This guide has been tested with an adapted buildroot configuration where the Linux Kernel was changed to 5.4.96 and glibc was set to 2.31, this was done so to match the same configuration found on webOS 7 devices. Instructions for doing so is included in this guide. The host OS used for compilation was Ubuntu 22.10 (64-bit). Other combinations may work but we provide no assurances that other combinations will build correctly and run identically to Team Kodi releases. Kodi will build and run on webOS 5+ (LG 2020 models) using Kodi's unified depends build system. Please read it in full before you proceed to familiarize yourself with the build procedure. Note that you do not need to "root" your TV to install Kodi.
- Document conventions
- Prerequisites
- Configure the tool chain
- Configure ares-cli tools
- Get the source code
- Configure and build tools and dependencies
6.1. Advanced Configure Options - Generate Kodi Build files
7.1. Generate Project Files
7.2. Add Binary Addons to Project - Build
8.1. Build kodi binary - Packaging kodi to distribute as an IPK
9.1. Create the IPK - Install
10.1. Using make install
10.2. Using ares-cli to install - Debugging
- Uninstall
12.1. Using make to uninstall
12.1. Using ares-cli to uninstall
This guide assumes you are using terminal, also known as console, command-line or simply cli. Commands need to be run at the terminal, one at a time and in the provided order.
This is a comment that provides context:
this is a command
this is another command
and yet another one
Example: Clone Kodi's current master branch:
git clone https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc kodi
Commands that contain strings enclosed in angle brackets denote something you need to change to suit your needs.
git clone -b <branch-name> https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc kodi
Example: Clone Kodi's current Krypton branch:
git clone -b Krypton https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc kodi
Several different strategies are used to draw your attention to certain pieces of information. In order of how critical the information is, these items are marked as a note, tip, or warning. For example:
NOTE: Linux is user friendly... It's just very particular about who its friends are. TIP: Algorithm is what developers call code they do not want to explain. WARNING: Developers don't change light bulbs. It's a hardware problem.
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LG developer account. This is required to access developer mode on the webOS device.
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[Actvate developer mode on your webOS device]. Follow the instructions as per Installing Developer Mode app page.
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Download ares CLI tools. These are required to package the kodi binary into a IPK format that webOS understands.
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[Download and setup a compatible toolchain to compile kodi]. The toolchain which was used in this guide is buildroot-nc4, it is an up to date buildroot configuration and comes with newer tools such as GCC 12.2.0. Other toolchains exist, such as those found on the LG OpenSource website: https://opensource.lge.com/. You will need to enter the model number of your TV to find the applicable toolchain.
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Device with webOS 5.0 or newer.
Team Kodi CI infrastructure is limited, and therefore we only have the single combination tested. Newer webOS versions may work, however the team does not actively test/use these versions, so use with caution. Earlier versions may work, however we dont actively support them, so use with caution.
mkdir $HOME/kodi-dev
tar xzvf arm-webos-linux-gnueabi_sdk-buildroot.tar.gz -C $HOME/kodi-dev
You need to add your webOS device so that it can be used later on in this guide. This step is only required once:
ares-setup-device -s
Note that the username is prisoner and the password is blank.
You will need to note the name of your device for later e.g. [LG]_webOS_TV_OLED65C24LA
Change to your home directory:
cd $HOME
Clone Kodi's current master branch:
git clone https://github.com/xbmc/xbmc kodi
Kodi should be built as a 32bit program for webOS. The dependencies are built in $HOME/kodi/tools/depends and installed into /media/developer/apps/usr/palm/applications/org.xbmc.kodi/xbmc-deps.
--prefix should be set to where xbmc-deps are going to be built
--with-toolchain=/path/to/buildroot, --host=arm-linux or whatever your compiler is
Configure build:
cd $HOME/kodi/tools/depends
./bootstrap
./configure --prefix=$HOME/kodi-deps --host=arm-webos-linux-gnueabi \
--with-toolchain=$HOME/kodi-dev/arm-webos-linux-gnueabi_sdk-buildroot \
--enable-debug=no
Build tools and dependencies:
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN)
TIP: By adding -j<number> to the make command, you can choose how many concurrent jobs will be used and expedite the build process. It is recommended to use -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) to compile on all available processor cores. The build machine can also be configured to do this automatically by adding export MAKEFLAGS="-j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN)" to your shell config (e.g. ~/.bashrc).
WARNING: Look for the Dependencies built successfully. success message. If in doubt run a single threaded make command until the message appears. If the single make fails, clean the specific library by issuing make -C target/<name_of_failed_lib> distclean and run makeagain.
NOTE: You may want to modify arch, float-abi or fpu to obtain the best performance out of the target CPU, however the defaults are recommended for now until you have a working build:
./configure --with-target-cflags='-march=armv7-a -mfloat-abi=softfp -mfpu=neon'
All platforms:
--prefix=<path>
specify path on target device. By default we will likely be packaging as org.xbmc.kodi and it will installed to $HOME/kodi/build/{org.xbmc.kodi}. All developer apps will get installed to this base path plus {your-app-name}
--enable-debug=<yes:no>
enable debugging information (default is yes)
--disable-ccache
disable ccache
--with-tarballs=<path>
path where tarballs will be saved [prefix/xbmc-tarballs]
--with-cpu=<cpu>
optional. specify target cpu. guessed if not specified
--with-linker=<linker>
specify linker to use. (default is ld)
--with-platform=<platform>
target platform
--enable-gplv3=<yes:no>
enable gplv3 components. (default is yes)
--with-target-cflags=<cflags>
C compiler flags (target)
--with-target-cxxflags=<cxxflags>
C++ compiler flags (target)
--with-target-ldflags=<ldflags>
linker flags. Use e.g. for -l (target)
--with-ffmpeg-options
FFmpeg configure options, e.g. --enable-vaapi (not relevant however to webOS)
Before you can build Kodi, the build files have to be generated with CMake. CMake is built as part of the dependencies and doesn't have to be installed separately. A toolchain file is also generated and is used to configure CMake. Default behaviour will not build binary addons. To add addons to your build go to Add Binary Addons to Project
Before you can build Kodi, the project has to be generated with CMake. CMake is built as part of the dependencies and doesn't have to be installed separately. A toolchain file is also generated and is used to configure CMake.
Generate project for webOS:
make -C tools/depends/target/cmakebuildsys
TIP: BUILD_DIR can be omitted, and project will be created in $HOME/kodi/build Change all relevant paths onwards if omitted.
Additional cmake arguments can be supplied via the CMAKE_EXTRA_ARGUMENTS command line variable
An example of extra arguments to remove dependencies dbus, CEC and pipewire from the build:
make -C tools/depends/target/cmakebuildsys BUILD_DIR=/media/developer/apps/usr/palm/applications/org.xbmc.kodi \
CMAKE_EXTRA_ARGUMENTS="-DCORE_PLATFORM_NAME=webos -DENABLE_DBUS=OFF -DENABLE_CEC=OFF -DENABLE_PIPEWIRE=OFF -DHAVE_LINUX_UDMABUF=OFF"
You can find a complete list of available binary add-ons here.
Binary addons are optional.
To build all add-ons:
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) -C tools/depends/target/binary-addons PREFIX=$HOME/kodi/build/tools/webOS/packaging
Build specific add-ons:
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) -C tools/depends/target/binary-addons PREFIX=$HOME/kodi/build/tools/webOS/packaging ADDONS="audioencoder.flac pvr.vdr.vnsi audiodecoder.snesapu"
Build a specific group of add-ons:
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) -C tools/depends/target/binary-addons PREFIX=$HOME/kodi/build/tools/webOS/packaging ADDONS="pvr.*"
To build specific addons or help with regular expression usage for ADDONS_TO_BUILD, view ADDONS_TO_BUILD section located at Kodi add-ons CMake based buildsystem
TIP: Binary add-ons added to the generated project can be built independently of the Kodi app by selecting the scheme/target binary-addons in the project.
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In '$HOME/kodi/build`
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN)
WARNING: Building for simulator is NOT supported.
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CMake generates a target called ipk which will package Kodi ready for distribution.
Create package:
make ipk
Generated ipk file will be inside the build dir. The filename may differ from this guide which is due to the version of Kodi which at time of writing will create a ipk called org.xbmc.kodi_20.90.101_all.ipk.
Alternatively, you can use ares-cli to give you more control of which device to install to.
ares-install ./org.xbmc.kodi_20.90.101_arm.ipk --d <your tv>
e.g. [LG]_webOS_TV_OLED65C24LA
You can connect over ssh directly to your webOS device to debug any issues:
ssh -oHostKeyAlgorithms=+ssh-rsa -oPubkeyAcceptedAlgorithms=+ssh-rsa -i ~/.ssh/\<your tv>-p 9922 prisoner@<ip of tv> bash -i
You will be put into /media/developer by default.
cd /media/developer/apps/usr/palm/applications/org.xbmc.kodi/.kodi/temp to find kodi.log
You can also edit kodi.sh and place strace just before launching kodi to debug any missing libraries:
strace -t -o /media/developer/apps/usr/palm/applications/org.xbmc.kodi/trace.temp ./kodi-webos --debug
We use the same make command or ares-cli tools to uninstall.
cd $HOME/kodi/tools/webOS/packaging
make uninstall
ares-install --remove org.xbmc.kodi --d <your tv>
e.g. [LG]_webOS_TV_OLED65C24LA