Windows Setup

Download/install the following tools:

• Python 3.8 or greater

  Notes:

  • Do not use Python 3.10. Many packages lack pre-built binaries for it.
  • Do not use the Python installation that comes with Windows. Install Python fresh.

  Check Add Python 3.X to PATH in the installer.

  Official download: https://www.python.org/downloads/

• git

  Official download: https://git-scm.com/downloads

• Visual Studio Code

  Official download: https://code.visualstudio.com/download

• ARM GNU toolchain with gdb.

  When the installation finishes, make sure to check "Add path to environment variable".

  Official download: https://developer.arm.com/open-source/gnu-toolchain/gnu-rm/downloads

  Select the win32 .exe ending in -win32.exe, e.g. gcc-arm-none-eabi-10-2020-q4-major-win32.exe.

• OpenOCD

  Official download: https://github.com/xpack-dev-tools/openocd-xpack/releases/

  Select the x64 Windows version ending in -win32-x64.zip, e.g. xpack-openocd-0.10.0-15-win32-x64.zip.

  Unzip it to a known location and follow the instructions below to add the bin directory to your PATH. The full path should look like C:\tools\xpack-openocd-0.10.0-15\bin.

• ST-Link Driver

  Official download: http://www.st.com/en/embedded-software/stsw-link009.html

  Google Drive mirror (currently private to ARUW): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1m4dv3zL_lruf89O9ft9EJCFlwj8BoZne/view?usp=sharing

  The "Google Drive mirror" should be preferred when possible due to ST's sign-up requirement.

• gcc and g++ compilers

  Official download: https://winlibs.com/

  Download the latest GCC 11.X.X "UCRT" Win64 version as a ZIP file.

  Unzip it to a known location and follow the instructions below to add the mingw64/bin directory to your PATH. The full path should look like C:\tools\winlibs-x86_64-posix-seh-gcc-11.2.0-llvm-13.0.0-mingw-w64ucrt-9.0.0-r2\mingw64\bin.

  • ClangFormat version 10

    By default, there is a ClangFormat executable that comes with the gcc/g++ compiler listed above, but this executable is a newer version than what we want (currently it is version 13.0.0). Since there is not direct support for this version of ClangFormat on Linux, you must install an older version of ClangFormat as a Windows user.

    • Navigate to C:\mingw64\bin and rename clang-format.exe to clang-format-13.exe.

    • Download clang-format.exe, a ClangFormat executable that is version 10.

    • Move clang-format.exe to C:\mingw64\bin.

• googletest library

  Download (custom build): https://github.com/uw-advanced-robotics/googletest-gcc-windows-builds/releases

  Download the latest release.

  Unzip it to a known location and then double-click install.bat in the root folder.

• (Optional) J-Link driver, Ozone, and J-Scope

  The J-Link provides enhanced debugging capabilities, including graphing live data. This software is only needed if you plan on using a J-Link for development and debugging.

  Official download: https://www.segger.com/downloads/jlink/#J-LinkSoftwareAndDocumentationPack

• (Optional) Windows Terminal

  This is entirely unnecessary, but makes it much more pleasant to use Command Prompt and/or PowerShell.

  Official download: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/terminal/install

When asked to run commands in the future, you should do so in a PowerShell terminal (optionally, within Windows Terminal).

Close (and reopen if necessary) any existing terminal sessions or Visual Studio Code windows.

Visit the README of the repo you are working in to find next steps. You'll want to:

• Clone your repository
• Build the project and run the tests to confirm your environment is set up correctly

Appendix: Adding directories to your PATH

Commands run in the terminal use an "environment variable" called PATH to find runnable programs. Most installers will automatically add their programs to PATH, but some of our tools don't have installers, so we have to do it by hand.

To add one or more directories to PATH:

• Open Start and search for "environment" to find "Edit the system environment variables". Click "Environment Variables...".

• Double-click Path under the "User variables for <Username>"

  Click to see screenshot

  

• Click "New" and paste in the absolute path to the folder you want to add. Usually, it's a path to a folder called bin, e.g. C:\tools\xpack-openocd-0.10.0-15\bin. You can do this for multiple paths.

  Click to see screenshot

  
  Click to see screenshot

  

• Click "Ok" twice