Building RTKLIB 2.4.3 code with Visual C++ 2010

One of my goals in this project is to make some changes to the RTKLIB solution algorithms and evaluate them specifically for my set of inputs. RTKLIB is intended to work in many different environments. I would like to customize it to be optimal for calculating differential solutions for two single frequency receivers assuming low velocities and open skies. Some of the changes I would like to make are based on what other people have already tried but for which code is not available. Other changes are based on looking at cases in my data where RTKLIB did not provide a good solution, understanding why, and changing the algorithm appropriately.

To make these changes, I need to be able to modify the RTKLIB code and rebuild it. Since I am doing this initial evaluation work on a Windows PC I will need to build the code in that environment. The GUI versions of the RTKLIB programs require the Embarcadero C++ compiler which I do not have and which is fairly expensive to purchase. The CUI versions can be built with Visual C++, which is available for free, so I have chosen to go that path. As mentioned before, I also find the CUI interface with a matlab wrapper better for tracking configuration information for multiple runs.

The project files for Visual C++ are in the rtklib\app\”app name”\msc folders. They are configured for Visual C++ 2008. Since I already have Visual C++ 2010 loaded on my machine I had to make a few changes to make the project files work. Some of the changes would also be required with VS 2008 since it does not look like the project files have been kept up to date with recent RTKLIB changes.

1. Convert solution files to VS 2010: Click on msc.sln file in rtklib\app\rnx2rtkp\msc folder. This will bring up the visual studio conversion wizard which will convert the VC 2008 project files to VC 2010.
2. Add new src files to project: Add tides.c and ppp_corr.c to the list of source files in the “Solution Explorer” window by right-clicking on the source folder and selecting “Add”. This prevents build errors from unfound symbols.
3. Modify Include Directories: Select “Properties” from “Project” tab. Select “General” under “C/C++” under “Configuration Properties” in the menu on the left hand side. Replace the existing entry with “..\..\..\src” to make it independent of code path. This enables the compiler to find the rtklib.h file.
4. Modify Target Name: Select “General” under “Configuration Properties” in the the menu on the left hand side and change “Target Name” to “rnx2rtkp” to avoid linking errors.
5. Add winmm library: Select “Input” under “Linker” under “Configuration Properties” in the menu on the left hand side, and add “winmm.lib” to “Additional Dependencies”. This avoids linker errors for an unresolved TimeGetTime symbol.
6. Fix LPCWSTR conversion warning: Select “General” under “Configuration Properties” in the the menu on the left hand side and change “Character Set” from “Use Unicode” to “Not Set”

To run these apps from the data folders you will need to add the paths for the executables to your Windows path variable. The executables are in app/”app name”/Release/”app name”.exe or app/”app name”/Debug/”app name”.exe depending on whether you built in Debug or Release mode. I always build in Debug mode and point my path variable to that folder just to make it easier to switch between debugging with VS and running stand-alone, but either will work.