# Issue about PRIVATE in target\_link\_libraries

**URL:** <https://discourse.cmake.org/t/issue-about-private-in-target-link-libraries/6182>\
**Category:** Usage\
**Tags:** os:windows\
**Created:** [July 29, 2022, 4:01am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/issue-about-private-in-target-link-libraries/6182 "2022-07-29T04:01:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 2

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**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:** [August 2, 2022, 11:28am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/issue-about-private-in-target-link-libraries/6182/2 "2022-08-02T11:28:19Z")

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> [@FuXii](#):
>
> Why?

It’s how linking CMake targets works in general. This thread is very similar to your question:

> [@How do I configure a library so that the projects which depend upon it do not need to know about the projects upon which it depends?](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/how-do-i-configure-a-library-so-that-the-projects-which-depend-upon-it-do-not-need-to-know-about-the-projects-upon-which-it-depends/6107):
>
> I have Project A, a library, and Project B, an executable which depends on A. A and B are completely separate with regard to directory structure, build systems, etc. A depends on a third party library, X. As it happens in my case, A, B, and X all use CMake, but A is the only project under my control. How can I configure CMake for A so that B does not need to know about X? For the moment, B gets a linker error, and the only way that I can find to make that go away is to have B reference X, w…

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