IRunnableObject::SetContainedObject method (objidl.h)

Article
07/27/2022

Notifies an object that it is embedded in an OLE container, which ensures that reference counting is done correctly for containers that support links to embedded objects.

Syntax

HRESULT SetContainedObject(
  [in] BOOL fContained
);

Parameters

[in] fContained

TRUE specifies that the object is contained in an OLE container. FALSE indicates that it is not.

Return value

This method can return the standard return values E_INVALIDARG, E_OUTOFMEMORY, E_UNEXPECTED, and S_OK.

Remarks

The SetContainedObject method enables a container to inform an object handler that it is embedded in the container, rather than acting as a link. This call changes the container's reference on the object from strong, the default for external connections, to weak. When the object is running visibly, this method is of little significance because the end user has a lock on the object. During a silent update of an embedded link source, however, the container should not be able to hold an object in the running state after the link has been broken. For this reason, the container's reference to the object must be weak.

Notes to Callers

A container application must call SetContainedObject if it supports linking to embedded objects. It normally makes the call immediately after calling OleLoad or OleCreate and never calls the method again, even before it closes. Moreover, a container almost always calls this method with fContained set to TRUE. The use of this method with fContained set to FALSE is rare.

Calling SetContainedObject is optional only when you know that the embedded object will not be referenced by any client other than the container. If your container application does not support linking to embedded objects; it is preferable, but not necessary, to call SetContainedObject.

OleSetContainedObject is a helper function that conveniently repackages the functionality offered by SetContainedObject. With the release of OLE 2.01, the implementation of OleSetContainedObject was changed to call QueryInterface, ask for IRunnableObject, and then call IRunnableObject::SetContainedObject. In other words, you can use the interface and the helper function interchangeably.

Requirements

Requirement	Value
Minimum supported client	Windows 2000 Professional [desktop apps only]
Minimum supported server	Windows 2000 Server [desktop apps only]
Target Platform	Windows
Header	objidl.h