How do I call C++/CLI (.NET) DLLs from standard, unmanaged non-.NET applications?
- by tronjohnson
In the unmanaged world, I was able to write a __declspec(dllexport) or, alternatively, use a .DEF file to expose a function to be able to call a DLL. (Because of name mangling in C++ for the __stdcall, I put aliases into the .DEF file so certain applications could re-use certain exported DLL functions.) Now, I am interested in being able to expose a single entry-point function from a .NET assembly, in unmanaged-fashion, but have it enter into .NET-style functions within the DLL. Is this possible, in a simple and straight-forward fashion?
What I have is a third-party program that I have extended through DLLs (plugins) that implement some complex mathematics. However, the third-party program has no means for me to visualize the calculations. I want to somehow take these pre-written math functions, compile them into a separate DLL (but using C++/CLI in .NET), but then add hooks to the functions so I can render what's going on under the hood in a .NET user control. I'm not sure how to blend the .NET stuff with the unmanaged stuff, or what to Google to accomplish this task.
Specific suggestions with regard to the managed/unmanaged bridge, or alternative methods to accomplish the rendering in the manner I have described would be helpful. Thank you.
