Search
Module:
Directory

   Desktop Functions:

   Smart Device Functions:


Show Recent Changes
Subscribe (RSS)
Misc. Pages
Comments
FAQ
Helpful Tools
Playground
Suggested Reading
Website TODO List
Download Visual Studio Add-In

GetPrivateProfileSectionNames (kernel32)
 
.
Summary
Retrieves the names of all sections in an initialization file.
Note
This function is provided only for compatibility with 16-bit Windows-based applications. Applications should store initialization information in the registry.

VB.Net Signature

<DllImport("kernel32.dll")> _
    Shared Function GetPrivateProfileSectionNames( _
    ByVal lpszReturnBuffer As IntPtr, ByVal nSize As System.Int32, ByVal lpFileName As String) As System.Int32
    End Function

C# Signature:

[DllImport("kernel32.dll")]
static extern uint GetPrivateProfileSectionNames(IntPtr lpszReturnBuffer,
   uint nSize, string lpFileName);

Sample Code:

    Dim profiles As New Collections.Specialized.StringCollection
    Dim ptr As IntPtr = Marshal.StringToHGlobalAnsi(New String(vbNullChar, 1024))
    Dim len As Int32 = GetPrivateProfileSectionNames(ptr, 1024, IniPath)
    Dim buff As String = Marshal.PtrToStringAnsi(ptr, len)
    Marshal.FreeHGlobal(ptr)
    Dim sb As New StringBuilder
     '
    '    I can't believe people write shit code like this.
    '
    For ii As Integer = 0 To len - 1
        Dim c As Char = buff.Chars(ii)
        If c = vbNullChar Then
        profiles.Add(sb.ToString)
        sb.Length = 0
        Else
        sb.Append(c)
        End If
    Next

Alternative C# Signature:

[DllImport("kernel32.dll",CharSet=CharSet.Auto)]
static extern uint GetPrivateProfileSectionNames(IntPtr lpszReturnBuffer,
   uint nSize, string lpFileName);

Alternative Sample Code:

//similar to above, but use of CharSet in DllImport allows use of Marshal.PtrToStringAuto

public string[] SectionNames()

{

    uint MAX_BUFFER = 32767;
    IntPtr pReturnedString = Marshal.AllocCoTaskMem((int)MAX_BUFFER);
    uint bytesReturned = GetPrivateProfileSectionNames(pReturnedString, MAX_BUFFER, m_iniFile);
    if (bytesReturned == 0)
    return null;
    string ret = Marshal.PtrToStringAnsi(pReturnedString, (int)(bytesReturned * 2));
    string local = Marshal.PtrToStringAuto(pReturnedString, (int)bytesReturned).ToString();
    Marshal.FreeCoTaskMem(pReturnedString);

    // convert ASCII string to Unicode string
    byte[] bytes = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(ret);
    string local = Encoding.Unicode.GetString(bytes);

    //use of Substring below removes terminating null for split
    return local.Substring(0, local.Length - 1).Split('\0');

}

Alternative Managed API:

Do you know one? Please contribute it!

Documentation

Please edit this page!

Do you have...

  • helpful tips or sample code to share for using this API in managed code?
  • corrections to the existing content?
  • variations of the signature you want to share?
  • additional languages you want to include?

Select "Edit This Page" on the right hand toolbar and edit it! Or add new pages containing supporting types needed for this API (structures, delegates, and more).

 
Access PInvoke.net directly from VS:
Terms of Use
Edit This Page
Find References
Show Printable Version
Revisions