PRB: MFC Browser Library (MFC.BSC) Can't Find MFC Source Files (170978)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Enterprise Edition 5.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Enterprise Edition 6.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Professional Edition 5.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Professional Edition 6.0
  • Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Learning Edition 6.0
This article was previously published under Q170978

SYMPTOMS

The MFC browser library (MFC.BSC) that ships with Visual C++ has problems finding the target source code files, requiring you to enter the directory path.

Visual C++ may also load the wrong version of source files, depending on where different versions of Visual C++ are loaded. For example, if the Visual C++ 4.0 source files are loaded on E: drive, they will be found instead of the Visual C++ 5.0 files.

CAUSE

These problems are caused by different directory paths embedded in the MFC.BSC file and the actual location of these files on your hard disk. For the browser to work properly, these directory paths must be the same.

The directory path that the MFC browse library was created on (E:\msdev\mfc\src) is different from the default installation path for the MFC source code (C:\Program Files\DevStudio\Vc\mfc\src). The browser can find the files if the drive letter is different. However, it fails to find the target files and consequently prompts for the target directory if the paths are different.

RESOLUTION

You can work around this by rebuilding the MFC browser library (MFC.BSC).

Steps to Rebuild the MFC Browser Library

  1. Verify that you have around 400 megabytes for Visual C++ 5.0 or 500 megabytes for Visual C++ 6.0 of free disk space on the drive where Visual C++ is installed. This much space is required to build the browse information. 358 megabytes for Visual C++ 5.0 or 459 megabytes for Visual C++ 6.0 that are used by .SBR files can be freed once the browser database has been built. Temporary files require the additional space. Temporary files are automatically deleted.
  2. From a Command Prompt, run the Vcvars32.Bat, which should be in the <drive>:<DevStudio directory path>\vc\bin, to set the proper environment variables. Change to the <drive>:<Devstudio directory path>\Vc\Mfc\Src directory, and build the browse information by running the nmake on the makefile: 
          nmake browseonly=1 no_pch=1 no_pdb=1 dll=2
    This creates NafxeWD.bsc file and a subdirectory called $DLLD.W with .SBR files.
  3. Provided you do not plan to rebuild the browse database frequently, remove all files in the $DLLD.W directory, and then remove the directory itself. The intermediate .SBR files occupy roughly 358 megabytes for Visual C++ 5.0 or 459 megabytes for Visual C++ 6.0 of disk space and are not required to use the browser.
  4. If you want to, you can change the new browse file from NafxeWD.BSC to MFC.BSC.
To use the browser file, start Visual C++. On the File menu, click Open, and choose the .BSC file that you just created. On the Tools menu, click Source Browser. The Browser window appears, and then you can look up any of the MFC functions or data variables.

STATUS

This behavior is by design.

REFERENCES

For additional information regarding the building of the MFC.BSC library, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

98656INFO: Creating a Browser Library for the Foundation Classes

138326 HOWTO: Create a Browser Library for the Common Control Classes

(c) Microsoft Corporation 1997, All Rights Reserved. Contributions by Mike Francis, Microsoft Corporation
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:12/10/2003
Keywords:kbprb KB170978
©2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.