Seeking Expert: Windows + CMake + C++ Workflow Optimization (Boost/Networking)

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I am looking for someone with a bulletproof Cursor setup on Windows to help optimize a complex C++ development workflow. I am building a high-performance networking library (Boost/Capy dependencies) and am hitting significant friction that is killing my velocity.

The Stack:

  • OS: Windows

  • Language: C++

  • Build System: CMake (Ninja/MSVC)

  • IDE: Cursor

The Pain Points:

  1. CMake & File Pollution: CMake generation is erratic within Cursor. It frequently spits intermediate files and libraries into the source tree/repo roots instead of the build directory, creating a mess.

  2. Agent & Terminal Integration: The Agent struggles with the Windows environment. I frequently get “Powershell not found” errors, or the Agent fumbles build commands and paths, forcing manual intervention.

  3. Runtime & Debugging:

    • DLL Hell: The environment isn’t resolving paths correctly (e.g., couldn’t load wolfssll.dll).

    • Hanging Processes: Test runners often fail to exit, preventing the Agent from running the next iteration of fixes.

  4. The Goal (The “Magic” Loop):
    I want to tell Cursor to “debug this target” and have it autonomously:

    • Compile

    • Run/Test

    • Read the error/output

    • Hypothesize and apply a fix

    • Repeat

    • All without me holding its hand.

What I Need:
I am looking for someone who has CMake + Windows + Cursor working flawlessly. I need to know your configuration, how you set up your .cursorrules for C++, and how you handle the terminal environment so the Agent stops hallucinating commands.

If you have a robust C++ workflow on Windows, please share your setup – you could also DM me.

in Short:

• knows VSCode
• knows Cursor
• knows cmake
• Runs on Windows
who can help me fix my garbage

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5

hey, commenting as I am interested in similar behavior.
in my personal experience, agent fails to execute commands properly no matter what, sometimes it is better, sometimes worse.
I do have a rule telling agent exactly what to run, yet it mostly makes up its own mind in the same fashion, even if I explicitly tell it I am on windows, it still tries running unix style commands. It is pretty annoying.
what helps a little is having a makefile with the commands ready, so the agent just runs “make compile” and that mostly works.
about resolving dll paths, depending on your configuration, by default, when you want to start debugging, the built binary is placed in a different folder than during regular build process
regarding the magic loop, i recently saw ralph loop adaptation for cursor, have not tried it yet, it was on github dont remember exact name sorry

6

Sharing it here:

Problem: Your git status is flooded with untracked build artifacts (.ninja, CMakeCache.txt, *.exe) because VS Code/Cursor is performing an “in-source” build, ignoring your output directory settings.

Cause: Missing buildPresets in CMakePresets.json. Without them, the IDE decouples the build step from your configuration and defaults to building in the project root.

Solution: Add a buildPreset that explicitly references your configurePreset. This forces the IDE to use the correct binaryDir. Clean up the mess using git clean -fdx.