bug? Please upvote- Visual Studio 2022 - ATL Add Method not generating stub function in class - fails CoCreateInstance also

Donald T. Hess 0

Greetings,

Update: Bug report link: https://developercommunity.visualstudio.com/t/ATL-support-broken-in-VS2022/10642527

I believe ATL method/property generation is broken in Visual Studio 2022. I can add methods and properties to the interface, but when I go to the class, the stub functions are not generated and it refuses to compile.

This is a simple ATL object and not a control. I want to use it to interface .NET running C++ code without using dll imports calls of DLL extensions.1

I tested this on two separate machines.

Pertinent stuff:

Visual Studio Enterprise 2022 (64 bit) Version 17.9.6 with v143 ATL support installed. Project is operating on version 143 (Visual Studio 2022 runtimes)

RLWA32 40,471 Reputation points

2024-04-18T20:44:31.95+00:00

If this is reproducible I suggest you report the issue using Visual Studio 2022's feedback mechanism. To ensure that the issue will not be summarily closed make sure to provide all of the requisite information/samples.
Minxin Yu 10,031 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-04-19T06:46:58.6033333+00:00

Does the issue occur in earlier versions of Visual Studio? Can you provide detailed steps to help us reproduce the problem: which template project -> what needs to be done?
RLWA32 40,471 Reputation points

2024-04-19T12:43:45.17+00:00

@Donald T Hess If you do provide feedback through VS2022 please post a link to the issue here so we can upvote it.

@Minxin Yu These is easily reproducible by creating a new ATL project (DLL). Add a new item (ATL Simple Object) and then use the wizards to add methods/properties. The wizards update the project idl file but do not update the .h and .cpp file for the methods added. This did not happen with VS2019 16.11.35.

Generally speaking, the ATL wizards have been defective in many ways since VS2015. I still don't understand why they were changed. If its not broken don't fix it! It is disappointing that these problems have gotten worse with VS2022, not better.
Donald T. Hess 0 Reputation points

2024-04-19T13:34:48.4866667+00:00

I figured it out. It USED to be that visual studio would automatically stub out the function for you. However for whatever reason, visual studio has removed this feature. So this new feature is designed for inconvenience. :)

However, even if you hand implement, the compiler is not including the instance in cocreateinstance call. This results in a fail.
David Lowndes 2,350 Reputation points MVP

2024-04-19T16:42:27.1566667+00:00

Donald,
Please submit a bug report using VS's Report a Problem facility. Note what the experience was with earlier versions (note which version), and what's now deficient in the current version.
Post a link to your bug report back here so that others can follow up on it and vote it up so that hopefully it's fixed in a future update.
Donald T. Hess 0 Reputation points

2024-04-19T17:51:34.3233333+00:00

Visual Studio Bug Report. Please upvote.

https://developercommunity.visualstudio.com/t/ATL-support-broken-in-VS2022/10642527
RLWA32 40,471 Reputation points

2024-04-19T19:34:09.5533333+00:00

@Donald T Hess The post at developercommunity is pending review and is not yet available.

However, even if you hand implement, the compiler is not including the instance in cocreateinstance call.

In the meantime, could you elaborate on what you mean by the above comment? When I added implementations of the methods/properties that the ATL wizard failed to generate everything built successfully, COM registration succeeded and a COM client could instantiate the object and exercise the methods/properties. Thanks.
Donald T. Hess 0 Reputation points

2024-04-19T19:58:24.9433333+00:00

I added a .NET reference from the project->Add Reference. The interface shows up fine when coding. But when you try to execute, it fails to create the object. I assume this is a failure of the CoCreateInstance. The object is in the registry and pointing to the proper directory for the inprocserver

As a potential fix, I tried to create a 32bit version of the simulator ATL Object (x86), but then visual studio malformed it and the tlb isn't even recognized as suggested by a google search.

I'm basically trying to create an arduino digital twin that allows developers to upload their code, then upload input/output simulation files and feed it into the digital twin to see what the code does. I'm replacing all the built in functions in the arduino developer with simulated equivalents.

This is to facilitate debugging arduino code before upload. (There is no support for this currently)
RLWA32 40,471 Reputation points

2024-04-20T00:37:17.6433333+00:00

This appears to be a VS2022 17.9.6 problem that is related to the .Net Framework support of COM objects, not ATL.

I created a 64-bit ATL in-process server and registered it.

When a .Net Framework Winforms application was built using AnyCPU it reproduced the COMException for REGDB_E_CLASSNOTREG . However, after changing the platform to x64 the Winforms application instantiated the ATL COM object and exercised its methods and properties without error.

Then I built the same ATL COM server and Winforms Application using VS2019 16.11.35.

The VS2019 Winforms application built using AnyCPU had no problems instantiating the COM object and using it.

Update:

I went back to the VS2022 project and rebuilt the solution using AnyCPU. This time the Winforms application instantiated the COM object and used it without throwing an exception.

I have no idea why the behavior changed.