go build: produces broken static pie files when build with `go build` instead of `go build -o outfile source.go`

[bluec0re]

What version of Go are you using (go version)?

$ go version
go version go1.20.7 linux/amd64

Does this issue reproduce with the latest release?

No. While filing this bug, I noticed that it works with go 1.21 (build pipelines are still using 1.20) and I figured would be still worth reporting

What operating system and processor architecture are you using (go env)?

go env Output

$ go env
GO111MODULE=""
GOARCH="amd[6](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:7)4"
GOBIN=""
GOCACHE="/home/runner/.cache/go-build"
GOENV="/home/runner/.config/go/env"
GOEXE=""
GOEXPERIMENT=""
GOFLAGS=""
GOHOSTARCH="amd64"
GOHOSTOS="linux"
GOINSECURE=""
GOMODCACHE="/home/runner/go/pkg/mod"
GONOPROXY=""
GONOSUMDB=""
GOOS="linux"
GOPATH="/home/runner/go"
GOPRIVATE=""
GOPROXY="https://proxy.golang.org,direct"
GOROOT="/opt/hostedtoolcache/go/1.20.[7](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:8)/x64"
GOSUMDB="sum.golang.org"
GOTMPDIR=""
GOTOOLDIR="/opt/hostedtoolcache/go/1.20.7/x64/pkg/tool/linux_amd64"
GOVCS=""
GOVERSION="go1.20.7"
GCCGO="gccgo"
GOAMD64="v1"
AR="ar"
CC="gcc"
CXX="g++"
CGO_ENABLED="0"
GOMOD="/dev/null"
GOWORK=""
CGO_CFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_CPPFLAGS=""
CGO_CXXFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_FFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_LDFLAGS="-O2 -g"
PKG_CONFIG="pkg-config"
GOGCCFLAGS="-fPIC -m64 -Wl,--no-gc-sections -fmessage-length=0 -fdebug-prefix-map=/tmp/go-build57144[9](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:10)650=/tmp/go-build -gno-record-gcc-switches"

What did you do?

Compiling a static PIE binary with forced external linking. (-tags netgo,osusergo,static_build -buildmode=pie -trimpath -ldflags '-extldflags -static-pie -extld gcc -linkmode external').

Note: The bug only manifests if the binary was build with go build $FLAGS, not when build with go build $FLAGS -o outfile main.go

What did you expect to see?

Compiles successfully and runs.

What did you see instead?

Sometimes an error/warning loadinternal: cannot find runtime/cgo but build ends successfully. The binary then crashes on startup

• Demo repository

build output

go version go1.20.7 linux/amd64
GO111MODULE=""
GOARCH="amd64"
GOBIN=""
GOCACHE="/home/runner/.cache/go-build"
GOENV="/home/runner/.config/go/env"
GOEXE=""
GOEXPERIMENT=""
GOFLAGS=""
GOHOSTARCH="amd64"
GOHOSTOS="linux"
GOINSECURE=""
GOMODCACHE="/home/runner/go/pkg/mod"
GONOPROXY=""
GONOSUMDB=""
GOOS="linux"
GOPATH="/home/runner/go"
GOPRIVATE=""
GOPROXY="https://proxy.golang.org,direct"
GOROOT="/opt/hostedtoolcache/go/1.20.7/x64"
GOSUMDB="sum.golang.org"
GOTMPDIR=""
GOTOOLDIR="/opt/hostedtoolcache/go/1.20.7/x64/pkg/tool/linux_amd64"
GOVCS=""
GOVERSION="go1.20.7"
GCCGO="gccgo"
GOAMD64="v1"
AR="ar"
CC="gcc"
CXX="g++"
CGO_ENABLED="0"
GOMOD="/dev/null"
GOWORK=""
CGO_CFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_CPPFLAGS=""
CGO_CXXFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_FFLAGS="-O2 -g"
CGO_LDFLAGS="-O2 -g"
PKG_CONFIG="pkg-config"
GOGCCFLAGS="-fPIC -m64 -Wl,--no-gc-sections -fmessage-length=0 -fdebug-prefix-map=/tmp/go-build[5](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:6)71449[6](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:7)50=/tmp/go-build -gno-record-gcc-switches"
# mod
 # build
# github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug
loadinternal: cannot find runtime/cgo
 # build -o foo.go main.go
# path
 # build
# github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug
loadinternal: cannot find runtime/cgo
 # build -o foo.go main.go
# file
mod/go-static-pie-bug:  ELF 64-bit LSB pie executable, x86-64, version 1 (GNU/Linux), static-pie linked, BuildID[sha1]=cf3f6d[7](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:8)9942b40e6eb0467ba[8](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:9)[9](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:10)d34a19b646c033, for GNU/Linux 3.2.0, with debug_info, not stripped
path/go-static-pie-bug: ELF 64-bit LSB pie executable, x86-64, version 1 (GNU/Linux), static-pie linked, BuildID[sha1]=cf5db9dc6c43af4e3f243d5fc4486f637281514e, for GNU/Linux 3.2.0, with debug_info, not stripped
mod/foo:                ELF 64-bit LSB pie executable, x86-64, version 1 (GNU/Linux), static-pie linked, BuildID[sha1]=f57a846177a64196a35318f6865cf0eda8615a7c, for GNU/Linux 3.2.0, with debug_info, not stripped
path/foo:               ELF 64-bit LSB pie executable, x86-64, version 1 (GNU/Linux), static-pie linked, BuildID[sha1]=5d1c[11](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:12)d6dc66b7b56bb81f279b99f2bb1ccab33d, for GNU/Linux 3.2.0, with debug_info, not stripped
# ldd
mod/go-static-pie-bug:
	statically linked
path/go-static-pie-bug:
	statically linked
mod/foo:
	statically linked
path/foo:
	statically linked
# deadcode
mod/main.go:	fmt.Println("This is not used")
# exec
./mod/go-static-pie-bug
./test.sh: line 45:  30[17](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:18) Trace/breakpoint trap   (core dumped) $b
./path/go-static-pie-bug
./test.sh: line 45:  30[19](https://github.com/bluec0re/go-static-pie-bug/actions/runs/5923174296/job/16058323972#step:4:20) Trace/breakpoint trap   (core dumped) $b
./mod/foo
Hello world
./path/foo
Hello world

[bcmills]

You are overriding cmd/go's choice of linker flags to request something incompatible: your go env reports CGO_ENABLED="0" but setting -linkmode external in your -ldflags requests that the build use a C linker.

You cannot safely link a Go program using a C linker without Go runtime support for the things that the C linker may incorporate into the binary.

[bcmills]

Duplicate of #46330

[bluec0re]

Yes, that is intended. The goal is to have a fully static pie binary, ideally build with pure go.

Without forcing gcc as linker, the binary will not be PIE, just static.

Please note that

CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -tags=netgo,osusergo,static_build -buildmode=pie -trimpath -ldflags -extldflags -static-pie -extld gcc -linkmode external -o some_binary main.go

doesn't seem to require cgo, while

CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -tags=netgo,osusergo,static_build -buildmode=pie -trimpath -ldflags -extldflags -static-pie -extld gcc -linkmode external

does.

A binary compiled with the first version works fine (I'm using this variant since go 1.13 now without a single crash or bug outside of my very own). I just recently changed something in the build pipeline , using the variant without explicit -o and source files, and that is what caused cgo dependencies and crashes.