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+<!--
+
+ Copyright (c) 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 The SCons Foundation
+
+ Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining
+ a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the
+ "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including
+ without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish,
+ distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to
+ permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to
+ the following conditions:
+
+ The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included
+ in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
+
+ THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY
+ KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE
+ WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND
+ NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE
+ LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION
+ OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION
+ WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
+
+-->
+
+<!--
+
+=head1 Separating source and build trees
+
+It's often desirable to keep any derived files from the build completely
+separate from the source files. This makes it much easier to keep track of
+just what is a source file, and also makes it simpler to handle B<variant>
+builds, especially if you want the variant builds to co-exist.
+
+=head2 Separating build and source directories using the Link command
+
+Cons provides a simple mechanism that handles all of these requirements. The
+C<Link> command is invoked as in this example:
+
+ Link 'build' => 'src';
+
+The specified directories are ``linked'' to the specified source
+directory. Let's suppose that you setup a source directory, F<src>, with the
+sub-directories F<world> and F<hello> below it, as in the previous
+example. You could then substitute for the original build lines the
+following:
+
+ Build qw(
+ build/world/Conscript
+ build/hello/Conscript
+ );
+
+Notice that you treat the F<Conscript> file as if it existed in the build
+directory. Now if you type the same command as before, you will get the
+following results:
+
+ % cons export
+ Install build/world/world.h as export/include/world.h
+ cc -Iexport/include -c build/hello/hello.c -o build/hello/hello.o
+ cc -Iexport/include -c build/world/world.c -o build/world/world.o
+ ar r build/world/libworld.a build/world/world.o
+ ar: creating build/world/libworld.a
+ ranlib build/world/libworld.a
+ Install build/world/libworld.a as export/lib/libworld.a
+ cc -o build/hello/hello build/hello/hello.o -Lexport/lib -lworld
+ Install build/hello/hello as export/bin/hello
+
+Again, Cons has taken care of the details for you. In particular, you will
+notice that all the builds are done using source files and object files from
+the build directory. For example, F<build/world/world.o> is compiled from
+F<build/world/world.c>, and F<export/include/world.h> is installed from
+F<build/world/world.h>. This is accomplished on most systems by the simple
+expedient of ``hard'' linking the required files from each source directory
+into the appropriate build directory.
+
+The links are maintained correctly by Cons, no matter what you do to the
+source directory. If you modify a source file, your editor may do this ``in
+place'' or it may rename it first and create a new file. In the latter case,
+any hard link will be lost. Cons will detect this condition the next time
+the source file is needed, and will relink it appropriately.
+
+You'll also notice, by the way, that B<no> changes were required to the
+underlying F<Conscript> files. And we can go further, as we shall see in the
+next section.
+
+=head2 Explicit references to the source directory
+
+When using the C<Link> command on some operating systems or with some
+tool chains, it's sometimes useful to have a command actually use
+the path name to the source directory, not the build directory. For
+example, on systems that must copy, not "hard link," the F<src/> and
+F<build/> copies of C<Linked> files, using the F<src/> path of a file
+name might make an editor aware that a syntax error must be fixed in the
+source directory, not the build directory.
+
+You can tell Cons that you want to use the "source path" for a file by
+preceding the file name with a ``!'' (exclamation point). For example,
+if we add a ``!'' to the beginning of a source file:
+
+ Program $env "foo", "!foo.c"; # Notice initial ! on foo.c
+
+Cons will compile the target as follows:
+
+ cc -c src/foo.c -o build/foo.o
+ cc -o build/foo build/foo.o
+
+Notice that Cons has compiled the program from the the F<src/foo.c>
+source file. Without the initial ``!'', Cons would have compiled the
+program using the F<build/foo.c> path name.
+
+-->
+
+ <para>
+
+ It's often useful to keep any built files completely
+ separate from the source files.
+ In &SCons;, this is usually done by creating one or more separate
+ <emphasis>variant directory trees</emphasis>
+ that are used to hold the built objects files, libraries,
+ and executable programs, etc.
+ for a specific flavor, or variant, of build.
+ &SCons; provides two ways to do this,
+ one through the &SConscript; function that we've already seen,
+ and the second through a more flexible &VariantDir; function.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ One historical note: the &VariantDir; function
+ used to be called &BuildDir;.
+ That name is still supported
+ but has been deprecated
+ because the &SCons; functionality
+ differs from the model of a "build directory"
+ implemented by other build systems like the GNU Autotools.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Specifying a Variant Directory Tree as Part of an &SConscript; Call</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ The most straightforward way to establish a variant directory tree
+ uses the fact that the usual way to
+ set up a build hierarchy is to have an
+ &SConscript; file in the source subdirectory.
+ If you then pass a &variant_dir; argument to the
+ &SConscript; function call:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ SConscript('src/SConscript', variant_dir='build')
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ &SCons; will then build all of the files in
+ the &build; subdirectory:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ SConscript hello.c
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -o build/hello.o -c build/hello.c
+ cc -o build/hello build/hello.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ SConscript hello hello.c hello.o
+ </screen>
+
+ <para>
+
+ But wait a minute--what's going on here?
+ &SCons; created the object file
+ <filename>build/hello.o</filename>
+ in the &build; subdirectory,
+ as expected.
+ But even though our &hello_c; file lives in the &src; subdirectory,
+ &SCons; has actually compiled a
+ <filename>build/hello.c</filename> file
+ to create the object file.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ What's happened is that &SCons; has <emphasis>duplicated</emphasis>
+ the &hello_c; file from the &src; subdirectory
+ to the &build; subdirectory,
+ and built the program from there.
+ The next section explains why &SCons; does this.
+
+ </para>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Why &SCons; Duplicates Source Files in a Variant Directory Tree</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ &SCons; duplicates source files in variant directory trees
+ because it's the most straightforward way to guarantee a correct build
+ <emphasis>regardless of include-file directory paths,
+ relative references between files,
+ or tool support for putting files in different locations</emphasis>,
+ and the &SCons; philosophy is to, by default,
+ guarantee a correct build in all cases.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ The most direct reason to duplicate source files
+ in variant directories
+ is simply that some tools (mostly older versions)
+ are written to only build their output files
+ in the same directory as the source files.
+ In this case, the choices are either
+ to build the output file in the source directory
+ and move it to the variant directory,
+ or to duplicate the source files in the variant directory.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Additionally,
+ relative references between files
+ can cause problems if we don't
+ just duplicate the hierarchy of source files
+ in the variant directory.
+ You can see this at work in
+ use of the C preprocessor <literal>#include</literal>
+ mechanism with double quotes, not angle brackets:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ #include "file.h"
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ The <emphasis>de facto</emphasis> standard behavior
+ for most C compilers in this case
+ is to first look in the same directory
+ as the source file that contains the <literal>#include</literal> line,
+ then to look in the directories in the preprocessor search path.
+ Add to this that the &SCons; implementation of
+ support for code repositories
+ (described below)
+ means not all of the files
+ will be found in the same directory hierarchy,
+ and the simplest way to make sure
+ that the right include file is found
+ is to duplicate the source files into the variant directory,
+ which provides a correct build
+ regardless of the original location(s) of the source files.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Although source-file duplication guarantees a correct build
+ even in these end-cases,
+ it <emphasis>can</emphasis> usually be safely disabled.
+ The next section describes
+ how you can disable the duplication of source files
+ in the variant directory.
+
+ </para>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Telling &SCons; to Not Duplicate Source Files in the Variant Directory Tree</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ In most cases and with most tool sets,
+ &SCons; can place its target files in a build subdirectory
+ <emphasis>without</emphasis>
+ duplicating the source files
+ and everything will work just fine.
+ You can disable the default &SCons; behavior
+ by specifying <literal>duplicate=0</literal>
+ when you call the &SConscript; function:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ SConscript('src/SConscript', variant_dir='build', duplicate=0)
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ When this flag is specified,
+ &SCons; uses the variant directory
+ like most people expect--that is,
+ the output files are placed in the variant directory
+ while the source files stay in the source directory:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ SConscript
+ hello.c
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -c src/hello.c -o build/hello.o
+ cc -o build/hello build/hello.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ hello
+ hello.o
+ </screen>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>The &VariantDir; Function</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Use the &VariantDir; function to establish that target
+ files should be built in a separate directory
+ from the source files:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ VariantDir('build', 'src')
+ env = Environment()
+ env.Program('build/hello.c')
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Note that when you're not using
+ an &SConscript; file in the &src; subdirectory,
+ you must actually specify that
+ the program must be built from
+ the <filename>build/hello.c</filename>
+ file that &SCons; will duplicate in the
+ &build; subdirectory.
+
+ </para>
+
+ <para>
+
+ When using the &VariantDir; function directly,
+ &SCons; still duplicates the source files
+ in the variant directory by default:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ hello.c
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -o build/hello.o -c build/hello.c
+ cc -o build/hello build/hello.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ hello hello.c hello.o
+ </screen>
+
+ <para>
+
+ You can specify the same <literal>duplicate=0</literal> argument
+ that you can specify for an &SConscript; call:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ VariantDir('build', 'src', duplicate=0)
+ env = Environment()
+ env.Program('build/hello.c')
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ In which case &SCons;
+ will disable duplication of the source files:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ hello.c
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -o build/hello.o -c src/hello.c
+ cc -o build/hello build/hello.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ hello hello.o
+ </screen>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Using &VariantDir; With an &SConscript; File</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Even when using the &VariantDir; function,
+ it's much more natural to use it with
+ a subsidiary &SConscript; file.
+ For example, if the
+ <filename>src/SConscript</filename>
+ looks like this:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ env = Environment()
+ env.Program('hello.c')
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Then our &SConstruct; file could look like:
+
+ </para>
+
+
+ <programlisting>
+ VariantDir('build', 'src')
+ SConscript('build/SConscript')
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Yielding the following output:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ SConscript hello.c
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -o build/hello.o -c build/hello.c
+ cc -o build/hello build/hello.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ SConscript hello hello.c hello.o
+ </screen>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Notice that this is completely equivalent
+ to the use of &SConscript; that we
+ learned about in the previous section.
+
+ </para>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Using &Glob; with &VariantDir;</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ The &Glob; file name pattern matching function
+ works just as usual when using &VariantDir;.
+ For example, if the
+ <filename>src/SConscript</filename>
+ looks like this:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <programlisting>
+ env = Environment()
+ env.Program('hello', Glob('*.c'))
+ </programlisting>
+
+ <para>
+
+ Then with the same &SConstruct; file as in the previous section,
+ and source files <filename>f1.c</filename>
+ and <filename>f2.c</filename> in src,
+ we would see the following output:
+
+ </para>
+
+ <screen>
+ % <userinput>ls src</userinput>
+ SConscript f1.c f2.c f2.h
+ % <userinput>scons -Q</userinput>
+ cc -o build/f1.o -c build/f1.c
+ cc -o build/f2.o -c build/f2.c
+ cc -o build/hello build/f1.o build/f2.o
+ % <userinput>ls build</userinput>
+ SConscript f1.c f1.o f2.c f2.h f2.o hello
+ </screen>
+
+ <para>
+
+ The &Glob; function returns Nodes in the
+ <filename>build/</filename> tree, as you'd expect.
+
+ </para>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <!--
+
+ <section>
+ <title>Why You'd Want to Call &VariantDir; Instead of &SConscript;</title>
+
+ <para>
+
+ XXX why call VariantDir() instead of SConscript(variant_dir=)
+
+ </para>
+
+ </section>
+
+ -->
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