We have a rather large VS 2010 solution that contains several C++ projects depending on each other. Most of the projects create static libraries that are linked in the final build steps.
I now wonder if there is a way to let the VS 2010 build system figure out include and library directories automatically. At the moment, I have to add the include directory of any lib I would like to use in the Additional include directories project setting. Is there a better solution to manage static library dependencies without having to specify all those directories manually? As Visual Studio already knows about the dependency between projects, why can’t it determine those paths by itself?
The “better way” is to organize your static libraries better so that finding your headers is easier. VS cannot go out and randomly find the right headers for you. If it were to even try, there’s too great a risk of multiple projects having headers of the same name (in different locations, of course), and the compiler using the wrong one.