[CMake] Provide configuration settings for users

[Chuck Atkins]

Hi Cedric,

It sounds like creating a package config file is exactly what you need.
When installed, a user will be able to consume your project with
"find_package(Foo)".  That will locate and read the package config file
which will create an imported target Foo::Foo.  This imported target will
cary with it all of the necessary link dependency information.

See https://cmake.org/cmake/help/v3.6/manual/cmake-packages.7.html for more
details.

- Chuck

On Tue, Jun 14, 2016 at 6:28 AM, Cedric Doucet <cedric.doucet at inria.fr>
wrote:

>
> Hello,
>
> is there a native way to provide configuration settings for the users of a
> software?
>
> For example, I develop a software which depends on several 3rd party
> libraries which are automatically downloaded and installed with the
> ExternalProject module.
> My CMake configuration scripts are written so as to handle these 3rd party
> libraries.
> During installation of the software, header files and libraries are copied
> to the destination directory but (of course) without their 3rd party
> dependencies.
>
> Therefore, if a user wants to use my software, he has to handle these 3rd
> party libraries during compilation and linking steps.
> Depending on the skills of the user, it may be difficult to achieve it.
>
> I would like to know if there exists a native way of providing sufficient
> configuration information so that users do not have to handle these
> libraries.
> For the moment, I provide a CMakeLists template but I wonder if it's the
> best possible solution.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Cédric Doucet
>
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