Alpine Linux required to build?

[AberrantWolf]

I'm trying to make the source, and it seems like the makefile is trying to run a make specifically on Alpine Linux over WSL. I don't currently have this installed. Is it a requirement? I can't find any mention of it being required in the docs or the issue tracker.

I'm still working out other build issues, but it seems like removing the Alpine specification and just using my default WSL install works fine so far.

I'm using the Cygwin install method because of issues related to #94, btw. I'm just having to keep adding new Cygwin programs and retry.

[Biswa96]

Is it a requirement?

Generally, it should not be. The requirement is because wslbridge2 has a bug. When wslbridge2 is compiled with glibc statically it crashes after sometimes. You can build it in any distribution, just remove the RELEASE=1 flag which instructs makefile not to link statically.

[AberrantWolf]

That would explain the random crashing I'm seeing now that I've gotten it built. Is the static linking worth installing Alpine for? (I wouldn't guess so unless it can cause instability with other processes working properly.)

[Biswa96]

Can't understand the question.

[AberrantWolf]

Sorry, essentially, which is your recommendation for overcoming my the build problem?

1. Install Alpine Linux; or
2. Remove the RELEASE=1 flag as well as the Alpine dependency

As you said, removing the RELEASE=1 flag doesn't link statically -- so I assume dynamic linkage. Another way to have phrased my question is "Do you know of any potential problems with using dynamic linking that are significant enough to justify installing a version of Linux I wouldn't otherwise use?"

[Biswa96]

Understood. I mean the second one. Dynamic linking does not cause any issue with glibc or musl libc. The released binaries are statically linked because users can use any Linux distribution with it.

[mintty]

If you want to run the bridge with any musl-lib based Linux distribution, you should compile it with one of them. As far as I know, there are Alpine and VoidMusl right now, the latter should work as well.
This is essential for the general wsltty release, of course, as Biswa said, and I tested only with Alpine.

[Biswa96]

@AberrantWolf now wslbridge2 can be compile in any distribution static or dynamic, as you want.