gen-manpages output depends on build options, so needs to check them #17506

1. 
   laanwj commented at 2:04 pm on November 18, 2019: member

   The gen-manpages.py generates UNIX manual pages based on the -help output from the binairies that result from the build.

   This means that the options documented vary based on the build system settings. In the manual pages that are checked in, we would like to document as many options as possible.

   Ideally the script needs to check for:

   • HAVE_SYSTEM so that -alertnotify and other notifications are documented
   • ENABLE_WALLET so that wallet specific arguments are documented
   • WITH_ZMQ so that ZMQ arguments are documented

   An alternative would be to generate the manual page from the source code instead (e.g. pick up and parse AddArg). This is much more complicated, though, due to use of strprintf and such.

   Good first issue

   The purpose of the good first issue label is to highlight which issues are suitable for a new contributor without a deep understanding of the codebase.

   Useful skills: shell scripting

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2. laanwj added the label Scripts and tools on Nov 18, 2019
3. laanwj added the label good first issue on Nov 18, 2019
4. bitcoin deleted a comment on Nov 25, 2019
5. 
   malevolent commented at 2:51 am on December 1, 2019: contributor

   Hi I’ll be taking a look and posting the change later : )
6. 
   malevolent commented at 7:08 am on December 2, 2019: contributor

   update: getting a little blocked by 17478. Will resolve **when I get a bit more time.
7. 
   theStack commented at 11:17 am on March 24, 2020: contributor

   What would be the preferred way to determine the current build system settings? Is looking into the generated test/config.ini reliable enough? Or is parsing src/config/bitcoin-config.h better? (Non-trivial though, some #defines just use other symbols, e.g. #define HAVE_SYSTEM HAVE_STD__SYSTEM || HAVE_WSYSTEM). Or is there any other way I’m not aware of? @malevolent: Are you still working on this?
8. 
   laanwj commented at 6:00 am on April 14, 2022: member

   Is looking into the generated test/config.ini reliable enough?

   I think checking the test/config.ini inside the builddir would be fine. It’s generated at the same time as bitcoin-config.h so it’s just as reliable as that.

9. 
   arnabnandikgp commented at 9:11 pm on March 29, 2023: none

   wanted to know whether this issue is still active as i am interested in this issue..
10. 
    hebasto commented at 9:18 am on March 30, 2023: member

    wanted to know whether this issue is still active as i am interested in this issue..

    Yes. The issue is still unresolved.

11. 
    arnabnandikgp commented at 4:14 pm on April 2, 2023: none

    I am not able to understand exactly what this issue is trying to resolve..I have realised that the python script talked about here generates man-pages for each binary in the src/doc/man directory..but I am not able to understand what is meant by the documentation of arguments of build parameters…can anyone please explain me and clear my confusion regarding the same.
12. 
    hebasto commented at 6:48 am on April 5, 2023: member

    I am not able to understand exactly what this issue is trying to resolve..I have realised that the python script talked about here generates man-pages for each binary in the src/doc/man directory..but I am not able to understand what is meant by the documentation of arguments of build parameters…can anyone please explain me and clear my confusion regarding the same.

    For instance, if your system prevents ./configure from defining HAVE_SYSTEM, the bitcoind -help output will not contain the description of -alertnotify. As a result, the gen-manpages.py script’s output will be inadequate.

13. 
    BrandonOdiwuor commented at 1:18 pm on February 14, 2024: contributor

    any progress with this?
14. 
    BrandonOdiwuor commented at 8:42 am on February 16, 2024: contributor

    @theStack @hebasto @laanwj is the goal of this to generate just the missing docs or to generate all docs
15. 
    maflcko commented at 8:50 am on February 16, 2024: member

    The goal is to add a check to the script, as described in this issue.
16. ac12644 referenced this in commit c392202d71 on Oct 13, 2025
17. ac12644 referenced this in commit ec1ae1a256 on Oct 14, 2025

Contributors
laanwj malevolent theStack arnabnandikgp hebasto BrandonOdiwuor maflcko

Labels
Scripts and tools good first issue