[cmake-developers] Splitting CMakeLib

[Brad King]

On 05/10/2017 10:56 AM, Egor Pugin wrote:
> I'd like to re-use some CMake internal components, but CMakeLib looks too fat.
> Is it possible to split it into several libraries? Are such changes
> welcome to contribute?

Refactoring/organizing/cleanup changes like that would certainly be welcome.

> Some rough plan:
> 1) Support library (if any stuff)
> 2) Core library (targets etc.)
> 3) Generators library
> 4) CMake syntax library (lexer, parser)
> 5) Commands implementation library (could be merged with 4)
> 
> True cmake power is in its generators. It's always possible to rip off
> all other stuff, but in order to be tied with mainstream and
> contribute back, I'm asking this.

Stephen Kelly had started work toward separating the code model from the
language.  The code model should become an independent representation that
can be input to the generators but be produced independent of the language.
See cmState for example.  He isn't working on it anymore but left a thread
some time ago on this list enumerating some future work that could be
picked up by others (I don't recall which thread though).

-Brad