premake/premake-core

Add copy token that creates non-existing parent directories

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#820 opened on Jun 17, 2017

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enhancementhelp wanted

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Description

Previously, premake allowed to do something like this on Windows:

postbuildcommands {
  "{COPY} %{wks.location}premake5.lua %{wks.location}this/does/not/exist/"
}

...and it created the parent folders like mkdir -p does on Linux.

We relied on that "feature", but since premake automatically omits trailing slashes now, it results in an error. This is probably intended and always behaved like that on Linux, but I think it's actually a pretty handy feature and might make sense to be officially re-introduced on all platforms.

If adding it to {{COPY}} breaks something, I suggest introducing {{COPYP}} or similar instead.

Contributor guide

Research direction
Examine the implementation of the COPY token in the premake codebase to understand how file copying is handled, then implement logic to create parent directories if they don't exist, similar to mkdir p. Consider using existing file utilities or adding a new token like COPYP if needed.
Tech stack
c
Domain
build system
Issue type
Feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
Half day
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Fresh
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
C
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
40