Is there a plan to support the build of Arm64X PE binaries with the Visual Studio 17 2022 generator?
For example, the ODBC driver is better with an Arm64X PE binary.
MariaDB Connector/ODBC is a CMake-enabled project.
The 64-bit ODBC driver is installed at the following location.
`C:\Program Files\MariaDB\MariaDB ODBC Driver 64-bit\maodbc.dll`
- ODBC Administrator (Arm64) can load Arm64X `maodbc.dll`
- Microsoft Access (x64) can load Arm64X `maodbc.dll`
Windows 11 can share two 64-bit environments (Arm64 and x64) by having Arm64X binaries.
If CMake can support the build of Arm64X binaries more easily, it helps.
Although Microsoft introduces a workaround method, it is a very complex way.
[Build Arm64X Files | Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/arm/arm64x-build)
It is easier if sln & vcxprojs have both `ARM64` and `ARM64EC` platforms.
Arm64X PE binary is built on `ARM64EC` platform with `true`. Also `ARM64` platform is needed.
The output binary (DLL, EXE, LIB) from the `ARM64EC` platform is the final binary forming Arm64X.
OutDir and IntDir elements can be solved like the following sample:
```xml
...\libmariadb\Release\ARM64\...\libmariadb\Release\libmariadb.dir\Release\ARM64\libmariadb.dir\Release\ARM64EC\
```
IntDir in utility projects is already ideal.
```xml
$(Platform)\$(Configuration)\$(ProjectName)\$(Platform)\$(Configuration)\$(ProjectName)\
```
Object elements need to have a distinctive IntDir between ARM64 and ARM64EC. It is good to insert `$(Platform)\`.
```xml
```
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For now, I have no idea how to implement these ideas in this CMake project.
But I could write some code. So I wrote a _converter_ instead of modifying the existing CMake generator.
[BuildHelper/BuildHelper/Program.cs at master · mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64/BuildHelper](https://github.com/mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64/BuildHelper/blob/master/BuildHelper/Program.cs)
Usage example:
```bat
V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\BuildHelper\BuildHelper>dotnet run -- sln-clone-cp -u V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\arm64x-build\libmariadb\external\zlib\zlib.sln * ARM64 ARM64EC
V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\BuildHelper\BuildHelper>dotnet run -- sln-clone-cp -u V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\arm64x-build\libmariadb\mariadb-connector-c.sln * ARM64 ARM64EC
V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\BuildHelper\BuildHelper>dotnet run -- sln-clone-cp -u V:\mariadb-connector-odbc-for-win10-arm64\arm64x-build\mariadb_connector_odbc.sln * ARM64 ARM64EC
```
I’m also interested in whether someone else is having the same problem.
And please share if anyone has good ideas to build Arm64X binaries using CMake generator.
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I’m also interested in this, not only for the Visual Studio generator but in general on Windows.
What’s needed is to build the library/binary as normal Arm64 and then again as Arm64EC, and then link it all together passing a `rsp` file to the linker. The process is outlined here: [Build Arm64X Files | Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/arm/arm64x-build) , but the way they’re suggesting doing it with CMake feels like a bit of a hack around this not being supported directly.
@brad.king would there be interest in accepting a patch providing some sort of direct Arm64X support? If so, what would you want this to look like, e.g. some sort of target property? I’m happy to give implementing it a go if it’d be likely to be accepted.
---