Add "sourceMapDir", "declarationMapDir", "inlineDeclarationMap", and "declarationMapInlineSources" compiler options

[PetaSoft]

Search Terms

TypeScript, Compiler Options, Source Maps, Declaration Files

Suggestion

Currently, there exist the TypeScript compiler options sourceMap, inlineSourceMap, inlineSources, declaration, declarationMap, and declarationDir but there is no way to tell the compiler the folder for the source map files and the declaration map files. The declaration map cannot be part of the declaration file, too, and the source code cannot be inlined into a declaration map.

Therefore, please add the compiler options:

• sourceMapDir: the folder of the emitted source map files;
• declarationMapDir: the folder of the declaration map files;
• inlineDeclarationMap: the declaration map is put into the declaration file using a comment;
• declarationMapInlineSources: the source code becomes part of the declaration map similar to the option inlineSources for generated JavaScript files inlining TypeScript sources.

The options inlineDeclarationMap and declarationMapInlineSources should also be usable together. It is similar to using inlineSourceMap and inlineSources together.

Using Gulp together with gulp-typescript and gulp-sourcemaps there is already the possibility to specify a source map folder and declaration map folder using sourcemaps.write("<folder>", options) but it would be better to have that possibility as part of a TypeScript compiler option.

Use Cases

Of course, these compiler options are not necessary in most cases but they open up more flexibility to the user, and the implemetation should not be very difficult.

At least the option inlineDeclarationMap would reduce the cluttering of files in the declarationDir folder, and declarationMapInlineSources together with inlineDeclarationMap would make it possible to ship a declaration file with the sources as one file.

Checklist

My suggestion meets these guidelines:

• This wouldn't be a breaking change in existing TypeScript/JavaScript code
• This wouldn't change the runtime behavior of existing JavaScript code
• This could be implemented without emitting different JS based on the types of the expressions
• This isn't a runtime feature (e.g. library functionality, non-ECMAScript syntax with JavaScript output, etc.)
• This feature would agree with the rest of TypeScript's Design Goals.

[tomrav]

I'm one of the maintainers of Stylable, a CSS pre-processor and I'm currently working on a feature that would allow us to generate definition files and source mapping for every stylesheet the user creates.

I'm really interested in two features that this issue suggests, those being allowing source-maps to be in-lined in definition files, and the ability to place definition files anywhere in the project and have them point to the file they're describing.

The way things currently are, a lot of files end up being generated in development mode and really clutter the user's project.

[tzachbon]

It would be a great addition and for sure will make my src dir leaner.
At least an inline source map and inline declaration file would help a lot!

[NWYLZW]

inlineDeclarationMap is quite useful. It can help me better do upper-level encapsulation on TypeScript.