Amake: cached builds of top-level targets. (December 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Buffenbarger, Jim
• Is Part Of: Computer languages, systems & structures. Volume 50(2017)
• Page Start: 20
• Page End: 30
• Publication Date: 2017-12
• Subjects: Software configuration management -- Software build system -- Software system modeling; 68N01; Programming languages (Electronic computers) -- Periodicals; Computer networks -- Periodicals; Computer architecture -- Periodicals; Computer systems -- Periodicals; Langage de programmation; Réseau d'ordinateurs; Architecture d'ordinateur; Périodique électronique (Descripteur de forme); Ressource Internet (Descripteur de forme); 005.13
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cl.2017.05.004
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1477-8424

Abstract

Highlights: This paper describes a software-build tool named Amake, an extension of GNU Make. Its additional features solve important problems that have, until now, only been addressed by "high-end" build tools (e.g., ClearCase and Vesta). Abstract: This paper describes a software-build tool named Amake, an extension of GNU Make. Its additional features solve important problems that have, until now, only been addressed by "high-end" build tools (e.g., ClearCase and Vesta). With a typical build tool, if a top-level target must be updated, intermediate targets must be built from sources, and then combined to build the top-level target. The enhancements described here allow a top-level target to be fetched from a shared cache, without building, or even fetching its intermediate-target dependencies. Thus, a developer's workspace may need only contain sources and top-level targets. This reduces build time, reduces network traffic, and saves disk space.