An introduction to the build pipeline, and how we can orchestrate it manually

Before working with CMake, it's useful to understand the tools it orchestrates. This lesson guides you through setting up a C++ toolchain.

Building C++ Programs

Walking through the steps of the C++ compilation process, from source code to machine code.

The Compilation Pipeline

The linker's role in the build process, how it resolves symbols to combine object files, and how to troubleshoot common errors.

Object Files and the Linking Process

The difference between static and dynamic libraries, how to create them, and the trade-offs between them.

Static and Shared Libraries

The C++ Build Process

Recommended approaches for managing large projects and the libraries that they depend on

Learn how to structure your C++ projects for scalability and maintainability, from basic directory layouts to managing multiple modules.

Organizing a C++ Project

Learn to manage third-party libraries in C++, covering include/library paths, static vs. shared libraries, versioning, and platform differences.

Managing Libraries and Dependencies

An introduction to traditional build tools like Makefiles and IDE projects, highlighting the maintenance, scalability, and cross-platform challenges that result

Automated Build Systems and Their Limitations

Project Structure and Dependency Management

Setting up CMake and creating your first project

An introduction to CMake, the cross-platform, open-source meta-build system that solves the core challenges of C++ project management.

Why CMake?

A step-by-step guide to installing CMake. We'll explore command-line, GUI, and IDE workflows, and how to configure your compiler.

Setting Up a CMake Environment

Creating the bare minimum `CMakeLists.txt` file and build up to a project with an executable and a library, learning the fundamental commands along the way.

Writing a CMakeLists File

Learn the two-stage process of building a CMake project. This lesson covers configuring, generating, building, running, and troubleshooting common errors.

Building and Running CMake Projects

Learn how to organize large C++ projects in CMake using subdirectories and the `add_subdirectory()` command to create modular, maintainable builds.

CMake Project Structure and Subdirectories

Introducing CMake

Exploring CMake's programming features, caching mechanisms, and interactions with the file system

A primer on the fundamental building blocks of the CMake language: variables, string interpolation, and logging messages.

CMake Variables and Logging

Discover the CMake Cache, the mechanism for storing persistent user-configurable options, and learn how to create and manage cached variables.

The CMake Cache

Exploring CMake's command syntax and its list data type, including how to create, manipulate, and use lists in your projects.

CMake Commands, Arguments, and Lists

Transform your static build descriptions into dynamic scripts with CMake's control flow commands, if() and foreach().

CMake Conditionals and Loops

Exploring CMake's `file()` command, covering how to read, write, copy, and glob files, and how to manipulate paths.

Working with the File System

Learn to create reusable logic with CMake functions and macros, and how to organize them into modules for clean, scalable build systems.

Modularizing CMake Code

CMake Language and Fundamentals

Learn more about targets, and how their properties and links are the foundation of modern CMake

Learn to work with target properties - understanding their purpose, setting and updating them, and retrieving them when your build requires it

Target Properties

Learn about target types, and how the `PUBLIC`, `PRIVATE`, and `INTERFACE` keywords control how properties are shared.

Relationships Between Targets

Discover how CMake's `target_link_libraries()` command builds a dependency graph, and how it uses this graph to automatically manage transitive dependencies and link order.

Indirect Relationships and the Dependency Graph

Learn to use abstract target types like `INTERFACE`, `ALIAS`, and `IMPORTED` to model complex project needs, organize build properties, and integrate pre-compiled binaries.

Using `INTERFACE`, `ALIAS`, and `IMPORTED` Libraries

Adding support for user-configurable library types and an initial introduction to target installation.

Using Shared Libraries

Targets and Dependencies

Learn how to manage multiple build configurations within the same project, and how to create scripts that adapt to the environment

Learn how CMake manages different build configurations like Debug and Release, the difference between generator types, and how to apply settings conditionally using modern techniques.

Build Configurations (Debug, Release, etc.)

Learn the tools and patterns needed to write portable CMakeLists.txt files that work seamlessly across platforms and compilers

Cross-Platform Configurations

Learn to write architecture-aware CMake scripts for 32/64-bit systems and Apple's Universal Binaries (Intel/ARM).

Handling Different Architectures

Learn to build for different operating systems and architectures using CMake's cross-compilation support and toolchain files.

Cross-Compilation and Toolchain Files

Platforms and Build Configurations

Learn how to add external libraries to our build, and how to create our own packages for others to use

Learn to find and use pre-installed libraries with `find_package()`, understanding Module vs. Config mode and the power of imported targets

Finding Dependencies using `find_package()`

Learn how to make your libraries consumable by other projects using CMake by turning your build-tree into a distributable install-tree.

Creating a Consumable Package

Learn how to consume a CMake package you've installed, completing the producer-consumer cycle. We'll cover using `find_package()` and how to point CMake to your library's location

Using Installed Packages

Learn how to create self-contained, reproducible builds by fetching dependencies from source using `FetchContent()` and `ExternalProject_Add()`.

Fetching External Dependencies

Creating and Consuming Packages

Integrating the vcpkg and Conan package managers to handle external dependencies

Learn to manage C++ dependencies effortlessly with the vcpkg package manager and its seamless CMake integration using toolchain files and manifests.

Integrating CMake and vcpkg

Learn the day-to-day commands for managing dependencies with vcpkg and how to guarantee reproducible builds using baselines and version overrides

vcpkg Commands and Versioning

Combine vcpkg with CMake's cross-compilation capabilities. Learn to use triplets to target different architectures and chain-load toolchain files

Cross-Compiling with vcpkg

Discover Conan, the binary-first C++ package manager, and learn how to integrate it with CMake using profiles and lockfiles for fast, reproducible builds.

Using Conan with CMake

Learn to cross-compile C++ projects with Conan, using build and host profiles to manage dependencies for different platforms.

Cross-Compilation with Conan

Package Managers

Introducing presets, allowing us to simplify our workflow and share common configurations across our team

Learn the fundamentals of CMake Presets. This lesson introduces `CMakePresets.json` to simplify complex build commands.

CMake Presets

Learn to structure your CMake presets with inheritance and customize them for your local environment using `CMakeUserPresets.json`.

User Presets and Inheritance

Learn to make your CMake presets portable by using environment variables and conditional logic to adapt to different machine configurations.

Environment Variables and Conditional Presets

Learn how to extend the build process beyond simple compilation by integrating external tools and custom commands

Learn how to use generator expressions `$<...>` for build-time conditional logic.

Generator Expressions and Conditional Logic

Learn how to attach commands to specific points in a target's build lifecycle using `add_custom_command(TARGET)` for tasks like post-build file copying.

Integrating Tools with `add_custom_command()`

Learn to integrate code generators like Protobuf into your build process using `add_custom_command()`, creating automated file-level dependencies in CMake.

Generating Files with Protobuf and `add_custom_command()`

Custom Commands

An introduction to automating common workflow chores by creating custom targets

Learn to create standalone, non-code targets using add_custom_target() for utility tasks like code formatting and documentation generation.

Custom Targets and Build Utilities

Using the Clang-Format tool to automatically enforce a consistent coding style, and integrating it into our build using a custom CMake target

Using Clang-Format

An introduction to file sets and the `target_sources()` command, allowing us to manage our header files in a more controlled way

Using File Sets

A step-by-step guide to integrating Doxygen into your CMake build process for automated C++ documentation.

Generating Documentation with Doxygen

Custom Targets

Integrate automated tests into a CMake project using CTest, GoogleTest, and GoogleMock

Learn the fundamentals of automated testing in C++ with CTest. Create your first test suite, register tests with `add_test()`, and run them with the `ctest` command.

Automated Testing and CTest

Learn to refactor manual C++ tests into a professional test suite using the GoogleTest framework, managed by vcpkg and integrated with CTest.

Integrating GoogleTest with CMake

Learn to use a wide range of assertions, write data-driven parameterized tests, and isolate dependencies with Google Mock.

Assertions and Parameterized Tests

Learn how to isolate dependencies that our project uses, and then how to replace those dependencies at test time using Google Mock.

Dependency Injection and Mocking

Learn the standard pattern for testing application logic by refactoring it into a linkable library

Testing Executables

Move beyond individual tests to manage a full test suite. Learn to organize tests, run tests in parallel, filter by labels, and measure our code coverage

Managing a Test Suite

Automated Testing

Using static and dynamic analysis in CMake projects to automatically detect memory bugs, performance issues, and problematic code

Learn to find memory bugs at runtime by integrating AddressSanitizer (ASan) into a CMake project

Using AddressSanitizer (ASan)

Adding benchmarks to our build to measure the performance of our code, and track how it changes over time

Using Google Benchmark

Integrating Clang-Tidy to enforce good practices and find bugs before we even compile

Using Clang-Tidy

Automated Analysis

Automating the entire development lifecycle using Git for souce control, GitHub Actions for cloud builds, and CPack to create distributable packages and installers.

An introduction to Git, the version control system that underpins modern collaborative software development and automated build pipelines.

Source Control with Git

Learn how to automate your build and test process with Continuous Integration (CI) and a build server. This lesson provides a guide to creating a GitHub Actions workflow for a CMake project.

Build Servers and Continuous Integration

Learn to package your C++ projects using CMake's CPack. This lesson covers creating developer ZIP archives and professional Windows MSI installers with components.

Packaging with CPack

Learn to automate the packaging process by integrating CPack with a multi-platform GitHub Actions workflow

Packaging with GitHub Actions

Learn to automate the creation of a professional Windows installer by integrating CPack, the WiX Toolset, and a multi-platform GitHub Actions workflow.

Creating Installers with CPack and GitHub Actions

Learn to automate the release process using a GitHub Actions workflow that builds, packages, and publishes artifacts to a GitHub Release

Deployment with GitHub Releases

Continuous Integration and Packaging

If you have a basic grasp of C++ but find the build process intimidating, this course is for you. We assume you know the language, but not how to manage large projects.

Manage complex, cross-platform builds using industry-standard tools. Create scalable build systems that automate the entire development lifecycle.

This course is a comprehensive deep-dive into the entire C++ build ecosystem, centered around the power and flexibility of modern CMake. We leave no stone unturned.

Start with a foundational understanding of compilers, linkers, static vs. shared libraries, and object files.

The Full Build Pipeline

Learn every aspect of the CMake language, from variables and control flow to functions, modules, and generator expressions.

Complete CMake Language Mastery

Master the modern target-centric paradigm, including properties, usage requirements, and abstract targets.

Advanced Target Management

Explore every method for handling dependencies, from `find_package` and `FetchContent` to vcpkg and Conan, including versioning and cross-compilation.

In-Depth Dependency Management

Integrate a full suite of professional tools for testing (CTest, GoogleTest), analysis (ASan, Clang-Tidy), and packaging (CPack).

Total Workflow Automation

Build a fully automated deployment pipeline that takes your code from a Git push to a published GitHub Release with multi-platform installers.

End-to-End CI/CD and Deployment

What You'll Learn

Become a software engineer with C++.  Starting from the basics, we guide you step by step along the way

Intro to C++ Programming

If you're completely new to programming or want a thorough introduction, consider starting with our free introductory course:

New to Programming?

Managing C++ Projects Using CMake

In the last lesson, we made the case for CMake. We saw how it rises above the limitations of traditional build tools by acting as a _meta-build system_, providing a single, portable source of truth that generates native build files for any platform.


The theory is promising, but now it's time to put it into practice. Before we can write our first `CMakeLists.txt` file, we need to get the tools installed and our environment configured. This lesson is all about that initial setup.


We'll walk through installing CMake on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Then, we'll explore the different ways you can interact with it - from the command line to a graphical interface to IDE integrations. Finally, we'll make sure CMake knows how to find the C++ compiler we set up in the first chapter.


## Installing CMake on Windows


CMake is a prerequisite for the rest of this course, so let's get it installed. The process is straightforward, and you have several options on each platform.


**Visual Studio Installer**: If you've installed Visual Studio as your C++ development environment, you likely already have CMake. You can check if CMake is installed (and install it if it isn't) by running the Visual Studio Installer, clicking "Modify", and then searching for CMake in the components list:


<Img hasTransparency file="cmake-visual-studio-installation.png" alt="Screenshot showing CMake components in the Visual Studio Installer" width="1453" height="790" blurHash="L15}pxNG_3xu-;M{-;x]~q?ba}WA" />


**Official Installer**: You can download the official Windows installer (`.msi`) from the [CMake download page](https://cmake.org/download/). During installation, make sure to select the option "Add CMake to the system PATH for all users" or "for current user". This makes the `cmake` command available in any Command Prompt or PowerShell terminal.


<Img hasTransparency file="cmake-official-install.png" alt="Screenshot of the CMake official installer" width="620" height="483" blurHash="L2Rp8-tR00~q_3Na9F%g_3t7D%kW" />


**Package Managers**: If you use a package manager like Chocolatey or Winget, they're likely to have CMake available.  This will allow you to install it with a command such as `winget install cmake` or `choco install cmake`.


**MSYS2**: If you're using the MSYS2 UCRT64 terminal, you can install CMake using the command:


```c++
//<ti>
pacman -S mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-cmake
```


## Installing CMake on macOS


**Homebrew**: If you use the [Homebrew](https://brew.sh/) package manager, installing CMake is a one-liner:


```c++
//<ti>
brew install cmake
```


**Official Installer**: You can download a `.dmg` disk image from the [CMake download page](https://cmake.org/download/). This provides a graphical installer similar to other macOS applications.


## Installing CMake on Linux (Debian/Ubuntu)


**APT (Recommended)**: The simplest way to install CMake on Debian-based systems is with `apt`.


The version in the standard repositories might be slightly older than the latest release, but it is generally stable and sufficient for most projects.


```c++
//<ti>
sudo apt update
sudo apt install cmake
```


**Snap**: For a more up-to-date version, you can use Snap: `sudo snap install cmake --classic`.


## Verify Your Installation


Once the installation is complete, open a new terminal (or Command Prompt on Windows) and run the following command:


```c++
//<ti>
cmake --version
```


If the installation was successful, you'll see output that includes the installed version number, something like this:


```c++
//<o>
cmake version 4.0.3
CMake suite maintained and supported by Kitware (kitware.com/cmake).
```


If you get an error like "command not found", it likely means CMake's installation directory was not added to your system's `PATH` environment variable.


At the time of writing, the latest stable version is `4.0.3`, with a preview version of `4.1.0` also being available.  Yours may be older, particularly if you're using the version of CMake bundled with Visual Studio or some other IDE.  Any version from `3.16` onwards will work with this course.


<Pw>


## Command Line vs. GUI vs. IDE Integration


CMake isn't a single program; it's a suite of tools. You can interact with it in several ways, and the best one often depends on the task at hand.


### The Command Line (`cmake`)


This is the core of CMake and the method we will focus on for this course. The `cmake` executable is the fundamental tool that parses your `CMakeLists.txt` files and generates the native build system.


It's what gets called by IDEs behind the scenes and what you'll use in automated build scripts for continuous integration, which we'll cover later in the course.


### The Graphical User Interface (`cmake-gui`)


CMake also provides a GUI application, `cmake-gui`, which is particularly useful for exploring a project for the first time or for managing complex configurations without memorizing command-line flags.


<Img hasTransparency file="cmake-gui.png" alt="Screenshot showing the CMake GUI" width="663" height="470" blurHash="L0R:HG00009F000000WB00D%DjIU" />


The GUI lets you:

- Visually set the source code directory and the directory for the build artifacts.
- Select the **generator** from a dropdown list.
- Interactively view and edit all the cached variables.  We'll cover these variables and the CMake cache behaviour process later in the course.
- Click "Generate" to create the native build files.

It performs the exact same actions as the command-line tool, but in a more visual way.


### IDE Integration


This is how most developers use CMake day-to-day. Modern C++ IDEs have embraced CMake as a first-class project model.

- **Visual Studio**: Has native support for opening a folder containing a `CMakeLists.txt` file. It will automatically configure the project, let you select build targets, and provide full IntelliSense and debugging.
- **VS Code**: The [CMake Tools extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode.cmake-tools) provides a popular workflow. It gives you a status bar to switch configurations, a side panel to view targets, and buttons to configure, build, and debug your project.
- **CLion**: This IDE uses CMake as it's primary method of managing builds. Its entire project model is a CMake project, offering deep integration, code completion for CMake commands, and easy management of profiles and configurations.

Even when using an IDE, remember that the IDE is simply calling the `cmake` executable for you. Your `CMakeLists.txt` file remains the single source of truth.


## Configuring Compilers and Environment


This is a critical point: **CMake does not come with a compiler.** CMake is a build system _generator_; it finds and uses the C++ toolchain that's already installed on your system.


We went through the process of installing a compiler in Chapter 1. Now, we need to ensure CMake can find it.


### How CMake Finds Compilers


When you first configure a project, CMake searches your system for a working C++ compiler. Its search follows a specific order of precedence:

1. **CMake Variables**: If you explicitly tell CMake which compiler to use with a command-line flag. This is an advanced technique we'll touch on later.
2. **Environment Variables**: It checks for the `CXX` environment variable. Many developers set `CXX` and `CC` to point to their preferred C++ and C compilers.
3. **System Path**: If the above are not set, CMake searches the directories listed in your system's `PATH` environment variable for common compiler executable names (like `g++`, `clang++`, `cl.exe`, etc.).  We'll mostly rely on this approach.

If you've followed along since chapter 1 and are already able to compile C++ projects from your terminal of choice, you're all set and can move on to the next lesson.  Otherwise, we'll quickly review the key configuration steps to ensure your compiler is installed and accessible in the terminal.


### Windows-Specific Configuration


**For MSVC**: The easiest way to ensure CMake finds the Microsoft Visual C++ compiler (`cl.exe`) is to run your CMake commands from the **Developer Command Prompt for Visual Studio**.


This special terminal, which you can find in your Start Menu, automatically configures the `PATH`, `INCLUDE`, and `LIB` environment variables needed by the MSVC toolchain.


If you try to run CMake from a standard command prompt without this setup, it won't be able to find `cl.exe`.


**For MinGW/GCC**: If you installed a GCC toolchain via a tool like MSYS2, you must ensure that the `bin` directory of your compiler (e.g., `C:\msys64\ucrt64\bin`) is added to your Windows `PATH` environment variable. This allows CMake to find `g++.exe` when it searches the system path.


### Linux and macOS Configuration


On Unix-like systems, this process is typically much simpler. When you install GCC or Clang using a package manager like `apt` or Homebrew, the installer automatically places the compiler executables in a standard location that is already in the system `PATH` (like `/usr/bin`).


As a result, CMake usually finds the compiler without any extra configuration required.


### Verifying your Configuration


You can ensure your compiler is discoverable from your preferred command line using a command like `gcc --version` for GCC, `clang++ --version` for Clang, or `cl` for MSVC.


If your chosen compiler responds to the command, we're all set.  For example:


```c++
//<ti>
gcc --version
```


```c++
//<o>
gcc.exe (Rev6, Built by MSYS2 project) 15.1.0
Copyright (C) 2025 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
```


<Preview>


### Writing Your First `CMakeLists.txt`


You've done the prep work. CMake is installed, and your environment is configured. You understand the different ways to access the tool, and you know how it communicates with the C++ compiler you have installed.


We are now officially ready to build something!


In the next lesson, we will finally write our first `CMakeLists.txt` file. We will start with a simple "Hello World" executable, then expand our project to include a library, and learn the fundamental CMake commands for defining targets and linking them together.


</Preview>


</Pw>

Added note on minimum required CMake version

Why CMake? Addressing Build Complexity

Writing a Basic CMakeLists for a Small Project

Download CMake

CMake Documentation

CMake projects in Visual Studio

CMake Tools for VS Code

CLion CMake Documentation

Use the MSVC toolset from the command line

The Missing Package Manager for macOS

CMake Crash Course

Professional CMake: A Practical Guide

Learn how to install and set up your CMake environment on Windows, macOS, and Linux. This guide covers installation, using the command line vs. the GUI, IDE integration (Visual Studio, VS Code, CLion), and configuring compilers like MSVC and GCC.

How to Install and Configure CMake on Windows, macOS, and Linux

Installing CMake on Linux (Debian/Ubuntu)

The Graphical User Interface (`cmake-gui`)

Setting Up a CMake Environment

Understanding the Basics

Practical Applications

Common Mistakes

Next Steps

Additional Resources

Assessment Preparation

Managing C++ Projects Using CMake