Pathfinder C++

A high-performance, GPU-accelerated 2D vector graphics library, ported from the original Rust implementation of Pathfinder 3. This version brings the power of massivly parallel vector rasterization to the C++ ecosystem, with native Vulkan, OpenGL, and Metal backends.

🚀 Key Features

• Massively Parallel Rasterization: Leverages the GPU to rasterize complex vector scenes at high speeds.
• Dual Rendering Strategies:
  • Hybrid Mode: CPU-assisted binning with hardware rasterization. Optimized for mobile devices and static path caching.
  • GPU-Driven Mode: Full compute-shader-based pipeline. Minimizes CPU overhead by moving binning and tiling entirely to the GPU.
• Advanced Effects: Native support for shadows, blurs, gradients, and complex clipping paths.
• Cross-Platform: Designed for Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and Web (Wasm).

🛠 Supported Backends

Backend	Hybrid Mode	GPU-Driven Mode	Notes
Vulkan	✅	✅	Best performance
Metal	✅	✅	Not MoltenVK
OpenGL 4.3+	✅	✅	Desktop standard
OpenGL ES 3.1+	✅	✅*	*Limited by Storage Image access on some ES devices
OpenGL ES 3.0	✅	❌	Compatibility mode
WebGL2	✅	❌	Web target

📦 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• C++14 compatible compiler.
• CMake 3.15+.
• Vulkan SDK (if building with Vulkan support or regenerating shaders).

Building the Library

git clone --recursive https://github.com/your-repo/pathfinder-cpp.git
cd pathfinder-cpp
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make

🎮 Demos

Windows / Linux / macOS

The native demo uses a common application framework.

1. Initialize submodules: git submodule update --init --recursive.
2. Open the project in your favorite IDE (CLion, VS) and run the demo target.

Android

1. Copy assets into demo/android/app/src/main.
2. Open demo/android in Android Studio.
3. Deploy to a device supporting GLES 3.0+.

Web (Emscripten)

1. Set up the Emscripten environment.
2. Run ./build_wasm.sh.
3. Run ./demo/web/serve.sh and visit http://127.0.0.1:8000.

📜 Acknowledgments

This project is a port of the Pathfinder engine developed by the Servo project.