Build / install mwp (Generic)#

Overview#

If you just want to install mwp on a Debian /derivative (includin WSL), x64_64, then you can install the binary .deb package from the Release Area.

For Arch Linux, you can install the AUR package mwptools-git

Otherwise, if you're using a different (not Debian based) distribution, just curious about building mwptools, you want to explore other tools and scripts in the repository or you're using a different architecture (ia32, Arm7, aarch64, riscV, ppc etc.), then you can build from source.

The mwptools suite is built using the meson and ninja toolchain. For most users these will be automatically provided by a build-essentials type of package transparently to the user.

Prior to late May 2021, the build system used a convoluted Makefile.

For Debian and derivatives there is a "one stop" installation script, as well as a x86_64 "Release" .deb archive.

Rationale#

In its early days, make was a suitable build tool. As mwptools has gained in features and functionality, this has become un-maintainable. The migration to meson and ninja solves this problem and allows the project structure to be rationalised.

Usage#

Migration (for old Make based installs)#

If you're updating an old Makefile based install, please ensure your extant mwptools instance does not have untracked files:

git clean -fd -fx
git pull

Normative guide#

Note that the normative build reference is the INSTALL file in the source tree. This is most current documentation.

First time#

Set up the meson build system from the top level. Note that _build is a directory that is created by meson setup; you can use what ever name you wish, and can have multiple build directories for different options (e.g _build for local and _sysbuild for system wide installations.

meson setup _build --buildtype=release --strip [--prefix $HOME/.local]

For a user / non-system install, set --prefix $HOME/.local
- This will install the binaries in $HOME/.local/bin, which should be added to $PATH as required.
For a Linux system wide install, set --prefix /usr
For FreeBSD (*BSD), for a system-wide install, don't set --prefix as the default (/usr/local) is suitable

Unless you need a multi-user setup, a local install is preferable, as you don't need sudo to install, and you'll not risk messing up build permissions.

If you're using a really old OS (e.g. Debian 10), you may also need export XDG_DATA_DIRS=/usr/share:$HOME/.local/share for a local install.

"Easy" first-time install on Debian and derivatives#

Download the first time build script
Make it executable chmod +x deb-install.sh
Run it ./deb-install.sh -y
Note that the script may ask for a password to install system packages
The resulting executables are in ~/.local/bin. Ensure this exists on $PATH; modern distros should do this for you.
If you get messages like Removing /home/$USER/.config/mwp/.layout.xml 0 and Failed to save layout, remains in /tmp/.mwp.xxxxxx.xml you also need export XDG_DATA_DIRS=$XDG_DATA_DIRS:$HOME/.local/share. This is rare and should not occur on supported platforms.

On some (mainly ARM / Rpi), you may need some alternate packages:

# For some ARM boards, without full OpenGL, you may need
apt install libegl1-mesa-dev
# For some ARM boards, (RPi3 for example), you may need
apt install gstreamer1.0-gtk3

Build and update#

ninja -C _build
ninja -C _build install
# for a local install (and cygwin)
# for system install
ninja -C _build
sudo ninja -C _build install

Accessing the serial port#

The user needs to have read / write permissions on the serial port in order to communicate with a flight controller. This is done by adding the user to a group:

Arch Linux: sudo usermod -aG uucp $USER
Debian / Fedora (and derivatives): sudo usermod -aG dialout $USER

All Linux with systemd: In you log in via systemd's loginctl, then you can create a udev rule that does not rquire the user being a member of a particular group:

#less /etc/udev/rules.d/45-stm32.rules
SUBSYSTEMS=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0483", ATTRS{idProduct}=="5740", MODE="0660", TAG+="uaccess", ENV{ID_MM_DEVICE_IGNORE}="1", ENV{ID_MM_CANDIDATE}="0"
SUBSYSTEMS=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0483", ATTRS{idProduct}=="df11", MODE="0660", TAG+="uaccess"

FreeBSD: sudo pw group mod dialer -m $USER
Windows/WSL: Not needed, no serial pass-through. Use the ser2udp bridge instead.

Files built / installed#

Default#

Application	Usage
`mwp`	Mission planner, GCS, log replay etc.
`mwp-area-planner`	Survey planner
`mwp-plot-elevations` 1	Mission elevation / terrain analysis
`gmproxy`	Proxy for certain commercial TMS
`cliterm`	Interact with the CLI
`fc-get`, `fc-set` 2	Backup / restore CLI diff
`inav_states.rb`	Summarise BBL state changes, also installed `inav_states_data.rb`
`fcflash`	FC flashing tool, requires `dfu-util` and / or `stmflash32`
`flashgo`	Tools to examine, download logs and erase from dataflash
`bproxy`	Black maps tiles, for those covert operations

Libraries#

$prefix/lib/libmwpclib.so
$prefix/lib/libmwpclib.a
$prefix/lib/libmwpvlib.so
$prefix/lib/libmwpclib.a

Notes:

1. This may either be the new Go executable or the legacy, less functional Ruby script.

2. fc-set is a hard link to fc-get

Optional#

These are only built by explicit target name; they will be installed if built.

# one of more of the following targets
ninja ublox-geo ublox-cli
sudo ninja install

Application	Usage
`ublox-cli`	Ublox GPS tool
`ublox-geo`	Graphical Ublox GPS tool

Troubleshooting and Hints#

Migrate from a system install to a user install#

Either use separate build directories, or reconfigure.

cd _build
sudo ninja uninstall
meson --reconfigure --prefix=$HOME/.local
ninja install

Fixing build permissions#

If you install to system locations, it is possible that sudo ninja install will write as root to some of the install files, and they become non-writable to the normal user.

In the build directory, run sudo chown -R $USER .
Consider migrating to a local install.

Help!!!!#

You've installed a new version but you still get the old one!#

If you used the deb-install.sh script, then it installed everything into $HOME/.local/bin (and other folders under ~/.local). This is nice because:

mwp does not pollute the system directories;
you don't need sudo to install it.

Linux (like most other OS) has the concept of a PATH, a list of places where it looks for executable files). You can see this from a terminal:

## a colon separated list
echo $PATH

So check that $HOME/.local/bin is on $PATH; preferably near the front.

If it is, then the problem may be that the older mwp also exists elsewhere on the PATH, and the system will not re-evaluate the possible chain of locations if it previously found the file it wants.

So, maybe you have an old install. You didn't remove it (alas); so the system thinks that mwp is /usr/bin/mwp; in fact it's now $HOME/.local/bin/mwp

If $HOME/.local/bin is on the PATH before /usr/bin, the you have two choices:

# reset the path search
hash -r
# mwp, where art thou? Hopefully now is ~/.local/bin
which mwp
# From **this terminal** executing mwp will run the location reported by `which mwp`

or

Log out, log in. The PATH will be re-evaluated.

If $HOME/.local/bin is not on PATH. then it needs to be added to a login file (.profile, .bashrc, .bash_profile etc.). Modern distros do this for you, however if you've updated an older install you may have to add it yourself.

# set PATH so it includes user's private bin if it exists
if [ -d "$HOME/bin" ] ; then
    PATH="$HOME/bin:$PATH"
fi

# set PATH so it includes user's private bin if it exists
if [ -d "$HOME/.local/bin" ] ; then
    PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"
fi

If an older (perhaps Makefile generated) mwp exists; then you should remove all evidence of an earlier system install.

find /usr -iname \*mwp\*

review the list and as root, delete the old files. Do similar for blackbox-decode.

If you're content with the list, then (caveat emptor):

sudo find /usr -iname \*mwp\* -delete

You'll still have to remove non-empty directories manually.

"ninja: error: loading 'build.ninja': No such file or directory#

Something, or persons unknown has removed this file.

cd mwptools
meson setup --reconfigure _build --prefix ~/.local
cd _build
ninja install

ERROR: Dependency "?????" not found, tried pkgconfig#

mwp requires a new dependency. This ~~will~~ should be documented in the wiki Recent Changes document.

Install the newly required dependencies
Rerun your build

Supporting data files#

File	Target	Usage
`src/common/mwp_icon.svg`	`$prefix/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/`	Desktop icon
`src/mwp/org.mwptools.planner.gschema.xml`	`$prefix/share/glib-2.0/schemas/`	Settings schema
`src/mwp/vcols.css`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Colours used by battery widget
`src/mwp/default.layout`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Default dock layout
`src/mwp/beep-sound.ogg`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Alert sound
`src/mwp/bleet.ogg`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Alert sound
`src/mwp/menubar.ui`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Menu definition
`src/mwp/mwp.ui`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	UI definition
`src/mwp/orange.ogg`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Alert sound
`src/mwp/sat_alert.ogg`	`$prefix/share/mwp/`	Alert sound
`src/mwp/mwp.desktop`	`$prefix/share/applications/`	Desktop launcher
`src/mwp/mwp_complete.sh`	`$prefix/share/bash-completion/completions/`	bash completion for `mwp`
`src/mwp/pixmaps`	`$prefix/share/mwp/pixmaps/`	UI Icons
`src/mwp/blackbox_decode_complete.sh`	`$prefix/share/bash-completion/completions/`	bash completion for `blackbox-decode`
`src/samples/area-tool/mwp_area_icon.svg`	`$prefix/share/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/`	Desktop icon
`src/samples/area-tool/mwp-area-planner.desktop`	`$prefix/share/applications/`	Desktop launcher
`docs/mwptools.pdf`	`$prefix/share/doc/mwp/`	(Obsolete) manual
`docs/debian-ubuntu-dependencies.txt`	`$prefix/share/doc/mwp/`	Debian / Ubuntu dependencies
`docs/fedora.txt`	`$prefix/share/doc/mwp/`	Fedora dependencies