Convert a modern Vulkan 1.4 rasterization application into a fully functional ray tracer through 8 progressive, compilable phases, then explore 20+ focused samples covering reflections, motion blur, ray queries, callable shaders, opacity micro-maps, and more. Built on the VK_KHR_acceleration_structure, VK_KHR_ray_tracing_pipeline, and VK_KHR_ray_query extensions.

Start the Progressive Tutorial  ·  Browse Samples  ·  Documentation

Before (rasterization)	After (ray tracing)

Prerequisites

• nvpro_core2 (Vulkan helpers)
• Vulkan 1.4+ SDK — select Volk headers during installation
• CMake 3.18+
• A GPU and driver supporting Vulkan ray tracing

Build

From an empty parent directory that will hold both repos side-by-side:

git clone https://github.com/nvpro-samples/nvpro_core2.git
git clone https://github.com/nvpro-samples/vk_raytracing_tutorial_KHR.git

cd vk_raytracing_tutorial_KHR
cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build -j 8

Compiled binaries are placed in the _bin directory.

The legacy pre-v2.0 tutorial is on the master branch.

• vk_gltf_renderer — Production-ready Vulkan ray/path tracer with full glTF 2.0 support, IBL, denoising, and post-processing.
• vk_mini_samples — Comprehensive collection of focused Vulkan samples beyond ray tracing.