CMake

Welcome to CMake, the cross-platform, open-source make system. CMake is used to control the software compilation process using simple platform and compiler independent configuration files. CMake generates native makefiles and workspaces that can be used in the compiler environment of your choice. CMake is quite sophisticated: it is possible to support complex environments requiring system configuration, pre-processor generation, code generation, and template instantiation.

You will find here not only documentation for CMake, but also for CPack and CTest.

CMake

Primary Resources - Look here first!

• Where can I download CMake?
• CMake Documentation
• Useful CMake Variables
• FAQ (Frequently asked questions)
• CMake Mailing List (for searchable archives see CMake FAQ )
• CMake 2.6 Notes
• Getting Started With CMake Screencasts @PlayControl.net

Development Topics

• Cross compiling
• RPATH handling
• Assembler Support
• Editors/IDEs with CMake syntax support
• Docs for Specific Project Generators (Eclipse, KDevelop3, CodeBlocks, Makefile)
• Contributed macros
• Module Maintainers
• Platform Dependent Information
• Documentation for previous releases
• Matrix for checking backwards-compatibility of current features

Tutorials

Basic Introductions

• A Simple CMake Example
• Cross-Platform Software Development Using CMake
• CMake: The Cross Platform Build System
• "Learning CMake" - Slides of a CMake workshop, including CPack, CTest and CDash
• "CMake: Behind the Scenes of Code Development" - Slides of an introductory talk/tutorial about CMake and its benefits
• Howto use cmake with C/C++ projects A simple walk-through about creating a cmake C project including integration of subversion, doxygen and how-to add optional project parts as configurables
• The Hacker Within: Build Systems Explains why and how to use build systems with a CMake example.
• Syntax of the CMake language
  • A quick introduction to CMake syntax
  • Language syntax (wiki page)
  • On variables, lists, strings, maps, regexps, etc.
• How CMake simplifies the build process by Bruno Abinader
  • Part 1 - Basic build system
  • Part 2 - Advanced build system
• Empirical approach to CMAKE by Rachid Koucha

Specific Topics

• How to write platform checks with CMake
  Describes how to implement platform or configure checks with CMake.

• How to package your project for use by others, create FooConfig.cmake files, and exporting and importing targets.

• How to find libraries
  Describes how to use external libraries in a CMake project and how to write your own find modules for libraries that don't already have one.

• How to find installed software with CMake
  Describes how to search for and then use software packages with CMake. (should be merged with the page above)

• How to find and use existing frameworks on OS X
  A quick example to help OS X users find frameworks automatically.

• How to build Qt4 software with CMake

• How to build KDE4 software with CMake

• How to use CMake to create Matlab MEX files
  Describes how to use CMake when developing Matlab Executable (MEX) files for use with The Mathworks Matlab scripting language.

• How to process lots of input files with a processor built by CMake

• Qt with CMake
  Explains how to use CMake to build software with Qt4, Qt3 and KDE3.

• How to use CMake for building software with wxWidgets

• Building eCos applications with CMake

• Using CMake to build an FLTK application

• How to export symbols from a Windows DLL for the non-Windows Developer

• Configuration Specific Settings for Visual Studio Generated Project Files

• How to use the 'BundleUtilities' to deploy your OS X Application. Example uses Qt 4.

• How to write a simple CMakeLists.txt for Fortran code

• How to emulate GNU Autotools 'make check'

• A toy model for add_custom_command and add_custom_target

• Working with OS X Interface Builder Files

Recipes

• Append the Version Number to the Install path

• Install to a local folder in the build dir for testing

• Adding an uninstall target to your project

• Appending the SO version to DLLs

Converters from other buildsystems to CMake

All converters listed here are not "complete", i.e. the generated CMake files are not 100% finished, in all cases some work is left for the developer.

automake/autotools/autoconf

• am2cmake (requires Ruby) Converts automake/autotools/libtool based projects to CMake, specialized in converting from KDE 3 to KDE 4, should also work for others. This one has been used for converting the KDE buildsystem to CMake.

• Alternative Automake2CMake (requires PHP) Converts KDevelop projects that use automake to CMake.

• Converting autoconf tests

qmake

• qmake converter (requires Ruby) Converts projects that use Qt's qmake.

Visual Studio

• vcproj2cmake.rb (requires Ruby) SourceForge project Creates and maintains CMakeLists.txt files by extracting info from Visual Studio project files. Elaborate script for development side-by-side the updated original static .vcproj files, supports script hooks and powerful definition mappings. Patches and new project members very welcome. Older script versions below:
  • Original vcproj2cmake.rb version (requires Ruby)
  • Slightly newer version here vcproj2cmake.rb, see:User_talk:Dweeves for details
• vcproj2cmake.ps1(PowerShell version) Creates CMakeLists.txt. it supports vcproj configuration and detect 'exclude from build' option
• folders4cmake (requires Java) Use Visual Studio project files to generate corresponding "source_group" information that you can use inside your own CMake scripts. Supports Visual Studio 9/10 project files (full round-trip possible).

Basic CMakeLists.txt from-scratch-generator

• gencmake (requires Ruby) Creates basic CMakeLists.txt files from looking at the existing files.
• CMakeListGenerator (Win32) Creates complete CMakeLists.txt files as described in the README using a combination of file and directory structure analysis. Supports resolving dependencies between multiple archives.

Success Stories

• What are some projects using CMake?
• Articles about CMake
• Really Cool CMake Features

More Topics

• Fortran Issues
• For CMake Hackers
• Experiments With Lua
• Performance Tips
• Replacing deprecated INSTALL_FILES, INSTALL_PROGRAMS and INSTALL_TARGETS commands
• GNU style directory layout with CMake
• CMake TODO
• Creating Qt Assistant Docs
• Writing FindXXX.cmake modules that work with static libraries
• Writing FindXXX.cmake modules that work when multiple versions of packages are installed
• CMake:Improving Find* Modules
• C Plugins for Loadable Commands
  For anyone who wonders what the load_command command is for.
• PC-Lint support for CMake

CTest

Tutorials

• Testing With CTest
  Introduces to testing with CTest, submitting dashboards, and using CMake to add tests to the test system.

• CTest Scripting
  Describes the scripting with CTest which can significantly simplify and automate testing and submitting dashboards.

• Generating Input Files For CTest
  Describe more in details the concepts behind testing with CTest and also explans how to use CTest without using CMake.

• Buildmanagement With CTest
  Describes how to setup a central configuration for all CTest scripts.

More Information

• Configuring CTest Submission Methods
• CTest Nightly, Experimental, Continuous, ...
• CTest:Coverage
• Media:CTest Running Modes.pdf
• CTest Frequently asked questions

More Topics

• CTest TODO
• Run tests on machines without building first

CDash

• CDash Wiki.
• CDash FAQ.

CPack

Tutorials

• Packaging with CPack
  Introduction to CPack, installing and packaging of software.
• CPack Variables
  
• Supported package formats
  
• CPack Win32 Newbie Checklist
  
• Component Install With CPack
  

Recipes

• Add an application shortcut to the Start Menu

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