vcpkg/docs/maintainers/ports/vcpkg-cmake/vcpkg_cmake_configure.md

# vcpkg_cmake_configure

The latest version of this document lives in the [vcpkg repo](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/docs/maintainers/ports/vcpkg-cmake/vcpkg_cmake_configure.md).

Configure a CMake buildsystem.

```cmake
vcpkg_cmake_configure(
    SOURCE_PATH <source-path>
    [LOGFILE_BASE <logname-base>]
    [DISABLE_PARALLEL_CONFIGURE]
    [NO_CHARSET_FLAG]
    [WINDOWS_USE_MSBUILD]
    [GENERATOR <generator>]
    [OPTIONS
        <configure-setting>...]
    [OPTIONS_RELEASE
        <configure-setting>...]
    [OPTIONS_DEBUG
        <configure-setting>...]
)
```

`vcpkg_cmake_configure` configures a CMake build system for use with
`vcpkg_cmake_buildsystem_build` and `vcpkg_cmake_buildsystem_install`.
`source-path` is where the source is located; by convention,
this is usually `${SOURCE_PATH}`, which is set by one of the `vcpkg_from_*` functions.
This function configures the build system for both Debug and Release builds by default,
assuming that `VCPKG_BUILD_TYPE` is not set; if it is, then it will only configure for
that build type.

Use the `OPTIONS` argument to set the configure settings for both release and debug,
and use `OPTIONS_RELEASE` and `OPTIONS_DEBUG` to set the configure settings for
release only and debug only respectively.

By default, when possible, `vcpkg_cmake_configure` uses [ninja-build]
as its build system. If the `WINDOWS_USE_MSBUILD` argument is passed, then
`vcpkg_cmake_configure` will use a Visual Studio generator on Windows;
on every other platform, `vcpkg_cmake_configure` just uses Ninja.

[ninja-build]: https://ninja-build.org/

Additionally, one may pass the specific generator a port should use with `GENERATOR`.
This is useful if some project-specific buildsystem
has been wrapped in a CMake build system that doesn't perform an actual build.
If used for this purpose, it should be set to `"NMake Makefiles"`.
`vcpkg_cmake_buildsystem_build` and `install` do not support this being set to anything
except for NMake.

For libraries which cannot be configured in parallel,
pass the `DISABLE_PARALLEL_CONFIGURE` flag. This is needed, for example,
if the library's build system writes back into the source directory during configure.
This also disables the `CMAKE_DISABLE_SOURCE_CHANGES` option.

By default, this function adds flags to `CMAKE_C_FLAGS` and `CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS`
which set the default character set to utf-8 for MSVC.
If the library sets its own code page, pass the `NO_CHARSET_FLAG` option.

`LOGFILE_BASE` is used to set the base of the logfile names;
by default, this is `config`, and thus the logfiles end up being something like
`config-x86-windows-dbg.log`. You can set it to anything you like;
if you set it to `config-the-first`,
you'll get something like `config-the-first-x86-windows.dbg.log`.

## Notes
This command supplies many common arguments to CMake. To see the full list, examine the source.

## Examples

* [zlib](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/ports/zlib/portfile.cmake)
* [cpprestsdk](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/ports/cpprestsdk/portfile.cmake)
* [poco](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/ports/poco/portfile.cmake)
* [opencv](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/ports/opencv/portfile.cmake)

## Source
[ports/vcpkg-cmake/vcpkg\_cmake\_configure.cmake](https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg/blob/master/ports/vcpkg-cmake/vcpkg_cmake_configure.cmake)