Prepare Psmisc for compilation: ./configure --prefix=/usr --exec-prefix=/ The --exec-prefix=/ flag will cause the programs to be installed in /bin rather than in /usr/bin. The programs in this package are often used in bootscripts; they should be in the /bin directory so they can be used in the event that the /usr partition isn't mounted. Compile the package: make And install it: make install Psmisc's pidof program isn't installed by default. Generally, this isn't a problem because we later install the Sysvinit package, which provides a better pidof program. It's up to you to decide if you are going to use the Sysvinit package, which provides a pidof program, or not. If you're not going to use Sysvinit, you should complete this package's installation by creating the /bin/pidof symlink: ln -s killall /bin/pidof