Movian Build System Documentation¶

Overview¶

Movian uses a custom configure-based build system that supports multiple platforms and architectures. The build system is designed to handle cross-compilation, dependency detection, and platform-specific optimizations.

Build System Architecture¶

graph TB
    subgraph "Entry Points"
        Configure[./configure]
        Autobuild[./Autobuild.sh]
    end

    subgraph "Platform Detection"
        Linux[configure.linux]
        OSX[configure.osx]
        Android[configure.android]
        PS3[configure.ps3]
    end

    subgraph "Common Configuration"
        ConfigInc[support/configure.inc]
        ConfigDefault[config.default]
    end

    subgraph "Build Output"
        ConfigMak[build.*/config.mak]
        Makefile[Makefile]
        Binary[movian binary]
    end

    Configure --> Linux
    Configure --> OSX
    Autobuild --> Android
    Autobuild --> PS3

    Linux --> ConfigInc
    OSX --> ConfigInc
    Android --> ConfigInc
    PS3 --> ConfigInc

    ConfigInc --> ConfigDefault
    ConfigDefault --> ConfigMak
    ConfigMak --> Makefile
    Makefile --> Binary

Core Build Files¶

Main Configuration Scripts¶

File	Purpose	Platform
`configure`	Main entry point, detects platform	Linux, macOS
`configure.linux`	Linux-specific configuration	Linux
`configure.osx`	macOS-specific configuration	macOS
`configure.android`	Android cross-compilation	Android
`configure.ps3`	PlayStation 3 configuration	PS3
`configure.rpi`	Raspberry Pi configuration	Raspberry Pi

Build Support Files¶

File	Purpose
`support/configure.inc`	Common configuration functions and feature definitions
`config.default`	Default build configuration values
`Makefile`	Main build rules and targets
`Autobuild.sh`	Automated build script for CI/CD

Platform-Specific Autobuild Scripts¶

Script	Target Platform	Description
`Autobuild/android.sh`	Android	Cross-compilation for Android devices
`Autobuild/debian.sh`	Debian Linux	Debian package building
`Autobuild/ios.sh`	iOS	Cross-compilation for iOS devices
`Autobuild/osx.sh`	macOS	macOS application bundle creation
`Autobuild/ps3.sh`	PlayStation 3	PS3 homebrew compilation
`Autobuild/rpi.sh`	Raspberry Pi	ARM cross-compilation for RPi

System Dependencies¶

Core Dependencies (All Platforms)¶

Library	Purpose	Required	Notes
libfreetype	Font rendering	Yes	TrueType font support
libfontconfig	Font configuration	Yes	Font discovery and matching
zlib	Compression	Yes	Data compression support
libpthread	Threading	Yes	POSIX thread support
OpenSSL/PolarSSL	Cryptography	Yes	HTTPS and encryption
SQLite	Database	Yes	Settings and metadata storage

Media Dependencies¶

Library	Purpose	Required	Notes
FFmpeg/libav	Media codecs	Yes	Audio/video decoding
libpulse	Audio output	Linux	PulseAudio support
libasound	Audio output	Linux	ALSA support
CoreAudio	Audio output	macOS	Native macOS audio

UI Dependencies¶

Library	Purpose	Required	Notes
OpenGL	Graphics rendering	Yes	GLW rendering backend
libX11	Window system	Linux	X11 window management
libXext	X11 extensions	Linux	Extended X11 functionality
libXv	Video output	Linux	X11 video acceleration
libXss	Screen saver	Linux	Screen saver integration
VDPAU	Video acceleration	Linux	NVIDIA video acceleration

Network Dependencies¶

Library	Purpose	Required	Notes
libcurl	HTTP client	Optional	Alternative HTTP implementation
librtmp	RTMP streaming	Optional	Real-time streaming protocol
Avahi	Service discovery	Optional	Bonjour/Zeroconf support

Optional Dependencies¶

Library	Purpose	Platform	Notes
libwebkit	Web rendering	Linux	HTML content display
libcec	HDMI-CEC	Linux	TV remote control
lirc	IR remote	Linux	Infrared remote support
libntfs	NTFS support	Linux	NTFS filesystem access

Build Configuration Options¶

Common Configure Options¶

# Basic configuration
./configure --help                    # Show all options
./configure --release                 # Release build (optimized)
./configure --debug                   # Debug build (symbols)

# Installation paths
./configure --prefix=/usr/local       # Installation prefix
./configure --bindir=/usr/local/bin   # Binary installation directory
./configure --datadir=/usr/share      # Data files directory

# Compiler options
./configure --cc=gcc-9                # Specify compiler
./configure --cxx=g++-9               # Specify C++ compiler
./configure --optlevel=3              # Optimization level (0-3)

# Feature control
./configure --disable-webkit          # Disable WebKit support
./configure --disable-vdpau           # Disable VDPAU acceleration
./configure --enable-bughunt          # Enable debugging features

Platform-Specific Options¶

Linux Options¶

./configure --glw-frontend=x11        # Use X11 frontend (default)
./configure --glw-frontend=none       # Disable GLW (headless)
./configure --pkg-config-path=PATH    # Additional pkg-config paths

macOS Options¶

./configure --arch=x86_64             # Target architecture
./configure --macosx-sdk=PATH         # macOS SDK path
./configure --release                 # Stage for release (app bundle)

Cross-Compilation Options¶

# Android
./Autobuild.sh -t android -v 5.0.500

# Raspberry Pi
./Autobuild.sh -t rpi -v 5.0.500

# PlayStation 3
./Autobuild.sh -t ps3 -v 5.0.500

Feature Configuration System¶

Feature Flags¶

The build system uses a comprehensive feature flag system defined in support/configure.inc:

# Core features (always enabled)
enable libpthread
enable zlib
enable libfreetype
enable libfontconfig

# Platform-specific features
if [ "$PLATFORM" = "linux" ]; then
    enable libpulse
    enable lirc
    enable vdpau
fi

if [ "$PLATFORM" = "osx" ]; then
    enable coreaudio
    enable bonjour
    enable spotlight
fi

Available Features¶

Feature	Description	Default
`glw`	OpenGL Widget UI system	Enabled
`plugins`	JavaScript plugin support	Enabled
`httpserver`	Built-in HTTP server	Enabled
`dvd`	DVD playback support	Enabled
`bittorrent`	BitTorrent support	Optional
`airplay`	AirPlay streaming	Optional
`webpopup`	Web popup windows	Optional

Build Targets and Output¶

Standard Build Targets¶

make                    # Build main binary
make clean             # Clean build files
make distclean         # Clean all generated files
make install           # Install to system (requires root)

Platform-Specific Targets¶

Linux¶

make                   # Creates build.linux/movian
make install          # Installs to /usr/local/bin/movian

macOS¶

make                   # Creates build.osx/Movian.app
make dist             # Creates distributable DMG file

Cross-Platform¶

./Autobuild.sh -t rpi  # Creates build.rpi/showtime.sqfs
./Autobuild.sh -t ps3  # Creates PS3 homebrew package

Build Directory Structure¶

build.{platform}/
├── config.mak              # Generated build configuration
├── movian                  # Main executable (Linux)
├── Movian.app/             # Application bundle (macOS)
│   ├── Contents/
│   │   ├── Info.plist
│   │   ├── MacOS/movian
│   │   └── Resources/
├── libmovian.a            # Static library (if built)
└── [object files]         # Compiled object files

Dependency Detection¶

Automatic Detection¶

The configure scripts automatically detect available libraries using several methods:

pkg-config: Primary method for library detection
Header checks: Compile tests for header availability
Library linking: Link tests for library availability
Feature probing: Runtime capability detection

Manual Override¶

You can manually specify library locations:

# PKG_CONFIG_PATH for non-standard locations
export PKG_CONFIG_PATH="/usr/local/lib/pkgconfig:$PKG_CONFIG_PATH"

# Direct compiler flags
./configure --extra-cflags="-I/opt/include" --extra-ldflags="-L/opt/lib"

# Disable problematic dependencies
./configure --disable-webkit --disable-vdpau

Version Requirements¶

Minimum Versions¶

Component	Minimum Version	Notes
GCC	4.8+	C99 and C++11 support required
Clang	3.4+	Alternative to GCC
Make	3.81+	GNU Make required
pkg-config	0.25+	Library detection
Python	2.7+ or 3.x	Build script support

Library Versions¶

Library	Minimum Version	glwcommended
FFmpeg	2.8+	4.0+
OpenSSL	1.0.2+	1.1.1+
FreeType	2.4+	2.10+
FontConfig	2.8+	2.13+
PulseAudio	4.0+	12.0+

Troubleshooting Build Issues¶

Common Configuration Problems¶

Missing Dependencies¶

# Error: Package 'freetype2' not found
sudo apt-get install libfreetype6-dev

# Error: Package 'fontconfig' not found  
sudo apt-get install libfontconfig1-dev

# Error: OpenGL headers not found
sudo apt-get install libgl1-mesa-dev

Compiler Issues¶

# Use specific compiler version
./configure --cc=gcc-8 --cxx=g++-8

# Add debugging symbols
./configure --optlevel=g --enable-bughunt

# Disable problematic optimizations
./configure --extra-cflags="-fno-omit-frame-pointer"

Cross-Compilation Issues¶

# Ensure toolchain is in PATH
export PATH="/opt/cross-compiler/bin:$PATH"

# Specify target architecture
./configure --arch=arm --cpu=cortex-a7

# Use system root for libraries
./configure --sysroot=/opt/cross-sysroot

Build Verification¶

After successful configuration, verify the build setup:

# Check generated configuration
cat build.linux/config.mak

# Verify enabled features
grep "^CONFIG_" build.linux/config.mak

# Test compilation
make -j4

# Verify binary
file build.linux/movian
ldd build.linux/movian  # Check library dependencies

Advanced Build Scenarios¶

Development Builds¶

For active development with debugging support:

./configure \
    --enable-bughunt \
    --optlevel=g \
    --extra-cflags="-fsanitize=address -fno-omit-frame-pointer" \
    --extra-ldflags="-fsanitize=address"

Minimal Builds¶

For embedded systems with limited resources:

./configure \
    --disable-webkit \
    --disable-bittorrent \
    --disable-airplay \
    --disable-httpserver \
    --glw-frontend=none

Static Builds¶

For distribution without external dependencies:

./configure \
    --enable-static \
    --disable-shared \
    --extra-ldflags="-static"

Integration with IDEs¶

Code::Blocks¶

Import Makefile project
Set build directory to build.linux/
Configure custom build commands

CLion¶

Open as Makefile project
Configure toolchain in settings
Set working directory to project root

Visual Studio Code¶

Install C/C++ extension
Configure c_cpp_properties.json with include paths
Set up build tasks in tasks.json

Source References: - configure - Main configuration entry point - support/configure.inc - Common configuration functions
- Makefile - Build rules and targets - Autobuild/ - Platform-specific build scripts

Accuracy Status: 🟢 Verified from source code analysis
Last Updated: November 2025
Movian Version: 4.8+