The Factor project uses Continuous integration to help avoid regressions and ensure that all code works across a variety of platforms.

We maintain a set of "build servers" running various CPU/OS combinations. Some are actual machines, others are VMs running on a couple of larger quad-core boxes.

The build machines run the mason vocabulary. This is a fork of the builder vocabulary. builder was written by Eduardo Cavazos, and mason is currently maintained by Slava Pestov. Mason is responsible for monitoring the git repository and latest boot images for changes, bootstrapping Factor, running tests, and uploading packages if everything passes.

If you wish to be notified of build server activity, subscribe to the Factor-builds mailing list.

Binary packages

Binary packages are available from http://factorcode.org/binaries.fhtml. Binaries are only uploaded if the source builds and all tests pass.

Clean branches

Additionally, every time a release was made, the clean branch for the platform in question is updated and a corresponding clean boot image is uploaded. Clean branches should be tracked by users who do not wish to use the binary packages, but nevertheless require a high degree of confidence that the source will compile and work.

Building from a clean branch

The currently available clean branches are:

• clean-linux-x86-32
• clean-linux-x86-64
• clean-winnt-x86-32
• clean-macosx-x86-32
• clean-macosx-x86-64
• clean-macosx-ppc
• clean-freebsd-x86-32
• clean-freebsd-x86-64
• clean-netbsd-x86-32
• clean-netbsd-x86-64
• clean-openbsd-x86-32
• clean-openbsd-x86-64

Step 1: To track a clean branch, you will need to clone a repository first, then issue the following two commands to stay up to date:

git checkout -b clean-os-cpu origin/clean-os-cpu
git pull git://factorcode.org/git/factor.git clean-os-cpu

Step 2: Download the latest clean boot image for your architecture. Place the boot image in the Factor directory.

Step 3: Compile the Factor VM by running make (gmake on BSD).

Step 4: Bootstrap Factor by issuing a command like the following:

./factor -i=boot.arch.image