This is a text-only version of the following page on https://raymii.org:
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Title       :   Statically (cross) compiled vim for x86, x86-64 and mipsel
Author      :   Remy van Elst
Date        :   17-09-2014
URL         :   https://raymii.org/s/blog/Statically_cross_compiled_vim_for_x86_x86-64_and_mips.html
Format      :   Markdown/HTML
---



Sometimes I need to manage a few systems with either low resources or a very
restricted set of packages. On those systems no compilers or development
libraries are available, however it is allowed to bring binaries.

A few of those systems are 32 bit x68 systems, some are MIPS systems, even
worse. They serve a secure purpose, I cannot go in to much detail about them,
except for they require a high level of security, they process certificates.

I really like vim as my editor, the only editor available by default on those
systems is `ed`. I have an [ed cheatsheet][1] for this purpose.

The solution for this problem is to create a statically (cross) compiled version
of `vim`.

These instructions are for Debian/Ubuntu, tested on an Ubuntu 14.04 64 bit
machine.

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### Install required packages

First install the required development libraries and git:



   apt-get install libncurses5-dev git build-essential


If you need to cross compile from 64 bit to 32 bit, also install
`libc6-dev-i386`:



   apt-get install libc6-dev-i386


The MIPS hardware has a special toolchain which have specific instructions not
covered here. The manufacturer probably covers this in their documentation.

### Vim source code

Clone the vim source from [github][3]:


   git clone https://github.com/b4winckler/vim.git


Go to the `vim/src` folder:



   cd vim/src/


### Compile time

Set the compile flags for vim and start the compile:



   export LDFLAGS="-static"
   export MAKEFLAGS="-j4"
   export CFLAGS=""
   ./configure --with-features=small  --with-compiledby='Remy <[email protected]>'  --with-x=no  --disable-gui  --disable-netbeans  --disable-pythoninterp  --disable-python3interp  --disable-rubyinterp  --disable-luainterp


The above `LDFLAGS` make sure Vim gets statically compiled. The other options
disable any GUI support (x) and enable a portion of the features, namely the
`small` featureset. This lacks syntax highlighting and such. See below for a vim
`:version` output.

If you need to compile on a 64 bit machine for a 32 bit machine, export the
following `CFLAGS`:



   export CFLAGS="-m32"


To compile for `mips`:



   ./configure --with-features=small  --with-compiledby='Remy <[email protected]>'  --with-x=no  --disable-gui  --disable-netbeans  --disable-pythoninterp  --disable-python3interp  --disable-rubyinterp  --disable-luainterp --target=mipsel-safenet # or mipsel-linux


Start the actual compile:



   make


### Results

When it is finished you should have a fairly small `vim` file:



   $ ls -la vim
   -rwxr-xr-x 1 remy remy 1.4M Sep 17 04:06 vim


Check that it is statically linked:



   $ ldd vim
       not a dynamic executable


A non-statically compiled vim gives me this:



   $ ldd /usr/bin/vim
           linux-gate.so.1 =>  (0xb77c7000)
           libm.so.6 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libm.so.6 (0xb7799000)
           libtinfo.so.5 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libtinfo.so.5 (0xb7779000)
           libselinux.so.1 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libselinux.so.1 (0xb7758000)
           libacl.so.1 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libacl.so.1 (0xb774e000)
           libgpm.so.2 => /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/libgpm.so.2 (0xb7748000)
           libc.so.6 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libc.so.6 (0xb75fa000)
           libdl.so.2 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libdl.so.2 (0xb75f6000)
           /lib/ld-linux.so.2 (0xb77c8000)
           libattr.so.1 => /lib/i386-linux-gnu/libattr.so.1 (0xb75ef000)


You can also use the `file` command:



   $ file vim
   vim: ELF 32-bit LSB executable, Intel 80386, version 1 (SYSV), statically linked, for GNU/Linux 2.6.26, BuildID[sha1]=0x97cb04dde25cd539487369524b0787fd422044be, not stripped


You can decease the filesize with 0.1 MB by stripping:



   $ strip vim
   $ ls -la vim
   -rwxr-xr-x 1 remy remy 1.3M Sep 17 04:04 vim


The same `vim`, dynamically compiled (without the `LDFLAGS="-static"`), is a
little bit smaller:



   $ ls -la vim
   -rwxr-xr-x 1 remy remy 793K Sep 17 04:17 vim


That's it. You can copy/`scp` the `vim` file anywhere and use it, as long as it
is the correct architecture. Even on restricted systems in my case.

These instructions work for almost all programs you can compile. The
`LDFLAGS="-static"` is the magic part here. You can try it for yourself with
other software.

### Version info

Here is the output of the `:version` in `vim` itself:



   :version
   VIM - Vi IMproved 7.4 (2013 Aug 10, compiled Sep 17 2014 04:04:32)
   Included patches: 1-430
   Compiled by Remy <[email protected]>
   Small version without GUI.  Features included (+) or not (-):
   +acl             -conceal         -farsi           -libcall         -mouse_sgr       -python3         -tag_old_static  -vreplace
   -arabic          -cryptv          -file_in_path    -linebreak       -mouse_sysmouse  -quickfix        -tag_any_white   +wildignore
   -autocmd         -cscope          -find_in_path    -lispindent      -mouse_urxvt     -reltime         -tcl             -wildmenu
   -balloon_eval    -cursorbind      -float           -listcmds        -mouse_xterm     -rightleft       +terminfo        +windows
   -browse          -cursorshape     -folding         -localmap        -multi_byte      -ruby            -termresponse    +writebackup
   +builtin_terms   -dialog          -footer          -lua             -multi_lang      -scrollbind      -textobjects     -X11
   -byte_offset     -diff            +fork()          -menu            -mzscheme        -signs           -title           -xfontset
   -cindent         -digraphs        -gettext         -mksession       -netbeans_intg   -smartindent     -toolbar         -xim
   -clientserver    -dnd             -hangul_input    -modify_fname    -path_extra      -sniff           -user_commands   -xsmp
   -clipboard       -ebcdic          -iconv           -mouse           -perl            -startuptime     -vertsplit       -xterm_clipboard
   -cmdline_compl   -emacs_tags      -insert_expand   -mouse_dec       -persistent_undo -statusline      -virtualedit     -xterm_save
   +cmdline_hist    -eval            +jumplist        -mouse_gpm       -printer         -sun_workshop    +visual          -xpm
   -cmdline_info    -ex_extra        -keymap          -mouse_jsbterm   -profile         -syntax          -visualextra
   -comments        -extra_search    -langmap         -mouse_netterm   -python          -tag_binary      -viminfo
      system vimrc file: "$VIM/vimrc"
        user vimrc file: "$HOME/.vimrc"
    2nd user vimrc file: "~/.vim/vimrc"
         user exrc file: "$HOME/.exrc"
     fall-back for $VIM: "/usr/local/share/vim"
   Compilation: gcc -c -I. -Iproto -DHAVE_CONFIG_H     -O2 -fno-strength-reduce -Wall -U_FORTIFY_SOURCE -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=1
   Linking: gcc   -static -L/usr/local/lib -Wl,--as-needed -o vim        -lm -ltinfo  -ldl


  [1]: https://raymii.org/s/tutorials/ed_cheatsheet.html
  [2]: https://www.digitalocean.com/?refcode=7435ae6b8212
  [3]: https://github.com/b4winckler/vim

---

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