Tip: For further examples, see the GitHub repository.
An example of a macro creating a rule.
empty.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): print("This rule does nothing") empty = rule(implementation=_impl)
extension.bzl:
# Loading the rule. The rule doesn't have to be in a separate file. load("//pkg:empty.bzl", "empty") def macro(name, visibility=None): # Creating the rule. empty(name = name, visibility = visibility)
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "macro") macro(name = "myrule")
An example of a macro creating a native rule. Native rules are special rules that are automatically available (without load). They are accessed using the native module.
extension.bzl:
def macro(name, visibility=None): # Creating a native genrule. native.genrule( name = name, outs = [name + ".txt"], cmd = "echo hello > $@", visibility = visibility, )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "macro") macro(name = "myrule")
There's currently no easy way to create a rule that directly uses the action of a native rule. You can work around this using macros:
def _impl(ctx): return struct([...], # When instrumenting this rule, again hide implementation from # users. instrumented_files( source_attributes = ["srcs", "csrcs"], dependency_attributes = ["deps", "cdeps"])) # This rule is private and can only be accessed from the current file. _cc_and_something_else_binary = rule(implementation=_impl) # This macro is public, it's the public interface to instantiate the rule. def cc_and_something_else_binary(name, srcs, deps, csrcs, cdeps): cc_binary_name = "%s.cc_binary" % name native.cc_binary( name = cc_binary_name, srcs = csrcs, deps = cdeps, visibility = ["//visibility:private"] ) _cc_and_something_else_binary( name = name, srcs = srcs, deps = deps, # A label attribute so that this depends on the internal rule. cc_binary = cc_binary_name, # Redundant labels attributes so that the rule with this target name knows # about everything it would know about if cc_and_something_else_binary # were an actual rule instead of a macro. csrcs = csrcs, cdeps = cdeps)
Macros can look at previously instantiated rules. This is done with native.existing_rule, which returns information on a single rule defined in the same BUILD file, eg.,
native.existing_rule("descriptor_proto")
This is useful to avoid instantiating the same rule twice, which is an error. For example, the following macro will simulate a test suite, instantiating tests for diverse flavors of the same test.
extension.bzl:
def system_test(name, test_file, flavor): n = "system_test_%s_%s_test" % (test_file, flavor) if native.existing_rule(n) == None: native.py_test( name = n, srcs = [ "test_driver.py", test_file, ], args = ["--flavor=" + flavor], ) return n def system_test_suite(name, flavors=["default"], test_files=[]): ts = [] for flavor in flavors: for test in test_files: ts.append(system_test(name, test, flavor)) native.test_suite(name = name, tests = ts)
In the following BUILD file, note how (basic_test.py, fast) is emitted for both the smoke test suite and the thorough test suite.
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "system_test_suite") # Run all files through the 'fast' flavor. system_test_suite( name = "smoke", flavors = ["fast"], test_files = glob(["*_test.py"]), ) # Run the basic test through all flavors. system_test_suite( name = "thorough", flavors = [ "fast", "debug", "opt", ], test_files = ["basic_test.py"], )
Macros can collect information from the BUILD file as processed so far. We call this aggregation. The typical example is collecting data from all rules of a certain kind. This is done by calling native.existing_rules, which returns a dictionary representing all rules defined so far in the current BUILD file. The dictionary has entries of the form name => rule, with the values using the same format as native.existing_rule.
def archive_cc_src_files(tag): """Create an archive of all C++ sources that have the given tag.""" all_src = [] for r in native.existing_rules().values(): if tag in r["tags"] and r["kind"] == "cc_library": all_src.append(r["srcs"]) native.genrule(cmd = "zip $@ $^", srcs = all_src, outs = ["out.zip"])
Since native.existing_rules constructs a potentially large dictionary, you should avoid calling it repeatedly within BUILD file.
Minimalist example of a rule that does nothing. If you build it, the target will succeed (with no generated file).
empty.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # You may use print for debugging. print("This rule does nothing") empty = rule(implementation=_impl)
BUILD:
load("//pkg:empty.bzl", "empty") empty(name = "nothing")
Example of a rule that shows how to declare attributes and access them.
printer.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # You may use print for debugging. print("Rule name = %s, package = %s" % (ctx.label.name, ctx.label.package)) # This prints the labels of the deps attribute. print("There are %d deps" % len(ctx.attr.deps)) for i in ctx.attr.deps: print("- %s" % i.label) # A label can represent any number of files (possibly 0). print(" files = %s" % [f.path for f in i.files]) printer = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ # Do not declare "name": It is added automatically. "number": attr.int(default = 1), "deps": attr.label_list(allow_files=True), })
BUILD:
load("//pkg:printer.bzl", "printer") printer( name = "nothing", deps = [ "BUILD", ":other", ], ) printer(name = "other")
If you execute this file, some information is printed as a warning by the rule. No file is generated.
Example of a rule that runs a shell command on an input file specified by the user. The output has the same name as the rule, with a .size suffix.
While convenient, Shell commands should be used carefully. Generating the command-line can lead to escaping and injection issues. It can also create portability problems. It is often better to declare a binary target in a BUILD file and execute it.
See the example executing a binary.
size.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): output = ctx.outputs.out input = ctx.file.file # The command may only access files declared in inputs. ctx.actions.run_shell( inputs=[input], outputs=[output], progress_message="Getting size of %s" % input.short_path, command="stat -L -c%%s %s > %s" % (input.path, output.path)) size = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={"file": attr.label(mandatory=True, allow_files=True, single_file=True)}, outputs={"out": "%{name}.size"}, )
foo.txt:
Hello
BUILD:
load("//pkg:size.bzl", "size") size( name = "foo_size", file = "foo.txt", )
Example of a rule that writes a string to a file.
file.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): output = ctx.outputs.out ctx.file_action(output=output, content=ctx.attr.content) file = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={"content": attr.string()}, outputs={"out": "%{name}.txt"}, )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:file.bzl", "file") file( name = "hello", content = "Hello world", )
This rule executes an existing binary. In this particular example, the binary is a tool that merges files. During the analysis phase, we cannot access any arbitrary label: the dependency must have been previously declared. To do so, the rule needs a label attribute. In this example, we will give the label a default value and make it private (so that it is not visible to end users). Keeping the label private can simplify maintenance, since you can easily change the arguments and flags you pass to the tool.
execute.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # The list of arguments we pass to the script. args = [ctx.outputs.out.path] + [f.path for f in ctx.files.srcs] # Action to call the script. ctx.actions.run( inputs=ctx.files.srcs, outputs=[ctx.outputs.out], arguments=args, progress_message="Merging into %s" % ctx.outputs.out.short_path, executable=ctx.executable._merge_tool) concat = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "srcs": attr.label_list(allow_files=True), "out": attr.output(mandatory=True), "_merge_tool": attr.label(executable=True, cfg="host", allow_files=True, default=Label("//pkg:merge")) } )
Any executable target can be used. In this example, we will use a sh_binary rule that concatenates all the inputs.
BUILD:
load("execute", "concat")
concat(
name = "sh",
srcs = [
"header.html",
"body.html",
"footer.html",
],
out = "page.html",
)
# This target is used by the shell rule.
sh_binary(
name = "merge",
srcs = ["merge.sh"],
)
merge.sh:
#!/bin/sh out=$1 shift cat "$@" > $out
header.html:
<html><body>
body.html:
content
footer.html:
</body></html>
This rule has a mandatory binary attribute. It is a label that can refer only to executable rules or files.
execute.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # ctx.actions.declare_file is used for temporary files. f = ctx.actions.declare_file(ctx.configuration.bin_dir, "hello") # As with outputs, each time you declare a file, # you need an action to generate it. ctx.actions.write(output=f, content=ctx.attr.input_content) ctx.actions.run( inputs=[f], outputs=[ctx.outputs.out], executable=ctx.executable.binary, progress_message="Executing %s" % ctx.executable.binary.short_path, arguments=[ f.path, ctx.outputs.out.path, # Access the output file using # ctx.outputs.<attribute name> ] ) execute = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "binary": attr.label(cfg="host", mandatory=True, allow_files=True, executable=True), "input_content": attr.string(), "out": attr.output(mandatory=True), }, )
a.sh:
#!/bin/bash tr 'a-z' 'A-Z' < $1 > $2
BUILD:
load("//pkg:execute.bzl", "execute") execute( name = "e", input_content = "some text", binary = "a.sh", out = "foo", )
execute.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): executable = ctx.outputs.executable command = ctx.attr.command # Expand the label in the command string to a runfiles-relative path. # The second arg is the list of labels that may be expanded. command = ctx.expand_location(command, ctx.attr.data) # Create the output executable file with command as its content. ctx.file_action( output=executable, content=command, executable=True) return [DefaultInfo( # Create runfiles from the files specified in the data attribute. # The shell executable - the output of this rule - can use them at # runtime. It is also possible to define data_runfiles and # default_runfiles. However if runfiles is specified it's not possible to # define the above ones since runfiles sets them both. # Remember, that the struct returned by the implementation function needs # to have a field named "runfiles" in order to create the actual runfiles # symlink tree. runfiles=ctx.runfiles(files=ctx.files.data) )] execute = rule( implementation=_impl, executable=True, attrs={ "command": attr.string(), "data": attr.label_list(cfg="data", allow_files=True), }, )
data.txt:
Hello World!
BUILD:
load("//pkg:execute.bzl", "execute") execute( name = "e", # The location will be expanded to "pkg/data.txt", and it will reference # the data.txt file in runfiles when this target is invoked as # "bazel run //pkg:e". command = "cat $(location :data.txt)", data = [":data.txt"] )
Bazel needs to know about all dependencies before doing the analysis phase and calling the implementation function. Dependencies can be computed based on the rule attributes: to do so, use a function as the default value of an attribute (the attribute must be private and have type label or list of labels). The parameters of this function must correspond to the attributes that are accessed in the function body.
The example below computes the md5 sum of a file. The file can be preprocessed using a filter. The exact dependencies depend on the filter chosen by the user.
hash.bzl:
_filters = { "comments": Label("//pkg:comments"), "spaces": Label("//pkg:spaces"), "none": None, } def _get_filter(filter): # requires attribute "filter" # Return the value for the attribute "_filter_bin" # It can be a label or None. return _filters[filter] def _impl(ctx): src = ctx.file.src if not ctx.attr._filter_bin: # Skip the processing processed = src else: processed = ctx.actions.declare_file(ctx.label.name + "_processed") # Run the selected binary ctx.actions.run( outputs = [processed], inputs = [ctx.file.src], progress_message="Apply filter '%s'" % ctx.attr.filter, arguments = [ctx.file.src.path, processed.path], executable = ctx.executable._filter_bin) # Compute the hash out = ctx.outputs.text ctx.actions.run( outputs = [out], inputs = [processed], command = "md5sum < %s > %s" % (processed.path, out.path)) md5_sum = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "filter": attr.string(values=_filters.keys(), default="none"), "src": attr.label(mandatory=True, single_file=True, allow_files=True), "_filter_bin": attr.label(default=_get_filter, executable=True), }, outputs = {"text": "%{name}.txt"})
BUILD:
load("//pkg:hash.bzl", "md5_sum") md5_sum( name = "hash", src = "hello.txt", filter = "spaces", ) sh_binary( name = "comments", srcs = ["comments.sh"], ) sh_binary( name = "spaces", srcs = ["spaces.sh"], )
hello.txt:
Hello World!
comments.sh:
#!/bin/bash grep -v '^ *#' $1 > $2 # Remove lines with only a Python-style comment
spaces.sh:
#!/bin/bash tr -d ' ' < $1 > $2 # Remove spaces
In this example, rules have a number attribute. Each rule adds its number with the numbers of its transitive dependencies, and write the result in a file. This shows how to transfer information from a dependency to its dependents.
sum.bzl:
NumberInfo = provider() def _impl(ctx): result = ctx.attr.number for dep in ctx.attr.deps: result += dep[NumberInfo].number ctx.file_action(output=ctx.outputs.out, content=str(result)) # Return the provider with result, visible to other rules. return [NumberInfo(number=result)] sum = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "number": attr.int(default=1), # All deps must provide all listed providers. "deps": attr.label_list(providers=[NumberInfo]), }, outputs = {"out": "%{name}.sum"} )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:sum.bzl", "sum") sum( name = "n", deps = ["n2", "n5"], ) sum( name = "n2", number = 2, ) sum( name = "n5", number = 5, )
This is a similar example, but dependencies may not provide a number.
sum.bzl:
NumberInfo = provider() def _impl(ctx): result = ctx.attr.number for dep in ctx.attr.deps: if NumberInfo in dep: result += dep[NumberInfo].number ctx.file_action(output=ctx.outputs.out, content=str(result)) # Return the provider with result, visible to other rules. return [NumberInfo(number=result)] sum = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "number": attr.int(default=1), "deps": attr.label_list(), }, outputs = {"out": "%{name}.sum"} )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:sum.bzl", "sum") sum( name = "n", deps = ["n2", "n5"], ) sum( name = "n2", number = 2, ) sum( name = "n5", number = 5, )
This example shows how to create a default executable output.
extension.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): ctx.file_action( # Access the executable output file using ctx.outputs.executable. output=ctx.outputs.executable, content="#!/bin/bash\necho Hello!", executable=True ) # The executable output is added automatically to this target. executable_rule = rule( implementation=_impl, executable=True )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "executable_rule") executable_rule(name = "my_rule")
This example shows how to create default outputs for a rule.
extension.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): ctx.file_action( # Access the default outputs using ctx.outputs.<output name>. output=ctx.outputs.my_output, content="Hello World!" ) # The default outputs are added automatically to this target. rule_with_outputs = rule( implementation=_impl, outputs = { # %{name} is substituted with the rule's name "my_output": "%{name}.txt" } )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "rule_with_outputs") rule_with_outputs(name = "my_rule")
This example shows how to create custom (user defined) outputs for a rule. This rule takes a list of output file name templates from the user and creates each of them containing a “Hello World!” message.
extension.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # Access the custom outputs using ctx.outputs.<attribute name>. for output in ctx.outputs.outs: ctx.file_action( output=output, content="Hello World!" ) # The custom outputs are added automatically to this target. rule_with_outputs = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "outs": attr.output_list() } )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "rule_with_outputs") rule_with_outputs( name = "my_rule", outs = ["my_output.txt"] )
This example shows how to create master rules to bind other rules together. The code below uses genrules for simplicity, but this technique is more useful with other rules. For example, if you need to compile C++ files, you can reuse cc_library.
extension.bzl:
def _impl(ctx): # Aggregate the output files from the depending rules files = depset() files += ctx.attr.dep_rule_1.files files += ctx.attr.dep_rule_2.files return [DefaultInfo(files=files)] # This rule binds the depending rules together master_rule = rule( implementation=_impl, attrs={ "dep_rule_1": attr.label(), "dep_rule_2": attr.label() } ) def macro(name, cmd, input): # Create the depending rules name_1 = name + "_dep_1" name_2 = name + "_dep_2" native.genrule( name = name_1, cmd = cmd, outs = [name_1 + ".txt"] ) native.genrule( name = name_2, cmd = "echo " + input + " >$@", outs = [name_2 + ".txt"] ) # Create the master rule master_rule( name = name, dep_rule_1 = ":" + name_1, dep_rule_2 = ":" + name_2 )
BUILD:
load("//pkg:extension.bzl", "macro") # This creates the target :my_rule macro( name = "my_rule", cmd = "echo something > $@", input = "Hello World" )
Here are some examples on how to debug macros and rules using print.
debug.bzl:
print("print something when the module is loaded") def _impl(ctx): print("print something when the rule implementation is executed") print(type("abc")) # prints string, the type of "abc" print(dir(ctx)) # prints all the fields and methods of ctx print(dir(ctx.attr)) # prints all the attributes of the rule # prints the objects each separated with new line print("object1", "object2", sep="\n") debug = rule(implementation=_impl)
BUILD:
load("//pkg:debug.bzl", "debug") debug( name = "printing_rule" )