addSystemCommand cannot find exe available on PATH?

[Sze]

I think you can use findProgram, from Build System Tricks :

@tensorush

7) System tool tricks

// Check if a system tool exists
const echo_program = try b.findProgram(&.{"echo"}, &.{"check/this/path/", "and/this/one"});

// Get string output from a system tool
const string = b.run(&.{echo_program, "hello/world"});
const some_path = b.fmt("/my/other/path/{s}", .{string});

// Specify a system command as a build dependency
//    Note: currently will not run as nothing depends on it!
const sys_command_build_dependency = b.addSystemCommand(&.{ echo_program, "I'm generating some text!" });

// Add a dependency on this command that takes the command's stdout and puts it in a file `zig-out/output.txt`
//    Note: Now this does something!
b.default_step.dependOn(&b.addInstallFile(sys_command_build_dependency.captureStdOut(), "output.txt").step);

From the docs of std.Build.addSystemCommand:

Initializes a Step.Run with argv, which must at least have the path to the executable.

It is not like a shell that automatically resolves the command name to an executable, instead you have to do that resolution to the actual executable explicitly by using findProgram or something like it.

According to @dimdin resolving a command to an executable should work, if it is available in one of the pathes in the PATH environment variable.