How do I use a dynamically load library in a command line utility?

Question

Possible Duplicate:
using frameworks in a command line tool

Hey,

I've written a command line 'foundation tool' that uses the RegexKit.framework extensively. Everything works when run in Xcode but if I compile the release build and try to run it in Terminal I get the following error:

dyld: Library not loaded: @executable_path/../Frameworks/RegexKit.framework/Versions/A/RegexKit

Closer inspection reveals that the RegexKit.framework bundle is sat in the same directory as my executable file... I've done some research and I'm thinking that as command line tools don't use application bundles there's no where for Xcode to copy the framework to. So I'm guessing that I need to compile the framework as a static library and include it in my code... am I right? If so, how do I go about doing this? Is there anything I can do in Terminal to point to the framework externally?

Any help would be very greatly received, I've been banging my head against this for a few days now!

Thanks in advance,

Tom

Answer 1

So... What I did in the end was to recompile the framework with a different Installation Directory (in the Deployment section, under the Build tab in the Target's Info) - I set it to just @executable_path.

I then compiled the framework and replaced the one in my Utilitie's project, I also changed the Copy Files build phase to copy the framework to "Executables" rather than Frameworks.

The good news is that this fixes my original problem - but obviously the framework has to be in the same directory as the executable.

So this got me unstuck but I'd still love to know how to compile RegexKit.framework statically!

Answer 2

You shouldn't be installing the framework in the Executable folder of your bundle. It should be in the Frameworks folder. You need a Copy Files phase in your project that copies the framework and you need to set the Destination to "Frameworks". "Copy only when installing" should be unchecked.

When testing this, you should make sure you perform a clean build. I typically delete the build folder rather than using Xcode's Clean menu option since it's quicker and more comprehensive.

Also: you cannot statically link to a framework. If you want to statically link to something, it needs to be a static library so in this case, you'd need to hack about with RegexKit. Bear in mind that static libraries cannot contain resources, whereas Frameworks, being bundles, can.