Is it possible to build gcc without a c compiler already on the machine? If so, how?
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1You can always get a binary... If you're getting into such considerations, you usually are pretty screwed. – Antoine Benkemoun Jan 06 '10 at 17:56
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What you're talking about is known as bootstrapping a compiler.
Typically this is done by cross-compiling the compiler on another machine for the target architecture. You can find some background here and here. It's not a trivial process, though. If your target isn't architecture that GCC already supports then you've got a lot of work ahead of you.
Evan Anderson
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1I remember reading some old `gcc` installation instructions that were about building a minimal compiler with `as` and using it to build the real `gcc`. – user1686 Jan 07 '10 at 13:30
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I've always thought that bootstrapping a compiler on a new architecture would be fun. Of course, designing a processor ISA and implementing it in discrete logic or FPGAs sounds like a lot of fun, too... *smile* Oh, if I only had free time... – Evan Anderson Jan 07 '10 at 17:29
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Wow - I'm only 99.9% sure but no, no I really don't believe you can.
That said it might be worth asking on SO.
Chopper3
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