How to build both a library and a test executable in the same Eclipse/CDT project?

Question

I have built a shared library under Eclipse/CDT in C++. To manage my projects tests, I would like to have in the same project the library and an executable for running tests on the library.

How can I do that please ?

Answer 1

For the library itself, I have standard build settings : a Debug and a Release target, with the -fPIC compile option, an artifact type Shared Library, extension so and prefix lib, and the -share linker option.

For the test program, I have added in the same project a main.cpp file:

#ifdef TEST_

#include <cstdlib>
#include <iostream>
#include "config.h"

using namespace std;

int main(int argc, char **argv) {
    cout << "Test for project utils" << endl;
    return 0;
}

#endif /* TEST_ */

I have added a specific Test target copied from the DEBUG one and adapted for standard executable build settings : suppress the -fPIC compile option, add -D TEST_, modify the artifact type to Executable, supress extension so and prefix lib, suppress the -share option for the linker.

Now, just build Debug, Release, and Test as normal, what can be done independently. The Test target could be easily changed for say Test-Debug and Test-Release, to get a library self-test runned just after installation.