[C++] cmake: cannot create imported target "Boost::headers"

[asfimport]

Hi,

I just tried to build arrow/cpp using cmake, and on the master branch I get the error

 

arrow-build $ cmake -DARROW_PARQUET=ON -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=DEBUG ../arrow/cpp/
...
CMake Error at cmake_modules/ThirdpartyToolchain.cmake:873 (add_library):
  add_library cannot create imported target "Boost::headers" because another
  target with the same name already exists.
Call Stack (most recent call first):
  cmake_modules/ThirdpartyToolchain.cmake:139 (build_boost)
  cmake_modules/ThirdpartyToolchain.cmake:236 (build_dependency)
  cmake_modules/ThirdpartyToolchain.cmake:1014 (resolve_dependency)
  CMakeLists.txt:552 (include) 
...
-- Configuring incomplete, errors occurred!
See also "/app/arrow-build/CMakeFiles/CMakeOutput.log".
See also "/app/arrow-build/CMakeFiles/CMakeError.log".

and CMake exits with status 1.  The project configures successfully on the apache-arrow-8.0.0 tag.  Running a git bisect, the defect was introduced in the commit:

d653b71d79fc381c43f59d3095cc1c9fb0c1cf7c
ARROW-16168: [C++][CMake] Use target to add include paths

I have attached CMakeOutput.log and CMakeError.log.

Thanks!

Reporter: Jefferson Carpenter
Assignee: Kouhei Sutou / @kou

Related issues:

• [C++] Remove boost dependency with thrift (is caused by)

Original Issue Attachments:

• cmake_stdout.txt
• CMakeError.log
• CMakeOutput.log

PRs and other links:

• GitHub Pull Request #13845
• GitHub Pull Request #13846

_{Note: This issue was originally created as ARROW-16993. Please see the migration documentation for further details.}

[asfimport]

David Li / @lidavidm:
The issue is that we need the Boost headers but not the Boost libraries for non-test builds but the CMake code does not reflect that and tries to find the libraries anyways. When that fails it tries to build Boost as a subproject but by then we've already found a Boost installation and so CMake errors when we try to (re)define the Boost targets.

ARROW-16947 will fix this. I would vote that this is a duplicate/symptom of that unless there's something I missed here.

[asfimport]

Jefferson Carpenter:
@lidavidm That sounds like a good explanation to me, I don't think you missed something.  I'll let you know if this isn't resolved after that issue is closed.

[asfimport]

Kouhei Sutou / @kou:
[~jcarpenter2] Could you also attach the full output of cmake -DARROW_PARQUET=ON -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=DEBUG ../arrow/cpp/?

[asfimport]

Jefferson Carpenter:
@kou Attached

[asfimport]

Kouhei Sutou / @kou:
Thanks.

-- Could NOT find Boost: missing: system filesystem (found /usr/local/lib/cmake/Boost-1.76.0/BoostConfig.cmake (found suitable version "1.76.0", minimum required is "1.58"))

is the root cause. You have system Boost but it doesn't include system and filesystem components. So Boost::headers is loaded but system Boost detection is failed. If system Boost detection is failed, we use bundled Boost and create Boost::headers for bundled Boost but Boost::headers already exists. It causes this error.

CMake doesn't provide a feature to remove a created target (Boost::headers). We may be able to support this case by reusing (overriding) Boost::headers defined by system Boost but it may not be a good CMake manner...

I think that installing Boost's system and filesystem components to your system is the best solution for this case for now.

[asfimport]

Neal Richardson / @nealrichardson:
I think these lines should be conditional on ARROW_BOOST_REQUIRE_LIBRARY because we don't need boost::system and boost::filesystem if we only need the headers: https://github.com/apache/arrow/blob/master/cpp/cmake_modules/ThirdpartyToolchain.cmake#L1025-L1027

We currently set and use ARROW_BOOST_REQUIRE_LIBRARY in the build_boost macro, but it has no effect on the find_package step or anything after it, and that seems off.

[asfimport]

Kouhei Sutou / @kou:
You're right. I was wrong. Sorry. I opened a pull request for it.

(I noticed that the David's first comment already described the reason...)

[asfimport]

Kouhei Sutou / @kou:
Oh, I didn't notice that a pull request is already opened: #13845

[asfimport]

Kouhei Sutou / @kou:
Issue resolved by pull request 13846
#13846