makefile

Best Practices

• Declare .PHONY targets for non-file targets
• Include a help target that lists available targets
• Use variables for configurable values at the top
• Order targets logically (help first, then build, test, clean)
• Use @ prefix for commands that should not be echoed
• Include a clean target for removing build artifacts
• Use .DEFAULT_GOAL to set the default target
• Use tabs for recipe indentation (not spaces)
• Variable names should be UPPER_CASE
• Use ?= for overridable defaults (APP_NAME ?= myapp)
• Use $(MAKE) for recursive make calls instead of bare make

Documentation Sources