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Buildr/Rake determine the order of execution of tasks through dependency analysis (also known as topological sorting); If Buildr detects a cyclic dependency, it will let you know.
Goal Oriented
Buildr will only execute tasks required to achieve the goals specified on the command-line. If a task does not execute, it's either because it's not required as part of the transitive dependencies of the stated goals, or because the task determined its output already exists and is up-to-date.
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