The error messages produced by the compiler fall into three categories:
Fatal error messages
Error messages
Warning messages
Fatal error messages indicate a severe problem, one that prevents the compiler from processing the program any further. These messages have the following format:
filename(line) : fatal error C1xxx: messagetext
After a compiler displays a fatal error message, it terminates without producing an object file or checking for further errors.
Error messages identify actual program errors. These messages have the following format:
filename(line) : error C2xxx: messagetext
The compiler does not produce an object file for a source file that has compiler errors. When the compiler encounters such errors, it attempts to recover from the error. If possible, it continues to process the source file and produce any additional error messages. If errors are too numerous or too severe, the compiler stops processing.
Warning messages are informational only; they do not prevent compilation or linking. These messages have the following format:
filename(line) : warning C4xxx: messagetext