Compile C code in Visual Studio in Windows for Linux

Question

I'm using Visual Studio in Windows to develop basic C applications. I want to compile my code for Linux, without the need to have Linux installed on my machine. Is that possible ? And how ?

Answer 1

yes, it is possible. Have a look at this stackoverflow question.

1. Install WLS on your Windows machine
2. Use the standard gcc instruction (or, better, Makefiles and/or CMake )

Example :

Let's say you have your program:

//code within filename.c
#include <stdio.h>

int main(){
    printf("Hello Youssef\n");
    return 0;
}

Then, within the folder, run:

$ gcc filename.c

and then run it:

$ ./a.out
Hello Youssef

Answer 2

You'll need to have Linux installed somewhere. If you can remote to a linux box, vm, or WSL console, from your Visual Studio machine, you can use VS 2019 to build and debug most applications in any of those environments, via the Cross Platform Connection Manager .

The following blog and document links are a good place to start.

• Targeting the Windows Subsystem for Linux from Visual Studio
• C++ with Visual Studio 2019 and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)
• EA and Visual Studio's Linux Support
• Usability Improvements for CMake in Visual Studio 2019 version 16.4: Launch Target Selection and Overview Pages

Similarly, Visual Studio Code has some support for this as well:

• Using C++ and WSL in VS Code

Sincerely,

Answer 3

You can install a VM (virtual machine) on your windows computer, then install linux on the virtual machine.

Note: both the VM and linux are free downloads