How a non-windowed program can receive WM_DEVICECHANGE from Window

How a non-windowed component can receive messages from Windows?

I'm writing and testing my USB device driver on windows 2000.

My appication need to handle the WM_DEVICECHANGE message.
RegisterDeviceNotification() can let a application with a top-level window
to register to receive device notifications. It needs the handle of the
top-level window.

But my application is a console program. How a non-windowed program can
receive WM_DEVICECHANGE from Windows?

I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().

Are there any other APIs?
Who can give me some advice? Thank you!

Amanda Lin wrote:

> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().

This is the correct way. You then have to create a window in the thread
and the thread implements a GetMessage/DispatchMessage loop for the window.
The window belongs to the thread if it is created inside the thread. The
GetMessage/DispatchMessage is needed because the console application has
no loop of its own.

"Amanda Lin" wrote:
.....
> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.

It is a very good advice, it works. Why not to follow it?

> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().

Great, and then call CreateWindow...

> Are there any other APIs?

May be these events are available thru WMI, but this can be even harder
way than a window.

Regards,
--PA

speicifically, when calling CreateWindow, do not specify WS_VISIBLE in the
3rd parameter (dwStyle). you will have to create your own window class and
implement your own WndProc.

d

--
Please do not send e-mail directly to this alias. this alias is for
newsgroup purposes only.
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.


"Pavel A." <> wrote in message
news:FE68DE6F-26E2-4979-B041-...
> "Amanda Lin" wrote:
> ....
>> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
>
> It is a very good advice, it works. Why not to follow it?
>
>> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
>> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().
>
> Great, and then call CreateWindow...
>
>> Are there any other APIs?
>
> May be these events are available thru WMI, but this can be even harder
> way than a window.
>
> Regards,
> --PA
>

Or create a "message only" window.

"Doron Holan [MS]" <> wrote in message
news:...
> speicifically, when calling CreateWindow, do not specify WS_VISIBLE in the
> 3rd parameter (dwStyle). you will have to create your own window class
> and implement your own WndProc.
>
> d
>
> --
> Please do not send e-mail directly to this alias. this alias is for
> newsgroup purposes only.
> This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
> rights.
>
>
> "Pavel A." <> wrote in message
> news:FE68DE6F-26E2-4979-B041-...
>> "Amanda Lin" wrote:
>> ....
>>> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
>>
>> It is a very good advice, it works. Why not to follow it?
>>
>>> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
>>> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().
>>
>> Great, and then call CreateWindow...
>>
>>> Are there any other APIs?
>>
>> May be these events are available thru WMI, but this can be even harder
>> way than a window.
>>
>> Regards,
>> --PA
>>
>
>

Why is this a console program?
I would make this specific functionality a DLL so it can be used by a
GUI program or console program.

Thank all of you so much.
I need this console program to do a test. Amd if it's ok, I'll plant it into
the cygwin environment.

Now I've got trouble to create the hidden window via CreateWindow(). I'm not
familiar with windows API.

Must I set "lpClassName" and "lpWindowName" to create a window?
It seems I must set "lpClassName".

I've tried like that
hWnd=CreateWindow(NULL, NULL,
WS_POPUP|WS_DISABLED, //don't receive user input
0,0,10,10,
0, 0,
INVALID_HANDLE_VALUE, 0);

But it fails and the error code is "ERROR_CANNOT_FIND_WND_CLASS"
Where can I find the predefined system class names?
Thanks a lot!

"Amanda Lin" wrote:

> How a non-windowed component can receive messages from Windows?
>
> I'm writing and testing my USB device driver on windows 2000.
>
> My appication need to handle the WM_DEVICECHANGE message.
> RegisterDeviceNotification() can let a application with a top-level window
> to register to receive device notifications. It needs the handle of the
> top-level window.
>
> But my application is a console program. How a non-windowed program can
> receive WM_DEVICECHANGE from Windows?
>
> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().
>
> Are there any other APIs?
> Who can give me some advice? Thank you!
>
>
>
>

Sorry! I've asked a stupid question.
I created a hidden window of "static" class. I'll test whether it can
receive the DEVICE_CHANGE message.

But there is another question, I don't want this window to be the "focus"
to get all the user input. What shall I do?

"Amanda Lin" wrote:

> Thank all of you so much.
> I need this console program to do a test. Amd if it's ok, I'll plant it into
> the cygwin environment.
>
> Now I've got trouble to create the hidden window via CreateWindow(). I'm not
> familiar with windows API.
>
> Must I set "lpClassName" and "lpWindowName" to create a window?
> It seems I must set "lpClassName".
>
> I've tried like that
> hWnd=CreateWindow(NULL, NULL,
> WS_POPUP|WS_DISABLED, //don't receive user input
> 0,0,10,10,
> 0, 0,
> INVALID_HANDLE_VALUE, 0);
>
> But it fails and the error code is "ERROR_CANNOT_FIND_WND_CLASS"
> Where can I find the predefined system class names?
> Thanks a lot!
>
> "Amanda Lin" wrote:
>
> > How a non-windowed component can receive messages from Windows?
> >
> > I'm writing and testing my USB device driver on windows 2000.
> >
> > My appication need to handle the WM_DEVICECHANGE message.
> > RegisterDeviceNotification() can let a application with a top-level window
> > to register to receive device notifications. It needs the handle of the
> > top-level window.
> >
> > But my application is a console program. How a non-windowed program can
> > receive WM_DEVICECHANGE from Windows?
> >
> > I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
> > But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
> > attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().
> >
> > Are there any other APIs?
> > Who can give me some advice? Thank you!
> >
> >
> >
> >

Amanda Lin wrote:

> But there is another question, I don't want this window to be the "focus"
> to get all the user input. What shall I do?

Simply never call ShowWindow. As long as the window stays invisible it
cannot get focus.

Some problem make me confused.

After I created a new thread, I need to call
1. RegisterClassEx() to create my own windows class
2. CreateWindow() to create the window of this class
3. RegisterDeviceNotification()

In step 1.
For RegisterClassEx(), I need to provide "Handle to the instance that
contains the window procedure for the class".
Is it the handle of the thread I just created?
Or is it the handle of the application? If yes, where to get it ?

Where can I get the handle of the class icon, cursor,background brush...
How can a console application that start with "main" give such graphic
information?
Shall I create an appliction that start with "WinMain" ?

In step 2,
For CreateWindow(), I also need to set the "handle to application instance".
Where to get it?

Could anyone give me some addvice or example code? Thanks a lot!





"Doron Holan [MS]" wrote:

> speicifically, when calling CreateWindow, do not specify WS_VISIBLE in the
> 3rd parameter (dwStyle). you will have to create your own window class and
> implement your own WndProc.
>
> d
>
> --
> Please do not send e-mail directly to this alias. this alias is for
> newsgroup purposes only.
> This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
>
>
> "Pavel A." <> wrote in message
> news:FE68DE6F-26E2-4979-B041-...
> > "Amanda Lin" wrote:
> > ....
> >> I was suggested to create a hidden window in a separate thread.
> >
> > It is a very good advice, it works. Why not to follow it?
> >
> >> But CreateThread() only return the thread hanle and there is no window
> >> attributes I can set when calling CreateThread().
> >
> > Great, and then call CreateWindow...
> >
> >> Are there any other APIs?
> >
> > May be these events are available thru WMI, but this can be even harder
> > way than a window.
> >
> > Regards,
> > --PA
> >
>
>
>