dlib C++ library

Dlib is a modern C++ toolkit containing machine learning algorithms and tools for creating complex software in C++ to solve real world problems. See http://dlib.net for the main project documentation and API reference.

Compiling dlib C++ example programs

You need a C++17 compiler and CMake. Go into the examples folder and type:

mkdir build; cd build; cmake .. ; cmake --build .

That will build all the examples. If you have a CPU that supports AVX instructions then turn them on like this:

mkdir build; cd build; cmake .. -DUSE_AVX_INSTRUCTIONS=1; cmake --build .

Doing so will make some things run faster.

Visual Studio users can explicitly select a 64bit target and compiler with a CMake invocation like this:

cmake .. -G "Visual Studio 17 2022" -A x64 -T host=x64

Compiling your own C++ programs that use dlib

The examples folder has a CMake tutorial that tells you what to do. There are also additional instructions on the dlib web site.

Alternatively, if you are using the vcpkg dependency manager you can download and install dlib with CMake integration in a single command:

vcpkg install dlib

Compiling dlib Python API

Either fetch the latest stable release of dlib from PyPi and install that:

pip install dlib

Or fetch the very latest version from github and install that:

git clone https://github.com/davisking/dlib.git
cd dlib
pip install .

It's possible to change build settings by passing parameters to setup.py or DLIB_* environment variables. For example, setting the environment variable DLIB_NO_GUI_SUPPORT to ON will add the cmake option -DDLIB_NO_GUI_SUPPORT=ON.

Running the unit test suite

Type the following to compile and run the dlib unit test suite:

cd dlib/test
mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
cmake --build . --config Release
./dtest --runall

Note that on windows your compiler might put the test executable in a subfolder called Release. If that's the case then you have to go to that folder before running the test.

This library is licensed under the Boost Software License, which can be found in dlib/LICENSE.txt. The long and short of the license is that you can use dlib however you like, even in closed source commercial software.

dlib sponsors

This research is based in part upon work supported by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) under contract number 2014-14071600010. The views and conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies or endorsements, either expressed or implied, of ODNI, IARPA, or the U.S. Government.