[Mesa-users] MESA Install Fails on macOS Tahoe (26.0.1) - SDK Compatibility?

[William Stone]

Hi Rich,

Thanks for getting back to me. Here is the error output starting from the C
compilation that failed:
CC ../private/utils_c_system.c
In file included from ../private/utils_c_system.c:27:
/Applications/mesasdk/lib/gcc/aarch64-apple-darwin20/13.3.0/include-fixed/stdio.h:81:8:
error: unknown type name 'FILE'
   81 | extern FILE *__stdinp;
      |        ^~~~
/Applications/mesasdk/lib/gcc/aarch64-apple-darwin20/13.3.0/include-fixed/stdio.h:82:8:
error: unknown type name 'FILE'
   82 | extern FILE *__stdoutp;
      |        ^~~~
/Applications/mesasdk/lib/gcc/aarch64-apple-darwin20/13.3.0/include-fixed/stdio.h:83:8:
error: unknown type name 'FILE'
   83 | extern FILE *__stderrp;
      |        ^~~~

(... many similar errors related to types defined in stdio.h and stdarg.h
...)

fatal error: too many errors emitted, stopping compilation [-ferror-limit=]
make: *** [utils_c_system.o] Error 1

/Users/will/MESA/mesa-24.08.1/utils/make
FAILED


/Users/will/MESA/mesa-24.08.1/utils
./build_and_test FAILED

Just to confirm, my setup is:

- macOS Tahoe 26.0.1 (Apple Silicon)

- MESA r24.08.1

- MESA SDK aarch64-macos-25.8.1.pkg

Thanks again for looking into this,

Will

On Tue, 28 Oct 2025 at 15:37, Richard Townsend <townsend at astro.wisc.edu>
wrote:

> Hi Will —
>
> Can you post the actual error message that’s output to the terminal?
>
> cheers,
>
> Rich
>
> > On Oct 28, 2025, at 10:28 AM, William Stone via Mesa-users <
> mesa-users at lists.mesastar.org> wrote:
> >
> > Hi mesa-users,
> > I'm new to MESA and having trouble installing it on my Apple Silicon
> MacBook Air running the latest macOS Tahoe. The ./install script fails very
> quickly (in about 1-2 minutes) with C compilation errors like unknown type
> name 'FILE' when processing the utils module. It seems the main MESA
> library (libmesa.a) isn't being built.
> >
> > My setup is as follows:
> > - Mac: MacBook Air (Apple Silicon/aarch64)
> > - OS: macOS Tahoe 26.0.1 (Build 25A362)
> > - Xcode Tools: Version 26.0.0.0.1.1757719676
> > - MESA Version: mesa-24.08.1 (from Zenodo)
> > - MESA SDK Version: mesasdk-aarch64-macos-25.8.1.pkg (from
> http://user.astro.wisc.edu/~townsend/static.php?ref=mesasdk)
> >
> > I've followed the standard Mac installation steps and troubleshooting,
> including:
> > - Making sure Conda is deactivated.
> > - Setting the MESA_DIR, MESASDK_ROOT, SDKROOT, and
> MESASDK_CLEAN_INCLUDE_PATH environment variables correctly in my
> .bash_profile / .bashrc.
> > - Reinstalling the Xcode Command Line Tools.
> > - Deleting and reinstalling both MESA and the MESA SDK from fresh
> downloads.
> >
> > Even after all this, the C compilation error persists and I have a few
> questions:
> > 1. Is this a known issue with MESA/SDK compatibility on the new macOS
> Tahoe (26.x)?
> > 2. Is there any estimate for when a MESA SDK version supporting macOS
> Tahoe might be released?
> > I'm wondering if I just need to wait for an updated SDK. Any information
> or confirmation would be greatly appreciated!
> > Many thanks,
> > Will Stone
> > _______________________________________________
> > mesa-users at lists.mesastar.org
> >
> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://lists.mesastar.org/mailman/listinfo/mesa-users__;!!Mak6IKo!L1wrnZi69PFjkWjwe_wc1tMScjSkAAUbv4aWfKzFtDFidfnK2YKzI6d-suy12ttjKlLixJBh7ztiPyHKFnTiv56I1-T4Nkc$
> >
>
> --
> Rich Townsend • Professor of Astronomy
> Astronomy Department • University of Wisconsin-Madison
> Phone: 608-262-1752 • E-mail: rhtownsend at wisc.edu
>
>
>
>
>
>
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