Install and run

The current Showmesh version runs from source. This is a concise operator-facing guide for starting a test build. Full development setup details are in docs/SETUP.md.

Requirements

• Windows 11;
• Visual Studio 2022 with Desktop development with C++;
• CMake 3.24 or newer;
• vcpkg and the VCPKG_ROOT environment variable;
• Node.js 22 LTS;
• Git.

Build the engine

Open x64 Native Tools Command Prompt for VS 2022 in the repository root:

cmake -B engine\build -S engine -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 ^
  -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE="%VCPKG_ROOT%\scripts\buildsystems\vcpkg.cmake"
cmake --build engine\build --config RelWithDebInfo
ctest --test-dir engine\build -C RelWithDebInfo --output-on-failure

The first build can take time while vcpkg fetches and builds media libraries.

Start the application

Start the engine in one terminal:

engine\build\RelWithDebInfo\engined.exe --gpu

Start the editor web process in a second terminal:

cd editor
npm install
npm run dev

Start Electron in a third terminal:

cd editor
npm run electron

The editor connects to ws://127.0.0.1:7788 by default. The connection status in the title bar should show the engine as connected.

Common engine flags

engined.exe [--port 7788] [--project show.imsn]
            [--display N] [--windowed WxH] [--gpu] [--run]

Flag	Meaning
--project show.imsn	Opens a project at launch
--windowed 960x540	Opens program output in a window
--display N	Selects a monitor
--gpu	Enables D3D11VA decode with CPU fallback
--run	Runs headless in show mode

Match the editor and engine

If the editor reports that the engine is older, rebuild and restart the engine. The UI revision and engine build stamp in the title bar help identify the binary that is actually running.