The microsoft/Windows-classic-samples repository is a collection of code samples that demonstrate various Windows API functionalities and programming techniques for classic Windows desktop applications. These samples cover a wide range of topics, including user interface, system services, networking, and more, providing developers with practical examples for Windows development.

Pros

• Comprehensive collection of Windows API usage examples
• Official samples from Microsoft, ensuring reliability and best practices
• Covers both basic and advanced Windows programming concepts
• Regularly updated to reflect changes in Windows APIs

Cons

• Primarily focused on classic Windows desktop development, not modern UWP or .NET Core
• Some samples may be outdated or less relevant for newer Windows versions
• Limited coverage of cross-platform development scenarios
• May require specific Windows SDK versions for certain samples

Code Examples

Here are a few short code examples from the repository:

1. Creating a basic window (from the HelloWorld sample):

LRESULT CALLBACK WndProc(HWND hWnd, UINT message, WPARAM wParam, LPARAM lParam)
{
    switch (message)
    {
    case WM_PAINT:
        {
            PAINTSTRUCT ps;
            HDC hdc = BeginPaint(hWnd, &ps);
            TextOut(hdc, 5, 5, TEXT("Hello, Windows!"), 15);
            EndPaint(hWnd, &ps);
        }
        break;
    case WM_DESTROY:
        PostQuitMessage(0);
        break;
    default:
        return DefWindowProc(hWnd, message, wParam, lParam);
    }
    return 0;
}

2. Enumerating processes (from the ProcessEnumeration sample):

BOOL EnumerateProcesses()
{
    DWORD aProcesses[1024], cbNeeded, cProcesses;

    if (!EnumProcesses(aProcesses, sizeof(aProcesses), &cbNeeded))
    {
        return FALSE;
    }

    cProcesses = cbNeeded / sizeof(DWORD);

    for (DWORD i = 0; i < cProcesses; i++)
    {
        if (aProcesses[i] != 0)
        {
            PrintProcessNameAndID(aProcesses[i]);
        }
    }

    return TRUE;
}

3. Using Direct2D to draw a rectangle (from the D2DDemo sample):

HRESULT OnRender()
{
    HRESULT hr = S_OK;

    hr = CreateDeviceResources();

    if (SUCCEEDED(hr))
    {
        m_pRenderTarget->BeginDraw();
        m_pRenderTarget->SetTransform(D2D1::Matrix3x2F::Identity());
        m_pRenderTarget->Clear(D2D1::ColorF(D2D1::ColorF::White));

        D2D1_SIZE_F rtSize = m_pRenderTarget->GetSize();
        D2D1_RECT_F rectangle = D2D1::RectF(
            rtSize.width / 2 - 50.0f,
            rtSize.height / 2 - 50.0f,
            rtSize.width / 2 + 50.0f,
            rtSize.height / 2 + 50.0f
        );

        m_pRenderTarget->FillRectangle(&rectangle, m_pLightSlateGrayBrush);
        m_pRenderTarget->DrawRectangle(&rectangle, m_pCornflowerBlueBrush);

        hr = m_pRenderTarget->EndDraw();
    }

    return hr;
}

Getting Started

To get started with the Windows-classic-samples:

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/microsoft/Windows-classic-samples.git
   

2. Open the desired sample project in Visual Studio.

3. Ensure you have the required Windows SDK version installed.

4. Build and run the sample to see it in action.

5. Explore the source code to