Getting LibCurl to work with Visual Studio 2013
C++Visual C++DllLibcurlC++ Problem Overview
I am having trouble getting LibCurl to work with Visual Studio 2013. I downloaded the current version (curl-7.33.0) and tried following the instructions I found on this site: Using LibCurl with Visual 2010
But I can't find curllib.lib in the folder I downloaded. And I am still getting errors:
After searching the internet for more help. I now get these error messages. There appears to be a problem with linking to libcurl.lib?
This is what I have configured:
Inside /lib I have libcurl.lib and libcurl.dll
UPDATE
I downloaded this release for Win32 MSVC: http://curl.haxx.se/download.html#Win32 After adding the libcurl libraries and successfully compiling, I am now getting this error message:
The application was unable to start correctly (0xc000007b). Click OK to close the application.
Here is the sample code I am trying to run:
#include <iostream>
#include <stdio.h>
#include <curl/curl.h>
int main(void)
{
CURL *curl;
CURLcode res;
curl = curl_easy_init();
if (curl) {
curl_easy_setopt(curl, CURLOPT_URL, "http://google.com");
res = curl_easy_perform(curl);
/* always cleanup */
curl_easy_cleanup(curl);
}
return 0;
}
FINAL UPDATE
I believe I have gotten LibCurl to work with Visual Studio 2013 now. Persistence ftw! Although, after spending hours trying to solve these error messages, I am a little hesitant at saying everything is working fine now. That is why I am putting a bounty on this question to get clear and concise instructions on getting LibCurl to work with Visual Studio 2013.
This is what I did to get it to work:
-
First, download the Win32 MSVC package here: http://curl.haxx.se/download.html#Win32 For these instructions sake, let's say you downloaded to C:\LibCurl
-
Start a new project in Visual Studio. Go to Project|Project Properties|VC++ Directories|Include Directories| Add the path to the include directory inside the downloaded package. (C:\LibCurl\include)
-
Next, go to Project|Project Properties|Linker|General|Additional Library Directories| Add the path to the lib directory. (Where curllib.dll is located)
-
Then, go to Project|Project Properties|Linker|Input|Additional Dependencies| And add curllib.lib
-
Now if you compile a test program, you will likely get the message saying libsasl.dll is missing. You will need to download this file and put it in the same directory as your build. I used 7-Zip to extract libsasl.dll from OpenLDAP for Windows. OpenLDAP for Windows
This is the result of my test code from above:
C++ Solutions
Solution 1 - C++
A lot of these instructions are out of date because they recommend the win32-ssl-devel-msvc package for curl, which no longer exists.
The following instructions allow you to build libcurl using only:
- Visual Studio 2013
- curl generic source tarball (tested on curl 7.44.0).
A. Build libcurl static library
- Download the latest curl generic source from: http://curl.haxx.se/latest.cgi?curl=tar.gz
- Extract the source to a local directory (we'll be using
C:\libcurl
) - Open a command prompt
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\bin\vcvars32.bat"
To initialize your VC environment variables (adjust your VS 2013 installation directory as needed)cd C:\libcurl\winbuild
nmake /f Makefile.vc mode=static VC=12
- The build should appear in
C:\libcurl\builds\libcurl-vc12-x86-release-static-ipv6-sspi-winssl
B. Link Against libcurl in Visual Studio
- In Visual Studio, right click your project in Solution Explorer, then click "Properties"
- Configuration Properties > C/C++ > General > Additional Include Directories: add
C:\libcurl\builds\libcurl-vc12-x86-release-static-ipv6-sspi-winssl\include
- Configuration Properties > C/C++ > Preprocessor > Preprocessor Definitions: add
CURL_STATICLIB
- Configuration Properties > Linker > General > Additional Library Directories: add
C:\libcurl\builds\libcurl-vc12-x86-release-static-ipv6-sspi-winssl\lib
- Configuration Properties > Linker > Input > Additional Dependencies: add
libcurl_a.lib
C. Call libcurl from Your Project
The following sample shows a call to libcurl:
#include "stdafx.h"
#include <curl/curl.h>
void main(int argc, char* argv[])
{
CURL *curl = curl_easy_init();
if (curl) printf("curl_easy_init() succeeded!\n");
else fprintf(stderr, "Error calling curl_easy_init().\n");
}
Solution 2 - C++
I would say that in a comment, but I am lacking in points.
You don't have to copy any .dll into your program run catalog.
Go to Project | Properties | Configuration Properties and in line Envrionment write: PATH=$(ExecutablePath)$(LocalDebuggerEnvironment)
.
From now on, all .dlls from any catalog you mention in Project|Project Properties|VC++ Directories|Binary should be usable without copying them.
The rest is exactly as you written.
Solution 3 - C++
The easiest way to do this that I found is first make sure that nuget is installed.
Then create your project.
Then go to http://www.nuget.org/packages/curl/ and follow the instructions which is to go the package manager console and type PM> Install-Package curl
If you then look for the packages directory in your project directory, you will find the include files and the library files. Note that there is a version for Visual Studio 110, not 120, but because libcurl is a C library you can use it with Visual Studio 2013. Make sure the include directory and lib directory are specified under the Visual C++ directories in project properties.
Make sure you have the following files as addition input to the linker
libcurl.lib;libeay32.lib;ssleay32.lib;Ws2_32.lib;libssh2.lib;zlib.lib;wldap32.lib;
Solution 4 - C++
Another way to use curl/libcurl is build with CMake v2.8.12+ (assuming that git is already installed on your computer)
Open cmd window and change dir to appropriate folder
git clone https://github.com/bagder/curl.git
mkdir msbuild
cd msbuild
cmake ..\curl -G"Visual Studio 12 Win64" -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=C:\curl.vc12 -DCURL_STATICLIB=ON
< ... lots of output here ... >
Open generated CURL.sln in Visual studio and build it.
CMake options I use in example
> -G selects build generator. In our case Visual Studio 2013 64 bit target > > -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX - provides root folder where targets should be installed > > -DCURL_STATICLIB=ON - generates build for static library
After building install target, your will find bin/include/lib folders in C:\curl.vc12
Provide those path to your solution and build your code with curl lib.
Solution 5 - C++
I tried to do it from scratch with VS2012 (I don't have 2013) and it works perfectly.
- I downloaded version 7.19.3 from http://curl.haxx.se/latest.cgi?curl=win32-ssl-devel-msvc because it's the only available version for VS.
- I added the include directory, not the curl directory as he says in the tutorial.
- I compiled a small toy project without any problem.
So, I'm not sure what your problem is, but:
- Make sure you download the right archive.
- Try to put the cURL folder on a path without space.
- If you know someone who use VS2012 or older, try your code with the same include and lib and see if it works.
- Paste a minimal working example of your code so I can test it.
Solution 6 - C++
This is a bit late, but for those who still have problems, this method worked best for me:
- Add VS to the system PATH:
For example:C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\bin
. - Download current curl-X.zip from
http://curl.haxx.se/download.html
and unzip. - Open command line at
curl-X/winbuild
. - Call
vcvars32.bat
. - Call
nmake /f Makefile.vc mode=static VC=12
. - Goto
curl-X/builds/libcurl-XXX
.
There you find the includes and a libcurl_a.lib
.
This lib works fine for me.
Remember to define -DCURL_STATICLIB
when you compile your code with this lib.
Solution 7 - C++
For Visual Studio 2017, the steps in link worked for me. In case the link expires or specifically for those who download the libcurl zip file instead of cloning from GitHub, I will note down the steps here.
-
Set environment variables with
“C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2017\Community\VC\Auxiliary\Build\vcvarsall.bat” x64
. If the command is successful, you will see a message that saysEnvironment initialized for 'x64'
-
Download and extract the compressed libcurl file from download libcurl. I used the
.zip
file. -
cd
intowinbuild
directory inside the extracted libcurl folder. -
Run
nmake /f Makefile.vc mode=dll MACHINE=x64
to build. For more information on build options, please refer toBUILD.WINDOWS
text file inwinbuild
folder. -
Go up one directory level and
cd
intobuilds
folder to find the compiled files.
All the best!
Solution 8 - C++
The problem is that the targets for the default VS2013 platform tools are not set in the NuGet packages. This is why it works in VS2012 but not VS2013. I manually created replacement targets files. Instructions and download:
Solution 9 - C++
Download the curl v7.37.0 source code and use the Visual Studio project files provided.
I've spent the last few weeks polishing my own personal project files, that were based off the original VC6 files, and adding them to the repository.
.dsw / .dsp (VC6), .sln / .vcproj (VC7, VC7.1, VC8 and VC9 as well as .sln / .vcxproj (VC10, VC11 and VC12) files are provided for both DLL and Static Library builds with support for OpenSSL and Windows SSPI / SChannel in both Win32 and x64 configurations.
Solution 10 - C++
I found an easy way to get it work in VC++ using the latest package. I basically followed the steps in Using libcurl in Visual Studio. The libcurl and VC++ are very old in the instruction.
First download the ZIP file on download page https://curl.haxx.se/download.html The ZIP package is https://curl.haxx.se/download/curl-7.50.1.zip
Go to projects-> Windows\VC10 (or your version of VC)\lib\libcurl.sln, open the project in VC++.
Build the project in DLL Release. DLL debug doesn't work on my VC++.
Go to build\Win32\VC10\DLL Release, you can find the lib and dll files generated from previous step.
Create a folder new, with include and lib folders. Copy the libcurb.dll and libcurb.lib whatever is in the DLL Release folder to the new\lib. Copy everything in curl-7.50.1\include to new\include folder.
C++ Properties -> Configuration Properties -> VC++ Directories, add new\include to Include Directories, new\lib to Library Directories; add new\lib to Linker -> General -> Additional Library Directories, add libcurl.lib to Linker -> Input -> Additional Dependencies
It seems that I have to put the dll file under the same folder with executable file.
It should work.