1 Using SDL with Microsoft Visual C++
2 ===================================
4 ### by [Lion Kimbro](mailto:snowlion@sprynet.com) with additions by [James Turk](mailto:james@conceptofzero.net)
6 You can either use the precompiled libraries from the [SDL](https://www.libsdl.org/download.php) web site, or you can build SDL
11 0. To build SDL, your machine must, at a minimum, have the DirectX9.0c SDK installed. It may or may not be retrievable from
12 the [Microsoft](https://www.microsoft.com) website, so you might need to locate it [online](https://duckduckgo.com/?q=directx9.0c+sdk+download&t=h_&ia=web).
13 _Editor's note: I've been able to successfully build SDL using Visual Studio 2019 **without** the DX9.0c SDK_
15 1. Open the Visual Studio solution file at `./VisualC/SDL.sln`.
17 2. Your IDE will likely prompt you to upgrade this solution file to whatever later version of the IDE you're using. In the `Retarget Projects` dialog,
18 all of the affected project files should be checked allowing you to use the latest `Windows SDK Version` you have installed, along with
19 the `Platform Toolset`.
21 If you choose *NOT* to upgrade to use the latest `Windows SDK Version` or `Platform Toolset`, then you'll need the `Visual Studio 2010 Platform Toolset`.
23 3. Build the `.dll` and `.lib` files by right clicking on each project in turn (Projects are listed in the _Workspace_
24 panel in the _FileView_ tab), and selecting `Build`.
26 You may get a few warnings, but you should not get any errors.
28 Later, we will refer to the following `.lib` and `.dll` files that have just been generated:
30 - `./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2.dll` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2.dll`
31 - `./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2.lib` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2.lib`
32 - `./VisualC/Win32/Debug/SDL2main.lib` or `./VisualC/Win32/Release/SDL2main.lib`
34 _Note for the `x64` versions, just replace `Win32` in the path with `x64`_
36 ### Creating a Project with SDL
38 - Create a project as a `Win32 Application`.
40 - Create a C++ file for your project.
42 - Set the C runtime to `Multi-threaded DLL` in the menu:
43 `Project|Settings|C/C++ tab|Code Generation|Runtime Library `.
45 - Add the SDL `include` directory to your list of includes in the menu:
46 `Project|Settings|C/C++ tab|Preprocessor|Additional include directories `
48 *VC7 Specific: Instead of doing this, I find it easier to add the
49 include and library directories to the list that VC7 keeps. Do this by
50 selecting Tools|Options|Projects|VC++ Directories and under the "Show
51 Directories For:" dropbox select "Include Files", and click the "New
52 Directory Icon" and add the [SDLROOT]\\include directory (e.g. If you
53 installed to c:\\SDL\\ add c:\\SDL\\include). Proceed to change the
54 dropbox selection to "Library Files" and add [SDLROOT]\\lib.*
56 The "include directory" I am referring to is the `./include` folder.
58 Now we're going to use the files that we had created earlier in the *Build SDL* step.
60 Copy the following file into your Project directory:
64 Add the following files to your project (It is not necessary to copy them to your project directory):
69 To add them to your project, right click on your project, and select
70 `Add files to project`.
72 **Instead of adding the files to your project, it is more desirable to add them to the linker options: Project|Properties|Linker|Command Line
73 and type the names of the libraries to link with in the "Additional Options:" box. Note: This must be done for each build configuration
74 (e.g. Release,Debug).**
78 Here's a sample SDL snippet to verify everything is setup in your IDE:
83 int main( int argc, char* argv[] )
85 const int WIDTH = 640;
86 const int HEIGHT = 480;
87 SDL_Window* window = NULL;
88 SDL_Renderer* renderer = NULL;
90 SDL_Init(SDL_INIT_VIDEO);
91 window = SDL_CreateWindow("SDL2 Test", SDL_WINDOWPOS_UNDEFINED, SDL_WINDOWPOS_UNDEFINED, WIDTH, HEIGHT, SDL_WINDOW_SHOWN);
92 renderer = SDL_CreateRenderer(window, -1, SDL_RENDERER_ACCELERATED | SDL_RENDERER_PRESENTVSYNC);
94 SDL_DestroyRenderer(renderer);
95 SDL_DestroyWindow(window);
103 I hope that this document has helped you get through the most difficult part of using the SDL: installing it.
104 Suggestions for improvements should be posted to the [Github Issues](https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL/issues).
108 Thanks to [Paulus Esterhazy](mailto:pesterhazy@gmx.net), for the work on VC++ port.
110 This document was originally called "VisualC.txt", and was written by [Sam Lantinga](mailto:slouken@libsdl.org).
112 Later, it was converted to HTML and expanded into the document that you see today by [Lion Kimbro](mailto:snowlion@sprynet.com).
114 Minor Fixes and Visual C++ 7 Information (In Green) was added by [James Turk](mailto:james@conceptofzero.net)