Elegant Debhelper way to specify files between runtime and debug library packages

[Ben Finney <ben+debian@benfinney.id.au>]

Howdy all,

What is the recommended way to specify packaging for a library package
and its corresponding debug symbols package?

With a previous Debhelper (7.x), I could specify it with ‘debian/rules’
in the ‘install’ and ‘override_dh_auto_install’ target:

    install: build
            dh $@

    override_dh_strip:
            dh_strip --dbg-package=foo-dbg

With the current Debhelper (in version 8 mode), that fails to put the
files in the right place AFAICT. I am now resorting to this less-elegant
solution:

    install: build
            dh $@ --package=foo --exclude "*_d.so"
            dh $@ --package=foo-dbg

    override_dh_strip:
            dh_strip --dbg-package=foo-dbg

That's a step backward, because if I need more packages, the ‘install’
rule starts to grow more special cases, defeating some of the
auto-detect features of Debhelper.

For reference, the actual package in question is ‘python-coverage’. See
my current packaging work with ‘debcheckout python-coverage’, where I've
implemented the above change as of revision 105.


What am I doing wrong? Is there a significant change in Debhelper
behaviour that I've overlooked, proiding a neater way to do this?

-- 
 \        “We have to go forth and crush every world view that doesn't |
  `\                believe in tolerance and free speech.” —David Brin |
_o__)                                                                  |
Ben Finney