Document that JSON_Diagnostics CMake option doesn't apply to pre-installed packages

Closes #3106. set(JSON_Diagnostics ON) before find_package() has no
effect on a package built and installed elsewhere (Homebrew, vcpkg, a
system package, etc.) -- the compile definition is baked into the
exported nlohmann_jsonTargets.cmake at install time and the generated
config script never re-reads that variable. Verified empirically
against the real Homebrew-installed 3.12.0 package: the exported
target carries a fixed $<$<BOOL:OFF>:JSON_DIAGNOSTICS=1>, and the
suggested set(JSON_Diagnostics ON) snippet produces no change in
exception output.

Documents the actual working fix (overriding the imported target's
INTERFACE_COMPILE_DEFINITIONS property after find_package()) and the
multi-target "JSON_DIAGNOSTICS redefined" pitfall reported earlier in
the issue thread.

Signed-off-by: Niels Lohmann <mail@nlohmann.me>
Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
This commit is contained in:
Niels Lohmann
2026-07-11 18:55:18 +02:00
parent ca76c37650
commit 4dec78e37d
2 changed files with 27 additions and 1 deletions
@@ -38,7 +38,8 @@ When the macro is not defined, the library will define it to its default value.
Diagnostic messages can also be controlled with the CMake option Diagnostic messages can also be controlled with the CMake option
[`JSON_Diagnostics`](../../integration/cmake.md#json_diagnostics) (`OFF` by default) [`JSON_Diagnostics`](../../integration/cmake.md#json_diagnostics) (`OFF` by default)
which defines `JSON_DIAGNOSTICS` accordingly. which defines `JSON_DIAGNOSTICS` accordingly. Note this only applies when building the
library from source — see the pre-installed-package caveat on that page.
## Examples ## Examples
+25
View File
@@ -135,6 +135,31 @@ Enable CI build targets. The exact targets are used during the several CI steps
Enable [extended diagnostic messages](../home/exceptions.md#extended-diagnostic-messages) by defining macro [`JSON_DIAGNOSTICS`](../api/macros/json_diagnostics.md). This option is `OFF` by default. Enable [extended diagnostic messages](../home/exceptions.md#extended-diagnostic-messages) by defining macro [`JSON_DIAGNOSTICS`](../api/macros/json_diagnostics.md). This option is `OFF` by default.
!!! warning "Does not apply to a pre-installed package"
This option only takes effect when building nlohmann/json from source as part of your own
CMake project (e.g. via [`FetchContent`](#fetchcontent) or [`add_subdirectory`](#external)).
It has **no effect** on a package that was already built and installed elsewhere (Homebrew,
vcpkg, a system package, etc.) — the resulting compile definition is baked into the exported
`nlohmann_jsonTargets.cmake` at install time, and `set(JSON_Diagnostics ON)` before
`find_package()` does not change it (verified against the Homebrew-installed package: the
exported target still carries a fixed `$<$<BOOL:OFF>:JSON_DIAGNOSTICS=1>`, regardless of any
variable set in the consuming project).
To enable extended diagnostics for a pre-installed package, override the imported target's
property directly after `find_package()`:
```cmake
find_package(nlohmann_json REQUIRED)
set_target_properties(nlohmann_json::nlohmann_json PROPERTIES
INTERFACE_COMPILE_DEFINITIONS "JSON_DIAGNOSTICS=1")
```
This only works cleanly when your project is the sole consumer of that imported target. If
nlohmann_json is pulled in from more than one place in your dependency graph with different
`JSON_DIAGNOSTICS` values, you may see a `"JSON_DIAGNOSTICS" redefined` compiler error, since
conflicting `-D` flags can end up on the same compile command line.
### `JSON_Diagnostic_Positions` ### `JSON_Diagnostic_Positions`
Enable position diagnostics by defining macro [`JSON_DIAGNOSTIC_POSITIONS`](../api/macros/json_diagnostic_positions.md). This option is `OFF` by default. Enable position diagnostics by defining macro [`JSON_DIAGNOSTIC_POSITIONS`](../api/macros/json_diagnostic_positions.md). This option is `OFF` by default.