[bug #64059] 'make install' fails when you build on a different directory

[anonymous]

URL:
  <https://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?64059>

                 Summary: 'make install' fails when you build on a different
directory
                   Group: GNU roff
               Submitter: None
               Submitted: Mon 17 Apr 2023 04:39:45 AM UTC
                Category: None
                Severity: 3 - Normal
              Item Group: Build/Installation
                  Status: None
                 Privacy: Public
             Assigned to: None
             Open/Closed: Open
         Discussion Lock: Any
         Planned Release: None


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Follow-up Comments:


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Date: Mon 17 Apr 2023 04:39:45 AM UTC By: Anonymous
Hi. I tried building groff from source and failed at the make install step.
what i did was:
$ ./bootstrap
#works fine
$ mkdir build && cd build
$ ../configure --prefix=$PWD
# succesful. 
# $PWD might not be the best destination directory for an actual build but for
the purpose of reproducing this error this i guess is ok.
$ make
# builds succesfully
$ make install
# fails with an error that I forgot to record properly (sorry)

the problem was with the file doc/groff.txt, which for some reason is being
searched for in the source root's doc directory, not in my  build/doc
directory. copying the build/doc/groff.txt file the source's root doc fixed
that. 
I also tried with a patch and it seems to work, but i warn you, autoconf is
just magical incantations for me, i dont know really what i am doing here. 

diff --git a/doc/doc.am b/doc/doc.am
index cddc51907..78a2a4e45 100644
--- a/doc/doc.am
+++ b/doc/doc.am
@@ -624,7 +624,7 @@ install-data-local: install-txt
 install-txt:
        -test -d $(DESTDIR)$(docdir) \
          || $(mkinstalldirs) $(DESTDIR)$(docdir)
-       cp $(top_srcdir)/doc/groff.txt $(DESTDIR)$(docdir)
+       cp $(doc_builddir)/groff.txt $(DESTDIR)$(docdir)
 
 install-data-local: install_infodoc
 install_infodoc: doc/groff.info
 







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