Provided by: debhelper_13.14.1ubuntu5_all 
NAME
dh - debhelper command sequencer
SYNOPSIS
dh sequence [--with addon[,addon ...]] [--list] [debhelper options]
DESCRIPTION
dh runs a sequence of debhelper commands. The supported sequences correspond to the targets of a
debian/rules file: build-arch, build-indep, build, clean, install-indep, install-arch, install, binary-
arch, binary-indep, and binary.
OVERRIDE AND HOOK TARGETS
A debian/rules file using dh can override the command that is run at any step in a sequence, by defining
an override target. It is also possible to inject a command before or after any step without affecting
the step itself.
Injecting commands before or after a step
Note: This feature requires debhelper 12.8 or later plus the package must use compatibility mode 10 or
later.
To inject commands before dh_command, add a target named execute_before_dh_command to the rules files.
Similarly, if you want to inject commands after dh_command, add the target execute_after_dh_command.
Both targets can be used for the same dh_command and also even if the command is overridden (as described
in "Overriding a command" below).
When these targets are defined, dh will call the targets respectively before or after it would invoke
dh_command (or its override target).
Overriding a command
To override dh_command, add a target named override_dh_command to the rules file. When it would normally
run dh_command, dh will instead call that target. The override target can then run the command with
additional options, or run entirely different commands instead. See examples below.
Architecture dependent/independent override and hook targets
The override and hook targets can also be defined to run only when building architecture dependent or
architecture independent packages. Use targets with names like override_dh_command-arch and
execute_after_dh_command-indep.
This feature is available since debhelper 8.9.7 (for override targets) and 12.8 (for hook targets).
Completely empty targets
As a special optimization, dh will skip a target if it is completely empty and does not depend on any
other target. This is mostly useful for override targets, where the command will simply be skipped
without the overhead of invoking a dummy target.
Note that the target has to be completely empty for this to work:
# Skip dh_bar - the good and optimized way
# Some rationale for skipping dh_bar goes here
override_dh_bar:
# Skip dh_foo - the slow way
override_dh_foo:
# Some rationale for skipping dh_foo goes here
# (these comments causes a dummy target to be run)
Verifying targets are picked up by dh
As of debhelper 13.10, you can use dh_assistant(1) to see which override and hook targets will be seen by
dh. Here is an example run of dh_assistant(1) along with its output:
$ dh_assistant detect-hook-targets
{
"commands-not-in-path": [
"dh_foo"
],
"hook-targets": [
{
"command": "dh_strip_nondeterminism",
"is-empty": true,
"package-section-param": null,
"target-name": "override_dh_strip_nondeterminism"
},
{
"command": "dh_foo",
"is-empty": false,
"package-section-param": "-a",
"target-name": "override_dh_foo-arch"
}
]
}
The commands-not-in-path is useful for spotting mistakes in the hook target names. A non-empty value
implies one of more hook targets are related to a command that is either not installed or no command with
that name exists at all. It is generally worth double checking these.
Additionally, the is-empty attribute for each hook target can be used for seeing whether a hook target
triggers the "Completely empty targets" optimization.
If you are interested in the other attributes, please read the dh_assistant(1) for the details.
Verifying targets are picked up by dh (when debhelper is older than 13.10)
On older versions of debhelper, you have to use dh with --no-act. You can use the following command as
an example:
$ dh binary --no-act | grep dh_install | head -n5
dh_installdirs
dh_install
debian/rules execute_after_dh_install
dh_installdocs
dh_installchangelogs
The debian/rules execute_after_dh_install in the output, which signals that dh registered a
execute_after_dh_install target and would run it directly after dh_install(1).
Note that "Completely empty targets" will be omitted in the listing above. This makes it a bit harder to
spot as you are looking for the omission of a command name. But otherwise, the principle remains the
same.
Caveats with hook targets and makefile conditionals
If you choose to wrap a hook target in makefile conditionals, please be aware that dh computes all the
hook targets a head of time and caches the result for that run. Furthermore, the conditionals will be
invoked again when dh calls the hook target later and will assume the answer did not change.
The parsing and caching often happens before dh knows whether it will build arch:any (-a) or/and arch:all
(-i) packages, which can produce confusing results - especially when dh_listpackages(1) is part of the
conditional.
Most of the problems can be avoided by making the hook target unconditional and then have the "body" be
partially or completely conditional. As an example:
# SIMPLE: It is well-defined what happens. The hook target
# is always considered. The "maybe run this" bit is
# conditional but dh_foo is definitely skipped.
#
# Note: The conditional is evaluated "twice" where its
# influences what happens. Once when dh check which hook
# targets exist and once when the override_dh_foo hook target
# is run. If *either* times return false, "maybe run this"
# is skipped.
override_dh_foo:
ifneq (...)
maybe run this
endif
# SIMPLE: This is also well-defined. The hook target is always
# run and dh_bar is skipped. The "maybe run this" bit is
# conditional as one might expect.
#
# Note: The conditional is still evaluated multiple times (in
# different process each time). However, only the evaluation
# that happens when the hook target is run influences what
# happens.
override_dh_bar:
: # Dummy command to force the target to always be run
ifneq (...)
maybe run this
endif
# COMPLICATED: This case can be non-trivial and have sharp edges.
# Use at your own peril if dh_listpackages in the conditional.
#
# Here, either dh_baz is run normally OR "maybe run this" is run
# instead.
#
# And it gets even more complicated to reason about if dh needs to
# recurse into debian/rules because you have an "explicit"
# standard target (e.g. a "build-arch:" target separate from "%:").
ifneq (...)
override_dh_baz:
maybe run this
endif
These recipes are also relevant for conditional dependency targets, which are often seen in a variant of
the following example:
COND_TASKS =
ifneq (...)
COND_TASKS += maybe-run-this
endif
...
maybe-run-this:
...
# SIMPLE: It is well-defined what happens. Either the
# $(COND_TASKS) are skipped or run.
#
# Note: The conditional is evaluated "twice" where its
# influences what happens. Once when dh check which hook
# targets exist and once when the override_dh_foo hook target
# is run. If *either* times return false, $(COND_TASKS)
# is skipped.
override_dh_foo: $(COND_TASKS)
# SIMPLE: This is also well-defined. The hook target is always
# run and dh_bar is skipped. The $(COND_TASKS) bit is
# conditional as one might expect.
#
# Note: The conditional is still evaluated multiple times (in
# different process each time). However, only the evaluation
# that happens when the hook target is run influences what
# happens.
override_dh_bar: $(COND_TASKS)
: # Dummy command to force the target to always be run
# COMPLICATED: This case can be non-trivial and have sharp edges.
# Use at your own peril if dh_listpackages in the conditional.
#
ifneq (...)
override_dh_baz: $(COND_TASKS)
endif
When in doubt, pick the relevant SIMPLE case in the examples above that match your need.
OPTIONS
--with addon[,addon ...]
Add the debhelper commands specified by the given addon to appropriate places in the sequence of
commands that is run. This option can be repeated more than once, or multiple addons can be listed,
separated by commas. This is used when there is a third-party package that provides debhelper
commands. See the PROGRAMMING file for documentation about the sequence addon interface.
A Build-Depends relation on the package dh-sequence-addon implies a --with addon. This avoids the
need for an explicit --with in debian/rules that only duplicates what is already declared via the
build dependencies in debian/control. The relation can (since 12.5) be made optional via e.g.
build-profiles. This enables you to easily disable an addon that is only useful with certain
profiles (e.g. to facilitate bootstrapping).
Since debhelper 12.5, addons can also be activated in indep-only mode (via Build-Depends-Indep) or
arch-only mode (via Build-Depends-Arch). Such addons are only active in the particular sequence (e.g.
binary-indep) which simplifies dependency management for cross-builds.
Please note that addons activated via Build-Depends-Indep or Build-Depends-Arch are subject to
additional limitations to ensure the result is deterministic even when the addon is unavailable (e.g.
during clean). This implies that some addons are incompatible with these restrictions and can only
be used via Build-Depends (or manually via debian/rules). Currently, such addons can only add
commands to sequences.
--without addon
The inverse of --with, disables using the given addon. This option can be repeated more than once, or
multiple addons to disable can be listed, separated by commas.
--list, -l
List all available addons.
When called only with this option, dh can be called from any directory (i.e. it does not need access
to files from a source package).
--no-act
Prints commands that would run for a given sequence, but does not run them.
Note that dh normally skips running commands that it knows will do nothing. With --no-act, the full
list of commands in a sequence is printed.
Other options passed to dh are passed on to each command it runs. This can be used to set an option like
-v or -X or -N, as well as for more specialised options.
EXAMPLES
To see what commands are included in a sequence, without actually doing anything:
dh binary-arch --no-act
This is a very simple rules file, for packages where the default sequences of commands work with no
additional options.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
Often you'll want to pass an option to a specific debhelper command. The easy way to do with is by adding
an override target for that command.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
override_dh_strip:
dh_strip -Xfoo
override_dh_auto_configure:
dh_auto_configure -- --with-foo --disable-bar
Sometimes the automated dh_auto_configure(1) and dh_auto_build(1) can't guess what to do for a strange
package. Here's how to avoid running either and instead run your own commands.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
override_dh_auto_configure:
./mondoconfig
override_dh_auto_build:
make universe-explode-in-delight
Another common case is wanting to do something manually before or after a particular debhelper command is
run.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
# Example assumes debhelper/12.8 and compat 10+
execute_after_dh_fixperms:
chmod 4755 debian/foo/usr/bin/foo
If you are on an older debhelper or compatibility level, the above example would have to be written as.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
# Older debhelper versions or using compat 9 or lower.
override_dh_fixperms:
dh_fixperms
chmod 4755 debian/foo/usr/bin/foo
Python tools are not run by dh by default, due to the continual change in that area. Here is how to use
dh_python2.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --with python2
Here is how to force use of Perl's Module::Build build system, which can be necessary if debhelper
wrongly detects that the package uses MakeMaker.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --buildsystem=perl_build
Here is an example of overriding where the dh_auto_* commands find the package's source, for a package
where the source is located in a subdirectory.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --sourcedirectory=src
And here is an example of how to tell the dh_auto_* commands to build in a subdirectory, which will be
removed on clean.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --builddirectory=build
If your package can be built in parallel, please either use compat 10 or pass --parallel to dh. Then
dpkg-buildpackage -j will work.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --parallel
If your package cannot be built reliably while using multiple threads, please pass --no-parallel to dh
(or the relevant dh_auto_* command):
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@ --no-parallel
Here is a way to prevent dh from running several commands that you don't want it to run, by defining
empty override targets for each command.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
# Commands not to run:
override_dh_auto_test override_dh_compress override_dh_fixperms:
A long build process for a separate documentation package can be separated out using architecture
independent overrides. These will be skipped when running build-arch and binary-arch sequences.
#!/usr/bin/make -f
%:
dh $@
override_dh_auto_build-indep:
$(MAKE) -C docs
# No tests needed for docs
override_dh_auto_test-indep:
override_dh_auto_install-indep:
$(MAKE) -C docs install
Adding to the example above, suppose you need to chmod a file, but only when building the architecture
dependent package, as it's not present when building only documentation.
# Example assumes debhelper/12.8 and compat 10+
execute_after_dh_fixperms-arch:
chmod 4755 debian/foo/usr/bin/foo
DEBHELPER PROVIDED DH ADDONS
The primary purpose of dh addons is to provide easy integration with third-party provided features for
debhelper. However, debhelper itself also provide a few sequences that can be useful in some cases.
These are documented in this list:
build-stamp
A special addon for controlling whether dh (in compat 10 or later) will create stamp files to tell
whether the build target has been run successfully. See "INTERNALS" for more details.
This addon is active by default but can disabled by using dh $@ --without build-stamp
dwz (obsolete)
Adds dh_dwz(1) to the sequence in compat level 11 or below. Obsolete in compat 12 or later.
elf-tools
This addon adds tools related to ELF files to the sequence such as dh_strip(1) and dh_shlibdeps(1)
This addon is conditionally active by default for architecture specific packages - that is, it is
skipped for arch:all packages. In the special case where you need these tools to work on arch:all
packages, you can use --with elf-tools to activate it unconditionally.
installinitramfs (obsolete)
Adds dh_installinitramfs(1) to the sequence in compat level 11 or below. Obsolete in compat 12 or
later.
root-sequence (internal)
This is reserved for internal usage.
single-binary
A special-purpose addon that makes debhelper run in "single binary" mode.
When active, it will pass --destdir=debian/package/ to dh_auto_install(1). This makes every file
"installed" by the upstream build system part of the (only) binary package by default without having
to use other helpers such as dh_install(1).
The addon will refuse to activate when the source package lists 2 or more binary packages in
debian/control as a precaution.
Before compat 15. this behaviour was the default when there was only a single binary package listed
in debian/control. In compat 15 and later, this addon must explicitly be activated for this feature
to work.
The rationale for requiring this as an explicit choice is that if it is implicit then debhelper will
silently change behaviour on adding a new binary package. This has caused many RC bugs when
maintainers renamed a binary and added transitional packages with the intention of supporting
seamless upgrades. The result would often be two empty binary packages that were uploaded to archive
with users frustrated as their "upgrade" removed their programs.
systemd (obsolete)
Adds dh_systemd_enable(1) and dh_systemd_start(1) to the sequence in compat level 10 or below.
Obsolete in compat 11 or later.
INTERNALS
If you're curious about dh's internals, here's how it works under the hood.
In compat 10 (or later), dh creates a stamp file debian/debhelper-build-stamp after the build step(s) are
complete to avoid re-running them. It is possible to avoid the stamp file by passing
--without=build-stamp to dh. This makes "no clean" builds behave more like what some people expect at
the expense of possibly running the build and test twice (the second time as root or under fakeroot(1)).
Inside an override target, dh_* commands will create a log file debian/package.debhelper.log to keep
track of which packages the command(s) have been run for. These log files are then removed once the
override target is complete.
In compat 9 or earlier, each debhelper command will record when it's successfully run in
debian/package.debhelper.log. (Which dh_clean deletes.) So dh can tell which commands have already been
run, for which packages, and skip running those commands again.
Each time dh is run (in compat 9 or earlier), it examines the log, and finds the last logged command that
is in the specified sequence. It then continues with the next command in the sequence.
A sequence can also run dependent targets in debian/rules. For example, the "binary" sequence runs the
"install" target.
dh uses the DH_INTERNAL_OPTIONS environment variable to pass information through to debhelper commands
that are run inside override targets. The contents (and indeed, existence) of this environment variable,
as the name might suggest, is subject to change at any time.
Commands in the build-indep, install-indep and binary-indep sequences are passed the -i option to ensure
they only work on architecture independent packages, and commands in the build-arch, install-arch and
binary-arch sequences are passed the -a option to ensure they only work on architecture dependent
packages.
SEE ALSO
debhelper(7)
This program is a part of debhelper.
AUTHOR
Joey Hess <joeyh@debian.org>
13.14.1ubuntu5 2024-03-01 DH(1)