Tauri Setup Guide for Windows

Tauri Setup Guide for Windows (Fresh Install)

Using Bun and TypeScript

Prerequisites Overview

You need to install (in order):

Microsoft C++ Build Tools
WebView2 (Windows 11: skip, already installed)
Rust
Bun

Step 1: Install Microsoft C++ Build Tools

Download the installer from: https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/visual-cpp-build-tools/
Run the installer
Select "Desktop development with C++"
Ensure "Windows 10 SDK" is checked (or Windows 11 SDK)
Click Install and wait for completion

Note: This is ~6-8 GB and may take a while.

Step 2: WebView2

Windows 11: WebView2 is pre-installed. Skip this step.

Windows 10 (v1803+): Usually pre-installed. If you encounter WebView2 errors later, install via PowerShell:

winget install Microsoft.EdgeWebView2Runtime

Step 3: Install Rust

Open PowerShell and run:

winget install --id Rustlang.Rustup

Or download from: https://www.rust-lang.org/tools/install

Important: During installation, ensure the default host triple is set to x86_64-pc-windows-msvc (or aarch64-pc-windows-msvc for ARM).

After installation, restart your terminal, then verify:

rustc --version
cargo --version

Ensure MSVC toolchain is default:

rustup default stable-msvc

Step 4: Install Bun

Open PowerShell and run:

powershell -c "irm bun.sh/install.ps1|iex"

Restart your terminal, then verify:

bun --version

If `bun` command not found:

Add Bun to PATH manually:

[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable(
  "Path",
  [System.Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("Path", "User") + ";$env:USERPROFILE\.bun\bin",
  [System.EnvironmentVariableTarget]::User
)

Then restart your terminal.

Step 5: Create Your Tauri Project

Open PowerShell in the folder where you want your project:

bun create tauri-app

When prompted:

Project name: my-app (or your choice)
Identifier: com.my-app.app (or your choice)
Frontend language: TypeScript / JavaScript
Package manager: bun
UI template: Choose one (Vanilla, React, Vue, Svelte, etc.)
UI flavor: TypeScript

Step 6: Install Dependencies and Run

cd my-app
bun install
bun tauri dev

The first run will:

Compile Rust code (takes 2-5 minutes initially)
Start your dev server
Open a native window with your app

Quick Reference Commands

Action	Command
Start dev server	`bun tauri dev`
Build for production	`bun tauri build`
Check environment	`bun tauri info`
Update Tauri CLI	`bun update @tauri-apps/cli`
Update Rust	`rustup update`
Update Bun	`bun upgrade`

Project Structure

my-app/
├── src/              # Frontend code (TypeScript)
├── src-tauri/        # Rust backend
│   ├── src/
│   │   └── main.rs   # Rust entry point
│   ├── Cargo.toml    # Rust dependencies
│   └── tauri.conf.json  # Tauri config
├── package.json
└── bun.lockb

Optional: Enable MSI Installer Building

If you want to build .msi installers, ensure VBSCRIPT is enabled:

Settings → Apps → Optional Features → More Windows Features
Find and check VBSCRIPT
Restart if prompted

Troubleshooting

"MSVC toolchain not found"

rustup default stable-msvc

Build errors about missing icons

Ensure src-tauri/icons/ contains the required icon files. Run:

bun tauri icon path/to/your/icon.png

Rust compilation slow

First build is slow (~2-5 min). Subsequent builds are faster due to caching.

"WebView2 not found"

Windows 11 has it pre-installed. For Windows 10, run:

winget install Microsoft.EdgeWebView2Runtime

Path issues after installation

Restart your terminal or PC. Windows often requires this for PATH changes.

Useful Links

Tauri Docs: https://v2.tauri.app
Bun Docs: https://bun.sh/docs
Tauri Discord: https://discord.com/invite/tauri
Bun Discord: https://bun.sh/discord

Android Development Setup (Optional)

Step A: Install Android Studio

Download from: https://developer.android.com/studio
Run installer with default settings
Launch Android Studio after installation and let it complete initial setup

Step B: Install SDK Components

Open Android Studio
Go to Settings → Languages & Frameworks → Android SDK
Click SDK Tools tab
Check "Show Package Details" (bottom right)
Install these components:
- ✅ Android SDK Platform (latest, e.g., Android 14.0 "UpsideDownCake")
- ✅ Android SDK Platform-Tools
- ✅ Android SDK Build-Tools (latest version)
- ✅ Android SDK Command-line Tools (latest)
- ✅ NDK (Side by side) — note the version number (e.g., 27.0.12077973)
Click Apply and accept licenses

Step C: Set Environment Variables

Open PowerShell and run these commands (adjust NDK version to match yours):

# Set JAVA_HOME (Android Studio's bundled JDK)
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("JAVA_HOME", "C:\Program Files\Android\Android Studio\jbr", "User")

# Set ANDROID_HOME
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("ANDROID_HOME", "$env:LocalAppData\Android\Sdk", "User")

# Set NDK_HOME (replace version with yours from Step B)
$NDK_VERSION = Get-ChildItem -Name "$env:LocalAppData\Android\Sdk\ndk" | Select-Object -Last 1
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("NDK_HOME", "$env:LocalAppData\Android\Sdk\ndk\$NDK_VERSION", "User")

Refresh current PowerShell session:

[System.Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariables("User").GetEnumerator() | % { Set-Item -Path "Env:\$($_.key)" -Value $_.value }

Or simply restart your PC (recommended).

Step D: Add Android Rust Targets

rustup target add aarch64-linux-android armv7-linux-androideabi i686-linux-android x86_64-linux-android

Step E: Enable Windows Developer Mode

Required for symlink creation:

Open Settings
Go to Privacy & Security → For developers
Toggle Developer Mode to ON
Restart your terminal

Step F: Initialize Android in Your Project

cd your-tauri-project
bun tauri android init

Step G: Run on Android

Using emulator:

Open Android Studio → Device Manager → Create Virtual Device
Start the emulator
Run:

bun tauri android dev

Using physical device:

Enable Developer Mode: Settings → About Phone → Tap "Build Number" 7 times
Enable USB Debugging: Settings → Developer Options → USB Debugging ON
Connect via USB
Run:

bun tauri android dev

Step H: Build APK for Release

bun tauri android build

Output location: src-tauri/gen/android/app/build/outputs/apk/

Android Troubleshooting

"Failed to create symbolic link" / symlink error

Enable Windows Developer Mode: Settings → Privacy & Security → For developers → ON
Restart terminal and retry

"NDK_HOME environment variable isn't set"

# Check if NDK is installed
ls $env:LocalAppData\Android\Sdk\ndk

# Set it manually with exact version
[System.Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("NDK_HOME", "$env:LocalAppData\Android\Sdk\ndk\YOUR_VERSION", "User")

"No available Android Emulator detected"

Create an emulator in Android Studio → Device Manager
Or connect a physical device with USB debugging enabled
Run adb devices to verify connection

Emulator stuck on "Waiting for emulator to start"

adb kill-server
adb start-server
adb devices

"INSTALL_FAILED_ALREADY_EXISTS" on physical device

Uninstall the app from device manually, then retry

Dev server connection issues

Ensure your dev server listens on 0.0.0.0 or uses TAURI_DEV_HOST
Check firewall isn't blocking connections

Verify your setup:

echo $env:JAVA_HOME
echo $env:ANDROID_HOME  
echo $env:NDK_HOME
adb devices