Using pre-build actions for time stamping

If necessary, you can specify pre-build and post-build actions that you want to occur before or after the build. 

The Build Actions dialog box—available from the Project menu—lets you specify the actions required.

For more information about the Build Actions dialog box, see Build actions options, page 215.

Using pre-build actions for time stamping

You can use pre-build actions to embed a time stamp for the build in the resulting binary file. Follow these steps:

1 Create a dedicated time stamp file, for example, timestamp.c and add it to your project.

2 In this source file, use the preprocessor macros __TIME__ and __DATE__ to initialize a string variable.

3 Choose Project>Options>Build Actions to open the Build Actions dialog box.

4 In the Pre-build command line text field, specify for example this pre-build action:

cmd /c "del "$OBJ_DIR$\timestamp.o""

This command removes the timestamp.o object file.

Alternatively, you can use the open source command line utility touch for this purpose 

or any other suitable utility that updates the modification time of the source file. For example:

"touch $PROJ_DIR$\timestamp.c"

5 If the project is not entirely up-to-date, the next time you use the Make command,

the pre-build action will be invoked before the regular build process.

Then the regular build process must always recompile timestamp.c and

the correct timestamp will end up in the binary file.

If the project already is up-to-date, the pre-build action will not be invoked.

This means that nothing is built, and the binary file still contains the timestamp for when it was last built.

 

ADDING AN EXTERNAL TOOL

The following example demonstrates how to add the tool Flex to the toolchain.

Thesame procedure can be used also for other tools.

In the example, Flex takes the file myFile.lex as input. The two files myFile.c and myFile.h are generated as output.

1 Add the file you want to work with to your project, for example myFile.lex.

2 Select this file in the workspace window and choose Project>Options. Select Custom Build from the list of categories.

3 In the Filename extensions field, type the filename extension .lex. Remember to specify the leading period (.).

4 In the Command line field, type the command line for executing the external tool, for example

flex $FILE_PATH$ -o$FILE_BNAME$.c

During the build process, this command line is expanded to:

flex myFile.lex -omyFile.c

Note the usage of argument variables.

Note specifically the use of $FILE_BNAME$ which gives the base name of the input file,

in this example appended with the c extension to provide a C source file in the same directory as the input file foo.lex.

For more information about these variables, see Argument variables, page 71.

5 In the Output files field, describe the output files that are relevant for the build.

In this example, the tool Flex would generate two files—one source file and one header file.

The text in the Output files text box for these two files would look like this:

$FILE_BPATH$.c

$FILE_BPATH$.h

6 If the external tool uses any additional files during the build, these should be added in the Additional input files field, for instance:

$TOOLKIT_DIR$\inc\stdio.h

This is important, because if the dependency files change, the conditions will no longer be the same and the need for a rebuild is detected.

7 Click OK.

8 To build your application, choose Project>Make.