FormatMessage() Converts GetLastError() Codes

Last reviewed: December 16, 1996
Article ID: Q94999

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Win32 Application Programming Interface (API) included with:

    - Microsoft Windows NT versions 3.1, 3.5, 3.51, and 4.0
    - Microsoft Windows 95 version 4.0

SUMMARY

The FormatMessage() application programming interface (API) allows you to convert error codes returned by GetLastError() into error strings, using FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM in the dwFlags parameter.

MORE INFORMATION

The following code fragment demonstrates how to get the system message string:

LPVOID lpMessageBuffer;

FormatMessage(

  FORMAT_MESSAGE_ALLOCATE_BUFFER |
  FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM,
  NULL,
  GetLastError(),
  MAKELANGID(LANG_NEUTRAL, SUBLANG_DEFAULT), //The user default language
  (LPTSTR) &lpMessageBuffer,
  0,
  NULL );

//... now display this string

// Free the buffer allocated by the system

LocalFree( lpMessageBuffer );

REFERENCES

For more information on language identifiers, please see the topic MAKELANGID in the Win32 Programmer's Reference.

KBCategory: kbprg
KBSubcategory: BseMisc
Additional reference words: 3.10 3.50 3.51 4.00 95

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Last reviewed: December 16, 1996
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