Building XFree86® from a Source Distribution : Configuring the source before building
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## 2. Configuring the source before building

In most cases it should not be necessary to configure anything before building.

If you do want to make configuration changes, you should start by going to the `xc/config/cf` directory, and copying the file `xf86site.def` to `host.def`. After that, read thoroughly the the `host.def` file, which is heavily commented, and set your configuration parameters. Usually you can find the default settings by checking the `.cf` file(s) relevant to your OS.

A good rule of thumb is to only change that you understand, as it is very easy to create build problems by changing the default configuration unnecessarily. Before making too many modifications, check the configuration parameters specified in the `xc/config/cf/README` file.

If you are using just the `XFree86-4.8.0-src-1.tgz`, `XFree86-4.8.0-src-2.tgz` and `XFree86-4.8.0-src-3.tgz` parts of the source dist, you will need to define BuildFonts to NO.

Building XFree86® from a Source Distribution : Configuring the source before building
Previous: How to get the XFree86 4.8.0 source
Next: Using a shadow directory of symbolic links for the build