Errors when installing a Perl module using make - Mac OSX 10.7 - macos

Question

The problem:
I can't seem to install perl modules correctly, JSON-2.53 in particular.
I have done the following:
Searched for a similar problem and tried its solution - did not work.
perl ".../config.h, needed by `Makefile'" not working after OSX Lion upgrade
Installed XCode command line developer utilities (c compiler, make, etc)
Read version compatibility documentation on this particular perl module: http://metacpan.org/pod/JSON
Ran the following commands to make and install the desired perl module:
$perl Makefile.PL
Welcome to JSON (v.2.53)
If you install JSON::XS v.2.27, it makes JSON faster.
************************** CAUTION **************************
This is 'JSON version 2' and there are many differences *
to version 1.xx *
Please check your applications useing old version. *
See to 'INCOMPATIBLE CHANGES TO OLD VERSION' and 'TIPS' *
Writing Makefile for JSON
(verified that the Makefile has been written)
$make
make: *** No rule to make target `/System/Library/Perl/5.12/darwin-thread-multi-2level/CORE/config.h', needed by `Makefile'. Stop.
What does that error even mean? What can I do to successfully make install this module?
Here are some additional items that may help you assist me in debugging this issue:
$which make
/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/usr/bin/make
$which perl
/usr/bin/perl
$perl -v
This is perl 5, version 12, subversion 3 (v5.12.3) built for darwin-thread-multi-2level

Answer 1

I think you need to download and reinstall XCode. If I recall correctly for 10.7, after downloading Xcode from the app store it drops an installer into your Applications folder. You need to run it and try installing the command line tools again (from Xcode's prefernces pane). I know you mentioned you did this already, but a bit more background might explain why it's worth another try.
Here are the relevant lines in the Makefile from my Mac:
PERL_INC = /System/Library/Perl/5.12/darwin-thread-multi-2level/CORE
# Where is the Config information that we are using/depend on
CONFIGDEP = $(PERL_ARCHLIB)$(DFSEP)Config.pm $(PERL_INC)$(DFSEP)config.h
Later on in the Makefile CONFIGDEP is used as a dependency in a target. I believe in your case make is looking for /System/Library/Perl/5.12/darwin-thread-multi-2level/CORE/config.h and can't find it. The error you're seeing is make's obtuse way of saying file not found.
config.h contains specific information about the OS but is not needed for running scripts. It's only referenced when you want to compile a module. With stock OSX you get enough perl to execute scripts. Install XCode and you get the bits (like config.h) to do perl "development". I use quotes because you can write and run perl scripts without Xcode. But as you discovered, compiling a module requires the additional files Xcode provides. (Incidentally, RedHat does the same thing. You have to install the perl-devel package to get config.h. The perl runtime is in a separate package.)
Here are some things you can try:
Verify /System/Library/Perl/5.12/darwin-thread-multi-2level/CORE/config.h exists. If not, Xcode command line utilities were not installed properly. Try it again.
If config.h exists, check its content and make sure it looks sane. It's a C header file and consists of comments and #define statements.
If you don't have access to view config.h, you have a permission issue. Try using sudo make as a bypass. Disk Utility (found in Applications -> Utilities) might be able to permanently fix this.
You could risk changing the Makefile by removing "$(PERL_INC)$(DFSEP)config.h" from CONFIGDEP. I did this on my 10.8 Mac and it worked without issue (it passed all tests as well). However, if you don't find the root cause of your config.h issue, the next time you want to install a perl module you may find yourself right back where you started.

Answer 2

I had this exact same error, whilst this may not be a solution for you.... after reinstalling an updated xcode compatible with the OSX version (+rebooting after the install) I still had the error - to cut a long story short I noticed there was no config.h in /CORE/ after the error.....the solution that worked was to touch config.h and create the file first and then re-run the make. Hope this helps someone.