What does the syntax @: mean in a Makefile?

Question

I see the following rule in an ancient GNUMakefile.

always:            
    @:

What does it mean?

duplicate of http://stackoverflow.com/q/3477292 -- the ':' does nothing. — ljrk, Apr 01 '16 at 22:56

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Apr 01 '16 at 22:47

3

The '@' tells make to run the command but not echo the results.

The ':' is a shell command that does nothing.

This target appears to be a target that simply does nothing and does not tell you about it.

answered Apr 01 '16 at 22:47

David Bartle

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 01 '16 at 22:42

1

It's used to tell make to execute the command but not to echo it to the terminal.

answered Apr 01 '16 at 22:42

Rob

2 Answers2