minxomat Posted November 16, 2015 Share Posted November 16, 2015 (edited) Please note: I'm not talking about anything .NET here, nor about .NET assemblies. When I say something about "classes" or "VB", I mean native, unmanaged code.Registration free COM instancesCOM is great, but it usually requires a modification to the system registry to make a COM server available for all users. This registration process is simple, but requires elevated privileges, so that a "normal" user can't register objects. There were certain workarounds (like RegSvrEx), but they stopped working when Vista introduced a new UAC.Instances from fileAt some point in '08, a very popular VB programmer, "Schmidt", created DirectCOM, a native DLL that when called, can spawn an instance of a COM class from the file, without ever touching the registry. I've uploaded a copy here. There is no official source for DirectCOM, but internally, it does something like this:expandcollapse popupPrivate Declare Function LoadLibrary& Lib "kernel32" Alias "LoadLibraryA" (ByVal lpLibFileName$) Private Declare Function FreeLibrary& Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hLibModule&) Private Declare Function GetProcAddress& Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hModule&, ByVal lpProcName$) Private Declare Function CallWindowProc& Lib "user32" Alias "CallWindowProcA" (ByVal lpPrevWndFunc&, ByVal hWnd&, ByVal MSG&, ByVal wParam&, ByVal lParam&) Private Declare Sub RtlMoveMemory Lib "kernel32" (Dst As Any, Src As Any, ByVal bLength&) Private IIDCF As UUID, IIU As UUID, pIUNull As IUnknown Private Libs As Collection, CFs As Collection, ASM() As Byte Private Sub Class_Initialize() 'Get IID for IClassFactory CLSIDFromString "{00000001-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}", IIDCF 'same for IUnknown CLSIDFromString "{00000000-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}", IIU Set Libs = New Collection Set CFs = New Collection 'Initialize ASM-Code for StdCall (principle found on VBDotCom) ASM = StrConv("XYYYYPh h h è ÃÌ", vbFromUnicode) End Sub Public Function GetInstance(sFile$, sClass$) As Object Dim Result&, Lib&, pGetClass&, RefIU As IUnknown Dim TLI As ITypeLib, CID As UUID, pICF As IClassFactory, pp& On Error Resume Next Lib = Libs(sFile) If Lib = 0 Then Lib = LoadLibrary(sFile) Else Set pICF = CFs(sFile & sClass) If Not pICF Is Nothing Then pICF.CreateInstance pIUNull, IIU, RefIU Set GetInstance = RefIU Exit Function End If End If If Lib = 0 Then Err.Clear: Exit Function Libs.Add Lib, sFile 'Cache the Library-Handle Set TLI = LoadTypeLibEx(sFile, REGKIND_NONE) If TLI Is Nothing Then Err.Clear: Exit Function If Not ClassExists(TLI, sClass, CID) Then Err.Clear: Exit Function pGetClass = GetProcAddress(Lib, "DllGetClassObject") If pGetClass = 0 Then Err.Clear: Exit Function RtlMoveMemory ASM(7), VarPtr(pICF), 4 'Param3 RtlMoveMemory ASM(12), VarPtr(IIDCF), 4 'Param2 RtlMoveMemory ASM(17), VarPtr(CID), 4 'Param1 RtlMoveMemory ASM(22), pGetClass - VarPtr(ASM(22)) - 4, 4 Result = CallWindowProc(VarPtr(ASM(0)), 0, 0, 0, 0) If Result = &H80040111 Then Err.Clear: Exit Function 'Bad ClassID If pICF Is Nothing Then Err.Clear: Exit Function 'couldn't get IClassFactory CFs.Add pICF, sFile & sClass pICF.CreateInstance pIUNull, IIU, RefIU Set GetInstance = RefIU Err.Clear End Function Private Function ClassExists(TLI As ITypeLib, sClass$, CID As UUID) As Boolean Dim i&, sName$, Obj As Object, pAttr& Dim TI As ITypeInfo, TA As TYPEATTR On Error Resume Next For i = 0 To TLI.GetTypeInfoCount - 1 If TLI.GetTypeInfoType(i) <> TKIND_COCLASS Then GoTo nxt Set TI = TLI.GetTypeInfo(i) TI.GetDocumentation DISPID_UNKNOWN, sName, "", 0, "" If UCase(sName) <> UCase(sClass) Then GoTo nxt pAttr = TI.GetTypeAttr MoveMemory TA, ByVal pAttr, Len(TA) TI.ReleaseTypeAttr pAttr If TA.wTypeFlags Then CID = TA.iid: ClassExists = True: Exit For nxt: Next i Err.Clear End Function Private Sub Class_Terminate() Dim Lib Set CFs = Nothing For Each Lib In Libs: FreeLibrary Lib: Next End SubAnyway, DC has been used by hundreds for years now without any problem and it is still fully supported in Windows 10. The problem is the unusual way DC returns an instance. While DC is a native DLL, it returns an Object instance:Private Declare Function GetInstanceEx Lib "DirectCOM" (spFName As Long, spClassName As Long, Optional ByVal UseAlteredSearchPath As Boolean = True) As ObjectNotice how the return type is "Object".DirectCOM and AutoItMy frustration with this is that I cannot call it in AutoIt, because AutoIt doesn't accept Objects returned by DllCalls. But DC works with AutoIt. To check that it actually works, we create an "airbag" class that calls DC internally at wraps the instance:Wrapper Module:Option Explicit Private Declare Function GetInstanceEx Lib "DirectCOM" (spFName As Long, spClassName As Long, Optional ByVal UseAlteredSearchPath As Boolean = True) As Object Private Declare Function GETINSTANCELASTERROR Lib "DirectCOM" () As String Private Declare Function LoadLibraryW& Lib "kernel32" (ByVal lpLibFileName&) Private Declare Function GetModuleFileNameW& Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hMod&, ByVal lpFileName&, ByVal nSize&) Public Function GetInstance(FullDllPathFileName As String, ClassName As String) As Object LoadLibraryW (StrPtr("C:\rc5\DirectCOM.dll")) Set GetInstance = GetInstanceEx(StrPtr(FullDllPathFileName), StrPtr(ClassName), True) If Err Then On Error GoTo 0: Err.Raise vbObjectError, Err.Source & ".GetInstance", Err.Description ElseIf GetInstance Is Nothing Then On Error GoTo 0: Err.Raise vbObjectError, Err.Source & ".GetInstance", GETINSTANCELASTERROR() End If End FunctionAnd the very simple Class (note that the SET keyword casts the variable to be Object):Function ExposeInstance(sPath As String, sCls As String) As Object Set ExposeInstance = GetInstance(sPath, sCls) End FunctionCompile the above code as ActiveX and register. Then we can test this in AutoIt:; name of wrapper server file class to instantiate $cConstructor = ObjCreate("ECOM.Runtime").ExposeInstance(@ScriptDir & "\SomeCOMObject.dll", "SomeClass")and voila, we have created a new object from a file. And it actually works. The problemIf we call DC from AutoIt without any wrapper, it receives 4 "long" values, because that's the internal structure of an Object. But AutoIt is unable to use the object. So, my question is: How the hell can I call DC from AutoIt and receive the actual object? I know that it works in theory (see above), but that requires another wrapper class, which has to be registered! If it is impossible to use DC, is there any other way I can instantiate a class from a file without any registration in AutoIt? TriviaBTW, you can download my wrapper class here. If you register this, you can from now on use it (as any user) to create an instance from a file . Edited November 16, 2015 by minxomat I will answer every single PM, and you are free to ask anything anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mLipok Posted November 16, 2015 Share Posted November 16, 2015 I''m not sure but maybe this following link can be handy for you: Signature beginning:* Please remember: "AutoIt"..... * Wondering who uses AutoIt and what it can be used for ? * Forum Rules ** ADO.au3 UDF * POP3.au3 UDF * XML.au3 UDF * IE on Windows 11 * How to ask ChatGPT for AutoIt Code * for other useful stuff click the following button: Spoiler Any of my own code posted anywhere on the forum is available for use by others without any restriction of any kind. My contribution (my own projects): * Debenu Quick PDF Library - UDF * Debenu PDF Viewer SDK - UDF * Acrobat Reader - ActiveX Viewer * UDF for PDFCreator v1.x.x * XZip - UDF * AppCompatFlags UDF * CrowdinAPI UDF * _WinMergeCompare2Files() * _JavaExceptionAdd() * _IsBeta() * Writing DPI Awareness App - workaround * _AutoIt_RequiredVersion() * Chilkatsoft.au3 UDF * TeamViewer.au3 UDF * JavaManagement UDF * VIES over SOAP * WinSCP UDF * GHAPI UDF - modest begining - comunication with GitHub REST API * ErrorLog.au3 UDF - A logging Library * Include Dependency Tree (Tool for analyzing script relations) * Show_Macro_Values.au3 * My contribution to others projects or UDF based on others projects: * _sql.au3 UDF * POP3.au3 UDF * RTF Printer - UDF * XML.au3 UDF * ADO.au3 UDF * SMTP Mailer UDF * Dual Monitor resolution detection * * 2GUI on Dual Monitor System * _SciLexer.au3 UDF * SciTE - Lexer for console pane * Useful links: * Forum Rules * Forum etiquette * Forum Information and FAQs * How to post code on the forum * AutoIt Online Documentation * AutoIt Online Beta Documentation * SciTE4AutoIt3 getting started * Convert text blocks to AutoIt code * Games made in Autoit * Programming related sites * Polish AutoIt Tutorial * DllCall Code Generator * Wiki: * Expand your knowledge - AutoIt Wiki * Collection of User Defined Functions * How to use HelpFile * Good coding practices in AutoIt * OpenOffice/LibreOffice/XLS Related: WriterDemo.au3 * XLS/MDB from scratch with ADOX IE Related: * How to use IE.au3 UDF with AutoIt v3.3.14.x * Why isn't Autoit able to click a Javascript Dialog? * Clicking javascript button with no ID * IE document >> save as MHT file * IETab Switcher (by LarsJ ) * HTML Entities * _IEquerySelectorAll() (by uncommon) * IE in TaskScheduler * IE Embedded Control Versioning (use IE9+ and HTML5 in a GUI) * PDF Related: * How to get reference to PDF object embeded in IE * IE on Windows 11 * I encourage you to read: * Global Vars * Best Coding Practices * Please explain code used in Help file for several File functions * OOP-like approach in AutoIt * UDF-Spec Questions * EXAMPLE: How To Catch ConsoleWrite() output to a file or to CMD *I also encourage you to check awesome @trancexx code: * Create COM objects from modules without any demand on user to register anything. * Another COM object registering stuff * OnHungApp handler * Avoid "AutoIt Error" message box in unknown errors * HTML editor * winhttp.au3 related : * https://www.autoitscript.com/forum/topic/206771-winhttpau3-download-problem-youre-speaking-plain-http-to-an-ssl-enabled-server-port/ "Homo sum; humani nil a me alienum puto" - Publius Terentius Afer"Program are meant to be read by humans and only incidentally for computers and execute" - Donald Knuth, "The Art of Computer Programming" , be and \\//_. Anticipating Errors : "Any program that accepts data from a user must include code to validate that data before sending it to the data store. You cannot rely on the data store, ...., or even your programming language to notify you of problems. You must check every byte entered by your users, making sure that data is the correct type for its field and that required fields are not empty." Signature last update: 2023-04-24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minxomat Posted November 16, 2015 Author Share Posted November 16, 2015 God dammit, I was about to tag trancexx because I was sure she'd knew some hack for this. . I used my wrapper to get the IID and CLSID and it works as expected. This should be documented somewhere. Thanks @mLipok . I will answer every single PM, and you are free to ask anything anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mLipok Posted November 16, 2015 Share Posted November 16, 2015 As this is experimental, this is not documented. Signature beginning:* Please remember: "AutoIt"..... * Wondering who uses AutoIt and what it can be used for ? * Forum Rules ** ADO.au3 UDF * POP3.au3 UDF * XML.au3 UDF * IE on Windows 11 * How to ask ChatGPT for AutoIt Code * for other useful stuff click the following button: Spoiler Any of my own code posted anywhere on the forum is available for use by others without any restriction of any kind. My contribution (my own projects): * Debenu Quick PDF Library - UDF * Debenu PDF Viewer SDK - UDF * Acrobat Reader - ActiveX Viewer * UDF for PDFCreator v1.x.x * XZip - UDF * AppCompatFlags UDF * CrowdinAPI UDF * _WinMergeCompare2Files() * _JavaExceptionAdd() * _IsBeta() * Writing DPI Awareness App - workaround * _AutoIt_RequiredVersion() * Chilkatsoft.au3 UDF * TeamViewer.au3 UDF * JavaManagement UDF * VIES over SOAP * WinSCP UDF * GHAPI UDF - modest begining - comunication with GitHub REST API * ErrorLog.au3 UDF - A logging Library * Include Dependency Tree (Tool for analyzing script relations) * Show_Macro_Values.au3 * My contribution to others projects or UDF based on others projects: * _sql.au3 UDF * POP3.au3 UDF * RTF Printer - UDF * XML.au3 UDF * ADO.au3 UDF * SMTP Mailer UDF * Dual Monitor resolution detection * * 2GUI on Dual Monitor System * _SciLexer.au3 UDF * SciTE - Lexer for console pane * Useful links: * Forum Rules * Forum etiquette * Forum Information and FAQs * How to post code on the forum * AutoIt Online Documentation * AutoIt Online Beta Documentation * SciTE4AutoIt3 getting started * Convert text blocks to AutoIt code * Games made in Autoit * Programming related sites * Polish AutoIt Tutorial * DllCall Code Generator * Wiki: * Expand your knowledge - AutoIt Wiki * Collection of User Defined Functions * How to use HelpFile * Good coding practices in AutoIt * OpenOffice/LibreOffice/XLS Related: WriterDemo.au3 * XLS/MDB from scratch with ADOX IE Related: * How to use IE.au3 UDF with AutoIt v3.3.14.x * Why isn't Autoit able to click a Javascript Dialog? * Clicking javascript button with no ID * IE document >> save as MHT file * IETab Switcher (by LarsJ ) * HTML Entities * _IEquerySelectorAll() (by uncommon) * IE in TaskScheduler * IE Embedded Control Versioning (use IE9+ and HTML5 in a GUI) * PDF Related: * How to get reference to PDF object embeded in IE * IE on Windows 11 * I encourage you to read: * Global Vars * Best Coding Practices * Please explain code used in Help file for several File functions * OOP-like approach in AutoIt * UDF-Spec Questions * EXAMPLE: How To Catch ConsoleWrite() output to a file or to CMD *I also encourage you to check awesome @trancexx code: * Create COM objects from modules without any demand on user to register anything. * Another COM object registering stuff * OnHungApp handler * Avoid "AutoIt Error" message box in unknown errors * HTML editor * winhttp.au3 related : * https://www.autoitscript.com/forum/topic/206771-winhttpau3-download-problem-youre-speaking-plain-http-to-an-ssl-enabled-server-port/ "Homo sum; humani nil a me alienum puto" - Publius Terentius Afer"Program are meant to be read by humans and only incidentally for computers and execute" - Donald Knuth, "The Art of Computer Programming" , be and \\//_. Anticipating Errors : "Any program that accepts data from a user must include code to validate that data before sending it to the data store. You cannot rely on the data store, ...., or even your programming language to notify you of problems. You must check every byte entered by your users, making sure that data is the correct type for its field and that required fields are not empty." Signature last update: 2023-04-24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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