Oolite build system

Here is the result of this forum thread: gitversion.sh / meson.build changes

Oolite will get built in different scenarios: Developers obviously download the source code from the central repository, apply changes and eventually push their changes back to the repository. Likely they will not run the complete packaging for multiple operating systems. That is where the CI pipeline kicks in on Github: every push triggers a CI build which builds Oolite, performs standard tests and packages it in various formats such that it can easily be used by others. This will work for a defined set of operating systems. Distro packagers like the AUR build will create even more comfort for users by creating OS distribution specific packages. It means Oolite can be installed through the operating system's package managers.

Below you find activity diagrams and a table explaining the purpose of each step. Note that each step may require items to already exist and on the other hand may provide output to other steps.

• 

  Developer

• 

  CI (on Github)

• 

  AUR Packager

Build Step	Description	Requires	Provides
configure system manually	A developer will maintain his development system will all the required tools and dependencies to build Oolite. Should be supported by scripts.	nothing	configured system
checkout code	Clone and checkout from the Oolite git repository so it resides in the local filesystem.	configured system	working tree
change code	A developer will change code in the local filesystem to whatever extent.	working tree	modified working tree
meson setup		working tree	meson configuration files
meson compile		meson configuration files	compiled and linked output in the build directory
test/debug manually	A developer will test manually, focusing on the changes he/she applied.	compiled and linked output in the build directory	nothing
meson test	runs predefined tests	compiled and linked output in the build directory	error log and return status code
meson install	copies Oolite files to another location on disk	compiled and linked output in the build directory	files in new output location
meson uninstall	reverse opertion for meson install. Removes the files from the new output location	files in new output location	nothing
push changes	Push the changes back into the Oolite repository. Likely involves commit and pull request actions.	modified working tree	unmodified working tree
configure system automatically	Similar to the `configure system manually` step, in CI builds all this has to be scripted.	nothing	configured system
calculate version number	Generates the checked out version's semver.	working tree
generate tar.gz	Generates an Oolite distribution as tar ball.	compiled and linked output in the build directory	the tar.gz file
generate AppImage	Generates a Linux AppImage.	the tar.gz file	the AppImage
generate Flatpak	Generates a Linux Flatpak image.	the tar.gz file	the Flatpak
generate MSIX	Generates a Windows installer for Oolite using MSIX.	the tar.gz file	the MSIX package
generate NSIS	Generates a Windows installer for Oolite using NSIS.	the tar.gz file	the executable installer
tag source code	The CI run will tag the version in the official repository so it is available to all other steps.	the version number	tagged git revision
upload artifacts	Uploads generated artifacts to a Github Release so they are available to the public.	any kind of artifact	artifacts attached to the release on Github
prepare	Similar to the `configure system automatically` step, this step will prepare an AUR build environment to build Oolite.	nothing	configured system
pkgver	Checks the version tag of the local source code and transforms it from semver to an AUR package version number.	working tree	version used by archlinux pacman (package manager) to track installed packages
package	Generates the AUR package.		tarball with files the application needs in a format designed for use by pacman
publish on AUR	Pushes the AUR package into the AUR repository.	write access on aur package repo for oolite / oolite-git package	shares recipe (PKGBUILD) to build oolite / oolite-git packages on archlinux user systems

   {
       "builder": "unknown",
       "title": "Oolite core",
       "version": "1.93.1-190",
       "source": "https://github.com/OoliteProject/oolite/releases/tag/1.93.1-190",
       "built-at": "2026-07-12T19:59:09+0200",
       "identifier": "org.oolite.oolite",
       "required_oolite_version": "1.93",
       "license": "GPL 2+ / CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 - see LICENSE.md for details",
       "author": "Giles Williams, Jens Ayton and contributors",
       "information_url": "https://oolite.space/",
       "expansion_catalog": "https://addons.oolite.space/api/1.0/overview/"
   }