The GNU build system, also called the GNU Autotools is a suite of tools produced by the GNU project that assist in making packages portable to many UNIX-like systems. It is part of GNU toolchain.

It comprises

• GNU Autoconf
• GNU Automake
• GNU Libtool

Other related tools include

• GNU make
• GNU gettext

• The pkg-config tool used in several GNOME packages
• GNU Compiler Collection

The GNU build system is widely used in many free software and open source packages. While the tools comprising the GNU build system themselves are GPL-ed free software, there are no restrictions in using them in making non-free software portable.

Sometimes programs distributed in source code form do not contain a configure file. It is then intended that the users should generate it by themselves. It is done like this:

 aclocal
 autoconf
 automake
 ./configure

External links

• The book GNU Autoconf, Automake and Libtool, by Gary V. Vaughan , Ben Elliston , Tom Tromey , and Ian Lance Taylor .
  • ISBN 1578701902
  • available online at http://sources.redhat.com/autobook under the terms of the Open Publication License (with none of the options exercised).
• The GNU Coding Standards (especially the chapter on The Release Process).
• The pkg-config package