nm-libnm-aux is a static library that: - uses the public parts of "libnm" - that can also be statically linked into other users of libnm. Basically, it is a static library with utility functions that extends libnm. That means: - you can use it everywhere where you dynamically link with libnm. Also, since nm-libnm-aux itself only uses public (stable) API of libnm, you theoretically can copy the sources into your own source tree.