Node-gyp Include and Library Directories with Boost

Question

I'm attempting to build a Node C++ addon on my Windows 7 machine that uses some classes from the Boost libraries. However, after running

node-gyp configure

successfully, I'm continually assaulted by missing header files when I run

node-gyp build

relating to various Boost headers I included.

I tried setting up the include and library directories manually in the Visual Studio projects created by "configure," but to no avail.

How exactly does one go about defining include directories for node-gyp?

[Edit] After messing around with node-gyp with little success, I explored into building Node modules through Visual Studio instead and, turns out, after several hours, it's finally up and working. Thanks for the assistance.

Solution

You need to add them in the binding.gyp file:

'include_dirs': [
  '<some directory>',
],
'libraries': [
  '-l<some library>', '-L<some library directory>'
]

Comments

[Jonathan Wiepert]

Check out code.google.com/p/gyp/wiki/InputFormatReference and github.com/TooTallNate/node-gyp for more details.

[Aetylus]

Right now, my binding.gyp file looks like this. However, I'm still receiving an error about being unable to find the included header files. Am I doing something wrong?

[Jonathan Wiepert]

Can you paste the directory listing of C:\Boost\boost_1_53_0?

[Jonathan Wiepert]

From boost.org: To compile anything in Boost, you need a directory containing the boost\ subdirectory in your #include path. Specific steps for setting up #include paths in Microsoft Visual Studio follow later in this document; if you use another IDE, please consult your product's documentation for instructions. So I think you need: "include_dirs": [ "C:\Boost\boost_1_53_0\boost" ]

[Aetylus]

C:\Boost\boost_1_53_0 * bin * bin.v2 * boost * doc * libs * more * stage * status * tools Would it have to point to the "boost" folder? When I'm working with Boost regularly in VS, I set the include directory just to boost_1_53_0 and that works just fine.

[Aetylus]

Tried it and still running into the same issue.

[Aetylus]

"c:[Project Directory]\Point.h(17): fatal error C1083: Cannot open include file: 'boost/shared_ptr.hpp': No such file or directory (..\Project.cpp) [C:[Project Directory]\build\project.vcxproj]"

[Jonathan Wiepert]

Your include line in the source should be #include <shared_ptr.hpp>, is this what you have?

[Jonathan Wiepert]

Also, are you sure you want to use direct_dependent_settings? If you are including those header files from the sources in the target, you want the include_dirs directive to be at the same level as sources in your config.

[Aetylus]

I'm getting the same error now, except with "... open include file: 'shared_ptr.hpp' ... ". Also, I'm not sure about the direct_dependent_settings, but that's how it was set up in one example in the gyp wiki. I had previously tried it without, which ended up in the same error as it currently is now.

[Jonathan Wiepert]

If your not sure, use both until you can figure out what you need. i.e. an include_dirs directive inside and outside of direct_dependent_settings. Also, from looking at Windows examples, it looks like you need to escape the path: "include_dirs": [ "C:\\Boost\\boost_1_53_0\\boost" ]

[Aetylus]

Sorry for the late response. The escape path did help with finding the path, however I'm not running into another error. "LINK : fatal error LNK1181: cannot open input file '[boost directory]\stage\lib.lib' [project directory]"

[Jonathan Wiepert]

Did you escape the path there as well? Can you post your updated binding.gyp?

[Aetylus]

After messing around with node-gyp with little success, I explored into building Node modules through Visual Studio instead and, turns out, after several hours, it's finally up and working. Thanks for the assistance.