How to setup Qt Creator to use windeployqt?

To set up Qt Creator to use windeployqt for deploying Qt applications on Windows, you need to configure the build and run settings for your project. Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. Open your Qt project in Qt Creator.

2. Select the "Projects" tab on the left side of the window to open the project settings.

3. In the "Build & Run" section, select your build configuration (e.g., "Debug" or "Release").

4. Under the "Build Steps" tab, locate the "QMake" build step.

5. Add the following command line argument to the "QMake" step:

   makefileCopy code
   CONFIG += windeployqt
   
   

6. Click on the "Add Build Step" button and select "Custom Process Step".

7. Set the following properties for the custom build step:

   • Command: windeployqt
   • Arguments: --dir <path_to_deploy_directory> <path_to_executable>
     Replace <path_to_deploy_directory> with the directory where you want to deploy your application, and <path_to_executable> with the path to your application's executable file.
   • Working directory: <path_to_build_directory>
     Replace <path_to_build_directory> with the directory where your application's build files are located.

8. (Optional) If you need to clean the deployment directory before running windeployqt, add a "Custom Process Step" before the "Custom Build Step" with the following properties:

   • Command: cmd
   • Arguments: /C rmdir /S /Q <path_to_deploy_directory> && mkdir <path_to_deploy_directory>
     Replace <path_to_deploy_directory> with the path to your deployment directory.

9. Click "Apply" or "OK" to save the changes.

Now, when you build and run your project, Qt Creator will automatically run windeployqt to deploy the required Qt dependencies to the specified deployment directory. You can then distribute this directory along with your application.

Note that you'll need to have windeployqt in your system's PATH environment variable for this setup to work. Ensure that the path to windeployqt is correctly set up or provide the full path to windeployqt in the custom build step.

By following these steps, you can configure Qt Creator to use windeployqt for deploying your Qt applications on Windows.