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Released: Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Compiler Update for the Windows SDK 7.1

An update to the Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 (Windows SDK 7.1) is now available from the Microsoft Download Center. This update addresses the issue where Visual C++ Compilers and libraries that are installed with the Windows SDK are removed when Visual Studio 2010 Service Pack 1 is installed. 

Please follow this link to download and install the update.

For more information about this issue, please see the related article.

Windows SDK v7.1 with Visual Studio 2010 Service Pack 1 – Potential issue with x64/IA64 Visual C++ Compilers

We’ve identified an issue for users of the Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 (Windows SDK v7.1). If you have downloaded and installed the stand-alone Windows SDK v7.1 and you are using the x64 or IA64 compilers that were included in that download, you may find that these compilers and the associated Visual C++ library files removed. The impact may be as indicated below:

• If Visual Studio 2010 Professional is installed, then the IA64 compiler and Visual C++ libraries are removed.
• If Visual Studio 2010 Express (any edition) is installed, then the x64 and IA64 compilers and Visual C++ libraries are removed.
• Visual Studio 2010 Premium and Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate are unaffected.

Please see this article for more information about the issue, and how to restore the SDK compilers to a working state.

We recommend that users of the Windows SDK do not install Visual Studio 2010 Service Pack 1 at this time, since there is no workaround for this issue. We are currently working on an update to fix this issue and will post more information when it becomes available.

Downloading the Windows SDK 7.1 documentation for offline viewing

We've received feedback about previous versions of the Windows SDK related to the large size of the download.  To partially mitigate this, the latest SDK now gives users the choice of whether to download the documentation to their machine for offline viewing or to view the documentation strictly online.  You may notice that there are quite a few sets of docs that can be selected.  Below are instructions on how to get only the Windows 7.1 SDK documentation.

Here's how to download it:

- Choose "Manage Help Settings"  from within Start Menu->Microsoft Windows SDK v7.1->Documentation

- This will launch the Help Library Manager

- Choose "Install Content from Online"

- At the bottom of the list, there is the "Windows SDK 7.1" node.

- Choose Add and then Update.

Once the download and installation is complete, the documentation can be viewed by selecting Windows SDK Documentation while in offline mode.

Released: Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4

The RTM release of the Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 is now available for download in either ISO or Web Setup format.  Here are a few key features about this Software Development Kit (SDK):

·         Smaller/Faster: at less than 600MB, this SDK is less than half the size of the previous SDK, producing a faster install with a smaller on disk footprint

·         Cleaner Setup: setup screens have been grouped into native, managed, and common buckets to help you more easily choose the components you need

·         VC++ 2010 Compilers (32 & 64-bit): use the new C++ compilers and CRT that also ship in Visual Studio 2010 for improved run-time and design-time performance

·         Microsoft Help System 1.0: the new help system introduced with Visual Studio 2010 that enables you to view documentation either online or offline and selectively choose which documentation to maintain offline

·         .NET Framework 4 Tools and Reference Assemblies: use tools and reference assemblies updated specifically for .NET Framework 4 development

·         MSBuild: support for .NET Framework 4 MSBuild in the SDK Command line for building native and managed applications using new Visual Studio 2010 project files (such as the vcxproj file for C++ applications)

Installation:

The web setup format allows you to install a specific subset of the SDK you select without having to download the entire SDK.  The ISO setup format allows you to download the entire SDK and burn a DVD to install later on another computer.  This release of the SDK provides three ISO choices.  Choose the ISO that matches your needs:

·         Use the X86 ISO If you are installing the SDK on a computer with a 32-bit operating system.

·         Use the X64 ISO if you are installing the SDK on a computer with a 64-bit operating system.

·         Use the IA64 ISO if you are installing the SDK on a computer with a 64-bit operating system and an Itanium processor.

Though it is not necessary for all usage scenarios, installing the .NET Framework 4 is recommended. 

Compatibility:

·         Operating Systems:  Install on and create applications for Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008,  Windows XPSP3, and Windows Server 2003 R2.

·         Platform architecture:  Install this SDK on and/or create applications for platform chipsets X86, X64, and Itanium.

·         .NET Framework:  Create applications that target the .NET Framework versions 2.0 (SP2) , 3.0 (SP2) , 3.5 (SP1), 4.

·         Visual Studio:  Use the resources in this SDK with Visual Studio versions 2005, 2008, and 2010, including Express editions (not all features work with all versions of Visual Studio). 

Learn More:

Stayed tuned to the Windows SDK blog as well as the Windows SDK MSDN Developer Center for more information about the Windows SDK.  As always, please look over the Release Notes for a description of known issues before you install the SDK. 

The Windows SDK Team

Coming soon: Win SDK for Windows 7 and .NET 4

The upcoming Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 (WinSDK v7.1) is packed with new features supporting developers creating applications for Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 or targeting the .NET Framework 4. This SDK will be released soon after the RTM version of Visual Studio 2010 is released.

You can build Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 and .NET Framework 4 applications right out-of-the box with Visual Studio 2010. This standalone release of the Windows SDK will help you create Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 applications using earlier versions of Visual Studio or another build environment. If you are creating applications to run on older operating systems this is likely the right SDK for you, too; see the support section below.

What’s new in the WinSDK v7.1 release?

· Smaller/Faster: at less than 600MB, this SDK is one third the size of the Windows 7 RTM SDK; it installs faster and has a smaller footprint.

· Cleaner setup: features on setup screens have been grouped into native, managed, and common buckets to help you choose the components you need faster.

· New Microsoft Help System v1.0: this brand new system was first introduced with Visual Studio 10. You can import just the content you need from the MSDN cloud, and update it according to your schedule.

· VC++ 2010 RTM compilers/CRT with improved compilation performance and speed. These are the same compilers and toolset that ships with Visual Studio 2010.

· New command line build environment that uses MSBuild 4.0, now the common Microsoft build system for all languages, and supporting the new C++ project type, .vcxproj.

What does the Win SDK v7.1 support?

· OS: You can install this SDK on and/or create applications for Windows 7, Server 2008 R2, Server 2008, XPSP3, Vista, and Windows Server 2003 R2.

· Platform architecture: you can install this SDK on and/or create applications for platform chipsets X86, X64, and IA64 (Itanium).

· .NET Framework: you can use the SDK resources to create applications that target .NET Framework versions 2.0, 3.0, 3.5, 4.

· Visual Studio: you can use the resources in this SDK with Visual Studio versions 2005, 2008, and 2010, including Express editions. (Not all features work with all versions of Visual Studio. For example, you can’t use the .NET 4 tools with Visual Studio 2005/2008; some samples will not build in VS 2005, and samples require upgrade in VS2010.)

· Setup/Install options: Win SDK v7.1 will be available through an ISO or a Web setup download and install experience. Web setup allows you to install selected components of the SDK without having to download the entire SDK.  The DVD ISO setup allows you to download the entire SDK to install later, or share among different computers.

What are the prerequisites for the SDK: you’ll need to install the full version of .NET Framework 4 Redistributable Components. This must be the final, RTM version of the full, extended Framework. The Client version of the Framework will not work, and the SDK will not install on a computer that has a pre-release (Beta or RC) version of the .NET Framework 4.

Tell me more!

Here’s more detailed information about the features in the Windows SDK v7.1, which are arranged on the setup screen into 3 groups

· Common development resources useful to all developers

· Native developer resources

· Managed developer resources

Common development resources

· Microsoft Help System 1.0:  This new Help System was delivered first with Visual Studio 2010. MHS allows you to view documents on MSDN Library, and select documents to download from the MSDN cloud to your computer for viewing when a connection to the Internet is unavailable or undesired.  You can download, update or delete content on your own schedule.  The DExplore document viewer that shipped with previous SDKs is no longer delivered via the SDK, and documentation is no longer delivered in-box with the SDK. You’ll be prompted at the end of SDK setup to download documentation to your computer using the Microsoft Help System if you wish to do so.

· Command line build environment: A redesigned build environment builds both native (C++, makefile) and managed applications (C++/CLI, C#, VB) using the new Visual C++ 2010 compiler/CRT and MSBuild 4.0 is in WinSDK v7.1.  Upgrading earlier versioned projects is supported, and you can create debug and release builds targeting XPSP3, Vista, Server 2003 R2, Server 2008, Windows 7 and Server 2008R2.  The SDK build environment is now completely separate from Visual Studio build environments, and changes made to one environment no longer affect the other.

· Popular tools: Nearly 100 great tools for both native and managed developers are delivered with this SDK, such as Debugging Tools for Windows, Windows Performance Toolkit, Application Verifier, Windows Troubleshooting Pack Designer, Windiff, and lots more.

Native development resources

· Windows headers and libraries:  Each release of the SDK ships with the latest RTM headers and libraries for native Windows development. WinSDK v7.1 includes a slightly more recent set than the Windows 7 RTM SDK.  This set matches exactly the Windows headers/libraries delivered via Visual Studio 2010 RTM.  (If you’re already using Visual Studio 2010 or VC++ 2010 Express there’s no need to update the Windows headers, libraries and tools using the SDK. Visual Studio 2010 is completely up to date.)

· VC++ 2010 compilers/CRT: The brand new, version 10.0 native compilers/CRT for X86, X64 and IA64 are available with WinSDKv7.1 and integrated with SDK command-line build environment.

· Windows samples: This release provides the same set of Windows samples delivered in the Windows 7 RTM SDK, with limited, high-priority updates. Take a look at the Windows SDK Blog posts about the sample updates for Windows 7. Native samples have a mix of VS 2005 and VS 2008 project files, which can be upgraded in the SDK v7.1 build environment to build with the VC++ 2010 compiler.

· Windows Tools: WinSDK v7.1 includes a slightly more updated set of Windows tools than the Windows 7 RTM SDK or VS2010 RTM.  Several tools have been updated and several new tools added.

· Windows Reference assemblies: These are the same versions that shipped in Windows 7 RTM SDK and VS2010 RTM for FSRM, MMC, TabletPC, UDDI, Windows Media Services and Windows PowerShell. (A reference assembly is an assembly that is referenced by design-time tools typically for the purpose of examining the metadata that describes the types in the assembly. Some of the SDK samples illustrate use of these reference assemblies.)

· Windows SDK v7.1 Platform toolset: This set of custom WinSDK v7.1 props and targets files allows the native multi-targeting function in Visual Studio 2010 to use the Windows SDK v7.1 resources with Visual Studio 2010. Multi-targeting is the ability to use the current version of Visual Studio to build your application with a different set of installed tools or SDKs. If you want to build a native application in Visual Studio 2010, but you want to use the Windows headers, libraries and tools delivered in the WinSDK v7.1, you can do so by using the Windows SDK v7.1 Platform toolset. (Remember though, there’s no need to do so for most development scenarios. The Windows headers, libraries and tools delivered via Visual Studio 2010 are completely up to date.)

· Windows SDK Configuration tool: If you’re using Visual Studio/Visual C++ versions 2005 or 2008 you can use this tool to integrate the WinSDK v7.1 version of the Windows headers, libraries and tools with Visual C++. This tool makes it easier to build a Windows 7 application with Visual Studio 2005/2008.

Managed development resources

· .NET Framework 4 Reference Assemblies: The Windows SDK is the new delivery vehicle for .NET Framework 4 reference assemblies.  The .NET Framework Redistributable Package ( .NET Framework 4 will be available soon on the Microsoft Download Center) no longer delivers these assemblies. Visual Studio 2010 customers receive these as part of the VS install, but users of third-party tools for managed development may want to get them from WinSDK v7.1. 

· .NET Framework IntelliSense: These XML files are used to provide interactive documentation for .NET Reference Assemblies, which appears dynamically in the form of tooltips while programming.   Visual Studio 2010 customers can use the IntelliSense feature and files installed with Visual Studio, but users of third-party tools for managed development may want to get the IntelliSense filese from WinSDK v7.1. 

· .NET Framework Hosting & Tools Development Headers/Libraries: These native header files provide developers with the ability to inter-operate between managed and unmanaged environments s to enable native access to the .NET Framework 4 runtime.   The APIs can be used for writing custom native runtime hosts, compilers, disassemblers, obfuscators, debuggers, and profilers, etc., which will target the .NET Framework 4.

· .NET Framework samples: WinSDK v7.1 provides links to these samples available on MSDN Code Gallery.  .NET samples are no longer delivered via the Windows SDK.

· .NET Framework 3.5 tools: This release includes the same .NET 3.5 SP1 versions of the .NET tools as previously shipped in the Windows 7 RTM SDK, allowing you to create applications that target the .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.

· .NET Framework 4 tools: This release includes the VS2010 RTM versions of the .NET 4 tools, allowing you to create applications that target the .NET Framework 4.

I want to use Visual Studio 2010. Should I install the Windows SDK v7.1?

If you install Visual Studio 2010 there’s no need to update the Windows headers, libraries and tools using the WinSDK v7.1. Visual Studio 2010 RTM version is completely up to date.  If you want to install an SDK component that is not included with Visual Studio 2010, such as the Windows Samples, you may wish to download and install the SDK.

I want to use Visual C++ 2010 Express. Should I install the Windows SDK v7.1?

If you install Visual C++ 2010 Express, the Windows headers and libraries in that product are already up to date. However, the Windows SDK v7.1 includes more tools than are delivered with Visual C++2010. If you want to install an SDK component that is not included with Visual C++ 2010 Express, such as the Windows Samples or 64-bit native compilers/CRT, you may wish to download and install WinSDK v7.1. You can use the Web setup utility to install only the components you need. Web setup allows you to install selected components of the SDK without having to download the entire SDK. 

How can I get it?

This SDK will be released soon after the RTM version of Visual Studio 2010 is released. The SDK release will be announced on the MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center and the Windows SDK blog. Subscribe to the RSS feed to be notified when the SDK is released.

Karin Meier
Program Manager
Windows C++ Team
Windows SDK

Windows SDK Build Environment: Upcoming features and improvements

What to expect from Windows SDK build environment in Windows SDK v7.1

The Windows SDK command line build environment that ships with Windows 7.1 SDK will include several custom props and targets files that will provide the ability to build both native and managed applications. It supports building applications from makefiles and Visual Studio project and solution files. Because the Visual Studio 2010 Managed 4.0 content/toolset, VC++ 2010 compiler/toolset and MSBuild v4.0 toolset will ship in the Windows 7.1 SDK, customers who do not have VS2010 installed should be able to easily build applications using these in the 7.1 SDK build environment.

Building VC 2010 Projects

Windows SDK build environment will support building VC2010 projects if PlatformToolSet property in the project files is either set to Windows7.1SDK or is left blank. When you create a new project in Visual Studio 2010, by default the PlatformToolSet property is left blank. There projects will be able to build alright without any changes to the project files. But if the PlatformToolSet value is changed in the project setting either using the IDE or manually, you will have to change it to Windows7.1SDK to be able to build in the Windows SDK build environment.

Upgrading VS projects to 2010 format

Windows SDK will ship with a VC project upgrade tool called VCUpgrade.exe. You should be able to upgrade your projects from 2008 format to 2010 format by using the VCUpgrade.exe tool whose path will set properly in the Windows SDK build environment. Please note that, VCUpgrade tool will only support upgrading individual project but will not be able to support upgrading an entire solution.

Building Managed Projects:

By default, Windows SDK build environment will only support building Managed projects using MSBuild v4.0 which ships with .Net Framework 4. You can build managed projects targeting .Net Framework 2.0, .Net Framework 3.5, and .Net framework 4 using MsBuild v4.0. Windows SDK7.1 build environment will not support building managed projects using MsBuild v3.5.

Support for TeamBuild

If you have build machine which has Team Build 2010. Team build includes MsBuild  but does not have the required C/C++ build system files. So, if you install Windows SDK 7.1 on the machine you should be able to target Windows SDK 7.1 headers, libs and tools and build  the native projects by setting the PlatFormToolset to Windows7.1SDK and managed projects using MsBuild v4.0. But if you have any other Visual Studio retail SKU or earlier Windows SDK’s installed on the machine, you will not be able to build the managed projects by default using the Windows SDK 7.1 tool set. To be able to build your managed projects using the Windows SDK 7.1 tool set you will have to set an environment variable “WindowsSDKFrameworkToolsPathOverride” to ‘true’ in your build environment. This variable will kick in the custom props that ship with Windows 7.1 SDK which will override the how MSBuild looks for Managed tools. This could be either a global environment variable or a property you can set per project.

Building applications for Different platform architectures

In the new Windows SDK 7.1  Build environment, you will be agle to build projects and solutions targeting several platforms architectures. By default, the SDK build environment  will try to build the default platform configuration set in the project or solution file and then builds for all other platform configurations defined in the project or solution file. If your current build environment configuration does not match default settings in your project or solution, You can use MsBuild platform property (for example MsBuild.exe /p:platform=x86 to build for x86 platform ) to build for specific platform architecture.

Thanks,

Nanda Lella

Windows SDK Team

Hidden Gems: Troubleshooting Pack Designer

Windows 7 offers a built-in Windows Troubleshooting Platform (WTP) that consolidates the typical user’s support and troubleshooting needs into a single consistent user interface. Open Control Panel and search for “troubleshooting”. You’ll see some built in troubleshooting packs designed to help fix common issues such as hardware and sound issues, network and internet connectivity and more. Previously, troubleshooting software and hardware issues was a manual process; however, using WTP you can automate the process of fixing the most common detectable issues that the user might encounter using your software or hardware.

Although you can author, package, and test troubleshooting packs manually, you should consider using the Windows Troubleshooting Pack Designer tool included in the Windows SDK. In addition to helping you author your manifest, the tool also creates a catalog for the troubleshooting pack, signs the pack, and creates a cabinet file that you can use to distribute the pack.

The tool, first introduced in the Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1, is installed as part of the Win32 Tools package and can be found on disk in the default folder location of %ProgramFiles%Microsoft SDKsWindowsv7.0BinTSPDesigner.

For additional information on WTP visit MSDN or check out this great blog post on how to create a simple troubleshoot pack.

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.

The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Thank you,

Lisa Rugen

Windows SDK Team

Using SecAnnotate to Analyze Your Assemblies for Transparency Violations

SecAnnotate can be used to analyze your assemblies, especially APTCA assemblies in order to find transparency violations without needing code coverage from a test case.  The static analysis provided by SecAnnotate is valuable in ensuring that your assembly is fully correct from a transparency perspective.  You can get the tool now in beta form here, and read an in-depth article on the .NET Security Blog about how this tool might be used for a simple APTCA library.

Karin Meier-Magruder
Program Manager

New samples in Win 7 SDK: Direct2D and DirectWrite

The Windows 7 SDK comes with several components, including tools, documentation, headers and libraries, and samples. In this series of blogs, I’ll go through a number of sample that particularly target the new features in Windows 7. I’ll talk about how to build and run them and what the requirements are for each.

Samples have been one of the most valuable educational tools out there and Windows SDK sure has all those samples needed to educate yourself about any aspect of Windows programming.

For the rest of this article, I’ll assume the default location for the Windows 7 SDK root folder, which is “C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Samples”

Direct2D and DirectWrite samples

New to Windows 7 are Direct2D and Direct3D, which are part of the DirectX family. These technologies are aimed at providing a better and faster developer and user experience for creating 2D graphics and text

Direct2D (or D2D) is a native immediate-mode 2D graphics rendering API that is built on top of Direct3D, and offers some compelling performance and visual quality improvements over GDI and GDI+. DirectWrite supports high-quality text rendering, resolution-independent outline fonts, and full Unicode text and layout support.

I’m not going to go into detail about these technologies now. But, you can always Bing them or directly visit the MSDN portals for Direct2d and DirectWrite, where you’ll find a wealth of information about each and how they interoperate together or with their other family member, Dirct3D.

Samples included in the Windows 7 SDK

The samples that illustrate Direct2D are installed by default under “C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0SamplesmultimediaDirect2D”. Similarly, the DirectWrite samples are installed to “C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0SamplesmultimediaDirectWrite”. (The blog post New Win32 Samples in Windows SDK for Windows 7: Multimedia describes all multimedia samples in native code that were updated for Windows 7.)

All of the Direct2D and DirectWrite samples come preconfigured with Visual Studio 2008 solution and project files.

Other than Visual Studio 2008, and the Win32 headers and libraries that are installed with the Windows SDK, the only prerequisite you might need is DirectX SDK. It is needed for only two Direct3D samples that require a compiler shader that ships with DirectX SDK. Both samples interop with D3D. (See the blog post Development with Windows SDK & DirectX SDK when Visual Studio 2008 is installed for more information on working with both the Windows SDK and the DirectX SDK.)

Here are the available samples.

Direct2D Samples (C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Samples

MultimediaDirect2D):

DirectWrite Samples (C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0SamplesMultimediaDirectWrite):

Building SDK samples in the “Program Files” directory

When building Samples, you should do so in a directory outside C:Program Files to which you have write access. Copying to a location other than C:Program Files makes it possible to maintain a pristine copy of the SDK samples and avoid issues when writing to files and directories located under C:Program Files.

If you wish to build the samples in the “Program Files” directory, which is a secured Windows folder, Visual Studio 2008 may ask you to run with elevated permissions.  (Click on the images to enlarge them.)

Use the Windows SDK Configuration Tool to set the Current SDK

Building the SDK samples with Visual Studio 2008 should be straightforward after you install Windows SDK and Use the Windows SDK Configuration Tool to set the Windows 7 SDK as the “current” SDK for MSBuild and VCBuild. Running this tool will update the Windows 7 SDK build environment and the Visual Studio 2008 IDE build environment to use the Windows 7 SDK headers, libraries and tools.  You can also use this tool to switch it back again. (For more information, see the blog post Using the Win 7 SDK Build Environment with VS 2008.)

To run the GUI version of the Windows SDK Configuration Tool, go to Start, All Programs, Microsoft Windows SDK v7.0, Visual Studio Registration, Windows SDK Configuration Tool, and set the Windows SDK version to v7.0 for Visual Studio 2008. (Because this tool modifies registry settings, it needs elevated permissions to run.)

After the tool launches, select v7.0 from the drop down menu. (You may see something slightly different on your computer. In the screenshot below, you see two other versions of the SDK. v6.0A indicates the Windows SDK components that ship in-the-box with Visual Studio 2008. 7.0A indicates the Windows SDK components that ship in-the-box with Visual Studio 2010 BETA integrated SDK.)

Click Make Current, and you should see an output like this:

Now, restart Visual Studio 2008 and rebuild the solution and you will be building with the Windows 7 components:

Setting Visual C++ directories manually

You may wish to set the Visual C++ directories manually. However, if you have successfully configured Visual Studio directories using the Windows SDK Configuration tool, you won’t need to follow the manual steps below.

1. From the main Visual Studio menu, select Tools àOptions, and open the Project and Solutions | VC++ Directories property sheet. This is used to select the location of the folders Visual Studio needs to build and run Visual C++ solutions. (The Platform is the build/run target; the most common are Win32 (x86) or x64.)

2. We want to update the Include folders path, so In “Show directories for:”, select Include Files, and add the SDK include path, c:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Include, to the top of the list:

3. In the Libraries files directories, add C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Lib to the top of the list (Note, the x64 Library Files are under C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Libx64):

Remember, if you have successfully configured Visual Studio folders using WinSDK Configuration tool, you won’t need any of the manual steps above.

Troubleshooting

After building and running the solution, if you get a compilation error such as:” Fatal error C1083: Cannot open include file: 'd2d1.h': No such file or directory”

This means that Visual Studio 2008 cannot find the headers (and probably it won’t find the libraries too). This might happen for several reasons, for example if you had more than one version of Visual Studio when the SDK was installed.

Make sure you have told Visual Studio 2008 about the location of those file by using either the Windows SDK Configuration tool, or setting the VC++ directories manually, using instructions earlier in this post.

Running the samples

Now, back to building and running the Direct2D and DirectWrite samples. Here are some screen shots for the samples.  (Click on the image to enlarge it.)

Simple Direct2D Application:

Direct2D Geometry realization Samples:

Remember, two of the Direct2D samples, DXGISample and Interactive3dTextSample, require that the DirectX SDK is installed on your machine. (See the blog post Development with Windows SDK & DirectX SDK when Visual Studio 2008 is installed for more information on working with both the Windows SDK and the DirectX SDK.)

Here are shots of the Direct2D Interactive 3D Text Sample, which shows the interaction between Direct3D (through DXGI), Direct2D and DirectWrite:

Here is the DirectWrite Simple Hello World sample:

Here is the Render Test Sample:

Here is the Custom layout sample in English and Arabic:

Mahmoud Saleh
Software Engineer
Windows C++ Team

Building web services on Windows with C++

Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 introduce the new framework for building web services in C++ code. Windows Web Services API (WWSAPI) supports the core set of protocols for SOAP-based web services. Developers can use WWSAPI in applications where they need to use native C/C++ code and they cannot take dependency on .Net Framework. Solutions built with this API require significantly less memory than WCF on the client side. On the server side, the API allows developers to achieve much higher throughput than WCF. You can find links to all online resources available to you to learn more about this new API on this page. WWS API is available on all versions of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 and it can also be deployed to Windows XP, Vista, Server 2003 and Server 2008.  The redistributable installers are available on a formal request to wwsredst@microsoft.com with a brief description of plans for using this runtime and the business contact information for your company.

The Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 plays a very important role in this story of enabling developers to connect their native C and C++ code to web services. Here is what Windows SDK delivers for this scenario:

1) webservices.h header is part of the set of headers installed. This header contains declarations of all functions and types that are part of the API. If Windows SDK did not contain this header, you would get the following error when trying to build code that uses WWSAPI:

> fatal error C1083: Cannot open include file: 'WebServices.h': No such file or directory

If you see this error when you try to use WWSAPI or build samples from MSDN, you need to:

a) Install Windows SDK for Windows 7.

b) Run the Windows SDK Configuration Tool to utilize the Windows 7 headers and libraries.  Go to Start > All Programs > Microsoft Windows SDK v7.0 > Visual Studio Registration > Windows SDK Configuration Tool.

c) After these two steps, you should be able to compile the code that uses WWSAPI. To complete linking of your application, you will need webservices.lib.

2) webservices.lib library contains declarations of exports from the Windows Web Services Runtime DLL (webservices.dll). There are three versions of this library installed by Windows SDK for each of CPU architecture (x86, x64 and Itanium). After you completed steps 1.a. and 1.b. from above, you may still get LNK2001 errors for Ws*() functions used in your code. Here is an example of such errors:

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCreateError@12

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsFreeError@4

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCloseServiceProxy@12

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsFreeHeap@4

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCreateHeap@24

1>SortServiceClient.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsOpenServiceProxy@16

1>sortservice.wsdl.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCreateServiceProxyFromTemplate@40

1>sortservice.wsdl.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCreateServiceEndpointFromTemplate@56

1>sortservice.wsdl.obj : error LNK2001: unresolved external symbol _WsCall@32

1>C:C++ Project that uses WWSAPI.exe : fatal error LNK1120: 12 unresolved externals

To resolve these errors, you need to point VC++ linker to use webservices.lib to build the final binary. You can do this by opening properties of your project. Then browse to Linker options and add webservices.lib to the list of Additional Libraries. See picture below for details:

Once you do that, all linker errors should go away.

3)

Wsutil.exe is Windows Web Services Tool for generating C code from metadata that describes a web service. You are most likely to use this tool as the first step when you need to implement a client to an existing web services or create a new web service. This tool serves the same purpose as WCF Service Model Metadata Utility Tool (Svcutil.exe). There are many commands available in this tool, which you can read about by passing “/?” or “/help” option on the command line. However the core steps for using this tool are:

a. Save your metadata files somewhere on the local hard drive.

i. If you need to download metadata from a running web service, you can use svcutil.exe as follows:

> svcutil.exe /t:metadata

b. Run wsutil.exe on the SDK Shell prompt either as

> wsutil.exe *.wsdl *.xsd

    or

> wsutil.exe /wsdl: /xsd: /wsp:           

When you run wsutil.exe, it is going to process each WSDL, XML schema and policy file and generates one C header and one C source file for each input file.

Please note that you need to provide all WSDL and XSD files at once. Passing an incomplete set will result in wsutil.exe issuing errors for references in the input files to non-present WSDL or XSD files. Make sure that you pass all WSDL and XSD files in one call to the wsutil.exe.

For more information please refer to the Windows Web Services API documentation on MSDN.

4) Wstrace.bat and wstracedump.exe are tools that help you with enabling and collecting Windows Web Services Tracing. With these tools you can:

1. Create and delete a trace log

2. Enable and disable tracing

3. Update the tracing level

4. Converting trace logs to CSV files

You can find a tutorial on how to use these tools with Windows 7 RC in this post on Nikola’s blog. For more information please refer to the WWSAPI documentation on MSDN.

5) 92 samples for WWSAPI. Each sample is a complete application that demonstrates how to use WWSAPI in a particular scenario end-to-end. Most of Service Model and Channel Layer samples come in pairs. One sample demonstrates the client side and another one demonstrates the server side. There is usually one example for showing how to use some functions from XML Layer. Assuming that you have not changed the default install path for Windows SDK, you can find all samples under this folder C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0SamplesWebWWSAPI.

To build WWSAPI samples

1. Copy sample from C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0SamplesWebWWSAPI to a some other folder with all other projects of yours

2. Open a sample in Visual Studio

3. Select Build Solution from the Build Menu.

4. Run the Windows SDK Configuration Tool to utilize the Windows 7 headers and libraries.  Go to Start > All Programs > Microsoft Windows SDK v7.0 > Visual Studio Registration > Windows SDK Configuration Tool.

a. If you see any build errors, please make sure you have completed integrating Windows SDK with Visuals Studio.

b. If you still experience errors, please post your issue on the forum.

To run samples that demonstrate a scenario from both client and server sides, you should:

1. Run the sample for the server side of a scenario first. For example, run HttpCalculatorService first before running HttpCalculatorClient.

2. Run the sample that demonstrates the client side after the server side has started.

If the sample is not part of client-server pair, just run the sample after the build is completed.

For more information please refer to the Using Windows Web Services documentation on MSDN.

6) The Windows SDK also installs a local version of the MSDN documentation for WWSAPI. Once you install Windows SDK and integrate it with Visual Studio, pressing F1 should allow you to get documentation installed with Windows SDK. Please note however, that the online documentation tends to be more accurate because technical writers update online version more frequently.

As you can see, the Windows SDK plays a very important role in this scenario. To learn more about WWSAPI and how you can use it in your C++ code, please see these other resources:

1) Video recordings

a. Introduction to WWSAPI and a tutorial on building native C/C++ clients to web services using WWSAPI at PDC 2008.

b. Advantages for using native C/C++ code in building web services and key steps that developers have to take can be found in the session at TechEd 2009.

c. An open discussion about Windows Web Services API with answers to frequently asked questions can be found in a recording on Channel 9.

2) Follow links to all online resources available for building web services and clients to web services in C and C++ code on this page.

3) Follow Web Services in Native C++ code series of posts on Nikola’s blog and Hao’s blog.

If you have any questions or if you would like to participate in discussions about WWSAPI, please visit the forum or just comment on this post.

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.

The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Development with Windows SDK & DirectX SDK when Visual Studio 2008 is installed

This article describes how to set VC directory paths in Visual Studio 2008 to ensure that the most recent version of rpcsal.h is found.  This article applies ONLY to users of DirectX SDK releases November 2008 and older.  When using DirectX SDK (March 2009) or newer, the DirectX SDK should appear above the Windows SDK entries.

In order to utilize DirectX SDK resources you should ensure that the DirectX SDK include, library, and executables directories are set correctly in Visual Studio 2008. The order in which Visual Studio 2008 looks for executable directories and library files is important. The Windows SDK directories should appear above the DirectX SDK directories.

The DirectX SDK includes some files that are also shipped in the Windows SDK.  These files may also be installed with the Windows headers and libraries that are included in Visual Studio 2008.  It's possible to get a mixture of different versions of DirectX files on your computer, depending on what versions of the Windows SDK, DirectX SDK, and Visual Studio you install. 

The Windows SDK Configuration tool can be used set the Windows 7 SDK as the “current” SDK for MSBuild and VCBuild. This will update the Windows 7 SDK build environment and the Visual Studio 2008 build environment to use the Windows 7 SDK headers, libraries and tools.  You can also use this tool to switch it back again. However, the configuration tool does not set the DirectX SDK paths.  You will need to do this manually, following the instructions in this article.

If you have installed the DirectX SDK and wish to build an application in the Windows SDK command line build environment, or in the Visual Studio build environments, you will need to set the VC++ directory paths manually. If you wish to build with the Windows 7 headers and libraries, you should ensure that directory path for this content is found first, before the DirectX SDK content.

In the following example I have installed the November 2008 version of the Microsoft DirectX SDK on a computer with the Windows 7 SDK and Visual Studio 2008.

How to set the C++ Directories manually

1. Launch Visual Studio 2008.

2. Open the Tools menu and select Options…. The Options dialog box appears.

3. In the left pane of the Options dialog box, expand the Projects and Solutions node.

4. Under Project and Solutions, select VC++ Directories.

5. In the right pane, set the "Platform" drop-down list box to Win32® and the "Show directories for" drop-down list box to "Executable" files.

6. At the bottom of the list of executable file directories, create a new entry for the DirectX SDK: [drive]:Program FilesMicrosoft DirectX SDK [version]Utilitiesbinx86 (If there is already such an entry, move it to the bottom of the list.)

7. Set the "Show directories for" drop-down list box to "Include" files.

8. At the bottom of the list of directories, create a new entry for the DirectX SDK: [drive]:Program FilesMicrosoft DirectX SDK [version]Include (If there is already such an entry, move it to the bottom of the list.)

9. Set the "Show directories for" drop-down list box to "Library" files.

10. At the bottom of the list of directories, create a new entry for the DirectX SDK: [drive]:Program FilesMicrosoft DirectX SDK [version]LibX86 (If there is already such an entry, move it to the bottom of the list.)

11. If you are developing an application to run on AMD64, you should repeat these steps to set the AMD64 paths by setting the "Platform" drop-down list box to X64 and providing the appropriate paths.

12. Click OK.

Karin Meier-Magruder
Program Manager
Windows C++ Team

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.

The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Win SDK Hidden Gems: Function Discovery Browser (fdbrowser.exe)

The Function Discovery API, introduced in Vista, serves as an abstraction layer between applications and devices. This API allows applications to discover devices by function rather than lower level details such as bus or connection type.

The Function Discovery Browser is a utility that displays information about devices in your local machine and connected via the network.

Its primary purpose is to assist driver and hardware developers to verify that programs accessing the Function Discovery API and hardware registering its attributes with the Function Discovery API are doing so correctly.

Layered categories are the namespaces of the abstract device types programmers would want to access.

Provider categories are namespaces of device and driver registrations.

For more information:

Using the Function Discovery Browser.

Function Discovery Overview.

The Function Discovery Browser may be found in the Windows SDK for Windows 7 default install location of "C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.0Binfdbrowser.exe"

Curtis Smith
Developer
Windows C++ Team

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.

The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Windows 7 SDK Setup: common installation issues and fixes

This post describes common installation problems with the Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 (released August 2009), and workarounds for each issue. The Windows SDK for Windows 7 is available for download in both ISO and Web Setup format.  Web setup allows you to install a specific subset of the SDK you select without having to download the entire SDK.  The DVD ISO setup allows you to download the entire SDK to install later.

Error:

During the installation of Windows SDK you receive an error similar to

An error occurred installing the Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 package. Error: A file that is required cannot be installed because the cabinet file.

Or

Cabinet file does not have correct format

Cause:

This error usually occurs when you have a bad download of SDK Components or corrupted files.

Solution:

Running the Windows SDK web setup on some connections can sometimes have issues when downloading the files.  We recommend that you clear the %temp%sdksetup directory and retry your web setup. If that fails, switch over to the ISO setup for the Windows SDK. 

For Windows 7 SDK please refer to the download page here http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=71DEB800-C591-4F97-A900-BEA146E4FAE1&displaylang=en

Error:

When using Web setup to install Windows SDK, you might receive an error similar to

"Unable to find the file SDKSetup.cab at the installation source.  The most likely..."

Cause:

This error usually indicates a problem with underlying proxy issues or problems with network connection.

Solution:

Verify your network connection and try to install the SDK again. If the problem persists, download the ISO instead of using the Web Setup.

Error:

During the Windows SDK installation you encounter an error similar to

"A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK XXXXXX" product has reported the following error: Fatal error during

Installation."

Cause 1:

You are installing Windows SDK to a non fixed physical hard drive like a RAM/USB hard drive.

Solution:

Please change the install location of the Windows SDK during install options and install Windows SDK to a fixed physical hard drive.

Cause 2:

Network Connection is lost during installation when using web setup.

Solution:

Re try the Windows SDK installation and switch to ISO install if the problem persists.

Cause 3:

User cancelled the installation

Solution:

Reinstall Windows SDK either from Web Setup or ISO downloads.

Error:

During an attempt to install Windows SDK you receive an error similar to

A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7" product has reported the following error: Please refer to SamplesSetupHTMLConfigDetails.htm document for further information.

Cause:

This error usually occurs when you have a corrupted Document Explorer installation.

Solution:

Uninstall the document explorer and re try the Windows SDK Installation.

If uninstalling Document explorer fails with errors similar to “Unable to open key” please refer to the solution explained here to uninstall Document Explorer.

Error:

When installing using an ISO download you receive an error similar to

“Setup could not find the file WinSDK_amd64WinSDK_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations”.

Cause:

This problem usually occurs when you are installing from an ISO build for a different architecture.

Solution:

Windows SDK now have different ISO’s for different architectures. Please download the correct ISO based on your system platform and architecture type.

Error:

An attempt to install Windows SDK might fail with the following error

A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.
Unknown product: {E28FB85C-8E3E-4E12-B1E6-58A3AFC0AFB4}
Parameter name: productCode

Cause:

Document Explorer has shared component dependencies which break if you delete VS 2008 or Windows SDK files/registry entries manually. If these Files/Registry entries are deleted manually, Document Explorer installer will not be able to access its installer components.

Solution:

Uninstall Document Explorer and retry installing Windows SDK. If you are experiencing problems uninstalling Document explorer please refer to the blog post here http://ctrlf5.net/?p=184.

Error:

An attempt to uninstall earlier Versions of Windows SDK may fail and Windows SDK setup reports error similar to

“Unable to find required source files in any of the source locations”.

Cause:

Some earlier versions of Windows SDK like the Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008, require source files to be able to uninstall the SDK. Windows SDK for Windows 7 does not require the source file to be able to uninstall.

Solution:

1.       Download installer cleanup utility from http://support.microsoft.com/kb/290301

2.       Select All Windows SDK related packed with the version number you are trying to remove.

a.       Also select VCRedist and Document Explorer packages with the Windows SDK Version number. Do not select VcRedist/Document Explorer packages that have a different version number

b.      Also Select Windows SDK .Net Development tools (It has .Net version number, something like 3.5.XXXXX)

3.       Remove the selected packages

With this method, you will remove the installer cache, but the physical files remain on the disk. These will mostly get overwritten by the latest SDK but the behavior is not guaranteed.

Error:

When installing Windows SDK, you receive an error similar to

Unable to install Microsoft Visual C++ (error 1935)

Cause:

Usually this error occurs when files required by the installer are in use. Most probably the mscoree.dll is in use.

Solution:

Close all the application that are already in use and try the Windows SDK Installation again.

Finding Errors from the SDKSetup log:

On each install and uninstall session, SDKSetup creates a descriptive log in the System %temp% folder. (Usually it is C:UsersUserNameAppDataLocalTemp). When an error occurs during the Windows SDK installation or un-installation, a more descriptive error message is logged towards the end of the log file. The current log file is named similar to SDKSetup_7.0.7000 1800.log and changes based on the Windows SDK you are using. You can also search for “error” within the log to verify if there are another errors during the installation. Ignore messages similar to ‘ErrorDialog = ErrorDialog’ and “Error Status: 0”.

Nanda Lella
Software Development Engineer
Windows C++ & SDK Team

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.

The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Windows SDK Configuration Tool May Report an Error When OS Display Format is not English

This post describes a problem with the Windows SDK Configuration Tool, which is used to set the version of Windows SDK headers, libraries and tools you wish to build with in the Visual Studio or Windows SDK build environments.  

Issue: When you launch the Windows SDK Configuration Tool on a system which has Visual Studio 2005 or Visual Studio 2008 and the display format of the operating system is not English, an error may be thrown: “Your system does not have Visual Studio 2005 or Visual Studio 2008 installed."

This error will occur when the OS is Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows Server 2008, and Visual Studio 2005 or Visual Studio 2008 is installed. This error can be reproduced in the Windows 7 SDK and the Windows Server 2008 SDK. 

Cause: With some non-English operating system display formats, the Windows SDK Configuration Tool is unable to parse the version number of Visual Studio as written in the registry.

Solution: There are two workarounds to the problem:

(1) Use the command-line version of Windows SDK Configuration Tool to change to the version of the Windows SDK you wish to target.  For example to target the Windows 7 SDK go to the Windows SDK prompt by Clicking All Programs -> Select Microsoft Windows SDK v7.0 -> Select CMD shell. At the Windows SDK command prompt, type “ WindowsSdkVer.exe -version:v7.0 “ [without quotes]

(2) Change the OS Display Format to English (United States). Go to Control Panel and navigate to your Regional and Language Options. On the Formats tab ensure English (United States) is selected. You should now be able to use the Windows SDK Configuration Tool to target the appropriate build environment. Note: once you have changed the target you may return your OS Display Format to its original setting.

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias.  Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to improve your development experience.  The MSDN Windows SDK Developer Center is the place to find resources and links to Windows SDK products, release notes, technical articles, and more.

Window SDK Team

Troubleshooting Windows 7 SDK Download/Install

This article applies to the Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.  Read these other posts to troubleshoot issues with the Windows SDK for Server 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 or to troubleshoot issues with the Windows SDK Update for Vista and .NET Framework 3.0.  

The Windows 7 SDK is available for download in ISO or Web Setup format.  Web setup allows you to select a specific subset of the SDK so you do not have to download the entire SDK. The ISO setup allows you to download the entire SDK to burn to disk or a virtual drive, and install later. This release provides three platform-specific ISOs.  Choose the ISO that matches the CPU platform (x86, x64, or Itanium) that you are installing on.  If you are having problems downloading the correct ISO from the Microsoft Download Center, use these direct links:

• Download the X86 version: GRMSDK_EN_DVD.iso
• Download the AMD64 version: GRMSDKX_EN_DVD.iso
• Download the Itanium version: GRMSDKIAI_EN_DVD.iso
  

Running the Windows SDK web setup on some connections can sometimes have issues when downloading the files. We recommend that you clear the %temp%sdksetup directory and retry your web setup. If that fails, switch over to the ISO setup for the Windows SDK. 

Typical %temp%sdksetup directory:

On Windows Vista or Windows 7: C:%user%AppDataLocalTemp SDKSetup_7.0.6918.0.log
On Windows XP: C:Documents and Settings%User%Local Settings SDKSetup_7.0.6918.0.log

• Get the Web Install of the Windows SDK for Windows 7 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=c17ba869-9671-4330-a63e-1fd44e0e2505
• Get the ISO Downloads of the Windows SDK for Windows 7 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=71deb800-c591-4f97-a900-bea146e4fae1

About ISO image files

Many products are posted as ISO image files.  An ISO file is an exact representation of a CD or DVD, including the content and the logical format. ISO files end with an .ISO extension.  The most common use of an image file is to write it to a blank CD-R or DVD-R. ISO image files can also be opened and their contents copied to a local folder, much like ZIP files. ISO files may also be virtually mounted and accessed as a device. These two methods of using ISO images are described below.

Copying the contents of ISO files to a drive

The contents of image files can be used as virtual discs using utilities such as ISObuster, Daemon Tools or Virtual CloneDrive for Windows. Using this method you can extract the files from an image file to a temporary folder on your hard drive, then run setup.

Writing ISO files to CD-R or DVD-R

Most CD-R/DVD-R writing software includes a feature to create a disc from an image file. Note: you must use the special "copy image to CD" or "burn image" functionality. See your software’s Help for detailed information. Common utilities for writing ISO file to recordable media such as DVD-R include Nero and Roxio. In Windows 7, you can burn and ISO by right-clicking the .iso file and selecting “Burn disc image”.  After a CD/DVD-R has been written, you should verify that the file was successfully written. Many freeware programs are available for calculating the SDK SHA-1 hash value.  Use an Internet search engine to search for “sha1 hash” to find a freeware program.  Windows SDK for Windows 7 verification information:

File Name: GRMSDK_EN_DVD1.iso
Chip: X86
CRC#: 0xCA4FE79D
SHA1: 0x8695F5E6810D84153181695DA78850988A923F4E
================================================
File Name: GRMSDKX_EN_DVD1.iso
Chip: AMD64
CRC#: 0xB417A4F7
SHA1: 0x3393C98B8468CB3505557854922707510F8B65E1
================================================
File Name: GRMSDKIAI_EN_DVD1.iso
Chip: Itanium
CRC#: 0x5E0E4BEA
SHA1: 0xAE454215585A044EBE593E9F71FF1A4BC03D56A8

Other Resources

Windows SDK Online Release Notes http://download.microsoft.com/download/8/8/0/8808A472-6450-4723-9C87-977069714B27/ReleaseNotes_Win7RTMSDK.Htm

Windows SDK blog http://blogs.msdn.com/windowssdk

Windows SDK MSDN Developer Center http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/bb980924.aspx

Windows SDK Developer Forum http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/forums/en-US/windowssdk/threads/