POSIX-style portable rule
Write simple, explicit file rules compatible with standard make.
makefileANYposixportablerules
makefile
all: app
app: main.o util.o
cc -o app main.o util.oNotes
Explicit rules are the most portable foundation.
Makefile Portable POSIX Patterns
Portable makefile patterns that work across POSIX make environments, avoiding GNU-only features when needed.
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Portable make basics
Patterns that avoid GNU-only behavior.
Use standard macros
Honor user-overridable standard compiler variables.
makefileANYposixportablevariables
makefile
CC = c99
CFLAGS = -O2
LDFLAGS =
LDLIBS =
app: main.o util.o
$(CC) $(LDFLAGS) -o $@ main.o util.o $(LDLIBS)Notes
Keeping `CC`, `CFLAGS`, `LDFLAGS`, and `LDLIBS` overridable is a long-standing portable convention.
Suffix rule
Use classic suffix rules when targeting very portable make implementations.
makefileANYposixsuffix-rules
makefile
.SUFFIXES: .c .o
.c.o:
$(CC) $(CFLAGS) -c $<Notes
Suffix rules are older but widely portable.
makefile
clean:
rm -f app *.oNotes
`.PHONY` is common in modern makes, but some historical portability guidance prefers not to depend on it unless you know the implementation supports it.
bash
make CC=clang CFLAGS='-O0 -g'Notes
Command-line macro assignments are part of standard make usage.
Recipe portability
Shell-safe and cross-environment recipe habits.
Use shell short-circuit safely
Stop on failure explicitly within one recipe line.
makefileANYportableshellrecipes
makefile
deploy:
cd infra && terraform apply -auto-approveNotes
Since each recipe line runs in its own shell by default, keep dependent shell commands on the same line in portable makefiles.
makefile
print-pid:
@echo $$PPIDNotes
Make uses `$` for variable expansion, so shell variables need `$$`.
Use tabs for recipe lines
Indent recipe commands with a tab character.
makefileANYportablesyntaxrecipes
makefile
target:
printf 'hello
'Notes
Traditional make syntax requires tabs unless you explicitly use GNU `.RECIPEPREFIX`.
makefile
build:
mkdir -p buildNotes
`mkdir -p` is broadly available on modern POSIX systems.
Features to avoid for portability
Common GNU-only constructs that reduce portability.
Avoid eval for POSIX portability
Prefer explicit rules over GNU metaprogramming.
makefileANYportablegnu-only
makefile
# Prefer explicit rules when portability matters
app: main.o util.o
$(CC) -o $@ $^Notes
`eval`, `call`, `foreach`, and many text functions are GNU extensions.
Avoid GNU wildcard dependence
List sources explicitly or generate files in configure scripts.
makefileANYportablewildcard
makefile
SRC = main.c util.c api.cNotes
Some highly portable makefiles avoid GNU-only discovery functions.
Avoid `.ONESHELL` when targeting POSIX make
Keep recipe-line semantics standard.
makefileANYportablegnu-onlyshell
makefile
release:
cd dist && tar -czf app.tar.gz appNotes
`.ONESHELL` is a GNU extension.
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