Compiler choices

You have several choices for compiling the Source SDK:

1. Visual Studio 2005 / Visual C++ Express 2005 — which are the officially-supported compilers.
2. Visual Studio 2008 / Visual C++ Express 2008 — which can be used after a bit of work.
3. Visual Studio 2010 / Visual C++ Express 2010 — ditto (Does not work with Alien Swarm SDK).
4. GCC — which is used to compile Linux Dedicated Servers.

If you own a copy of Visual Studio you'll probably want to use that, and if you're compiling for Linux you don't have a choice to make, which leaves only the Express editions to choose between. There isn't much competition any more: choose 2010 for better compiling, better InteliSense, better UI, and better Vista/7 compatibility.

Additional SDKs

• Visual C++ Express 2005 users need to download the Windows SDK (Windows 2000 users: Platform SDK).
• If you want to create new shaders, the DirectX SDK is required.

See also

• Compiling under VS2005
• Compiling under VS2008
• Compiling under VS2010
• Compiling under Linux