Build the Viewer on Linux: Difference between revisions

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The following are instructions for building the Second Life viewer on linux. This process has only been used on [http://www.debian.org/ debian] and debian based systems like [http://www.ubuntu.com/ ubuntu]. For other platforms, see [[Get source and compile]].
==Step 0. Review BUILD.LINUX.md==
There is a [https://github.com/secondlife/viewer/blob/develop-linux/doc/BUILD.LINUX.md BUILD.LINUX.md] markdown file in the active '''develop-linux''' branch (see '''Step 2''') which will eventually become the primary documentation for building the SL viewer on Linux. In the meantime the instructions below may also be helpful.


== Installing the required dependancies ==
==Step 1. Install Requirements==


The Second Life Viewer has a number of compile/link dependancies on external libraries which need to be put in place first - to help you, the source download page contains a link to a <i>slviewer-linux-libs</i> package which you unpack over the source tree to fill most of the dependancies (and thus avoid most of the fiddly work described on this page). The Second Life Viewer is not a trivial build, and experience with building large software packages will help you greatly - but don't be daunted, it should be simple once the dependancies are in the right place the first time.
* Python 3.7+
* [https://git-scm.com/downloads Git]
* [https://cmake.org/download/ CMake] 3.20+ (need to be able to handle <code>--config</code> option)
* Native packages and tools (this list may be incomplete, please update as new dependencies are discovered):
  libfontconfig-dev libglib2.0-dev libglvnd-dev libgstreamer1.0-dev libgstreamer-plugins-base1.0-dev libosmesa6-dev libvlc-dev libwayland-dev libx11-dev ninja-build python3-venv
* [[Autobuild]] (probably best installed in a [https://docs.python.org/3/library/venv.html virtual environment])


Paths and package names given here are based on Ubuntu 6.06 and may vary according to your Linux distribution.
===Intermediate Check===


=== Prerequisites ===
Confirm things are installed properly so far by typing the following in a terminal:
cmake --version
python3 --version
git --version
autobuild --version


* You will need the <b>SCons</b> build tool [package: scons]
If everything reported sensible values and not "Command not found" errors, then you are in good shape!
* You should use the <b>GCC 3.4</b> C/C++ compiler [package: g++-3.4]; other GCC versions are not well-tested.


* fetch and unpack <b>FMOD 3.75</b> <http://www.fmod.org/>
==Step 2. Checkout Code==
** FMOD provides audio output, but (although 'free' in some senses) is not itself open-source.  <b>If</b> you wish to avoid FMOD, thus disabling audio, you may make these changes:
*** Remove the reference to '<b>fmod-3.75</b>' in indra/SConstruct
*** Replace '<b>-DLL_SDL=1</b>' with '<b>-DLL_SDL=1 -DLL_FMOD=0</b>' in indra/SConstruct
*** Comment-out the libfmod line in newview/linux_tools/client-manifest-i686


* You may <b>either</b> use our easy <i>slviewer-linux-libs</i> bundle of pre-built libraries and headers unpacked into the Second Life Viewer source tree, <b>or</b> (for example if you are porting to a new architecture or wish to make a package tailored to your Linux distribution's own libraries) you will have to install the following additional dependancies:
===Viewer===
** <b>boost</b> [libboost-dev]
** <b>boost-regex</b> [libboost-regex-dev]
** <b>apr-1</b> [libapr1.0-dev]
** <b>aprutil-1</b> [libaprutil1.0-dev]
** <b>xmlrpc-epi 0.51</b> <http://xmlrpc-epi.sourceforge.net/>
*** note: not xmlrpc-c (xmlrpc-c has a library and headers with the same name but is not compatible)
** <b>jpeglib</b> [libjpeg62-dev]
** <b>SDL</b> [libsdl1.2-dev]
** <b>Vorbis</b> [libvorbis-dev]
** <b>GTK 2.x</b> [libgtk2.0-dev]
** build <b>ELFIO</b> <http://sourceforge.net/projects/elfio/>
** build <b>OpenJPEG</b> <http://www.openjpeg.org/>


=== Copy headers and libraries into the source tree ===
Open a terminal and checkout the viewer source code:
git clone https://github.com/secondlife/viewer.git


Here is a guide to the sequence of shell commands needed to copy the required headers and libraries into the Second Life Viewer source tree for building.  Actual paths to system headers may vary according to Linux distribution.
Until it is merged into the '''develop''' branch you need to checkout '''develop-linux''':
* ${SLSRC} refers to the top-level directory of the Second Life Viewer source tree.
  cd viewer
* ${FMOD} refers to the top-level directory into which you unpacked FMOD 3.
  git checkout develop-linux
<code>
  cp ${FMOD}/api/inc/* ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/
  cp ${FMOD}/api/libfmod-3.75.so ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/lib_release_client/
</code>


If you are using our easy <i>slviewer-linux-libs</i> bundle then you can skip the rest of this section, <b>otherwise</b> you will also need to perform the following:
===Build Variables===
* ${OPENJPEG} refers to the top-level directory of your completed OpenJPEG build.
* ${ELFIO} refers to the top-level directory of your completed ELFIO build.
<code>
cp -a /usr/include/apr-1.0/ ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/apr-1


mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/expat
See [[Building the Viewer with Autobuild#Select Build Variables]]
cp -a /usr/include/expat*.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/expat/


mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/zlib
==Step 3. Configure==
cp -a /usr/include/zlib*.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/zlib/


mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/openjpeg
Be sure you have the following environment variables set before continuing:
cp ${OPENJPEG}/libopenjpeg/openjpeg.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/openjpeg/
cp ${OPENJPEG}/libopenjpeg.a ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/lib_release_client/


  mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/ELFIO
  AUTOBUILD_ADDRSIZE=64
  cp ${ELFIO}/ELFIO/*.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/ELFIO/
  AUTOBUILD_VARIABLES_FILE=<path to autobuild viewer variables>
cp ${ELFIO}/ELFIO/libelfio.so ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/lib_release_client/


mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/jpeglib
Configuring and building with '''autobuild''' works the same on all platformsFull instructions may be found at [[Build_Viewer_With_Autobuild]].
cp -a /usr/include/j*.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/jpeglib/
  touch ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/jpeglib/jinclude.h


  mkdir ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/llfreetype2
  autobuild configure -c RelWithDebInfoOS
cp -a /usr/include/freetype2/freetype/ ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/llfreetype2/
cp -a /usr/include/ft2build.h ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/llfreetype2/freetype/


cp -a /usr/include/atk-1.0 ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/
==Step 4. Build==
cp -a /usr/include/gtk-2.0 ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/
cp -a /usr/lib/gtk-2.0/include/* ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/gtk-2.0/
cp -a /usr/include/glib-2.0 ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/
cp -a /usr/lib/glib-2.0/include/* ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/glib-2.0/
cp -a /usr/include/pango-1.0 ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/


if your GTK is fairly recent and thus needs Cairo:
  autobuild build
  cp -a /usr/include/cairo/* ${SLSRC}/libraries/i686-linux/include/
</code>


== Compiling ==
===Running your newly built viewer===


<code>
==Step 5. Run==
$ cd indra
$ scons DISTCC=no BTARGET=client BUILD=release
</code>
Expect a build time of a couple of hours.  The resulting unstripped Second Life Viewer binary is <b>newview/secondlife-i686-bin</b>


== Testing and packaging the client ==
To launch the '''viewer''' you built, from your source tree root directory, run:


=== Testing the result from inside the tree ===
  build-linux-x86_64/newview/packaged/secondlife


You may find it simpler to follow the instructions in the 'Packaging the client' section below to run the client under the same conditions as an end-user would. Otherwise:
==Step 6. Optional==


* Preparing to run 'in-tree'
===Running Unit Tests===
** <i>ensure that you have indra/newview/app_settings/static_*.db2</i> - if not, you'll find it in the 'slviewer-linux-libs' download.
** now, from the indra directory:
<code>
$ cp ../scripts/messages/message_template.msg newview/app_settings/
</code>


* Running it: The LD_LIBRARY_PATH stuff ensures that the binary looks for its libraries in the right places. From the indra directory:
TODO: provide instructions for running unit tests.
<code>
$ ( cd newview && LD_LIBRARY_PATH=../../libraries/i686-linux/lib_release_client:${LD_LIBRARY_PATH}:/usr/local/lib  ./secondlife-i686-bin )
</code>


==== Augh!!  The client seems really slow!! ====
===Optional: Installing Proprietary Libraries===


By default, the open-source Second Life Viewer uses the open-source OpenJPEG library to decode the (many) JPEG-2000 texture images it receives from the serversUnfortunately this isn't quite of comparable speed to the proprietary third-party library which the Linden Lab viewer builds have traditionally used, for which we are not permitted to redistribute the source.
Some builds of the the Viewer depends on proprietary libraries (alternative open source libraries are also provided for developers who prefer or are not licensed to use the proprietary libraries).  Lindens do not distribute these libraries, so you will need to fetch and install these even if you download the libraries packages(This is due to licensing restrictions.  Don't ask, Lindens already did, and can't get permission.  So you do have to get them yourself.)


However, the <i>slviewer-linux-libs</i> package includes two pre-built libraries which facilitate the use of this smoother image decoding method: <b>libkdu_v42R.so</b> and <b>libllkdu.so</b>.  These are provided for your testing; again, we are not permitted to grant you the right to re-distribute these libraries to downstream users, but the viewer will still work (albeit slower) without them.
TODO: provide instructions for building proprietary libraries.


To use these faster image-decoding libraries, they simply need to be put into the right places relative to the viewer runtime directory - nothing needs to be reconfigured or recompiled.  The file <b>indra/newview/linux_tools/client-manifest-i686</b> contains some commented-out entries describing where these libraries belong; if you uncomment the two lines corresponding to libllkdu and libkdu then they will be automatically copied into the right place in the runtime directory when you follow the 'Packaging the client' instructions below.
==Handling Problems==


=== Packaging the client ===
If you encounter errors or run into problems following the instructions above, please first check whether someone else already had the same issue. A solution might be known already.


If you substitute 'BUILD=release' with '<b>BUILD=releasefordownload</b>' in the 'Compiling' section above, then packaging the resulting code, libraries, data and documentation into a tarball for the end-user will be done automatically as the final stage of the build process; the pristine end-user client distribution has been assembled into the directory <b>indra/newview/SecondLife_i686_1_X_Y_Z/</b> and has also been tarred into <b>indra/newview/SecondLife_i686_1_X_Y_Z.tar.bz2</b>
You may find the solution in any of these resources:
* [[{{TALKPAGENAME}}|This talk page]] (Report useful experiences there)
* [[#Common_Issues.2FBugs.2FGlitches_And_Solutions|Issue list below]] (If new issues, please add it to talk page above instead of there)
* [[Talk:Microsoft_Windows_Builds|Old talk page]]
* [[Common compilation problems]] (Rather old)
* [[Issue tracker]]


The file which controls what (and where) files go into the end-user runtime viewer directory is <b>indra/newview/linux_tools/client-manifest-i686</b>
* Fix it: [[Modifying CMake Files‎]] and please, submit a patch!


==== Packaging errors ====
===Getting Help===


The final packaging step may fail with errors about the manifest if you are not using the <i>slviewer-linux-libs</i> bundle; in this case, if you still wish to end up with an end-user viewer package incorporating your own libraries, you can edit the manifest file found at <b>indra/newview/linux_tools/client-manifest-i686</b>
Even when no description of your problem has been written down yet, someone might know about it, so get in touch with the community to get help.
 
* Subscribe to [[OpenSource-Dev|OpenSource-Dev Mailing List]] ([https://lists.secondlife.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/opensource-dev subscribe]) and post your question there.
 
----
[[Category:Compiling viewer]]

Latest revision as of 08:37, 5 January 2026

Step 0. Review BUILD.LINUX.md

There is a BUILD.LINUX.md markdown file in the active develop-linux branch (see Step 2) which will eventually become the primary documentation for building the SL viewer on Linux. In the meantime the instructions below may also be helpful.

Step 1. Install Requirements

  • Python 3.7+
  • Git
  • CMake 3.20+ (need to be able to handle --config option)
  • Native packages and tools (this list may be incomplete, please update as new dependencies are discovered):
 libfontconfig-dev libglib2.0-dev libglvnd-dev libgstreamer1.0-dev libgstreamer-plugins-base1.0-dev libosmesa6-dev libvlc-dev libwayland-dev libx11-dev ninja-build python3-venv

Intermediate Check

Confirm things are installed properly so far by typing the following in a terminal:

cmake --version
python3 --version
git --version
autobuild --version

If everything reported sensible values and not "Command not found" errors, then you are in good shape!

Step 2. Checkout Code

Viewer

Open a terminal and checkout the viewer source code:

git clone https://github.com/secondlife/viewer.git

Until it is merged into the develop branch you need to checkout develop-linux:

cd viewer
git checkout develop-linux

Build Variables

See Building the Viewer with Autobuild#Select Build Variables

Step 3. Configure

Be sure you have the following environment variables set before continuing:

AUTOBUILD_ADDRSIZE=64
AUTOBUILD_VARIABLES_FILE=<path to autobuild viewer variables>

Configuring and building with autobuild works the same on all platforms. Full instructions may be found at Build_Viewer_With_Autobuild.

autobuild configure -c RelWithDebInfoOS

Step 4. Build

autobuild build

Running your newly built viewer

Step 5. Run

To launch the viewer you built, from your source tree root directory, run:

 build-linux-x86_64/newview/packaged/secondlife

Step 6. Optional

Running Unit Tests

TODO: provide instructions for running unit tests.

Optional: Installing Proprietary Libraries

Some builds of the the Viewer depends on proprietary libraries (alternative open source libraries are also provided for developers who prefer or are not licensed to use the proprietary libraries). Lindens do not distribute these libraries, so you will need to fetch and install these even if you download the libraries packages. (This is due to licensing restrictions. Don't ask, Lindens already did, and can't get permission. So you do have to get them yourself.)

TODO: provide instructions for building proprietary libraries.

Handling Problems

If you encounter errors or run into problems following the instructions above, please first check whether someone else already had the same issue. A solution might be known already.

You may find the solution in any of these resources:

Getting Help

Even when no description of your problem has been written down yet, someone might know about it, so get in touch with the community to get help.