FTXUI/doc/installation_cmake.md

@page installation_cmake CMake

@tableofcontents

This page explains how to depend on FTXUI using CMake.

Methods of Integration

Using FetchContent

This approach downloads FTXUI at configure time and doesn't require a system-wide install.

include(FetchContent)

FetchContent_Declare(ftxui
  GIT_REPOSITORY https://github.com/ArthurSonzogni/FTXUI
  GIT_TAG v6.1.9  # Replace with a version, tag, or commit hash
)

FetchContent_MakeAvailable(ftxui)

add_executable(main main.cpp)
target_link_libraries(main
  PRIVATE ftxui::screen
  PRIVATE ftxui::dom
  PRIVATE ftxui::component
)

This ensures reproducible builds and easy dependency management.

Using find_package

If FTXUI is installed system-wide or via a package manager (e.g. vcpkg or Conan), you can use:

find_package(ftxui REQUIRED)

add_executable(main main.cpp)
target_link_libraries(main
  PRIVATE ftxui::screen
  PRIVATE ftxui::dom
  PRIVATE ftxui::component
)

Make sure the package is visible in your CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH.

Using git submodule

You can also add FTXUI as a Git submodule, keeping it as part of your repository:

git submodule add https://github.com/ArthurSonzogni/FTXUI external/ftxui
git submodule update --init --recursive

When cloning a repository that already includes FTXUI as a submodule, make sure to fetch submodules with:

git clone --recurse-submodules <your-repo>
# Or, if already cloned:
git submodule update --init --recursive

Then in your CMakeLists.txt:

add_subdirectory(external/ftxui)

add_executable(main main.cpp)
target_link_libraries(main
  PRIVATE ftxui::screen
  PRIVATE ftxui::dom
  PRIVATE ftxui::component
)

This approach works well if you want to vendor FTXUI in your own repository.

Optional CMake Flags

FTXUI supports the following CMake options:

Option	Description	Default
FTXUI_BUILD_EXAMPLES	Build bundled examples	OFF
FTXUI_BUILD_DOCS	Build the documentation	OFF
FTXUI_BUILD_TESTS	Enable tests	OFF
FTXUI_ENABLE_INSTALL	Generate install targets	ON
FTXUI_MICROSOFT_TERMINAL_FALLBACK	Improve Windows compatibility	ON/OFF

To enable an option:

cmake -DFTXUI_BUILD_EXAMPLES=ON ..

Verifying Integration

To confirm the setup is working, build and run a minimal example. If you need a complete template, see: ftxui-starter

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