Dependency Information

A dependency line can have either a single or a double colon. A target name can appear on more than one dependency line, but all of those lines must be of the same (single or double colon) type. For the more common single colon case, a command sequence can be associated with at most one dependency line. If the target is out of date with any of the dependents on any of the lines and a command sequence is specified (even a null one following a semicolon or tab), it is executed; otherwise, a default rule can be invoked. In the double colon case, a command sequence can be associated with more than one dependency line. If the target is out of date with any of the files on a particular line, the associated commands are executed. A built-in rule can also be executed. The double-colon form is particularly useful in updating archive-type files, where the target is the archive library itself. (An example is included in the "Archive Libraries " section.)