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Informational 19 Bitcoin

build: win: change from win-iconv to GNU libiconv

EL31ed05c0 View source ↗
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What the developer wrote

Authored by SomberNight

88/100 · Strong
build: win: change from win-iconv to GNU libiconv

- (zbar requires [0] iconv)
- issues [1][3] compiling win-iconv:
- pre-existing issue: lots of "-Wincompatible-pointer-types" warnings when compiling zbar with win-iconv
- new debian means newer GCC
- new GCC changed that [2] warning type to "error"
- GNU libiconv works as an alternative
- drawback: win-iconv is more minimal, it uses the win32 API to do most of the work
- still, is a 25+ year old GNU project with one release every ~2 years, so IMO fine

[0]: https://github.com/mchehab/zbar/blob/a549566ea11eb03622bd4458a1728ffe3f589163/README-windows.md
[1]: https://github.com/SomberNight/electrum/commit/cb00cb60cf9a0cb059dcac5e7acfe5186620cabe
[2]: https://gcc.gnu.org/pipermail/gcc-cvs/2023-December/394351.html

[3]: see snippet when compiling libzbar:
```
decoder.c: In function ‘zbar_decoder_reset’:
decoder.c:116:22: warning: cast from pointer to integer of different size [-Wpointer-to-int-cast]
116 | memset(dcode, 0, (long)&dcode->buf_alloc - (long)dcode);
| ^
decoder.c:116:48: warning: cast from pointer to integer of different size [-Wpointer-to-int-cast]
116 | memset(dcode, 0, (long)&dcode->buf_alloc - (long)dcode);
| ^
CC processor/libzbar_la-win.lo
/bin/bash ../libtool --tag=RC \
--mode=compile x86_64-w64-mingw32-windres -DHAVE_CONFIG_H -I. -I../include \
-I../include -o libzbar-rc.lo libzbar.rc
CC processor/libzbar_la-lock.lo
CC decoder/libzbar_la-qr_finder.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-qrdec.lo
In file included from ./processor.h:26,
from processor/lock.c:25:
../include/config.h:423:9: warning: "_WIN32_WINNT" redefined
423 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0500
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
In file included from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/corecrt.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/crtdefs.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/assert.h:15,
from processor/lock.c:24:
/usr/share/mingw-w64/include/_mingw.h:232:9: note: this is the location of the previous definition
232 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0xa00
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
libtool: compile: x86_64-w64-mingw32-windres -DHAVE_CONFIG_H -I. -I../include -I../include libzbar.rc -o .libs/libzbar-rc.o
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-qrdectxt.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-rs.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-isaac.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-bch15_5.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-binarize.lo
CC qrcode/libzbar_la-util.lo
In file included from ./image.h:26,
from qrcode/binarize.c:10:
../include/config.h:423:9: warning: "_WIN32_WINNT" redefined
423 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0500
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
In file included from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/corecrt.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/crtdefs.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/math.h:13,
from qrcode/binarize.c:7:
/usr/share/mingw-w64/include/_mingw.h:232:9: note: this is the location of the previous definition
232 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0xa00
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
CC video/libzbar_la-dshow.lo
CC window/libzbar_la-win.lo
In file included from ./window.h:26,
from window/win.c:26:
../include/config.h:423:9: warning: "_WIN32_WINNT" redefined
423 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0500
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
In file included from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/corecrt.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/crtdefs.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/ctype.h:9,
from window/win.c:24:
/usr/share/mingw-w64/include/_mingw.h:232:9: note: this is the location of the previous definition
232 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0xa00
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
In file included from ./processor.h:26,
from processor/win.c:29:
../include/config.h:423:9: warning: "_WIN32_WINNT" redefined
423 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0500
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
In file included from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/corecrt.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/crtdefs.h:10,
from /usr/share/mingw-w64/include/assert.h:15,
from processor/win.c:24:
/usr/share/mingw-w64/include/_mingw.h:232:9: note: this is the location of the previous definition
232 | #define _WIN32_WINNT 0xa00
| ^~~~~~~~~~~~
processor/win.c: In function ‘_zbar_processor_open’:
processor/win.c:282:47: warning: cast to pointer from integer of different size [-Wint-to-pointer-cast]
282 | proc->display = CreateWindowEx(EXT_STYLE, (LPCTSTR)(long)wca, "ZBar",
| ^
processor/win.c: In function ‘_zbar_processor_close’:
processor/win.c:297:25: warning: cast to pointer from integer of different size [-Wint-to-pointer-cast]
297 | UnregisterClass((LPCTSTR)(long)proc->state->registeredClass, 0);
| ^
CC window/libzbar_la-dib.lo
qrcode/qrdectxt.c: In function ‘qr_code_data_list_extract_text’:
qrcode/qrdectxt.c:302:62: error: passing argument 2 of ‘iconv’ from incompatible pointer type [-Wincompatible-pointer-types]
302 | iconv(utf8_cd, &in, &inleft, &out,
| ^~~
| |
| char **
In file included from qrcode/qrdectxt.c:12:
/usr/x86_64-w64-mingw32/include/iconv.h:43:56: note: expected ‘const char **’ but argument is of type ‘char **’
43 | size_t iconv(iconv_t cd, WINICONV_CONST char **inbuf, size_t *inbytesleft, char **outbuf, size_t *outbytesleft);
qrcode/qrdectxt.c:352:71: error: passing argument 2 of ‘iconv’ from incompatible pointer type [-Wincompatible-pointer-types]
352 | err = iconv(enc_list[ei], &in,
| ^~~
| |
| char **
/usr/x86_64-w64-mingw32/include/iconv.h:43:56: note: expected ‘const char **’ but argument is of type ‘char **’
43 | size_t iconv(iconv_t cd, WINICONV_CONST char **inbuf, size_t *inbytesleft, char **outbuf, size_t *outbytesleft);
qrcode/qrdectxt.c:374:53: error: passing argument 2 of ‘iconv’ from incompatible pointer type [-Wincompatible-pointer-types]
374 | iconv(eci_cd, &in, &inleft, &out,
| ^~~
| |
| char **
/usr/x86_64-w64-mingw32/include/iconv.h:43:56: note: expected ‘const char **’ but argument is of type ‘char **’
43 | size_t iconv(iconv_t cd, WINICONV_CONST char **inbuf, size_t *inbytesleft, char **outbuf, size_t *outbytesleft);
make[2]: *** [Makefile:1089: qrcode/libzbar_la-qrdectxt.lo] Error 1
make[2]: *** Waiting for unfinished jobs....
make[2]: Leaving directory '/opt/wine64/drive_c/electrum/contrib/zbar/zbar'
make[1]: *** [Makefile:1895: all-recursive] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory '/opt/wine64/drive_c/electrum/contrib/zbar'
make: *** [Makefile:989: all] Error 2
🗯 ERROR: Could not build zbar
🗯 ERROR: Could not build zbar

```
✓ Descriptive subject✓ Names a concrete action or component✓ Uses a recognizable type or scope✓ Provides detailed explanatory context✓ Links an issue, advisory, or supporting reference
The short version

What changed, and why it matters

This commit changes how Electrum builds its Windows installer. It swaps one helper library (win-iconv) for another (GNU libiconv) used by the QR-code scanner (zbar). The reason is that newer compilers now treat a type-mismatch warning as a fatal error, so the old library no longer compiles. The patch also fixes a similar pointer-size issue inside GNU libiconv itself. This is a build-system/maintenance change, not a fix for an active security vulnerability in Electrum's wallet code.

Recommended action

Treat as a routine build-maintenance commit. Verify the new libiconv source tarball hash, review the patch for correctness, and ensure Windows release builds still pass CI. No urgent security response is indicated.

Security signals we found

01

Build dependency swap triggered by compiler hardening (warning promoted to error)

02

Pointer-cast patch in libiconv to prevent integer-truncation warnings/errors on 64-bit builds

03

No runtime code change in Electrum wallet logic

04

No mention of CVE, vulnerability, or security bug in commit message

Risk score

Why this scored 19/100

Our methodology →
Potential impact 2/30
Exploitability 1/25
Stealth signal 1/15
Affected reach 3/15
Confidence 8/10
Evidence quality 4/5
Human-validated context

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