Setup Linux Toolchain from Scratch

The following instructions are alternative to downloading binary toolchain from Espressif website. To quickly setup the binary toolchain, instead of compiling it yourself, backup and proceed to section Standard Setup of Toolchain for Linux.

Install Prerequisites

To compile with ESP-IDF you need to get the following packages:

• Ubuntu and Debian:

  sudo apt-get install git wget make libncurses-dev flex bison gperf python python-serial
  

• Arch:

  sudo pacman -S --needed gcc git make ncurses flex bison gperf python2-pyserial
  

Compile the Toolchain from Source

• Install dependencies:

  • CentOS 7:

    sudo yum install gawk gperf grep gettext ncurses-devel python python-devel automake bison flex texinfo help2man libtool
    

  • Ubuntu pre-16.04:

    sudo apt-get install gawk gperf grep gettext libncurses-dev python python-dev automake bison flex texinfo help2man libtool
    

  • Ubuntu 16.04:

    sudo apt-get install gawk gperf grep gettext python python-dev automake bison flex texinfo help2man libtool libtool-bin
    

  • Debian:

    TODO
    

  • Arch:

    TODO
    

Download crosstool-NG and build it:

cd ~/esp
git clone -b xtensa-1.22.x https://github.com/espressif/crosstool-NG.git
cd crosstool-NG
./bootstrap && ./configure --enable-local && make install

Build the toolchain:

./ct-ng xtensa-esp32-elf
./ct-ng build
chmod -R u+w builds/xtensa-esp32-elf

Toolchain will be built in ~/esp/crosstool-NG/builds/xtensa-esp32-elf. Follow instructions for standard setup to add the toolchain to your PATH.

Next Steps

To carry on with development environment setup, proceed to section Get ESP-IDF.