.. _docs-build-system: ============ Build system ============ Building software for embedded devices is a complex process. Projects often have custom toolchains, target different hardware platforms, and require additional configuration and post-processing of artifacts. As a modern embedded framework, Pigweed's goal is to collect these embedded use cases into a powerful and flexible build system, then extend it with support for modern software development practices. See :ref:`docs-python-build` for information about Python build automation with Pigweed. .. toctree:: :hidden: python_build What's in a build system? ========================= A quality build system provides a variety of features beyond compiling code. Throughout our experience with embedded development, we've found several build features to be especially useful, and designed Pigweed's build system with them in mind. Simple toolchain configuration ------------------------------ Embedded projects often use custom build toolchains for their specific hardware. Configuring these should be a simple process, both in their initial setup and later adjustments. Multi-target builds ------------------- Virtually every consumer product has firmware that targets different boards or MCUs during development. While building for a single board is simple enough, the complexity of supporting different targets ranges from changing compiler flags to swapping out entire libraries of firmware and drivers. This is often done by running multiple builds, configuring each one accordingly. In Pigweed, we've designed our build system with first-class multi-target support in mind, allowing any number of target configurations to be built simultaneously. Multi-language support ---------------------- Embedded projects are typically written in C, C++, and assembly. However, it is possible to have firmware written in other languages, such as Rust. Additionally, projects may have host-side tooling written in a wide variety of languages. Having all of these build together proves to be a large time saver. Custom scripting ---------------- Embedded projects often require post-processing of build artifacts; these may include: * Extracting ELF sections into a different container * Injecting metadata into firmware images * Image signing * Creating databases of symbols for debugging * Extracting string tokens into a database (for example, with :ref:`module-pw_tokenizer`) These are run as steps during a build, facilitated by the build system. See also ^^^^^^^^ * :ref:`module-pw_build-python-action` Python ------ Python is a favorite scripting language of many development teams, and here at Pigweed, we're no exception. Much of Pigweed's host-side tooling is written in Python. While Python works great for local development, problems can arise when scripts need to be packaged and distributed for vendors or factory teams. Having proper support for packaging Python within a build system allows teams to focus on writing code instead of worrying about distribution. Size reporting -------------- On embedded devices, memory is everything. Most projects have some sort of custom tooling to determine how much flash and RAM space their firmware uses. Being able to run size reports as part of a build ensures that they are always up-to-date and allows space usage to be tracked over time. See also ^^^^^^^^ * :ref:`module-pw_bloat` Documentation ------------- An oft-neglected part of software development, documentation is invaluable for future maintainers of a project. As such, Pigweed has integrated documentation which builds alongside its code and combines with other build features, such as size reports, to provide high quality, up-to-date references for developers. See also ^^^^^^^^ * :ref:`module-pw_docgen` Unit testing ------------ Unit tests are essential to ensure that the functionality of code remains consistent as changes are made to avoid accidental regressions. Running unit tests as part of a build keeps developers constantly aware of the impact of their changes. Host-side unit tests ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Though Pigweed targets embedded devices, a lot of its code can be run and tested on a host desktop by swapping out backends to host platform libraries. This is highly beneficial during development, as it allows tests to consistently run without having to go through the process of flashing a device. Device-side unit tests ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ As useful as host-side tests are, they are not sufficient for developing actual firmware, and it is critical to run tests on the actual hardware. Pigweed has invested into creating a test framework and build integration for running tests across physical devices as part of a build. See also ^^^^^^^^ * :ref:`module-pw_unit_test` * :ref:`module-pw_target_runner` Bonus: pw watch --------------- In web development, it is common to have a file system watcher listening for source file changes and triggering a build for quick iteration. When combined with a fast incremental build system, this becomes a powerful feature, allowing things such as unit tests and size reports to re-run whenever any dependent code is modified. While initially seen as somewhat of a gimmick, Pigweed's watcher has become a staple of Pigweed development, with most Pigweed users having it permanently running in a terminal window. See also ^^^^^^^^ * :ref:`module-pw_watch` Pigweed's build systems ======================= Pigweed can be used either as a monolith or à la carte, slotting into an existing project. To this end, Pigweed supports multiple build systems, allowing Pigweed-based projects to choose the most suitable one for them. Of the supported build systems, GN is the most full-featured, followed by CMake, and finally Bazel. .. note:: A quick note on terminology: the word "target" is overloaded within GN/Bazel (and Pigweed)---it can refer to either a GN/Bazel build target, such as a ``source_set`` or ``executable``, or to an output platform (e.g. a specific board, device, or system). To avoid confusing the two, we refer to the former as "GN/Bazel targets" and the latter as "Pigweed targets". GN -- A perhaps unfamiliar name, `GN (Generate Ninja)`_ is a meta-build system that outputs `Ninja`_ build files, originally designed for use in Chromium. Pigweed first experimented with GN after hearing about it from another team, and we quickly came to appreciate its speed and simplicity. GN has become Pigweed's primary build system; it is used for all upstream development and strongly recommended for Pigweed-based projects where possible. .. _CMake: https://cmake.org/ .. _Bazel: https://bazel.build/ .. _GN (Generate Ninja): https://gn.googlesource.com/gn .. _Ninja: https://ninja-build.org/ The GN build ============ This section describes Pigweed's GN build structure, how it is used upstream, build conventions, and recommendations for Pigweed-based projects. While containing some details about how GN works in general, this section is not intended to be a guide on how to use GN. To learn more about the tool itself, refer to the official `GN reference`_. .. _GN reference: https://gn.googlesource.com/gn/+/HEAD/docs/reference.md Entrypoint: .gn --------------- The entrypoint to a GN build is the ``.gn`` file, which defines a project's root directory (henceforth ``//``). ``.gn`` must point to the location of a ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` file for the project. In Pigweed upstream, this is its only purpose. Downstream projects may additionally use ``.gn`` to set global overrides for Pigweed's build arguments, which apply across all Pigweed targets. For example, a project could configure the protobuf libraries that it uses. This is done by defining a ``default_args`` scope containing the overrides. .. code:: # The location of the BUILDCONFIG file. buildconfig = "//BUILDCONFIG.gn" # Build arguments set across all Pigweed targets. default_args = { dir_pw_third_party_nanopb = "//third_party/nanopb-0.4.2" } Configuration: BUILDCONFIG.gn ----------------------------- The file ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` configures the GN build by defining any desired global variables/options. It can be located anywhere in the build tree, but is conventionally placed at the root. ``.gn`` points GN to this file. ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` is evaluated before any other GN files, and variables defined within it are placed into GN's global scope, becoming available in every file without requiring imports. The options configured in this file differ from those in ``.gn`` in two ways: 1. ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` is evaluated for every GN toolchain (and Pigweed target), whereas ``.gn`` is only evaluated once. This allows ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` to set different options for each Pigweed target. 2. In ``.gn``, only GN build arguments can be overridden. ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` allows defining arbitrary variables. Generally, it is preferable to expose configuration options through build args instead of globals in ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` (something Pigweed's build previously did), as they are more flexible, greppable, and easier to manage. However, it may make sense to define project-specific constants in ``BUILDCONFIG.gn``. Pigweed's upstream ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` does not define any variables; it just sets Pigweed's default toolchain, which GN requires. .. _top-level-build: Top-level GN targets: //BUILD.gn -------------------------------- The root ``BUILD.gn`` file defines all of the libraries, images, tests, and binaries built by a Pigweed project. This file is evaluated immediately after ``BUILDCONFIG.gn``, with the active toolchain (which is the default toolchain at the start of a build). ``//BUILD.gn`` is responsible for enumerating each of the Pigweed targets built by a project. This is done by instantiating a version of each of the project's GN target groups with each Pigweed target's toolchain. For example, in upstream, all of Pigweed's GN targets are contained within the ``pigweed_default`` group. This group is instantiated multiple times, with different Pigweed target toolchains. These groups include the following: * ``host`` -- builds ``pigweed_default`` with Clang or GCC, depending on the platform * ``host_clang`` -- builds ``pigweed_default`` for the host with Clang * ``host_gcc`` -- builds ``pigweed_default`` for the host with GCC * ``stm32f429i`` -- builds ``pigweed_default`` for STM32F429i Discovery board * ``docs`` -- builds the Pigweed documentation and size reports Pigweed projects are recommended to follow this pattern, creating a top-level group for each of their Pigweed targets that builds a common GN target with the appropriate toolchain. It is important that no dependencies are listed under the default toolchain within ``//BUILD.gn``, as it does not configure any build parameters, and therefore should not evaluate any other GN files. The pattern that Pigweed uses to achieve this is to wrap all dependencies within a condition checking the toolchain. .. code:: group("my_application_images") { deps = [] # Empty in the default toolchain. if (current_toolchain != default_toolchain) { # This is only evaluated by Pigweed target toolchains, which configure # all of the required options to build Pigweed code. deps += [ "//images:evt" ] } } # The images group is instantiated for each of the project's Pigweed targets. group("my_pigweed_target") { deps = [ ":my_application_images(//toolchains:my_pigweed_target)" ] } .. warning:: Pigweed's default toolchain is never used, so it is set to an empty toolchain which doesn't define any tools. ``//BUILD.gn`` contains conditions which check that the current toolchain is not the default before declaring any GN target dependencies to prevent the default toolchain from evaluating any other BUILD files. All GN targets added to the build must be placed under one of these conditional scopes. "default" group ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ The root ``BUILD.gn`` file can define a special group named ``default``. If present, Ninja will build this group when invoked without arguments. .. tip:: Defining a ``default`` group makes using ``pw watch`` simple! Optimization levels ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Pigweed's ``//BUILD.gn`` defines the ``pw_default_optimization_level`` build arg, which specifies the optimization level to use for the default groups (``host``, ``stm32f429i``, etc.). The supported values for ``pw_default_optimization_level`` are: * ``debug`` -- create debugging-friendly binaries (``-Og``) * ``size_optimized`` -- optimize for size (``-Os``) * ``speed_optimized`` -- optimized for speed, without increasing code size (``-O2``) Pigweed defines versions of its groups in ``//BUILD.gn`` for each optimization level. Rather than relying on ``pw_default_optimization_level``, you may directly build a group at the desired optimization level: ``_``. Examples include ``host_clang_debug``, ``host_gcc_size_optimized``, and ``stm32f429i_speed_optimized``. Upstream GN target groups ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ In upstream, Pigweed splits its top-level GN targets into a few logical groups, which are described below. In order to build a GN target, it *must* be listed in one of the groups in this file. .. important:: Pigweed's top-level ``BUILD.gn`` file should not be used by downstream projects. Projects that wish to pull all of Pigweed's code into their build may use the ``pw_modules`` and ``pw_module_tests`` variables in ``modules.gni``. apps ~~~~ This group defines the application images built in Pigweed. It lists all of the common images built across all Pigweed targets, such as modules' example executables. Each Pigweed target can additionally provide its own specific images through the ``pw_TARGET_APPLICATIONS`` build arg, which is included by this group. host_tools ~~~~~~~~~~ This group defines host-side tooling binaries built for Pigweed. runtime_sanitizers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This group defines host-side build targets for Clang runtime sanitizers. Next runtime sanitizers supported: * ``asan`` -- `AddressSanitizer`_ is a fast memory error detector. * ``msan`` -- `MemorySanitizer`_ is a detector of uninitialized reads. * ``ubsan`` -- `UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer`_ is a fast undefined behavior detector. * ``ubsan_heuristic`` -- `UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer`_ with the following additional checks enabled: * ``integer``: Checks for undefined or suspicious integer behavior. * ``float-divide-by-zero``: Checks for floating point division by zero. * ``implicit-conversion"``: Checks for suspicious behavior of implicit conversions. * ``nullability``: Checks for null as function arg, lvalue and return type. These additional checks are heuristic and may not correspond to undefined behavior. * ``tsan`` -- `ThreadSanitizer`_ is a tool that detects data races. Results of building this group are ``host_clang_`` build directories with ``pw_module_tests`` per supported sanitizer. .. _AddressSanitizer: https://clang.llvm.org/docs/AddressSanitizer.html .. _MemorySanitizer: https://clang.llvm.org/docs/MemorySanitizer.html .. _UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer: https://clang.llvm.org/docs/UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer.html .. _ThreadSanitizer: https://clang.llvm.org/docs/ThreadSanitizer.html pw_modules ~~~~~~~~~~ This group lists the main libraries for all of Pigweed's modules. The modules in the ``pw_modules`` group are listed in the ``pw_modules`` variable, which is provided by ``modules.gni``. pw_module_tests ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ All modules' unit tests are collected here, so that they can all be run at once. The test groups in ``pw_module_tests`` group are listed in the ``pw_module_tests`` variable, which is provided by ``modules.gni``. pigweed_default ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This group defines everything built in a Pigweed build invocation by collecting the above groups and conditionally depending on them based on the active Pigweed target's configuration. Generally, new dependencies should not be added here; instead, use one of the groups listed above. The ``pigweed_default`` group is instantiated for each upstream Pigweed target's toolchain. Pigweed target instantiations ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ These groups wrap ``pigweed_default`` with a specific target toolchain. They are named after the Pigweed target, e.g. ``host_clang``, ``stm32f429i``, etc. Other BUILD files: //\*\*/BUILD.gn ---------------------------------- The rest of the ``BUILD.gn`` files in the tree define libraries, configs, and build args for each of the modules in a Pigweed project. Project configuration: //build_overrides/pigweed.gni ---------------------------------------------------- Each Pigweed project must contain a Pigweed configuration file at a known location in the GN build tree. Currently, this file only contains a single build argument, which must be set to the GN build path to the root of the Pigweed repository within the project. Module variables ---------------- As Pigweed is intended to be a subcomponent of a larger project, it cannot assume where it or its modules is located. Therefore, Pigweed's upstream BUILD.gn files do not use absolute paths; instead, variables are defined pointing to each of Pigweed's modules, set relative to a project-specific ``dir_pigweed``. To depend on Pigweed modules from GN code, import Pigweed's overrides file and reference these module variables. .. code:: # This must be imported before .gni files from any other Pigweed modules. To # prevent gn format from reordering this import, it must be separated by a # blank line from other imports. import("//build_overrides/pigweed.gni") GN target type wrappers ----------------------- To facilitate injecting global configuration options, Pigweed defines wrappers around builtin GN target types such as ``source_set`` and ``executable``. These are defined within ``$dir_pw_build/target_types.gni``. .. note:: To take advantage of Pigweed's flexible target configuration system, use ``pw_*`` target types (e.g. ``pw_source_set``) in your BUILD.gn files instead of GN builtins. Pigweed targets --------------- To build for a specific hardware platform, builds define Pigweed targets. These are essentially GN toolchains which set special arguments telling Pigweed how to build. For information on Pigweed's target system, refer to :ref:`docs-targets`. The empty toolchain ------------------- Pigweed's ``BUILDCONFIG.gn`` sets the project's default toolchain to a "empty" toolchain which does not specify any compilers or override any build arguments. Downstream projects are recommended to do the same, following the steps described in :ref:`top-level-build` to configure builds for each of their Pigweed targets. .. admonition:: Why use an empty toolchain? To support some of its advanced (and useful!) build features, Pigweed requires the ability to generate new toolchains on the fly. This requires having knowledge of the full configuration of the current toolchain (which is easy if it's all defined within a scope), something which is impractical to achieve using the default toolchain. Additionally, there are some cases where GN treats default and non-default toolchains differently. By not using the default toolchain, we avoid having to deal with these inconsistencies. It is possible to build Pigweed using only the default toolchain, but it requires a more complicated setup to get everything working and should be avoided unless necessary (for example, when integrating with a large existing GN-based project). Upstream development examples ----------------------------- If developing for upstream Pigweed, some common build use cases are described below. Building a custom executable/app image ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 1. Define your executable GN target using the ``pw_executable`` template. .. code:: # //foo/BUILD.gn pw_executable("foo") { sources = [ "main.cc" ] deps = [ ":libfoo" ] } 2. In the root ``BUILD.gn`` file, add the executable's GN target to the ``apps`` group. .. code:: # //BUILD.gn group("apps") { deps = [ # ... "//foo", # Shorthand for //foo:foo ] } 3. Run the ninja build to compile your executable. The apps group is built by default, so there's no need to provide a target. The executable will be compiled for every supported Pigweed target. .. code:: ninja -C out Alternatively, build your executable by itself by specifying its path to Ninja. When building a GN target manually, the Pigweed target for which it is built must be specified on the Ninja command line. For example, to build for the Pigweed target ``host_gcc_debug``: .. code:: ninja -C out host_gcc_debug/obj/foo/bin/foo .. note:: The path passed to Ninja is a filesystem path within the ``out`` directory, rather than a GN path. This path can be found by running ``gn outputs``. 4. Retrieve your compiled binary from the out directory. It is located at the path .. code:: out//obj//{bin,test}/ where ``pw_target`` is the Pigweed target for which the binary was built, ``gn_path`` is the GN path to the BUILD.gn file defining the executable, and ``executable`` is the executable's GN target name (potentially with an extension). Note that the executable is located within a ``bin`` subdirectory in the module (or ``test`` for unit tests defined with ``pw_test``). For example, the ``foo`` executable defined above and compiled for the Pigweed target stm32f429i_disc1_debug is found at: .. code:: out/stm32f429i_disc1_debug/obj/foo/bin/foo CMake ----- A well-known name in C/C++ development, `CMake`_ is widely used by all kinds of projects, including embedded devices. Pigweed's CMake support is provided primarily for projects that have an existing CMake build and wish to integrate Pigweed modules. Bazel ----- The open source version of Google's internal build system. `Bazel`_ has been growing in popularity within the open source world, as well as being adopted by various proprietary projects. Its modular structure makes it a great fit for à la carte usage. .. note:: Bazel support is experimental and only for the brave for now. If you are looking for stable set of build API's please use GN. The Bazel build =============== This section describes Pigweed's Bazel build structure, how it is used upstream, build conventions, and recommendations for Pigweed-based projects. While containing some details about how Bazel works in general, this section is not intended to be a guide on how to use Bazel. To learn more about the tool itself, refer to the official `Bazel reference`_. .. _Bazel reference: https://www.bazel.build/ General usage ------------- While described in more detail in the Bazel docs there a few Bazel features that are of particular importance when targeting embedded platforms. The most commonly used commands used in bazel are; .. code:: sh bazel build //your:target bazel test //your:target bazel coverage //your:target .. note:: Code coverage support is only available on the host for now. Building ^^^^^^^^ When it comes to building/testing your Bazel target for a specific Pigweed target (e.g. stm32f429i-discovery) a slight variation is required. .. code:: sh bazel build //your:target \ --platforms=@pigweed//pw_build/platforms:stm32f429i-disc1 For more information on how to create your own platforms refer to the official `Bazel platforms reference`_. You may also find helpful examples of constraints and platforms in the '//pw_build/platforms' and '//pw_build/constraints' directories. .. _Bazel platforms reference: https://docs.bazel.build/versions/main/platforms.html Testing ^^^^^^^ Running tests on an embedded target with Bazel is possible although support for this is experimental. The easiest way of achieving this at the moment is to use Bazel's '--run_under' flag. To make this work create a Bazel target ('//your_handler') that; 1. Takes a single argument (the path to the elf) and uploads the elf to your Pigweed target. 2. Connects with your target using serial or other communication method. 3. Listens to the communication transport for the keywords ("PASSED", "FAIL") and returns (0, 1) respectively if one of the keywords is intercepted. (This step assumes you are using the pw_unit_test package and it is configured for your target). 4. Run; .. code:: sh bazel test //your:test --platforms=//your/platform --run_under=//your_handler Code Coverage ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Making use of the code coverage functionality in Bazel is straightforward. 1. Add the following lines to your '.bazelrc'. .. code:: sh coverage --experimental_generate_llvm_lcov coverage --combined_report=lcov 2. Generate a combined lcov coverage report. This will produce a combined lcov coverage report at the path 'bazel-out/_coverage/_coverage_report.dat'. e.g. .. code:: sh bazel coverage //pw_log/... 3. View the results using the command line utility 'lcov'. .. code:: sh lcov --list bazel-out/_coverage/_coverage_report.dat Configuration ------------- Generally speaking there are three primary concepts that make up Bazel's configuration API. 1. Selects 2. Compatibility lists 3. Flags/Build settings Selects ^^^^^^^ Selects are useful for specifying different dependencies/source depending on the platform that is currently being targeted. For more information on this please see the `Bazel selects reference`_. e.g. .. code:: py pw_cc_library( name = "some_platform_dependant_library", deps = select({ "@platforms//cpu:armv7e-m": [":arm_libs"], "//conditions:default": [":host_libs"], }), ) Compatibility lists ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Compatibility lists allow you to specify which platforms your targets are compatible with. Consider an example where you want to specify that a target is compatible with only a host os; .. code:: py pw_cc_library( name = "some_host_only_lib", srcs = ["host.cc"], target_compatible_with = select({ "@platforms//os:windows": [], "@platforms//os:linux": [], "@platforms//os:macos": [], "//conditions:default": ["@platforms//:incompatible"], }), ) In this case building from or for either Windows/Linux/Mac will be supported, but other OS's will fail if this target is explicitly depended on. However if building with a wild card for a non-host platform this target will be skipped and the build will continue. e.g. .. code:: sh bazel build //... --platforms=@pigweed//pw_build/platforms:cortex_m0 This allows for you to easily create compatibility matricies without adversely affecting your ability build your entire repo for a given Pigweed target. For more detailed information on how to use the target_compatible_with attribute please see `Bazel target_compatible_with reference`_. Flags/build settings ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Flags/build settings are particularly useful in scenarios where you may want to be able to quickly inject a dependency from the command line but don't necessarily want to create an entirely new set of constraints to use with a select statement. .. note:: The scope for what is possible with build flags/settings goes well beyond what will be described here. For more detailed information on flags/settings please see `Bazel config reference`_. A simple example of when it is useful to use a label_flag is when you want to swap out a single dependency from the command line. e.g. .. code:: py pw_cc_library( name = "some_default_io", srcs = ["default_io.cc"], ) pw_cc_library( name = "some_other_io", srcs = ["other_io.cc"], ) label_flag( name = "io", default_build_setting = ":some_default_io", ) pw_cc_library( name = "some_target_that_needs_io", deps = [":io"], ) From here the label_flag by default redirects to the target ":some_default_io", however it is possible to override this from the command line. e.g. .. code:: sh bazel build //:some_target_that_needs_io --//:io=//:some_other_io .. _Bazel selects reference: https://docs.bazel.build/versions/main/configurable-attributes.html#select-and-dependencies .. _Bazel target_compatible_with reference: https://docs.bazel.build/versions/main/platforms.html#skipping-incompatible-targets .. _Bazel config reference: https://docs.bazel.build/versions/main/skylark/config.html Pigweeds configuration ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Pigweeds Bazel configuration API is designed to be distributed across the Pigweed repository and/or your downstream repository. If you are coming from GN's centralized configuration API it might be useful to think about Pigweed+Bazel's configuration as the transpose of GN's configuration. The configuration interface that is supported by Pigweed is designed to start simple and then grow with your project. .. note:: There are plans to extend the configuration API for Bazel. However, currently the only configurations that are available under the Bazel+Pigweed configuration API is the ability to switch facade backends. For more information on what this is please see the :ref:`docs-module-structure-facades` section of :ref:`docs-module-structure`. Consider a scenario that you are building a flight controller for a spacecraft. But have very little experience with Pigweed and you have just landed here. First things first you would; 1. Set up your WORKSPACE to fetch the Pigweeds repository. Then add the dependencies that you need from Pigweeds WORKSPACE. 2. Add a pigweed_config rule to your WORKSPACE, using Pigweed's default configuration. .. code:: py # WORKSPACE ... load("//pw_build:target_config.bzl", "pigweed_config") # Configure Pigweeds backend. pigweed_config( name = "pigweed_config", build_file = "@pigweed//targets:default_config.BUILD", ) .. note:: We are aware, that the experience of setting up your WORKSPACE file to work with pigweed is less than ideal. This API is under construction, but we are working on this! .. TODO: Add in a better way to pull down WORKSPACE dependencies in Bazel then add docs in here. Now to explain what is going on here. Housed under the "pigweed_config" remote repository is a set of configuration flags. These can be used to inject dependencies into facades to override the default backend. Continuing on with our scenario, consider that you maybe want to try using the '//pw_chrono' module. So you create a target in your repository like so; .. code:: # BUILD pw_cc_library( name = "time_is_relative", srcs = ["relative_time_on_earth.cc"], deps = ["@pigweed//pw_chrono"], ) Now this should work out of the box for any host operating system. e.g. Running; .. code:: bazel build //:time_is_relative will produce a working library. But as your probably here because Pigweed offers a set of embedded libraries you might be interested in running your code on some random micro-controller/FPGA combined with an RTOS. For now let's assume that by some coincidence you are using FreeRTOS and are happy to make use of our default '//pw_chrono' backend for FreeRTOS. You could build the following with; .. code:: sh bazel build //:time_is_relative \ --platforms=@pigweed//pw_build/platforms:freertos There is a fair bit to unpack here in terms of how our configuration system is determining which dependencies to choose for your build. The dependency tree (that is important for configuration) in a project such as this would look like. .. code:: @pigweed//pw_chrono:pw_chrono_facade <-----------. ^ | | @pigweed//pw_chrono_freertos:system_clock | (Actual backend) | ^ | | | @pigweed//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer | Select backend based on OS: | [FreeRTOS (X), Embos ( ), STL ( ), Threadx ( )] | ^ | | @pigweed//pw_chrono -------> @pigweed_config//:pw_chrono_system_clock_backend ^ (Injectable) | //:time_is_relative So when evaluating this setup Bazel checks the dependencies for '//pw_chrono' and finds that it depends on "@pigweed_config//:pw_chrono_system_clock_backend" which looks like this; .. code:: py # pw_chrono config. label_flag( name = "pw_chrono_system_clock_backend", build_setting_default = "@pigweed//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer", ) Looking at the 'build_setting_default' we can see that by default it depends back on the target "@pigweed//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer". If you only had one backend you could actually just change the 'build_setting_default' to point directly to your backend. However because we have four different backends we have to use the select semantics to choose the right one. In this case it looks like; .. code:: py pw_cc_library( name = "system_clock_backend_multiplexer", visibility = ["@pigweed_config//:__pkg__"], deps = select({ "@pigweed//pw_build/constraints/rtos:freertos": ["//pw_chrono_freertos:system_clock"], "@pigweed//pw_build/constraints/rtos:embos": ["//pw_chrono_embos:system_clock"], "@pigweed//pw_build/constraints/rtos:threadx": ["//pw_chrono_threadx:system_clock"], "//conditions:default": ["//pw_chrono_stl:system_clock"], }), ) Intuitively you can see that the first option was selected, which terminates the configuration chain. Continuing on with our scenario let's say that you have read :ref:`docs-module-structure` and now want to implement your own backend for '//pw_chrono' using a hardware RTC. In this case you would create a new directory 'pw_chrono_my_hardware_rtc'. To ensure that your new backend compiles with the facade an easy and temporary way to override the dependency tree is to override the label flag in '@pigweed_config'. For example; .. code:: sh bazel build //:time_is_relative \ --@pigweed_config//pw_chrono_system_clock_backend=//pw_chrono_my_hardware_rtc:system_clock This temporarily modifies the build graph to look something like this; .. code:: @pigweed//pw_chrono:pw_chrono_facade <-----. ^ | | @your_workspace//pw_chrono_my_hardware_rtc:system_clock | (Actual backend) | ^ | | @pigweed//pw_chrono -> @pigweed_config//:pw_chrono_system_clock_backend ^ (Injectable) | //:time_is_relative Now while this is a nice temporary change, but you might find yourself in need of a more permanent configuration. Particularly if you want to override multiple different backends. In other words if you had several backends to override, that would translate to several different command line flags (one for each override). This problem further compounds as you have multiple Pigweed targets all requiring different combinations of different backends as you can't even reuse your command line entries. Instead you would have to memorize the correct combination of backends for each of your targets. So continuing on with our scenario, let's say we add a backup micro-controller, to our spacecraft. But this backup computer doesn't have a hardware RTC. We still want to share the bulk of the code between the two computers but now we need two separate implementations for our pw_chrono facade. Let's say we choose to keep the primary flight computer using the hardware RTC and switch the backup computer over to use Pigweeds default FreeRTOS backend. In this case we might, want to do something similar to '@pigweed//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer' and create selectable dependencies for the two different computers. Now because there are no default constraint_setting's that meet our requirements we are going to have to; 1. Create a constraint_setting and a set of constraint_value's for the flight computer. For example; .. code:: py # //platforms/flight_computer/BUILD constraint_setting( name = "flight_computer", ) constraint_value( name = "primary", constraint_setting = ":flight_computer", ) constraint_value( name = "backup", constraint_setting = ":flight_computer", ) 2. Create a set of platforms that can be used to switch constraint_value's. For example; .. code:: py # //platforms/BUILD platform( name = "primary_computer", constraint_values = ["//platforms/flight_computer:primary"], ) platform( name = "backup_computer", constraint_values = ["//platforms/flight_computer:backup"], ) 3. Create a target multiplexer that will select the right backend depending on which computer you are using. For example; .. code:: py # //pw_chrono/BUILD load("//pw_build:pigweed.bzl", "pw_cc_library") pw_cc_library( name = "system_clock_backend_multiplexer", deps = select({ "//platforms/flight_computer:primary": [ "//pw_chrono_my_hardware_rtc:system_clock", ], "//platforms/flight_computer:backup": [ "@pigweed//pw_chrono_freertos:system_clock", ], "//conditions:default": [ "@pigweed//pw_chrono_stl:system_clock", ], }), ) 4. Copy and paste across the target/default_config.BUILD across from the Pigweed repository and modifying the build_setting_default for the target 'pw_chrono_system_clock_backend' to point to your new system_clock_backend_multiplexer target. For example; This; .. code:: py # @pigweed//target:default_config.BUILD label_flag( name = "pw_chrono_system_clock_backend", build_setting_default = "@pigweed//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer", ) Becomes this; .. code:: py # @your_workspace//target:your_config.BUILD label_flag( name = "pw_chrono_system_clock_backend", build_setting_default = "@your_workspace//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer", ) 5. Switch your workspace 'pigweed_config' rule over to use your custom config. .. code:: py # WORKSPACE pigweed_config( name = "pigweed_config", build_file = "//target/your_config.BUILD", ) Building your target now will result in slightly different build graph. For example, running; .. code:: sh bazel build //:time_is_relative --platforms=//platforms:primary_computer Will result in a build graph that looks like; .. code:: @pigweed//pw_chrono:pw_chrono_facade <---. ^ | | @your_workspace//pw_chrono_my_hardware_rtc:system_clock | (Actual backend) | ^ | | | @your_workspace//pw_chrono:system_clock_backend_multiplexer | Select backend based on OS: | [Primary (X), Backup ( ), Host only default ( )] | ^ | | @pigweed//pw_chrono -> @pigweed_config//:pw_chrono_system_clock_backend ^ (Injectable) | //:time_is_relative