Deployment
This page explains how MNE-CPP handles build setups, solves for exernal as well as internal dependencies, prepares resources, and does packaging.
Build rules
All MNE-CPP libraries are built to the mne-cpp/lib folder. All applications, test, and examples are built to the mne-cpp/bin folder.
Dependency solving
On Windows and MacOS, dependency solving for libraries and executables is done in the executable’s corresponding .pro file. Here, the windeployqt and macdeployqt tools are used, which are officially developed and maintained by Qt. Two functions defineReplace(macDeployArgs) and defineReplace(winDeployArgs) are provided in the mne-cpp.pri file, which are used to deploy executables on Windows and MacOS. For Linux we use the unoffical linuxdeployqt tool which is executed in the release.yml workflow file.
Internal dependencies (MNE-CPP libraries)
Applications, tests, and examples, link against MNE-CPP libraries (internal dependencies). Dependencies between MNE-CPP libraries exist as well and can be seen in the libraries.pro file. The following table describes how we solve for internal dependencies:
| Platform | Dependency solving |
|---|---|
| Windows | windployqt is called on all MNE-CPP libraries. Also, all MNe-CPP libraries are copied from mne-cpp/lib to mne-cpp/bin via the library’s .pro file. This is needed since windeployqt only takes care of Qt related dependencies. |
| Linux | MNE-CPP libraries reside in mne-cpp/lib. QMAKE_RPATHDIR is specified in the executable’s .pro file in order to link to the libraries in mne-cpp/lib. |
| MacOS | MNE-CPP libraries are copied to the .app Frameworks folder by macdeployqt. Tests and examples are created as normal executables and therefore need DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to include the mne-cpp/lib folder. |
External dependencies (Qt, Eigen, and system libraries)
As of right now MNE-CPP depends on Qt and Eigen. Eigen, as a lightweight template library, is included in the MNE-CPP repository by default and does not need further dependency solving. For Qt dependencies we do the following:
| Platform | Dependency solving |
|---|---|
| Windows | Call windeployqt on MNE-CPP applications, tests, and examples. Subsequently, Qt and needed system libraries reside in mne-cpp/bin. |
| Linux | Call linuxdeployqt on MNE Scan only. The Qt and MNE-CPP libraries are looked up via RPATH, which is set to point to the mne-cpp/lib folder. |
| MacOS | Call windeployqt on MNE-CPP applications, tests, and examples. Applications (MNE Scan, MNE Analyze, etc.) are created as .app bundles via macdeployqt. Tests and examples are created as normal executables and therefore need DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to include the mne-cpp/lib folder. |
Resource handling
Files which are needed by the applications, e.g., layout files, selection groups and so on, are considrered resources and reside in mne-cpp/resources. Needed resources are copied from mne-cpp/resources to mne-cpp/bin/resources. In case of .app images on MacOS, e.g., MNE Scan, the needed resources are copied from mne-cpp/resources to mne-cpp/bin/mne_scan.app/MacOs/resources.
Please note: If you need to add new resources, please add them to the mne-cpp/resources and NOT to the mne-cpp/bin/resources folder. Also, make sure to include them in your .pro file as well. |
Packaging and uploading
| Platform | Packaged folders |
|---|---|
| Windows | Folder mne-cpp/bin is compressed to a zip file and uploaded as release asset to the corresponding GitHub release. |
| Linux | Folders mne-cpp/bin, mne-cpp/lib, mne-cpp/plugins, mne-cpp/translations are compressed to a tar.gz file and uploaded as release assets to the corresponding GitHub release. |
| MacOS | Folders mne-cpp/bin, mne-cpp/lib are compressed to a tar.gz file and uploaded as release assets to the corresponding GitHub release. |
Static builds
The above information only holds for dynamically linked builds of MNE-CPP. When building statically, no dependency solving is necessary. Please note that our CI excludes examples and tests from static release binaries, since they would consume too much space.