CMake: Is there a difference between set_property(TARGET ...) and set_target_properties?

Question

In CMake, assuming one is just setting one property, is there any difference between

set_target_properties(target PROPERTIES prop value) 

and

set_property(TARGET target PROPERTY prop value) 

?

Cf.

https://cmake.org/cmake/help/v3.0/command/set_property.html https://cmake.org/cmake/help/v3.0/command/set_target_properties.html

which imply there is no difference but aren't that clear.

Answer 1

Consider set_target_properties() as a specialized form of set_property().

Advantages of ...

• set_target_properties(...) is a convenience function because it allows to set multiple properties of multiple targets.

  For example:

  add_executable(a ...) add_executable(b ...) set_target_properties(     a      b     PROPERTIES          LINKER_LANGUAGE CXX         FOLDER          "Executable" ) 

• set_property(TARGET ...) can APPEND to a list- or APPEND_STRING to a string-based property of targets.

  For example:

  add_executable(a ...) set_property(     TARGET a     APPEND PROPERTY         INCLUDE_DIRECTORIES "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}" )   

References

• How to change the name of the output binary to not be a.out with CMake?
• target_include_directories prior to 2.8.12?
• Appending compiler flags to a file with CMake

Answer 2

Note that you also have respective set_*_properties functions for some of the other types of properties: set_source_files_properties, set_directory_properties and set_tests_properties. Notably absent are setters for install and global properties.

The reason for that is that these functions predate the general set_property call, which was only introduced with CMake 2.6, together with a general overhaul of the property system to what it is today.

These days, people tend to prefer the generic set_property, as it is the more modern function and provides a few additional features. It also offers a more consistent syntax than the old functions (eg. set_directory_properties not allowing to specify the directory as a parameter, set_source_files vs set_directory, etc.).

There is not a strong technical reason for preferring set_property, but I would consider it slightly better style than using the old, specific functions.