vcpkg-action GitHub action

[johnwason]

I created a simple GitHub action designed to accurately cache packages by using a "dry-run" build to generate an accurate list of packages and package versions. The dry-run is hashed as part of the cache restore key, so the cache will always accurately reflect the packages that need to be built.

https://github.com/johnwason/vcpkg-action

More details:

vcpkg-action is a simple action to build and cache vcpkg packages. It supports all platforms. It has two unique
features:

• Simplicity
• Use of a "dry-run" build to generate a unique cache key for the configuration. This guarantees that if packages
  change, the cache will be rebuilt, but avoids rebuilding when it isn't necessary.
• Optionally supports reading vcpkg.json manifest files

vcpkg is cloned to the ${{ github.workspace }}\vcpkg directory, and the build products are located in
${{ github.workspace }}\vcpkg\installed\<triplet>. For cmake, use the option:

 -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=${{ github.workspace }}/vcpkg/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=<triplet> -DVCPKG_MANIFEST_MODE=OFF

An output vcpkg-cmake-config is also created to simplify setting cmake configuration settings. Example usage:

cmake ${{ steps.vcpkg.outputs.vcpkg-cmake-config }} -S <src_dir> -B <build_dir>

Include other configuration settings as normal in the cmake command. The vcpkg-action step must have the id vcpkg.

Another directory named vcpkg_cache is created in the workspace root. This directory is used to store the cache files,
and is cached using pat-s/always-upload-cache@v3. The cache key is automatically generated,
but can also be modified using the cache-key argument.

Simple usage example:

- name: vcpkg build
  uses: johnwason/vcpkg-action@v5
  id: vcpkg
  with:
    pkgs: boost-date-time boost-system
    triplet: x64-windows-release
    token: ${{ github.token }}

Simple manifest example:

- name: vcpkg build
  id: vcpkg
  uses: johnwason/vcpkg-action@v5
  with:
    manifest-dir: ${{ github.workspace }} # Set to directory containing vcpkg.json
    triplet: x64-windows-release
    token: ${{ github.token }}

Usage

- uses: johnwason/vcpkg-action@v5
  with:
    # The vcpkg packages to build, separated by spaces. Cannot be used with manifest-dir
    pkgs: ''
    # The vcpkg target triplet to use. This must be set. For windows, 
    # x64-windows-release is recommended if you don't need debug libraries
    triplet: ''
    # Extra arguments to pass to vcpkg command (optional)
    extra-args: ''
    # Additional string to add to cache key. If using a build matrix or building different configurations
    # on the same operating system, be sure to include an additional cache key to separate the caches. (optional)
    cache-key: ''
    # vcpkg revision to checkout
    # A valid git ref; if empty, it defaults to the latest vcpkg stable release.
    revision: ''
    # GitHub token to authenticate API requests. This is necessary to determine vcpkg version to checkout
    # Recommended to use ${{ github.token }}
    token: ''
    # Directory containing vcpkg.json manifest file. Cannot be used with pkgs.
    manifest-dir: ''

Advanced Example

The following is an advanced example with a matrix build. Note that the runner name is included as an additional
cache key.

jobs:
  buildme:
    runs-on: ${{ matrix.config.os }}
    strategy:
      matrix:
        config:
        - os: ubuntu-20.04
          vcpkg_triplet: x64-linux-release
        - os: macos-11
          vcpkg_triplet: x64-osx-release
        - os: windows-2019
          vcpkg_triplet: x64-windows-release
    steps:
      - name: vcpkg build
        uses: johnwason/vcpkg-action@v5
        id: vcpkg
        with:
          pkgs: boost-date-time
          triplet: ${{ matrix.config.vcpkg_triplet }}
          cache-key: ${{ matrix.config.os }}
          revision: master
          token: ${{ github.token }}

[cdcseacave]

Great work. This looks almost as what I need, it lacks only 3 features:

1. support for the vcpkg.json file in the cloned repository containing the list of packages of vcpkg to install (instead of updating the actions script each time)
2. clean temporary/build vcpkg artifacts: often the build runs out of disk space, and removing buildtrees and downloads folders in vcpkg helps a lot; ideally this should be done after each packages is built
3. support for incomplete vcpkg runs: in a matrix build the build stops if any platform build fails, so it should be able to cache whatever it was able to built to that point and resume at next run

[johnwason]

I think you can do most of this using the extra-args option. The input is passed directly to the build command.

[cdcseacave]

cool, but not sure I see how; can you pls add an new use case example with all the above?

[johnwason]

It looks like they changed how vcpkg.json works since the last time I used it. I have to figure out how to build the vcpkg.json file without using cmake integration.

[johnwason]

I have released v4 of the action which now supports vcpkg.json manifest files.

[johnwason]

If you pass the option extra-args: --clean-after-build it will reduce disk space use. We do that in several projects.