Define a Scala or Java Library Target

Problem

You need to define a new Scala or Java library target that other projects can use as a dependency.

Note: If you need to define a new Scala or Java binary target, see Define a JVM Executable

Solution

Add a scala_library or java_library target to a BUILD file in the appropriate directory. A scala_library or java_library target will enable you to compile the library using Pants' compile goal. Here's an example:

$ ./pants compile myproject/src/main/scala
# Assuming there's a BUILD file with a scala_library definition named "scala" in that location

Discussion

A scala_library or java_library target should specify the following:

• A name for the library. This may be something like just scala if you have only one scala_library target in a project or something more specific like client-lib.
• Either a single source file or a list of sources. If you're including just a few files, you should consider specifying a sources list, e.g. sources=['File1.scala', 'File2.scala']; if you're including, you may want to specify a globs or rglobs, e.g. sources=globs('*.scala'). More info can be found in Use globs and rglobs to Group Files. The example further down use an rglobs definition.
• A list of dependencies (optional). More info on dependencies can be found in Add a Dependency on Another Target.

Here's an example target definition:

# myproject/src/main/scala/BUILD
scala_library(name='scala',
  sources=globs('*.scala'),
  dependencies=[
    'client-lib',
    'analytics-lib',
    'static/resources/json:config',
  ],
)

That library can then be compiled (perhaps for debugging purposes):

$ ./pants compile myproject/src/main/scala

You can combine library targets together into a single target using a target alias. More info can be found in Create an Alias for a Target.

See Also

• Compile a Library Target
• Define a JVM Executable
• Create a Bundled zip or Other Archive
• Create an Alias for a Target