CMake + CPack + CI/CD Standalone Application on Windows, OSX

Package a standalone and relocatable application on Windows and OSX, and use Github actions CI/CD

A streamline workflow demonstrate how CMake helps to build, install and package an relocatable executable in windows, osx.

Keys:

• CMake
• CPack
• MacOS X bundle
• Shared Library
• Static Library
• Standalone Application

Features:

• In OSX: install an executable as bundle, and then package it as *.dmg.
• In Windows: install an executable as exe, and then package it and its dependencies as *.zip.

How CMake Build, Install and Package

We see a project folder structures as an Interface.

Then there's three Interfaces:

source and build interfaces:

project_root
├── CMakeLists.txt
├── simple_example.cpp
├── simple_lib.cpp
├── simple_lib.hpp
└── build
    └── CMakeCache.txt

install interface:

This interface is located in the CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX, and its default value in this project is ${project_root}/install.

Also, you can override it by specifying -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX when running cmake -B build -S . or --prefix when running cmake --install.

This argument path can be relative path.

cmake --install build --prefix "/where/I/want/it/to/go"

It's recommended to use a default install layout using GNUInstallDirs.

project_root
├── CMakeLists.txt
├── simple_example.cpp
├── simple_lib.cpp
├── simple_lib.hpp
├── build
│   └── CMakeCache.txt
└── install
    ├── bin
    │   └── executables
    ├── sbin
    │   └── sysadmin executables
    ├── lib
    │   ├── compiled libraries (*.so (unix) or *.dll (windows))
    │   └── library archive files (*.lib (windows))
    ├── libexec
    │   └── executables not directly invoked by user
    ├── include
    │   └── header files
    └── doc
       └── documentation

Get Started

# 1. Configure
# BUILD_SHARED_LIBS default is `ON`, `CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE` default is `debug`
cmake -B build -S .
cmake -B build -S . --fresh
cmake -B build -S . -DBUILD_SHARED_LIBS=OFF

# 2. Build artifacts in `./build` folder
cmake --build build --config debug

# 3. Install artifacts into default folder `./install`, or change it via `--prefix`
cmake --install build --config debug

# 4. Package
# Windows: produce a zip for the standalone app
cpack --config ./build/CPackConfig.cmake -G ZIP -C debug

# OSX: produce a *.dmg for the standalone bundle
cpack --config ./build/CPackConfig.cmake -G DragNDrop -C debug

References

c++ - What install command does in cmake? - Stack Overflow

c - CMAKE - How to properly copy static library's header file into /usr/include? - Stack Overflow

c++ - How to configure CMakeLists.txt to install public headers of a shared library? - Stack Overflow

C++ project structure and CMake for cross-platform build | The Startup

c++ - Overriding a default option(...) value in CMake from a parent CMakeLists.txt - Stack Overflow