How do I manually import .h files into the system library?

Question

I have some C code that #includes the file <mysql/mysql.h>. I am running on a Mac, and cannot figure out how to get mysql installed (after running the solution found on SO, the mysql directory does not even exist in the system library). I was able to download MySQL from the source code, and now I have a mysql.h file-- in the "include" directory of the source code.

However, moving this file into the system library alone will obviously not make my program work. I expect that I need to compile the library (which I've done), and to move the binary file somewhere, in order to be linkable to my program.

As per @RustyX's suggestion, I installed the Mac MySQL package. That put a copy of mysql.h into the /usr/local/mysql-5.7.19-macos10.12-x86_64/include/ directory. However:

1) I am using gcc to compile the .c file. I am not sure how to configure gcc to include the directory in question. I tried -L(directory path)-- both for the installed Mac MySQL package, and the MySQL source code I downloaded-- but I get the following error:

ld: library not found for -lmysqlclient

Is there another path I would include for mysqlclient? Or another package to install?

2) Even if I do include it, it will still not find the file since the called-for filename is <mysql/mysql.h>, and the filename it will find is <include/mysql.h>. Since the file is used by others, is the best course of action here to rename the include directory to mysql? Or to change the path in the .c file, and then change it back every time before committing?

Answer 1

Have you tried a statement like this,

#include <mysql.h> //in your program

To compile and run

gcc -w -c -g -I/usr/include/mysql filename.c
gcc -o filename filename.o -L/usr/lib64/mysql -lmysqlclient
./filename (input params)