# Help with integrating an external dependency that does not use CMake

**URL:** https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685
**Category:** Code
**Created:** [October 17, 2022, 9:59pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685 "2022-10-17T21:59:55Z")
**Posts on this page:** 9
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/chris_apple/32/2042_2.png) [@Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/Chris_Apple)
#### Post date: [October 17, 2022, 9:59pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/1 "2022-10-17T21:59:55Z")

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Hi,

I’m trying to integrate a number of dependencies into my project. Many of these are cmake based, so integration is quick and easy. **Unfortunately I’m having a heck of a time getting the non-cmake ones to play ball.**

Here’s the big picture:

1. I have a tps library that is distributed in source a tar file. This library is NOT built with cmake
2. I may or may not need to configure, calling `./configure` with some arguments
3. I must build, calling make
4. I can optionally install, using `make install` and passing a destination

I need to take this information, and the outputted `include` directory and library into a cmake dependency for consumption in my project. Configuration, then building, and installing results in a file structure that has the include directory, and the library.

More concrete, if you need specifics. I am trying in a toy example to integrate LuaJIT. that download can be found [here](https://luajit.org/download.html).

I have this main file:

```auto
#include <luajit-2.1/lua.hpp>

int main()
{
    lua_State *L = luaL_newstate();
    luaL_openlibs(L);
    luaL_dofile(L, "main.lua");
    lua_close(L);
    return 0;
}

```

and a CMakeLists.txt I am desperately trying to wrestle into submission.

```auto
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.21)
project(scratchpad)

find_program(MAKE_EXECUTABLE NAMES nmake gmake make)

include(ExternalProject)
ExternalProject_Add(
    luajit
    URL ${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}/tps/luajit-2.1.0-beta3.tar.gz
    CONFIGURE_COMMAND ""
    BUILD_COMMAND ${MAKE_EXECUTABLE} -C <SOURCE_DIR>
    INSTALL_COMMAND ${MAKE_EXECUTABLE} -C <SOURCE_DIR> install DESTDIR=<SOURCE_DIR>/dest
)
ExternalProject_Get_Property(luajit SOURCE_DIR)

message(STATUS "SOURCE_DIR: ${SOURCE_DIR}")
add_library(luajit_internal INTERFACE)

target_link_libraries(luajit_internal
        INTERFACE
            ${SOURCE_DIR}/dest/usr/local/lib/libluajit-5.1.a
)

target_include_directories(luajit_internal
        INTERFACE
            ${SOURCE_DIR}/dest/usr/local/include
)

add_executable(scratchpad main.cpp)
target_link_libraries(scratchpad
        PUBLIC
            luajit_internal
)

```

The issue here being that `${SOURCE_DIR}/dest/usr/local/lib/libluajit-5.1.a` does not exist until after the INSTALL step of ExternalProject. So it’s a bit of chicken and the egg.

Any more context I can provide, I would be thrilled to. I feel like I must be missing something silly…

Thanks,  
Chris

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![fenrir](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/fenrir/32/734_2.png) [@fenrir](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/fenrir)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 7:13am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/2 "2022-10-18T07:13:11Z")

</div>

Basically if you use `ExternalProject`, you wand a superbuild pattern, where your dependencies AND your project all get build via `ExternalProject_Add` in the right order.  
Alternatively make it a two-step process - first build dependencies, and then the project.  
In any case generally you cannot use the build artifacts of `ExternalProject` in the same build that calls it.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/chris_apple/32/2042_2.png) [@Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/Chris_Apple)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 10:31am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/3 "2022-10-18T10:31:02Z")

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Ah, got it. I had seen that pattern before, I just want sure if it was necessary or not.

Is there a way to do what I’m trying to do here, and have a one step build create everything I need in a reliable way? I really like how FetchContent does it, but of course that assumes a CMake build system in the dependency.

Can some combo of add\_custom\_target or add\_custom\_command work for me? Or is the superbuild the way to go for most people?

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![ben.boeckel](https://discourse.cmake.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@ben.boeckel](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/ben.boeckel)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 1:25pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/4 "2022-10-18T13:25:14Z")

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I’m afraid that superbuild is probably the best way here. Though `FetchContent` just wraps `ExternalProject`, so why is a non-CMake project not supported?

Cc: @craig.scott

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/chris_apple/32/2042_2.png) [@Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/Chris_Apple)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 2:11pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/5 "2022-10-18T14:11:27Z")

</div>

(I guess I should have not said “of course”, I am obviously out of my depth here 🙂 )

It was my assumption that FetchContent didn’t participate with non CMake builds, based on the idea that FetchContent\_MakeAvailable calls add\_subdirectory on the downloaded source. I could 100% be wrong in this. Also, this snippet from the FetchContent docs:

In addition to the above explicit options, any other unrecognized options are passed through unmodified to [`ExternalProject_Add()`](https://cmake.org/cmake/help/latest/module/ExternalProject.html#command:externalproject_add) to perform the download, patch and update steps. The following options are explicitly prohibited (they are disabled by the `FetchContent_Populate()` command):

- `CONFIGURE_COMMAND`

- `BUILD_COMMAND`

- `INSTALL_COMMAND`

- `TEST_COMMAND`

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![ben.boeckel](https://discourse.cmake.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@ben.boeckel](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/ben.boeckel)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 2:13pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/6 "2022-10-18T14:13:21Z")

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Oh, that makes sense then; it only shares the downloading logic with `ExternalProject`. Yeah, `FetchContent` isn’t going to work here. A superbuild is probably the best way forward if you’re skipping over package managers (conan, vcpkg, etc.).

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/chris_apple/32/2042_2.png) [@Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/Chris_Apple)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 4:38pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/7 "2022-10-18T16:38:09Z")

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Yeah, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get a package manager to fly. We are currently on a make based build system, and this investigation is to try to convince folks that cmake would ease some pains.

I think moving to both cmake and package manager in one swoop would possibly weaken my case.

I’ll investigate the superbuild route, unless something else pops up.

Really appreciate the help so far!!

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![craig.scott](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/craig.scott/32/20_2.png) [@craig.scott](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/craig.scott)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 8:15pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/8 "2022-10-18T20:15:10Z")

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An ExternalProject-based superbuild project would be the traditional recommendation for this sort of scenario. @ben.boeckel has more experience working with such projects (e.g. VTK) so I’d follow his advice on how to get such an arrangement to work and what impact it might have on how your developers work day-to-day.

Using a package manager would free you from having to restructure your main project into a superbuild. That may ultimately be less disruptive to your developers, since they would continue to work on the main project’s sources the same way they do now. But yes, the introduction of a package manager is not trivial and that also changes the developer workflow.

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<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/user_avatar/discourse.cmake.org/chris_apple/32/2042_2.png) [@Chris\_Apple](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/Chris_Apple)
#### Post date: [October 18, 2022, 8:50pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/help-with-integrating-an-external-dependency-that-does-not-use-cmake/6685/9 "2022-10-18T20:50:33Z")

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Cool, well all signs point to superbuild then! I will dig in and see if that will work for me.

Appreciate everyone weighing in! I was sure it was something I was missing, but it seems like this is by design.

Thanks everyone for the help 🙂