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

[Philip Mocz]

We've seen this error before, haven't we, Rich? But maybe this time it's
related to Tahoe (26.0.1) ? (I still need to upgrade)

On Tue, Oct 28, 2025 at 11:53 AM William Stone via Mesa-users <
mesa-users at lists.mesastar.org> wrote:

> 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
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
> mesa-users at lists.mesastar.org
> https://lists.mesastar.org/mailman/listinfo/mesa-users
>
>
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