Fedora 34 Change: Remove Guile Support From Toolchain (Self-Contained Change)
https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/RemoveGuileFromToolchain
== Summary ==
Remove Guile support from GDB and GNU Make packages.
== Owner ==
* Name: [[User:keiths| Keith Seitz]]
* Email: keiths(a)redhat.com
== Detailed Description ==
GDB and Make packages currently contain Guile scripting support which
allows users to implement
(possibly new) functionality in these tools. This change request
proposes to remove that support from
the these tools, since both provide alternatives without the burden of
additional dependencies.
== Benefit to Fedora ==
While GDB supplies a "minimal" package which disables all
non-essential features for use in
the buildroot, Make has no equivalent, and is always compiled with
Guile support. This
requires that the buildroot contains Guile. This proposal will help
shrink the buildroot.
Furthermore, GDB already supports a much more widely tested and
feature-rich Python interface,
and maintainers would like to remove the maintenance burden imposed by
supporting multiple
scripting interfaces.
== Scope ==
* Proposal owners: Update gdb/make spec files.
* Other developers: Update Make/GDB scripting files if using Guile. No
such users expected.
* Policies and guidelines: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
* Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)
== Upgrade/compatibility impact ==
Users with GDB and/or Make Guile scripts will need to update and/or
rewrite their scripts.
== How To Test ==
GDB: There is nothing to test. If you are using Guile scripts, you
should rewrite with Python.
Make: Rebuild packages if it is unknown whether they contain Guile
scripts; otherwise, there
is nothing to test.
== User Experience ==
Guile scripts that extend the functionality of GDB or Make will stop
working when users upgrade
these packages. GDB users are encouraged to use GDB's Python interface
instead. Users of Guile
in Makefiles should either use shell scripting or GNU Make's built-in
language or migrate to
another build tool with different scripting capabilities (such as
CMake or Meson).
== Dependencies ==
N/A (not a System Wide Change)
== Contingency Plan ==
* Contingency mechanism: Revert changes and restore GDB/Make support for Guile.
* Contingency deadline: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
* Blocks release? N/A (not a System Wide Change
== Documentation ==
N/A (not a System Wide Change)
== Release Notes ==
Release notes should mention the removal of Guile support in GDB/Make
and suggest alternatives.
--
Ben Cotton
He / Him / His
Senior Program Manager, Fedora & CentOS Stream
Red Hat
TZ=America/Indiana/Indianapolis