Building on Linux

7-Zip can be compiled on Linux using GCC or Clang compilers, with optional assembler optimizations for better performance.

Requirements

Compiler

GCC
Clang

GCC 4.8 or later (GCC 9+ recommended)

gcc --version

Install on Debian/Ubuntu:

sudo apt-get install build-essential

Clang (modern version recommended)

clang --version

Install on Debian/Ubuntu:

sudo apt-get install clang

Build Tools

sudo apt-get install make

Assembler (Optional, for Performance)

For x86/x64 optimizations, install one of:

Asmc (Recommended)
UASM

Asmc Macro Assembler - Recommended for full optimization

git clone https://github.com/nidud/asmc
cd asmc
# Follow build instructions in repository

UASM - Alternative assembler

git clone https://github.com/Terraspace/UASM
cd UASM
# Follow build instructions in repository

JWasm is not recommended - It doesn’t support AES instructions used in 7-Zip. The build will fall back to C versions of AES code, reducing performance.

Quick Start

Navigate to a bundle directory and build:

Navigate to Bundle

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2

Build with make

make -j -f makefile.gcc

The -j flag enables parallel compilation for faster builds.

Run the binary

./b/g/7zz

Build Configurations

7-Zip provides specialized makefiles for optimized builds:

Basic Builds (No Assembler)

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc.mak

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_clang.mak

Optimized Builds (With Assembler)

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc_x64.mak

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc_x86.mak

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc_arm64.mak

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_clang_x64.mak

Makefile Variables

You can customize builds using variables with makefile.gcc:

Platform Control

boolean

default:"0"

Build for x86-64 architecture

make -f makefile.gcc IS_X64=1

boolean

default:"0"

Enable assembler optimizations

make -f makefile.gcc IS_X64=1 USE_ASM=1

string

default:"asmc"

Specify assembler program

make -f makefile.gcc IS_X64=1 USE_ASM=1 MY_ASM=/path/to/uasm

RAR Support Control

boolean

default:"0"

Remove all RAR-related code

make -f makefile.gcc DISABLE_RAR=1

boolean

default:"0"

Remove RAR decompression codecs (keeps archive listing support)

make -f makefile.gcc DISABLE_RAR_COMPRESS=1

Assembler Selection

boolean

default:"0"

Use JWasm instead of Asmc (not recommended)

make -f makefile.gcc USE_JWASM=1

When using USE_JWASM=1, AES code from AesOpt.c will be used instead of assembler AesOpt.asm because JWasm doesn’t support AES instructions.

Build Examples

Standard x64 Build Without Assembler

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc.mak

Output: b/g/7zz

Optimized x64 Build With Assembler

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc_x64.mak

Output: b/g_x64/7zz

Build Without RAR Support

cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc.mak DISABLE_RAR=1

Build With Custom UASM Assembler

UASM="$PWD/uasm"
cd CPP/7zip/Bundles/Alone2
make -f makefile.gcc -j IS_X64=1 USE_ASM=1 MY_ASM="$UASM"

Build Targets

Different bundle directories produce different binaries:

Directory	Output	Description
`Bundles/Alone2`	7zz	Standalone binary (all formats)
`Bundles/Alone`	7za	Standalone binary (limited formats)
`Bundles/Alone7z`	7zr	Standalone binary (7z only)
`Bundles/Format7zF`	7z.so	Shared library (all formats)
`UI/Console`	7z	Console binary (requires shared lib)

Compiler Flags

The build system uses the following optimization flags (from 7zip_gcc.mak):

CFLAGS_BASE = -O2 -Wall -Wextra -Werror \
  -D_REENTRANT -D_FILE_OFFSET_BITS=64 -D_LARGEFILE_SOURCE \
  -fPIC

Additional optimization options:

-flto - Link-time optimization (enabled in some configs)
-ffunction-sections - Separate functions for linker optimization

Output Directory Structure

Builds create output in subdirectories:

b/g/ - GCC builds (general)
b/g_x64/ - GCC x64 builds
b/g_arm64/ - GCC ARM64 builds
_o/ - Default output directory for makefile.gcc

Troubleshooting

Error: assembler not found

If building with USE_ASM=1 but assembler is missing:

# Either install assembler
git clone https://github.com/nidud/asmc

# Or build without assembler
make -j -f ../../cmpl_gcc.mak

Error: pthread library not found

Install pthread development libraries:

sudo apt-get install libpthread-stubs0-dev

Slow build performance

Use the -j flag to enable parallel compilation:

make -j$(nproc) -f makefile.gcc

Performance Comparison

Builds with assembler optimizations provide significant performance improvements:

With Assembler (cmpl_gcc_x64.mak):

Optimized CRC32 calculation
Hardware AES encryption (if CPU supports)
Faster LZMA compression/decompression
Optimized SHA-256 hashing

Without Assembler (cmpl_gcc.mak):

Uses C implementations for all codecs
Portable to any architecture
Slower but still functional

Cross-Compilation

To cross-compile for a different architecture:

export CROSS_COMPILE=aarch64-linux-gnu-
make -f makefile.gcc -j

The var_gcc.mak file supports the CROSS_COMPILE variable for setting the compiler prefix.

Next Steps

Test your build: ./b/g/7zz --help
Benchmark performance: ./b/g/7zz b
Review build options

Building from Source

SDK & Integration

Contributing

Building on Linux

Requirements

Compiler

Build Tools

Assembler (Optional, for Performance)

Quick Start

Build Configurations

Basic Builds (No Assembler)

Optimized Builds (With Assembler)

Makefile Variables

Platform Control

RAR Support Control

Assembler Selection

Build Examples

Standard x64 Build Without Assembler

Optimized x64 Build With Assembler

Build Without RAR Support

Build With Custom UASM Assembler

Build Targets

Compiler Flags

Output Directory Structure

Troubleshooting

Performance Comparison

Cross-Compilation

Next Steps

See Also

​Requirements

​Compiler

​Build Tools

​Assembler (Optional, for Performance)

​Quick Start

​Build Configurations

​Basic Builds (No Assembler)

​Optimized Builds (With Assembler)

​Makefile Variables

​Platform Control

​RAR Support Control

​Assembler Selection

​Build Examples

​Standard x64 Build Without Assembler

​Optimized x64 Build With Assembler

​Build Without RAR Support

​Build With Custom UASM Assembler

​Build Targets

​Compiler Flags

​Output Directory Structure

​Troubleshooting

​Performance Comparison

​Cross-Compilation

​Next Steps

​See Also

Requirements

Compiler

Build Tools

Assembler (Optional, for Performance)

Quick Start

Build Configurations

Basic Builds (No Assembler)

Optimized Builds (With Assembler)

Makefile Variables

Platform Control

RAR Support Control

Assembler Selection

Build Examples

Standard x64 Build Without Assembler

Optimized x64 Build With Assembler

Build Without RAR Support

Build With Custom UASM Assembler

Build Targets

Compiler Flags

Output Directory Structure

Troubleshooting

Performance Comparison

Cross-Compilation

Next Steps

See Also