I'm trying to marshal an array of c structs into C# (Using Unity) but, no matter the method I use, I always get an exception or a crash.
I'm loading dlls (libretro cores) that conform (or should...) to the Libretro API, the c/c++ side is not available to me (more precisely, not allowed to be modified by me), which means I have to handle the data I get back from that dll no matter how it is laid out.
The C API structs are defined as follow (RETRO_NUM_CORE_OPTION_VALUES_MAX is a constant with a value of 128):
struct retro_core_option_value
{
const char *value;
const char *label;
};
struct retro_core_option_definition
{
const char *key;
const char *desc;
const char *info;
struct retro_core_option_value values[RETRO_NUM_CORE_OPTION_VALUES_MAX];
const char *default_value;
};
struct retro_core_options_intl
{
struct retro_core_option_definition *us;
struct retro_core_option_definition *local;
};
My C# mappings look like this at the moment:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public struct retro_core_option_value
{
public char* value;
public char* label;
}
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public struct retro_core_option_definition
{
public char* key;
public char* desc;
public char* info;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = RETRO_NUM_CORE_OPTION_VALUES_MAX)]
public retro_core_option_value[] values;
public char* default_value;
}
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
public struct retro_core_options_intl
{
public IntPtr us;
public IntPtr local;
}
The callback function has the following signature on the C# side:
public unsafe bool Callback(retro_environment cmd, void* data)
retro_environment is an unsigned int converted to an enum, a switch is performed on it and then dictates how to handle the void* data pointer appropriately. Here data is a retro_core_options_intl*.
I'm able to do the void* conversion in 2 ways:
retro_core_options_intl intl = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_options_intl>((IntPtr)data);
or
retro_core_options_intl* intl = (retro_core_options_intl*)data;
I get a readable address with both approaches (intl.us for the first and intl->us for the second), the "local" part is empty in my particular case but the "us" part is defined as mandatory by the API. intl->us points to an array of retro_core_option_definition of variable length.
The issue I'm having is trying to read the values inside of this mandatory construct.
The array I'm trying to load right now can be seen here: https://github.com/visualboyadvance-m/visualboyadvance-m/blob/master/src/libretro/libretro_core_options.h at line 51.
The API defines a fixed size for the "struct retro_core_option_value values[RETRO_NUM_CORE_OPTION_VALUES_MAX]" struct member, but code that comes in is almost always defined as an array where the last element is "{ NULL, NULL }" to indicate the end, so they don't always (almost never) contain 128 values.
I tried:
retro_core_options_intl intl = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_options_intl>((IntPtr)data);
retro_core_option_definition us = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_option_definition>(intl.us);
This gives a NullReferenceException.
retro_core_options_intl intl = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_options_intl>((IntPtr)data);
retro_core_option_definition[] us = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_option_definition[]>(intl.us);
This gives a retro_core_option_definition array of 0 length.
retro_core_options_intl intl = Marshal.PtrToStructure<retro_core_options_intl>((IntPtr)data);
retro_core_option_definition us = new retro_core_option_definition();
Marshal.PtrToStructure(intl.us, us);
This gives a "destination is a boxed value".
That's basically where I'm at...
Any help would be much appreciated :)
The entire codebase can be found here: https://github.com/Skurdt/LibretroUnityFE
First thing I see is that you either need to use wchar_t types instead of char types in you C code, or you can use byte instead of char in C#. System.Char in C# is two bytes. char in C code is 1 byte.
You can also use System.String in the C# code and annotate it with a MarshalAs attribute to tell it what type of char data is coming in, such as Ansi or Unicode C strings.
Related
I am using VS 2015 Community with an ASP.NET MVC Web Application that uses a 3rd party C++ DLL I do not have source code for. Documentation is very scarce as is any helpful communication with the authors of the 3rd party DLL.
I've asked a related SO Question and received a good answer from #Steven. I've modified my code according to his answer and am trying to make a successful call to the 3rd party C++ DLL. The code:
// Call DLL
MyDLLInput _DLLInput = new MyDLLInput();
{
SomeList = new int[288],
...
SomeInt = 22,
SomeDbl = 1.45,
...
PathtoData = "C:\\Some\\Path\\To\\Data"
};
var ids = new int[] { 0, 12, 33, 67, 93 };
Array.Copy(ids, _DLLInput.SomeList, ids.Length);
// Call DLL Entry Point
MyDLLOutput _DLLOutput = MyDLL.Unit(_DLLInput);
Raises exception:
Method's type signature is not PInvoke compatible.
// C# Input STRUCT
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public struct MyDLLInput
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 288)]
public int[] SomeList;
...
public int SomeInt;
public double SomeDbl;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValTStr, SizeConst = 256)]
public string PathtoData;
};
// C# Output STRUCT
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public struct MyDLLOutput
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 288)]
public int[] SomeList;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 288)]
public double[] SomeDblArray;
...
public int SomeInt; // Same as input
public double SomeDbl; // Same as input
}
// C# DLLImport
public class MyDLL
{
[DllImport("My_DLL.dll",
EntryPoint = "?Unit##YA?AUDLLOutput##UDLLInput###Z",
CallingConvention = CallingConvention.Cdecl)]
public static extern MyDLLOutput Unit(MyDLLInput UnitInput);
}
// C++ My_DLL.h
#define EPS_API __declspec(dllexport)
struct DLLInput
{
int SomeList[288];
int SomeInt;
double SomeDbl;
char PathtoData[256];
};
struct DLLOutput
{
int SomeList[288];
double SomeDblArray[288];
...
int SomeInt;
double SomeDbl;
};
EPS_API DLLOutput Unit(DLLInput UnitInput);
I think I must be close, but haven't been able to find any SO or Google results that help. Does anyone see what I'm doing wrong?
Expanding on what Ben has said.
You need to remove the const definitions to outside the interopable struct. By declaring a layout of the struct as sequential the compiler is expecting EXACTLY the same number of members, declared in EXACTLY the same order, with each type declared, EXACTLY the same size on both sides (i.e in C++ and C#). Those const declarations add to the memory layout and so the signatures are not compatible.
char is not the same size in C# and C++, byte is (although they can change depending on the platform, both types are guaranteed at least 8 bits). You could marshall a byte array instead of a string, but either is fine.
To Create a byte array which is compatible with C++ char array (same size).
UTF8Encoding utf8 = new UTF8Encoding();
public byte[] PathToData = new byte[256];
PathToData = utf8.GetBytes(pathToDataString);
On another note though, if documentation is scarce and the authors are not helpful, personally I would think twice about using this 3rd party. Calling it is one thing, debugging it is another.
I am converting c/c++ structures into C# standards.
C/C++ Structures:
typedef struct _sta_conn_info{
STA_CONNECT_STATE connect_state;//Enum
STA_ASSOC_STATE assoc_state;//Enum
unsigned char bssid[6];
unsigned char ssid[34];
unsigned long channel;
enum mode mode;//Enum
unsigned long signalStrength;
unsigned long noiseLevel;
STA_AUTH_ALG auth_alg;//enum
STA_ENCRYPT_ALG encrypt_alg;//enum
}STA_CONN_INFO;
typedef struct _NDISUIO_QUERY_OID
{
NDIS_OID Oid;
PTCHAR ptcDeviceName;
UCHAR Data[sizeof(ULONG)];
} NDISUIO_QUERY_OID, *PNDISUIO_QUERY_OID;
Respective C# structures:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Unicode)]
public struct _sta_conn_info
{
public _sta_connect_state connect_state;
public _sta_assoc_state assoc_state;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray,SizeConst = 6)]
public char[] bssid ;//= new char[6];
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray,SizeConst = 34)]
public char[] ssid ;//= new char[34]
public uint channel;
public mode mode;
public uint signalStrength;
public uint noiseLevel;
public _sta_auth_alg auth_alg;
public _sta_encrypt_alg encrypt_alg;
}
QUERY STRUCT:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Unicode)]
public struct _NDISUIO_QUERY_OID
{
public uint Oid;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
public string ptcDeviceName;
public byte[] Data;
};
I converted the data types using this >>>reference
Marshal.SizeOf() is working in WIN CE. I tested it.
If my structure conversion is fine then definitely Marshal.SizeOf() will work to get the size of the structure, but it is throwing exceptions and returning error code 87 in DeviceIoControl() API.
Can anyone clarify me about the conversions and let me know If I did anything wrong.
For bssid and ssid the C++ declarations are:
unsigned char bssid[6];
unsigned char ssid[34];
Now, unsigned char is a single byte and is typically used for byte arrays rather than text. So the C# should be:
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray,SizeConst = 6)]
public byte[] bssid ;//= new byte[6];
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray,SizeConst = 34)]
public byte[] ssid ;//= new byte[34]
Your use of char in the C# is not correct because char is two bytes wide in C#.
In _NDISUIO_QUERY_OID where you have
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValTStr, SizeConst = sizeof(uint))]
public byte[] Data;
I believe that you need to use ByValArray rather than ByValTStr. But as we have discussed in many of your recent questions, the exact meaning of this member is unclear. Is it really a fixed length byte array, or is it a variable length buffer? Do you have sample C++ code that works? That would settle the debate once and for all.
OK, from the header nuiouser.h header file I have this:
//
// Structure to go with IOCTL_NDISUIO_QUERY_OID_VALUE.
// The Data part is of variable length, determined by
// the input buffer length passed to DeviceIoControl.
//
typedef struct _NDISUIO_QUERY_OID
{
NDIS_OID Oid;
#ifdef UNDER_CE
//
// In CE land app is allowed to query without having to do
// IOCTL_NDISUIO_OPEN_DEVICE
// Hence the device name to query argument needed..
// For app that does IOCTL_NDISUIO_OPEN_DEVICE this argument
// is then not necessary..
//
PTCHAR ptcDeviceName;
#endif
UCHAR Data[sizeof(ULONG)];
} NDISUIO_QUERY_OID, *PNDISUIO_QUERY_OID;
Which tells you conclusively that Data is variable length. You'll need to allocate the struct with AllocHGlobal and do all the marshalling by hand I am afraid.
I need to create a binary blob of empty data to PInvoke a native C++ dll that needs a unsigned char* of nulls.
The native C++ program is expecting a structure of data, and there's a nulled area of bytes in the middle, but in C# I can't just make a struct with an initialized byte[] in the middle.
My struct in C++ looks like this
struct myStruct
{
byte command;
byte returncode;
void* Source (a pointer to a string, rather a null term char*)
void* Destination (same thing)
byte filler [99]
byte options;
}
I've already figured that I can take a string and convert it to an array of bytes using myStruct.Source = (void*)Marshal.StringtToGlobalAnsi(source) (correct me if I'm wrong).
But I don't know how to fill out that empty array of bytes in the middle.
This is my C# struct so far.
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, Pack = 1)]
unsafe struct Trans_s
{
public byte command;
public byte returnCode;
public void* pSource;
public void* pDest;
public byte* filler;
public byte options;
}
For the array of bytes, you need to mark the field in the C# struct as a byvalarray. The default marshaller uses LPArray if you do not.
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 99)]
public byte[] filler;
You need to allocate the memory for filler when you create an instance of the struct.
No, the C++ code doesn't expect an unsigned char* of nulls. It expects that many padding bytes inside the struct.
The C# fixed keyword might help you here.
I have some problems working with boolean types and marshalling this in a struct back and forth between C# and C. I am very rusty in C but hopefully there's nothing crucially wrong in that part.
As far as I've read/seen, .NET Boolean and C# bool type is 4 bytes long whilst the C type bool is only 1 byte. For memory footprint reasons, I do not which to use the defined BOOL 4 bytes version in the C code.
Here is some simple test code that hopefully will make my questions clear:
C code:
typedef struct
{
double SomeDouble1;
double SomeDouble2;
int SomeInteger;
bool SomeBool1;
bool SomeBool2;
} TestStruct;
extern "C" __declspec(dllexport) TestStruct* __stdcall TestGetBackStruct(TestStruct* structs);
__declspec(dllexport) TestStruct* __stdcall TestGetBackStruct(TestStruct* structs)
{
return structs;
}
I call this code in C# using the following definitions:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Explicit)]
public struct TestStruct
{
[FieldOffset(0)]
public double SomeDouble1;
[FieldOffset(8)]
public double SomeDouble2;
[FieldOffset(16)]
public int SomeInteger;
[FieldOffset(17), MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.I1)]
public bool SomeBool1;
[FieldOffset(18), MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.I1)]
public bool SomeBool2;
};
[DllImport("Front.dll", CharSet = CharSet.Auto, SetLastError = true, CallingConvention = CallingConvention.StdCall)]
public static extern IntPtr TestGetBackStruct([MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPArray, SizeConst = 1)] TestStruct[] structs);
and here is the actual test function in C#:
[Test]
public void Test_CheckStructParsing()
{
var theStruct = new TestStruct();
theStruct.SomeDouble1 = 1.1;
theStruct.SomeDouble2 = 1.2;
theStruct.SomeInteger = 1;
theStruct.SomeBool1 = true;
theStruct.SomeBool2 = false;
var structs = new TestStruct[] { theStruct };
IntPtr ptr = TestGetBackStruct(structs);
var resultStruct = (TestStruct)Marshal.PtrToStructure(ptr, typeof(TestStruct));
}
This works in the sense that I do get a struct back (using the debugger to inspect it), but with totally wrong values. I.e. the marshalling does not work at all. I've tried different version of the C# struct without success. So here are my questions (1 & 2 most important):
Is the C function correct for this purpose?
How is the struct to be written correctly in order to get me the correct values in the struct back to C#? (Is it even necessary to define the struct with the StructLayout(LayoutKind.Explicit) attribute using the FieldOffset values or can I use StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential) instead)?
Since I am returning a pointer to the TestStruct in C, I guess it should be possible to get back an array of TestStructs in C#. But this does not seem to be possible using the Marshal.PtrToStructure function. Would it be possible in some other way?
Apparantly it is possible to use something called unions in C by having multiple struct fields point to the same memory allocation using the same FieldOffset attribute value. I understand this, but I still don't get yet when such scenario would be useful. Please enlighten me.
Can someone recommend a good book on C# P/Invoke to C/C++? I am getting a bit tired of getting pieces of information here and there on the web.
Much obliged for help with these questions. I hope they were not too many.
Stop using LayoutKind.Explicit and get rid of the FieldOffset attributes and your code will work. Your offsets were not correctly aligning the fields.
public struct TestStruct
{
public double SomeDouble1;
public double SomeDouble2;
public int SomeInteger;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.I1)]
public bool SomeBool1;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.I1)]
public bool SomeBool2;
};
Declare the function in C# like this:
public static extern void TestGetBackStruct(TestStruct[] structs);
The default marshalling will match your C++ declaration (your code is C++ rather than C in fact) but you must make sure that your allocate the TestStruct[] parameter in the C# code before calling the function. Normally you would also pass the length of the array as a parameter so that the C++ code knows how many structs there are.
Please don't try to return the array of structures from the function. Use the structs parameter as an in/out parameter.
I know of no book with an emphasis on P/Invoke. It appears to be something of a black art!
Hey!
I've just begun fiddling with pinvoke and have encountered a problem. I'm getting the AccessViolationException. First of all, is there some way to debug or trace out which field is causing this error? The only thing being written to is the result struct.
The c++ call looks like:
MyFunc(int var1, _tuchar *var2, _tuchar *var3, _tuchar *var4, MyStruct *Result,
_tuchar *var5, _tuchar *var6);
The c++ struct:
typedef struct MyStruct
{
_tuchar *id;
_tuchar *ErrorMessages;
int int1;
_tuchar language[3];
_tuchar *result;
int type;
int number;
int *type2;
_tuchar **blocks;
}
The C# struct:
[StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential, CharSet = CharSet.Ansi)]
public struct MyStruct
{
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string Id;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst=500)]
public char[] ErrorMessages;
public int int1;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPStr)]
public string language;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 15)]
public char[] result;
public int type;
public int number;
public int type2;
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray)]
public string[] blocks;
The C# method declaration:
[DllImport(MyPath, EntryPoint = "MyEntryPoint", SetLastError = true,
CharSet = CharSet.Unicode)]
internal static extern int MyFunc(int var1, string var2, string var3,
string var4, ref MyStruct Result, string var5, string var6);
The C# Call:
var result = new MyStruct();
MyFunc(0, "var2", "var3", "var4", ref result, "var5", "var6");
Hope I haven't left anything out.
Thanks for any help!
Ooooh, man! You've picked quite a complex case for your first fiddling experience. I recommend doing something simpler first, and then moving on to the real stuff.
Firstly, CharSet=CharSet.Ansi looks suspicious. All your strings and chars are _tuchar, and I gather the u in there means "Unicode", doesn't it? If that's the case, you need CharSet=CharSet.Unicode.
Secondly, (and this is the most likely culprit) why is the ErrorMessages field marshaled as ByValArray? You know that ByVal here means "by value", don't you? As in, not by reference. And you know that little asterisk thing in C++ means "reference", don't you? So why does your reference field ErrorMessages marshaled as a by-value array? In case you don't know, an array is generally said to be passed "by value" when all of it's content is being passed, instead of just passing a reference (pointer) to a memory location where all that content is stored. In C++ struct definition, you specify _tuchar*, which means "a reference (pointer) to some memory containing one or more of _tuchars", whereas in C# you specify [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst=500)], which means "500 _tuchars are supposed to be here, no more and no less". Seeing how a reference (pointer) usually takes 4 bytes (or 8 bytes on 64bit machines), and 500 unicode characters take 1000 bytes, you have an obvious mismatch right here.
Thirdly and fourthly, same point goes for result and blocks fields.
Fifthly, the language field is exactly reverse situation: the C++ code says "there are 3 _tuchars here", while C# code says "there is a reference (pointer) to a string here" (in case you don't know, LPStr means "Long Pointer to STRing")
And finally, after you have fixed all those problems, I recommend you execute your program and print out the result of call to Marshal.SizeOf( typeof( MyStruct ) ). That will give you exactly how big your struct is, in .NET's opinion. The go on the C++ side and print out sizeof( MyStruct ). That will give you what C++ thinks about the size.
If they turn out different, see what's wrong. Try to remove fields one by one, until they become same. This will give you the culprit field(s). Work with them.
Overall, I suggest you need a better understanding of how things work first. This case is waaaay too complex for a beginner.
Good luck!
This is a bit of a shot in the dark, but have you tried decorating the string parameters with MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr):
[DllImport(MyPath, EntryPoint = "MyEntryPoint", SetLastError = true,
CharSet = CharSet.Unicode)]
internal static extern int MyFunc(
int var1,
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
string var2,
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
string var3,
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
string var4,
ref MyStruct Result,
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
string var5,
[MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)]
string var6);
I believe that the default marshaling chosen for strings is BStr and _tuchar should expand to wchar_t so I'd guess that LPWStr is the correct marshalling method (pointer to a wide character string).
Update: Various things on MyStruct don't look quite right:
ErrorMessages is marked as ByValArray, and so the .Net interop is probably expecting MyStruct to look a bit like this:
typedef struct MyStruct
{
_tuchar *id;
_tuchar ErrorMessages[500];
// Rest of MyStruct
Which is probably going to cause problems - same thing for result.
Also I think that language should be using ByValArray with a size of 3.
Finally blocks should probably be passed using LPArray - ByValArray doesn't seem right.
(This is all mostly guesswork btw - I hope this is pointing you in the right direction but I don't have that much experience with P/Invoke interop)
Another update: On MyStruct you declare the charset to be Ansi, but on MyFunc its Unicode... is the unmanaged dll compiled with Unicode or Ansi? If it uses Unicode then I believe that you should use LPWStr when marshalling strings, and with Ansi it should be LPStr.