diff --git a/meson.build b/meson.build
index b4093b130f..c2d48f0770 100644
--- a/meson.build
+++ b/meson.build
@@ -1388,6 +1388,8 @@ includes = include_directories('src/basic',
 
 add_project_arguments('-include', 'config.h', language : 'c')
 
+generate_gperfs = find_program('tools/generate-gperfs.py')
+
 subdir('po')
 subdir('catalog')
 subdir('src/systemd')
diff --git a/src/basic/af-list.c b/src/basic/af-list.c
index 866a1d4317..cf03dfc6d3 100644
--- a/src/basic/af-list.c
+++ b/src/basic/af-list.c
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /* SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1+ */
 
+#include <errno.h>
 #include <string.h>
 #include <sys/socket.h>
 
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ int af_from_name(const char *name) {
 
         sc = lookup_af(name, strlen(name));
         if (!sc)
-                return AF_UNSPEC;
+                return -EINVAL;
 
         return sc->id;
 }
diff --git a/src/basic/arphrd-list.c b/src/basic/arphrd-list.c
index a7ae4b8162..a6b8fa9d84 100644
--- a/src/basic/arphrd-list.c
+++ b/src/basic/arphrd-list.c
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /* SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1+ */
 
+#include <errno.h>
 #include <net/if_arp.h>
 #include <string.h>
 
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ int arphrd_from_name(const char *name) {
 
         sc = lookup_arphrd(name, strlen(name));
         if (!sc)
-                return 0;
+                return -EINVAL;
 
         return sc->id;
 }
diff --git a/src/basic/meson.build b/src/basic/meson.build
index 0b27ffda7d..b13897f334 100644
--- a/src/basic/meson.build
+++ b/src/basic/meson.build
@@ -179,8 +179,6 @@ basic_sources = files('''
 
 missing_h = files('missing.h')
 
-generate_gperfs = find_program('generate-gperfs.py')
-
 generate_af_list = find_program('generate-af-list.sh')
 af_list_txt = custom_target(
         'af-list.txt',
@@ -209,19 +207,11 @@ errno_list_txt = custom_target(
         command : [generate_errno_list, cpp],
         capture : true)
 
-generate_socket_protocol_list = find_program('generate-socket-protocol-list.sh')
-socket_protocol_list_txt = custom_target(
-        'socket-protocol-list.txt',
-        output : 'socket-protocol-list.txt',
-        command : [generate_socket_protocol_list, cpp],
-        capture : true)
-
 generated_gperf_headers = []
 foreach item : [['af',     af_list_txt,     'af',         ''],
                 ['arphrd', arphrd_list_txt, 'arphrd',     'ARPHRD_'],
                 ['cap',    cap_list_txt,    'capability', ''],
-                ['errno',  errno_list_txt,  'errno',      ''],
-                ['socket-protocol', socket_protocol_list_txt, 'socket_protocol',     'IPPROTO_']]
+                ['errno',  errno_list_txt,  'errno',      '']]
 
         fname = '@0@-from-name.gperf'.format(item[0])
         gperf_file = custom_target(
diff --git a/src/core/dbus-execute.c b/src/core/dbus-execute.c
index 39823c8675..31f9099b98 100644
--- a/src/core/dbus-execute.c
+++ b/src/core/dbus-execute.c
@@ -1517,8 +1517,8 @@ int bus_exec_context_set_transient_property(
                                 int af;
 
                                 af = af_from_name(*s);
-                                if (af <= 0)
-                                        return -EINVAL;
+                                if (af < 0)
+                                        return af;
 
                                 if (!invert == c->address_families_whitelist) {
                                         r = set_put(c->address_families, INT_TO_PTR(af));
diff --git a/src/core/load-fragment.c b/src/core/load-fragment.c
index ce222e4023..8b36365dd6 100644
--- a/src/core/load-fragment.c
+++ b/src/core/load-fragment.c
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ static int supported_socket_protocol_from_string(const char *s) {
 
         r = socket_protocol_from_name(s);
         if (r < 0)
-                return -EINVAL;
+                return r;
         if (!IN_SET(r, IPPROTO_UDPLITE, IPPROTO_SCTP))
                 return -EPROTONOSUPPORT;
 
@@ -2871,8 +2871,8 @@ int config_parse_address_families(
                 }
 
                 af = af_from_name(word);
-                if (af <= 0) {
-                        log_syntax(unit, LOG_ERR, filename, line, 0,
+                if (af < 0) {
+                        log_syntax(unit, LOG_ERR, filename, line, af,
                                    "Failed to parse address family, ignoring: %s", word);
                         continue;
                 }
diff --git a/src/nspawn/nspawn-settings.c b/src/nspawn/nspawn-settings.c
index 264ec61ad9..505e8cac40 100644
--- a/src/nspawn/nspawn-settings.c
+++ b/src/nspawn/nspawn-settings.c
@@ -177,7 +177,6 @@ int config_parse_capability(
 
         for (;;) {
                 _cleanup_free_ char *word = NULL;
-                int cap;
 
                 r = extract_first_word(&rvalue, &word, NULL, 0);
                 if (r < 0) {
@@ -187,13 +186,13 @@ int config_parse_capability(
                 if (r == 0)
                         break;
 
-                cap = capability_from_name(word);
-                if (cap < 0) {
-                        log_syntax(unit, LOG_ERR, filename, line, 0, "Failed to parse capability, ignoring: %s", word);
+                r = capability_from_name(word);
+                if (r < 0) {
+                        log_syntax(unit, LOG_ERR, filename, line, r, "Failed to parse capability, ignoring: %s", word);
                         continue;
                 }
 
-                u |= UINT64_C(1) << cap;
+                u |= UINT64_C(1) << r;
         }
 
         if (u == 0)
diff --git a/src/nspawn/nspawn.c b/src/nspawn/nspawn.c
index c581514b29..6eddae49d9 100644
--- a/src/nspawn/nspawn.c
+++ b/src/nspawn/nspawn.c
@@ -774,17 +774,14 @@ static int parse_argv(int argc, char *argv[]) {
                                         else
                                                 minus = (uint64_t) -1;
                                 } else {
-                                        int cap;
-
-                                        cap = capability_from_name(t);
-                                        if (cap < 0)
-                                                return log_error_errno(SYNTHETIC_ERRNO(EINVAL),
-                                                                       "Failed to parse capability %s.", t);
+                                        r = capability_from_name(t);
+                                        if (r < 0)
+                                                return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to parse capability %s.", t);
 
                                         if (c == ARG_CAPABILITY)
-                                                plus |= 1ULL << (uint64_t) cap;
+                                                plus |= 1ULL << r;
                                         else
-                                                minus |= 1ULL << (uint64_t) cap;
+                                                minus |= 1ULL << r;
                                 }
                         }
 
diff --git a/src/basic/generate-socket-protocol-list.sh b/src/shared/generate-socket-protocol-list.sh
similarity index 100%
rename from src/basic/generate-socket-protocol-list.sh
rename to src/shared/generate-socket-protocol-list.sh
diff --git a/src/shared/meson.build b/src/shared/meson.build
index f7c2c7f560..b7676b6eb9 100644
--- a/src/shared/meson.build
+++ b/src/shared/meson.build
@@ -186,6 +186,45 @@ if conf.get('HAVE_KMOD') == 1
         shared_sources += files('module-util.c')
 endif
 
+generate_socket_protocol_list = find_program('generate-socket-protocol-list.sh')
+socket_protocol_list_txt = custom_target(
+        'socket-protocol-list.txt',
+        output : 'socket-protocol-list.txt',
+        command : [generate_socket_protocol_list, cpp],
+        capture : true)
+
+fname = 'socket-protocol-from-name.gperf'
+gperf_file = custom_target(
+        fname,
+        input : socket_protocol_list_txt,
+        output : fname,
+        command : [generate_gperfs, 'socket_protocol', 'IPPROTO_', '@INPUT@'],
+        capture : true)
+
+fname = 'socket-protocol-from-name.h'
+target1 = custom_target(
+        fname,
+        input : gperf_file,
+        output : fname,
+        command : [gperf,
+                   '-L', 'ANSI-C', '-t', '--ignore-case',
+                   '-N', 'lookup_socket_protocol',
+                   '-H', 'hash_socket_protocol_name',
+                   '-p', '-C',
+                   '@INPUT@'],
+        capture : true)
+
+fname = 'socket-protocol-to-name.h'
+awkscript = 'socket-protocol-to-name.awk'
+target2 = custom_target(
+        fname,
+        input : [awkscript, socket_protocol_list_txt],
+        output : fname,
+        command : [awk, '-f', '@INPUT0@', '@INPUT1@'],
+        capture : true)
+
+shared_sources += [target1, target2]
+
 libshared_name = 'systemd-shared-@0@'.format(meson.project_version())
 
 libshared_deps = [threads,
diff --git a/src/shared/socket-protocol-list.c b/src/shared/socket-protocol-list.c
index 8041b84958..797f1e9507 100644
--- a/src/shared/socket-protocol-list.c
+++ b/src/shared/socket-protocol-list.c
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /* SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1+ */
 
+#include <errno.h>
 #include <netinet/in.h>
 #include <string.h>
 
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ int socket_protocol_from_name(const char *name) {
 
         sc = lookup_socket_protocol(name, strlen(name));
         if (!sc)
-                return 0;
+                return -EINVAL;
 
         return sc->id;
 }
diff --git a/src/basic/socket-protocol-to-name.awk b/src/shared/socket-protocol-to-name.awk
similarity index 100%
rename from src/basic/socket-protocol-to-name.awk
rename to src/shared/socket-protocol-to-name.awk
diff --git a/src/test/test-af-list.c b/src/test/test-af-list.c
index e9fd66b1e6..c8ef3295b5 100644
--- a/src/test/test-af-list.c
+++ b/src/test/test-af-list.c
@@ -27,8 +27,8 @@ int main(int argc, const char *argv[]) {
 
         assert_se(af_to_name(af_max()) == NULL);
         assert_se(af_to_name(-1) == NULL);
-        assert_se(af_from_name("huddlduddl") == AF_UNSPEC);
-        assert_se(af_from_name("") == AF_UNSPEC);
+        assert_se(af_from_name("huddlduddl") == -EINVAL);
+        assert_se(af_from_name("") == -EINVAL);
 
         return 0;
 }
diff --git a/src/test/test-arphrd-list.c b/src/test/test-arphrd-list.c
index fd4cd62623..9803c53f21 100644
--- a/src/test/test-arphrd-list.c
+++ b/src/test/test-arphrd-list.c
@@ -27,8 +27,8 @@ int main(int argc, const char *argv[]) {
 
         assert_se(arphrd_to_name(arphrd_max()) == NULL);
         assert_se(arphrd_to_name(0) == NULL);
-        assert_se(arphrd_from_name("huddlduddl") == 0);
-        assert_se(arphrd_from_name("") == 0);
+        assert_se(arphrd_from_name("huddlduddl") == -EINVAL);
+        assert_se(arphrd_from_name("") == -EINVAL);
 
         return 0;
 }
diff --git a/src/basic/generate-gperfs.py b/tools/generate-gperfs.py
similarity index 100%
rename from src/basic/generate-gperfs.py
rename to tools/generate-gperfs.py