Build Guide
This document provides detailed instructions for building the EasyKiConverter project locally.
Prerequisites
Operating System
- Windows 10/11 (Recommended)
- macOS 10.15+
- Ubuntu 20.04+ or other Linux distributions
Required Software
Qt Framework
- Version: Qt 6.8 or higher (Recommended Qt 6.10.1)
- Required Modules:
- Qt Quick
- Qt Network
- Qt Core
- Qt Gui
- Qt Widgets
- Qt Quick Controls 2
Download: https://www.qt.io/download
CMake
- Version: CMake 3.16 or higher
- Download: https://cmake.org/download/
Compiler
Windows: - MinGW 13.10 (Recommended) - Or MSVC 2019+
macOS: - Xcode 12+ (includes Clang)
Linux: - GCC 9+ or Clang 10+
zlib
- Usually included with Qt on Windows
- Install via package manager on Linux:
Installation Instructions
Windows
1. Install Qt
- Download Qt Online Installer from https://www.qt.io/download
- Run the installer and select Qt 6.10.1
- Select MinGW 13.10 compiler
- Select required modules:
- Qt Quick
- Qt Network
- Qt Core
- Qt Gui
- Qt Widgets
- Qt Quick Controls 2
2. Install CMake
- Download CMake from https://cmake.org/download/
- Run the installer
- Add CMake to system PATH
3. Install MinGW (if not included with Qt)
- Download MinGW-w64 from https://www.mingw-w64.org/
- Extract to a directory (e.g., C:\mingw64)
- Add bin directory to system PATH
macOS
1. Install Qt
Or download Qt installer from https://www.qt.io/download
2. Install CMake
3. Install Xcode Command Line Tools
Linux (Ubuntu)
1. Install Qt 6
2. Install CMake
3. Install Compiler
4. Install zlib
Building the Project
Clone the Repository
Windows + MinGW
# Create build directory
mkdir build
cd build
# Configure project
cmake .. -G "MinGW Makefiles" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="C:/Qt/6.10.1/mingw_64"
# Build project (Debug version)
cmake --build . --config Debug
# Build project (Release version)
cmake --build . --config Release
# Run application
./bin/EasyKiConverter.exe
macOS
# Create build directory
mkdir build
cd build
# Configure project
cmake .. -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="/usr/local/Qt-6.10.1"
# Build project (Debug version)
cmake --build . --config Debug
# Build project (Release version)
cmake --build . --config Release
# Run application
./bin/EasyKiConverter
Linux
# Create build directory
mkdir build
cd build
# Configure project
cmake .. -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="/opt/Qt/6.10.1/gcc_64"
# Build project (Debug version)
cmake --build . --config Debug
# Build project (Release version)
cmake --build . --config Release
# Run application
./bin/EasyKiConverter
Build Options
Enable Debug Export
Enable debug export for symbol and footprint data:
Disable Debug Export
Disable debug export (default is enabled):
Build Type
Specify build type:
# Debug build
cmake .. -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug
# Release build
cmake .. -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
# RelWithDebInfo build
cmake .. -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=RelWithDebInfo
Parallel Compilation
Speed up compilation on multi-core systems:
# Use all available cores
cmake --build . --parallel
# Use specific number of cores
cmake --build . --parallel 4
Using Qt Creator
- Open Qt Creator
- Select "Open File or Project"
- Select
CMakeLists.txtin the project root - Configure build kit:
- Select Qt version (Qt 6.10.1 or higher)
- Select compiler (MinGW, Clang, or GCC)
- Click "Configure Project"
- Click "Build" button (or press Ctrl+B)
- Click "Run" button (or press F5) to launch the application
Build Output
After successful build, the executable files are located at:
- Debug version:
build/bin/EasyKiConverter.exe(Windows) orbuild/bin/EasyKiConverter(macOS/Linux) - Release version:
build/bin/EasyKiConverter.exe(Windows) orbuild/bin/EasyKiConverter(macOS/Linux)
Cleaning Build
Or remove the entire build directory:
Common Issues
Issue: Qt not found
Error: Could not find Qt6
Solution: 1. Verify Qt installation path 2. Set CMAKE_PREFIX_PATH correctly:
Issue: zlib not found
Error: Could not find ZLIB
Solution: - Windows: Qt usually includes zlib, ensure Qt path is correct - Linux: Install zlib development package:
Issue: QML module not found
Error: module "EasyKiconverter_Cpp_Version" is not installed
Solution: 1. Ensure CMakeLists.txt is configured correctly 2. Clean and rebuild:
Issue: Linker errors
Error: undefined reference to...
Solution: 1. Ensure all required Qt modules are linked in CMakeLists.txt 2. Clean and rebuild the project 3. Check compiler compatibility
Issue: Application crashes on startup
Solution: 1. Run in Debug mode to get stack trace 2. Check Qt plugin paths 3. Verify all required DLLs are in PATH (Windows)
Development Build
For development, it's recommended to build in Debug mode with debug export enabled:
mkdir build
cd build
cmake .. -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug -DENABLE_SYMBOL_FOOTPRINT_DEBUG_EXPORT=ON
cmake --build . --config Debug
Release Build
For release builds, use Release mode:
Testing
After building, you can run the test programs:
cd tests
cmake -B build -G "MinGW Makefiles" -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="C:/Qt/6.10.1/mingw_64"
cmake --build build
# Run tests
./build/test_layer_mapping.exe
./build/test_uuid_extraction.exe
Deployment
Windows Deployment
Use windeployqt to package the application:
This will copy all required Qt DLLs and plugins to the application directory.
macOS Deployment
Create an application bundle:
Linux Deployment
Create a Debian package or AppImage:
Next Steps
After successful build, refer to: - Getting Started Guide - Learn how to use the application - Features Documentation - Understand available features - Architecture Documentation - Learn about project architecture
Support
If you encounter any issues during the build process, please: 1. Check this documentation for solutions 2. Search existing GitHub Issues 3. Create a new issue with detailed information: - Operating system and version - Qt version - CMake version - Compiler version - Complete error message - Steps to reproduce