LINK_OPTIONS: Add new family of properties

This family enable to manage link flags

Three new properties:
* directory property: LINK_OPTIONS
* target properties: LINK_OPTIONS and INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS

Two new commands
* add_link_options(): to populate directory property
* target_link_options(): to populate target properties

Fixes: #16543

4 files changed, 40 insertions, 2 deletions

diff --git a/Help/prop_tgt/INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS.rst b/Help/prop_tgt/INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c293b98
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Help/prop_tgt/INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS
+----------------------
+
+.. |property_name| replace:: link options
+.. |command_name| replace:: :command:`target_link_options`
+.. |PROPERTY_INTERFACE_NAME| replace:: ``INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS``
+.. |PROPERTY_LINK| replace:: :prop_tgt:`LINK_OPTIONS`
+.. |PROPERTY_GENEX| replace:: ``$<TARGET_PROPERTY:foo,INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS>``
+.. include:: INTERFACE_BUILD_PROPERTY.txt
diff --git a/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS.rst b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS.rst
index b09e7c1..e0b72b5 100644
--- a/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS.rst
+++ b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS.rst
@@ -3,7 +3,11 @@ LINK_FLAGS
 
 Additional flags to use when linking this target.
 
-The LINK_FLAGS property can be used to add extra flags to the link
-step of a target.  :prop_tgt:`LINK_FLAGS_<CONFIG>` will add to the
+The LINK_FLAGS property, managed as a string, can be used to add extra flags
+to the link step of a target.  :prop_tgt:`LINK_FLAGS_<CONFIG>` will add to the
 configuration ``<CONFIG>``, for example, ``DEBUG``, ``RELEASE``,
 ``MINSIZEREL``, ``RELWITHDEBINFO``, ...
+
+.. note::
+
+  This property has been superseded by :prop_tgt:`LINK_OPTIONS` property.
diff --git a/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS_CONFIG.rst b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS_CONFIG.rst
index ba7adc8..1f2910b 100644
--- a/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS_CONFIG.rst
+++ b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_FLAGS_CONFIG.rst
@@ -4,3 +4,7 @@ LINK_FLAGS_<CONFIG>
 Per-configuration linker flags for a target.
 
 This is the configuration-specific version of LINK_FLAGS.
+
+.. note::
+
+  This property has been superseded by :prop_tgt:`LINK_OPTIONS` property.
diff --git a/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_OPTIONS.rst b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_OPTIONS.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c5263a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Help/prop_tgt/LINK_OPTIONS.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+LINK_OPTIONS
+------------
+
+List of options to use when linking this target.
+
+This property holds a :ref:`;-list <CMake Language Lists>` of options
+specified so far for its target.  Use the :command:`target_link_options`
+command to append more options.
+
+This property is initialized by the :prop_dir:`LINK_OPTIONS` directory
+property when a target is created, and is used by the generators to set
+the options for the compiler.
+
+Contents of ``LINK_OPTIONS`` may use "generator expressions" with the
+syntax ``$<...>``.  See the :manual:`cmake-generator-expressions(7)` manual
+for available expressions.  See the :manual:`cmake-buildsystem(7)` manual
+for more on defining buildsystem properties.
+
+.. note::
+
+  This property must be used in preference to :prop_tgt:`LINK_FLAGS` property.