[bug] detect_api.detect_clang_compiler provides the minor version of the compiler

[jwillikers]

Describe the bug

On Linux, using detect_api.detect_clang_compiler in profiles results in the minor version of the compiler being included. On Ubuntu 22.04, it provides 14.0 and on Ubuntu 24.04 it provides 18.1. This is problematic because these versions don't exist in the default settings.yml file and because it isn't consistent with how the detect_api.detect_gcc_compiler returns its version, i.e. just the major version.

How to reproduce it

Use {% set compiler, compiler_version, compiler_exe = detect_api.detect_clang_compiler() %} in a Conan profile with Clang installed on Linux. On Debian, sudo apt -y install clang.

[memsharded]

Hi @jwillikers

Thanks for your report.

I am not sure this is a bug, but intended. The api is designed to return the version with the minor.
If you want to obtain the equivalent default version that the conan profile detect is returning, you need to pass it to the detect_api.default_compiler_version().

This is done this way, because this way allows user to decide if they want to keep the minor or not.

[jwillikers]

Thanks, I think I missed default_compiler_version. Does detect_api.detect_gcc_compiler() work the same way? It didn't seem to for me, just including the major version only.

[jwillikers]

Oh wait, my bad, the GCC profiles are already using default_compiler_version. I'll close this then!

[memsharded]

No, it is true that detect_gcc_compiler is using gcc -dumpversion which happened to change and only return the major version since gcc 7.1, and it stayed this way. It should be possible to use gcc -dumpfullversion, but I am concerned this could also break some users, not sure what would be the best way to change this, if a newer api method or an argument or other approach.