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Make and Makefiles Guide

The document discusses make and Makefiles, which are tools used to automate software building. Make utilizes a Makefile containing directives like targets, dependencies, and commands to efficiently rebuild only necessary parts of a project. A Makefile defines how software is compiled and linked by specifying output targets, prerequisite files, and recipes to generate targets. Makefiles streamline development by enabling consistent, modular compilation across different environments through automation and dependency tracking.

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20 views2 pages

Make and Makefiles Guide

The document discusses make and Makefiles, which are tools used to automate software building. Make utilizes a Makefile containing directives like targets, dependencies, and commands to efficiently rebuild only necessary parts of a project. A Makefile defines how software is compiled and linked by specifying output targets, prerequisite files, and recipes to generate targets. Makefiles streamline development by enabling consistent, modular compilation across different environments through automation and dependency tracking.

Uploaded by

ndunguloren96
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Notes on Make and Makefiles

Author’s Name
February 2, 2024

1 Introduction to make
The make command is a powerful tool used for automating the build process
in Unix-based systems. It utilizes a file, typically named Makefile, which con-
tains directives for building a software project. These directives include targets,
dependencies, and the shell commands to execute.

1.1 Features
• Efficiently recompiles only the necessary parts of a project by checking file
timestamps.
• Supports conditional execution for complex build processes.
• Highly customizable for a wide range of tasks beyond software compilation.

make is favored for its simplicity and effectiveness, especially in projects with
many components.

2 Overview of Makefiles
A Makefile is a key tool in automating the build process in software develop-
ment, particularly when using the make utility. It defines how software projects
are compiled and linked, specifying dependencies among source files to compile
only what’s necessary.

2.1 Structure of a Makefile


A Makefile contains:

• Rules: Specify targets, prerequisites, and recipes.


• Targets: Define the output files that the make utility should produce.
• Prerequisites: Files that must be present to generate a target.

1
• Recipes: Commands executed by make to produce the target from the
prerequisites.
Makefiles streamline the development process, enabling developers to com-
pile and maintain projects efficiently across different environments.

3 Advantages of using make and Makefiles


1. Efficiency: make optimizes the build process by only recompiling parts of
the program that have been modified.
2. Modularity: Makefiles enable modular compilation, allowing independent
compilation of different modules.
3. Automation: The build process is automated, ensuring consistent use of
compilation commands.
4. Clarity: Makefiles serve as clear documentation for the build process,
aiding maintenance and collaboration.
5. Portability: Makefiles can be easily adjusted to compile the same source
code on different systems.
6. Dependency Tracking: make automatically tracks dependencies to ensure
files are compiled in the correct order.

4 Compiling a C Program with Make: Hello


World C Program
1 # include < stdio .h >
2
3 int main () {
4 printf ( " Hello , World !\ n " ) ;
5 return 0;
6 }

5 Makefile
1 hello : hello . c
2 gcc -o hello hello . c

To compile the program, run make in the terminal. This will use the gcc
command specified in the Makefile to compile hello.c into an executable
named hello.

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