AUTORECONF(1)

📦
version 2.52+20260412 · 5 versions
, in ubuntu stonking

💖 AUTORECONF 💖

okay bestie, sit down, hydrate, and let me tell you about autoreconf — the glow-up artist for your generated configuration files. she updates them. that's literally the whole vibe. ✨

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

autoreconf [OPTION] ... [TEMPLATE-FILE]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so here's the tea: autoreconf runs autoconf and autoheader (where appropriate) over and over again, remaking the Autoconf configure scripts and the configuration header templates in the whole directory tree rooted at the directory you're currently standing in. like, it walks the tree. she's thorough. she's giving main character energy for your build system. 💅

by default? she's polite. she only remakes the files that are older than their predecessors. no unnecessary touching, no drama. 🎀

but listen — if you install a new version of Autoconf and you want everything fresh, you run autoreconf and hand it the --force option, and then she remakes all of the files. no cap. 🔥

⭐ Operation modes ⭐

  • -h, --help — prints this help, then dips out. 💨
  • -V, --version — prints the version number, then exits.
  • -v, --verbose — tells you everything she's doing, verbosely. the girl narrates. 🗣️
  • -d, --debug — do not remove temporary files. keep the receipts. 🧾
  • -f, --force — treats every file as obsolete. ruthless. iconic. 👑
  • -i, --install — copies the missing auxiliary files over. 🫶
  • -s, --symlink — instead of copying, installs symbolic links. fancy. 🔗
the option --install is basically the same energy as the option --add-missing in other tools. iykyk.

🌈 Library directories 🌈

  • -A, --autoconf-dir=ACDIR — where Autoconf's macro files live (rarely needed, fr fr, you probably don't need to touch this) 🙈
  • -l, --localdir=DIR — the location of aclocal.m4 and acconfig.h 📁
  • -M, --m4dir=M4DIR — this package's Autoconf extensions 🧚

unless you say otherwise, some heuristics try to compute M4DIR from the Makefile.am, or it defaults to m4 if that directory exists. she figures it out bestie, don't stress. 💜

the environment variables AUTOCONF and AUTOHEADER are honored. yes ma'am. ✅

💜 AUTHOR 💜

written by David J. MacKenzie. king behavior. 👑

😭 REPORTING BUGS 😭

found a bug? spill. report bugs to <dickey@invisible-island.net>. 💌

Copyright 1994, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

this is free software; see the source for copying conditions. there is NO warranty; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. read that again bestie, NO WARRANTY, not even the merchantability one, not even the fitness-for-a-particular-purpose one. 💀

👑 SEE ALSO 👑

autoconf(1), autoreconf(1), autoupdate(1), autoheader(1), autoscan(1), config.guess(1), config.sub(1), ifnames(1), libtool(1).

the full documentation for autoreconf is maintained as a Texinfo manual. if the info and autoreconf programs are properly installed at your site, this command

info autoreconf

should give you access to the complete manual. go read it, it's giving educational. 📚✨

GNU Autoconf 2.52.20260412 🌸 April 2026 — mwah, that's the whole page, thanks for coming to my ted talk, ily, go remake some configure scripts bestie 💖🦋🎀

📦 where this page comes from