Provided by: aegis_4.24.3-3_amd64 
NAME
aegis build - build a change
SYNOPSIS
aegis -Build [ option... ][ filename... ]
aegis -Build -List [ option... ]
aegis -Build -Help
DESCRIPTION
The aegis -Build command is used to build a project. The project configuration file is consulted for
the appropriate build command, and that command is executed (see the build_ command and integration_‐
build_command fields in aepconf(5) for more information.) Output of the command is automatically logged
to the aegis.log file at the root of the development directory tree. The build command will be executed
with its current directory being the root of the development directory, irrespective of there the aegis
-Build command was executed.
If the change is in the being integrated state, references to the development directory, above, should
be read as the integration directory. Integration build commands are executed with the user and group
set to the project's owning user and group. That is, it is not necessary for an integrator to log in as
someone else, the project account for instance, in order to do an integration.
No Build Required
It is possible to configure your project so that no build is required. To do this, set the following
build_command = "exit 0";
in the project configuration file.
Process Side Effects
This command will cancel any test registrations, because building the project logically invalidates
them. If the project configuration file was deleted, any diff registration will also be canceled.
Notification
The actions of the command are controlled by the build_ command and integration_build_command fields of
the project config file. See aepconf(5) for more information.
File Action Adjustment
When this command runs, it first checks the change files against the projects files. If there are
inconsistencies, the file actions will be adjusted as follows:
create If a file is being created, but another change set is integrated which also creates the file,
the file action in the change set still being developed will be adjusted to "modify".
modify If a file is being modified, but another change set is integrated which removes the file, the
file action in the change set still being developed will be adjusted to "create".
remove If a file is being removed, but another change set is integrated which removes the file, the
file will be dropped from the change set still being developed.
PARTIAL BUILD
If files are named on the command line, these files are appended to the build command. This is known as
a partial build. Partial builds are not legal in the being integrated state, but can often be useful in
the being developed state. Partial builds are not recorded in the change status, because builds are
decoupled from aegis it is not possible for aegis to know if any set of partial builds is equivalent to
a full build.
Warning: no change state lock is taken for a partial build, only a baseline read lock.
File Name Interpretation
The aegis program will attempt to determine the project file names from the file names given on the
command line. All file names are stored within aegis projects as relative to the root of the baseline
directory tree. The development directory and the integration directory are shadows of this baseline
directory, and so these relative names apply here, too. Files named on the command line are first
converted to absolute paths if necessary. They are then compared with the baseline path, the
development directory path, and the integration directory path, to determine a baseline-relative name.
It is an error if the file named is outside one of these directory trees.
The -BAse_RElative option may be used to cause relative filenames to be interpreted as relative to the
baseline path; absolute filenames will still be compared with the various paths in order to determine a
baseline-relative name.
The relative_filename_preference in the user configuration file may be used to modify this default
behavior. See aeuconf(5) for more information.
SYMBOLIC LINKS
Many dependency maintenance tools, and indeed some compilers, have little or no support for include file
search paths, and thus for the concept of the two-level directory hierarchy employed by Aegis. (It
becomes multi-level when Aegis' branching functionality is used.) To allow these tools to be used,
Aegis provides the ability to maintain a set of symbolic links between the development directory of a
change and the baseline of a project, so it appears to these tools that all of the project's files are
present in the development directory.
Project Configuration
The development_directory_style field of the project configuration file controls the appearance of the
development directory. See aepconf(5) for more information.
By using a setting such as
development_directory_style =
{
source_file_symlink = true;
during_build_only = true;
};
the user never sees the symbolic links, because they are added purely for the benefit of the dependency
maintenance tool during the execution of the aeb(1) command.
By using a setting such as
development_directory_style =
{
source_file_symlink = true;
};
(the other will default to false) the symbolic links will be created at develop begin time (see aedb(1)
for more information) and also maintained by each aeb(1) invocation. Note that the symbolic links are
only maintained at these times, so project integrations during the course of editing change sourec files
may leave the symbolic links in an inconsistent state until the next build.
When files are copied from the baseline into a change, using the aecp(1) command, the symbolic link
pointing into the baseline, if any, will be removed before the file is copied.
Note: Using this functionality in either form has implications for how the rules file of the dependency
maintenance tool is written. Rules must remove their targets before creating them (usually with an rm
-f command) if you use any of the link sub-fields (both hard links and symbolic links). This is to
avoid attempting to write the result on the symbolic link, which will point at a read-only file in the
project baseline. This is similar to the same requirement for using the link_integration_directory
field of the project configuration file.
User Configuration
There is a symbolic_link_preference field in the user configuration file (see aeuconf(5) for more
information). This controls whether aeb(1) will verify the symbolic links before the build (default) or
whether it will assume they are up-to-date. (This field is only relevant if development_directory_‐
_style.source_file_symlink is true.)
For medium-to-large projects, verifying the symbolic links can take as long as the build itself.
Assuming the symbolic links are up-to-date can be a large time-saving for these projects. It may be
advisable to review your choice of DMT in such a situation.
The aedb(1) command does not consult this preference. Thus, in most situations, the symbolic links will
be up-to-date when the build is performed. The only Aegis function which may result in the symbolic
links becoming out-of-date is the integration of another change, as this may alter the presence or
absence of files in the baseline. In this situation, the default aeb(1) action is to ignore the user
preference and the verify symbolic links.
There are two command line options which modify aeb(1) behavior further: the -Verify-Symbolic-Links
option says to verify the symbolic links; and the -Assume-Symbolic-Links option says to assume the
symbolic links are up-to-date. In each case the option over-rides the default and the user preference.
It is possible to obtain behaviour similar to Tom Lord'a Arch by using a setting such as:
development_directory_style =
{
source_file_link = true;
source_file_symlink = true;
};
It is possible to obtain behaviour similar to CVS by using a setting such as:
development_directory_style =
{
source_file_copy = true;
};
There are many more possible configurations of the development_directory_style, usually with helpful
build side-effects. See aepconf(1) and the Depenedency Maintenance Tool chapter of the User Guide for
more information.
The symbolic link command line options and preferences apply equally to hard links and file copies (the
names have historical origins).
THE BASELINE LOCK
The baseline lock is used to ensure that the baseline remains in a consistent state for the duration of
commands which need to read the contents of files in the baseline.
The commands which require the baseline to be consistent (these include the aeb(1), aecp(1) and aed(1)
commands) take a baseline read lock. This is a non-exclusive lock, so the concurrent development of
changes is not hindered.
The command which modifies the baseline, aeipass(1), takes a baseline write lock. This is an exclusive
lock, forcing aeipass(1) to block until there are no active baseline read locks.
It is possible that one of the above development commands will block until an in-progress aegis
-Integrate_PASS completes. This is usually of short duration while the project history is updated. The
delay is essential so that these commands receive a consistent view of the baseline. No other
integration command will cause the above development commands to block.
When aegis' branch functionality is in use, a read (non-exclusive) lock is taken on the branch baseline
and also each of the "parent" baselines. However, a baseline write (exclusive) lock is only taken on
the branch baseline; the "parent" baselines are only read (non-exclusive) locked.
METRICS
Aegis is capable of recording metrics as part of the file attributes of a change. This allows various
properties of files to be recorded for later trend analysis, or other uses.
The specific metrics are not dictated by Aegis. It is expected that the integration build will create a
metrics file for each of the source files the change. These metrics files must be in the format
specified by aemetrics(5).
The name of the metrics file defaults to “filename,S”, however it may be varied, by setting the
metrics_filename_pattern field of the project config file. See aepconf(5) for more information.
If such a metrics file exists, for each source file in a change, it will be read and remembered at
integrate pass time. If it does not exist, Aegis assumes there are no relevant metrics for that file,
and proceeds silently; it is not an error.
OPTIONS
The following options are understood:
name=value
Command line arguments of this form are assumed to be variable assignments for the build tool.
They are passed through unchanged. They imply a partial build.
-BAse_RElative
This option may be used to cause relative filenames to be considered relative to the base of the
source tree. See aeuconf(5) for the corresponding user preference.
-CUrrent_RElative
This option may be used to cause relative filenames to be considered relative to the current
directory. This is usually the default. See aeuconf(5) for the corresponding user preference.
-Change number
This option may be used to specify a particular change within a project. See aegis(1) for a
complete description of this option.
-Help
This option may be used to obtain more information about how to use the aegis program.
-List
This option may be used to obtain a list of suitable subjects for this command. The list may be
more general than expected.
-MINImum
This option may be used to request a source-only development_directory_style. This is useful if
you want to simulate something like aeib -minimum in the development directory. This option is
only meaningful if development_directory_style is being used. If the change is in the being
integrated state, and the developer specified -MINImum when issuing the aegis -Integrate_Begin
command, then this option is set by default.
-Not_Logging
This option may be used to disable the automatic logging of output and errors to a file. This
is often useful when several aegis commands are combined in a shell script.
-Project name
This option may be used to select the project of interest. When no -Project option is
specified, the AEGIS_PROJECT environment variable is consulted. If that does not exist, the
user's $HOME/.aegisrc file is examined for a default project field (see aeuconf(5) for more
information). If that does not exist, when the user is only working on changes within a single
project, the project name defaults to that project. Otherwise, it is an error.
-TERse
This option may be used to cause listings to produce the bare minimum of information. It is
usually useful for shell scripts.
-Verbose
This option may be used to cause aegis to produce more output. By default aegis only produces
output on errors. When used with the -List option this option causes column headings to be
added.
-Verify_Symbolic_Links
This option may be used to request that the symbolic links, or hard links, or file copies, in
the work area be updated to reflect the current state of the baseline. This is controlled by
the development_directory_style field of the project configuration file. Only files which are
not involved in the change are updated. See also the “symbolic_links_preference” field of
aeuconf(5). This option is the default, if meaningful for your configuration. The name is an
historical accident, hard links and file copies are included.
-Assume_Symbolic_Links
This option may be used to request that no update of baseline mirror files take place. This
options is useful when you definitely know the files' up-to-date-ness isn't important right now;
incorrect use of this option may have unanticipated build side-effects. See also the
“symbolic_links_preference” field of aeuconf(5). This option is the default, if not meaningful
for your configuration. The name is an historical accident, hard links and file copies are
included.
-Wait This option may be used to require Aegis commands to wait for access locks, if they cannot be
obtained immediately. Defaults to the user's lock_wait_preference if not specified, see
aeuconf(5) for more information.
-No_Wait
This option may be used to require Aegis commands to emit a fatal error if access locks cannot
be obtained immediately. Defaults to the user's lock_wait_preference if not specified, see
aeuconf(5) for more information.
See also aegis(1) for options common to all aegis commands.
All options may be abbreviated; the abbreviation is documented as the upper case letters, all lower case
letters and underscores (_) are optional. You must use consecutive sequences of optional letters.
All options are case insensitive, you may type them in upper case or lower case or a combination of
both, case is not important.
For example: the arguments "-project, "-PROJ" and "-p" are all interpreted to mean the -Project option.
The argument "-prj" will not be understood, because consecutive optional characters were not supplied.
Options and other command line arguments may be mixed arbitrarily on the command line, after the
function selectors.
The GNU long option names are understood. Since all option names for aegis are long, this means
ignoring the extra leading '-'. The "--option=value" convention is also understood.
RECOMMENDED ALIAS
The recommended alias for this command is
csh% alias aeb 'aegis -b \!* -v'
sh$ aeb(){aegis -b "$@" -v}
ERRORS
It is an error if the change is not assigned to the current user.
It is an error if the change is not in one of the being developed or being integrated states.
It is an error if a partial build is requested and the change is in the being integrated state.
EXIT STATUS
The aegis command will exit with a status of 1 on any error. The aegis command will only exit with a
status of 0 if there are no errors.
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
See aegis(1) for a list of environment variables which may affect this command. See aepconf(5) for the
project configuration file's project_specific field for how to set environment variables for all
commands executed by Aegis.
SEE ALSO
aedb(1) begin development of a change
aecp(1) file copy also takes a baseline read lock (non-exclusive)
aeib(1) begin integration of a change
aeipass(1)
integrate pass takes a baseline write lock (exclusive)
aet(1) run tests
aemetrics(5)
metrics values file format
aepconf(5)
project configuration file format
aeuconf(5)
user configuration file format
COPYRIGHT
aegis version 4.24.3.D001
Copyright (C) 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005,
2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Peter Miller
The aegis program comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details use the 'aegis -VERSion License'
command. This is free software and you are welcome to redistribute it under certain conditions; for
details use the 'aegis -VERSion License' command.
AUTHOR
Peter Miller E-Mail: millerp@canb.auug.org.au
/\/\* WWW: http://www.canb.auug.org.au/~millerp/
Reference Manual Aegis aegis -Build(1)