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Here is a table of all the options make
understands:
- `-b'
- `-m'
- These options are ignored for compatibility with other versions of
make
.
- `-C dir'
- `--directory=dir'
- Change to directory dir before reading the makefiles. If multiple
`-C' options are specified, each is interpreted relative to the
previous one: `-C / -C etc' is equivalent to `-C /etc'.
This is typically used with recursive invocations of
make
(see section Recursive Use of make
).
- `-d'
- `--debug'
-
Print debugging information in addition to normal processing. The
debugging information says which files are being considered for
remaking, which file-times are being compared and with what results,
which files actually need to be remade, which implicit rules are
considered and which are applied--everything interesting about how
make
decides what to do.
- `-e'
- `--environment-overrides'
- Give variables taken from the environment precedence
over variables from makefiles.
See section Variables from the Environment.
- `-f file'
- `--file=file'
- `--makefile=file'
- Read the file named file as a makefile.
See section Writing Makefiles.
- `-h'
- `--help'
-
Remind you of the options that
make
understands and then exit.
- `-i'
- `--ignore-errors'
- Ignore all errors in commands executed to remake files.
See section Errors in Commands.
- `-I dir'
- `--include-dir=dir'
- Specifies a directory dir to search for included makefiles.
See section Including Other Makefiles. If several `-I'
options are used to specify several directories, the directories are
searched in the order specified.
- `-j [jobs]'
- `--jobs=[jobs]'
- Specifies the number of jobs (commands) to run simultaneously. With no
argument,
make
runs as many jobs simultaneously as possible. If
there is more than one `-j' option, the last one is effective.
See section Parallel Execution,
for more information on how commands are run.
- `-k'
- `--keep-going'
- Continue as much as possible after an error. While the target that
failed, and those that depend on it, cannot be remade, the other
dependencies of these targets can be processed all the same.
See section Testing the Compilation of a Program.
- `-l [load]'
- `--load-average[=load]'
- `--max-load[=load]'
- Specifies that no new jobs (commands) should be started if there are
other jobs running and the load average is at least load (a
floating-point number). With no argument, removes a previous load
limit. See section Parallel Execution.
- `-n'
- `--just-print'
- `--dry-run'
- `--recon'
-
Print the commands that would be executed, but do not execute them.
See section Instead of Executing the Commands.
- `-o file'
- `--old-file=file'
- `--assume-old=file'
- Do not remake the file file even if it is older than its
dependencies, and do not remake anything on account of changes in
file. Essentially the file is treated as very old and its rules
are ignored. See section Avoiding Recompilation of Some Files.
- `-p'
- `--print-data-base'
- Print the data base (rules and variable values) that results from
reading the makefiles; then execute as usual or as otherwise
specified. This also prints the version information given by
the `-v' switch (see below). To print the data base without
trying to remake any files, use `make -p -f /dev/null'.
- `-q'
- `--question'
- "Question mode". Do not run any commands, or print anything; just
return an exit status that is zero if the specified targets are already
up to date, one if any remaking is required, or two if an error is
encountered. See section Instead of Executing the Commands.
- `-r'
- `--no-builtin-rules'
- Eliminate use of the built-in implicit rules (see section Using Implicit Rules). You can still define your own by writing
pattern rules (see section Defining and Redefining Pattern Rules). The `-r' option also clears out the default list of
suffixes for suffix rules (see section Old-Fashioned Suffix Rules). But you can still define your own suffixes with a rule for
.SUFFIXES
, and then define your own suffix rules.
- `-s'
- `--silent'
- `--quiet'
-
Silent operation; do not print the commands as they are executed.
See section Command Echoing.
- `-S'
- `--no-keep-going'
- `--stop'
-
Cancel the effect of the `-k' option. This is never necessary
except in a recursive
make
where `-k' might be inherited
from the top-level make
via MAKEFLAGS
(see section Recursive Use of make
)
or if you set `-k' in MAKEFLAGS
in your environment.
- `-t'
- `--touch'
-
Touch files (mark them up to date without really changing them)
instead of running their commands. This is used to pretend that the
commands were done, in order to fool future invocations of
make
. See section Instead of Executing the Commands.
- `-v'
- `--version'
- Print the version of the
make
program plus a copyright, a list
of authors, and a notice that there is no warranty; then exit.
- `-w'
- `--print-directory'
- Print a message containing the working directory both before and after
executing the makefile. This may be useful for tracking down errors
from complicated nests of recursive
make
commands.
See section Recursive Use of make
. (In practice, you
rarely need to specify this option since `make' does it for you;
see section The `--print-directory' Option.)
- `--no-print-directory'
- Disable printing of the working directory under
-w
.
This option is useful when -w
is turned on automatically,
but you do not want to see the extra messages.
See section The `--print-directory' Option.
- `-W file'
- `--what-if=file'
- `--new-file=file'
- `--assume-new=file'
- Pretend that the target file has just been modified. When used
with the `-n' flag, this shows you what would happen if you were
to modify that file. Without `-n', it is almost the same as
running a
touch
command on the given file before running
make
, except that the modification time is changed only in the
imagination of make
.
See section Instead of Executing the Commands.
- `--warn-undefined-variables'
- Issue a warning message whenever
make
sees a reference to an
undefined variable. This can be helpful when you are trying to debug
makefiles which use variables in complex ways.
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