Why do I get undefined reference errors with gcc -static linking

Question

I'm trying to compile libpcap and libssl statically (with -static) and linker get me these errors:

more undefined references to `ASN1_const_check_infinite_end' follow myprogram       line 0, external location: /lib64/libssl.a(ssl_asn1.o)  
more undefined references to `BIO_test_flags' follow    myprogram   line 0, external location: /lib64/libssl.a(ssl_lib.o)   
------------------------truncated for brevity----------------------------------

I'm using ubuntu 11.4 i686_64 and a nm result on libssl.a with greping BIO_test_flags, is: U BIO_test_flags that means this symbol is an undefined one and all of undefined symbols are in the same status.

How can I solve this linking problem? (any idea or approaches are welcome) [note that static compilation is a must for me]

I assume that's Ubuntu 11.04 and x86_64? – Douglas Leeder Dec 19 '11 at 17:03 — Douglas Leeder, Dec 19 '11 at 17:03
yep that's Ubuntu 11.04 and x86_64. – user1106291 Dec 19 '11 at 17:06 — user1106291, Dec 19 '11 at 17:06

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 20 '11 at 21:52

Presumably one of the static libraries is missing. Maybe you can tell which just by looking, but if not, here's a few ways to figure it out:

Add -t to your link command and see if that helps.

Try to strace the link command (beware that gcc invokes the linker as a subprocess, so you'll need to follow forks) and see what library files it's not finding, and where it's looking for them.

Why do I get undefined reference errors with gcc -static linking

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