options --target=i686-pc-linux-gnu
When you run configure ($ mach configure), verify that the host, target, and build system types are what you just defined in your mozconfig:
checking host system type... i686-pc-linux-gnu checking target system type... i686-pc-linux-gnu checking build system type... i686-pc-linux-gnu
If you intend to run the 32bits Firefox build in the chroot on the 64bits machine, you need to install a few packages in the host:
sudo apt-get install gcc-multilib g++-multilib libxrender1:i386 libasound-dev:i386 libdbus-glib-1-2:i386 libgtk2.0-0:i386 libxt-dev:i386
Now, follow the build instructions like normal and you should have 32-bit builds!