GCC: -static and -pie are incompatible for x86?

Question

I'm recompiling some executable for Android 5.0 as it requires executables to be PIE. I was able to recompile it for ARM with just adding some arguments while configuring (with standalone toolchain):

export CFLAGS="-I/softdev/arm-libs/include -fPIE"
export CPPLAGS="$CPPFLAGS -fPIE"
export CXXLAGS="$CXXFLAGS -fPIE"
export LDFLAGS="-L/softdev/arm-libs/lib -static -fPIE -pie"

No error for ARM:

configure:3406: arm-linux-androideabi-gcc -o conftest -I/softdev/arm-libs/include -fPIE  -L/softdev/arm-libs/lib -static -fPIE -pie conftest.c  >&5
configure:3410: $? = 0

But i was unable to do the same for x86 as i'm getting error:

export CFLAGS="-I/softdev/x86-libs/include -fPIE"
export CPPLAGS="$CPPFLAGS -fPIE"
export CXXLAGS="$CXXFLAGS -fPIE"
export LDFLAGS="-L/softdev/x86-libs/lib -static -fPIE -pie"

error:

configure:3336: i686-linux-android-gcc -I/softdev/x86-libs/include -fPIE  -L/softdev/x86-libs/lib -static -fPIE -pie conftest.c  >&5
/softdev/x86-toolchain-gcc4.8/bin/../lib/gcc/i686-linux-android/4.8/../../../../i686-linux-android/bin/ld: fatal error: -pie and -static are incompatible
collect2: error: ld returned 1 exit status
configure:3340: $? = 1

I need executables to be linked statically. What's wrong and how can i fix it?

PS. Also tried using x86 standalone toolchain from android ndk r9d and r10c:

./make-standalone-toolchain.sh --toolchain=x86-4.8 --arch=x86 --install-dir=/softdev/x86-toolchain-gcc4.8-r9d --ndk-dir=/softdev/android-ndk-r9d/ --system=darwin-x86_64

Answer 1

As mentioned by n4sm below gcc-8 or later supports -static-pie which produces a static binary with PIE. Note that is one option not two. If you try to use -static -pie it will not do what you think.

I just did quick test with the fallowing in te.c:

int main( int argc, const char* argv[] )
{
   reyurn 0;
}

Running arm-linux-androideabi-gcc -o conftest -static -FPIE -pie te.c produces no error. However file -k conftest outputs

conftest: ELF 32-bit LSB shared object, ARM, EABI5 version 1 (SYSV), dynamically linked (uses shared libs), not stripped

readelf -l conftest outputs Elf file type is DYN (Shared object file) Entry point 0x500 There are 7 program headers, starting at offset 52

Program Headers:
  Type           Offset   VirtAddr   PhysAddr   FileSiz MemSiz  Flg Align
  PHDR           0x000034 0x00000034 0x00000034 0x000e0 0x000e0 R   0x4
  INTERP         0x000114 0x00000114 0x00000114 0x00013 0x00013 R   0x1
      [Requesting program interpreter: /system/bin/linker]
...

The presence of the PHDR and INTERP headers indicates that -pie silently overrides -static in the arm compiler. Why this is I don't know but I would consider it a bug that no warning is given when -static and -pie are used together. Instead programmers like you are left with the false impression that the two options can be used to together on arm.

Just to clarify the only behavioral difference here is that the x86 compiler errors on seeing both --static and --pie whereas the arm version silently ignores --static if --pie is given. If only one these is given the behavior is the same for both compilers.