Lightning: Makefile error with v0.7.3rc1: *** "ERROR: git is required for generating version information". Stop.

[vincenzopalazzo]

Issue and Steps to Reproduce

I download the version v0.7.3rc1.zip with this command

wget https://github.com/ElementsProject/lightning/archive/v0.7.3rc1.zip && unzip v0.7.3rc1.zip
cd lightning-0.7.3rc1 && ./configure && make

I get this error

Makefile:7: *** "ERROR: git is required for generating version information". Stop.

For resolving it, I try to change this line
VERSION=$(shell git describe --always --dirty=-modded --abbrev=7 2>/dev/null || pwd | sed -n 's,.*/clightning-\(v[0-9.rc]*\)$$,\1,p')

with this

VERSION=$(shell git describe --always --dirty=-modded --abbrev=7 2>/dev/null || pwd | sed -n 's,.*/lightning-\([0-9.rc]*\)$$,\1,p')

Well go on but I get this error

/bin/sh: 1: ./tools/autogen.sh: not found
external/Makefile:54: recipe for target 'external/libwally-core/src/libwallycore.la' failed
make: *** [external/libwally-core/src/libwallycore.la] Error 127

I noted the external project are empty, I thy this code
rm -r external/libwally-core && cd external/ && git clone https://github.com/ElementsProject/libwally-core.git && cd .. && make

The installer run but I get this error
external/Makefile:61: recipe for target 'external/jsmn/jsmn.c' failed make: *** [external/jsmn/jsmn.c] Error 1 rm external/libwally-core/src/secp256k1/libsecp256k1.la

My question is now: I have run the command to build the lib wrong? so ./configure && make if no, I want to create this issue, I don't know the make system for try to fix it, I hope this issue contains the right information to help you

[darosior]

Weird the first case was corrected in https://github.com/ElementsProject/lightning/pull/2926/commits/cb1120237844e7bbae5585d73ed8da491370bb55 (edit it was reintroduced in https://github.com/ElementsProject/lightning/pull/2967 to correct repro build).

We already had cases like this (https://github.com/ElementsProject/lightning/issues/2917) and it seems to be because rcs are not published as releases. Hence the instructions to build from zip are only for releases.

[vincenzopalazzo]

@darosior so for compile the version rc what command for compiling it I can use?

[darosior]

git clone https://github.com/ElementsProject/lightning
cd lightning && git fetch origin && git checkout v0.7.3rc1
./configure && make

[vincenzopalazzo]

Work!

Thanks

[darosior]

Thanks for testing the rc ;-)