Cancel reconfigure and restart it

[JVApen]

Brief Issue Summary

We have a project where cmake configure takes quite some time to complete (magnitude of minutes) In such a project, the automatic reconfigure when you change a CMakeLists.txt is causing quite a slowdown in the workflow. The flow:

• Make a change: triggers the reconfigure
• Fix your type: reconfigure can't start until the previous one is fixed
• Wait until reconfigure is done
• Start the configuration again (happens automatically)
• Wait until configure is done

It would be nice if the previous cmake process (tree) can be canceled whenever a configure is requested. (Either implicitly by changing the CMakeLists.txt or explicitly pressing the "clear cache and configure")

CMake Tools Diagnostics

Debug Log

Additional Information

No response

[gcampbell-msft]

@JVApen If I'm understanding your issue correctly, I think the easiest way to fix this is to disable the automatic configure using the cmake.configureOnEdit setting.

[JVApen]

I'm aware of that option. Though earlier today I was testing with Visual Studio and that one does that cancel. Hence I felt it was worth logging as this can save quite some unneeded computing power on larger projects.

[Amy-Li03]

Hi @JVApen thanks for reporting here! I tried cmake.configureOnEdit setting in VS Code, when setting it to false, automatic reconfigure is not starting if you change a CMakeLists.txt. We are very happy your issue was resolved. Thanks.

[JVApen]

@Amy-Li03 I can work around my issue. I don't consider it solved as I have to do manual actions to trigger the configure.

[Amy-Li03]

@JVApen In that case, it sounds like a feature request!

[gcampbell-msft]

I believe that it should be able to be cancelled, often times I have to click the notifications button in the bottom bar of the screen in order to show the ability to cancel, can you try this? @JVApen Thanks

[JVApen]

If I press the cancel button, it indeed cancels, after which I have to press the configure button to start it again.

I think you are correct that all blocks are there and are manually triggerable. The thing I'm asking is that this happens automatically.

[gcampbell-msft]

@JVApen I'm not sure I understand.

What exactly isn't working for you? I believe there was confirmation that the cmake.configureOnEdit setting makes it so that the automatic configuration doesn't happen, and I think you're saying that the ability to cancel is there as well. What is it that you're saying is missing?

[gcampbell-msft]

@JVApen OH, are you saying that, in the event that a user has the cmake.configureOnEdit enabled, slightly modify the behavior of the automatic configure to kill the currently running configure and start again?

Currently I believe the most recent configure will fail due to there being an already running configure, but you're saying that it'd be nice, especially in the automatic configure after a saving of the CMakeLists.txt file, to instead kill the current one and start the new one?

[JVApen]

Yes, we are aligned. That's exactly what I'm saying

[gcampbell-msft]

To be clear, it still works as expected if you manually cancel and then run configure right?

[JVApen]

Yes, it does