This Linux Deployment Tool for Qt, `linuxdeployqt`, takes an application as input and makes it self-contained by copying in the Qt libraries and plugins that the application uses into a bundle. This can optionally be put into an [AppImage](http://appimage.org/).
## Differences to macdeployqt
This tool is conceptually based on the [Mac Deployment Tool](http://doc.qt.io/qt-5/osx-deployment.html), `macdeployqt` in the tools applications of the Qt Toolkit, but has been changed to a slightly different logic and other tools needed for Linux.
* Instead of an `.app` bundle for macOS, this produces an [AppDir](http://rox.sourceforge.net/desktop/AppDirs.html) for Linux
* Instead of a `.dmg` disk image for macOS, this produces an [AppImage](http://appimage.org/) for Linux which is quite similar to a dmg but executes the contained application rather than just opening a window on the desktop from where the application can be launched
* If you believe in dogfeeding, download __linuxdeployqt-x86_64.AppImage__ from the [Releases](https://github.com/probonopd/linuxdeployqt/releases) page and `chmod a+x` it. Then you can skip the following steps because it is a self-contained bundle of linuxdeployqt (made with linuxdeployqt of course)
* Get and build linuxdeployqt e.g., using Qt 5.7.0 (you could use this [Qt Creator AppImage](https://bintray.com/probono/AppImages/QtCreator#files) for this)
* Build and install [patchelf](https://nixos.org/patchelf.html) (a small utility to modify the dynamic linker and RPATH of ELF executables; similar to `install_name_tool` on macOS). To learn more about this, see http://blog.qt.io/blog/2011/10/28/rpath-and-runpath/
* Optional if you want to generate AppImages: Download [appimagetool](https://github.com/probonopd/AppImageKit/releases) and put it into your $PATH, e.g., into `/usr/local/bin`. Make sure it is renamed to `appimagetool` and is `chmod a+x`
Open in Qt Creator and build your application. Run it from the command line and inspect it with `ldd` to make sure the correct libraries from the correct locations are getting loaded, as `linuxdeployqt` will use `ldd` internally to determine from where to copy libraries into the bundle.
__Important:__ `linuxdeployqt` deploys the Qt instance that qmake on the $PATH points to, so make sure that it is the correct one. Verify that qmake finds the correct Qt instance like this before running the `linuxdeployqt` tool:
```
qmake -v
QMake version 3.0
Using Qt version 5.7.0 in /tmp/.mount_QtCreator-5.7.0-x86_64/5.7/gcc_64/lib
```
If this does not show the correct path to your Qt instance that you want to be bundled, then adjust your `$PATH` to find the correct `qmake`.
Before running linuxdeployqt it may be wise to delete unneeded files that you do not wish to distribute from the build directory. These may be autogenerated during the build. You can delete them like so:
These are my first steps with Qt and with C++ for that matter, and it is stil very young, so I'd appreciate your testing, comments, and (ideally) code review. Please discuss in the [forum](http://discourse.appimage.org/t/linuxdeployqt-new-linux-deployment-tool-for-qt/57) or using GitHub issues and pull requests.
