[question] pkg_config generator with layout generates invalid .pc file

I’m quite new to conan and trying to integrate it into our current build flow (not from scratch).

We use cmake which finds its dependencies with pkg_config (pkg_search_module). So I set up a test of two libs one requiring another, LibA depends on LibB. So when building LibA the pkg_config generator succesfully generates the .pc files

prefix=/home/.conan/data/libB/1.0.0_conan/company/testing/package/abd3ca9581f5ec3d6672fa2ee8818b1f09dbb082
libdir=${prefix}/lib
includedir=${prefix}/include

Name: libB-lib
Description: Generic purpose library for CPP development
Version: 1.0.0_conan
Libs: -L"${libdir}" -lcomet  -lcomet-tests  -Wl,-rpath,"${libdir}"
Cflags: -I"${includedir}"

So far so good, now I wanted to switch to layouts and to use the editable feature.

I changed the conanfile of libB from

  def build(self):
        cmake = CMake(self)
        cmake.verbose = True
        cmake.definitions["COMPILE_INTEGRATION_TESTS"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["GENERATE_CODE_COVERAGE"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["RUN_TESTS"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX"] = "deploy"
        cmake.configure(build_folder="build", source_folder=".")
        cmake.build()
        cmake.install()

    def package(self):
        self.copy("*", src="build/deploy")

    def package_info(self):
        self.cpp_info.libs = tools.collect_libs(self)

to

def layout(self):
        # ###### FOLDERS
        self.folders.build = "build"

        # We want to have the toolchains in the build folder so we can always pass
        # `-DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=generators/conan_toolchain.cmake` to CMake
        self.folders.generators = os.path.join(self.folders.build, "generators")

        # In case we use "conan package" we declare an output directory
        self.folders.package = "deploy"

        # ###### INFOS
        self.cpp.source.includedirs = ["src"] # Relative to ["."] (self.folders.source)
        self.cpp.build.libdirs = ["deploy/lib"]  # Relative to (self.folders.build)

    def build(self):
        cmake = CMake(self)
        cmake.verbose = True
        cmake.definitions["COMPILE_INTEGRATION_TESTS"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["GENERATE_CODE_COVERAGE"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["RUN_TESTS"] = "OFF"
        cmake.definitions["CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX"] = "deploy"
        cmake.configure()
        cmake.build()
        cmake.install()

    def package(self):
        LayoutPackager(self).package()

    #def package_info(self):
    #    self.cpp_info.libs = tools.collect_libs(self)

Now the pkg generator of LibA creates the following .pc file

prefix=/home/.conan/data/libB/1.0.0_conan/company/testing/package/abd3ca9581f5ec3d6672fa2ee8818b1f09dbb082

Name: libB-lib
Description: Conan package: libB
Version: None
Libs: 
Cflags: 

What am I doing wrong? What makes it hard for me to track down the problem is, that I don’t know where actually the information comes from to generate the .pc file. I can not find anything in the .conan folder.

• [x ] I’ve read the CONTRIBUTING guide.

[joastoe]

Of course you’re right @memsharded, although the issue is quite related. I opened a new issue here: Indirect dependencies missing when using PkgConfigDeps This issue can be closed, indeed. Thanks!

[memsharded]

@joastoe If the issue above was solved, then maybe we can close this issue, and open your last comment as a new one? Seems not the same issue.

Please also complete, just in case, are libA->libB->libC regular requires? No build_requires or any other different type of requirement?