1 Notes for Windows platforms
2 ===========================
4 - [Native builds using Visual C++](#native-builds-using-visual-c++)
5 - [Native builds using Embarcadero C++Builder](
6 #native-builds-using-embarcadero-c++-builder)
7 - [Native builds using MinGW](#native-builds-using-mingw)
8 - [Linking native applications](#linking-native-applications)
9 - [Hosted builds using Cygwin](#hosted-builds-using-cygwin)
11 There are various options to build and run OpenSSL on the Windows platforms.
13 "Native" OpenSSL uses the Windows APIs directly at run time.
14 To build a native OpenSSL you can either use:
16 Microsoft Visual C++ (MSVC) C compiler on the command line
18 Embarcadero C++Builder
21 run on the GNU-like development environment MSYS2
22 or run on Linux or Cygwin
24 "Hosted" OpenSSL relies on an external POSIX compatibility layer
25 for building (using GNU/Unix shell, compiler, and tools) and at run time.
26 For this option you can use Cygwin.
28 Native builds using Visual C++
29 ==============================
31 The native builds using Visual C++ have a `VC-*` prefix.
36 In addition to the requirements and instructions listed in `INSTALL.md`,
37 these are required as well:
41 We recommend Strawberry Perl, available from <http://strawberryperl.com/>
42 Please read NOTES.PERL for more information, including the use of CPAN.
43 An alternative is ActiveState Perl, <https://www.activestate.com/ActivePerl>
44 for which you may need to explicitly build the Perl module Win32/Console.pm
45 via <https://platform.activestate.com/ActiveState> and then download it.
47 ### Microsoft Visual C compiler.
49 Since these are proprietary and ever-changing we cannot test them all.
50 Older versions may not work. Use a recent version wherever possible.
52 ### Netwide Assembler (NASM)
54 NASM is the only supported assembler. It is available from <https://www.nasm.us>.
63 3. Make sure both Perl and NASM are on your %PATH%
65 4. Use Visual Studio Developer Command Prompt with administrative privileges,
66 choosing one of its variants depending on the intended architecture.
67 Or run `cmd` and execute `vcvarsall.bat` with one of the options `x86`,
68 `x86_amd64`, `x86_arm`, `x86_arm64`, `amd64`, `amd64_x86`, `amd64_arm`,
70 This sets up the environment variables needed for `nmake.exe`, `cl.exe`,
73 <https://docs.microsoft.com/cpp/build/building-on-the-command-line>
75 5. From the root of the OpenSSL source directory enter
76 - `perl Configure VC-WIN32` if you want 32-bit OpenSSL or
77 - `perl Configure VC-WIN64A` if you want 64-bit OpenSSL or
78 - `perl Configure VC-WIN64-ARM` if you want Windows on Arm (win-arm64)
80 - `perl Configure` to let Configure figure out the platform
88 For the full installation instructions, or if anything goes wrong at any stage,
89 check the INSTALL.md file.
91 Installation directories
92 ------------------------
94 The default installation directories are derived from environment
97 For VC-WIN32, the following defaults are use:
99 PREFIX: %ProgramFiles(x86)%\OpenSSL
100 OPENSSLDIR: %CommonProgramFiles(x86)%\SSL
102 For VC-WIN64, the following defaults are use:
104 PREFIX: %ProgramW6432%\OpenSSL
105 OPENSSLDIR: %CommonProgramW6432%\SSL
107 Should those environment variables not exist (on a pure Win32
108 installation for examples), these fallbacks are used:
110 PREFIX: %ProgramFiles%\OpenSSL
111 OPENSSLDIR: %CommonProgramFiles%\SSL
113 ALSO NOTE that those directories are usually write protected, even if
114 your account is in the Administrators group. To work around that,
115 start the command prompt by right-clicking on it and choosing "Run as
116 Administrator" before running `nmake install`. The other solution
117 is, of course, to choose a different set of directories by using
118 `--prefix` and `--openssldir` when configuring.
120 Special notes for Universal Windows Platform builds, aka `VC-*-UWP`
121 -------------------------------------------------------------------
123 - UWP targets only support building the static and dynamic libraries.
125 - You should define the platform type to `uwp` and the target arch via
126 `vcvarsall.bat` before you compile. For example, if you want to build
127 `arm64` builds, you should run `vcvarsall.bat x86_arm64 uwp`.
129 Native builds using Embarcadero C++Builder
130 =========================================
132 This toolchain (a descendant of Turbo/Borland C++) is an alternative to MSVC.
133 OpenSSL currently includes an experimental 32-bit configuration targeting the
134 Clang-based compiler (`bcc32c.exe`) in v10.3.3 Community Edition.
135 <https://www.embarcadero.com/products/cbuilder/starter>
139 2. Open the RAD Studio Command Prompt.
141 3. Go to the root of the OpenSSL source directory and run:
142 `perl Configure BC-32 --prefix=%CD%`
148 6. Build your program against this OpenSSL:
149 * Set your include search path to the "include" subdirectory of OpenSSL.
150 * Set your library search path to the OpenSSL source directory.
152 Note that this is very experimental. Support for 64-bit and other Configure
153 options is still pending.
155 Native builds using MinGW
156 =========================
158 MinGW offers an alternative way to build native OpenSSL, by cross compilation.
160 * Usually the build is done on Windows in a GNU-like environment called MSYS2.
162 MSYS2 provides GNU tools, a Unix-like command prompt,
163 and a UNIX compatibility layer for applications.
164 However, in this context it is only used for building OpenSSL.
165 The resulting OpenSSL does not rely on MSYS2 to run and is fully native.
169 - MSYS2 shell, from <https://www.msys2.org/>
171 - Perl, at least version 5.10.0, which usually comes pre-installed with MSYS2
173 - make, installed using `pacman -S make` into the MSYS2 environment
175 - MinGW[64] compiler: `mingw-w64-i686-gcc` and/or `mingw-w64-x86_64-gcc`.
176 These compilers must be on your MSYS2 $PATH.
177 A common error is to not have these on your $PATH.
178 The MSYS2 version of gcc will not work correctly here.
180 In the MSYS2 shell do the configuration depending on the target architecture:
182 ./Configure mingw ...
186 ./Configure mingw64 ...
192 for the default architecture.
194 Apart from that, follow the Unix / Linux instructions in `INSTALL.md`.
196 * It is also possible to build mingw[64] on Linux or Cygwin.
198 In this case configure with the corresponding `--cross-compile-prefix=`
201 ./Configure mingw --cross-compile-prefix=i686-w64-mingw32- ...
205 ./Configure mingw64 --cross-compile-prefix=x86_64-w64-mingw32- ...
207 This requires that you've installed the necessary add-on packages for
208 mingw[64] cross compilation.
210 Linking native applications
211 ===========================
213 This section applies to all native builds.
215 If you link with static OpenSSL libraries then you're expected to
216 additionally link your application with `WS2_32.LIB`, `GDI32.LIB`,
217 `ADVAPI32.LIB`, `CRYPT32.LIB` and `USER32.LIB`. Those developing
218 non-interactive service applications might feel concerned about
219 linking with `GDI32.LIB` and `USER32.LIB`, as they are justly associated
220 with interactive desktop, which is not available to service
221 processes. The toolkit is designed to detect in which context it's
222 currently executed, GUI, console app or service, and act accordingly,
223 namely whether or not to actually make GUI calls. Additionally those
224 who wish to `/DELAYLOAD:GDI32.DLL` and `/DELAYLOAD:USER32.DLL` and
225 actually keep them off service process should consider implementing
226 and exporting from .exe image in question own `_OPENSSL_isservice` not
227 relying on `USER32.DLL`. E.g., on Windows Vista and later you could:
229 __declspec(dllexport) __cdecl BOOL _OPENSSL_isservice(void)
233 if (ProcessIdToSessionId(GetCurrentProcessId(), &sess))
238 If you link with OpenSSL .DLLs, then you're expected to include into
239 your application code a small "shim" snippet, which provides
240 the glue between the OpenSSL BIO layer and your compiler run-time.
241 See also the OPENSSL_Applink manual page.
243 Hosted builds using Cygwin
244 ==========================
246 Cygwin implements a POSIX/Unix runtime system (`cygwin1.dll`) on top of the
247 Windows subsystem and provides a Bash shell and GNU tools environment.
248 Consequently, a build of OpenSSL with Cygwin is virtually identical to the
251 To build OpenSSL using Cygwin, you need to:
253 * Install Cygwin, see <https://cygwin.com/>
255 * Install Cygwin Perl, at least version 5.10.0
256 and ensure it is in the $PATH
258 * Run the Cygwin Bash shell
260 Apart from that, follow the Unix / Linux instructions in INSTALL.md.
262 NOTE: `make test` and normal file operations may fail in directories
263 mounted as text (i.e. `mount -t c:\somewhere /home`) due to Cygwin
264 stripping of carriage returns. To avoid this ensure that a binary
265 mount is used, e.g. `mount -b c:\somewhere /home`.