| ... | ... | @@ -23,6 +23,38 @@ BuildElement - Abstract class for build elements | 
| 23 | 23 |  The BuildElement class is a convenience element one can derive from for
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| 24 | 24 |  implementing the most common case of element.
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| 25 | 25 |  
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|  | 26 | +Built-in functionality
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|  | 27 | +----------------------
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|  | 28 | +
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|  | 29 | +The BuildElement base class provides built in functionality that could be overridden by the
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|  | 30 | +individual plugins.
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|  | 31 | +
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|  | 32 | +This section will give a brief summary of how some of the common features work, some of them or the variables they
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|  | 33 | +use will be further detailed in the following sections.
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|  | 34 | +
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|  | 35 | +* Location for running commands
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|  | 36 | +
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|  | 37 | + The ``command-subdir`` variable sets where the build commands will be executed, if the directory dose not exist it
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|  | 38 | + will be created, it is defined relative to the buildroot.
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|  | 39 | +
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|  | 40 | +* Location for configuring the project
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|  | 41 | +
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|  | 42 | + The ``conf-root`` is defined by default as ``./`` and is the location that specific build element can use to look
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|  | 43 | + for build configuration files, currently autotools and cmake use this.
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|  | 44 | +
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|  | 45 | + The configuration commands are run in ``command-subdir`` and by default ``conf-root`` is ``./`` so if
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|  | 46 | + ``conf-root`` is not set the configuration files in ``command-subdir`` will be used.
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|  | 47 | +
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|  | 48 | + By setting ``source-directory`` to ``"%{build-root}/Source"`` and your source elements ``directory`` variable to
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|  | 49 | + ``Source`` then the configuration files in the directory ``source-subdir`` with-in your Source will be used.
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|  | 50 | + However the location where your configuration command will be run will still be wherever you set your
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|  | 51 | + ``command-subdir`` to be.
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|  | 52 | +
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|  | 53 | +* Install Location
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|  | 54 | +
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|  | 55 | +  You should not change the ``install-root`` variable as it is a special writeable location in the sandbox but it is
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|  | 56 | +  useful when writing custom install instructions as it may need to be supplied as the ``DESTDIR``, please see the
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|  | 57 | +  cmake build element for example.
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| 26 | 58 |  
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| 27 | 59 |  Abstract method implementations
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| 28 | 60 |  -------------------------------
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