After you've unpacked a Cabal package, you can build it by moving into the root directory of the package and using the Setup.hs or Setup.lhs script there:
runhaskell Setup.hs [command] [option...]
where runhaskell might be runhugs, runghc or runnhc. The command argument selects a particular step in the build/install process. You can also get a summary of the command syntax with
runhaskell Setup.hs --help
Example 5. Building and installing a system package
runhaskell Setup.hs configure --ghc runhaskell Setup.hs build runhaskell Setup.hs install
The first line readies the system to build the tool using GHC; for example, it checks that GHC exists on the system. The second line performs the actual building, while the last both copies the build results to some permanent place and registers the package with GHC.
Example 6. Building and installing a user package
runhaskell Setup.hs configure --ghc --prefix=$HOME runhaskell Setup.hs build runhaskell Setup.hs install --user
In this case, since the package will be registered in the user's package database, we also install it under the user's home directory.
Example 7. Creating a binary package
When creating binary packages (e.g. for RedHat or Debian) one needs to create a tarball that can be sent to another system for unpacking in the root directory:
runhaskell Setup.hs configure --ghc --prefix=/usr runhaskell Setup.hs build runhaskell Setup.hs copy --copy-prefix=/tmp/mypkg/usr (cd /tmp/mypkg; tar cf - .) | gzip -9 >mypkg.tar.gz
If the package contains a library, you need two additional steps:
runhaskell Setup.hs register --gen-script runhaskell Setup.hs unregister --gen-script
This creates shell scripts register.sh and unregister.sh, which must also be sent to the target system. After unpacking there, the package must be registered by running the register.sh script. The unregister.sh script would be used in the uninstall procedure of the package. Similar steps may be used for creating binary packages for Windows.
The following options are understood by all commands:
--help, -h or
-?List the available options for the command.
--verbose=n or
-vnSet the verbosity level (0-5). The normal level is 1; a missing n defaults to 3.
The various commands and the additional options they support are described below. In the simple build infrastructure, any other options will be reported as errors, except in the case of the configure command.
Prepare to build the package. Typically, this step checks that the target platform is capable of building the package, and discovers platform-specific features that are needed during the build. In addition to the general options, this command recognizes the following
--prefix=dirSpecify the installation prefix (default: /usr/local on Unix systems).
--ghc or -g, --nhc or -n, --hugsSpecify which Haskell implementation to use to build the package. At most one of these flags may be given. If none is given, the implementation under which the setup script was compiled or interpreted is used.
--with-compiler=path
or -wpathSpecify the path to a particular compiler. If given, this must match the implementation selected above. The default is to search for the usual name of the selected implementation.
--with-hc-pkg=pathSpecify the path to the package tool, e.g. ghc-pkg.
--with-haddock=pathSpecify the path to Haddock.
--with-happy=pathSpecify the path to happy.
--with-alex=pathSpecify the path to alex.
--with-hsc2hs=pathSpecify the path to hsc2hs.
--with-cpphs=pathSpecify the path to cpphs.
--userAllow dependencies to be satisfied by the user package database, in addition to the global database.
--global(default) Dependencies must be satisfied by the global package database.
In the simple build infrastructure, an additional option is recognized:
--builddir=dir or
-bdirSpecify the directory into which the package will be built (default: dist/build).
In the simple build infrastructure, the values supplied via these options are recorded in a private file for use by later stages.
If a user-supplied configure script is
run (see Section 2.2), it is passed the
--prefix option and any unrecognized options.
Perform any preprocessing or compilation needed to make this package ready for installation.
Build the interface documentation for a library using Haddock.
Copy the files into the install locations and (for library packages) register the package with the compiler, i.e. make the modules it contains available to programs.
This command takes the following options:
--globalRegister this package in the system-wide database. (This is the default.)
--userRegister this package in the user's local package database.
Copy the files without registering them. This command is mainly of use to those creating binary packages.
This command takes the following option:
--copy-prefix=pathSpecify the directory under which to place
installed files. If this is not given, the
argument of the --prefix option to
configure is used.
Register this package with the compiler, i.e. make the modules it contains available to programs. This only makes sense for library packages. Note that the install command incorporates this action. The main use of this separate command is in the post-installation step for a binary package.
This command takes the following options:
--globalRegister this package in the system-wide database. (This is the default.)
--userRegister this package in the user's local package database.
--gen-scriptInstead of registering the package, generate a script containing commands to perform the registration. On Unix, this file is called register.sh, on Windows, register.bat. This script might be included in a binary bundle, to be run after the bundle is unpacked on the target system.
Deregister this package with the compiler.
This command takes the following options:
--globalDeregister this package in the system-wide database. (This is the default.)
--userDeregister this package in the user's local package database.
--gen-scriptInstead of deregistering the package, generate a script containing commands to perform the deregistration. On Unix, this file is called unregister.sh, on Windows, unregister.bat. This script might be included in a binary bundle, to be run on the target system.
Remove any files created during the configure or build steps.
Create a system- and compiler-independent source distribution in a file package-version.tgz that can be distributed to package builders. When unpacked, the commands listed in this section will be available.
However this command is not yet working in the simple build infrastructure.