C++ Makefile case study: incorrect dependencies cause unexpected errors

Incorrect dependencies in Makefiles can cause not only timestamp confusion, but also unexpected errors and segmentation faults after compiling.

Suppose that there are three files: header.h, module1.cpp and module2.cpp. Both cpp files include the h file for the definition of common structures. module1 generates module1.o and module2 generates module2.o, which will be linked together.

Now in the make file, suppose header.h was missing from the dependencies of module1.o and module2.o. An immediate problem that arises is that a "make" command won't compile the program if only header.h is modified after the last build. But this is not the worst problem. Suppose both header.h and module1.cpp are modified, and the common structure is touched. Now when "make" is executed, it's possible that nothing happens at compile time, but various strange bugs or unexpected results come out later at runtime. The reason is that module2 is still using the out dated version of data structure. Such a case can be confirmed by running "make clean" and then compile again to see if the unexpected errors go away.