docs: add CARLA Windows build guide (#139) by YuSun-go · Pull Request #140 · ORNL-Real-Sim/FIXS

YuSun-go · 2026-03-28T17:35:01Z

Summary

This PR adds a documentation guide for building CARLA 0.9.15 on Windows, with a focus on common issues and practical solutions encountered during the build process.

The guide includes:

Dependency setup and verification steps
Visual Studio toolset configuration
Common build errors and fixes (e.g., NumPy version, Make version)
Asset version identification
Practical troubleshooting tips based on real build experience

Related Issues / Tasks

Relates to #139

Type of Change

Affected Modules / Components

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md
doc/CARLAdoc.md
Documentation related to CARLA Windows build workflow

Test Cases

Verified commands and dependency checks:
- python --version
- pip3 -V
- cmake --version
- make --version
- git --version

Environment

Python version: 3.x (64-bit recommended)
CARLA version: 0.9.15
OS: Windows 11
Build tools:
- Visual Studio 2019
- Windows 10 SDK
- CMake
- Make (3.81)

Checklist

Code compiles/runs as expected
Tests pass locally
Documentation is updated (if applicable)
Relevant issues are linked
Version-specific changes are noted (if any)

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:31:02Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+The official documentation provides a comprehensive step-by-step process.  
+However, in practice, several issues may arise during the build process (e.g., dependency conflicts, version mismatches, and build errors).
+
+This document focuses on:


This document follows the structure of Part One: Prerequisites and Part Two: Build CARLA from the official documentation, and focuses on:

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:31:17Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+
+## Part One: Prerequisites
+
+In this section, you will find the system requirements and necessary software setup before building CARLA.


can be removed

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:31:58Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+
+- Ensure that the required version of **Make (3.81)** is used. This version may need to be installed manually (e.g., via Gnuwin), or obtained through other reliable sources.
+
+- For **Visual Studio 2019**, make sure the correct toolchain is selected. Note that the **Windows 8.1 SDK** may no longer be available and can be replaced with the **Windows 10 SDK**.


can consider add a screenshot of how to select toolchain

is it called toolset or toolchain?

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:33:07Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+- For **Visual Studio 2019**, make sure the correct toolchain is selected. Note that the **Windows 8.1 SDK** may no longer be available and can be replaced with the **Windows 10 SDK**.
+
+- The installation and configuration of **Unreal Engine 4.26** can be completed by following the official CARLA documentation:  
+  [CARLA Windows Build Documentation](https://carla.readthedocs.io/en/0.9.15/build_windows/)


use this link: https://carla.readthedocs.io/en/0.9.15/build_windows/#unreal-engine

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:33:41Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+- The installation and configuration of **Unreal Engine 4.26** can be completed by following the official CARLA documentation:  
+  [CARLA Windows Build Documentation](https://carla.readthedocs.io/en/0.9.15/build_windows/)
+
+Please ensure all dependencies are correctly installed before proceeding to the build stage.


any check or verification that can show all dependencies are ready?

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:34:40Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+
+Solution: Manual Download and Extraction
+
+Identify the correct asset version for CARLA 0.9.15:


how to know which one is the correct asset?

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:36:15Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+Extract them into the corresponding Build directory
+Ensure the folder names match exactly (e.g., xerces-c-3.2.3-source)
+
+2. Boost download failure in install_boost.bat


in previous "1. Missing dependencies during build (zlib / boost / xerces-c)" you already mentioned boost. do you want to remove that and keep Boost as a separate documentation

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:37:02Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+
+Solution:
+
+- Manually download Boost (e.g., version 1.80.0)


after manually download these libraries, where do you put them? how to ensure Carla can find them properly?

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:38:33Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+```
+-DCMAKE_POLICY_VERSION_MINIMUM=3.5
+```
+3). Ensure variables such as %XYZ_SRC_DIR% are correctly set if required


I am not following this part, are you indicating that we need to add a puncturation mark "."?

Yes, it needs a puncturation mark "." here to solve the path problem.

yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:39:28Z

doc/Carla_Windows_building.md

+If none of these issues occur, the build environment is correctly configured.  
+Otherwise, the provided solutions may help resolve them.
+
+Contributions are welcome. If additional issues are encountered and resolved, please update this document accordingly.


yunlishao · 2026-04-06T22:40:07Z

doc/CARLAdoc.md

+To build the CARLA 0.9.15 under Visual Studio 2019, a practical guide is shown below (For detailed build steps, please refer to [CARLA Windows Build Guide](./Carla_Windows_building.md).):

-The MSVC toolset version changed to 14.4 (i.e., the “14.4x” series) after Visual Studio 2022 version 17.10. Since the official installation script supports up to MSVC 14.3x, we use Visual Studio 2022 17.8 for simplicity. The `--channelURI` parameter can be used to specify the version.
+The MSVC toolset version changed to 14.4 (i.e., the “14.4x” series) after Visual Studio 2019 version 17.10. Since the official installation script supports up to MSVC 14.3x, we use Visual Studio 2022 17.8 for simplicity. The `--channelURI` parameter can be used to specify the version.


"we use Visual Studio 2022 17.8 for simplicit" => change to 2019?

Updated the instructions for building LibCarla with Visual Studio.

YuSun-go added 2 commits March 28, 2026 13:27

Add the documents about building carla on windows from source

774d12d

Update the Carla_Windows_building file

9ad2859

yunlishao reviewed Apr 6, 2026

View reviewed changes

yunlishao requested changes Apr 6, 2026

View reviewed changes

YuSun-go added 5 commits April 7, 2026 14:18

Update Carla_Windows_building file

4461156

Update Carla_Windows_building file

8baf854

Rename VS 2019_MSVC toolset.png to VS2019_MSVC_toolset.png

2a13cdf

add a picture of VS 2019 toolset

2d1fd8c

Change Visual Studio version in CARLAdoc documentation

3b99cc1

Updated the instructions for building LibCarla with Visual Studio.


		## Part One: Prerequisites

		In this section, you will find the system requirements and necessary software setup before building CARLA.


		- Ensure that the required version of Make (3.81) is used. This version may need to be installed manually (e.g., via Gnuwin), or obtained through other reliable sources.

		- For Visual Studio 2019, make sure the correct toolchain is selected. Note that the Windows 8.1 SDK may no longer be available and can be replaced with the Windows 10 SDK.


		Solution: Manual Download and Extraction

		Identify the correct asset version for CARLA 0.9.15:

Conversation

YuSun-go commented Mar 28, 2026 • edited Loading Uh oh! There was an error while loading. Please reload this page.

Uh oh!

Summary

Related Issues / Tasks

Type of Change

Affected Modules / Components

Test Cases

Environment

Checklist

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

Uh oh!

Reviewers

Assignees

Labels

Projects

Milestone

Development

Uh oh!

2 participants

YuSun-go commented Mar 28, 2026 •

edited

Loading