A software build is the process of converting

source code In computing, source code, or simply code or source, is a plain text computer program written in a programming language. A programmer writes the human readable source code to control the behavior of a computer. Since a computer, at base, only ...

files into standalone software artifact(s) that can be run on a computer, or the result of doing so. In software production, builds optimize software for performance and distribution, packaging into formats such as '.''exe'; '.deb'; '.apk. The build process often employs specialized tools such as CMake, Make, or

Gradle Gradle is a build automation tool for multi-language software development. It manages tasks like compilation, packaging, testing, deployment, and publishing. Supported languages include Java (as well as JDK-based languages Kotlin, Groovy, Sc ...

, and integrates with automation systems including Jenkins or

Git Git () is a distributed version control system that tracks versions of files. It is often used to control source code by programmers who are developing software collaboratively. Design goals of Git include speed, data integrity, and suppor ...

Actions. Despite advancements, challenges such as dependency conflicts, platform compatibility, and long compile times, remain problems.

Software development

In software development, building software is an end-to-end process that involves many distinct functions. Some of these functions are described below.

Version control

The

version control Version control (also known as revision control, source control, and source code management) is the software engineering practice of controlling, organizing, and tracking different versions in history of computer files; primarily source code t ...

function carries out activities such as workspace creation and updating, baselining and reporting. It creates an environment for the build process to run in and captures metadata about the inputs and output of the build process to ensure repeatability and reliability. Tools such as

, AccuRev or StarTeam help with these tasks by offering tools to tag specific points in history as being important, and more.

Code quality

Also known as static program analysis/static code analysis this function is responsible for checking that developers have adhered to the seven axes of code quality: comments, unit tests, duplication, complexity, coding rules, potential bugs and architecture & design. Ensuring a project has high-quality code results in fewer bugs and influences nonfunctional requirements such as maintainability, extensibility and readability; which have a direct impact on the ROI for a business.

Compilation

This is only a small feature of managing the build process. The compilation function turns source files into directly executable or intermediate objects. Not every project will require this function. While for simple programs the process consists of a single file being compiled, for complex software the source code may consist of many files and may be combined in different ways to produce many different versions.

Linking

Build tools

The process of building a

computer program A computer program is a sequence or set of instructions in a programming language for a computer to Execution (computing), execute. It is one component of software, which also includes software documentation, documentation and other intangibl ...

is usually managed by a build tool, a program that coordinates and controls other programs. Examples of such a program are make,

Ant Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...

Maven MAVEN is a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars to study the loss of that planet's atmospheric gases to space, providing insight into the history of the planet's climate and water. The name is an acronym for "Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution" w ...

, Rake,

SCons SCons is a software development tool that analyzes source code dependencies and operating system adaptation requirements from a software project description and generates final binary executables for installation on the target operating system pla ...

and Phing. The build utility typically needs to compile the various files, in the correct order. If the source code in a particular file has not changed then it may not need to be

recompile In computing, a compiler is a computer program that translates computer code written in one programming language (the ''source'' language) into another language (the ''target'' language). The name "compiler" is primarily used for programs tha ...

d ("may not" rather than "need not" because it may itself depend on other files that have changed). Sophisticated build utilities and linkers attempt to refrain from recompiling code that does not need it, to shorten the time required to complete the build. A more complex process may involve other programs producing code or data as part of the build process and software. Cmake screenshot

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Software Build Software development Computer programming