make error from Makefile generated from premake

Question

I'm getting the following output from the console when trying to run make.

==== Building Project (debug) ====
process_begin: CreateProcess(NULL, echo Creating obj/Debug, ...) failed.
make (e=2): The system cannot find the file specified.
make[1]: *** [Project.make:90: obj/Debug] Error 2
make: *** [Makefile:30: Project] Error 2

The makefile is generated using premake and I have no experience with makefiles. the make file looks like this:

# Alternative GNU Make workspace makefile autogenerated by Premake

ifndef config
  config=debug
endif

ifndef verbose
  SILENT = @
endif

ifeq ($(config),debug)
  Project_config = debug

else ifeq ($(config),release)
  Project_config = release

else
  $(error "invalid configuration $(config)")
endif

PROJECTS := Project

.PHONY: all clean help $(PROJECTS) 

all: $(PROJECTS)

Project:
ifneq (,$(Project_config))
    @echo "==== Building Project ($(Project_config)) ===="
    @${MAKE} --no-print-directory -C . -f Project.make config=$(Project_config)
endif

clean:
    @${MAKE} --no-print-directory -C . -f Project.make clean

help:
    @echo "Usage: make [config=name] [target]"
    @echo ""
    @echo "CONFIGURATIONS:"
    @echo "  debug"
    @echo "  release"
    @echo ""
    @echo "TARGETS:"
    @echo "   all (default)"
    @echo "   clean"
    @echo "   Project"
    @echo ""
    @echo "For more information, see https://github.com/premake/premake-core/wiki"

and the premake5.lua file is this:

workspace "Workspace"  
    configurations { "Debug", "Release" } 

project "Project" 
    kind "ConsoleApp"   
    language "C++"   
    targetdir "bin/%{cfg.buildcfg}" 
    files { "**.h", "**.cpp" } 
    filter "configurations:Debug"
        defines { "DEBUG" }  
        symbols "On" 
    filter "configurations:Release"  
        defines { "NDEBUG" }    
        optimize "On"

Any ideas on what might be wrong? Thanks in advance.

Edit: the Project.make file looks like this:

# Alternative GNU Make project makefile autogenerated by Premake

ifndef config
  config=debug
endif

ifndef verbose
  SILENT = @
endif

.PHONY: clean prebuild

SHELLTYPE := posix
ifeq (.exe,$(findstring .exe,$(ComSpec)))
    SHELLTYPE := msdos
endif

# Configurations
# #############################################

RESCOMP = windres
INCLUDES +=
FORCE_INCLUDE +=
ALL_CPPFLAGS += $(CPPFLAGS) -MMD -MP $(DEFINES) $(INCLUDES)
ALL_RESFLAGS += $(RESFLAGS) $(DEFINES) $(INCLUDES)
LIBS +=
LDDEPS +=
LINKCMD = $(CXX) -o "$@" $(OBJECTS) $(RESOURCES) $(ALL_LDFLAGS) $(LIBS)
define PREBUILDCMDS
endef
define PRELINKCMDS
endef
define POSTBUILDCMDS
endef

ifeq ($(config),debug)
TARGETDIR = bin/Debug
TARGET = $(TARGETDIR)/Project.exe
OBJDIR = obj/Debug
DEFINES += -DDEBUG
ALL_CFLAGS += $(CFLAGS) $(ALL_CPPFLAGS) -g
ALL_CXXFLAGS += $(CXXFLAGS) $(ALL_CPPFLAGS) -g
ALL_LDFLAGS += $(LDFLAGS)

else ifeq ($(config),release)
TARGETDIR = bin/Release
TARGET = $(TARGETDIR)/Project.exe
OBJDIR = obj/Release
DEFINES += -DNDEBUG
ALL_CFLAGS += $(CFLAGS) $(ALL_CPPFLAGS) -O2
ALL_CXXFLAGS += $(CXXFLAGS) $(ALL_CPPFLAGS) -O2
ALL_LDFLAGS += $(LDFLAGS) -s

endif

# Per File Configurations
# #############################################


# File sets
# #############################################

GENERATED :=
OBJECTS :=

GENERATED += $(OBJDIR)/main.o
OBJECTS += $(OBJDIR)/main.o

# Rules
# #############################################

all: $(TARGET)
    @:

$(TARGET): $(GENERATED) $(OBJECTS) $(LDDEPS) | $(TARGETDIR)
    $(PRELINKCMDS)
    @echo Linking Project
    $(SILENT) $(LINKCMD)
    $(POSTBUILDCMDS)

$(TARGETDIR):
    @echo Creating $(TARGETDIR)
ifeq (posix,$(SHELLTYPE))
    $(SILENT) mkdir -p $(TARGETDIR)
else
    $(SILENT) mkdir $(subst /,\\,$(TARGETDIR))
endif

$(OBJDIR):
    @echo Creating $(OBJDIR)
ifeq (posix,$(SHELLTYPE))
    $(SILENT) mkdir -p $(OBJDIR)
else
    $(SILENT) mkdir $(subst /,\\,$(OBJDIR))
endif

clean:
    @echo Cleaning Project
ifeq (posix,$(SHELLTYPE))
    $(SILENT) rm -f  $(TARGET)
    $(SILENT) rm -rf $(GENERATED)
    $(SILENT) rm -rf $(OBJDIR)
else
    $(SILENT) if exist $(subst /,\\,$(TARGET)) del $(subst /,\\,$(TARGET))
    $(SILENT) if exist $(subst /,\\,$(GENERATED)) rmdir /s /q $(subst /,\\,$(GENERATED))
    $(SILENT) if exist $(subst /,\\,$(OBJDIR)) rmdir /s /q $(subst /,\\,$(OBJDIR))
endif

prebuild: | $(OBJDIR)
    $(PREBUILDCMDS)

ifneq (,$(PCH))
$(OBJECTS): $(GCH) | $(PCH_PLACEHOLDER)
$(GCH): $(PCH) | prebuild
    @echo $(notdir $<)
    $(SILENT) $(CXX) -x c++-header $(ALL_CXXFLAGS) -o "$@" -MF "$(@:%.gch=%.d)" -c "$<"
$(PCH_PLACEHOLDER): $(GCH) | $(OBJDIR)
ifeq (posix,$(SHELLTYPE))
    $(SILENT) touch "$@"
else
    $(SILENT) echo $null >> "$@"
endif
else
$(OBJECTS): | prebuild
endif


# File Rules
# #############################################

$(OBJDIR)/main.o: main.cpp
    @echo $(notdir $<)
    $(SILENT) $(CXX) $(ALL_CXXFLAGS) $(FORCE_INCLUDE) -o "$@" -MF "$(@:%.o=%.d)" -c "$<"

-include $(OBJECTS:%.o=%.d)
ifneq (,$(PCH))
  -include $(PCH_PLACEHOLDER).d
endif

Answer 1

The error message appears to be associated with this rule from Project.make ...

$(OBJDIR):
    @echo Creating $(OBJDIR)
ifeq (posix,$(SHELLTYPE))
    $(SILENT) mkdir -p $(OBJDIR)
else
    $(SILENT) mkdir $(subst /,\\,$(OBJDIR))
endif

... and I infer from the appearance of CreateProcess in the diagnbostic message that you are trying to perform this build on Windows.

The issue is a failure to create a subdirectory obj/Debug of the working directory. Sometimes such diagnostics are misleading as to the specific nature of the problem, but here are some possibilities:

• the Windows branch of the implicated rule appears to be relying on "command extensions" to be enabled in order to create two directories with one mkdir command. They are enabled by default, but they can be disabled either globally or on a per-processes basis. If they are disabled at least for the cmd.exe process in which you are performing your build then the failure you describe is likely. In that case, you could probably work around that particular issue by manually creating the obj directory, but you might face other, similar ones.

• Alternatively, you may simply not be authorized to write in the project folder.