SQLinForm dll not compatible with the current version o N++

[PeterJones]

@Guido-Thelen ,

I just ran a couple quick experiments (downloaded the released versions of your plugins using plugins admin):

it loads fine in either, and gives

If I copy over the 32bit DLL and put it in the folder for the 64bit Notepad++, NPP gives me the error:

That’s similar, but is explicit about the 32-bit nature of the plugin DLL. I think “Failed to load” is indicating something different – a bug in your source code for the plugin, probably.

You said you did a lot of refactoring, so you probably got something wrong during the refactoring.

It might be a good idea for you to try to recompile the 5.3.35 version of your code in your existing setup, and make sure that you can still compile it properly and get it to work. Then compare VS settings between the two, to make sure that there isn’t some missing external resource or option difference.

I know that sometimes you cannot avoid doing “major refactoring” when adding a new feature or changing libraries you depend on. But when at all possible in my software development, I try to make incremental changes and tests, and make sure everything still works at various stages along the way, because that helps prevent issues like this.

[Guido Thelen]

thanks. I will investigate during the weekend

[Guido Thelen]

@PeterJones I removed some of my changes. It is still not starting but I am getting a more clear error message.
“This ANSI plugin is not compatible with your Unicode Notepad++”
It looks like I am missing the point where I turn my Plugin into an UTF-8 plugin.

Any idea where I can find this switch?

Regards
Guido

[Guido Thelen]

and this is the content from UnmanagedExports

// NPP plugin platform for .Net v0.93.87 by Kasper B. Graversen etc.
using Kbg.NppPluginNET.PluginInfrastructure;
using NppPlugin.DllExport;
using System;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

namespace Kbg.NppPluginNET
{
    internal class UnmanagedExports
    {
        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static bool isUnicode()
        {
            return true;
        }

        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static void setInfo(NppData notepadPlusData)
        {
            PluginBase.nppData = notepadPlusData;
            Main.CommandMenuInit();
        }

        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static IntPtr getFuncsArray(ref int nbF)
        {
            nbF = PluginBase._funcItems.Items.Count;
            return PluginBase._funcItems.NativePointer;
        }

        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static uint messageProc(uint Message, IntPtr wParam, IntPtr lParam)
        {
            return 1;
        }

        private static IntPtr _ptrPluginName = IntPtr.Zero;

        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static IntPtr getName()
        {
            if (_ptrPluginName == IntPtr.Zero)
                _ptrPluginName = Marshal.StringToHGlobalUni(Main.PluginName);
            return _ptrPluginName;
        }

        [DllExport(CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
        private static void beNotified(IntPtr notifyCode)
        {
            ScNotification notification = (ScNotification)Marshal.PtrToStructure(notifyCode, typeof(ScNotification));
            if (notification.Header.Code == (uint)NppMsg.NPPN_TBMODIFICATION)
            {
                PluginBase._funcItems.RefreshItems();
                Main.SetToolBarIcon();
            }
            else if (notification.Header.Code == (uint)NppMsg.NPPN_SHUTDOWN)
            {
                Main.PluginCleanUp();
                Marshal.FreeHGlobal(_ptrPluginName);
            }
            else
            {
                Main.OnNotification(notification);
            }
        }
    }
}

[Ekopalypse]

@Guido-Thelen

this error happens when isUnicode function is not exported.
isUnicode should always return True.

[Guido Thelen]

@Ekopalypse ok. I checked the UnmanagedExports class and it contains isUnicode function (see code snippet above)

[Ekopalypse]

but is it really exported??
Tools like dumpbin /exports can show if the function is really exported.

[Ekopalypse]

Something like this

dumpbin /exports D:\PortableApps\Npp\plugins\PythonScript\PythonScript.dll

Dump of file D:\PortableApps\Npp\plugins\PythonScript\PythonScript.dll

File Type: DLL

  Section contains the following exports for PythonScript.dll

    00000000 characteristics
    FFFFFFFF time date stamp
        0.00 version
           1 ordinal base
           7 number of functions
           7 number of names

    ordinal hint RVA      name

          1    0 000452B0 PyInit_Npp
          2    1 000434E0 beNotified
          3    2 00042730 getFuncsArray
          4    3 00042720 getName
          5    4 0000A420 isUnicode
          6    5 00043880 messageProc
          7    6 00042570 setInfo

  Summary

       16000 .data
        D000 .pdata
       6B000 .rdata
        2000 .reloc
        9000 .rsrc
       F7000 .text

[Guido Thelen]

indeed. this could be the problem. When I build the same solution with VS2015 instead of VS2019, it works (without changing anything). Probably the Export is not done in VS2019.

[Ekopalypse]

@Guido-Thelen
last time I played with C# plugin interface there was an
extra export step at the end. I can’t remember its name.
Maybe in 2019 it does have to be called slightly different!?

[Guido Thelen]

@Ekopalypse thx. Will check this. Where can I find dumpbin?

[Ekopalypse]

should be available from a developer command prompt
Is part of VS environment.

[Guido Thelen]

@Ekopalypse ok. found it. it is strange. the version built with VS2015 does not have the isUniCode function exported, but it works

Dump of file C:\Users\guido\Documents\SQL\C#SQLinForm\SQLinFormNpp - Kopie (3)\SQLinFormNpp\bin\Release\SQLinFormNpp.dll

File Type: DLL

  Summary

        2000 .reloc
        2000 .rsrc
        2000 .sdata
       F6000 .text

C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2019\Community>

So, it looks like it is as you wrote: the export is missing

[Ekopalypse]

that is strange, indeed. How can npp access non-existent function pointers??
Let me check this again.

[Ekopalypse]

@Guido-Thelen If I download the version available from plugin admin I do see the functions exported.

File Type: DLL

  Section contains the following exports for \SQLinFormNpp64.dll

    00000000 characteristics
    5DD1422F time date stamp Sun Nov 17 13:50:55 2019
        0.00 version
           0 ordinal base
           6 number of functions
           6 number of names

    ordinal hint RVA      name

          5    0 000EF2CE beNotified
          2    1 000EF2AA getFuncsArray
          4    2 000EF2C2 getName
          0    3 000EF292 isUnicode
          3    4 000EF2B6 messageProc
          1    5 000EF29E setInfo

[Guido Thelen]

@Ekopalypse I think I need a break. making too many errors. Thx for today.

[Ekopalypse]

@Guido-Thelen

no problem :-D - Good night.

[zanud]

@Guido-Thelen

the version built with VS2015 does not have the isUniCode function exported, but it works

Just in case: have not you forgot about the “/exports” parameter of dumpbin?

[Guido Thelen]

@zanud exactly. thanks a lot.

[Guido Thelen]

@Ekopalypse today I got it working :-) Sleeping was of great help.
The issue was that in the refactored version I am working with 2 C# projects. One project for the GUI and one project for the formatter/parser.
I refer from the GUI project to the parser project. Because I am only referring to it, the parser dll is not included into the GUI output and Notepad++ issues an error message. The reason is probably that the parser dll cannot be found.
But when I copy the source files from the parser project into the GUI project it is better. The GUI dll is of course much bigger and, because it contains now also the parser and Notepad++ is happy.
Probably this is an stupid error, but I am not a C# develpper and I am not familiar with Visual Studio. I developped the original parser in Java and transpose the code with a utility into C#.
Many Thanks to you :-)