>> I *think* that these public/private rules behave a bit differently >> for static libraries than they do for shared ones.
They do. Assuming main calls a() and b() defined in A_lib and B_lib respectively, for: add_library(A_lib STATIC a.c) add_library(B_lib STATIC b.c) target_link_libraries(A_lib PRIVATE B_lib) add_executable(main main.c) target_link_libraries(main A_lib) The PRIVATE in "target_link_libraries(A_lib PRIVATE B_lib)" is useless. It is the same as writing "target_link_libraries(A_lib PUBLIC B_lib)", only more confusing to the reader. Static libraries always link to their dependencies publically. https://cmake.org/cmake/help/v3.5/command/target_link_libraries.html#libraries-for-a-target-and-or-its-dependents However, if you change A_lib to be a shared library with "add_library(A_lib SHARED a.c)" and left the rest of the code the same, you would now get link errors for main not able to find b(), because A_lib now does not pass on its dependency on B, it hides it from main. Change the last line to "target_link_libraries(main A_lib B_lib)" and main builds again. -- Powered by www.kitware.com Please keep messages on-topic and check the CMake FAQ at: http://www.cmake.org/Wiki/CMake_FAQ Kitware offers various services to support the CMake community. For more information on each offering, please visit: CMake Support: http://cmake.org/cmake/help/support.html CMake Consulting: http://cmake.org/cmake/help/consulting.html CMake Training Courses: http://cmake.org/cmake/help/training.html Visit other Kitware open-source projects at http://www.kitware.com/opensource/opensource.html Follow this link to subscribe/unsubscribe: http://public.kitware.com/mailman/listinfo/cmake
