Q: what files to version control in an autoconf-ed project?

[Magnus Therning]

On Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 7:23 AM, Jeremy Henty<onepoint at starurchin.org> wrote:
> On Sun, Aug 16, 2009 at 10:25:07PM +0100, Magnus Therning wrote:
>
>> These are the files I tend to check in in Gnome-related stuff:
>>
>> AUTHORS
>> Makefile.am
>> README
>> autogen.sh
>> ChangeLog
>> NEWS
>> TODO
>> configure.ac
>>
>> You might want a few other files depending on your usage of autoconf
>> and libtool, but I don't  have stuff around that does anything other
>> than basic stuff.
>
> So you're checking in the absolute minimum, no generated files at all?
> I guess  that makes sense,  particularly as I've seen  projects suffer
> unnecessary conflicts  when generated files were checked  in.  I still
> find it  odd that "make maintainer-clean" leaves  some generated files
> behind.  You'd  think it  obvious to have  a clean target  that really
> wipes the slate clean and  I'm surprised autotools doesn't provide it,
> given their "everything plus the kitchen sink" approach.

Yes, checking in the absolute minimum is the only way to go.  In some
cases I even don't check in files that can be automatically created
using 'autoreconf -i'.

Checking in any files that are created or modified as part of the
build is a recipe for disaster in my book.  Source-level distribution
is another matter, there I come down on the side of what the
auto-tools do.

You are right in thinking that maintainer-clean doesn't clean as much
as it could.  I can't begin to understand why they've decided to _not_
include a target that cleans _everything_.  It is one reason why I
tend to reach for CMake nowadays.

/M

-- 
Magnus Therning                        (OpenPGP: 0xAB4DFBA4)
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