HiMake - The Build Tool That Builds the Kongsberg Missile Software

Explore the enterprise build tool HiMake, used for building Kongsberg missile software since 2002, in this comprehensive conference talk. Discover how HiMake prioritizes user simplicity, supports native and cross-compilations for various embedded OSes and CPU architectures, and maximizes build efficiency through parallelism. Learn about its domain-specific language for build specifications, makefile generation process, and plugin architecture for handling multiple source languages. Examine HiMake's various backends, including makefile generation, documentation creation, and project file generation for different tools and IDEs. Gain insights into HiMake's philosophy, advanced features, and how it enhances developer productivity in complex software development environments.

Intro
HiMake design goals
Enterprise build system
Support multiple tools & multiple platforms
Features
Build Description File
Usage examples
HiMake Platform
Centrally controlled configuration files
Identifiers map to paths
A Package DAG (Directed Acyclic Graph)
Keywords specify the task
A Keyword with a complex task
Dependency Finder
Catch possible ODR violations . Two Packages specify export of the same
Handle renaming of source files or executables
Recursive Make Considered Harmful
Rebuild minimum set of Packages
Xauto (prune DAG automatically)
Reduce no. of directories to search for include files
Header files are exported
Everything is a Package Modify build by changing the DAG
Package Types
Keywords may add Implicit Dependencies
Platform adds include directory
Platform adds link time dependencies
Platform specifies OS Abstraction Layer
Build Saneness
Virtual Package to check build precondition
License Reporting
Security Classification Reporting
Conclusion