Re: Request for Help with EPICS Asyn Build Issues

[Han Lee via Tech-talk <tech-talk at aps.anl.gov>]

Hi Jonathan,

If you can share your "application or IOC" in github, I may help you with that issue practically.

Meanwhile, you can check a few example for IOC template at 

https://github.com/epics-docs/epics-ioc-template

The most interesting area is the Makefile in the App folder.

Best,

Han

On Thu, Mar 6, 2025 at 9:53 AM Jonathan Hai via Tech-talk <tech-talk at aps.anl.gov> wrote:

Dear EPICS Tech-Talk,

I am encountering persistent build issues while compiling Asyn (asyn-R4-43) with EPICS Base 7.0.9 on Ubuntu 22.04 (Linux x86_64). Despite multiple attempts to resolve the issues, the build process fails with the following error:

No rule to make target '../%', needed by 'asynRecord.dbd'.

I would appreciate any guidance on how to fix this issue. Below is a summary of what I have tried so far.

---

Initial Build Attempt (Missing Asyn Support)

Problem:

• Initially, after compiling Asyn and running the IOC (st.cmd), many Asyn-related commands (asynReport, asynOctetWriteRead, etc.) were missing.
• The error messages included:

  ERROR: Command asyn_registerRecordDeviceDriver not found.
  ERROR: Can't open include file "asynRecord.dbd".
  ERROR: Can't open include file "devEpics.dbd".
  

Fixes Tried:

• Verified Asyn libraries (libasyn.so) and DBD files (asynRecord.dbd, devEpics.dbd) exist.
• Modified testApp/src/Makefile to include:

  DBD += asyn.dbd
  DBD += asynRecord.dbd
  DBD += devEpics.dbd
  

• Ensured st.cmd includes:

  dbLoadDatabase("../../dbd/asyn.dbd")
  dbLoadDatabase("../../dbd/asynRecord.dbd")
  dbLoadDatabase("../../dbd/devEpics.dbd")
  asyn_registerRecordDeviceDriver(pdbbase)
  

• Rebuilt Asyn using:

  make clean
  make
  

Result:

• The missing commands were still not found.
• asynRecord.dbd and devEpics.dbd were still missing or not properly recognized.

---

Missing asynRecord.dbd and devEpics.dbd

Problem:

• Despite confirming that asynRecord.dbd exists (ls -l ~/epics-base/support/asyn/asyn-R4-43/dbd/), the build system could not find it.
• make install failed with:

  No rule to make target '../%', needed by 'asynRecord.dbd'.
  

Fixes Tried:

• Verified INSTALL_DBD in configure/CONFIG:

  INSTALL_DBD += asyn.dbd
  INSTALL_DBD += asynRecord.dbd
  INSTALL_DBD += devEpics.dbd
  

• Checked configure/CONFIG for INSTALL_LOCATION:

  INSTALL_LOCATION = $(TOP)
  

• Ensured asyn.dbd includes:

  include "asynRecord.dbd"
  include "devEpics.dbd"
  

• Rebuilt Asyn and the IOC:

  make distclean
  make clean
  make -B
  

Result:

• The same error persisted:

  No rule to make target '../%', needed by 'asynRecord.dbd'.
  

---

Debugging Makefile Dependency Issues

Problem:

• The wildcard rule (%) in the Makefile might be broken or misconfigured.

Fixes Tried:

• Checked asyn/Makefile for incorrect % rules:

  ../%: $(INSTALL_LOCATION)/%
  

• Commented it out to prevent the broken rule:

  #../%: $(INSTALL_LOCATION)/%
  

• Rebuilt everything:

  make clean
  make install
  

Result:

• Still getting the same error.

---

Request for Help

Key Questions

1. Why is the build system trying to use ../% as a dependency for asynRecord.dbd?
2. Is there a known issue with Asyn (asyn-R4-43) and EPICS Base compatibility?
3. How can I properly ensure asynRecord.dbd is installed and recognized?
4. Are there specific EPICS build settings I should check to resolve this?

---

System & Build Environment

• EPICS Base: 7.0.9
• Asyn Version: asyn-R4-43
• OS: Ubuntu 22.04 (Linux x86_64)
• Compiler: gcc (Ubuntu 11.3.0-1ubuntu1~22.04)

I appreciate any insights or suggestions on how to resolve this issue.

Jonathan Hai

Researcher/Tech Monkey

CNBL | Department of Physics and Astronomy

McMaster University

Sapere Aude

 

--

Jeong Han Lee, Dr.rer.nat.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1699-2660