FAQ: How do I install the MinGW compiler?

This post seeks to share answers to some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):

1. How do I install the MinGW-w64 compiler?

2. I already have MinGW-w64 on my computer. How do I configure it to work with MATLAB?

3. I am already using MinGW-w64 compiler with one release of MATLAB, can I use the same compiler with another MATLAB release?

4. Is MinGW-w64 supported for all platforms?

5. Is MinGW-w64 supported for all MathWorks products?

6. What versions of MATLAB support MinGW-w64?

7. Is MinGW-w64 compiler supported with MathWorks MATLAB Compiler SDK deployment products?

8. Why do I see the error “Download Failed: Server returned HTTP response code: 503”?

9. I do not have access to the internet on my machine. Can I still install the MinGW-w64 Add-On?

10. Can the MinGW-264 compiler obtained using the MinGW-w64 Add-On be used for compiling Fortran MEX files?

[Jay Madhav]

How do I install the MinGW-w64 compiler

[Wenheng Yang]

Select the download button, above, then double click on the file or drag it into the MATLAB Command Window to install.

[mohammad karami]

the above file cant be installed correctly and it hangs while installation

[Sada Passi]

Hi, i'm getting an error when downloading the MinGW compiler add-on. it fails on step 2:downloading 3rd party software. can someone help?

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

This can happen if there is a firewall or proxy blocking download. Also, see the answer to question 8 - there could be an issue with the external website where the package is downloaded from.

Answer 1

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

Below are answers to some common questions when installing the MinGW-w64 compiler.

1. How do I install the MinGW-w64 compiler?

You can install MinGW-w64 compiler in two ways:

1. In MATLAB, on the "Home" tab, click Add-Ons. In the pop-up window, search for the term "mingw" then click "MATLAB Support for MinGW-w64 C/C++ Compiler". Choose the install option and follow the steps for installation.
2. On MathWorks "File Exchange" search for the term "mingw" and select "MATLAB Support for MinGW-w64 C/C++ Compiler". Click the download button. This downloads a "mingw.mlpkginstall" file. Double click this file and follow the steps for installation.

2. I already have MinGW-w64 on my computer. How do I configure it to work with MATLAB?

See “Manually Configure MinGW for MATLAB” here.

3. I am already using MinGW-w64 compiler with one release of MATLAB, can I use the same compiler with another MATLAB release?

Yes, you can use the MinGW-w64 compiler installed for one release of MATLAB with another release of MATLAB. However, there are the following caveats:

1. Make sure that the MinGW-w64 compiler version that you are using with the current MATLAB release is also the supported version for the other MATLAB release. To check this, refer to the Supported Compilers Page: https://www.mathworks.com/support/compilers
2. If the MinGW-w64 compiler version you are using is also supported for the other MATLAB release, then see "Manually Configure MinGW for MATLAB" here. You can get the location of your MinGW-w64 compiler by running the MATLAB command

>> getenv MW_MINGW64_LOC

3. If the MinGW-w64 compiler version that you are using is not supported for the other MATLAB release, use Add-Ons to get the compiler.

4. Is MinGW-w64 supported for all platforms?

MinGW-w64 is a Windows-only compiler. Please see the Supported Compilers page for more details: https://www.mathworks.com/support/compilers

5. Is MinGW-w64 supported for all MathWorks products?

See Supported Compilers Page: https://www.mathworks.com/support/compilers

6. What versions of MATLAB support MinGW-w64?

MinGW-w64 compiler is supported for MATLAB releases R2016b and later.

7. Is MinGW-w64 compiler supported with MathWorks MATLAB Compiler SDK deployment products?

For the list of products supported with MinGW compiler refer to the Supported Compilers Page for your MATLAB release.

8. Why do I see the error “Download Failed: Server returned HTTP response code: 503”?

The third-party tools used in the MinGW-w64 Support Package are downloaded from an external website. If this external site experiences problems, then MATLAB is unable to install the Support Package. Try re-installing MinGW-w64 with the current Support Package.

9. I do not have access to the internet on my machine. Can I still install the MinGW-w64 Add-On?

For R2016b and later:

On a computer that has MATLAB installed and has internet access, follow the steps below:

1. In MATLAB go to the Home Tab and click on "Add-Ons".
2. In the Add-ons explorer window, search for the term "mingw".
3. Click on the submission "MATLAB Support for MinGW-w64 C/C++ Compiler"
4. Click on the drop-down arrow on the "Install" button and select the option "Download Only" as shown in the screenshot below.
5. Copy all the artifacts to a USB drive and move these to a computer that you want to install MinGW on (the computer without internet).

On the computer that has MATLAB installed and does not have internet access, follow the steps below:

1. Put the downloaded contents of the USB drive in a folder on your computer.
2. The downloaded artifacts contain a "readme.txt" file, which has instructions for installation of the Add-On on a particular platform.
3. Follow the installation instructions for the Windows platform from the "readme.txt" file to install the Add-On.

10. Can the MinGW-w64 compiler obtained using the MinGW-w64 Add-On be used for compiling Fortran MEX files?

In R2024a and later the MinGW-w64 compiler is supported for compilation of Fortran MEX files. See Supported Compilers Page.

[Giannis Tz]

This worked for me too. Thanks a lot!!

[Margaret Pavlovich]

The link in part 1 appears to be broken. Is there somewhere new I could look for this information?

Thanks

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

Apologies, Margaret, we have fixed the link.

[Alan Frankel]

7. Is MinGW-w64 compiler supported with MathWorks deployment products like Builder EX, Builder NE etc?

Note that Builder EX, Builder NE, etc., are now part of the MATLAB Compiler SDK product, with targets Excel, .NET, etc. Thus, this question should be reworded.

[Daniel]

Regarding number 9, an offline machine:

I am not seeing an option for "download only" either in the add on explorer or at the link https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/52848-matlab-support-for-mingw-w64-c-c-fortran-compiler. Instead I see a "download" button which gives me a .mlpkginstall file. When I move this to the offline computer, it simply attempts to connect to the internet, and thus fails to install anything.

[Sylvain]

Same.

[dpb]

10. Is a totally unacceptable response from Mathworks. gfortran is just a front end for gcc so there's absolutely no excuse for not supporting gfortran, and even less to prevent users from using it at their own risk.

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

Please be aware that the answer to question 10 has been revised. MinGW-w64 can be used to compile Fortran MEX files in R2024a and later.

[dpb]

Thanks...I'm certain the Fortran community will be appreciative...how far along is Mathworks in updating the Fortran examples and interfaces into the current century to at least the F95 Standard if not F2008?

Unfortunately for IT-avoidance issues to support an app for local community college foundation I've been stuck at R2021b...perhaps when I get it stable I'll upgrade local version and then have only the one-time reinstall of updates on the controlled machine I don't have admin rights for. Changing even the runtime on it is an act of Congress...

Answer 2

[Tausif]

I still got the error while installing that third party software could not be installed. I had downloaded the files separately before. Please suggest next steps.

[Walter Roberson]

See http://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/313286-why-do-i-see-a-java-util-zip-zipexception-error-in-my-installer-log-file-when-i-try-to-install-the

Answer 3

[Andrés Aguilar]

Hi! Thanks for the detailed answer. However I am unable to install the MinGW package. I am behind a corporate proxy, so I had to ask someone working from home to download the files for me. I got the Mingw folder with the readme file inside.

When I execute the command:

C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2019a\bin\win64>install_supportsoftware.exe -archives C:\Users\<USERNAME>\<SOME DIRECTORIES>\MATLAB\Mingw\

I get "There are no compatible support packages available to install from this location." in the Install Support Packages Window. And:

[WARN] HttpMethodDirector - Unable to respond to any of these challenges: {negotiate=Negotiate}

[WARN] HttpMethodDirector - Unable to respond to any of these challenges: {negotiate=Negotiate}

[WARN] HttpMethodDirector - Unable to respond to any of these challenges: {negotiate=Negotiate}

[WARN] HttpMethodDirector - Unable to respond to any of these challenges: {negotiate=Negotiate}

In the command window.

Did I miss something or perhaps I am pointing to the weong directory? I tried to follow the readme instructions. But no result.

I would appretiate any answer on how to solve this. I already spent a day trying to install this package.

All the best!

[Wenzel Schwarz]

same here.. any solution to this?

[Eduardo Rodríguez Pérez]

Similar for me, only message is:

"There are no compatible support packages available to install from this location."

Answer 4

[Salman Almaatham]

• Build process is unable to use the MinGW compiler because the build folder path contains characters that do not belong to the system locale.

When i run my porgrame this error comes. Can any one explain?

Answer 5

[Alex]

Is this version of MINGW64 capable of compiling 32bit applications with the appropriate flag?

[Grace Kepler]

The MinGW that is installed with the Add-Ons has all the capabilities of MinGW that is installed from the mingw-w64.org. MATLAB does not modified the MinGW shipped in the Add-Ons, so you can build 32-bit applications as you would if you had downloaded MinGW from the internet.

Answer 6

[Trig]

How do I remove MinGW?

I added it with the Add-Ons installer, removed it with the Add-Ons installer but it persists in the compiler configurations output.

>> mex -setup
Error using mex
Supported compiler not detected. You can install the freely available MinGW-w64 C/C++ compiler; see Install MinGW-w64 Compiler. For more options, visit
https://www.mathworks.com/support/compilers.
 
>> getenv MW_MINGW64_LOC

ans =

  0×0 empty char array

>> mex.getCompilerConfigurations

ans = 

  CompilerConfiguration with properties:

             Name: 'MinGW64 Compiler (C)'
     Manufacturer: 'GNU'
         Language: 'C'
          Version: '6.3.0'
         Location: 'C:\ProgramData\MATLAB\SupportPackages\R2021b\3P.instrset\mingw_w64.instrset'
        ShortName: 'mingw64'
         Priority: 'E'
          Details: [1×1 mex.CompilerConfigurationDetails]
       LinkerName: 'C:\ProgramData\MATLAB\SupportPackages\R2021b\3P.instrset\mingw_w64.instrset\bin\gcc'
    LinkerVersion: ''
           MexOpt: 'C:\Users\xx\AppData\Roaming\MathWorks\MATLAB\R2021b\mex_C_win64.xml'

>> 

[Grace Kepler]

Hi Dave,

For performance reasons, MATLAB retains compiler information in a cache, which is why the MinGW data in the CompilerConfiguration is not cleared. As currently configured, you will need to restart MATLAB to clear the cache, at which point the CompilerConfiguration data will be up-to-date. The developers are aware of your concern that the CompilerConfiguration data is not cleared and will look reconsider this behavior.

Answer 7

[Bernt Nilsson]

Regarding item 9 "I do not have access to the internet on my machine"; when you have installed the addon on your internet-connected PC, the possibility to "Download Only" disappears (or is there a possibility to just download somewhere?). This means you have to first uninstall the addon, then download it, and finally install it again. This is cumbersome and it would be good to still have the option to just download.

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

Don't use the Add-Ons in MATLAB, but go to the MATLAB Support for MinGW-w64 C/C++/Fortran Compiler page directly through this link https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/52848-matlab-support-for-mingw-w64-c-c-fortran-compiler. You should see a "Download" option under those circumstances.

[Sylvain]

Yes, we see a download option, which downloads a .mlgpkginstall file. This file is only a sort of xml file telling matlab what to download.

[MathWorks Supported Compilers Team]

Double-click on the file or drag it into the MATLAB Command Window to install.