Import library creation, C++/VisualStudio2013 - c++

Question

I create a set of C++ DLLs and their import libraries in VisualStudio (2013). So far, these were all generated at the same time by linker. My DLLs use symbols from other libraries, which are included as additional dependencies in properties/link edition.
Sometimes, the DLL generation fails because of missing importation libraries, which is fine to me, but in such case there's no generated .lib file either. I would like to generate the import libs (of my DLLs) even if the DLLs cannot be done, in order to allow other projects to rely on the symbols I shall export before I'm able to provide the whole stuff.
I found a workaround through a pre-link event command line, with:
LIB /DEF:(...)\myLib.def /OUT:(...)\myLib.lib $(IntDir)*.obj
This generates exactly what I need, when I do have a .def file.
The problem is, I most often don't have such a .def file but rely on __declspec(dllexport) instructions instead, and in such case I didn't find a way to get a correct result.
I tried:
LIB /OUT:(...)\myLib.lib $(IntDir)*.obj (#1)
This creates a (static ?) lib file, not an import library, not what I need.
LIB /DEF /OUT:(...)\myLib.lib $(IntDir)*.obj (#2)
This fails on error 1104 because of missing (other) import libraries.
What's more puzzling to me is, the command line (#2) fails on libraries that should be here (they are found by the linker, actually). I'm wondering whether I am supposed to provide the complete LINK command line arguments to the LIB command, in which case it would be a no-go.
I'm not much of a specialist of the compilation/link tools, I fear, I'm probably doing pretty wrong stuff...
Does anyone know of a simple way to fulfill my need without using a .def file ? Is there an option in the linker to ask for import library creation from the declared __declspec(dllexport) symbols and generate it even when the DLL cannot link ?

Answer 1

This fails on error 1104 because of missing (other) import libraries.
Edit: oh, I get it. .obj files have /DEFAULTLIB: inside them and lib complains. Use /NODEFAULTLIB
hasunresolved.c:
#pragma comment(lib, "missinglib.lib")
void missingfunc();
__declspec(dllexport)
void dllfunc() {
missingfunc();
}
usedll.c
__declspec(dllimport)
void dllfunc();
int main() {
dllfunc();
return 0;
}
in VS command prompt:
cl -c hasunresolved.c
lib /def /OUT:test.lib hasunresolved.obj
rem this prints: LIB : fatal error LNK1104: cannot open file 'missinglib.lib'
lib /NODEFAULTLIB /def /OUT:test.lib hasunresolved.obj
cl usedll.c test.lib
dumpbin /IMPORTS:test.dll usedll.exe
output:
Dump of file usedll.exe
test.dll
0 dllfunc