ExtUtils::MakeMaker - VERBINST unknown

kcott has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

I haven't used the VERBINST previously but tried it today:

WriteMakefile(
    ...,
    VERBINST            => 1,
    ...
);
[download]

I got messages saying this parameter was unknown:

$ perl Makefile.PL
WARNING: VERBINST is not a known parameter.
Checking if your kit is complete...
Looks good
'VERBINST' is not a known MakeMaker parameter name.
Generating a Unix-style Makefile
...
[download]

I did a Super Search for VERBINST. There were only four results; three showed the generated Makefile which, in each case, had:

# --- MakeMaker tools_other section:
...
VERBINST = 0
...
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Curiously, my generated Makefile had:

# --- MakeMaker tools_other section:
...
VERBINST = 1
...
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I continued on with make, make test and make install. The last of those was supposed to be verbose but I only got the normal output:

$ make install
Manifying 1 pod document
Installing /.../lib/site_perl/...pm
Installing /.../man/man3/...3pm
Writing /...packlist
Appending installation info to /.../perllocal.pod
[download]

I'm using Perl v5.30.0 (built for cygwin-thread-multi) and ExtUtils::MakeMaker v7.34.

I've checked the documention, "ExtUtils::MakeMaker (for Perl v5.30.0)", and I'm reasonably certain that I'm using VERBINST correctly.

Any ideas on whether I've done something wrong or if there's a bug, would be appreciated.

— Ken

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Re: ExtUtils::MakeMaker - VERBINST unknown by syphilis (Archbishop) on May 25, 2020 at 09:00 UTC
The last of those was supposed to be verbose but I only got the normal output It can make a difference. I installed FileHandle-Fmode-0.14 the old-fashioned way - ie by by manually running `perl Makefile.PL` and `make test` followed by `make install` from inside the top level source directory. Then I ran `make realclean`, and re-built the same module in the same way, except that I started with `perl Makefile.PL VERBINST=0` This time `make install` produced: `C:\sisyphusion\FileHandle-Fmode-0.14>make install "C:\_64\perl530_810\bin\perl.exe" -MExtUtils::Command::MM -e cp_nonemp +ty -- Fmode.bs blib\arch\auto\FileHandle\Fmode\Fmode.bs 644 Files found in blib\arch: installing files in blib\lib into architectu +re dependent library tree Installing C:\_64\perl530_810\site\lib\auto\FileHandle\Fmode\Fmode.dll Appending installation info to C:\_64\perl530_810\lib/perllocal.pod` [download] Then I re-ran `make realclean` and began a third build with `perl Makefile.PL VERBINST=1` This time `make install` did provide extra verbosity: C:\sisyphusion\FileHandle-Fmode-0.14>make install "C:\_64\perl530_810\bin\perl.exe" -MExtUtils::Command::MM -e cp_nonemp +ty -- Fmode.bs blib\arch\auto\FileHandle\Fmode\Fmode.bs 644 Files found in blib\arch: installing files in blib\lib into architectu +re dependent library tree Installing C:\_64\perl530_810\site\lib\auto\FileHandle\Fmode\Fmode.dll Skipping C:\_64\perl530_810\site\lib\FileHandle\Fmode.pm (unchanged) Writing C:\_64\perl530_810\site\lib\auto\FileHandle\Fmode\.packlist Appending installation info to C:\_64\perl530_810\lib/perllocal.pod [download] Perhaps one gets full verbosity on the initial `make install` irrespective of the setting of VERBINST ? The documentation should spell things out in detail IMO. BTW, I saw the same `'VERBINST' is not a known MakeMaker parameter name` warning each time, as you did. Oh ... and I think it's insane that EU::MM complains about a parameter that it does understand. Cheers, Rob	[reply] [d/l] [select]
Re^2: ExtUtils::MakeMaker - VERBINST unknown by kcott (Archbishop) on May 26, 2020 at 00:49 UTC
G'day Rob, ++ Thanks for the feedback and I appreciate you going to the effort to run some tests. I'm creating a series of distributions for testing injection to, and installation from, a DarkPAN (see "Setting up and accessing a DarkPAN" for some background on that if you're interested). The distributions contain a variety of different types of modules (pure Perl, Moose, etc.) with various associations (inheritance, composition, etc.). At this stage, I'm mostly interested in checking that missing modules in the dependency hierarchies are installed correctly (from the correct sources, i.e. CPAN or DarkPAN). Once my tests are complete, I'll be passing on the distributions to others to repeat and confirm results. The use of `VERBINST` was intended to provide useful feedback during the testing. I don't think output peppered with (bogus) warnings would be helpful at all. For now, I'm planning to just omit the `VERBINST` parameter from `Makefile.PL`. Unless I receive information suggesting otherwise, I'll raise a bug report: probably give it a week for any further responses to be posted and I'll provide an RT link in an update. — Ken	[reply] [d/l] [select]