PRODUCT : Borland C++ NUMBER : 731
VERSION : 2.0
OS : DOS
DATE : October 19, 1993 PAGE : 1/2
TITLE : Project File Corruption
This information is provided for people who are using the
Integrated Development Environment (IDE) provided with Borland
C++ or Turbo C++ versions 1.0 and later. This information may
apply to any strange behavior experienced while working in the
IDE, but it is more specifically for 'win errors' and unexplained
GP faults received while working within the IDE.
The IDE in Borland C++ and Turbo C++ maintain an image of the IDE
in memory. This image contains information about the windows on
the desktop, the files that are open, the switches that are set
in the IDE, etc. By default when a program is run from the IDE
all of the information concerning the current image of the IDE is
saved to disk in the appropriate configuration files.
If you are not using a project file with your program this image
is stored in the TCCONFIG.TC, TCDEF.DSK and TCDEF.DPR ( or
TCCONFIG.TC, TCDEFW.DSK and TCDEFW.DPR for the Windows-Hosted
IDEs ) files located in your BIN directory (normally TC\BIN,
BORLANDC\BIN or TCWIN\BIN ). Additionally if you are using
Borland C++ and have pre-compiled headers turned on there will be
a TCDEF.SYM file in the same BIN directory. These are your
default configuration files and are created for you if they do
not already exist. When the IDE is run it looks for TCCONFIG.TC
in the current directory first. If it doesn't find one there it
then looks in the BIN directory. They will be created using all
of the system defaults that your compiler was shipped with unless
you have run TCINST or BCINST to modify the defaults. All
project files that you create will inherit the information
contained in the above listed files with the exception of the
TCDEF.SYM file, which is created during the first compilation
using the new project file.
When you create a project file the system creates a <project
name>.prj and a <project name>.dsk in the current directory.
Additionally if you are using Borland C++ and have pre-compiled
headers turned on there will be a <project name>.SYM file in the
current directory after the first compilation using the new
project file. Ensure that you have not put any header (*.H)
files in the project file.
When experiencing any behavior in the IDE that appears to be
incorrect on the part of the IDE the following procedure should
be followed:
PRODUCT : Borland C++ NUMBER : 731
VERSION : 2.0
OS : DOS
DATE : October 19, 1993 PAGE : 2/2
TITLE : Project File Corruption
1. If you are in the IDE exit out using ALT-X (don't shell
out) or ALT-F4( Windows-Hosted ).
2. Go to the directory (current or BIN) containing the
TCCONFIG.TC file that you are using and rename or erase
it.
3. Go to the BIN directory and rename or erase TCDEF*.*
4. If you are using a project file erase or rename
<project name>.prj and <project name>.dsk.
5. Now run the IDE.
6. If you were using a project file re-create it.
7. Retry the operation that was previously giving you a
problem.
After preforming these steps you should have no memory corruption
within the IDE environment until the first time a program is run
from the IDE.
This corruption is usually a result of a stray pointer in a user
program that just happens to be pointing at the image of the IDE
in memory. Until this pointer is caught and redirected the
problem may persist.
It is also possible for the image of the compiler to become
corrupted even though the IDE is being run in protected mode
because the image is stored in real memory and the CPU is running
in real mode as your program executes from within BCX.
If you have a particularly large project file you may wish to
create a back up copy that you can use to replace a copy
suspected of being corrupted.
DISCLAIMER: You have the right to use this technical information
subject to the terms of the No-Nonsense License Statement that
you received with the Borland product to which this information
pertains.
