Bump version requirements in C++ docs - #10111
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Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS) wants to merge 5 commits into
Open
Bump version requirements in C++ docs#10111Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS) wants to merge 5 commits into
Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS) wants to merge 5 commits into
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1) Update MSYS2 minimum Windows requirement to Windows 10 (1809+) Reason: doc said Windows 8.1+ but MSYS2 now requires Windows 10 1809+. Source: https://www.msys2.org/ 2) Remove obsolete non-UCRT pacman fallback for pre-Windows-10 users Reason: Fallback targeted users without UCRT, which is impossible now that MSYS2 requires Windows 10 1809+ (ships UCRT). Source: https://www.msys2.org/ 3) Fix compilerPath in c_cpp_properties.json example to use ucrt64 Reason: Installation steps direct users to the ucrt-x86_64 toolchain and C:\msys64\ucrt64\bin, but the example inconsistently referenced mingw64. Internal contradiction with lines 43 and 56. Source: Same file, self-contradiction Detected by: vscode-cpp-docs-staleness Scout skill (2026-08-06)
The subsection only made sense when the non-UCRT toolchain fallback existed. That fallback was removed in the prior commit since MSYS2 now requires Windows 10 1809+, which ships UCRT natively. Source: https://www.msys2.org/ Quote: "Installing MSYS2 requires 64 bit Windows 10 (1809+) or newer."
The installation section (lines 30-36) explicitly directs users to install "Build Tools for Visual Studio 2022", but three example paths later in the file still referenced 2019 and 2017. Corrected all three to match VS 2022 with a current MSVC 14.40 toolset. Also removed the "(x86)" segment: 64-bit VS 2022 installs to "Program Files/Microsoft Visual Studio" by default on 64-bit Windows. Sources: - Same file, lines 30-36 (installation instructions specifying VS 2022) - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/overview/compiler-versions Quote: MSVC 14.40 through 14.44 are the toolset versions shipping in VS 2022.
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Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS)
August 7, 2026 00:28
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Pull request overview
Updates the C++ setup documentation to reflect newer baseline toolchain expectations on Windows, focusing on MSYS2/UCRT and Visual Studio 2022 example paths.
Changes:
- Update MSVC
c_cpp_properties.jsonandVsDevCmd.batexample paths to Visual Studio 2022 locations. - Update MinGW/MSYS2 guidance to assume UCRT64 (
ucrt64) and Windows 10 (1809+) and remove the legacy non-UCRT pacman workaround. - Update MinGW
c_cpp_properties.jsonexample to point atC:/msys64/ucrt64/bin/g++.exe.
Reviewed changes
Copilot reviewed 2 out of 2 changed files in this pull request and generated 3 comments.
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| docs/cpp/config-msvc.md | Refreshes Visual Studio 2022 example paths; includes a small typo and an example-path mismatch to fix. |
| docs/cpp/config-mingw.md | Bumps MSYS2 baseline expectations (Win10 1809+, UCRT64) and updates compiler path examples accordingly. |
…vc.md Visual Studio 2026 is now the current stable release and is the recommended download from Microsoft. Updated: - Installation section: "Build Tools for Visual Studio 2022" and download anchor "#remote-tools-for-visual-studio-2022" -> 2026 versions - Three example paths in c_cpp_properties.json and tasks.json examples: 2022 -> 2026, MSVC toolset -> 14.51 (VS 2026 starts at 14.50 per docs) Screenshot filenames (build-tools-for-vs-2022.png, desktop_development_with_cpp-2022.png) retained for now; they still convey the installer workflow. Sources: - https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads/ Quote: The downloads page lists "Build Tools for Visual Studio 2026" with anchor #build-tools-for-visual-studio-2026 and "Remote Tools for Visual Studio 2026" with anchor #remote-tools-for-visual-studio-2026. - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/overview/compiler-versions Quote: "The MSVC build tools that ship with Visual Studio 2026 and later start at version 14.50, and _MSC_VER starts at 1950."
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Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS)
August 7, 2026 18:23
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Pull request overview
Copilot reviewed 2 out of 2 changed files in this pull request and generated no new comments.
Suppressed comments (3)
docs/cpp/config-msvc.md:30
- The text instructs users to download “Build Tools for Visual Studio 2026”, but the screenshot immediately below is still the 2022 UI (images/msvc/build-tools-for-vs-2022.png). This mismatch is confusing. Consider making the instruction version-agnostic (or update the screenshot assets to match 2026).
You can also install the **Desktop development with C++** workload without a full Visual Studio IDE installation. From the Visual Studio [Downloads](https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads/#remote-tools-for-visual-studio-2026) page, scroll down until you see **Tools for Visual Studio** under the **All Downloads** section and select the download for **Build Tools for Visual Studio 2026**.
docs/cpp/config-msvc.md:376
- The first item in the
compilerPathsearch order list is truncated (“compilerOpe”), and the list items use inconsistent casing/punctuation. This reads like a copy/paste or edit error.
- First check for the Microsoft Visual C++ compilerOpe
- Then look for g++ on Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)
- Then g++ for Mingw-w64.
If you have g++ or WSL installed, you might need to change `compilerPath` to match the preferred compiler for your project. For Microsoft C++, the path should look something like this, depending on which specific version you have installed: "C:/Program Files/Microsoft Visual Studio/2026/BuildTools/VC/Tools/MSVC/14.51/bin/Hostx64/x64/cl.exe".
docs/cpp/config-mingw.md:36
- Use the standard hyphenated form “64-bit”, and consider matching Microsoft’s “Windows 10, version 1809” phrasing for clarity.
1. Run the installer and follow the steps of the installation wizard. Note that MSYS2 requires 64 bit Windows 10 (version 1809 or later).
Alexandra Kemper (AlexandraKemperMS)
requested a review
from Nick Trogh (ntrogh)
August 7, 2026 21:40
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Nick Trogh (@ntrogh) one more PR review please, fixing some versioning and consistency problems |
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Audit of docs to determine min version requirements: