path: root/Help/command/install.rst

install
-------

.. only:: html

   .. contents::

Specify rules to run at install time.

Introduction
^^^^^^^^^^^^

This command generates installation rules for a project.  Rules
specified by calls to this command within a source directory are
executed in order during installation.  The order across directories
is not defined.

There are multiple signatures for this command.  Some of them define
installation options for files and targets.  Options common to
multiple signatures are covered here but they are valid only for
signatures that specify them.  The common options are:

``DESTINATION``
  Specify the directory on disk to which a file will be installed.
  If a full path (with a leading slash or drive letter) is given
  it is used directly.  If a relative path is given it is interpreted
  relative to the value of the :variable:`CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX` variable.
  The prefix can be relocated at install time using the ``DESTDIR``
  mechanism explained in the :variable:`CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX` variable
  documentation.

``PERMISSIONS``
  Specify permissions for installed files.  Valid permissions are
  ``OWNER_READ``, ``OWNER_WRITE``, ``OWNER_EXECUTE``, ``GROUP_READ``,
  ``GROUP_WRITE``, ``GROUP_EXECUTE``, ``WORLD_READ``, ``WORLD_WRITE``,
  ``WORLD_EXECUTE``, ``SETUID``, and ``SETGID``.  Permissions that do
  not make sense on certain platforms are ignored on those platforms.

``CONFIGURATIONS``
  Specify a list of build configurations for which the install rule
  applies (Debug, Release, etc.).

``COMPONENT``
  Specify an installation component name with which the install rule
  is associated, such as "runtime" or "development".  During
  component-specific installation only install rules associated with
  the given component name will be executed.  During a full installation
  all components are installed.  If ``COMPONENT`` is not provided a
  default component "Unspecified" is created.  The default component
  name may be controlled with the
  :variable:`CMAKE_INSTALL_DEFAULT_COMPONENT_NAME` variable.

``RENAME``
  Specify a name for an installed file that may be different from the
  original file.  Renaming is allowed only when a single file is
  installed by the command.

``OPTIONAL``
  Specify that it is not an error if the file to be installed does
  not exist.

Installing Targets
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

::

  install(TARGETS targets... [EXPORT <export-name>]
          [[ARCHIVE|LIBRARY|RUNTIME|FRAMEWORK|BUNDLE|
            PRIVATE_HEADER|PUBLIC_HEADER|RESOURCE]
           [DESTINATION <dir>]
           [INCLUDES DESTINATION [<dir> ...]]
           [PERMISSIONS permissions...]
           [CONFIGURATIONS [Debug|Release|...]]
           [COMPONENT <component>]
           [OPTIONAL] [NAMELINK_ONLY|NAMELINK_SKIP]
          ] [...])

The ``TARGETS`` form specifies rules for installing targets from a
project.  There are five kinds of target files that may be installed:
``ARCHIVE``, ``LIBRARY``, ``RUNTIME``, ``FRAMEWORK``, and ``BUNDLE``.
Executables are treated as ``RUNTIME`` targets, except that those
marked with the ``MACOSX_BUNDLE`` property are treated as ``BUNDLE``
targets on OS X.  Static libraries are always treated as ``ARCHIVE``
targets.  Module libraries are always treated as ``LIBRARY`` targets.
For non-DLL platforms shared libraries are treated as ``LIBRARY``
targets, except that those marked with the ``FRAMEWORK`` property are
treated as ``FRAMEWORK`` targets on OS X.  For DLL platforms the DLL
part of a shared library is treated as a ``RUNTIME`` target and the
corresponding import library is treated as an ``ARCHIVE`` target.
All Windows-based systems including Cygwin are DLL platforms.
The ``ARCHIVE``, ``LIBRARY``, ``RUNTIME``, and ``FRAMEWORK`` arguments
change the type of target to which the subsequent properties apply.
If none is given the installation properties apply to all target
types.  If only one is given then only targets of that type will be
installed (which can be used to install just a DLL or just an import
library).  The ``INCLUDES DESTINATION`` specifies a list of directories
which will be added to the :prop_tgt:`INTERFACE_INCLUDE_DIRECTORIES`
target property of the ``<targets>`` when exported by the
:command:`install(EXPORT)` command.  If a relative path is
specified, it is treated as relative to the ``$<INSTALL_PREFIX>``.

The ``PRIVATE_HEADER``, ``PUBLIC_HEADER``, and ``RESOURCE`` arguments
cause subsequent properties to be applied to installing a ``FRAMEWORK``
shared library target's associated files on non-Apple platforms.  Rules
defined by these arguments are ignored on Apple platforms because the
associated files are installed into the appropriate locations inside
the framework folder.  See documentation of the
:prop_tgt:`PRIVATE_HEADER`, :prop_tgt:`PUBLIC_HEADER`, and
:prop_tgt:`RESOURCE` target properties for details.

Either ``NAMELINK_ONLY`` or ``NAMELINK_SKIP`` may be specified as a
``LIBRARY`` option.  On some platforms a versioned shared library
has a symbolic link such as::

  lib<name>.so -> lib<name>.so.1

where ``lib<name>.so.1`` is the soname of the library and ``lib<name>.so``
is a "namelink" allowing linkers to find the library when given
``-l<name>``.  The ``NAMELINK_ONLY`` option causes installation of only the
namelink when a library target is installed.  The ``NAMELINK_SKIP`` option
causes installation of library files other than the namelink when a
library target is installed.  When neither option is given both
portions are installed.  On platforms where versioned shared libraries
do not have namelinks or when a library is not versioned the
``NAMELINK_SKIP`` option installs the library and the ``NAMELINK_ONLY``
option installs nothing.  See the :prop_tgt:`VERSION` and
:prop_tgt:`SOVERSION` target properties for details on creating versioned
shared libraries.

One or more groups of properties may be specified in a single call to
the ``TARGETS`` form of this command.  A target may be installed more than
once to different locations.  Consider hypothetical targets ``myExe``,
``mySharedLib``, and ``myStaticLib``.  The code:

.. code-block:: cmake

  install(TARGETS myExe mySharedLib myStaticLib
          RUNTIME DESTINATION bin
          LIBRARY DESTINATION lib
          ARCHIVE DESTINATION lib/static)
  install(TARGETS mySharedLib DESTINATION /some/full/path)

will install ``myExe`` to ``<prefix>/bin`` and ``myStaticLib`` to
``<prefix>/lib/static``.  On non-DLL platforms ``mySharedLib`` will be
installed to ``<prefix>/lib`` and ``/some/full/path``.  On DLL platforms
the ``mySharedLib`` DLL will be installed to ``<prefix>/bin`` and
``/some/full/path`` and its import library will be installed to
``<prefix>/lib/static`` and ``/some/full/path``.

The ``EXPORT`` option associates the installed target files with an
export called ``<export-name>``.  It must appear before any ``RUNTIME``,
``LIBRARY``, or ``ARCHIVE`` options.  To actually install the export
file itself, call ``install(EXPORT)``, documented below.

Installing a target with the :prop_tgt:`EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL` target property
set to ``TRUE`` has undefined behavior.

Installing Files
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

::

  install(<FILES|PROGRAMS> files... DESTINATION <dir>
          [PERMISSIONS permissions...]
          [CONFIGURATIONS [Debug|Release|...]]
          [COMPONENT <component>]
          [RENAME <name>] [OPTIONAL])

The ``FILES`` form specifies rules for installing files for a project.
File names given as relative paths are interpreted with respect to the
current source directory.  Files installed by this form are by default
given permissions ``OWNER_WRITE``, ``OWNER_READ``, ``GROUP_READ``, and
``WORLD_READ`` if no ``PERMISSIONS`` argument is given.

The ``PROGRAMS`` form is identical to the ``FILES`` form except that the
default permissions for the installed file also include ``OWNER_EXECUTE``,
``GROUP_EXECUTE``, and ``WORLD_EXECUTE``.  This form is intended to install
programs that are not targets, such as shell scripts.  Use the ``TARGETS``
form to install targets built within the project.

The list of ``files...`` given to ``FILES`` or ``PROGRAMS`` may use
"generator expressions" with the syntax ``$<...>``.  See the
:manual:`cmake-generator-expressions(7)` manual for available expressions.
However, if any item begins in a generator expression it must evaluate
to a full path.

Installing Directories
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

::

  install(DIRECTORY dirs... DESTINATION <dir>
          [FILE_PERMISSIONS permissions...]
          [DIRECTORY_PERMISSIONS permissions...]
          [USE_SOURCE_PERMISSIONS] [OPTIONAL]
          [CONFIGURATIONS [Debug|Release|...]]
          [COMPONENT <component>] [FILES_MATCHING]
          [[PATTERN <pattern> | REGEX <regex>]
           [EXCLUDE] [PERMISSIONS permissions...]] [...])

The ``DIRECTORY`` form installs contents of one or more directories to a
given destination.  The directory structure is copied verbatim to the
destination.  The last component of each directory name is appended to
the destination directory but a trailing slash may be used to avoid
this because it leaves the last component empty.  Directory names
given as relative paths are interpreted with respect to the current
source directory.  If no input directory names are given the
destination directory will be created but nothing will be installed
into it.  The ``FILE_PERMISSIONS`` and ``DIRECTORY_PERMISSIONS`` options
specify permissions given to files and directories in the destination.
If ``USE_SOURCE_PERMISSIONS`` is specified and ``FILE_PERMISSIONS`` is not,
file permissions will be copied from the source directory structure.
If no permissions are specified files will be given the default
permissions specified in the ``FILES`` form of the command, and the
directories will be given the default permissions specified in the
``PROGRAMS`` form of the command.

Installation of directories may be controlled with fine granularity
using the ``PATTERN`` or ``REGEX`` options.  These "match" options specify a
globbing pattern or regular expression to match directories or files
encountered within input directories.  They may be used to apply
certain options (see below) to a subset of the files and directories
encountered.  The full path to each input file or directory (with
forward slashes) is matched against the expression.  A ``PATTERN`` will
match only complete file names: the portion of the full path matching
the pattern must occur at the end of the file name and be preceded by
a slash.  A ``REGEX`` will match any portion of the full path but it may
use ``/`` and ``$`` to simulate the ``PATTERN`` behavior.  By default all
files and directories are installed whether or not they are matched.
The ``FILES_MATCHING`` option may be given before the first match option
to disable installation of files (but not directories) not matched by
any expression.  For example, the code

.. code-block:: cmake

  install(DIRECTORY src/ DESTINATION include/myproj
          FILES_MATCHING PATTERN "*.h")

will extract and install header files from a source tree.

Some options may follow a ``PATTERN`` or ``REGEX`` expression and are applied
only to files or directories matching them.  The ``EXCLUDE`` option will
skip the matched file or directory.  The ``PERMISSIONS`` option overrides
the permissions setting for the matched file or directory.  For
example the code

.. code-block:: cmake

  install(DIRECTORY icons scripts/ DESTINATION share/myproj
          PATTERN "CVS" EXCLUDE
          PATTERN "scripts/*"
          PERMISSIONS OWNER_EXECUTE OWNER_WRITE OWNER_READ
                      GROUP_EXECUTE GROUP_READ)

will install the ``icons`` directory to ``share/myproj/icons`` and the
``scripts`` directory to ``share/myproj``.  The icons will get default
file permissions, the scripts will be given specific permissions, and any
``CVS`` directories will be excluded.

Custom Installation Logic
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

::

  install([[SCRIPT <file>] [CODE <code>]] [...])

The ``SCRIPT`` form will invoke the given CMake script files during
installation.  If the script file name is a relative path it will be
interpreted with respect to the current source directory.  The ``CODE``
form will invoke the given CMake code during installation.  Code is
specified as a single argument inside a double-quoted string.  For
example, the code

.. code-block:: cmake

  install(CODE "MESSAGE(\"Sample install message.\")")

will print a message during installation.

Installing Exports
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

::

  install(EXPORT <export-name> DESTINATION <dir>
          [NAMESPACE <namespace>] [FILE <name>.cmake]
          [PERMISSIONS permissions...]
          [CONFIGURATIONS [Debug|Release|...]]
          [EXPORT_LINK_INTERFACE_LIBRARIES]
          [COMPONENT <component>])

The ``EXPORT`` form generates and installs a CMake file containing code to
import targets from the installation tree into another project.
Target installations are associated with the export ``<export-name>``
using the ``EXPORT`` option of the ``install(TARGETS)`` signature
documented above.  The ``NAMESPACE`` option will prepend ``<namespace>`` to
the target names as they are written to the import file.  By default
the generated file will be called ``<export-name>.cmake`` but the ``FILE``
option may be used to specify a different name.  The value given to
the ``FILE`` option must be a file name with the ``.cmake`` extension.
If a ``CONFIGURATIONS`` option is given then the file will only be installed
when one of the named configurations is installed.  Additionally, the
generated import file will reference only the matching target
configurations.  The ``EXPORT_LINK_INTERFACE_LIBRARIES`` keyword, if
present, causes the contents of the properties matching
``(IMPORTED_)?LINK_INTERFACE_LIBRARIES(_<CONFIG>)?`` to be exported, when
policy :policy:`CMP0022` is ``NEW``.  If a ``COMPONENT`` option is
specified that does not match that given to the targets associated with
``<export-name>`` the behavior is undefined.  If a library target is
included in the export but a target to which it links is not included
the behavior is unspecified.

The ``EXPORT`` form is useful to help outside projects use targets built
and installed by the current project.  For example, the code

.. code-block:: cmake

  install(TARGETS myexe EXPORT myproj DESTINATION bin)
  install(EXPORT myproj NAMESPACE mp_ DESTINATION lib/myproj)

will install the executable myexe to ``<prefix>/bin`` and code to import
it in the file ``<prefix>/lib/myproj/myproj.cmake``.  An outside project
may load this file with the include command and reference the ``myexe``
executable from the installation tree using the imported target name
``mp_myexe`` as if the target were built in its own tree.

.. note::
  This command supercedes the :command:`install_targets` command and
  the :prop_tgt:`PRE_INSTALL_SCRIPT` and :prop_tgt:`POST_INSTALL_SCRIPT`
  target properties.  It also replaces the ``FILES`` forms of the
  :command:`install_files` and :command:`install_programs` commands.
  The processing order of these install rules relative to
  those generated by :command:`install_targets`,
  :command:`install_files`, and :command:`install_programs` commands
  is not defined.