# Presets with Ninja Multi-Config
**URL:** https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793
**Category:** Development
**Tags:** gen:ninja
**Created:** [July 20, 2021, 8:30pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793 "2021-07-20T20:30:03Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@rurabori](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/rurabori)
#### Post date: [July 20, 2021, 8:30pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/1 "2021-07-20T20:30:03Z")
Hi, I’ve been experimenting with Presets a bit in conjunction with `Ninja Multi-Config` generator.
I encountered this issue,(simplified for the sake of this not being too long):
```json
{
"version": 3,
"configurePresets": [
{
"name": "multi",
"generator": "Ninja Multi-Config"
},
{
"name": "with-cuda"
"inherits": "multi",
"cacheVariables" : # enable cuda here etc.
},
... more combinations with multi as base config.
],
"buildPresets": [
{
"name": "release",
"configurePreset": "multi",
"configuration": "Release"
},
{
"name": "debug",
"configurePreset": "multi",
"configuration": "Debug"
}
... now we have to add release and debug for configurePreset with-cuda and every other preset inheriting from multi.
],
"testPresets": [
... same issue as with buildPresets
]
}
```
Now from documentation it seems like for each configure target I’d have to define 2 (or more) buildPresets (rel, debug, relwithdebinfo). This makes the `CMakePresets.json` quite repetitive. I do not know why the design decision to require `configurePreset` to be present in `buildPreset` was made so take what follows as thoughts of an user which might be incorrect/coming from misunderstanding the architecture.
What I feel like would be a good compromise is to make `configurePreset` in `buildPreset` mean this is the base I need, anything inheriting from the preset is also fine, or maybe a `configurePreset: "*"` to specify to just use currently active `configurePreset`.
When I posted this as an issue in the CMake repo, a workaround was suggested but that only works from commandline. For example VSCode integration won’t play nice with multi-config generators until this is somehow solved (or we’ll just have to accept the verbosity).
---
### Author:  [@ben.boeckel](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/ben.boeckel)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2021, 1:37am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/2 "2021-07-21T01:37:06Z")
Cc: @kyle.edwards
---
### Author:  [@rurabori](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/rurabori)
#### Post date: [July 24, 2021, 6:55am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/3 "2021-07-24T06:55:04Z")
Any updates?
---
### Author:  [@rurabori](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/rurabori)
#### Post date: [August 5, 2021, 9:30pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/4 "2021-08-05T21:30:15Z")
Hi, I don’t want to spam/bother anyone here, but any updates on this?
---
### Author:  [@rurabori](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/rurabori)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2021, 6:15pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/5 "2021-09-18T18:15:24Z")
One last try, @brad.king suggested asking here instead of making an [issue](https://gitlab.kitware.com/cmake/cmake/-/issues/22439). Could anyone please help me understand this?
---
### Author:  [@craig.scott](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/craig.scott)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2021, 10:17pm UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/6 "2021-09-18T22:17:03Z")
This seems like another scenario similar to those discussed in [issue 22538](https://gitlab.kitware.com/cmake/cmake/-/issues/22538). The combinatorial explosion of build presets is problematic as currently implemented, and the cases you mention are just another example of that. I suggest you follow issue 22538, as there’s at least some activity there and potentially some actions may come out of it.
---
### Author:  [@rurabori](https://discourse.cmake.org/u/rurabori)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2021, 2:45am UTC](https://discourse.cmake.org/t/presets-with-ninja-multi-config/3793/7 "2021-09-19T02:45:48Z")
Thank you so much, that was exactly what I was looking for!