DirectXTK - The procedure entrypoint CreateFile2 could not be located in the kernel32.dll - c++

Question

So I wanted to try using DirectXTK's spritefont class and after including all of the needed files I end up with an error poping up as the program is about to start, telling me that The procedure entrypoint CreateFile2 could not be located in the kernel32.dll. Now I have searched around for the problem and from what I can tell it seems the directxtk is trying to use windows 8 specific things (or possibly 8.1 I guess) while I am using windows 7. The general fix that people seem to suggest is to change what kind of version is used by defining
#define WINVER 0x0601
#define _WIN32_WINNT 0x601
to make it use the windows 7 version. I put those defines in a header file as msdn says, but I still get the same error. If it matters I am coding it in c++ in visual studio 2013.

Answer 1

The DirectX Tool Kit supports a broad array of Microsoft platforms and OS configurations, so the first step is to make sure you pick the correct VCXPROJ and/or NuGet package for your intended project and Visual C++ compiler edition.
For Windows desktop applications using VS 2013, you should use:
DirectXTK_Desktop_2013.vcxproj
-or- NuGet package directxtk_desktop_2013
The coding techniques used in the library are covered in great detail in this article Dual-use Coding Techniques for Games.
The primary control used throughout the code-base is the Windows OS target version which is set by _WIN32_WINNT as per MSDN. With the Windows 8.1 SDK (included with VS 2013) the SDK will default to using _WIN32_WINNT=0x0603 / _WIN32_WINNT=_WIN32_WINNT_WINBLUE which means to build for a Windows 8.1 or later OS. This is why the code uses CreateFile2 which is required for the code to be usable for Windows 8.x Store, Windows phone 8.x, or Windows 10 UWP.
If, however, you use the Windows desktop projects, they build with _WIN32_WINNT=0x0600 / _WIN32_WINNT=_WIN32_WINNT_VISTA and the library will make use of the APIs that work on Windows Vista SP2+KB971644 (needed for Direct3D 11 and Windows 7.
In the Direct3D Win32 Game Visual Studio template, I set this value in pch.h before including any other headers.
#include <WinSDKVer.h>
#define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0600
#include <SDKDDKVer.h>

Answer 2

The CreateFile2 reference comes from https://github.com/microsoft/DirectXTK/blob/master/Src/LoaderHelpers.h here:
#if (_WIN32_WINNT >= _WIN32_WINNT_WIN8)
ScopedHandle hFile(safe_handle(CreateFile2(fileName,
GENERIC_READ,
FILE_SHARE_READ,
OPEN_EXISTING,
nullptr)));
#else
ScopedHandle hFile(safe_handle(CreateFileW(fileName,
GENERIC_READ,
FILE_SHARE_READ,
nullptr,
OPEN_EXISTING,
FILE_ATTRIBUTE_NORMAL,
nullptr)));
#endif
So if the header is compiled with _WIN32_WINNT <= 0x0601, it should not use CreateFile2. How did you try to override it? I used the VS "Preprocessor Definitions" field and was able to force the else path. I recommend you double check your override.