CMake does not find Visual C++ compiler

Here is the solution that worked for me:

  1. Open Visual Studio command prompt tool (as an administrator). On windows 10 it might be called 'Developer command prompt'.
  2. Navigate to where you have the CMake executable
  3. Run Cmake.exe
  4. Proceed as usual to select build and source folder
  5. Select the appropriate Visual Studio compiler and hit the configure button

Hopefully it should run without problems.


I looked in CMakeError.log file and found an error about cannot run 'rc.exe'

I searched and found this answer to copy RC.Exe and RcDll.Dll from the Microsoft SDKs bin to the VC bin, and then CMake worked.


Edit: The top answer to another question suggests that it's a PATH issue, so it could be enough to ensure the Microsoft SDK bin is in your PATH.


I have found the solution. While the Visual Studio IDE installed successfully it did not install any build tools and therefore did not install the C++ compiler.

By attempting to manually create a C++ project in the Visual Studio 2015 GUI I was able to prompt it to download the C++ packages. CMake was then able to find the compiler without any difficulty.