Is there a build system for C++ which can manage release dependencies?

Question

A little background, we have a fairly large code base, which builds in to a set of libraries - which are then distributed for internal use in various binaries. At the moment, the build process for this is haphazard and everything is built off the trunk.

We would like to explore whether there is a build system which will allow us to manage releases and automatically pull in dependencies. Such a tool exists for java, Maven. I like it's package, repository and dependency mechanism, and I know that with either the maven-native or maven-nar plugin we could get this. However the problem is that we cannot fix the source trees to the "maven way" - and unfortunately (at least the maven-nar) plugins don't seem to like code that is not structured this way...

So my question is, is there a tool which satisfies the following for C++

1. build
2. package (for example libraries with all headers, something like the .nar)
3. upload package to a "repository"
4. automatically pull in the required dependencies from said repository, extract headers and include in build, extract libraries and link. The depedencies would be described in the "release" for that binary - so if we were to use CI server to build that "release", the build script has the necessary dependencies listed (like the pom.xml files).

I could roll my own by modifying either make+shell scripts or waf/scons with extra python modules for the packaging and dependency management - however I would have thought that this is a common problem and someone somewhere has a tool for this? Or does everyone roll their own? Or have I missed a significant feature of waf/scons or CMake?

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EDIT: I should add, OS is preferred, and non-MS...

Answer 1

Most of the linux distributions, for example, contain dependency tracking for their packages. Of all the things that I've tried to cobble together myself to take on your problem, in the end they all are "not quite perfect". The best thing to do, IMHO, is to create a local yum/deb repository or something (continuing my linux example) and then pull stuff from there as needed.

Many of the source-packages also quickly tell you the minimum components that must be installed to do a self-build (as opposed to installing a binary pre-compiled package).

Unfortunately, these methods are that much easier, though it's better than trying to do it yourself. In the end, to be cross-platform supporting, you need one of these systems per OS as well. Fun!