Browser Development • Re: [PPPC64] Steps to successfully build Pale Moon 34.3.0.1 on Linux/PPC (BigEndian)

Gotcha, that got it past mach install. Resulting binary's help & version output works, but trying to start the browser just leaves me with one zombie and abunch of sleeping threads. Tried building with Debian's binaries & libraries as well, and launching from a proper DE instead of just startx, just to make sure.

CODE:

 S CPU% MEM% TIME+ Command S 0.0 0.1 0:00.19 ├─ login -- puna S 0.0 0.2 0:01.03 │ └─ -fish S 0.0 0.0 0:00.01 │ └─ /bin/sh /usr/bin/startx /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon S 0.0 0.0 0:00.01 │ └─ xinit /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon -- /etc/X11/xinit/xserverrc :0 vt1 -keeptty -auth /tmp/serverauth.0XjN86rF71 S 0.0 1.3 0:01.07 │ ├─ /usr/lib/xorg/Xorg -nolisten tcp :0 vt1 -keeptty -auth /tmp/serverauth.0XjN86rF71 S 0.0 1.3 0:00.02 │ │ └─ /usr/lib/xorg/Xorg -nolisten tcp :0 vt1 -keeptty -auth /tmp/serverauth.0XjN86rF71 S 0.0 2.1 0:00.40 │ └─ /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon Z 0.0 0.0 0:00.44 │ ├─ palemoon S 0.0 2.1 0:00.00 │ ├─ /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon S 0.0 2.1 0:00.00 │ ├─ /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon S 0.0 2.1 0:00.00 │ ├─ /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon S 0.0 2.1 0:00.00 │ └─ /home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/install/bin/palemoon

Current patch applied to 34.3.1:

CODE:

diff '--color=auto' -ruN a/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/freebl.gyp b/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/freebl.gyp--- a/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/freebl.gyp 2026-06-29 11:07:46.943647767 +0200+++ b/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/freebl.gyp 2026-06-29 10:57:30.511834118 +0200@@ -291,12 +291,16 @@ 'type': 'static_library', 'sources': [ 'gcm-ppc.c',- 'sha512-p8.s', ], 'dependencies': [ '<(DEPTH)/exports.gyp:nss_exports' ], 'conditions': [+ [ 'ppc_abi==2', {+ 'sources': [+ 'sha512-p8.s',+ ],+ }], [ 'disable_crypto_vsx==0', { 'cflags': [ '-mcrypto',@@ -313,6 +317,11 @@ 'cflags_mozilla': [ '-maltivec' ],+ }],+ [ 'disable_crypto_vsx==1 and (target_arch=="ppc" or target_arch=="ppc64" or target_arch=="ppc64le")', {+ 'defines!': [+ 'NSS_DISABLE_CRYPTO_VSX',+ ], }] ] },@@ -938,6 +947,9 @@ # Confusingly, __SOFTFP__ is the name of the define for the softfloat ABI, not for the softfp ABI. 'softfp_cflags': '<!(${CC:-cc} -o - -E -dM - ${CFLAGS} < /dev/null | grep __SOFTFP__ > /dev/null && echo -mfloat-abi=softfp || true)', }],+ [ 'target_arch=="ppc64" or target_arch=="ppc64le"', {+ 'ppc_abi': '<!(sh -c "${CC:-cc} -dM -E - < /dev/null | awk \'\\$2 == \\"_CALL_ELF\\" {print \\$3}\'")',+ }] ], } }diff '--color=auto' -ruN a/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/ppc-crypto.h b/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/ppc-crypto.h--- a/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/ppc-crypto.h 2026-06-29 11:07:46.944541301 +0200+++ b/platform/security/nss/lib/freebl/ppc-crypto.h 2026-06-29 11:08:19.513889087 +0200@@ -22,7 +22,8 @@ * please send a patch. */ #if (defined(__clang__) || (defined(__GNUC__) && __GNUC__ >= 8)) && \- defined(IS_LITTLE_ENDIAN) && defined(__VSX__)+ defined(IS_LITTLE_ENDIAN) && defined(__VSX__) && \+ !defined(NSS_DISABLE_CRYPTO_VSX) #define USE_PPC_CRYPTO #endif

mozconfig looks p much like the one required for official branding (_BUILD_64=1, _GTK_VERSION=3), just with these additions:

CODE:

ac_add_options --prefix=/home/puna/Development/Pale-Moon/installmk_add_options MOZ_MAKE_FLAGS=-j2ac_add_options --disable-precompiled-startupcache

Maybe OP has an idea, since they seemed to have gotten this to work on their G5 Debian Sid system? If this was due to an unsupported POWER instruction, I'd expect the process to halt with a SIGILL or smth.

In case it helps, this is a 2.3GHz dual-processor G5 w/ a Radeon 9600. Tried GCCs were 15.3.0 (Debian), 15.2.0 (Nixpkgs), 13.4.0 (closest to the recommended version that's still in Nixpkgs).