Building the OpenH323 Bootstrap Code

This page describes how to compile the OpenH323 code release. Note these instructions will always refer to the latest snapshot available on the download page.

The OpenH323 source will have been compiled and tested under Linux x86, and Windows NT. If it does not compile for you then the problem is likely to be a setup/configuration problem with your system and not a problem with the source code itself.

The libraries and applications should also compile on Windows 95/98, BeOS (thanks Yuri!), Linux PPC, FreeBSD x86, OpenBSD x86 (thanks Roger!) and Solaris Sparc & x86. They are not automatically compiled on every release however so there could be problems, but the chances are that there aren't. Note also that not all of these platforms may have ports of the sound interface.

We are also happy to port it to other Unix flavours providing people out there can provide an account and a fair bit of disk space!

These instructions should contain all of the steps need. If you have a problem, please double check that you have performed ALL of the steps below, particularly setting the include file paths under MSVC. Some of the more common errors are described below.

If you get a lot of compile or link errors, then the chances are that you have missed something in the list. If you are positive that something is wrong and you have followed the instructions, then send an e-mail to the mailing list, and we'll answer it for everyone to see.

Finally, the documentation for the library is included in the header files, you can create HTML files from the source using the doc++ package available here.

Windows

The windows build instructions are only for Microsoft DevStudio version 6 at this stage. If you have v5 then you may still build the system but you can not use the DLL's (see FAQ for more info) and there is no guarentee of compatibility in the future. If you have another compiler you are completely on your own!

1.	Download the `pwlib_1.xx.zip` and `openh323_1.x.zip` files from the OpenH323 download page.
2.	Extract the `pwlib_1.xx.zip` file somewhere eg c:\, making sure the directory structure is preserved.
3.	Start MSVC (v5, v6 or v7 (.NET)). If you have another compiler you are on your own! Add these folders to the Include Files path as follows: In VisualStudio v5/6 go into the Tools menu, Options item, Directories tab. In VisualStudio v7, go into the Tools menu, Options item. In the Options dialog, open the Projects folder, VC++ Directories item. In the 'Show Directories for:' list, select 'Include files'. Add to the beginning of the Include files path (note the order is important!): `C:\PWLib\Include\PwLib\MSWIN C:\PWLib\Include\PtLib\MSOS C:\PWLib\Include C:\OpenH323\Include` and add to the Lib Files path and the Executable Files path the following: `C:\PWLib\Lib C:\OpenH323\Lib` Also make sure these directories are in your PATH environment variable. The Lib folder is created as parts of PWLib are built. Also add this directory to your PATH environment variable (so PWRC, MergeSym and ASNParser tools can be found).
3a	If you have OpenSSL installed and compiled on your system then you can define the following environment variables to get SSL support: `OPENSSLFLAG=1 OPENSSLDIR=c:\somewhere\openssl OPENSSLLIBS=ssleay32.lib libeay32.lib` If you have not included these variables then you will get a warning during the build. You can safely ignore this warning.
3b	If you have EXPAT installed and compiled on your system then you can define the following environment variables to get XML support: `EXPATFLAG=1 EXPATDIR=c:\somewhere\expat EXPATLIBS=expat.lib` If you have not included these variables then you will get a warning during the build. You can safely ignore this warning.
4.	Note you will need `bison` and `flex` to compile the system. You can get a copy or the binaries from here, follow the instructions included. It may also be necessary to add this directory to the MSVC executable path.
5.	In VisualStudio v5/6 open the pwlib.dsw file in the pwlib top directory. If you have the minimum library it will come up with several requests to find .dsp files, just cancel past these. In VisualStudio v7 open the pwlib.sln file in the pwlib top directory.
6.	In VisualStudio v5/6 use the Batch Build command and build the "ASNParser – Win32 Release", "pwtest – Win32 Release" and "pwtest – Win32 Debug" targets. make sure all other targets are not checked. Also make sure you have not checked the "Selection Only" check box. In VisualStudio v7 use the Batch Build command. It seems as though the batch build does not build dependent parts unless they're checked in the Build column. For a test build, be sure all Projects are checked except ASNParser-debug, MergeSym-debug, PacketVXD-release, PWRC-debug, and both XMLRPC.
7.	Extract the contents of the `openh323_1.x.zip` file somewhere.
8.	Use the `OpenH323.dsw` file to build the Open H.323 and sample code. Use the "SimpH323 – Win32 Release" target and the dependencies should build the OpenH323 DLL's.
9.	Run the program, and you are on your own!

Unix

The Unix build instructions are only for GNU C++ v 2.95 or later. If you have an earlier then you may still build the system but there is no guarentee of compatibility in the future. If you have another compiler you are completely on your own!

Note 1: If you require support for the Quicknet cards, then you will require the Linux Telephony component in kernel (2.2.14 or later) for the Quicknet card support to work. You will also need the latest Quicknet drivers for the Quicknet card support to work correctly.

Note 2: If you require video support, make sure you have the latest video drivers installed for your card.

1.	Download the `pwlib_min_x.xx.tar.gz` and `openh323_1.xx.tar.gz` files from the OpenH323 download page.
2.	Extract the `pwlib_min_x.xx.tar.gz` somewhere, preferably in your home directory, eg: `cd tar -xzvf pwlib_min_1.14.tar.gz` This should result in a ./pwlib directory tree.
3.	If you have not installed PWLib in your home directory (`~/pwlib`) then you will have to define the environment variable PWLIBDIR to point to the correct directory. Also make sure you have added the $PWLIBDIR/lib directory to your LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable if you intend to use shared libraries (the default under Linux). There are examples for sh/bash and csh/tcsh.
4.	Build the debug and release versions of the PWLib library as follows: `cd $PWLIBDIR make both` This may take some time. Note, you will need `GNU make`(>=3.75)`, bison`(>=1.25) and `flex` (>=2.5.4) for this to compile, most Unix systems have these packages. *WARNING: there is a bug in most of the bison.simple files. If you are getting huge numbers of errors from make then you are probably not using the GNU make. FreeBSD and OpenBSD users must install gmake and use gmake* instead of make in these instructions. If the errors are during the compile, then it is likely your platform is not supported, or you have incorrectly set the OSTYPE and MACHTYPE variables. There will be a large warning printed about this, don't ignore it!
5.	Extract the contents of the `openh323_x.x.tar.gz` file somewhere, eg: `cd tar -xzvf openh323_1.1alpha1.tar.gz`
6.	If you have not installed OpenH323 in your home directory (`~/openh323`) then you will have to define the environment variable OPENH323DIR to point to the correct directory. Also make sure you have added the $OPENH323DIR/lib directory to your LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable if you intend to use shared libraries (the default under Linux). There are examples for sh/bash and csh/tcsh.
7.	Build the H323 bootstrap code. This will automatically build the ASN compiler (in the `$PWLIBDIR/tools/asnparser` directory), though this should have already been built previously. Enter: `cd $OPENH323DIR make opt` This may take some time, especially with the h245_.cxx and h225.cxx files. You may also need to add more swap space – 64M of real memory and 64M of swap might* just be enough, if your machine does nothing else! Some people have reported needing as much as 128M of swap – if your compiler bombs out with a "virtual memory exhausted" error compiling h245_*.cxx and h225.cxx, then increase your swap space.
8.	The result should be an executable called `simph323`, which will be built in a directory dependent on the platform, eg `obj_linux_x86_d`. To run it, use the following command: `./samples/simple/obj_linux_x86_r/simph323` and you should get the usage help text.
9.	Now you're on your own!

Windows

Unix

Common errors