target_link_options¶
New in version 3.13.
Add options to the link step for an executable, shared library or module library target.
target_link_options(<target> [BEFORE]
<INTERFACE|PUBLIC|PRIVATE> [items1...]
[<INTERFACE|PUBLIC|PRIVATE> [items2...] ...])
The named <target> must have been created by a command such as
add_executable() or add_library() and must not be an
ALIAS target.
This command can be used to add any link options, but alternative commands
exist to add libraries (target_link_libraries() or
link_libraries()). See documentation of the
directory and
target LINK_OPTIONS properties.
Note
This command cannot be used to add options for static library targets,
since they do not use a linker. To add archiver or MSVC librarian flags,
see the STATIC_LIBRARY_OPTIONS target property.
If BEFORE is specified, the content will be prepended to the property
instead of being appended.
The INTERFACE, PUBLIC and PRIVATE keywords are required to
specify the scope of the following arguments.
PRIVATE and PUBLIC items will populate the LINK_OPTIONS
property of <target>. PUBLIC and INTERFACE items will populate the
INTERFACE_LINK_OPTIONS property of <target>.
The following arguments specify link options. Repeated calls for the same
<target> append items in the order called.
Note
IMPORTED targets only support INTERFACE items.
Arguments to target_link_options may use generator expressions
with the syntax $<...>. See the cmake-generator-expressions(7)
manual for available expressions. See the cmake-buildsystem(7) manual
for more on defining buildsystem properties.
Host And Device Specific Link Options¶
New in version 3.18: When a device link step is involved, which is controlled by
CUDA_SEPARABLE_COMPILATION and
CUDA_RESOLVE_DEVICE_SYMBOLS properties and policy CMP0105,
the raw options will be delivered to the host and device link steps (wrapped in
-Xcompiler or equivalent for device link). Options wrapped with
$<DEVICE_LINK:...> generator expression will be used
only for the device link step. Options wrapped with $<HOST_LINK:...>
generator expression will be used only for the host link step.
Option De-duplication¶
The final set of options used for a target is constructed by accumulating options from the current target and the usage requirements of its dependencies. The set of options is de-duplicated to avoid repetition.
New in version 3.12: While beneficial for individual options, the de-duplication step can break
up option groups. For example, -option A -option B becomes
-option A B. One may specify a group of options using shell-like
quoting along with a SHELL: prefix. The SHELL: prefix is dropped,
and the rest of the option string is parsed using the
separate_arguments() UNIX_COMMAND mode. For example,
"SHELL:-option A" "SHELL:-option B" becomes -option A -option B.
Handling Compiler Driver Differences¶
To pass options to the linker tool, each compiler driver has its own syntax.
The LINKER: prefix and , separator can be used to specify, in a portable
way, options to pass to the linker tool. LINKER: is replaced by the
appropriate driver option and , by the appropriate driver separator.
The driver prefix and driver separator are given by the values of the
CMAKE_<LANG>_LINKER_WRAPPER_FLAG and
CMAKE_<LANG>_LINKER_WRAPPER_FLAG_SEP variables.
For example, "LINKER:-z,defs" becomes -Xlinker -z -Xlinker defs for
Clang and -Wl,-z,defs for GNU GCC.
The LINKER: prefix can be specified as part of a SHELL: prefix
expression.
The LINKER: prefix supports, as an alternative syntax, specification of
arguments using the SHELL: prefix and space as separator. The previous
example then becomes "LINKER:SHELL:-z defs".
Note
Specifying the SHELL: prefix anywhere other than at the beginning of the
LINKER: prefix is not supported.