KhronosGroup/Vulkan-Guide

One stop shop for getting started with the Vulkan API

Makefile

2,287

589 commits

updated Sep 27, 2026

See the code

README

This document is also available in the following languages:
Japanese Korean

The Vulkan Guide is designed to help developers get up and going with the world of Vulkan. It is aimed to be a light read that leads to many other useful links depending on what a developer is looking for. All information is intended to help better fill the gaps about the many nuances of Vulkan.

Note	The Vulkan Guide content is also viewable from https://docs.vulkan.org/guide/latest/index.html

1. Logistics Overview

1.1. What is Vulkan?

1.2. What you can do with Vulkan

1.3. Vulkan Spec

1.4. Platforms

1.5. Checking for Support

1.6. Vulkan Versions & Porting Guide

1.7. Vulkan Release Summary

1.8. What is SPIR-V?

1.9. Portability Initiative

1.10. Vulkan CTS

1.11. Vulkan Development Tools

1.12. Vulkan Validation Overview

1.13. Profiling

1.14. Vulkan Decoder Ring (GL, GLES, DirectX, and Metal)

2. Using Vulkan

2.1. Deprecated

2.2. Embedded Programming

2.3. Windowing, Audio, and Input

2.4. Development Environments & IDEs

2.5. Tile Based Rendering (TBR) Best Practices

2.6. Vulkan Profiles

2.7. Loader

2.8. Layers

2.9. Querying Properties, Extensions, Features, Limits, and Formats

2.9.1. Enabling Vulkan Extensions

2.9.2. Enabling Vulkan Features

2.9.3. Using SPIR-V Extension

2.9.4. Formats

2.10. Queues and Queue Family

2.11. WSI

2.12. pNext and sType

2.13. Synchronization

2.13.1. Porting to VK_KHR_synchronization2

2.13.2. Synchronization Examples

2.13.3. Swapchain Semaphore Reuse

2.14. Memory Allocation Strategy

2.14.1. Sparse Resources

2.14.2. Protected Memory

2.14.3. Buffer Device Address

VK_KHR_buffer_device_address, VK_EXT_buffer_device_address

2.14.4. Buffer Device Address - Alignment

2.15. Pipeline Caching/Derivatives

2.16. Threading

2.17. Depth

VK_EXT_depth_range_unrestricted, VK_EXT_depth_clip_enable, VK_EXT_depth_clip_control

2.18. Primitive Topology

2.19. Mapping Data to Shaders

2.19.1. Storage Image and Texel Buffers

2.19.2. Vertex Input Data Processing

2.19.3. Descriptor Arrays

2.19.4. Descriptor Dynamic Offset

2.19.5. Descriptor Buffers (VK_EXT_descriptor_buffer)

2.19.6. Descriptor Heaps (VK_EXT_descriptor_heap)

2.19.7. Location and Component Interface

2.19.8. Push Constants

2.19.9. Ways to Provide SPIR-V

2.19.10. Buffer Array Length (OpArrayLength)

2.20. Robustness

VK_EXT_image_robustness, VK_KHR_robustness2, VK_EXT_pipeline_robustness

2.21. Dynamic State

VK_EXT_extended_dynamic_state, VK_EXT_extended_dynamic_state2, VK_EXT_extended_dynamic_state3, VK_EXT_vertex_input_dynamic_state, VK_EXT_color_write_enable, VK_EXT_attachment_feedback_loop_dynamic_state

2.21.1. Dynamic State Map

2.22. Compute Shaders

2.23. Subgroups

VK_EXT_subgroup_size_control, VK_KHR_shader_subgroup_extended_types, VK_EXT_shader_subgroup_ballot, VK_EXT_shader_subgroup_vote

2.24. Shader Memory Layout

VK_KHR_uniform_buffer_standard_layout, VK_KHR_relaxed_block_layout, VK_EXT_scalar_block_layout

2.25. Atomics

VK_KHR_shader_atomic_int64, VK_EXT_shader_image_atomic_int64, VK_EXT_shader_atomic_float, VK_EXT_shader_atomic_float2

2.26. Image Copies

2.27. Common Pitfalls

2.28. Using HLSL shaders

2.29. Using Slang shaders

2.30. High Level Shader Language Comparison

3. When and Why to use Extensions

Note	These are supplemental references for the various Vulkan Extensions. Please consult the Vulkan Spec for further details on any extension

3.1. Cleanup Extensions

VK_EXT_4444_formats, VK_KHR_bind_memory2, VK_KHR_create_renderpass2, VK_KHR_dedicated_allocation, VK_KHR_driver_properties, VK_KHR_get_memory_requirements2, VK_KHR_get_physical_device_properties2, VK_EXT_host_query_reset, VK_KHR_maintenance1, VK_KHR_maintenance2, VK_KHR_maintenance3, VK_KHR_maintenance4, VK_KHR_maintenance5, VK_KHR_maintenance6, VK_KHR_separate_depth_stencil_layouts, VK_KHR_depth_stencil_resolve, VK_EXT_separate_stencil_usage, VK_EXT_sampler_filter_minmax, VK_KHR_sampler_mirror_clamp_to_edge, VK_EXT_ycbcr_2plane_444_formats, VK_KHR_format_feature_flags2, VK_EXT_rgba10x6_formats, VK_KHR_copy_commands2

3.2. Device Groups

VK_KHR_device_group, VK_KHR_device_group_creation

3.3. External Memory and Synchronization

VK_KHR_external_fence, VK_KHR_external_memory, VK_KHR_external_semaphore

3.4. Ray Tracing

VK_KHR_acceleration_structure, VK_KHR_ray_tracing_pipeline, VK_KHR_ray_query, VK_KHR_pipeline_library, VK_KHR_deferred_host_operations

3.5. Shader Features

VK_KHR_8bit_storage, VK_KHR_16bit_storage, VK_KHR_shader_clock, VK_EXT_shader_demote_to_helper_invocation, VK_KHR_shader_draw_parameters, VK_KHR_shader_float16_int8, VK_KHR_shader_float_controls, VK_KHR_shader_non_semantic_info, VK_EXT_shader_stencil_export, VK_KHR_shader_terminate_invocation, VK_EXT_shader_viewport_index_layer, VK_KHR_spirv_1_4, VK_KHR_storage_buffer_storage_class, VK_KHR_variable_pointers, VK_KHR_vulkan_memory_model, VK_KHR_workgroup_memory_explicit_layout, VK_KHR_zero_initialize_workgroup_memory

3.6. Translation Layer Extensions

VK_EXT_custom_border_color, VK_EXT_border_color_swizzle, VK_EXT_depth_clip_enable, VK_EXT_depth_clip_control, VK_EXT_provoking_vertex, VK_EXT_transform_feedback, VK_EXT_image_view_min_lod