Question 46421 in Debian Question posted in
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Build a custom vim binary with python support and syntax highlighting – Debian

Background

The Debian 11 vim package doesn’t include python3 support. See the section titled "No python support in Debian 11 vim – evidence" below

I need vim with python3 support for the YouCompleteMe vim plugin. Syntax highlighting is also required. To build a new vim, I downloaded the vim 9.0 tarball into /opt/ on my Debian 11 system and extracted it… explicitly:

$ cd /opt
$ sudo wget http://ftp.vim.org/pub/pub/vim/unix/vim-9.0.tar.bz2
$ sudo bunzip2 ./vim-9.0.tar.bz2
$ sudo chown -R mpenning:mpenning vim/

I built it with…

$ cd /opt/vim
$ ./configure 
 --enable-python3interp=yes 
 --with-python3-command=python3.9 
 --with-features=huge 
 --with-compiledby="[email protected]"
$ make
$ sudo cp src/vim /usr/bin/vim

However, now I see these errors when I start vim…

$ vim foo.py
2022-10-24 09:08:31 [INFO] Editing 'foo.py'.
failed to load colors/lists/default.vim
failed to load colors/lists/default.vim
Press ENTER or type command to continue

As one might expect, I get no vim syntax highlighting when I see the errors listed above. Just for kicks, I tried this in my vim session:

  • :syntax enable
  • :colorscheme default
  • :filetype plugin on

Predictably, that doesn’t help.

Question

How can I build a Debian vim binary with python3 and syntax highlighting support?

No python support in Debian 11 vim – evidence

$ vim --version
VIM - Vi IMproved 8.2 (2019 Dec 12, compiled Oct 01 2021 01:51:08)
Included patches: 1-2434
Extra patches: 8.2.3402, 8.2.3403, 8.2.3409, 8.2.3428
Modified by [email protected]
Compiled by [email protected]
Huge version without GUI.  Features included (+) or not (-):
+acl               -farsi             +mouse_sgr         +tag_binary
+arabic            +file_in_path      -mouse_sysmouse    -tag_old_static
+autocmd           +find_in_path      +mouse_urxvt       -tag_any_white
+autochdir         +float             +mouse_xterm       -tcl
-autoservername    +folding           +multi_byte        +termguicolors
-balloon_eval      -footer            +multi_lang        +terminal
+balloon_eval_term +fork()            -mzscheme          +terminfo
-browse            +gettext           +netbeans_intg     +termresponse
++builtin_terms    -hangul_input      +num64             +textobjects
+byte_offset       +iconv             +packages          +textprop
+channel           +insert_expand     +path_extra        +timers
+cindent           +ipv6              -perl              +title
-clientserver      +job               +persistent_undo   -toolbar
-clipboard         +jumplist          +popupwin          +user_commands
+cmdline_compl     +keymap            +postscript        +vartabs
+cmdline_hist      +lambda            +printer           +vertsplit
+cmdline_info      +langmap           +profile           +virtualedit
+comments          +libcall           -python            +visual
+conceal           +linebreak         -python3           +visualextra
+cryptv            +lispindent        +quickfix          +viminfo
+cscope            +listcmds          +reltime           +vreplace
+cursorbind        +localmap          +rightleft         +wildignore
+cursorshape       -lua               -ruby              +wildmenu
+dialog_con        +menu              +scrollbind        +windows
+diff              +mksession         +signs             +writebackup
+digraphs          +modify_fname      +smartindent       -X11
-dnd               +mouse             -sound             -xfontset
-ebcdic            -mouseshape        +spell             -xim
+emacs_tags        +mouse_dec         +startuptime       -xpm
+eval              +mouse_gpm         +statusline        -xsmp
+ex_extra          -mouse_jsbterm     -sun_workshop      -xterm_clipboard
+extra_search      +mouse_netterm     +syntax            -xterm_save
   system vimrc file: "$VIM/vimrc"
     user vimrc file: "$HOME/.vimrc"
 2nd user vimrc file: "~/.vim/vimrc"
      user exrc file: "$HOME/.exrc"
       defaults file: "$VIMRUNTIME/defaults.vim"
  fall-back for $VIM: "/usr/share/vim"
Compilation: gcc -c -I. -Iproto -DHAVE_CONFIG_H -Wdate-time -g -O2 -ffile-prefix-map=/build/vim-DtwDbo/vim-8.2.2434=. -fstack-protector-strong -Wformat -Werror=format-security -U_FORTIFY_SOURCE -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=1
Linking: gcc -Wl,-z,relro -Wl,-z,now -Wl,--as-needed -o vim -lm -ltinfo -lselinux -lacl -lattr -lgpm -ldl
$
Tags:

2

Answers


  1. Chosen as BEST ANSWER
    0

    I have a custom vim install in /opt/vim for the system in question.

    It seems that I have to set $VIMRUNTIME to my new vim/runtime source directory when I try to edit with the new vim binary... Setting this in my ~/.bashrc fixed the problem...

    export VIMRUNTIME="/opt/vim/runtime/"

    Now I have vim with both python3 and functional syntax highlighting.


  2. 0

    I need vim with python syntax highlighting

    Python syntax highlighting is built-in so you don’t need to build Vim manually to get it. You are wasting your and everyone’s time.

    "Python support" is unrelated to syntax highlighting. It refers to the Python scripting interface that allow users to (partially) write Vim plugins in Python. Having -python or -python3 in :version has zero incidence on Vim’s ability to highlight Python.

    FWIW, you don’t have to build a new vim binary if you install the vim-nox Debian package instead of depending on the vim Debian package. vim-nox embeds several scripting languages in the vim.nox binary build.

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