Gecode is an open source C++ toolkit for developing constraint-based systems and applications. Gecode provides a constraint solver with state-of-the-art performance while being modular and extensible.
You can find lots of information on Gecode's webpages, including how to download, compile, install, and use it.
In particular, Gecode comes with extensive tutorial and reference documentation.
CMake exposes options aligned with the Autoconf build switches.
The minimum required CMake version is 3.21.
configure.ac is the canonical autoconf source, and configure is generated
from it.
Version metadata shared by autoconf and CMake lives in gecode-version.m4.
build/ is reserved for generated build outputs.
| Autoconf switch | CMake option / mechanism | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
--enable-shared |
GECODE_BUILD_SHARED |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-static |
GECODE_BUILD_STATIC |
Supported directly | Default OFF |
--enable-thread |
GECODE_ENABLE_THREAD |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-osx-unfair-mutex |
GECODE_ENABLE_OSX_UNFAIR_MUTEX |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-qt |
GECODE_ENABLE_QT |
Supported directly | AUTO by default; Qt 6 preferred; Qt 5.15+ supported |
--enable-gist |
GECODE_ENABLE_GIST |
Supported directly | AUTO by default except macOS; disabled automatically if Qt GUI support is unavailable |
--enable-cpprofiler |
GECODE_ENABLE_CPPROFILER |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-cbs |
GECODE_ENABLE_CBS |
Supported directly | Default OFF |
--enable-examples |
GECODE_ENABLE_EXAMPLES |
Supported directly | Default ON for top-level builds, OFF for subprojects |
--enable-search |
GECODE_ENABLE_SEARCH |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-int-vars |
GECODE_ENABLE_INT_VARS |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-set-vars |
GECODE_ENABLE_SET_VARS |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-float-vars |
GECODE_ENABLE_FLOAT_VARS |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-minimodel |
GECODE_ENABLE_MINIMODEL |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-driver |
GECODE_ENABLE_DRIVER |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-flatzinc |
GECODE_ENABLE_FLATZINC |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-mpfr |
GECODE_ENABLE_MPFR |
Supported directly | Default ON; uses find_package(MPFR) |
--enable-allocator |
GECODE_ENABLE_ALLOCATOR |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--enable-audit |
GECODE_ENABLE_AUDIT |
Supported directly | Default OFF |
| None | GECODE_ENABLE_FAULT_INJECTION |
CMake-only | Test-only, process-global failpoints in an isolated single-threaded check-fault suite; default OFF |
| None | GECODE_SANITIZER |
CMake-only | address, undefined, address-undefined, or thread; currently requires GCC/Clang-style flags |
--enable-gcc-visibility |
GECODE_ENABLE_GCC_VISIBILITY |
Supported directly | Default ON |
--with-freelist32-size-max |
GECODE_FREELIST32_SIZE_MAX |
Supported directly | Cache string |
--with-freelist64-size-max |
GECODE_FREELIST64_SIZE_MAX |
Supported directly | Cache string |
--with-vis |
GECODE_WITH_VIS |
Supported directly | Comma-separated list |
--with-lib-prefix |
GECODE_LIB_PREFIX |
Supported directly | Prefixes generated library basenames |
--with-lib-suffix |
GECODE_LIB_SUFFIX |
Supported directly | Suffixes generated library basenames |
--enable-debug |
CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug (or multi-config Debug) |
Mapped to native CMake mechanism | Use standard CMake build-type workflows |
--enable-small-codesize |
CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=MinSizeRel or compiler size flags |
Mapped to native CMake mechanism | Use standard size-optimized build settings |
--enable-leak-debug |
None | Not supported in CMake | No CMake option enables the GECODE_HAS_MTRACE test hook |
--enable-profile |
Toolchain/CMake compile+link flags | Mapped to native CMake mechanism | Configure profiling via standard compiler flags |
--enable-gcov |
Toolchain/CMake coverage flags | Mapped to native CMake mechanism | Configure coverage instrumentation via compiler/linker flags |
--with-mpfr-include, --with-mpfr-lib |
CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH, MPFR_ROOT, toolchain include/link paths |
Mapped to native CMake mechanism | Use CMake package and toolchain discovery |
--with-gmp-include, --with-gmp-lib |
Toolchain include/link paths | Mapped to native CMake mechanism | GMP is resolved through MPFR/toolchain linkage |
--with-host-os |
None | Not supported in CMake | Generator/toolchain already determine host/target platform |
--with-compiler-vendor |
None | Not supported in CMake | Compiler is selected through toolchain and generator |
--with-sdk, --with-macosx-version-min, --with-architectures |
None | Not supported in CMake | Use native CMake/macOS toolchain settings |
--enable-framework |
None | Not supported in CMake | No framework-bundle generator path is implemented |
--enable-resource |
None | Not supported in CMake | No autoconf-style resource toggle in CMake |
--enable-peakheap |
None | Not supported in CMake | No CMake option defines the peak-heap tracking macros |
--enable-doc-dot, --enable-doc-search, --enable-doc-tagfile |
GECODE_DOC_DOT, GECODE_DOC_SEARCH, GECODE_DOC_TAGFILE |
Supported by doc target |
Requires Doxygen 1.17.0 or newer; helper pages require uv |
By default, CMake uses checked-in gecode/kernel/var-type.hpp and
gecode/kernel/var-imp.hpp; regeneration is opt-in via
-DGECODE_REGENERATE_VARIMP=ON. A nonempty GECODE_WITH_VIS list enables
regeneration automatically and validates every specification during
configuration; relative paths are resolved from the source directory.
Build-time script execution uses uv run --script ... and requires Python
3.11 or newer. Autoconf builds require uv on PATH; CMake requires it only
for generated-script paths such as -DGECODE_REGENERATE_VARIMP=ON and the
doc target. Documentation generation requires Doxygen 1.17.0 or newer.
Autoconf make check deliberately does not build or run the CMake-only
failpoint sources. Its ordinary test executable therefore never mixes
process-global fault cases into the multi-threaded check run.
When changing generated-source inputs, run make regenerate after configuring
the project. This uses the same version-checked workflow as CI and caches the
Autoconf 2.72 bootstrap locally; Bison 3.8.2, Flex 2.6.4, and uv must be
available. Ordinary C++ changes do not require regeneration.
GECODE_ENABLE_QT and GECODE_ENABLE_GIST accept AUTO, ON, and OFF.
Use ON to require the dependency and fail configuration if it is missing or
too old, OFF to disable it, and AUTO to use it when the local toolchain
provides a supported Qt.
Deprecated compatibility aliases are accepted for the Gecode 6.x line:
ENABLE_THREADS, ENABLE_GIST, BUILD_EXAMPLES, ENABLE_CPPROFILER.
For a Visual Studio + vcpkg workflow (including preset-based commands for
MPFR), see docs/cmake-build.md.
Qt 6 is the preferred Qt line for Gecode builds. Qt 5.15 or newer remains
supported for legacy environments, but older Qt releases are ignored unless
GECODE_ENABLE_QT=ON, in which case configuration fails. On macOS, use a Qt
build that supports the active macOS SDK; recent Qt 6 releases are the safest
choice. Gist is opt-in for CMake builds on macOS. Use -DGECODE_ENABLE_GIST=ON
when Qt is installed and its framework link interface is usable.
For CMake build/install workflows and downstream find_package(Gecode) usage,
see docs/cmake-build.md.
Minimal downstream example:
find_package(Gecode CONFIG REQUIRED)
target_link_libraries(my_target PRIVATE Gecode::gecode)Use Gecode_VERSION from package config for version checks.
Gecode 6.4.0 is distributed as source code. Source archives can be downloaded from GitHub or Gecode's webpages.
We happily accept smaller contributions and fixes, please provide them as pull requests against the main branch. For larger contributions, please get in touch.
Gecode is licensed under the MIT license.