[meta-freescale] Qt build in fsl yocto (dora) not making use of environment variables

[Stephen Munnings]

Hi All,

I have set up a Qt application for inclusion in a Yocto build.
I have used some environment variables for passing version information into the build (using the .pro file) and qmake
When I set the environment variables (GDBVERSIONMAJOR, etc.) on the host side, and then run Qt Creator, I get the correct compiled output.
This means (to me) that I have correctly formed the .pro file, and all the remaining dependencies.
When I set the environment variables before running the yocto build, I do not get the environment variables picked up.

I have added the variables to the bitbake whitelist so:
export BB_ENV_EXTRAWHITE="$BB_ENV_EXTRAWHITE GDBTYPE GDBRELEASE GDBVERSIONMAJOR GDBVERSIONMINOR GDBVERSIONBUILD"

The variables are set before the bitbake command is issued (as evidenced by some echo commands in the script I am running):
Listing GDBTYPE, GDBRELEASE, GDBVERSIONMAJOR, GDBVERSIONMINOR, GDBVERSIONBUILD
[branch]
[sgm.gdbMultiPacket]
[0]
[99]
[00012]

The .pro file has the following lines:
<snip>
# for version control
VERSION_MAJOR = $(GDBVERSIONMAJOR)
VERSION_MINOR = $(GDBVERSIONMINOR)
VERSION_BUILD = $(GDBVERSIONBUILD)

# for testing
#message(GDB Version values: $$(GDBVERSIONMAJOR) $$(GDBVERSIONMINOR) $$(GDBVERSIONBUILD))
#message(GDB Version values: $(GDBVERSIONMAJOR) $(GDBVERSIONMINOR) $(GDBVERSIONBUILD))
message(GDB Version values (internal): $${VERSION_MAJOR} $${VERSION_MINOR} $${VERSION_BUILD})
#message(Current directory: $(PWD))
#message(Current directory: $$(PWD))


# This section takes the release Major, Minor, and Build numbers and adds them to command line Defines for the version.h file to use
GDB_VERSION = -DGDB_VERSION_MAJOR=$${VERSION_MAJOR} -DGDB_VERSION_MINOR=$${VERSION_MINOR} -DGDB_VERSION_BUILD=$${VERSION_BUILD} -DCURR_DIR=$$(PWD)
QMAKE_CFLAGS+=$${GDB_VERSION}
QMAKE_CFLAGS_DEBUG+=$${GDB_VERSION}
QMAKE_CXXFLAGS+=$${GDB_VERSION}
</snip>

When I run the bitbake, the command lines used to do the compiles have the following piece:
-DGDB_VERSION_MAJOR= -DGDB_VERSION_MINOR= -DGDB_VERSION_BUILD= -DCURR_DIR=/home/user/<full current working dir>.

I also get the following line in the logs:
Project MESSAGE: GDB Version values (internal):   
(this was generated by the message line in the .pro file)

It appears that the PWD environment variable is being picked up and used, but for some strange reason, the GDBVERSIONxxx variables are either not being picked up, or are missing in the make phase of the processing.
Trying with $$(GDBVERSIONxxx) - picking up the variables in the qmake phase - gives the same results

Does anybody have any clues on what might be happening here?

Why are the environment variables not being used?

-- 
Stephen Munnings 
Sr. Design Engineer | 519.594.0976 
www.nuvation.com