Which API to use for creating virtual webcam

Question

Dear all,

I want to create a virtual webcam so multiple applications can use the webcam simultaneously. According to stackoverflow answer here:

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/33693131/how-to-create-virtual-webcam-in-windows-10

DirectShow should be used, because Media Foundation (MF) lacks the functionality. But it seems the answer is outdated:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/mfvirtualcamera/nf-mfvirtualcamera-mfcreatevirtualcamera

https://github.com/microsoft/Windows-Camera/tree/4825decdbfa8b9ee8ec9d214612874ede9cc2dc7/Samples/VirtualCamera

So my question is, can I use MF for my project? Will the virtual camera built with MF be visible to applications that consume video using DirectShow API? Because, as I understood, if I create my vcam with DirectShow API, applications built with MF will not see the virtual camera, which is not what I'd like.

Thanks and Best Regards,
Davit

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A!

Media Foundation is a supposed successor of DirectShow but its video capture capabilities in the part of extensibility simply do not exist. Microsoft decided to not allow custom video sources application would be able to discover the same way as web cameras.

Media Foundation API offers nothing to help with functionality of virtual webcam.

For more details, I suggest you could refer to the thread: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/65640023/project-and-build-structure-for-microsoft-directshow-based-virtual-webcam-applic

Best Regards,

Jeanine

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