Winapi: Screenshot is not displayed on window - c++

Question

I'm new with GUI programming on windows and came across some problems (using visual studio 2017).
I have a client and server application, client basically takes pictures of desktop and sends it to server which then displays it on the screen. As I decided to post a question here I created one project which creates a window(which is used to display screensots) takes the screenshot and displays it (I tried to use as minimal code as possible to reproduce the problem).
Here is the code:
// Onefile.cpp : Defines the entry point for the console application.
//
#include "stdafx.h"
#define SECURITY_WIN32
#include <Windowsx.h>
#include <WinSock.h>
#include <Windows.h>
#include <WinBase.h>
#include <Stdio.h>
#include <Security.h>
#include <Sddl.h>
#include <Shlwapi.h>
#include <Shlobj.h>
#include <TlHelp32.h>
#include <Psapi.h>
#include <Wininet.h>
#include <Urlmon.h>
#pragma comment(lib,"WS2_32")
static BITMAPINFO g_bmpInfo;
static BYTE *g_pixels = NULL;
HWND hWndClient;
HDC hDcBmpServer;
static const TCHAR *className = TEXT("ControlWindow");
static const TCHAR *titlePattern = TEXT("Desktop");
static LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc(HWND hWnd, UINT msg, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
{
switch (msg)
{
case WM_CREATE:
{
printf("WndProc: WM_CREATE\n");
fflush(stdout);
break;
}
case WM_SYSCOMMAND:
{
printf("WndProc: WM_SYSCOMMAND\n");
fflush(stdout);
return DefWindowProc(hWnd, msg, wParam, lParam);
}
case WM_PAINT:
{
printf("WndProc: WM_PAINT\n");
fflush(stdout);
PAINTSTRUCT ps;
HDC hDc = BeginPaint(hWnd, &ps);
if (hDc == NULL)
{
printf("WM_PAINT: BeginPaint FAILED!\n");
fflush(stdout);
}
RECT clientRect;
if (GetClientRect(hWnd, &clientRect) == 0)
{
printf("WM_PAINT: GetClientRect FAILED %d\n", GetLastError());
fflush(stdout);
}
RECT rect;
HBRUSH hBrush = CreateSolidBrush(RGB(0, 0, 0));
if (hBrush == NULL)
{
printf("%d WM_PAINT: CreateSolidBrush FAILED %d\n", GetLastError());
fflush(stdout);
}
rect.left = 0;
rect.top = 0;
rect.right = clientRect.right;
rect.bottom = clientRect.bottom;
rect.left = g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth;
if (FillRect(hDc, &rect, hBrush) == 0)
{
printf("WM_PAINT: FillRect 1.0 failed!\n");
fflush(stdout);
}
rect.left = 0;
rect.top = g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight;
if (FillRect(hDc, &rect, hBrush) == 0)
{
printf("WM_PAINT: FillRect 2.0 failed!\n");
fflush(stdout);
}
DeleteObject(hBrush);
if (BitBlt(hDc, 0, 0, g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth, g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight, hDcBmpServer, 0, 0, SRCCOPY) == 0)
{
printf("WM_PAINT: BitBlt failed!%d\n", GetLastError());
fflush(stdout);
}
else
{
printf("WM_PAINT: BitBl SUCCESS!\n");
fflush(stdout);
}
EndPaint(hWnd, &ps);
break;
}
case WM_DESTROY:
{
PostQuitMessage(0);
break;
}
case WM_ERASEBKGND:
return TRUE;
case WM_LBUTTONDOWN:
case WM_LBUTTONUP:
case WM_RBUTTONDOWN:
case WM_RBUTTONUP:
case WM_MBUTTONDOWN:
case WM_MBUTTONUP:
case WM_LBUTTONDBLCLK:
case WM_RBUTTONDBLCLK:
case WM_MBUTTONDBLCLK:
case WM_MOUSEMOVE:
case WM_MOUSEWHEEL:
{
printf("WndProc: Buttons\n");
fflush(stdout);
break;
}
case WM_CHAR:
{
printf("WndProc: WM_char\n");
fflush(stdout);
break;
}
case WM_KEYDOWN:
case WM_KEYUP:
{
printf("WndProc: KEYUPm\n");
fflush(stdout);
switch (wParam)
{
case VK_UP:
case VK_DOWN:
case VK_RIGHT:
case VK_LEFT:
case VK_HOME:
case VK_END:
case VK_PRIOR:
case VK_NEXT:
case VK_INSERT:
case VK_RETURN:
case VK_DELETE:
case VK_BACK:
break;
}
}
case WM_GETMINMAXINFO:
{
printf("WndProc: WM_GETMINMAXINFO\n");
fflush(stdout);
break;
}
default:
return DefWindowProc(hWnd, msg, wParam, lParam);
}
return 0;
}
//Register class
BOOL CW_Register(WNDPROC lpfnWndProc)
{
WNDCLASSEX wndClass;
wndClass.cbSize = sizeof(WNDCLASSEX);
wndClass.style = CS_DBLCLKS;
wndClass.lpfnWndProc = lpfnWndProc;
wndClass.cbClsExtra = 0;
wndClass.cbWndExtra = 0;
wndClass.hInstance = NULL;
wndClass.hIcon = LoadIcon(NULL, IDI_APPLICATION);
wndClass.hCursor = LoadCursor(NULL, IDC_ARROW);
wndClass.hbrBackground = (HBRUSH)COLOR_WINDOW;
wndClass.lpszMenuName = NULL;
wndClass.lpszClassName = className;
wndClass.hIconSm = LoadIcon(NULL, IDI_APPLICATION);
return RegisterClassEx(&wndClass);
}
//Create window which should display pictures
HWND CW_Create()
{
printf("CW_Create: Creating Windows...\n");
fflush(stdout);
hWndClient = CreateWindow(className,
titlePattern,
WS_MAXIMIZEBOX | WS_MINIMIZEBOX | WS_SIZEBOX | WS_SYSMENU,
CW_USEDEFAULT,
CW_USEDEFAULT,
800,
600,
NULL,
NULL,
GetModuleHandle(NULL),
NULL);
if (hWndClient == NULL)
{
printf("CW_Create: ERROR! CreateWindow failed %d\n", GetLastError());
fflush(stdout);
return NULL;
}
if (ShowWindow(hWndClient, SW_SHOW) == 0)
{
printf("CW_Create: The window was previously hidden\n");
fflush(stdout);
return NULL;
}
else
{
printf("CW_Create: The window was previously shown\n");
fflush(stdout);
}
printf("CW_Create: Exiting...\n");
return hWndClient;
}
void CreateWindows()
{
CW_Register(WndProc);
CW_Create();
}
int main()
{
CreateWindows();
memset(&g_bmpInfo, 0, sizeof(g_bmpInfo));
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biSize = sizeof(g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader);
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biPlanes = 1;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biBitCount = 24;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biCompression = BI_RGB;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biClrUsed = 0;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biSizeImage = 800 * 3 * 600;
//Client side which takes a picture of screen
RECT rect;
HWND hWndDesktop = GetDesktopWindow();
GetWindowRect(hWndDesktop, &rect);
HDC hDc = GetDC(NULL);
if(hDc == NULL)
{
printf("Client: hDc is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
HDC hDcScreen = CreateCompatibleDC(hDc);
if (hDcScreen == NULL)
{
printf("Client: hDcScreen is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
HBITMAP hBmpScreen = CreateCompatibleBitmap(hDc, rect.right - rect.left, rect.bottom - rect.top);
if (hBmpScreen == NULL)
{
printf("Client: hBmpScreen is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
//Resize the picture to 800x600 dimension
HBITMAP hBmpScreenResized = CreateCompatibleBitmap(hDc, 800, 600);
if (hBmpScreenResized == NULL)
{
printf("Client: hBmpScreenResized is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
HDC hDcScreenResized = CreateCompatibleDC(hDc);
if (hDcScreenResized == NULL)
{
printf("Client: hDcScreenResized is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
SelectObject(hDcScreenResized, hBmpScreenResized);
SetStretchBltMode(hDcScreenResized, HALFTONE);
if (StretchBlt(hDcScreenResized, 0, 0, 800, 600,
hDcScreen, 0, 0, rect.right, rect.bottom, SRCCOPY) == 0)
{
printf("Client: StretchBlt is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
DeleteObject(hBmpScreen);
DeleteDC(hDcScreen);
//Assign new values
hBmpScreen = hBmpScreenResized;
hDcScreen = hDcScreenResized;
SelectObject(hDcScreen, hBmpScreen);
free((HLOCAL)g_pixels);
g_pixels = (BYTE *)malloc(g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biSizeImage);
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth = 800;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight = 600;
if (GetDIBits(hDcScreen, hBmpScreen, 0, 600, g_pixels, &g_bmpInfo, DIB_RGB_COLORS) == 0)
{
printf("Client: GetDIBits is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
DeleteObject(hBmpScreen);
ReleaseDC(NULL, hDc);
DeleteDC(hDcScreen);
//Server side which should take the pixels and paint them on the window
HDC hDcServer = GetDC(NULL);
if (hDcServer == NULL)
{
printf("Server: hDcServer is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
hDcBmpServer = CreateCompatibleDC(hDcServer);
HBITMAP hBmp;
hBmp = CreateCompatibleBitmap(hDcServer, g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth, g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight);
if (hBmp == NULL)
{
printf("Server: hBmp is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
SelectObject(hDcBmpServer, hBmp);
int ScanLines = SetDIBits(hDcBmpServer,
hBmp,
0,
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight,
g_pixels,
&g_bmpInfo,
DIB_RGB_COLORS);
if (ScanLines == 0)
{
printf("Server: hBmp is NULL %d\n", GetLastError());
}
else
{
printf("Server: Scanned lines %d\n", ScanLines);
}
fflush(stdout);
InvalidateRgn(hWndClient, NULL, TRUE);
MSG msg;
while (GetMessage(&msg, NULL, 0, 0) > 0)
{
PeekMessage(&msg, NULL, WM_USER, WM_USER, PM_NOREMOVE);
TranslateMessage(&msg);
DispatchMessage(&msg);
}
}
As you can see I'm creating a window using CreateWindows function, then try to take a screenshot, then I resize it to the proper window size
which in my case is 800x600 and then try to display it using InvalidateRgn function. I've deleted basically all code in WndProc in sake of this question and only left WM_PAINT part.
The problem I'm having is that the window which should be filled with the screenshot is black and nothing is displayed on it. I have no compiler or runtime errors but the screenshot is not displayed. I think I'm missing some information on how to do this properly. Hope you can help.
P.S
This is the source code of some project, I don't want to convert screenshot into .bmp and send it that way, I want to understand why this method doesn't work. thanks.

Answer 1

Create a memory device context and bitmap (HBITMAP handle). Select the bitmap in to memory dc. Then use BitBlt to copy from screen to memory dc. The bitmap will then contain the screen data.
You can then print the bitmap handle directly in WM_PAINT. This would be a DDB, it can't be transferred between programs. You need DIB, or so use GetDIBits to copy the content from bitmap in to a byte array (g_bmpInfo and g_pixels)
Note that the size of 24-bit bitmap is not always with * height * 3, you need a special formula to account for padding.
BITMAPINFO g_bmpInfo;
BYTE *g_pixels = NULL;
LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc(HWND hWnd, UINT msg, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
{
switch(msg)
{
case WM_PAINT:
{
PAINTSTRUCT ps;
auto hdc = BeginPaint(hWnd, &ps);
RECT rc;
GetClientRect(hWnd, &rc);
int w = g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth;
int h = g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight;
if(g_pixels && w && h)
{
//print the bitmap on screen
SetDIBitsToDevice(hdc, 0, 0, w, h, 0, 0, 0, h, g_pixels,
&g_bmpInfo, DIB_RGB_COLORS);
}
EndPaint(hWnd, &ps);
break;
}
case WM_DESTROY:
PostQuitMessage(0);
break;
}
return DefWindowProc(hWnd, msg, wParam, lParam);
}
int main()
{
CreateWindows();
RECT rect;
HWND hWndDesktop = GetDesktopWindow();
GetWindowRect(hWndDesktop, &rect);
int width = rect.right - rect.left;
int height = rect.bottom - rect.top;
int bpp = 24; //24-bit
int size = ((width * bpp + 31) / 32) * 4 * height;
memset(&g_bmpInfo, 0, sizeof(g_bmpInfo));
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biSize = sizeof(g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader);
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biWidth = width;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biHeight = height;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biPlanes = 1;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biBitCount = 24;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biCompression = BI_RGB;
g_bmpInfo.bmiHeader.biSizeImage = size;
g_pixels = new BYTE[size];
auto hdc = GetDC(HWND_DESKTOP);
auto memdc = CreateCompatibleDC(hdc);
auto hbitmap = CreateCompatibleBitmap(hdc, width, height);
auto oldbmp = SelectObject(memdc, hbitmap);
//copy from screen to memory
BitBlt(memdc, 0, 0, width, height, hdc, 0, 0, SRCCOPY);
//fill g_pixels array
GetDIBits(hdc, hbitmap, 0, height, g_pixels, &g_bmpInfo, DIB_RGB_COLORS);
MSG msg;
while(GetMessage(&msg, NULL, 0, 0) > 0)
{
TranslateMessage(&msg);
DispatchMessage(&msg);
}
//cleanup
SelectObject(memdc, oldbmp);
DeleteObject(hbitmap);
DeleteDC(memdc);
ReleaseDC(HWND_DESKTOP, hdc);
delete[] g_pixels;
return 0;
}