Re: [PATCH] Fix Autoconf version required by Automake's configure.

[Ralf Wildenhues]

[ http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/automake-patches/2010-04/msg00121.html ]

* Stefano Lattarini wrote on Fri, Apr 30, 2010 at 05:21:03PM CEST:
> At Friday 30 April 2010, Eric Blake wrote:
> > On 04/30/2010 08:56 AM, Stefano Lattarini wrote:
> > > Apparently, Automake configure script tells that automake
> > > requires autoconf 2.60 or later, but then it checks for autoconf 
> > > >= 2.62, and if it is not found it aborts saying that automake
> > > requires configure 2.61a-341 or later.  The attached patch should
> > > fix this.
> > 
> > Your proposed patch delays the check until configure time.
> Well, the pre-existing checks themselves were run only at configure 
> time.  And IMHO this is a correct behaviour, since the autoconf 
> version required to *use* automake and run its testsuite isn't 
> necessarly the same autoconf version required for its developement 
> (e.g. for the regeneration of its configure script).

I agree with this reasoning.  I'm taking the patch (for maint).

> By the way, adding an AC_PREREQ call in Automake's own configure.ac 
> would be nice IMHO; I didn't do that because I don't know what is the
> minimal autoconf version truly required by Automake's own configure.ac.

Well, it /should/ be the same as $required_autoconf_version.  However,
that point should also be a bit moot as the git tree should have the
generated files from the most recent stable Autoconf, if that is recent
enough.  If it isn't, then it definitely should be the same as
$required_autoconf_version.

Cheers,
Ralf