Include .lib in a .dll, which is used by program as plugin

2
votes

I am using Visual Studio 2008 trying to create a .dll. The dll uses an external library (.lib). Compiling and linking works fine (I included the paths to header/lib in the options). When my .dll is used by a program (as a plugin) it says "externalLibrary.dll missing" but there is no externalLibrary.dll, just a externalLibrary.lib.

Are there different options of linking (so the externalLibrary is already in my .dll)? Or can i simply create a .dll from the .lib? Or any other solutions to this problem?

Edit (to be more concrete): In project properties i added

  • the header path @ C/C++ - General - Additional Include Directories
  • the library path @ Linker - General - Additional Library Directories
  • the library name @ Linker - Input - Additional Dependencies (although this doesn't change anything)
1
dlllinker

1 Answers

1
votes

The .lib file you are using is an import library which basically means that it contains only stubs for functions/classes/... but not the actual implmentation. That implementation is in the dll. An import library is only useful for the linker as it uses it to resolve symbols. But at runtime, the actual compiled code is needed so your application/dll looks for the dll. But even if your dll is used as a plugin, it's no problem for it to depend on other dlls. So if you have the other dll I suggest you go that way. (what is 'externalLibrary' btw?, it's not normal a vendor supplies you only with an import library and not the dll)

If you really do not want to use the external dll, you'll have to find the static library for the code of 'externalLibrary'. Unlike the import library, a static library does contain all symbols complete with actual implementation etc. So after linking with a static library, your application/dll contains the code itself and does not need to resolve it at runtime.