Microsoft Windows SDK

Last updated
Microsoft Windows SDK
Developer(s) Microsoft
Stable release
10.0.22621.0 / September 20, 2022;2 years ago (2022-09-20)
Operating system Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows 11
Type Application programming interface (API)
Website developer.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/sdk-archive

Microsoft Windows SDK, and its predecessors Platform SDK, and .NET Framework SDK, are software development kits (SDKs) from Microsoft that contain documentation, header files, libraries, samples and tools required to develop applications for Microsoft Windows and .NET Framework. [1] Platform SDK specializes in developing applications for Windows 2000, XP and Windows Server 2003. .NET Framework SDK is dedicated to developing applications for .NET Framework 1.1 and .NET Framework 2.0. Windows SDK is the successor of the two and supports developing applications for Windows XP and later, as well as .NET Framework 3.0 and later. [2]

Contents

Features

Platform SDK is the successor of the original Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 3.1x and Microsoft Win32 SDK for Windows 9x. It was released in 1999 and is the oldest SDK. Platform SDK contains compilers, tools, documentations, header files, libraries and samples needed for software development on IA-32, x64 and IA-64 CPU architectures. .NET Framework SDK however, came to being with .NET Framework. Starting with Windows Vista, the Platform SDK, .NET Framework SDK, Tablet PC SDK and Windows Media SDK are replaced by a new unified kit called Windows SDK. However, the .NET Framework 1.1 SDK is not included since the .NET Framework 1.1 does not ship with Windows Vista. (Windows Media Center SDK for Windows Vista ships separately.) DirectX SDK was merged into Windows SDK with the release of Windows 8. [3]

Windows SDK allows the user to specify the components to be installed and where to install them. It integrates with Visual Studio, so that multiple copies of the components that both have are not installed; however, there are compatibility caveats if either of the two is not from the same era. [4] [5] Information shown can be filtered by content, such as showing only new Windows Vista content, only .NET Framework content, or showing content for a specific language or technology.

Windows SDKs are available for free; they were once available on Microsoft Download Center but were moved to MSDN in 2012.

A developer might want to use an older SDK for a particular reason. For example, the Windows Server 2003 Platform SDK released in February 2003 was the last SDK to provide full support of Visual Studio 6.0. Some older PSDK versions can still be downloaded from the Microsoft Download center; others can be ordered on CD/DVD. [6]

Microsoft SDK version release history [7]
NameVersion numberBuild numberRelease dateDownloadNotes
Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit3.1 ?1992
Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit3.11 ? ? ?
Microsoft Win32 Software Development Kit3.1 ? ?
Microsoft Win32 Software Development Kit3.53.50.612.11994-04
Microsoft Win32 Software Development Kit3.51 ?1995-06
Microsoft Win32 Software Development Kit4.04.0.1381.11996-11
Microsoft Win32 Software Development Kitv5.05.0.1636.11998-06 ?Included in Visual Studio 6
Microsoft Platform SDK April 1999 ? ?1999-04 MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.

Last Platform SDK to officially install on Windows 95

Microsoft Platform SDK September 1999 ?5.0.2128.81999-09 , MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.

Also known as Microsoft Platform SDK for Windows 2000 RC2.

Includes Alpha to AXP64 cross toolset.

Last Platform SDK to fully supportVisual C++ 5.0

Microsoft Platform SDK January 2000 ? ?2000-01 ?MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.
Microsoft Platform SDK April 2000 ?5.0.2195.322000-04 MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.
Microsoft Platform SDK November 2000 ?5.0.2296.52000-11 MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.

Also known as Microsoft Platform SDK for Whistler Beta 1.

Includes preliminary tools for Itanium.

Microsoft Platform SDK February 2001 ? ?2001-02 ?
Microsoft Platform SDK June 2001v5.15.1.2505.02001-06 MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.

Last Platform SDK to officially develop for Windows 95. (Does not officially install on Windows 95)

Microsoft Platform SDK August 2001v5.15.1.2601.02001-08 , MSDN subscription CD-ROM disc.

Last Platform SDK to unofficially develop for Windows 95. (Does not officially install on Windows 95)

Microsoft Platform SDK November 2001v5.25.2.3590.22001-11
Microsoft Platform SDK May 2002v5.25.2.3639.12002-05
Microsoft Platform SDK July 2002v5.25.2.3663.02002-07
Microsoft Platform SDK August 2002v5.25.2.3672.12002-08
Microsoft Platform SDK November 2002v5.25.2.3718.12002-11
Microsoft Platform SDK February 2003v5.25.2.3790.02003-02 Last version with VC6 support [8] and latest version with Windows 95 and Windows 98 support.
.NET Framework SDK Version 1.1 ?1.1.4322.5732003-03-29 Included in Visual Studio 2003. Does not include the Platform SDK.
Microsoft Platform SDK for Windows XP SP2 ?5.1.2600.21802004-08 Introduced strsafe.h
Windows Server 2003 SP1 Platform SDKv5.25.2.3790.1830.152005-05-02
Windows Server 2003 R2 Platform SDKv5.25.2.3790.2075.512006-03-14 Last Platform SDK to develop for Windows 2000. [9] Also suggested by MS to work with VS6 with no guarantee as it has not been tested with specific requirements. [10]
.NET Framework 2.0 Software Development Kit ?2.0.50727.422006-11-29 Included in Visual Studio 2005 Professional. Does not include the Platform SDK.
Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit for Windows Vista and .NET Framework 3.0 Runtime Componentsv6.06.0.6000.163842006-10-30 The C++ compilers in this SDK release support the /analyze key.
Microsoft Windows Software Development Kit Update for Windows Vistav6.16.1.6000.16384.102007-03-22 First unified .NET and Platform SDK. Does not support Visual Studio .NET 2003 and Microsoft Visual C++ Toolkit 2003
Included in Visual Studio 2008 [11] v6.0a6.1.6723.12007-11-19
Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5v6.16.0.6001.18000.3672008-02-05 .NET Framework 3.5
Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1v7.06.1.7600.163852009-07-24 ,
Included in Visual Studio 2010v7.0a6.1.7600.163852010-04-12 .NET Framework 4. Works only with Visual Studio 2010 and not Visual Studio 2010 Express. This is also the last version to include offline documentation. [12]
Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4v7.17.1.7600.0.305142010-05-19 [13] [14] , It is the latest version that officially supports Windows XP target. .NET Framework 4 needed. Higher sub-version from .NET Framework is not recognised by installation. Building the samples with nmake.exe is not supported, most of the NMAKE macros are removed.
Included in Visual Studio 2012 Update 1 (or later)v7.1A7.1.51106 ? ?Introduces the "v110_xp" platform toolset
Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 8 and .NET Framework 4.5v8.06.2.9200.163842012-11-15 [15] .NET Framework 4.5, Windows Store apps and Integrated DirectX SDK
Included in Visual Studio 2012v8.0A8.0.50727 ? ?
Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 8.1v8.18.100.25984.02013-10-17 Windows 8.1, .NET Framework 4.5.1, Windows Store apps and Integrated DirectX SDK
Included in Visual Studio 2013v8.1A8.1.51636 ? ?Includes the "v120_xp" platform toolset
Windows Standalone SDK for Windows 10v1010.0.10240.02015-07-29 Also included in Visual Studio 2015 [16]
Windows Standalone SDK for Windows 10, Version 1511 [17] v1010.0.10586.2122015-11-30 Also included in Visual Studio 2015 Update 1 & 2 [18]
Windows Standalone SDK for Windows 10, Version 1607v1010.0.14393.7952016-08-02 Also included in Visual Studio 2015 Update 3
Windows Standalone SDK for Windows 10 Creators Update, Version 1703v1010.0.15063.02017-04-05 Included in Visual Studio 2017 ver.15.1
Windows 10 SDK for Fall Creators Update, version 1709v1010.0.16299.152017-10-10 Included in Visual Studio 2017 ver.15.4
Windows 10 SDK for April 2018 Update, version 1803v1010.0.17134.02018-05-08 Included in Visual Studio 2017 ver.15.7
Windows 10 SDK for October 2018 Update, version 1809v1010.0.17763.02018-10-02 Included in Visual Studio 2017 ver.15.8
Windows 10 SDK for Windows 10, version 1903v1010.0.18362.02019-05-21 Included in Visual Studio 2019
Windows 10 SDK for Windows 10, version 2004v1010.0.19041.02020-05-12
Windows 10 SDK for Windows 10, version 2004v1010.0.19041.6852020-12-16 Servicing update
Windows 10 SDK for Windows 10, version 21H1v1010.0.20348.02021-05-25
Windows 10 SDK for Windows 11v1010.0.22000.1942021-10-04
Windows SDK for Windows 11v1010.0.22621.7552022-10-25 Released as part of Windows 11, version 22H2. Includes servicing update 10.0.22000.755 on October 25, 2022,

Includes ARM64 support for the Visual Studio 17.4 release

Windows SDK for Windows 11v1010.0.22621.17782023-05-24 Released as part of Windows 11, version 22H2 Build 10.0.22621.1778.
Windows SDK for Windows 11v1010.0.26100.02024-05-22 Initial release of the 10.0.26100 series, to correspond with the Windows 11, version 24H2 preview.
Removed features of Windows SDK
VersionRemoved feature
Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 [19]
  • capicom.dll (CAPICOM is deprecated)
  • iacom.dll
  • ialoader.dll
  • msistuff.exe
  • perflibmig.exe
  • permcalc.exe
  • secutil.exe
  • windowssideshowvirtualdevice.exe (replaced by DeviceSimulatorforWindowsSideShow.msi)
  • wpfperf.msi (now included in the Windows Performance Toolkit suite)
  • xamlpad.exe (XAMLPad)
Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 [20]
  • UISpy.exe (Replaced by newer tools)
  • Wpt_arch.msi
  • Managed code samples (Moved to Code Gallery)
  • DExplore document viewer (Can be separately installed)
Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 8 [21]
  • Command-line build environment, including:
    • Windows SDK Platform Toolset
    • Visual C++ Compilers and C Runtime (CRT)
    • Windows SDK Configuration Tool
  • Tools and reference assemblies for versions of the .NET Framework earlier than 4.5
  • Apatch.exe
  • Bind.exe
  • Checkv4.exe
  • Consume.exe
  • DeviceSimulatorForWindowsSideShow.msi
  • Err.exe
  • FDBrowser.exe
  • FXCopSetup.exe
  • Guidgen.exe
  • Make-Shell.exe
  • MDbg.exe
  • Mpatch.exe
  • MSIZap.exe
  • PTConform.exe
  • ReBase.exe
  • sddlgen.exe
  • setenv.cmd
  • SetReg.exe
  • SoapSuds.exe
  • Sporder.exe
  • TcpAnalyzer.exe
  • TSPDesigner.exe
  • UTL2IDL.exe
  • ValidateSD.exe
  • VirtualLightSensor.exe
  • WinDiff.exe
  • WpfPerf.exe
  • All Windows samples (moved to Code Gallery)
  • Microsoft Help Viewer
  • IntelliSense XML documentation comments for the .NET Framework reference assemblies
Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 8.1 [22] Nothing
Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 10Nothing [23]

Documentation

The Windows SDK documentation includes manuals documenting:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DirectX</span> Collection of multimedia related APIs on Microsoft platforms

Microsoft DirectX is a collection of application programming interfaces (APIs) for handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming and video, on Microsoft platforms. Originally, the names of these APIs all began with "Direct", such as Direct3D, DirectDraw, DirectMusic, DirectPlay, DirectSound, and so forth. The name DirectX was coined as a shorthand term for all of these APIs and soon became the name of the collection. When Microsoft later set out to develop a gaming console, the X was used as the basis of the name Xbox to indicate that the console was based on DirectX technology. The X initial has been carried forward in the naming of APIs designed for the Xbox such as XInput and the Cross-platform Audio Creation Tool (XACT), while the DirectX pattern has been continued for Windows APIs such as Direct2D and DirectWrite.

Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) was the division of Microsoft responsible for managing the firm's relationship with developers and testers, such as hardware developers interested in the operating system (OS), and software developers developing on the various OS platforms or using the API or scripting languages of Microsoft's applications. The relationship management was situated in assorted media: web sites, newsletters, developer conferences, trade media, blogs and DVD distribution.

A software development kit (SDK) is a collection of software development tools in one installable package. They facilitate the creation of applications by having a compiler, debugger and sometimes a software framework. They are normally specific to a hardware platform and operating system combination. To create applications with advanced functionalities such as advertisements, push notifications, etc; most application software developers use specific software development kits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft Visual C++</span> Integrated development environment product

Microsoft Visual C++ (MSVC) is a compiler for the C, C++, C++/CLI and C++/CX programming languages by Microsoft. MSVC is proprietary software; it was originally a standalone product but later became a part of Visual Studio and made available in both trialware and freeware forms. It features tools for developing and debugging C++ code, especially code written for the Windows API, DirectX and .NET.

Windows Embedded Compact, formerly Windows Embedded CE, Windows Powered and Windows CE, is a discontinued operating system developed by Microsoft for mobile and embedded devices. It was part of the Windows Embedded family and served as the foundation of several classes of devices including the Handheld PC, Pocket PC, Auto PC, Windows Mobile, Windows Phone 7 and others.

Virtual PC is a discontinued x86 emulator for PowerPC Mac hosts and Microsoft Windows hosts. It was created by Connectix in 1997 and acquired by Microsoft in 2003. The Mac version was discontinued in 2006 following the Mac transition to Intel, while the Windows version was discontinued in 2011 in favour of Hyper-V.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft XNA</span> Freeware set of tools by Microsoft

Microsoft XNA is a freeware set of tools with a managed runtime environment that Microsoft Gaming developed to facilitate video game development. XNA is based on .NET Framework, with versions that run on Windows and Xbox 360. XNA Game Studio can help develop XNA games. The XNA toolset was announced on March 24, 2004, at the Game Developers Conference in San Jose, California. A first Community Technology Preview of XNA Build was released on March 14, 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft Visual Studio Express</span> Integrated development environment

Microsoft Visual Studio Express was a set of integrated development environments (IDEs) that Microsoft developed and released free of charge. They are function-limited version of the non-free Visual Studio and require mandatory registration. Express editions started with Visual Studio 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft Data Access Components</span> Framework

Microsoft Data Access Components is a framework of interrelated Microsoft technologies that allows programmers a uniform and comprehensive way of developing applications that can access almost any data store. Its components include: ActiveX Data Objects (ADO), OLE DB, and Open Database Connectivity (ODBC). There have been several deprecated components as well, such as the Jet Database Engine, MSDASQL, and Remote Data Services (RDS). Some components have also become obsolete, such as the former Data Access Objects API and Remote Data Objects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windows Vista</span> Seventh major release of Windows NT

Windows Vista is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was the direct successor to Windows XP, released five years earlier, which was then the longest time span between successive releases of Microsoft Windows. It was released to manufacturing on November 8, 2006, and over the following two months, it was released in stages to business customers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and retail channels. On January 30, 2007, it was released internationally and was made available for purchase and download from the Windows Marketplace; it is the first release of Windows to be made available through a digital distribution platform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windows Preinstallation Environment</span> Lightweight version of Microsoft Windows for deployment

Windows Preinstallation Environment is a lightweight version of Windows used for the deployment of PCs, workstations, and servers, or troubleshooting an operating system while it is offline. It is intended to replace MS-DOS boot disks and can be booted via USB flash drive, PXE, iPXE, CD, DVD, or hard disk. Traditionally used by large corporations and OEMs, it is now widely available free of charge via Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (WADK).

The Windows Driver Kit (WDK) is a software toolset from Microsoft that enables the development of device drivers for the Microsoft Windows platform. It includes documentation, samples, build environments, and tools for driver developers. A complete toolset for driver development also need the following: a compiler Visual Studio, Windows SDK, and Windows HLK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windows CardSpace</span> Discontinued identity selector app by Microsoft

Windows CardSpace is a discontinued identity selector app by Microsoft. It stores references to digital identities of the users, presenting them as visual information cards. CardSpace provides a consistent UI designed to help people to easily and securely use these identities in applications and web sites where they are accepted. Resistance to phishing attacks and adherence to Kim Cameron's "7 Laws of Identity" were goals in its design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windows SideShow</span> Former feature by Microsoft

Windows SideShow was a feature by Microsoft introduced in Windows Vista to supply information such as e-mail, instant messages, and RSS feeds from a personal computer to a local or remote peripheral device or display. SideShow was intended to enhance the Windows experience by enabling new mobility scenarios for the Windows platform and by providing power saving benefits as part of Microsoft's broader efforts regarding a mobile initiative.

Microsoft XML Core Services (MSXML) are set of services that allow applications written in JScript, VBScript, and Microsoft development tools to build Windows-native XML-based applications. It supports XML 1.0, DOM, SAX, an XSLT 1.0 processor, XML schema support including XSD and XDR, as well as other XML-related technologies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adobe AIR</span> Cross-platform runtime system for building rich web applications

Adobe AIR is a cross-platform runtime system currently developed by Harman International, in collaboration with Adobe Inc., for building desktop applications and mobile applications, programmed using Adobe Animate, ActionScript, and optionally Apache Flex. It was originally released in 2008. The runtime supports installable applications on Windows, macOS, and mobile operating systems, including Android, iOS, and BlackBerry Tablet OS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnifier (Windows)</span>

Magnifier, formerly Microsoft Magnifier, is a screen magnifier app intended for visually impaired people to use when running Microsoft Windows. When it is running, it creates a bar at the top of the screen that greatly magnifies where the mouse is. Magnifier was first included as a sample in the Active Accessibility SDK/RDK for Windows 95 and later made a standard Windows utility starting with Windows 98. Prior to Windows Vista, Magnifier could be used to magnify the screen up to 9 times its normal size. Windows Vista and later allow up to 16× magnification.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Visual Studio</span> Code editor and IDE

Visual Studio is an integrated development environment (IDE) developed by Microsoft. It is used to develop computer programs including websites, web apps, web services and mobile apps. Visual Studio uses Microsoft software development platforms including Windows API, Windows Forms, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Microsoft Store and Microsoft Silverlight. It can produce both native code and managed code.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.NET Framework version history</span>

Microsoft started development on the .NET Framework in the late 1990s originally under the name of Next Generation Windows Services (NGWS). By late 2001 the first beta versions of .NET Framework 1.0 were released. The first version of .NET Framework was released on 13 February 2002, bringing managed code to Windows NT 4.0, 98, 2000, ME and XP.

XAudio2 is a lower-level audio API for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and Windows Phone 8, the successor to DirectSound on Windows and a supplement to the original XAudio on the Xbox 360.

References

  1. "Windows SDK: Download Windows Server 2008 SDK and more". Microsoft Developer Network. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  2. "Windows SDK Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". Microsoft Developer Network. Microsoft Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 September 2009. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  3. "Where is the DirectX SDK?". Windows Dev Center. Microsoft . Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  4. "Windows SDK Fails to Install with Return Code 5100". Support. Microsoft. 5 June 2012.
  5. Stewart, Heath (1 April 2011). "Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Compiler Update for the Windows SDK 7.1". Setup & Install by Heath Stewart. Microsoft.
  6. Microsoft Software Development Kits CD Order Archived 2011-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Windows and Windows Phone SDK archive
  8. Windows® Server 2003 SP1 Platform SDK Web Install, Microsoft Download Center "The last SDK that will work with VC 6.0 is the February 2003 Edition, you can order a CD on the fulfillment site."
  9. "Windows Server 2003 R2 Platform SDK Web Install". www.microsoft.com. Archived from the original on 2006-04-22. Retrieved 2006-04-22.
  10. "Platform SDK February 2003 installation + IE8". Social.msdn.microsoft.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-18. Retrieved 2017-08-08.
  11. Microsoft Windows SDK Blog: New samples in Win 7 SDK: Direct2D and DirectWrite
  12. "Windows SDK 7.1 release notes" . Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  13. Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 iso image
  14. Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 web installer
  15. Windows SDK for Windows 8 – Windows Dev Center. Msdn.microsoft.com. Retrieved on 2014-02-16.
  16. Building Apps for Windows 10 with Visual Studio 2015
  17. Windows 10 SDK Release Notes
  18. Visual Studio 2015 Update 1 Release Notes
  19. Release Notes, Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1
  20. Release Notes, Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4
  21. "Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 8". Windows Dev Center. Microsoft . Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  22. "Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 8". Windows Dev Center. Microsoft . Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  23. "Windows Software Development Kit (SDK) for Windows 10". Windows Dev Center. Microsoft . Retrieved 20 February 2016.