Re: dh_gencontrol and space separated list

[Jakub Wilk <jwilk@debian.org>]

* Mathieu Malaterre <mathieu.malaterre@gmail.com>, 2012-01-30, 17:07:
> Hi all,
>
>  I am trying to automated the list of archs from d/rules files. I am using :
>
> ...
> include /usr/share/mono/mono-archs.make
> %:
> 	dh $@ --with cli
> mono_archs=$(DEB_MONO_ARCHS)
> override_dh_gencontrol:
> 	dh_gencontrol -- -Vmono:Archs:"$(mono_archs)"
> ...
>
> It seems like this is a bad idea, as I get:
>
> $ dpkg-buildpackage
> dpkg-buildpackage: source package gdcm
> dpkg-buildpackage: source version 2.2.0-2
> dpkg-buildpackage: source changed by Mathieu Malaterre
> <mathieu.malaterre@gmail.com>
> dpkg-buildpackage: host architecture amd64
> dpkg-source --before-build gdcm-2.2.0
> dpkg-source: error: `${mono:Archs}' is not a legal architecture string
> dpkg-buildpackage: error: dpkg-source --before-build gdcm-2.2.0 gave
> error exit status 255

Note that this error came from dpkg-source, before debian/rules was run. 
(Therefore, it has nothing to do with dh_gencontrol.)

If you're trying to use ${mono:Archs} in the Architecture field, then 
no, you can't do this:

"While variable substitution is done on all control fields, some of 
those fields are used and needed during the build when the substitution 
did not yet occur. That's why you can't use variables in the Package, 
Source and Architecture fields." (from deb-substvars manpage)

--
Jakub Wilk