C++ – Can a C++ dll compiled using Visual Studio 2008 be used with Visual Studio 2005

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I'm going to be working with a C++ library written in plain C++ (not .NET and without MFC). The library is available compiled using both Visual Studio 2005 / Intel Fortran 9.1 and VS 2008 / Intel Fortran 10.1.

Obviously I'm going to grab the binaries for VS 2008 since that's the environment on my computer but I'm curious if there are reasons why a straight C++ library wouldn't be compatible between VS 2005 and 2008. I'd assume that the name-mangling would be the same but maybe there are other reasons. I haven't used C++ in a long time so I'm a little rusty when it comes to these things.

Best Answer

The biggest issue you will run into is the usage of the CRT. If the CRT (C RunTime) is statically linked into the DLL, you shouldn't have any issues.

However if the CRT is dynamically linked into the project you may run into trouble. Visual Studio 2005 and 2008 use different versions of the CRT and they cannot easily be loaded togeter. But if one or both of the DLL's statically links the CRT you should be in decent shape.

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