building a version of python with electric fence

[Stephen Langer]

Hi --

In order to debug a python extension module that I'm writing, I'd like to create a variant of python that links with electric fence.  I edited /opt/local/var/macports/sources/rsync.macports.org/release/ports/lang/python25/Portfile, adding these lines at the end:

variant efence {
   configure.args-append --with-libs=efence
}

When I try to install the variant, using
   % sudo port -v install python25 +efence
I get

> --->  Configuring python25
> [...]
> checking for getaddrinfo... no
> Fatal: You must get working getaddrinfo() function.
>        or you can specify "--disable-ipv6".
> shell command " cd "/opt/local/var/macports/build/_opt_local_var_macports_sources_rsync.macports.org_release_ports_lang_python25/work/Python-2.5.5" && ./configure --prefix=/opt/local --enable-shared --enable-framework=/opt/local/Library/Frameworks --mandir=/opt/local/share/man --enable-ipv6 --with-cxx=/usr/bin/g++-4.2 --with-libs=efence " returned error 1
> Error: Target org.macports.configure returned: configure failure: shell command failed
> Warning: the following items did not execute (for python25): org.macports.activate org.macports.configure org.macports.build org.macports.destroot org.macports.install
> Log for python25 is at: /opt/local/var/macports/logs/_opt_local_var_macports_sources_rsync.macports.org_release_ports_lang_python25/main.log
> Error: Status 1 encountered during processing.


If I follow the advice and add --disable-ipv6, I just get another error, "cannot compute sizeof (wchar_t)".  Clearly I'm doing something wrong in the Portfile, since the port builds without the +efence variant, and adding one library shouldn't cause these errors.  Am I somehow accidentally telling it to skip default libraries?  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
     Steve


--
-- stephen.langer at nist.gov                    Tel: (301) 975-5423 --
-- http://math.nist.gov/mcsd/Staff/SLanger/   Fax: (301) 975-3553 --
-- NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 8910, Gaithersburg, Md 20899-8910 --

-- "I don't think this will work.  That's why it's science."      --
--                     Naomi Langer (age 6),  17 Feb 2003         --