Re: [RFC PATCH v2 3/7] perf build: Add MINIMAL=1 to build without optional features

[Ian Rogers]

On Fri, Oct 16, 2026 at 7:31 AM Sasha Levin <sashal@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> Turning off every optional feature takes a long list of NO_* variables,
> and the list has to follow features as they are added and renamed. The
> one in tests/make for make_minimal has fallen behind: it leaves
> libtraceevent, jevents, slang, AIO, LZMA, zlib, libLLVM and Rust to be
> detected, so a make_minimal build still needs libtraceevent and python.
>
> Add MINIMAL=1, which turns off every optional feature, the BPF skeletons
> and the shellcheck run. perf then builds, natively or cross, with no
> library beyond the C library and without python, pkg-config, clang or
> rustc, and the result does not depend on what is installed on the build
> machine.
>
> A MINIMAL=1 build also leaves out the notices that post unwind and
> python support are disabled, which it asked for, and the one about the
> pkg-config search path for cross builds, as pkg-config is not needed
> then.
>
> It is handled in Makefile.perf rather than Makefile.config, as
> Makefile.config is included after the pkg-config and shellcheck setup.
>
> Use it for make_minimal in tests/make.
>
> Suggested-by: Ian Rogers <irogers@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/CAP-5=fWFY-tpJz2vcBZvurwdZY5gwd8cuTemE9q1rtZ0Vi0dng@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Assisted-by: LLM
> Signed-off-by: Sasha Levin <sashal@xxxxxxxxxx>
> ---
>  tools/perf/Makefile.config |  8 ++++++--
>  tools/perf/Makefile.perf   | 40 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++--
>  tools/perf/tests/make      |  8 +-------
>  3 files changed, 45 insertions(+), 11 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/tools/perf/Makefile.config b/tools/perf/Makefile.config
> index 4d5993da9f945..137c9e120670b 100644
> --- a/tools/perf/Makefile.config
> +++ b/tools/perf/Makefile.config
> @@ -742,7 +742,9 @@ dwarf-post-unwind-text := BUG
>  # setup DWARF post unwinder
>  ifdef NO_LIBUNWIND
>    ifdef NO_LIBDW
> -    $(warning Disabling post unwind, no support found.)
> +    ifneq ($(MINIMAL),1)
> +      $(warning Disabling post unwind, no support found.)
> +    endif
>      dwarf-post-unwind := 0
>    else
>      dwarf-post-unwind-text := libdw
> @@ -828,7 +830,9 @@ endef
>
>  PYTHON_EXTENSION_SUFFIX := '.so'
>  ifdef NO_LIBPYTHON
> -  $(call disable-python,Python support disabled by user)
> +  ifneq ($(MINIMAL),1)
> +    $(call disable-python,Python support disabled by user)
> +  endif

Thanks for the clean up!

In perf-tools-next/linux-next both LIBPYTHON and LIBPERL are gone
(context in https://lore.kernel.org/linux-perf-users/20260926062029.800743-47-irogers@xxxxxxxxxx/#t
).

>  else
>
>    ifndef PYTHON
> diff --git a/tools/perf/Makefile.perf b/tools/perf/Makefile.perf
> index 29cfd44c427f3..c770077e7d392 100644
> --- a/tools/perf/Makefile.perf
> +++ b/tools/perf/Makefile.perf
> @@ -129,6 +129,9 @@ include ../scripts/utilities.mak
>  # Define GEN_VMLINUX_H to generate vmlinux.h from the BTF.
>  #
>  # Define NO_SHELLCHECK if you do not want to run shellcheck during build
> +#
> +# Define MINIMAL=1 to build without any optional feature, needing only a C
> +# compiler and library, flex and bison
>
>  # As per kernel Makefile, avoid funny character set dependencies
>  unexport LC_ALL
> @@ -174,6 +177,37 @@ endef
>
>  LD += $(EXTRA_LDFLAGS)
>
> +# MINIMAL=1 is handled here rather than in Makefile.config, which is included
> +# after the pkg-config and shellcheck setup below
> +ifeq ($(MINIMAL),1)
> +  NO_LIBELF := 1
> +  NO_LIBDW := 1
> +  NO_LIBTRACEEVENT := 1
> +  NO_JEVENTS := 1
> +  NO_LIBPYTHON := 1
> +  NO_LIBBPF := 1
> +  BUILD_BPF_SKEL := 0
> +  NO_SLANG := 1
> +  NO_DEMANGLE := 1
> +  NO_BACKTRACE := 1
> +  NO_AIO := 1
> +  NO_ZLIB := 1
> +  NO_LZMA := 1
> +  NO_LIBZSTD := 1
> +  NO_LIBNUMA := 1
> +  NO_LIBLLVM := 1
> +  NO_CAPSTONE := 1
> +  NO_LIBPFM4 := 1
> +  NO_LIBDEBUGINFOD := 1
> +  NO_BABELTRACE2 := 1
> +  NO_SDT := 1
> +  NO_JVMTI := 1
> +  NO_RUST := 1
> +  NO_PERF_READ_VDSO32 := 1
> +  NO_PERF_READ_VDSOX32 := 1
> +  NO_SHELLCHECK := 1

We should expand this with NO_MYPY and NO_PYLINT for the
perf-tools-next version.

Thanks,
Ian

> +endif
> +
>  # Some distros provide the command $(CROSS_COMPILE)pkg-config for
>  # searching packges installed with Multiarch. Use it for cross
>  # compilation if it is existed.
> @@ -195,8 +229,10 @@ else
>        PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR := $(PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR):/usr/local/share/pkgconfig/
>        PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR := $(PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR):/usr/share/pkgconfig/
>        export PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR
> -      $(warning Missing PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR, PKG_CONFIG_PATH and PKG_CONFIG_SYSROOT_DIR for cross compilation,)
> -      $(warning set PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR for using Multiarch libs.)
> +      ifneq ($(MINIMAL),1)
> +        $(warning Missing PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR, PKG_CONFIG_PATH and PKG_CONFIG_SYSROOT_DIR for cross compilation,)
> +        $(warning set PKG_CONFIG_LIBDIR for using Multiarch libs.)
> +      endif
>      endif
>    endif
>  endif
> diff --git a/tools/perf/tests/make b/tools/perf/tests/make
> index d2c2f526e1db0..dbbc971a144b2 100644
> --- a/tools/perf/tests/make
> +++ b/tools/perf/tests/make
> @@ -115,13 +115,7 @@ make_install_prefix       := install prefix=/tmp/krava
>  make_install_prefix_slash := install prefix=/tmp/krava/
>  make_static         := LDFLAGS=-static NO_PERF_READ_VDSO32=1 NO_PERF_READ_VDSOX32=1 NO_JVMTI=1 NO_LIBTRACEEVENT=1 NO_LIBELF=1
>
> -# all the NO_* variable combined
> -make_minimal        := NO_LIBPYTHON=1
> -make_minimal        += NO_DEMANGLE=1 NO_LIBELF=1 NO_BACKTRACE=1
> -make_minimal        += NO_LIBNUMA=1 NO_LIBBIONIC=1 NO_LIBDW=1
> -make_minimal        += NO_LIBBPF=1
> -make_minimal        += NO_SDT=1 NO_JVMTI=1 NO_LIBZSTD=1
> -make_minimal        += NO_CAPSTONE=1
> +make_minimal        := MINIMAL=1
>
>  # binutils 2_42 and newer have bfd_thread_init()
>  new_libbfd := $(shell echo '#include <bfd.h>' | $(CC) -E -x c - | grep bfd_thread_init)
> --
> 2.53.0
>