[QUESTION] How to retrieve the Meson project version within the (C++) source code

[kelson42]

I want to get that number (the project "version" in meson.build) printed if I call:

$ my_soft --version

I failed so far to get the documentation explaining how to get that number from Meson?

[xclaesse]

Pass it in your cpp_args: executable('app', sources, cpp_args : '-DVERSION=@0@'.format(meson.project_version()))

Then in cpp file you can use VERSION define.

[kelson42]

@xclaesse Thank you, I will try this

[boazsegev]

I find it a very poor idea to have the version controlled by the mason.build file, especially in projects that supports multiple build systems (make, CMake, mason...).

Is there any way for mason to dynamically read the version number from an external file?

[wszqkzqk]

Pass it in your cpp_args: executable('app', sources, cpp_args : '-DVERSION=@0@'.format(meson.project_version()))

Then in cpp file you can use VERSION define.

But vala doesn't support this🥲

[dcbaker]

Valac has a -D/—define option, you should be able to pass that to vala_args

[wszqkzqk]

Valac has a -D/—define option, you should be able to pass that to vala_args

But Vala cannot define a value, it can only used in conditional compiling

[wszqkzqk]

I can only write a version.vala.in to do this.

[dcbaker]

Ah, yeah. vcs_tag() might be what you want then