URL: <https://savannah.gnu.org/support/?111388>
Summary: autoreconf runs autoheader even on hand-maintained
config.h.in
Group: Autoconf
Submitter: rossburton
Submitted: Tue 24 Feb 2026 04:11:38 PM UTC
Priority: 5 - Unprioritized
Severity: 3 - Normal
Status: None
Privacy: Public
Assigned to: None
Originator Email:
Open/Closed: Open
Discussion Lock: Unlocked
Operating System: None
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Follow-up Comments:
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Date: Tue 24 Feb 2026 04:11:38 PM UTC By: Ross Burton <rossburton>
If I run autoreconf on a repository with a hand-maintained aclocal.m4 then
aclocal will notice this and not run.
However, if a repository has a hand-maintained config.h.in then autoreconf
will run autoheader which then complains.
For example, GNU readline uses autoconf but not automake/aclocal/autoheaders:
$ autoreconf -v
autoreconf: export WARNINGS=
autoreconf: Entering directory '.'
autoreconf: configure.ac: not using Gettext
autoreconf: configure.ac: not using aclocal
autoreconf: configure.ac: tracing
autoreconf: configure.ac: not using Libtool
autoreconf: configure.ac: not using Intltool
autoreconf: configure.ac: not using Gtkdoc
autoreconf: running: /usr/bin/autoconf
autoreconf: running: /usr/bin/autoheader
autoheader: warning: missing template: FIONREAD_IN_SYS_IOCTL
autoheader: warning: Use AC_DEFINE([FIONREAD_IN_SYS_IOCTL], [],
[Description])
autoheader: warning: missing template: HAVE_BSD_SIGNALS
autoheader: warning: missing template: HAVE_GETPW_DECLS
autoheader: warning: missing template: HAVE_MBRLEN
...
autoreconf: error: /usr/bin/autoheader failed with exit status: 1
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