6.23. Using iconv

6.23. Using `iconv`
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6.23. Using `iconv`

After 2013-10-08 (254273), FreeBSD 10-CURRENT and newer versions have a native iconv in the operating system. On earlier versions, converters/libiconv was used as a dependency.

For software that needs iconv, define USES=iconv. FreeBSD versions before 10-CURRENT on 2013-08-13 (254273) do not have a native iconv. On these earlier versions, a dependency on converters/libiconv will be added automatically.

When a port defines USES=iconv, these variables will be available:

Variable name	Purpose	Value before FreeBSD 10-CURRENT 254273 (2013-08-13)	Value after FreeBSD 10-CURRENT 254273 (2013-08-13)
`ICONV_CMD`	Directory where the `iconv` binary resides	`${LOCALBASE}/bin/iconv`	`/usr/bin/iconv`
`ICONV_LIB`	`ld` argument to link to `libiconv` (if needed)	`-liconv`	(empty)
`ICONV_PREFIX`	Directory where the `iconv` implementation resides (useful for configure scripts)	`${LOCALBASE}`	`/usr`
`ICONV_CONFIGURE_ARG`	Preconstructed configure argument for configure scripts	`--with-libiconv-prefix=${LOCALBASE}`	(empty)
`ICONV_CONFIGURE_BASE`	Preconstructed configure argument for configure scripts	`--with-libiconv=${LOCALBASE}`	(empty)

These two examples automatically populate the variables with the correct value for systems using converters/libiconv or the native iconv respectively:

Example 6.14. Simple iconv Usage

USES=		iconv
LDFLAGS+=	-L${LOCALBASE}/lib ${ICONV_LIB}

Example 6.15. iconv Usage with configure

USES=		iconv
CONFIGURE_ARGS+=${ICONV_CONFIGURE_ARG}

As shown above, ICONV_LIB is empty when a native iconv is present. This can be used to detect the native iconv and respond appropriately.

Sometimes a program has an ld argument or search path hardcoded in a Makefile or configure script. This approach can be used to solve that problem:

Example 6.16. Fixing Hardcoded -liconv

USES=		iconv

post-patch:
	@${REINPLACE_CMD} -e 's/-liconv/${ICONV_LIB}/' ${WRKSRC}/Makefile

In some cases it is necessary to set alternate values or perform operations depending on whether there is a native iconv. bsd.port.pre.mk must be included before testing the value of ICONV_LIB:

Example 6.17. Checking for Native iconv Availability

USES=		iconv

.include <bsd.port.pre.mk>

post-patch:
.if empty(ICONV_LIB)
	# native iconv detected
	@${REINPLACE_CMD} -e 's|iconv||' ${WRKSRC}/Config.sh
.endif

.include <bsd.port.post.mk>

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