This is a template project for C++ micro-experimentation using CLion. The goal is to have a template that allows you to very quickly get started in a new template, writing tests and. It's a pain in the ass to spend time on mundane configuration when you want to experiment with language features or explore TDD in C++.
This template is unashamedly optimised for the CLion IDE, so a set of project files are included that mean you can open the project immediately after cloning, and have a usable configuration to write and run tests.
We assume these things:
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That you have a complete and current install of Clang and the libc++ standard library.
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That CLion knows where to find your Clang toolchain - you should have it set up as a toolchain configuration in CLion. If the clang toolchain isn't your default, you may need to select it from the toolchain dropdown in
Settings | Build | CMake | Toolchain. -
That you have a current version of CLion. Because this template makes heavy use of CLion's project files as well as CMake to enable config-free coding. So, if you want to use template, keep CLion up to date!
This template works best using GitHub's ability to create a new repository for you based on a template - look for the green button to the left of the screen. After selecting this option, GitHub will prompt you for the usual repository parameters, and will create the new repository under your own account.
Clone your new project and open in CLion. CMake will display a prompt warning you that nefarious people might sneak untrustworthy code into your CMake project. We are not nefarious: select "trust this project".
Next, CLion will want you to confirm the shared debug build configuration. If you have the prerequisites, you can hit "OK" to confirm, and then you're ready to go.
Note that when you first open the project, two things are going to be slow:
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Generating the CMake build will take a while, because the test dependencies are being fetched from Git repositories, and their respective CMake builds generated. This is a one-time cost.
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Compiling the project for the first time - the test runner in particular is slow to compile, but you'll never need to touch it after that first run.
After the build is generated by CLion and CMake, you should be able to
immediately go choose the menu item Run | Run 'All Tests', and CLion
will build and run the tests, and show you a single test
result. You're up and running.
The template will generate an uncontroversial directory structure with placeholder source files where they're needed.
CLion makes it easy to move and rename files within the project, so
make any changes you need. Note that the test library dependences are
factored out to a separate CMake file which is then include'd in the
main CMakeLists.txt - to help keep the core CMake build clear and
readable.
.
├── include
├── src
├── test
├── README.md
├── CMakeDependencies.cmake
└── CMakeLists.txt
And of course because you're working from a repository that's already in your own GitHub, you're immediately able to commit and push changes to that remote.
You get a CLion build configuration for a debug build that explicitly
assumes Clang, libc++ and applies std=c++17. Warnings are set to
-Wall and adds specific recommended warnings. You can easily edited
these in the CLion settings if they don't suit you, but these are the
defaults.
You can, of course, add other build configurations for Release,
MinSizeRel, RelWithDebInfo, as well as specialised configurations
for use cases such as profiling or code coverage. This template gives
you Debug, and the rest is up to you.
Test libraries are automatically fetched and available to you and linked to the executable.
You get a single unit test runner configuration All Tests that runs
with no filters or exclusions. CLion will know that this is a Catch2
runner, and show nicely formatted tests results in the IDE.