If you’ve ever dug into a .vcxproj file, browsed the Visual Studio Installer, or debugged a failing CI/CD pipeline, you’ve likely encountered the cryptic string: (often seen as PlatformToolset v142 ).
| Visual Studio Version | Default Platform Toolset | |----------------------|--------------------------| | VS 2017 | v141 | | | v142 | | VS 2022 | v143 | The Specifics: msvc v142 for x64/x86 When you select v142 , you are telling MSBuild: "Use the C++ compiler and libraries that shipped with Visual Studio 2019." msvc v142 - vs 2019 c x64/x86 build tools
Run the Visual Studio Installer, select "Modify" on VS 2019, go to the "Individual components" tab, and search for "MSVC v142" . Check the box for the latest version of "MSVC v142 - VS 2019 C++ x64/x86 build tools". If you’ve ever dug into a
The toolset is not the IDE. You can build v142 code inside VS 2022, and you can build v143 code inside VS 2019 (with extensions). But for consistency across your team and your CI server—pin your toolset to v142 and never look back. Have you run into a strange v142 linker error? Let me know in the comments below. The toolset is not the IDE
Why your pipeline says “v142” and why you shouldn’t confuse it with your IDE.