bmakelib

The minimalist Make standard library you'd always wished for!

bmakelib is a standard library of reusable targets, recipes, and functions designed to help you write cleaner, safer, and self-documenting Makefiles.

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1. Quick Start

Just drop this bootstrap snippet directly into your Makefile. Zero installation and privileges required:

###################### bmakelib: download, install and include.
-include $(or $(BMAKELIB_DIR),$(PWD)/.bmakelib)/bmakelib.mk
$(or $(BMAKELIB_DIR),$(PWD)/.bmakelib)/bmakelib.mk:
	@mkdir -p $(@D)
	@curl -fsSL https://github.com/bahmanm/bmakelib/releases/$(if $(BMAKELIB_VERSION),download/$(BMAKELIB_VERSION),latest/download)/bmakelib-portable.tar.gz \
		| tar -xz -C $(@D) --strip-components=3
###################### bmakelib: done

build: bmakelib.error-if-blank( ENVIRONMENT ) ## Build application artefacts
build:
	@echo "Building for $(ENVIRONMENT)..."

Notes

• Fetches the latest version by default. Pin the version using BMAKELIB_VERSION.
• Installs to ./.bmakelib/ by default. Customise using BMAKELIB_DIR.
• Subsequent runs simply hit the cache. Delete BMAKELIB_DIR to reset.

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2. Module Catalogue

Detailed documentation and practical examples for each bmakelib module:

• Self-Documentation:
  • help: Automated, scope-aware help system for targets and variables.
• Validation:
  • error-if-blank: Abort build if required variables or arguments are omitted.
  • default-if-blank: Assign sensible fallback defaults to unset variables.
  • enum: Restrict variable values to a defined set of valid options.
• Data Structures:
  • dict: In-memory key-value maps and dictionaries within GNU Make.
• Observability and Execution:
  • timed: High-precision benchmarking and execution timing for targets.
  • logged: Structured logging with configurable timestamps and severity levels.
• Shell and Runtime Utilities:
  • shell: Robust subshell execution with error handling.
  • bmakelib.mk: Core library orchestration, constants, and runtime version introspection.

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3. Feature Highlight

3.1 Self-Documenting Makefiles

Document variables and targets inline with ## comments and generate a clean, categorised help screen automatically:

Makefile:

ENVIRONMENT ?= development ## Target deployment environment (development|staging|production)

build: bmakelib.error-if-blank( ENVIRONMENT ) ## Compile binaries and package distribution artefacts
build:
	@echo ✅ Building for $(ENVIRONMENT)...

Shell output:

$ make help
================================================================================
  LOCAL: defined inside the source tree
================================================================================

  TARGETS
    build  Compile binaries and package distribution artefacts

  VARIABLES
    ENVIRONMENT  Target deployment environment (development|staging|production)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes:
- Run 'env' to view the environment variables passed to Make.
- Use 'bmakelib.conf.help.scope=local|included|builtin|all' to control the scope.
- Use 'bmakelib.conf.help.targets=no' to skip targets.
- Use 'bmakelib.conf.help.variables=no' to skip variables.
- Use 'bmakelib.conf.help.show-bmakelib=yes' to display bmakelib definitions.
- Use 'bmakelib.conf.help.tips=no' to silence this tip.

3.2 Parameter Validation

Ensure mandatory build parameters and environment variables are supplied before recipes execute:

Makefile:

build: bmakelib.error-if-blank( RELEASE_STAGE )
build:
	@echo ✅ Deploying to $(RELEASE_STAGE)

Shell output:

$ make build
*** Provide a value for 'RELEASE_STAGE'.  Stop.

$ make RELEASE_STAGE=staging build
✅ Deploying to staging

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4. System-Wide Installation (Optional)

If you prefer to install bmakelib globally (via Homebrew, pre-built DEB/RPM packages, or compiled from source) rather than bootstrapping per project, see System-Wide Installation.

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5. Prerequisites and Compatibility

bmakelib requires GNU Make 4.4+ (released in 2022).

Verify your installed version:

make -v

If your operating system provides an older Make version, upgrading is straightforward:

wget https://ftpmirror.gnu.org/make/make-4.4.1.tar.gz
tar xzf make-4.4.1.tar.gz
cd make-4.4.1
./configure --prefix=/usr/local
make
sudo make install