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The LOCSERVE sample begins with the car-related COM Objects of the previous DLLSERVE sample and rehouses them in an out-of-process local server, LOCSERVE.EXE. To do so requires little change to the COM objects themselves (COCar, COUtilityCar, and COCruiseCar). This sample introduces the new facilities to house them in a out-of-process COM server, including class factories for each component.
This out-of-process server provides the following components: LocCar, LocUtilityCar, and LocCruiseCar.
In the series of COM tutorial code samples, LOCSERVE works with the LOCCLIEN code sample to illustrate LOCSERVE's out-of-process local server facilities for creating components that can be used by an EXE client and the subsequent manipulation of those components by LOCCLIEN.EXE.
For functional descriptions and a tutorial code tour of LOCSERVE, see the Code Tour section in LOCSERVE.HTM. For details on setting up the programmatic usage of LOCSERVE, see the Usage section in LOCSERVE.HTM. To read LOCSERVE.HTM, run TUTORIAL.EXE in the main tutorial directory and click the LOCSERVE lesson in the table of lessons. You can also achieve the same thing by clicking the LOCSERVE.HTM file after locating the main tutorial directory in the Windows Explorer. See also LOCCLIEN.HTM in the main tutorial directory for more details on the LOCCLIEN client application and how it works with LOCSERVE.EXE itself. You must build LOCSERVE.EXE before building or running LOCCLIEN. LOCSERVE's makefile automatically registers LOCSERVE's components in the registry. These components must be registered before LOCSERVE is available to outside COM clients as a server for those components. This registration is done using the REGISTER.EXE utility built in the earlier REGISTER lesson. To build or run LOCSERVE, you should build the REGISTER code sample first.
As an out-of-process local server, LOCSERVE relies on standard marshaling for clients to use its interfaces across process boundaries. Such standard marshaling for the interfaces used in LOCSERVE's COM objects is provided in the MARSHAL.DLL server built in the previous lesson. To build or run LOCSERVE, you should build the MARSHAL code sample first.
For details on setting up your system to build and test the code samples in this COM Tutorial series, see TUTORIAL.HTM. The supplied MAKEFILE is Microsoft NMAKE-compatible. To create a debug build, issue the NMAKE command in the Command Prompt window.
LOCSERVE is an application that is meant to be used as an out-of-process COM server. Out-of-process servers like LOCSERVE are registered in the system registry, and LOCSERVE has built-in support for registering its components. It accepts the following command line switches to register and unregister:
-RegServer or /RegServer to register -UnregServer or /UnregServer to unregister
String matches on these switches are case-insensitive. As an out-of-process server, LOCSERVE also recognizes the standard -Embedding or /Embedding switch, which directs it to run as such a server. In this sample, that means LOCSERVE will run hidden. If you attempt to run LOCSERVE as a stand-alone application, it will exit with an error. You can manually direct LOCSERVE to run visible by starting it with an explicit -Embedding switch on its command line prior to running the LOCCLIEN client.
The makefile that builds this sample automatically registers the server in the registry. You can manually initiate its self-registration by issuing the following command at the command prompt in the LOCSERVE directory:
nmake register
This assumes that you have a compilation environment set up. If not, you can also directly invoke the REGISTER.EXE command at the command prompt while in the LOCSERVE directory.
..\register\register.exe locserve.exe
These registration commands require a prior build of the REGISTER sample in this series, as well as a prior build of LOCSERVE.EXE.
The client sample and other related samples must be compiled before you can run the client. For more details on building the samples, see Building the Code Samples.
If you have already built the appropriate samples, LOCCLIEN.EXE is the client executable to run for this sample. Click here to run LOCCLIEN.EXE.
Depending on the security level of your browser you may see a dialog allowing you to either open the .EXE file or save it to disk. Click the "Open it" choice and then click the OK button.
Files Description
LOCSERVE.TXT Short sample description.
MAKEFILE The generic makefile for building the LOCSERVE.EXE
code sample of this tutorial lesson.
LOCSERVE.H The include file for the LOCSERVE application. Contains
class declarations, function prototypes, and resource
identifiers.
LOCSERVE.CPP The main implementation file for LOCSERVE.EXE. Has WinMain
and CMainWindow implementation, as well as the main menu
dispatching.
LOCSERVE.RC The resource definition file for the executable.
LOCSERVE.ICO The icon resource for the executable.
SERVER.H The include file for the server control C++ object. Also
used for LOCSERVE externs.
SERVER.CPP The implementation file for the server control object.
Manages object counts and creation of class factories.
FACTORY.H The include file for the server's class factory COM objects.
FACTORY.CPP The implementation file for the server's class factories.
CAR.H The include file for the COCar COM object class.
CAR.CPP The implementation file for the COCar COM object class.
UTILCAR.H The include file for the COUtililtyCar COM object class.
UTILCAR.CPP The implementation file for the COUtilityCar COM object class.
CRUCAR.H The include file for the COCruiseCar COM object class.
CRUCAR.CPP The implementation file for the COCruiseCar COM object class.
With this LOCSERVE code sample, we cross process boundaries for the first time when the client manipulates components in the server. With DLLSERVE, we saw a server that was registered as in-process and was loaded by COM on behalf of clients and unloaded by COM when no longer needed by any clients. We saw the in-process server housing in DLLSERVE.DLL and how that housing implemented and exposed its class factories.
With LOCSERVE, these server housing schemes are different. As a separate EXE application with its own message loop, the server itself must take on more responsibility for its lifetime and must expose its class factories to COM differently.
Though not essential to the COM nature of this out-of-process local server, the logging facility that we used previously to enhance the tutorial value of these code samples needs significant changes to accommodate cross-process trace logging from the server to the client.
In a general sense, LOCSERVE is an EXE version of DLLSERVE. As COM servers, they both offer the same components: COCar, COUtilityCar, and COCruiseCar. They both also provide appropriate class factories for those components: CFCar, CFUtilityCar, and CFCruiseCar.
The main point of this LOCSERVE code sample is to illustrate the mechanisms required to render its COM objects into components by housing them in an out-of-process server.
Like its predecessors, LOCSERVE uses many of the utility classes and services provided by APPUTIL. For more details on APPUTIL, study the APPUTIL library's source code in the sibling APPUTIL directory and APPUTIL.HTM in the main tutorial directory.
Also like its server predecessors, LOCSERVE is self-registering, and its makefile uses REGISTER.EXE (built in the REGISTER lesson) to register LOCSERVE. We'll look first at the support for this facility that is provided in LOCSERVE. We will then see how and when the class factories are built. We'll tour the mechanism for control of the server as objects are created and deleted. We'll look at the changes made to the COM object classes of the components themselves. Finally, we'll look at the mechanism needed to log internal server behavior to the client's trace log display.
We start in LOCSERVE.CPP with the following registration-related code in the WinMain function:
...
...
// Check command line for switches to register or unregister
// this server's managed components. iRun will be set to 2
// to signal an immediate and quiet exit of this application
// if such registration or unregistration is requested.
if (0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "-RegServer")
|| 0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "/RegServer"))
{
if (pWin->RegisterServer())
iRun = 2;
}
else if (0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "-UnregServer")
|| 0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "/UnregServer"))
{
if (pWin->UnregisterServer())
iRun = 2;
}
...
...
WinMain has been toured in previous lessons. The logic above shows how an out-of-process server can honor self-registration requests by recognizing certain standard switches on its command line. The above code runs after CMainWindow has been created, but before InitInstance is called and the main message loop is entered. The code checks the command line (using pointer lpCmdLine, passed with the call to WinMain) for the appropriate switches. The explicit ANSI variants of lstrcmpi are used, because the command line is available only in ANSI, even if this application is compiled for Unicode.
The string comparisons are case-insensitive. If switch -RegServer was specified on the command line, then CMainWindow::RegisterServer is called. Similarly, if switch -UnregServer was specified, CMainWindow::UnregisterServer is called. In the REGISTER code sample, we saw how these switches might have been specified when REGISTER started LOCSERVE.EXE with a call to WinExec. The switches can also be specified manually if LOCSERVE is started in the Command Prompt window. After the appropriate registration or unregistration function is called, an iRun variable is set to 2 to indicate that LOCSERVE will be exited immediately without entering its message loop.
Here is a portion of RegisterServer that registers the LocCar component:
BOOL CMainWindow::RegisterServer(void)
{
BOOL bOk = TRUE;
TCHAR szID[GUID_SIZE+1];
TCHAR szCLSID[GUID_SIZE+32];
TCHAR szModulePath[MAX_PATH];
// Obtain the path to this module's executable file for later use.
GetModuleFileName(
g_pServer->m_hInstServer,
szModulePath,
sizeof(szModulePath)/sizeof(TCHAR));
/*---------------------------------------------------------------------
Create registry entries for the LocCar Component.
---------------------------------------------------------------------*/
// Create some base key strings.
StringFromGUID2(CLSID_LocCar, szID, GUID_SIZE);
lstrcpy(szCLSID, TEXT("CLSID\\"));
lstrcat(szCLSID, szID);
// Create ProgID keys.
SetRegKeyValue(
TEXT("LocCar1.0"),
NULL,
TEXT("LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"));
SetRegKeyValue(
TEXT("LocCar1.0"),
TEXT("CLSID"),
szID);
// Create VersionIndependentProgID keys.
SetRegKeyValue(
TEXT("LocCar"),
NULL,
TEXT("LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"));
SetRegKeyValue(
TEXT("LocCar"),
TEXT("CurVer"),
TEXT("LocCar1.0"));
SetRegKeyValue(
TEXT("LocCar"),
TEXT("CLSID"),
szID);
// Create entries under CLSID.
SetRegKeyValue(
szCLSID,
NULL,
TEXT("LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"));
SetRegKeyValue(
szCLSID,
TEXT("ProgID"),
TEXT("LocCar1.0"));
SetRegKeyValue(
szCLSID,
TEXT("VersionIndependentProgID"),
TEXT("LocCar"));
SetRegKeyValue(
szCLSID,
TEXT("NotInsertable"),
NULL);
SetRegKeyValue(
szCLSID,
TEXT("LocalServer32"),
szModulePath);
/*-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Create registry entries for the LocUtilityCar Component.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------*/
...
... Similar to above code for LocCar.
...
/*-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Create registry entries for the LocCruiseCar Component.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------*/
...
... Similar to above code for LocCar.
...
return bOk;
}
This registration code is very similar to that used in DLLSERVE for its DllCar component. The CLSID_LocCar (defined in CARGUIDS.H) is used for this component. CARGUIDS.H is found in the sibling INC directory. The main difference is the 'LocalServer32' entry. After such registration code is run (for example, as this server is built), you can run the Registry Editor (REGEDT32.EXE in Windows NT, REGEDIT.EXE in Windows 95) and peruse the registered entries. The registry entries look like this for the LocCar component:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
\CLSID
\{0002DA0A-0000-0000-C000-000000000046} = "LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"
\ProgID = "LocCar1.0"
\VersionIndependentProgID = "LocCar"
\NotInsertable
\LocalServer32 = "D:\TUTSAMP\LOCSERVE\LOCSERVE.EXE"
...
...
\LocCar = "LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"
\CurVer = "LocCar1.0"
\CLSID = "{0002DA0A-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"
...
...
\LocCar1.0 ="LocCar Component - LOCSERVE Code Sample"
\CLSID = "{0002DA0A-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"
Separate entries under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT are written for the ProgID (LocCar1.0) and the VersionIndependentProgID (LocCar). Both refer unambiguously to the main HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID entry. Under this entry are indications that the server is not insertable as an object in an COM compound document. The LocalServer32 entry has the path location of the server's executable. COM can thus start this server on behalf of a client when given the right CLSID.
The UnregisterServer call, also in LOCSERVE.CPP, simply removes from the registry all the entries that are written by RegisterServer.
The LOCSERVE application does have a skeleton menu in its main window. As a hidden server, it doesn't need a menu at all, but it has one here for debugging and tutorial purposes. For example, CMainWindow::DoMenu honors the IDM_HELP_ABOUT case. In previous code samples, the server could be directed to show its About dialog box from the client. This is not of major importance, but we illustrate it here by having the client send a message to LOCSERVE's main window. More on this in the LOCCLIEN code tour.
When LOCSERVE is started by COM on behalf of a client, COM uses a standard -Embedding command line switch to notify the server that it has been invoked as a server. Code in the WinMain function handles this switch and sets up LOCSERVE as a server of its components. Here is a code fragment from WinMain (in file LOCSERVE.CPP):
...
...
if (FALSE == iRun)
{
// If we did not process a command line switch that
// requires immediate exit, then initialize an instance of
// the new CMainWindow. This entails creating the main window.
// Note: if InitInstance fails, then it would have already
// deleted pWin so we wouldn't need to delete it here.
if (pWin->InitInstance(hInstance, nCmdShow))
{
// Create and register the Class Factories. But only do so
// if this application has been started by COM as indicated
// by the -Embedding command line switch.
if (0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "-Embedding")
|| 0 == lstrcmpiA(lpCmdLine, "/Embedding"))
iRun = g_pServer->OpenFactories();
}
}
...
...
In addition to creating the main window, InitInstance also sets up logging from this server to the LOCCLIEN client's trace log display. More on this later.
The important thing now is the OpenFactories call above: it is called only if the -Embedding switch is detected. Regardless of whether this application was compiled for Unicode, the command line is always ANSI, so the ANSI-only version of the lstrcmpi string utility function is used. The g_pServer pointer points to this server's CServer server control object. For this out-of-process server, CServe has two important new methods that it did not have in DLLSERVE. One, OpenFactories, creates and registers all the class factories. The other, CloseFactories, shuts them all down.
We see above when OpenFactories is called. Its matching CloseFactories call is made in CMainWindow's destructor in LOCSERVE.CPP.
...
// Close down the factories (ie, Revoke and release the Class Factories).
if (NULL != g_pServer)
g_pServer->CloseFactories();
...
The shutdown sequence is initiated by the server itself on the basis of the object and lock counts. For example, see the listing below of the ObjectsDown method of CServer. ObjectsDown detects when there are no longer any existing COM objects or lock counts. If there are none it issues the following call causing an eventual execution of CMainWindow's destructor.
PostMessage(m_hWndServer, WM_CLOSE, 0, 0L);
When the application's main window is closed in response to the WM_CLOSE message, the main window procedure is called with the WM_DESTROY message. This message is sent when the window is being destroyed in response to a close of the window. Because CMainWindow is derived from APPUTIL's CVirWindow, WM_DESTROY is trapped by CVirWindow's WindowProc function where a delete of CMainWindow is performed. This runs the CMainWindow destructor which calls CloseFactories as above. After CloseFactories shuts down all the class factories, the destructor finally posts a WM_QUIT message to the server application's main thread and causes the exit of the thread's message loop. After this the server application is exited.
We will tour the class factory code in more detail. CServer is used to manage creation and destruction of the class factories. Here is the CServe declaration in SERVER.H.
class CServer
{
public:
CServer(void);
~CServer(void);
void Lock(void);
void Unlock(void);
void ObjectsUp(void);
void ObjectsDown(void);
BOOL OpenFactories(void);
BOOL CloseFactories(void);
// A place to store the server's instance handle.
HINSTANCE m_hInstServer;
// A place to store the server's main window.
HINSTANCE m_hWndServer;
// Global DLL Server living Object count.
LONG m_cObjects;
// Global DLL Server Client Lock count.
LONG m_cLocks;
// Some member variables to store pointers to Class Factories.
IUnknown* m_pCFCar;
IUnknown* m_pCFUtilityCar;
IUnknown* m_pCFCruiseCar;
// Some member variables to store Class Factory registration keys.
DWORD m_dwCFCar;
DWORD m_dwCFUtilityCar;
DWORD m_dwCFCruiseCar;
};
Much of this code is the same as that in previous servers in this sample series. We see the prototypes for the OpenFactories and CloseFactories methods. We notice storage for pointers to the IUnknowns of the three class factories (m_pCFCar, m_pCFUtilityCar, m_pCFCruiseCAr) and storage for registration keys for the class factories (m_dwCFCar, m_dwCFUtilityCar, m_dwCFCruiseCar). This registration is different from writing entries in the system registry. The class factories are registered with COM at run-time, and COM provides a key or token for each registered class factory. Each token is later used to revoke the registration with COM for each class factory. The registration code informs COM that a class factory exists. Because the client has no direct way to call the server to create a class factory on demand, an out-of-process server must create them all during its initialization and destroy them all just before exiting.
Here is OpenFactories in SERVER.CPP:
BOOL CServer::OpenFactories(void)
{
BOOL bOk = FALSE;
HRESULT hr;
LOG("L: CServer::OpenFactories. Begin.");
// Build and register the LocCar factory.
m_pCFCar = new CFCar(NULL, this);
if (NULL != m_pCFCar)
{
// AddRef this cached pointer to the Class Factory.
m_pCFCar->AddRef();
// Now register this class factory with COM.
hr = CoRegisterClassObject(
CLSID_LocCar,
m_pCFCar,
CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER,
REGCLS_MULTIPLEUSE,
&m_dwCFCar);
bOk = SUCCEEDED(hr);
if (!bOk)
{
LOGF1("L: CServer::OpenFactories. CFCar failed. hr=0x%X.", hr);
// If can't register factory then clean up for server exit.
m_pCFCar->Release();
DELETE_POINTER(m_pCFCar);
}
}
else
bOk = FALSE;
...
... <Similar for the LocUtilityCar and LocCruiseCar class factories.>
...
LOG("L: CServer::OpenFactories. End.");
return bOk;
}
The CFCar COM object is created, and the m_pCFCar pointer is assigned. As usual, AddRef must be called on this cached pointer. COM's CoRegisterClassObject function is then called to register the new class factory. It deposits a registration key in the CServer::m_dwCFCar member variable, which is used later to revoke the CFCar class factory registration with COM. The CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER argument informs COM that the execution context of this class factory is that of an out-of-process local server. The REGCLS_MULTIPLEUSE argument informs COM that this server is multiple use for any given class factory. This means that COM doesn't need to start a new instance of the server when another client requests the same class factory. This is one reason that all the class factories are created and registered during server initialization. If they aren't created and registered in the beginning, there would be no way to create a requested class factory that isn't already created, because the server would not be restarted by COM. Once the class factory is registered with COM, it has a pointer to the class factory object's IUnknown. It can then use this pointer to make requests to the class factory on behalf of such client requests as CoCreateInstance.
Here is the matching CloseFactories method call in SERVER.CPP.
BOOL CServer::CloseFactories(void)
{
BOOL bOk = TRUE;
HRESULT hr;
LOG("L: CServer::CloseFactories. Begin.");
// Unregister the LocCar class factory with COM.
if (0 != m_dwCFCar)
{
LOG("L: CServer::CloseFactories. Revoke CFCar.");
hr = CoRevokeClassObject(m_dwCFCar);
if (FAILED(hr))
bOk = FALSE;
}
...
... <Similar for the LocUtilityCar and LocCruiseCar class factories.
...
// Release any and all of the Class Factory interface pointers.
LOG("L: CServer::CloseFactories. Release all factory interfaces.");
RELEASE_INTERFACE(m_pCFCar);
RELEASE_INTERFACE(m_pCFUtilityCar);
RELEASE_INTERFACE(m_pCFCruiseCar);
LOG("L: CServer::CloseFactories. End.");
return bOk;
}
The stored registration key is used to revoke the class factory registration with COM. After that is successful for all factories, the outstanding references to the factories are released. Each release that decrements the reference count to 0 causes the associated class factory object to be deleted.
Before we leave the CServer server control object, here is the ObjectsDown method, also in SERVER.CPP:
void CServer::ObjectsDown(void)
{
InterlockedDecrement((PLONG) &m_cObjects);
LOGF1("L: CServer::ObjectsDown. New cObjects=%i.", m_cObjects);
// If no more living objects and no locks then shut the server down.
if (0L == m_cObjects && 0L == m_cLocks && IsWindow(m_hWndServer))
{
LOG("L: CServer::ObjectsDown. Closing down LOCSERVE server.");
// Post a message to this local server's message queue requesting
// a close of the application.
PostMessage(m_hWndServer, WM_CLOSE, 0, 0L);
}
return;
}
Here the server must take an active role in its own lifetime. When the object and lock counts are 0, the server control object calls PostMessage on the server application itself to send a WM_CLOSE messsage to the application.
A curious twist of logic is also needed in the Unlock method in SERVER.CPP:
void CServer::Unlock(void)
{
InterlockedDecrement((PLONG) &m_cLocks);
LOGF1("L: CServer::Unlock. New cLocks=%i.", m_cLocks);
// Use ObjectsDown to force a server shutdown if this warranted.
InterlockedIncrement((PLONG) &m_cObjects);
ObjectsDown();
return;
}
If the first decrement caused the lock count to reach zero, this event might shut down the server. To trigger the shutdown, the m_cObjects count is artifically incremented, and then ObjectsDown is called. We saw in the ObjectsDown logic earlier that if the object count transitions to 0, a WM_CLOSE message is sent to the server.
The code for the COCar, COUtilityCar, and COCruiseCar has been carried over from DLLSERVE almost unchanged. One significant change was in the COUtilityCar nested component. When its reused subordinate COCar object is created using calls to COM's CoCreateInstance, the execution context is changed from CLSCTX_INPROC_SERVER to CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER. Here's an example from the creation of COUtilityCar from UTILCAR.CPP:
...
...
// We create an instance of the COCar object and do this via the
// Containment reuse technique. We ask for the new COM object's
// ICar interface directly. We pass NULL for the pUnkOuter
// aggregation pointer because we are not aggregating. It is here
// that we are reusing the COCar COM Object through the Containment
// technique. We cache the requested ICar interface pointer in this
// COUtilityCar COM object for later use. We don't need to AddRef
// this interface because the CoCreateInstance will do this for us.
hr = CoCreateInstance(
CLSID_LocCar,
NULL,
CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER,
IID_ICar,
(PPVOID)&m_pICar);
...
...
Recall from the DLLSERVE sample that COCruiseCar was constructed by reusing the COCar COM object by aggregation. In this present LOCSERVE local server we must retain the CLSCTX_INPROC_SERVER execution context for the creation of the aggregated COCar. Here is the creation of COCruiseCar's aggregated COCar object from CRUCAR.CPP.
...
...
// We create an instance of the COCar object and do this via the
// Aggregation reuse technique. Note we pass pUnkOuter as the
// Aggregation pointer. It is the 'this' pointer to this present
// CruiseCar object if we are not being aggregated; otherwise it is the
// pointer to the outermost object's controlling IUnknown. Following
// the rules of Aggregation we must ask for an IID_IUnknown interface.
// We cache the requested pointer to the IUnknown of the new COCar COM
// object for later use in delegating IUnknown calls. Since we know that
// this LocCar component is housed in this very own server, we can
// specify an execution context of CLSCTX_INPROC_SERVER. This allows us
// to aggregate the COCar COM object. Though the object is in a local
// server, it will be instantiated and run within the same process of
// this present local server. If we specify CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER, COM
// will not currently permit the creation using aggregation across
// process boundaries and CoCreateInstance would return an error.
hr = CoCreateInstance(
CLSID_LocCar,
pUnkOuter,
CLSCTX_INPROC_SERVER,
IID_IUnknown,
(PPVOID)&m_pUnkCar);
...
...
COCruiseCar is instantiating and running an aggregated COCar within the process of this same server. If CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER were specified, the creation call would request aggregation across process boundaries. This is not currently supported by COM and CoCreateInstance would return an error.
Another change in the individual COM object implementation modules was to include MICARS.H rather than the ICARS.H file included in earlier code samples. We do this to better ensure consistency with the interface specification in MICARS.IDL. By including MICARS.H in both out-of-process server and client application modules, we ensure that the interface code in these client/server applications corresponds exactly to the same interfaces specified to MIDL for marshaling. MIDL generates our MICARS.H include file, and we code our use of those interfaces using MICARS.H. We could have continued to use the ICARS.H file, but because the content of the two files would be decoupled, there would have been a greater chance for a discrepancy between what is specified in MICARS.IDL and what is specified in ICARS.H.
In previous servers, we used a CarSample component to log in-process server activity to the client's trace log display. In this out-of-process local server, however, we cannot, for example, pass a g_MsgLog pointer from the client to the server and assume the two processes' address spaces are the same. They are not. To enable LOCSERVE to log to LOCCLIEN, a kind of interprocess communication is required. Win32 offers a convenient way to send data from one process to another on the same machine if the destination window handle is known. This is the WM_COPYDATA message. This approach requires that LOCSERVE get the window handle of the client and use it in a Win32 SendMessage call with the WM_COPYDATA message. The data being sent is the display string to be logged.
Here is a portion of CMainWindow::InitInstance (in file LOCSERVE.CPP):
...
...
// If the Client's Main window is found, then set up logging to it.
hWnd = FindWindow(NULL, TEXT(CLIENT_WINDOW_TITLE));
if (NULL != hWnd)
{
// Tell the CSendLog object that we are logging to client.
m_pMsgLog->LogToServer(FALSE);
// Assign the global MsgLog pointer.
g_pMsgLog = m_pMsgLog;
m_pMsgLog->SetClient(m_hInst, m_hWnd, hWnd);
LOGID(IDS_LOGTO_CLIENT);
}
...
...
When LOCSERVE is initialized, it calls the FindWindow function to locate LOCCLIEN's main window. (It has special knowledge of the window title). If it doesn't find the client, then the code (not shown) creates a log display in the server itself. This kind of logging within the application is the same as that seen in previous code samples and will not be covered again here. Once LOCSERVE finds the client's main window handle, it can send messages to it. If successful, the logging facility is notified that LogToServer is FALSE, and logging is to the client. The global g_pMsgLog variable is then assigned. The SetClient function stores the destination window handle for the client. The g_pMsgLog is the global pointer used by all the LOGxx macros. However, CMsgLog behaves differently than it did in earlier lessons, so in LOCSERVE.CPP we define g_pMsgLog as:
CSendLog* g_pMsgLog = NULL;
We are using a different log facility (CSendLog instead of CMsgLog), implemented in APPUTIL, but it has same-named methods for the important logging calls. In past samples, the LOGxx macros were used successfully to call methods on a CMsgLog facility. Because the CSendLog facility mirrors the functionality of CMsgLog (though internally it sends the log messages across process boundaries to the client), the same LOGxx macros perform virtually the same logging funcionality, even though they are calling methods on a different CSendLog facility. Looking briefly in APPUTIL\APPUTIL.CPP, we find the following fragment at the heart of the CSendLog::Msg logging method. And there is the SendMessage call using WM_COPYDATA.
...
...
cds.dwData = 0;
cds.cbData = lstrlen(szMsg)+1;
cds.lpData = szMsg;
bResult = SendMessage(
m_hWndReceiver,
WM_COPYDATA,
(WPARAM) m_hWndSender,
(LPARAM) &cds);
...
...
The LOCCLIEN client executes the following when it recieves this WM_COPYDATA message:
...
case WM_COPYDATA:
// We have been sent a trace log message from a server.
// Log it to our own Client's display.
{
LPTSTR pszMsg = (LPTSTR)((COPYDATASTRUCT*)lParam)->lpData;
g_pMsgLog->Msg(pszMsg);
#if defined(DEBUG)
// Bump to next line in the debugger output window.
::OutputDebugString(TEXT("\r\n"));
#endif
}
break;
...
The server's log message string is recieved and sent to the client's own MsgLog display.
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