<![CDATA[Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start?]]>My cmake project has about 40 executables that, together, take several seconds to link.
When doing Test-Driven development with Qt , I'd want to only build and link the unit test I'm working with. I could select only that target in the cmake build steps, but the list is very long (>1000 entries) and tedious to work with. I have not found an easy way to quickly switch between "build only unitTest1" and "build all my default build targets".

Is there a way to build all build targets when I just say "Build", but only build the desired unit test when I directly start that test?

]]>https://forum.qt.io/topic/164889/creator-cmake-only-build-the-executable-i-want-to-startRSS for NodeMon, 31 Aug 2026 18:35:30 GMTWed, 15 Jul 2026 10:44:51 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:21 GMT]]>@cristian-adam I think I'll write a suggestion for an additional "Build current executable only (disable other build targets)"

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839310https://forum.qt.io/post/839310Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:27:21 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Wed, 22 Jul 2026 07:05:42 GMT]]>So you mean two build presets off the same configuration preset?
I'd have to create a preset for each of my 20 unit tests, but that sounds worth trying

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839306https://forum.qt.io/post/839306Wed, 22 Jul 2026 07:05:42 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:53:32 GMT]]>@Asperamanca the another option would be to use ... CMake Presets, there you can define in json the targets that you would want to build ...

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839283https://forum.qt.io/post/839283Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:53:32 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:07:29 GMT]]>@cristian-adam said in Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start?:

Current executable

Checking "current executable" doesn't make a difference - the other (unrelated) executables are still built.
Either I need to set an option additionally (which one?), or I would need to uncheck all the other build targets (tedious)

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839282https://forum.qt.io/post/839282Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:07:29 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Fri, 17 Jul 2026 08:39:52 GMT]]>@cristian-adam Nice, thanks!

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839199https://forum.qt.io/post/839199Fri, 17 Jul 2026 08:39:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Creator / cmake: Only build the executable I want to start? on Wed, 15 Jul 2026 15:11:46 GMT]]>@Asperamanca there is the Current executable setting in Build Steps in the Projects pane.

Then when you edit your unittest and hit build, you would build and run only the unittest and not everything.

The other option is with the CTest locator ct unittest which will build unittest and run unittest.

]]>https://forum.qt.io/post/839168https://forum.qt.io/post/839168Wed, 15 Jul 2026 15:11:46 GMT