DB_File Version 1.853 5 January 2020 Copyright (c) 1995-2020 Paul Marquess. All rights reserved. This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself. IMPORTANT NOTICE ================ If are using the locking technique described in older versions of DB_File, please read the section called "Locking: The Trouble with fd" in DB_File.pm immediately. The locking method has been found to be unsafe. You risk corrupting your data if you continue to use it. DESCRIPTION ----------- DB_File is a module which allows Perl programs to make use of the facilities provided by Berkeley DB version 1. (DB_File can be built version 2, or greater, of Berkeley DB, but it will only support the 1.x features). If you want to make use of the new features available in Berkeley DB 2.x, or greater, use the Perl module BerkeleyDB instead. Berkeley DB is a C library which provides a consistent interface to a number of database formats. DB_File provides an interface to all three of the database types (hash, btree and recno) currently supported by Berkeley DB. For further details see the documentation included at the end of the file DB_File.pm. PREREQUISITES ------------- Before you can build DB_File you must have the following installed on your system: * Perl 5.8.3 or greater. * Berkeley DB. The official web site for Berkeley DB is http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/berkeley-db/db/index.html The latest version of Berkeley DB is always available there. It is recommended that you use the most recent version available. The one exception to this advice is where you want to use DB_File to access database files created by a third-party application, like Sendmail or Netscape. In these cases you must build DB_File with a compatible version of Berkeley DB. If you want to use Berkeley DB 2.x, you must have version 2.3.4 or greater. If you want to use Berkeley DB 3.x or 4.x, any version will do. For Berkeley DB 1.x, use either version 1.85 or 1.86. BUILDING THE MODULE ------------------- Assuming you have met all the prerequisites, building the module should be relatively straightforward. Step 1 : If you are running either Solaris 2.5 or HP-UX 10 and want to use Berkeley DB version 2, 3 or 4, read either the Solaris Notes or HP-UX Notes sections below. If you are running Linux please read the Linux Notes section before proceeding. Step 2 : Edit the file config.in to suit you local installation. Instructions are given in the file. Step 3 : Build and test the module using this sequence of commands: perl Makefile.PL make make test NOTE: If you have a very old version of Berkeley DB (i.e. pre 1.85), three of the tests in the recno test harness may fail (tests 51, 53 and 55). You can safely ignore the errors if you're never going to use the broken functionality (recno databases with a modified bval). Otherwise you'll have to upgrade your DB library. INSTALLATION ------------ make install UPDATES ======= The most recent version of DB_File is always available at http://www.cpan.org/modules/by-module/DB_File/ TROUBLESHOOTING =============== Here are some of the common problems people encounter when building DB_File. Missing db.h or libdb.a ----------------------- If you get an error like this: cc -c -I/usr/local/include -Dbool=char -DHAS_BOOL -O2 -DVERSION=\"1.64\" -DXS_VERSION=\"1.64\" -fpic -I/usr/local/lib/perl5/i586-linux/5.00404/CORE -DmDB_Prefix_t=size_t -DmDB_Hash_t=u_int32_t DB_File.c DB_File.xs:101: db.h: No such file or directory or this: LD_RUN_PATH="/lib" cc -o blib/arch/auto/DB_File/DB_File.so -shared -L/usr/local/lib DB_File.o -L/usr/local/lib -ldb ld: cannot open -ldb: No such file or directory This symptom can imply: 1. You don't have Berkeley DB installed on your system at all. Solution: get & install Berkeley DB. 2. You do have Berkeley DB installed, but it isn't in a standard place. Solution: Edit config.in and set the LIB and INCLUDE variables to point to the directories where libdb.a and db.h are installed. Undefined symbol db_version --------------------------- DB_File seems to have built correctly, but you get an error like this when you run the test harness: $ make test PERL_DL_NONLAZY=1 /usr/bin/perl5.00404 -I./blib/arch -I./blib/lib -I/usr/local/lib/perl5/i586-linux/5.00404 -I/usr/local/lib/perl5 -e 'use Test::Harness qw(&runtests $verbose); $verbose=0; runtests @ARGV;' t/*.t t/db-btree..........Can't load './blib/arch/auto/DB_File/DB_File.so' for module DB_File: ./blib/arch/auto/DB_File/DB_File.so: undefined symbol: db_version at /usr/local/lib/perl5/i586-linux/5.00404/DynaLoader.pm line 166. at t/db-btree.t line 21 BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at t/db-btree.t line 21. dubious Test returned status 2 (wstat 512, 0x200) This error usually happens when you have two version of Berkeley DB installed on your system -- specifically, if you have both version 1 and a newer version (i.e. version 2 or better) of Berkeley DB installed. If DB_File is built using the db.h for the newer Berkeley DB and the version 1 Berkeley DB library you will trigger this error. Unfortunately the two versions aren't compatible with each other. The undefined symbol error is caused because Berkeley DB version 1 doesn't have the symbol db_version. Solution: Setting the LIB & INCLUDE variables in config.in to point to the correct directories can sometimes be enough to fix this problem. If that doesn't work the easiest way to fix the problem is to either delete or temporarily rename the copies of db.h and libdb.a that you don't want DB_File to use. Undefined symbol dbopen ----------------------- DB_File seems to have built correctly, but you get an error like this when you run the test harness: ... t/db-btree..........Can't load 'blib/arch/auto/DB_File/DB_File.so' for module DB_File: blib/arch/auto/DB_File/DB_File.so: undefined symbol: dbopen at /usr/local/lib/perl5/5.6.1/i586-linux/DynaLoader.pm line 206. at t/db-btree.t line 23 Compilation failed in require at t/db-btree.t line 23. ... This error usually happens when you have both version 1 and a more recent version of Berkeley DB installed on your system and DB_File attempts to build using the db.h for Berkeley DB version 1 and the newer version library. Unfortunately the two versions aren't compatible with each other. The undefined symbol error is actually caused because versions of Berkeley DB newer than version 1 doesn't have the symbol dbopen. Solution: Setting the LIB & INCLUDE variables in config.in to point to the correct directories can sometimes be enough to fix this problem. If that doesn't work the easiest way to fix the problem is to either delete or temporarily rename the copies of db.h and libdb.a that you don't want DB_File to use. Incompatible versions of db.h and libdb --------------------------------------- DB_File seems to have built correctly, but you get an error like this when you run the test harness: $ make test PERL_DL_NONLAZY=1 /home/paul/perl/install/bin/perl5.00560 -Iblib/arch -Iblib/lib -I/home/paul/perl/install/5.005_60/lib/5.00560/i586-linux -I/home/paul/perl/install/5.005_60/lib/5.00560 -e 'use Test::Harness qw(&runtests $verbose); $verbose=0; runtests @ARGV;' t/*.t t/db-btree.......... DB_File was build with libdb version 2.3.7 but you are attempting to run it with libdb version 2.7.5 BEGIN failed--compilation aborted at t/db-btree.t line 21. ... Another variation on the theme of having two versions of Berkeley DB on your system. Solution: Setting the LIB & INCLUDE variables in config.in to point to the correct directories can sometimes be enough to fix this problem. If that doesn't work the easiest way to fix the problem is to either delete or temporarily rename the copies of db.h and libdb.a that you don't want BerkeleyDB to use. If you are running Linux, please read the Linux Notes section below. Keep getting "At least one secondary cursor must be specified to DB->join" -------------------------------------------------------------------------- When you either run the DB_File test harness, or attempt to run a script that uses DB_File you get the error message below. BDB0588 At least one secondary cursor must be specified to DB->join. To date thus issue has only been reported on Windows. If you encounter this issue on another platform, please report the issue. See the FEEDBACK section for details. This issue boils down to the size of the C type time_t. The typical reason for getting this error is when running a 32-bit Perl (which will use a 32-bit time_t) along with a 32-bit Berkeley DB library. The key point is how Berkeley DB has been built. If it has been built with a newish version of Visual C++, time_t will default to 64-bit, even when the rest of the library has been built 32-bit. This means that Perl thinks time_t is 32-bit, but Berkeley DB thinks it is 64-bit. More details of how the size of time_t in Windows is shown below (taken from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/w4ddyt9h.aspx) In versions of Visual C++ and Microsoft C/C++ before Visual C++ 2005, time_t was a long int (32 bits) and hence could not be used for dates past 3:14:07 January 19, 2038, UTC. time_t is now equivalent to __time64_t by default, but defining _USE_32BIT_TIME_T changes time_t to __time32_t and forces many time functions to call versions that take the 32-bit time_t. When DB_File is built, it uses a Berkeley DB header file, called db.h. This file contains the definition of a number of key data structures used by Berkeley DB. Unfortunately one of those data structures includes a time_t. This is the root case for this issue. When you build DB_File, it assumes time_t is 32-bit, but the Berkeley DB library is expecting it to be 64-bit. Solution: There are a few options available. 1. Use a 64-bit Perl along with a 64-bit Berkleley DB. 2. Use a 32-bit Perl along with a 32-bit Berkeley DB where _USE_32BIT_TIME_T has been defined. 3. If you do need to interoperate with a Berkeley DB library that uses a time_t that is different from Perl you need to edit the file DB_File.xs and find these lines /* #define time_t __time64_t */ /* #define time_t __time32_t */ If your Berkeley DB library uses a 64-bit time_t, uncomment the first line. If your Berkeley DB library uses a 32-bit time_t, uncomment the second line. MacOS Notes ------------- You are running MacOS 10.13 (or possibly later), and the test DB_File test harness file db-hash.t fails like this t/db-btree.t .. ok t/db-hash.t ... Use of uninitialized value $value in string eq at t/db-hash.t line 224. Use of uninitialized value $values[0] in string eq at t/db-hash.t line 224. Use of uninitialized value $value in lc at t/db-hash.t line 224. Use of uninitialized value $h{""} in string eq at t/db-hash.t line 243. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value in numeric eq (==) at t/db-hash.t line 252. Use of uninitialized value $foo[18] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[36] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[48] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[58] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[59] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[60] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[62] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[63] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[92] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[114] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[140] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[187] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[188] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. Use of uninitialized value $foo[189] in join or string at t/db-hash.t line 261. t/db-hash.t ... 1/166 Use of uninitialized value $h{"Fred"} in string eq at t/db-hash.t line 572. Use of uninitialized value $v in concatenation (.) or string at t/db-hash.t line 748. t/db-hash.t ... Dubious, test returned 25 (wstat 6400, 0x1900) Failed 76/166 subtests t/db-recno.t .. ok t/pod.t ....... ok It appears that MacOS 10.13 has a copy of BerkeleyDB version 1 included in /usr/lib/system/libsystem_c.dylib. It is not clear why this isn't working with this module. The following ticket has been reported to Apple https://discussions.apple.com/thread/8125401 Solution It has been reported that this issue can be resolved by installing a separate version of the Berkeley DB library and configuring DB_File to use it. One option is to use a prebuild version of Berkeley DB. One is available at MacPorts (https://www.macports.org/). Once you have MacPorts installed, run this sudo port install db48 To get DB_File to use this library edit config.in and change the values for the LIB and include variables as follows LIB = /opt/local/lib/db48 INCLUDE = /opt/local/include/db48 Alternatively, set the two envornment variables DB_FILE_LIB and DB_FILE_INCLUDE as follows export DB_FILE_LIB=/opt/local/lib/db48 export DB_FILE_INCLUDE=/opt/local/include/db48 Now rebuild DB_File from scratch. Solaris build fails with "language optional software package not installed" --------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you are trying to build this module under Solaris and you get an error message like this /usr/ucb/cc: language optional software package not installed it means that Perl cannot find the C compiler on your system. The cryptic message is just Sun's way of telling you that you haven't bought their C compiler. When you build a Perl module that needs a C compiler, the Perl build system tries to use the same C compiler that was used to build perl itself. In this case your Perl binary was built with a C compiler that lived in /usr/ucb. To continue with building this module, you need to get a C compiler, or tell Perl where your C compiler is, if you already have one. Assuming you have now got a C compiler, what you do next will be dependant on what C compiler you have installed. If you have just installed Sun's C compiler, you shouldn't have to do anything. Just try rebuilding this module. If you have installed another C compiler, say gcc, you have to tell perl how to use it instead of /usr/ucb/cc. This set of options seems to work if you want to use gcc. Your mileage may vary. perl Makefile.PL CC=gcc CCCDLFLAGS=-fPIC OPTIMIZE=" " make test If that doesn't work for you, it's time to make changes to the Makefile by hand. Good luck! Solaris build fails with "gcc: unrecognized option `-KPIC'" ----------------------------------------------------------- You are running Solaris and you get an error like this when you try to build this Perl module gcc: unrecognized option `-KPIC' This symptom usually means that you are using a Perl binary that has been built with the Sun C compiler, but you are using gcc to build this module. When Perl builds modules that need a C compiler, it will attempt to use the same C compiler and command line options that was used to build perl itself. In this case "-KPIC" is a valid option for the Sun C compiler, but not for gcc. The equivalent option for gcc is "-fPIC". The solution is either: 1. Build both Perl and this module with the same C compiler, either by using the Sun C compiler for both or gcc for both. 2. Try generating the Makefile for this module like this perl perl Makefile.PL CC=gcc CCCDLFLAGS=-fPIC OPTIMIZE=" " LD=gcc make test This second option seems to work when mixing a Perl binary built with the Sun C compiler and this module built with gcc. Your mileage may vary. Linux Notes ----------- Some older versions of Linux (e.g. RedHat 6, SuSe 6) ship with a C library that has version 2.x of Berkeley DB linked into it. This makes it difficult to build this module with anything other than the version of Berkeley DB that shipped with your Linux release. If you do try to use a different version of Berkeley DB you will most likely get the error described in the "Incompatible versions of db.h and libdb" section of this file. To make matters worse, prior to Perl 5.6.1, the perl binary itself *always* included the Berkeley DB library. If you want to use a newer version of Berkeley DB with this module, the easiest solution is to use Perl 5.6.1 (or better) and Berkeley DB 3.x (or better). There are two approaches you can use to get older versions of Perl to work with specific versions of Berkeley DB. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. The first approach will only work when you want to build a version of Perl older than 5.6.1 along with Berkeley DB 3.x. If you want to use Berkeley DB 2.x, you must use the next approach. This approach involves rebuilding your existing version of Perl after applying an unofficial patch. The "patches" directory in the this module's source distribution contains a number of patch files. There is one patch file for every stable version of Perl since 5.004. Apply the appropriate patch to your Perl source tree before re-building and installing Perl from scratch. For example, assuming you are in the top-level source directory for Perl 5.6.0, the command below will apply the necessary patch. Remember to replace the path shown below with one that points to this module's patches directory. patch -p1 -N