When attempting to install Cuda Toolkit 10.1 I get an error when installing the Visual Studio extensions. I was able to find other people talk about this same issue over the past 2 years.
(See https://devtalk.nvidia.com/default/topic/1033111/cuda-setup-and-installation/cuda-9-1-cannot-install-due-to-failed-visual-studio-integration/ for one such example)
It looks like the issue occurs if you have multiple versions of Visual Studio installed, which I do (and need to). The solutions that seem to work are pretty drastic, such as “Use special 3rd party programs to wipe out any hit of Nvidia drivers, then install Cuda, then install drivers” or “Wipe your system and start over, install Cuda, then proceed”
I have to agree with the sentiments on the forum at the above link: “this is really very annoying and disastrous.” For me, it’s just a deal breaker. Evaluating whether Cuda is suitable for my projects isn’t worth this.
I would propose that the a reasonable solution would be to make stand-alone installers for each of the various versions of Visual Studio.