Re: [Caml-list] Library installation procedure (for use with OPAM)?

[John Whitington <john@coherentgraphics.co.uk>]

Hi Anthony,

Anthony Tavener wrote:
> For local libraries, my "make install" amounts to copying the relevant
> files into the system OCaml directory (ie. /usr/local/lib64/ocaml).
> Terrible, I know.
>
> Now I'm switching to using OPAM for general use, and packaging up local
> libraries so that OPAM can be aware of them and install them in its
> managed environment. But I figure OPAM will be expecting a more sane,
> environment-sensitive install... right? Otherwise it must do some voodoo.
>
> Is there a simple example of an appropriate install process suitable for
> use with OPAM? I've tried looking at a few existing packages and the
> build+install process, as usual, is convoluted... not as obscure as
> autotools, but different for each project. Is findlib still applicable?
> Or some other means to query the system install directory?

OCamlMakefile knows how to use ocamlfind for installation. I assume the 
other popular build systems do too.

For example, here's the makefile for "cpdf", providing "make" and "make 
install" targets. The "PACKS" line tells OCamlMakefile which ocamlfind 
packages to depend on. "install : libinstall" tells it to install things 
as an ocamlfind package.


# Build the cpdf command line tools and top level
MODS = cpdfstrftime cpdf cpdfcommand

SOURCES = $(foreach x,$(MODS),$(x).ml $(x).mli) cpdfcommandrun.ml

RESULT = cpdf
ANNOTATE = true
PACKS = camlpdf

OCAMLNCFLAGS = -g
OCAMLBCFLAGS = -g
OCAMLLDFLAGS = -g

all : native-code native-code-library byte-code-library top htdoc

LIBINSTALL_FILES = cpdf.a cpdf.cma cpdf.cmxa \
$(foreach x,$(MODS),$x.mli) $(foreach x,$(MODS),$x.cmi)

install : libinstall

-include OCamlMakefile


The 'opam' file is then easy:


opam-version: "1"
maintainer: "contact@coherentgraphics.co.uk"
build: [
   [make]
   [make "install"]
]
remove: [["ocamlfind" "remove" "cpdf"]]
depends: [
   "ocamlfind"
   "camlpdf"
]

-- 
John Whitington