http://www.yoctoproject.org/docs/yocto-quick-start/yocto-project-qs.html (Also, the YPQS doesn't have a separate component in bugzilla, so please fix the component of the bug if necessary). While there is a link to OE's http://wiki.openembedded.net/index.php/OEandYourDistro , nowhere is it mentioned that bitbake requires at least python2.6. Hardy (previous Ubuntu LTS) has only 2.5, and switching the system default version is quite complicated (breaks things). The mechanism for getting a working python for bitbake should be documented somewhere and the quick start quide should probably at least mention this critical dependency.
Posted a bug against poky-init-build-env (logical place to implement python version check before bitbake dependency). pls see bug #629.
Hardy LTS is supported with security updates on servers to April of 2013 and on clients to April of 2011. The YPQS states that you need recent releases of Fedora, OpenSUSE, Debian, or Ubuntu. However, I think it is reasonable to put a note in where the bitbake command is shown that bitbake requires at least python 2.6. Implementing a fix for bug #629 (see below) would also help the user out that runs into this situation. The information found at http://wiki.openembedded.net/index.php/OEandYourDistro under the Ubuntu section would be the best place to mention the requirement for Python 2.6 and BitBake. I am proposing just the note in the YPQS to address this bug. Someone needs to add the information to the OE wiki page.
After discussing with Richard I will do the following to address this bug: 1. Put a note in the YPQS specifying the Python version requirement for BitBake. 2. Include a link to the FAQ appendix of the Poky Reference Guide. 3. Create a new question in the PRG FAQ that says "I only have python 2.4 or python 2.5 but BitBake needs 2.6. Can I use Poky" (wording might change). 4. Create answer that says "You can use a stand-alone tarball to provide python 2.6" 5. Include some form of the following work-around: I've seen a few comments that people are struggling with the python version Poky requires not being present in certain distros. I can now point to one potential solution in the form of a standalone install of python (in /opt/poky) which Poky itself can generate. I've shared prebuilt 32 and 64 bit versions of these at: http://autobuilder.yoctoproject.org/downloads/miscsupport/python-nativesdk-standalone-i586.tar.bz2 http://autobuilder.yoctoproject.org/downloads/miscsupport/python-nativesdk-standalone-x86_64.tar.bz2 They are not statically linked but are self contained with all the libraries they need so should work on pretty much any Linux system. To use them, extract as root in / and then just run: export PATH=/opt/poky/sysroots/i586-pokysdk-linux/usr/bin/:$PATH or export PATH=/opt/poky/sysroots/x86_64-pokysdk-linux/usr/bin/:$PATH before running bitbake and the version of python in these tarballs will be used by bitbake instead. For reference, you can generate these tarballs by running: SDKMACHINE=i586 bitbake external-python-tarball or SDKMACHINE=x86_64 bitbake external-python-tarball using Poky's master branch.
I'm ok with the proposed solution, however, before pushing 1.0, you might make sure that http://bugzilla.pokylinux.org/show_bug.cgi?id=680 is fixed and the pre-generated tarballs are regenerated. The current pregen tarballs will not work with master bitbake (pls see 680).
This bug has been addressed and I have pushed the fix and generated the pull request and sent the pull request. Once it is merged it can be marked resolved.
http://git.pokylinux.org/cgit/cgit.cgi/poky/commit/?id=0697f34aa2b9d9f0e9413e6a24e02e0729f71262
Fixes are in the manuals.