# Windows GUI application using Intel Fortran & Visual Studio Community

**URL:** <https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797>\
**Category:** Help\
**Created:** [May 26, 2025, 10:44am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797 "2025-05-26T10:44:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![EdBergerly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/45deac/32.png) [@EdBergerly](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/EdBergerly)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 10:44am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797/1 "2025-05-26T10:44:50Z")

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Hey all. I’m a longtime C# Visual Studio user developing engineering apps with WinForms GUI’s, and recently decided to take a look at Fortran. I successfully installed the Intel Fortran Compiler standalone version and it works fine in Visual Studio. However, I checked the Intel documentation and it says " To build your application as a Fortran Windows application in the visual development environment, choose **Windowing Application** from the list of Project types when you open a new project.". However, when I create a new project in VS, the only choices that seem related to Windows GUI’s (under “Fortran” and “Windows” filters) are “Standard Graphics Application” and “QuickWin” application. And it sounds like “QuickWin” is just a bare-bones GUI that doesn’t do all the standard controls.

Does anyone know what I’m missing? Do I need to download something additional, or maybe this functionality is only available in the paid version?

Thanks.

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**Author:** ![jwmwalrus](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/fortran-lang.discourse.group/jwmwalrus/32/4483_2.png) [@jwmwalrus](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/jwmwalrus)\
**Post date:** [May 26, 2025, 7:49pm UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797/2 "2025-05-26T19:49:17Z")

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Hi @EdBergerly and welcome.

(Disclaimer: I haven’t used Windows in over a decade, so things may have changed)

Standard Graphics Application and QuickWin have the same underlying behavior (i.e., provide a Windowing frame with canvas-like capabilities), but QuickWin also lets you open multiple child windows with `open(FILE = '', ...)`.

To build something using the Windows C API (assuming the C++ capabilities are there), look for “Windowing Application”. In this case, a `WinMain` function must be provided in lieu of a Fortran `main-program` unit, and most of the Windows C API can be accessed through the `IFWIN` module (it used to be `DFWIN` back in the day). And for COM-related stuff, there should be a wizard option to generate interfaces.

You can check [this document](https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/docs/fortran-compiler/developer-reference-build-windows-applications/15-0/overview.html) for a complete overview.

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**Author:** ![Cean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc8723/32.png) [@Cean](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/Cean)\
**Post date:** [May 27, 2025, 3:47am UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797/3 "2025-05-27T03:47:11Z")

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Choose SDI Code

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**Author:** ![Nocaster60](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f0a364/32.png) [@Nocaster60](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/u/Nocaster60)\
**Post date:** [May 28, 2025, 7:08pm UTC](https://fortran-lang.discourse.group/t/windows-gui-application-using-intel-fortran-visual-studio-community/9797/4 "2025-05-28T19:08:07Z")

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Have a look at this.  
[https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/docs/fortran-compiler/developer-reference-build-windows-applications/15-0/creating-windowing-applications.html](https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/docs/fortran-compiler/developer-reference-build-windows-applications/15-0/creating-windowing-applications.html)