Trace to Console in MFC application - c++

I am currently tracing my errors in an MFC application to a .log file and to the event viewer, but I would also like to trace to the console. A console solution is posted here:
http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/612/Creating-a-console-for-your-MFC-app-s-debug-output
but I want to be able to turn it on and off easily (Perhaps with a TraceSwitch).

In addition to the obvious,
<add name="LPRConsoleListener" type=System.Diagnostics.ConsoleTraceListener" />
You must put
AllocConsole()
in your InitInstance() function before you initialize your MFC Window.

Related

How to get dialog name or dialog class of MFC dialog?

I have big,old MFC source code. It is very difficult to debug the code. I am using Spy++ to examine one of the dialog. Following is snapshot of Spy++ of the dialog of MFC application.
Is there any way to find name of class of Dialog, or dialog ID?
Secondly, is there any tool in Visual Studio (using 2008) which can map button callback with correct method of source code.
I know second question sounds greedy, but just trying to see if this type of tool exists?
Launch the Debugger.
Run the application.
Hit Break All
Look into the call stack
You should find the code location that calls DoModal. And there you find the appropriate class that is used.

Win32 application with console output and without new window

I'd like to create a tool that can either act as command line (display some console output based on input parameters), or display a window, based on input parameters.
I'm using MSV2012 with C++, and it seems you have to 'choose' between console and window app.
I know the net is filled with samples which use AllocConsole() and redirect std::out, but it doesn't make it feel like a command line application : calling the exe from the windows console will open a new window with the console output...
Is there a way to have it use the current console window instead of allocating a new one?
If not possible, I'll make 2 applications instead, but that's a pity..
Someone else may have a more authoritative answer, but I don't believe it's supported.
The usual workaround is to create a Windows app, but have a command-line wrapper that launches it from the CLI (and provides a channel for communicating with the original console).
It's not technically supported but I found a good solution by getting a snapshot for the current process, finding the parent process, attaching to it's console if it's a console app or creating one with AllocConsole, redirecting the output, getting the thread of the parent process if it's cmd.exe and suspending it, resuming it just before I exit my app

Console output window in DLL

I am trying to redirect the output from my DLL to an external console window for easy debugging.
I have been told about AllocConsole but I am not able to reproduce it, i.e. the console window does not appear.
My current environment is Visual Studio 2005.
I tried the following example which is gotten off the Internet,
AllocConsole();
HANDLE han = GetStdHandle(STD_OUTPUT_HANDLE);
WriteConsole(han,"hello",6,new DWORD,0);
yet nothing happens. Can someone point me in the right direction if creating a console window via DLL is possible in the first place.
Thanks in advance!
The proper way to output debug strings is via OutputDebugString(), with an appropriate debugging tool listening for output strings.
Once loaded, there is nothing special about DLLs, so there is no way that allocating consoles would be any different for a DLL than for the EXE that originally loaded it.
Having said that, a process can be associated with only one console at a time, so if there is already a console attached to the process, then allocating a new one is not going to do anything (I assume you're checking the return value of AllocConsole? What does it return? What does GetLastError return?)
There are some other possibilities. For example, if your DLL is loaded into a service, then the service will (likely) be running under a different window station to the currently logged-in user so if you create a console window, you won't be able to see it.

Handling Messages in Console Apps/DLLs in C++ Win32

I would like to have the ability to process Win32 messages in a console app and/or inside a standalone DLL.
I have been able to do it in .NET with the following article and it works great in C# inside a console app and standalone DLL
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/cc163417.aspx
Is there a way to do the equivalent with C/C++ Win32 APIs? I have tried doing RegisterClassEx(...) and CreateWindow(...) even passing in HWND_MESSAGE to hWndParent but the trouble is that after the "invisible" window is created messages are not being processed probably due to the lack of a message pump.
Where would the message pump go if you had a DLL entry point? I have tried creating another thread in a DLL and put while(GetMesage(..)) there but that did not work either.
Any ideas?
You need a message pump yes. The window also has thread affinity so it needs to be created on the same thread that you're running the message pump on. The basic approach is sound, if you include more code it may become clear what the problem is.
In addition to what Logan Capaldo said, you also have the problem that, as a DLL, you don't know at compile time what kind of process is going to be loading you at runtime.
If you are being loaded by a console application (/SUBSYSTEM:CONSOLE), then creating a hidden window of your own and setting up a message pump on that same thread will work fine (as long as you are the first window created).
If you are being loaded by a windows app (/SUBSYSTEM:WINDOWS) then you might run into problems getting messages. They will be sent to the top-level window in the hierarchy, which you didn't create. You'll need to get the hWnd of the main process and subclass it (if you aren't already).
If you are being loaded by a service, then you aren't going to get window messages at all. You instead need to use the RegisterServiceCtrlHandlerEx Function

Can you create a start-up window in console program?

I want to a create dialog box like window before displaying the console window. I haven't actually tried anything yet but was just wondering if it can be displayed as a start-up window.
If you compile your win32 application as a console app, the console window will appear before you get a chance to do anything else.
To get around this, you need to use a windows application - this won't display a console window at all by default. Some time after startup you can then call AllocConsole to create a console window.
I'm not sure, but if it's a windowed application already, it might be worth making your own console window to redirect standard IO. It'll certainly look nicer. If you want the exact behavior of the regular console, such as the same copy/paste, you'd have to reimplement it.