32-bit/i386 ports/packges on amd64

[Peter Jeremy]

On 2007-Mar-19 13:37:57 +0200, Andriy Gapon <avg at icyb.net.ua> wrote:
>I saw a number of questions on this list about installing opera on amd64
>and about 32-bit java. But I didn't find any comprehensive answers,
>howtos, etc.

I've had a few tries but not managed to get a 32-bit jdk15 or mysqld
running with an amd64 kernel.  My suspicion is threading...

>Has anyone managed to develop a well-defined and maintainable way of
>using i386 packages (and/or ports) on amd64 ?

This falls into the "lots of people would like it but so far no-one
has implemented it" category.

>BTW, it seems that various Linux distros have developed ways for easy
>co-existence of x86 and x86_64 packages.

Solaris (and I suspect Linux) has taken the approach that the kernel
is 64-bit but userland is primarily 32-bit with applications able to
build/run as 64-bit if desired.  /usr/lib is 32-bit libraries and
/usr/lib/sparcv9 is 64-bit.  The toolchain and RTLD understand where
to look.  OTOH, FreeBSD/amd64 is a 64-bit environment with support
for running 32-bit code:  /usr/lib is 64-bit and /usr/lib32 is 32-bit.

The Solaris approach means that 32-bit applications don't see any
difference in paths etc whether they are running on a 32-bit or 64-bit
kernel.  With the FreeBSD approach, applications that poke around too
closely with dynamic linking need to understand the differences.

The Solaris approach is definitely less painful in the short term
but there may still be some pain in the future when it moves to
a 64-bit-only environment.  The FreeBSD approach looks cleaner but
is definitely more pain in the short term.  As for which is better:
Have a read of:
http://www.acmqueue.com/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=421

-- 
Peter Jeremy
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