Microsoft Windows SDK Blog : SDK

Released: Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 19:42:00 GMT

The RTM release of the Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 is now 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. This release of the SDK provides three ISO choices. Choosethe ISO that matches CPU platform (x86, x64, or Itanium) that you are installing on. Each ISO will allow you to build applications that target all CPU platforms. Thus if you install the x86 ISO (which only installs on x86 platforms), you will be able to create applications targeting x86, x64, and Itanium.

If you are having problems downloading the correct ISO from the Microsoft Download Center, use these direct links:

Platform Compatibility:

This release of the Windows SDK is compatible with Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 , Windows Vista, and Windows XP.

Visual Studio Compatibility:

This release of the Windows SDK is compatible with Visual Studio 2008 SP1; including Visual Studio Express Editions.

What’s New:

Please check out the top-level Getting Started section in the SDK documentation for a full description of what’s new in the SDK as well as recent posts to this blog – such as New Win32 Samples in Windows SDK for Windows 7: Windows User Interface or New Tools in Windows SDK for Windows 7.

Troubleshooting:

If you are having problems downloading or installing this SDK, read Troubleshooting Windows 7 SDK Download/Install.

Learn More:

Stayed tuned to the Windows SDK blog as well as the Windows SDK MSDN Developer Center over the coming weeks 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.

Thank you,

Barry R. Butterklee

Windows SDK Release PM

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.

Released: Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1: RC

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Wed, 06 May 2009 01:29:00 GMT

The Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1: Release Candidate has been released 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; whereas the DVD ISO setup allows you to download the entire SDK to install later. Please note, with this release of the SDK, there are 3 ISOs to choose from based on the CPU (x86, x64, or Itanium) platform you are installing on. Each ISO will however allow you to build applications that target all the other CPU platforms. Thus if you install the x86 ISO (which only installs on x86 platforms), you will be able to create applications targeting x86, x64, and Itanium.

Platform Compatibility:

This release of the Windows SDK is compatible with Windows 7 Release Candidate, Windows Server 2008 R2 Candidate, Windows Server 2008, .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 , Windows Vista, and Windows XP.

Visual Studio Compatibility:

This release of the Windows SDK is compatible with Visual Studio 2008; including Visual Studio Express Editions.

What’s New:

The following is a small sampling of what’s new or updated in this SDK.

· Documentation – Approximately 80% of the SDK documentation set has been refreshed

· Headers/Libraries – numerous new and updated – please see What’s New in the Windows API under the top-level Getting Started section in the documentation

· Samples – Over 200 new and/or updated samples

· Tools – Several new tools added

· Visual Studio 2008 SP1 C++ command line compiler toolset and matching CRT

Learn More:

Tell us what you think:

Send your thoughts to the Windows SDK Feedback alias. Tell us how you use the SDK and what we can do to make your life easier.

Thank you

Barry R. Butterklee

Windows SDK Release PM

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

Announcing: The Windows SDK Developer Center

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 20:04:00 GMT

Today we launched the Windows SDK MSDN Developer Center. This site is intended as a one-stop place to provide information to help you determine which version of the Windows SDK is most appropriate for your use, and to get information on how you can maximize your experience with the Windows SDK.

Some other useful things you’ll find on the site:

Useful information for how you can use the SDK.
Links to appropriate Windows or Platform SDK downloads.
Links to useful downloads to content that is associated with the SDK such as Windows PowerShell and the Debugging Tools for Windows.
Links and views into community content.
Online Release Notes that are refreshed as new issues come up.
Link to the SDK’s Privacy Statement.
Links to related Developer Centers.
Links to support information.

We’re pretty darn excited to get this site live, but of course it’s only a first take on the project. We have a good amount of additional content we’re planning on adding to the site over the next few months, including a matrix to help determine which SDK release is the right one for you. Please help us by sending feedback on the site. You can add a comment below or use one of the mailto links on the site.

Released: Visual Studio 2008 with embedded Windows SDK Components

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 01:56:00 GMT

I’m pleased to announce on behalf of the entire Windows SDK team, that we have released Windows SDK components with Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5. Windows SDK components ship embedded into just about all of the Visual Studio 2008 versions. The Windows SDK team understands that developers have traditionally used the Windows SDK components hand-in-hand with Visual Studio, and Visual Studio 2008 will be no exception. The Windows SDK team has worked hard over the last year plus to better understand how developers use the two products together. This research has resulted in a seamless integration between this Windows SDK and Visual Studio 2008, which for this release are one in the same.

There will be no separate, standalone web release of this version of the Windows SDK. You can download the free Visual Studio Express editions, which have some Windows SDK components. If you want a full standalone Windows SDK for use with Visual Studio 2008, you can download the Microsoft® Windows® Software Development Kit Update for Windows Vista™ that was released in March, 2007. This SDK has the same set of (Vista RTM) SDK headers and libraries that are included in Visual Studio 2008. However, the SDK tools that ship with VS2008 are more recent than those that ship in the Vista Update SDK.

If you want an SDK that corresponds to the prerelease version of Windows Server 2008, download the Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 Release Candidate 0 and .NET Framework 3.5 Beta2 this SDK contains Visual Studio 2008 Beta 2 versions of .NET Framework 3.5 content. The release version of this SDK will ship at the same time as Windows Server 2008.

· MSDN subscribers can download Visual Studio 2008 from the MSDN subscription site.

· If you do not subscribe to MSDN, you can download a free 90-day trial edition of Visual Studio 2008 Team Suite.

o This edition contains all Windows SDK components shipping with this release of Visual Studio.

· You can also download the Visual Studio 2008 Express editions, which are much smaller and totally free.

o These editions only have a subset of Windows SDK components, but all you need to complete supported development scenarios in those editions.

· If you want to install only the .NET Framework 3.5 runtime, you can download it here.

The .NET Framework 3.5 specific content can be found in the default SDK install folder of any Visual Studio 2008 edition under C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v6.0A\

o \Bin contains tools like SqlMetal.exe

o \Bootstrapper directory has bootstrapper packages for developers who want to use Visual Studio 2008 to deploy their applications

o \FXCop contains the FXCop installer

o \Include & \Lib contains the Windows Headers and Libraries that shipped with Microsoft® Windows® Software Development Kit Update for Windows Vista™

Your feedback is welcome and appreciated,

Pat Litherland

Windows SDK Program Manager

Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 RC0

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 23:26:00 GMT

The latest prerelease Windows SDK is now available for installation! This SDK release supports Windows Server 2008 RC0 and .NET Framework 3.5 Beta2.

The SDK is compatible with the RTM release of Visual Studio 2005 SP1; including Visual Studio Express Editions. In addition the SDK is shipping the Visual Studio 2008 Beta2 versions of the C++ command line toolset and CRT.

As always, please look over the Release Notes for a description of known issues with the SDK. A few important items of note are the following:

1. This release of the SDK is an ISO-only download. For more tips on handling an ISO, please take a look Copying the contents of ISO files section of the Troubleshooting SDK Download/Setup Problems blog post.

2. To take advantage of new VS 2008 capabilities when building SDK samples please review the Release Notes about what steps are required.

3. The .NET Framework documentation, samples, and tools in this SDK aligns with .NET Framework 3.5 Beta2.

Here’s a quick rundown of what’s new in this SDK:

· The latest set of documentation, samples, and tools for Windows including .NET Framework 3.5 development.

· A new C++ compiler and associated CRT

· This SDK will install side-by-side with Visual Studio 2008 Beta2.

We encourage you to install this SDK on a test machine and let us know what you think.

Barry R. Butterklee

Windows SDK Release PM

barrybu@microsoft.com

Day of Caring 2007

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 02:37:00 GMT

Last Friday I took part in the annual Microsoft Day of Caring, a day set aside each year for employees to volunteer to perform community activities. Thousands of ‘softies take on hundreds of different activities each year. This year I helped weed and clean up Golden Garden Park, a lovely park in the Ballard area of Seattle that boasts a gorgeous view of Puget Sound. It seems the park was facing a large incursion of non-native plant life and nasty blackberry bushes, so a group of about 40 Microsoft people descended on the park on a blustery Friday morning to take on the task.

I'm not much of a gardener, as my neighbors and family will agree, but this was really fun work. It was great to get out and do work completely different from the kinds of stuff I do every day on the job. We were out there with picks and clippers and other garden tools, a set of tools very different from my regular Visual Studio toolbox. It was also great to get out and enjoy the beautiful sunlight that came out around 11:00. You know, it sounds corny, but getting out there and feeling like I was helping the community was really the best reward. Our group pulled out an astonishing amount of weeds - at least, it was astonishing to me to look at all the six-foot-tall piles of Japanese knotwood and see that people like me had done that. And as I looked at all my sweaty and tired compatriots at the end of the day, I could see that many of them felt the same way.

I've been with the company for 7 years, but this is the first time I've taken part in this event. I might not have taken part if my friend Karin hadn't recommended I do so. Karin is a former oceanographer and is very environmentally conscious. But I'm glad I did, and I'm kicking myself for not doing this sooner.

I'm sure this post reads like Microsoft propaganda, but I just wanted to share something nicely positive that Microsoft does. There are many reasons I'm proud to work at Microsoft; this is definitely one of them.

Jason Sacks
Headers & Libs PM, Windows SDK

New Windows Media Center Software Development Kit available

wsdkblog@microsoft.com — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:24:00 GMT

The Windows Media Center Software Development Kit is designed to help developers create applications and software components that take advantage of features provided by Windows Media Center. Version 5.2 of the Media Center SDK was released on 8/6/2007 with an improved application template designed to ‘quick start’ development. This release includes documentation, tools, sample code and Visual Studio 2005 project templates for the following Windows Media Center platform models:

Windows Media Center Presentation Layer Application (Local, Background and Web)
Hosted .NET Framework 3.0 eXtensible Application Markup Language Browser Application (XBAP)
Hosted HTML

The Window Media Center SDK supports development on Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows Vista Ultimate. To create and run Windows Media Center applications you will need Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium or Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate Edition. To view documentation and sample code only, the minimum system requirements are Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 or Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2.

See the Microsoft Download Center page for Additional Software Prerequisites

Learn more about Windows Media Center SDK on MSDN

Visit the Product Team Blog at http://blog.mediacentersandbox.com

Windows SDK Team