Windows Driver Kit
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| Developer(s) | Microsoft |
|---|---|
| Stable release | 10.1 / November 1, 2015 |
| Development status | Active |
| Operating system | Windows |
| Available in | English |
| Website | Windows Driver Kit |
The Windows Driver Kit (WDK) is a software toolset from Microsoft that enables the development of device drivers for the Microsoft Windows platform. It includes documentation, samples, build environments, and tools for driver developers.
History of WDK
Previously, the WDK was known as Windows Driver Development Kit (DDK) and supported Windows Driver Model (WDM) development. It got its current name when Microsoft released Windows Vista and added the following tools to the kit:
- Windows Driver Foundation (WDF)
- Installable File System Kit (IFS Kit)
- Driver Test Manager (DTM)
DDK Versions
| Version | Build Number | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| Windows 3.1 DDK | 1992 | |
| Windows NT 3.1 DDK | 1993 | |
| Windows NT 3.5 DDK | 1994 | |
| Windows NT 3.51 DDK | 1025.1 | July 1995 |
| Windows 95 DDK | October 1995 | |
| Windows NT DDK (for Windows NT Workstation 3.51) | July 1996 | |
| Windows NT DDK (for Windows NT Workstation 4.0) | 1381.1 | August 1996 |
| Windows 98 DDK | July 1998 | |
| Windows 2000 DDK | 2195.1 | February 2000 |
| Windows XP Driver Development Kit (DDK) | 2600 | September 21, 2001 |
| Windows XP SP1 Driver Development Kit (DDK) | 2600.1106 | November 14, 2002 |
| Windows Server 2003 DDK | 3790 | April 9, 2003 |
| Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 DDK | 3790.1830 | April 6, 2005 |
Note: Windows NT DDK, Windows 98 DDK and Windows 2000 DDK are no longer available for download by Microsoft because of Java-related settlements made by Microsoft with Sun Microsystems.[1]
The DDK for Windows 2000 and earlier versions did not include an compiler; instead Visual C++ was used to compile drivers. From the version for Windows XP the DDK and later the WDK include an command line compiler that is used to compile drivers. One of the reasons Microsoft gave for including an compiler was that the quality of drivers would improve if they were compiled with the same version of the compiler that was used to compile Windows itself while Visual C++ is targeted to application development and has an different product cycle with more frequent changes.
WDK Versions
| Version | Build Number | Release Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows Driver Kit for Windows Vista | 6000 | November 29, 2006 | |
| Windows Driver Kit – Server 2008 (x86, x64, ia64) | 6001.18000 | Jan 2008 | |
| Windows Driver Kit – Server 2008 (x86, x64, ia64) | 6001.18001 | April 1, 2008 | |
| Windows Driver Kit – Server 2008 Release SP1 (x86, x64, i64) | 6001.18002 | December 8, 2008 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 7.0.0 | 7600.16385.0 | August 6, 2009 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 7.1.0 | 7600.16385.1 | February 28, 2010 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.0 | 8.59.25584 | August 15, 2012 | downloads before 8/17/2012 had a bug in WDF coinstaller[2] |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.1 | 8.100.26638 | September 16, 2013 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.1 Update | 8.100.26846 | August 20, 2014 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 10.0 | 10.0.26639 | July 2015 | |
| Windows Driver Kit 10.1 | 10.1.10586 | November 2015 |
Later DTM was renamed to Windows Logo Kit (WLK) and separated from WDK.
As in the later DDKs, a compiler is included in the WDK until and including WDK 7.1.0, while the WDK 8.x and later series goes back to using Visual Studio as the compiler.
| Version | Develops Drivers For | Visual Studio Integration |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Driver Kit for Windows Vista | Windows Vista | - |
| Windows Driver Kit for Windows Server 2008 | Windows XP SP1 - Vista SP1, Windows Server 2000 SP4 - 2008 | - |
| Windows Driver Kit for Windows Server 2008 SP1 | Windows XP SP1 - Vista SP1, Windows Server 2000 SP4 - 2008 SP1 | - |
| Windows Driver Kit 7.0.0 | Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2 | - |
| Windows Driver Kit 7.1.0 | Windows XP SP3 - 7, Windows Server 2003 SP1 - 2008 R2 | - |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.0 | Windows 7 - 8, Windows Server 2008 R2 - 2012 | Visual Studio 2012 |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.1 | Windows 7 - 8.1, Windows Server 2008 R2 - 2012 R2 | Visual Studio 2013 |
| Windows Driver Kit 8.1 Update | Windows 7 - 8.1 Update, Windows Server 2008 R2 - 2012 R2 | Visual Studio 2013 |
| Windows Driver Kit 10.0 | Windows 7 - 10 | Visual Studio 2015 |
| Windows Driver Kit 10.1 | Windows 7 - 10 | Visual Studio 2015 |
