build-options

name	build-options
description	Search ArduPilot compile-time build options (feature flags). Use when the user asks about feature enables, build defines, HAL_*_ENABLED macros, or what can be compiled in/out.

Search ArduPilot Build Options

Build options are defined in Tools/scripts/build_options.py. There are 400+ options organized by category.

Search

If $ARGUMENTS is provided, search for matching options:

python3 -c "
import sys
sys.path.insert(0, 'Tools/scripts')
from build_options import BUILD_OPTIONS
term = '$ARGUMENTS'.lower()
for opt in BUILD_OPTIONS:
    if term in opt.label.lower() or term in opt.define.lower() or term in opt.description.lower() or term in opt.category.lower():
        dep = opt.dependency or 'None'
        default = 'ON' if opt.default else 'OFF'
        print(f'{opt.category:15s} {opt.label:30s} {opt.define:40s} default={default}  deps={dep}')
        print(f'                {opt.description}')
        print()
"

If no arguments, list all categories and counts:

python3 -c "
import sys
sys.path.insert(0, 'Tools/scripts')
from build_options import BUILD_OPTIONS
cats = {}
for opt in BUILD_OPTIONS:
    cats[opt.category] = cats.get(opt.category, 0) + 1
for cat in sorted(cats.keys()):
    print(f'  {cat:20s} {cats[cat]:4d} options')
print(f'  {\"TOTAL\":20s} {len(BUILD_OPTIONS):4d} options')
"

Each option has

Field	Description
category	Group (AHRS, Safety, Telemetry, Copter, Plane, etc.)
label	Unique identifier (max 30 chars), used in --enable-<label>
define	C++ preprocessor macro (e.g., AP_AIRSPEED_ENABLED)
description	Human-readable description
default	1=enabled, 0=disabled by default
dependency	Comma-separated labels this feature depends on

How options are used

• In code: #if AP_FEATURE_ENABLED / #endif guards
• In hwdef.dat: define AP_FEATURE_ENABLED 1 to force enable/disable
• In waf configure: ./waf configure --board sitl --enable-LABEL
• In custom builds: Used by the ArduPilot custom firmware builder

Common categories

AHRS, Safety, Telemetry, Sensors, RC, CAN, AP_Periph, Copter, Plane, Rover, Sub, Compass, GPS, Logging, Mission, Notify