Conan is an open-source, decentralized, and cross-platform package manager designed to simplify the creation, sharing, and management of native binaries. It provides a streamlined approach for handling dependencies in C and C++ projects, making it easier to build and distribute software components.
As a package manager, Conan allows developers to define and manage dependencies in a declarative manner. It utilizes a configuration file called “conanfile.txt” or “conanfile.py” to specify the required libraries, frameworks, and tools for a project. Conan resolves these dependencies and ensures that the necessary binary artifacts are available for building the project.
One of the key features of Conan is its decentralized nature. It allows developers to host their own private package repositories, which can be integrated into their build systems. This enables teams to create and manage their own internal packages, ensuring that the required binaries are readily available for their projects.
Conan supports multiple platforms and build systems, making it versatile and adaptable to different development environments. It seamlessly integrates with popular build systems like CMake, Make, and Visual Studio, providing a smooth workflow for dependency management.
Another notable aspect of Conan is its ability to handle binary package caching. Once a package is downloaded and built, Conan caches the binary artifacts locally. This caching mechanism reduces build times and minimizes the need for recompilation, as the cached packages can be reused across different projects or development environments.
Conan also emphasizes package sharing and collaboration. It allows developers to publish their packages to public or private repositories, making it easy to share reusable components with the broader community or within an organization. This fosters code sharing, accelerates software development, and promotes best practices within the community.
Furthermore, Conan supports the management of package versions, allowing projects to specify exact versions or define version ranges for their dependencies. This gives developers control over which versions of packages are used in their projects and helps ensure consistency and reproducibility in the software development process.
conan Command Examples
1. Install packages based on conanfile.txt:
# conan install .
2. Install packages and create configuration files for a specific generator:
# conan install -g generator
3. Install packages, building from source:
# conan install . --build
4. Search for locally installed packages:
# conan search package
5. Search for remote packages:
# conan search package -r remote
6. List remotes:
# conan remote list
Summary
In summary, Conan is an open-source, decentralized, and cross-platform package manager designed for C and C++ projects. It simplifies the management of native binary dependencies, allowing developers to define and handle dependencies declaratively. Conan supports multiple platforms and build systems, integrates with package caching mechanisms, and enables easy package sharing and collaboration. With Conan, developers can efficiently manage dependencies, streamline the build process, and accelerate software development.