[Octave-bug-tracker] [bug #41148] parallel package: fails to build in windows/mingw

[Olaf Till]

Follow-up Comment #32, bug #41148 (project octave):

Mike, surely it can be installed. But I'd prefer that it can't be installed if
it doesn't work.

And the m-code call in parcellfun to Octaves fork() user function is not the
only instance of calling the fork() system call. There is also a server
function in the package which uses the fork() system call directly. This
function will just segfault if this system call is not provided by the OS.

In bug #47843, I've just recommended against trying to implement fork in
Octave on MINGW.

And after looking at the code of Cygwin, which somehow implements fork with
CreateProcessW, I understand that there is no cleaner solution (as I initially
thought possible) to use CreateProcess than to emulate fork() with it. And I
think the way to implement fork() with CreateProcess is just terrible. I
certainly won't try to copy this effort in the parallel package.

So what I probably do is to check for fork() at configure time, and if
lacking, at least disable the server, but probably also abort installation,
since installation would be useless.

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