nodejs/node · error · GypError

%s requires any SDK of %s version, but none were found

Error message

%s requires any SDK of %s version, but none were found

What it means

Raised as a GypError during MSBuild project generation when no installed Windows SDK matches the version required by the configured MSVS toolchain. The generator iterates configurations looking for a WindowsTargetPlatformVersion; if none resolves and the toolchain declares compatible_sdks, it errors because the build cannot proceed without an SDK.

Source

Thrown at tools/gyp/pylib/gyp/generator/msvs.py:2986

        else:
            properties[0].append(["ApplicationType", "Windows Store"])

    platform_name = None
    msvs_windows_sdk_version = None
    for configuration in spec["configurations"].values():
        platform_name = platform_name or _ConfigPlatform(configuration)
        msvs_windows_sdk_version = (
            msvs_windows_sdk_version
            or _ConfigWindowsTargetPlatformVersion(configuration, version)
        )
        if platform_name and msvs_windows_sdk_version:
            break
    if msvs_windows_sdk_version:
        properties[0].append(
            ["WindowsTargetPlatformVersion", str(msvs_windows_sdk_version)]
        )
    elif version.compatible_sdks:
        raise GypError(
            "%s requires any SDK of %s version, but none were found"
            % (version.description, version.compatible_sdks)
        )

    if platform_name == "ARM":
        properties[0].append(["WindowsSDKDesktopARMSupport", "true"])

    return properties


def _GetMSBuildConfigurationDetails(spec, build_file):
    properties = {}
    for name, settings in spec["configurations"].items():
        msbuild_attributes = _GetMSBuildAttributes(spec, settings, build_file)
        condition = _GetConfigurationCondition(name, settings, spec)
        character_set = msbuild_attributes.get("CharacterSet")
        vctools_version = msbuild_attributes.get("VCToolsVersion")
        config_type = msbuild_attributes.get("ConfigurationType")

View on GitHub (pinned to 1b2de5e052)

Solutions

1. Install a Windows SDK matching the version.compatible_sdks requirement (shown in the message).
2. Pin the msvs_version / WindowsTargetPlatformVersion to an SDK that is installed.
3. On CI, add the required SDK to the image or install it in the setup step.
4. Verify with `reg query` or the installed SDKs list that the expected version is present.

Example fix

# before — machine lacks the SDK for the default msvs version
gyp --depth=. -f msvs -Gmsvs_version=2022
# after — install matching SDK, or pin to installed version
gyp --depth=. -f msvs -Gmsvs_version=2022 -Gmsvs_windows_target_platform_version=10.0.20348.0

import subprocess
r = subprocess.run(['reg','query',r'HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Kits\Installed Roots'], capture_output=True, text=True)
if 'Windows Kits' not in r.stdout:
    raise EnvironmentError('no Windows SDK installed')

When it happens

Trigger: Generating MSBuild projects with an MSVS version that declares compatible_sdks, on a machine where none of those SDK versions are installed, and no msvs_windows_target_platform_version is explicitly set. Falls through to the `elif version.compatible_sdks` branch at msvs.py:2986.

Common situations: Fresh CI/dev machine without the Windows SDK installed; upgrading the MSVS toolchain version without installing the matching SDK; targeting a Windows SDK that was uninstalled; mismatch between the gyp-configured msvs_version and the installed SDKs.

Related errors

• %s is missing - make sure VC++ tools are installed.
• Environment variable "%s" required to be set to valid path
• expected bool; got %r
• converted value for %s not specified.
• value must be one of [0, 1, 2]; got %s

AI-assisted analysis of nodejs/node@1b2de5e052 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c35db6374a79a5da. Report an issue: GitHub.