Which SDK is Right for Me?IntroductionSeveral
versions of the Windows SDK and earlier Platform SDKs (PSDK) are
available. Generally, developers will want the most recent SDK, which
supports several Windows operating systems. Some developers have
particular development requirements that call for an earlier SDK. You
will want to consider what version of Windows you will be installing
the SDK on and building applications for, and which version of Visual
Studio and/ or the .NET Framework you will want support for. |
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What’s the Difference between the Windows SDK and Platform SDK (PSDK)?The
Windows SDK supports development with the Win32 programming model on
x86, x64, and Itanium platform architectures, and also supports
development with the .NET Framework programming model. The Windows
SDK is the successor to the Platform SDK and the .NET Framework SDK.
Windows SDKs include most content found in recent PSDKs plus content
for the .NET Framework. The PSDKs do not include content for the .NET
Framework programming model.
| Development Requirement | Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 | Windows Server 2008 & .NET 3.5 SDK | Windows Vista Update & .NET 3.0 SDK | .NET Framework 2.0 SDK | Windows Server 2003 R2 PSDK | | Release Information | | Release Date | Aug-09 | Feb-08 | Feb-07 | Nov-06 | Mar-06 | | Build Number | 6.1.7600.16385 | 6.0.6001.18000.367 | 6.1.6000.16384.10 | 2.0.50727.42 | 5.2.3790.2075.51 | | Release Notes online | Here | Here | Here | | | | Size of full install | 1.5 GB | 1.3 GB | 1.4 GB | 354 MB | 409 MB | | Operating Systems Support | Installs on
Windows 7 | X | X | X | X | | | Installs on Windows Server 2008/2008 R2 | X | X | X | X | X | | Installs on Vista | X | X | X | X | X | | Installs on Windows XP | X | X | X | X | X | | Installs on Server 2003/2003 R2 | | X | X | X | X | | Installs on NT 4.0 SP6 | | | | | X | | Installs on Server 2000 | | | | | X | | Create apps targeting Windows 7 | X | | | | | | Create apps targeting Windows Server 2008/2008 R2 | X | X | | | | | Create apps targeting Vista | X | X | X | | | | Create apps targeting XP | X | X | X | | X | | Create apps targeting Server 2003/2003 R2 | | X | X | | X | | Create apps targeting Server 2000 | | | | | X | | Platform Architecture Support | | Installs on X86 | X | X | X | X | X | | Installs on X64 | X | X | X | X | X | | Installs on IA64 | X | X | | X | X | | Develop apps for X86 | X | X | X | X | | | Develop apps for X64 | X | X | X | X | X | | Develop apps for IA64 | X | X | X | X | | | Visual Studio Compatibility | | Works with Visual Studio 2008 | X | X | X | not
recommended | | | Works with Visual Studio 2005 | not
recommended | X | X | X | X | | Works With VS .NET 2003 | | not
recommended | not
recommended | not
recommended | X | | Works With VS .NET 2002 | | not
recommended | not
recommended | not recommended | X | | .NET Framework Support | | Supports .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 | X | | | | | | Supports .NET Framework 3.5 | X | X | | | | | Supports .NET Framework 3.0 | X | X | X | | | | Supports .NET Framework 2.0 | X | X | X | X | |
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