RFC: Boost Process requires boost::filesystem when compiling with mingw #24036

issue hebasto openend this issue on January 11, 2022

hebasto commented at 3:14 pm on January 11, 2022: member

Working on “Use std::filesystem. Remove Boost Filesystem & System” #20744, I found an unfortunate pitfall – boost/process.hpp depends on boost::filesystem when cross-compiling for Windows. It happens in Guix environment as well.

The goal of this issue is to discuss and find a solution to get rid of boost::filesystem.
hebasto added the label Brainstorming on Jan 11, 2022
hebasto added the label Windows on Jan 11, 2022
laanwj commented at 4:14 pm on January 11, 2022: member

Is it a problem that something uses boost::filesystem? Does it conflicts with our own (non-use), or is it a lot of extra code to build? At least it could be specifically gated for the windows build.

In the longer run boost::process could be replaced with another library, or some own solution. It doesn’t seem like rocket science though it is tricky to get right in a cross-platform way (especially windows, I guess :smile:)
hebasto commented at 4:22 pm on January 11, 2022: member

Cross-compiling is successful only when a build system has been configured with --disable-external-signer.
fanquake closed this on Jan 20, 2022
DrahtBot locked this on Jan 20, 2023

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