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bdep-defau...ions-files(1)   General Commands Manual  bdep-defau...ions-files(1)

NAME
     bdep-default-options-files - specifying default options

SYNOPSIS
     bdep command [mode-options] ...

DESCRIPTION
     Instead of having a separate config file format for tool configuration, the
     build2  toolchain uses default options files which contain the same options
     as what can be specified on the command line. The default options files are
     like options files that one can specify with  --options-file  (bdep-common-
     options(1)) except that they are loaded by default.

     The  default options files are searched for in the .build2/ and .build2/lo-
     cal/ subdirectories of each outer directory beginning from the start direc-
     tory and until reaching either the home directory or  the	filesystem  root
     directory	(both  excluding). Then in the .build2/ subdirectory of the home
     directory and finally in the system directory (for  example,  /etc/build2/)
     if configured.

     Once  the	search	is  complete, the files are loaded in the reverse order,
     that is, beginning from the system directory (if any), followed by the home
     directory, ending with the start directory, and finishing off with the  op-
     tions  specified on the command line.  In other words, the files are loaded
     from the more generic to the more specific with the  command  line  options
     having  the ability to override any values specified in the default options
     files.

     The start directory, the names of the default options files, and  in  which
     order  they  are loaded within each directory are determined by the command
     and potentially its mode-options. See each command's DEFAULT OPTIONS  FILES
     section for details.

     If a default options file contains --no-default-options, then the search is
     stopped  at  the  directory  containing  this  file  and no outer files are
     loaded. If this option is specified on the command line, then none  of  the
     default options files are searched for or loaded.

     An  additional  directory containing default options files can be specified
     with --default-options. If such a directory is a subdirectory of the  start
     directory	or  is	between  the  start  directory	and the end of the outer
     search, then its configuration files are loaded at the corresponding  point
     in  the  directory hierarchy. Otherwise, they are loaded after the home di-
     rectory.

     The presence of the .git filesystem entry causes the default options  files
     in  this  directory  and any of its subdirectories to be considered remote.
     Depending on the command, some security-sensitive options may be disallowed
     or trigger a prompt when specified in remote options files (in the  current
     implementation this is the case even for files from the .build2/local/ sub-
     directory	since  the  mere  location is not a sufficient ground to defini-
     tively conclude that the file is not remote; to be sure we  would	need  to
     query  the  version  control  system). Note that additional default options
     files specified with --default-options are never considered remote.

     The order in which default options files are loaded is traced at  the  ver-
     bosity level 3 (-V option) or higher.

BUGS
     Send bug reports to the users@build2.org mailing list.

COPYRIGHT
     Copyright (c) 2014-2026 the build2 authors.

     Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under
     the terms of the MIT License.

bdep 0.18.0			   April 2026	      bdep-defau...ions-files(1)

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