Using WinSDK, DirectX SDK and VS2008

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It can be a bit tricky to use the DirectX SDK, the Windows SDK, and Visual Studio 2008.  If you're building an application in the Windows SDK command line build environment or in Visual Studio2008 IDE, 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 if you wish to build with Windows SDK headers, libraries and tools.

Here's how to make that work:

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 Files\Microsoft DirectX SDK <version>\Utilities\bin\x86

(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 Files\Microsoft 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 Files\Microsoft DirectX SDK <version>\Lib\x86

(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 AMD64 and providing the appropriate paths.

12. Click OK.

Check this page for the latest information about what's new in DirectX and known issues with the DirectX SDK.

The Microsoft DirectX SDK Developer Center provides links to the resources needed to build cutting-edge, media-rich, interactive applications. It includes runtimes, headers and libraries, samples, documentation, utilities, and support for C++ development.