wine

Pros of Proton

• Optimized for gaming performance, especially on Steam
• Includes additional compatibility layers and tools (e.g., DXVK, VKD3D)
• Regular updates focused on improving game compatibility

Cons of Proton

• More specialized, primarily targeting games and Steam platform
• May have less compatibility with non-gaming Windows applications
• Potentially larger resource footprint due to additional components

Code Comparison

Wine:

/* Convert a Unicode string to ASCII */
void wine_unicode_to_ascii( const WCHAR *src, char *dst, int len )
{
    while (len-- > 0) *dst++ = *src ? *src++ : 0;
}

Proton:

static void proton_unicode_to_ascii(const WCHAR *src, char *dst, int len)
{
    while (len-- > 0) *dst++ = *src && *src < 0x80 ? *src++ : '?';
}

The Proton version handles non-ASCII characters differently, replacing them with '?' instead of 0, which may be more suitable for certain gaming scenarios.

Pros of ReactOS

• Aims to be a complete operating system, not just a compatibility layer
• Potentially better performance for Windows applications
• More comprehensive Windows-like experience, including drivers and system services

Cons of ReactOS

• Less mature and stable compared to Wine
• Smaller developer community and slower development pace
• Limited hardware support due to its nature as a full OS

Code Comparison

ReactOS (system call implementation):

NTSTATUS NTAPI NtCreateFile(
    PHANDLE FileHandle,
    ACCESS_MASK DesiredAccess,
    POBJECT_ATTRIBUTES ObjectAttributes,
    PIO_STATUS_BLOCK IoStatusBlock,
    PLARGE_INTEGER AllocationSize,
    ULONG FileAttributes,
    ULONG ShareAccess,
    ULONG CreateDisposition,
    ULONG CreateOptions,
    PVOID EaBuffer,
    ULONG EaLength)
{
    // Implementation details...
}

Wine (equivalent function):

NTSTATUS WINAPI NtCreateFile(
    PHANDLE handle, ACCESS_MASK access, POBJECT_ATTRIBUTES attr,
    PIO_STATUS_BLOCK io, PLARGE_INTEGER alloc_size,
    ULONG attributes, ULONG sharing, ULONG disposition,
    ULONG options, PVOID ea_buffer, ULONG ea_length )
{
    // Implementation details...
}

Both projects aim to provide Windows compatibility, but ReactOS focuses on creating a full operating system, while Wine is a compatibility layer for running Windows applications on other operating systems.

Pros of vkd3d-proton

• Focused specifically on DirectX 12 to Vulkan translation
• Optimized for gaming performance on Linux systems
• Actively developed with frequent updates

Cons of vkd3d-proton

• Limited scope compared to Wine's broader compatibility layer
• Requires Vulkan support, which may not be available on all systems
• Potentially less stable due to rapid development cycle

Code Comparison

vkd3d-proton (DirectX 12 to Vulkan translation):

VkResult vkd3d_create_image_resource(struct d3d12_device *device,
                                     const D3D12_RESOURCE_DESC *desc,
                                     const D3D12_CLEAR_VALUE *optimized_clear_value,
                                     D3D12_RESOURCE_STATES initial_state,
                                     const D3D12_HEAP_PROPERTIES *heap_properties,
                                     struct d3d12_resource **resource)

Wine (Windows API implementation):

NTSTATUS WINAPI NtCreateFile(PHANDLE FileHandle, ACCESS_MASK DesiredAccess,
                             POBJECT_ATTRIBUTES ObjectAttributes, PIO_STATUS_BLOCK IoStatusBlock,
                             PLARGE_INTEGER AllocationSize, ULONG FileAttributes, ULONG ShareAccess,
                             ULONG CreateDisposition, ULONG CreateOptions, PVOID EaBuffer, ULONG EaLength)

The code snippets demonstrate the different focus areas of the two projects, with vkd3d-proton handling graphics-related tasks and Wine implementing broader Windows API functionality.

Pros of DXVK

• Specialized focus on DirectX to Vulkan translation, offering better performance for many games
• Faster development cycle and more frequent updates
• Easier to integrate into existing Wine installations

Cons of DXVK

• Limited scope compared to Wine's broader compatibility layer
• Requires Vulkan support, which may not be available on all systems
• Potential for compatibility issues with certain games or applications

Code Comparison

DXVK (D3D11 to Vulkan translation):

VkResult STDMETHODCALLTYPE D3D11DeviceContext::Map(
        ID3D11Resource*               pResource,
        UINT                          Subresource,
        D3D11_MAP                     MapType,
        UINT                          MapFlags,
        D3D11_MAPPED_SUBRESOURCE*     pMappedResource) {
  // Vulkan-specific mapping implementation
}

Wine (D3D11 to OpenGL translation):

HRESULT CDECL wined3d_device_context_map(struct wined3d_device_context *context,
        struct wined3d_resource *resource, unsigned int sub_resource_idx,
        struct wined3d_map_desc *map_desc, const struct wined3d_box *box, uint32_t flags)
{
    // OpenGL-specific mapping implementation
}

The code snippets demonstrate the different approaches: DXVK translates DirectX calls to Vulkan, while Wine typically uses OpenGL as the target API.

Pros of Lutris

• User-friendly interface for managing and launching games
• Supports multiple gaming platforms and emulators, not just Wine
• Active community with frequent updates and game-specific installers

Cons of Lutris

• Larger codebase and more complex architecture
• Depends on Wine and other external components
• May introduce additional overhead compared to using Wine directly

Code Comparison

Wine (C):

BOOL WINAPI DllMain(HINSTANCE hinstDLL, DWORD fdwReason, LPVOID lpvReserved)
{
    TRACE("(%p, %d, %p)\n", hinstDLL, fdwReason, lpvReserved);
    return TRUE;
}

Lutris (Python):

def get_game_launcher(game):
    if game.runner.name == "wine":
        return winelib.create_prefix(game)
    elif game.runner.name == "steam":
        return steam.get_steam_launcher(game)
    # ... other runners

Summary

Wine is a low-level compatibility layer for running Windows applications on Unix-like systems, while Lutris is a game management platform that utilizes Wine (among other tools) to provide a more user-friendly gaming experience. Wine offers direct control and potentially better performance, whereas Lutris provides convenience and a unified interface for various gaming platforms at the cost of some complexity.