INFO: Using the Development Studio or Visual Workbench with MASM

• Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Editions, versions 4.0, 5.0, 6.0
• Microsoft Macro Assembler for MS-DOS, versions 5.1x, 6.0x, and 6.1x
• Microsoft Macro Assembler for Windows NT, version 6.11

SUMMARY

Versions of Microsoft Visual C++, version 4.0 and later, do not support assembler source files by default. That is, the Developer Studio does not associate any special significance to .asm files without being informed otherwise. However, there are several viable options, namely custom build rules, which enable the creation of projects that depend directly upon assembler source files.

The remainder of this article discusses four methods for adding .ASM files to a Visual C++ project. The methods are:

1. Using custom build rules;



2. Modifying a VWB makefile and using it as an external makefile;



3. Using an external makefile to assemble the assembly modules and then using an internal makefile for the main program, and



4. Creating an option on the VWB Tools menu to assemble each assembly module as needed.

MORE INFORMATION

Method 1

Method 1: Sample Code - C Module

/* Filename: CMAIN.C */ 

#include <stdio.h>

#ifdef __cplusplus
extern "C" {
#endif

void MasmSub (char *, short *, long *);

#ifdef __cplusplus
}
#endif

char chararray[4] = "abc";
short shortarray[3]  = {1, 2, 3};
long longarray[3] = {32768, 32769, 32770};

void main( void )
{
   printf ("%s\n", chararray);
   printf ("%d %d %d\n", shortarray[0], shortarray[1], shortarray[2]);
   printf ("%ld %ld %ld\n", longarray[0], longarray[1], longarray[2]);
   MasmSub (chararray, shortarray, longarray);
   printf ("%s\n", chararray);
   printf ("%d %d %d\n", shortarray[0], shortarray[1], shortarray[2]);
   printf ("%ld %ld %ld\n", longarray[0], longarray[1], longarray[2]);
} 

Method 1: Sample Code - ASM Module

; Filename: MASMSUB.ASM
; Assemble options needed for ML: /c /Cx /coff

.386
.MODEL flat, C
.CODE

MasmSub PROC uses esi, \ 
   arraychar:PTR, \ 
   arrayshort:PTR, \ 
   arraylong:PTR

   mov esi, arraychar ; Load ESI with the address of the char array.
   mov BYTE PTR [esi], "x"      ; Since a char is 1 byte long, each
   mov BYTE PTR [esi+1], "y"    ; successive element can be accessed
   mov BYTE PTR [esi+2], "z"    ; by adding 1 more to esi.
   mov esi, arrayshort; Load ESI with the address of the short array.
   add WORD PTR [esi], 7        ; Since a short is 2 bytes long, each
   add WORD PTR [esi+2], 7      ; successive element can be accessed
   add WORD PTR [esi+4], 7      ; by adding 2 more to esi.
   mov esi, arraylong ; Load ESI with the address of the long array.
   inc DWORD PTR [esi]          ; Since a long is 4 bytes long, each
   inc DWORD PTR [esi+4]        ; successive element can be accessed
   inc DWORD PTR [esi+8]        ; by adding 4 more to esi.
   ret
MasmSub ENDP
END 

Method 1: Step-by-step Instructions for Building CAPP

1. Start the Visual C++ Developer Studio, Msdev.exe.



2. Create and save Cmain.c and MasmSub.asm.



3. From the File menu, select New. Create a new console application named CAPP.

1. From the Insert menu, choose Files into Project. In the Insert Files into Project dialog box, select Cmain.c as a Common File Type and press OK.



2. From the Insert menu, choose Files into Project. In the Insert Files into Project dialog box, select MasmSub.asm as an All Files Type and press OK.



3. From the Build menu, choose Settings. In the Settings For list box in the Project Settings dialog box, expand the "CAPP - Win32 Debug" target such that MasmSub.asm is visible. Highlight only MasmSub.asm.



4. Select the Custom Build tab.



5. In the first line of the Build command(s) box, enter the full path and file name for MASM, the desired build options, and the macro for the File Input Path. The latter can be obtained by pressing the Files button and selecting Input Path from the resulting menu. If Ml.exe is in the C:\MASM611A\BIN directory, the entry would appear as follows:

   C:\MASM611A\BIN\ML.EXE /c /Cx /coff $(InputPath)




6. In the first line of the Output files(s) box, enter MasmSub.obj.



7. Press OK in the Project Settings dialog box to save your changes. (This also selects the default build options for Cmain.c.)



8. The "CAPP - Win32 Debug" target is now ready to be built. From the Build menu, select Rebuild All. First, Ml.exe will be invoked to compile MasmSub.asm, second, Cl.exe will be invoked to compile Cmain.c, and third, Link.exe will be invoked to generate Capp.exe.



9. The following is the console output of Capp.exe:

   
      abc
      1 2 3
      32768 32769 32770
      xyz
      8 9 10
      32769 32770 32771 




10. To build the "CAPP - Win32 Release" target, select its name in the Target drop-down list box on the Project Workspace toolbar. Then, repeat steps 6 through 11 substituting the release version of the target for the debug version.

1. On the Project menu, point to Add To Project, and then click Files.



2. Find and select both Cmain.c and MasmSub.asm.



3. On the Project menu, click Settings.



4. On the Project Settings dialog box, select All Configurations in the Settings For list.



5. Click the Custom Build tab.



6. In the first line of the Build command(s) box, enter the full path and file name for MASM, the desired build options, and the macro for the File Input Path. The latter can be obtained by pressing the Files button and selecting Input Path from the resulting menu. If Ml.exe is in the C:\MASM611A\BIN directory, the entry would appear as follows:

   C:\MASM611A\BIN\ML.EXE /c /Cx /coff $(InputPath)




7. In the first line of the Output files(s) box, enter MasmSub.obj.



8. On the Build menu, click Batch Build. Select the desired configurations and click the Rebuild All button.

Method 2

1. Open or create a project with the VWB and set it up as desired for the C/C++ files in the project.



2. Close the project and modify the .MAK file to include build rules for the assembly modules.



3. Put a comment at the start of the file to force the VWB to read the file as an external makefile; otherwise, you could lose your changes.

Method 3

Method 4

1. From the Tools menu, choose the Customize option.



2. Select the Tools tab in the Customize dialog box. Press Add.



3. Specify the complete path to Ml.exe in the Command edit field of the Add Tool dialog box, or use the Browse button feature, and press OK.



4. Set up the Ml.exe menu option as follows:

   
         Menu Text:          &Assemble Current File
         Command:            <should be set from step 3 above>
         Arguments:          /c /Zi /Fl /Sa $FileName
         Initial Directory:  $FileDir
         Check the box for:  "Prompt for Arguments"
         Check the box for:   "Redirect to Output Window" 




5. Press the Close button.

Additional query words: VWBIss

Keywords : kbenv kbide kbVC kbVC400 kbVC500 kbVC600 kbGrpDSTools
Version : 4.00 5.10 6.00 6.10 6.11
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbinfo