SAMPLE: IniHeadr.exe Reads Section Headers from .INI Files

ID: Q104096

The information in this article applies to:

SUMMARY

The Iniheadr.exe sample defines a function called GetPrivateProfileSections(), which parses a given .INI file and returns a buffer containing the section headers separated by NULLs and terminated by a double NULL. SECTION.C contains the function and a necessary helper function. The sample allows the user to choose an .INI file using the Open common dialog box. The section headings are then placed in a list box.

The Windows SDK does not define a function to read all of the section headers from a profile (.INI) file. An application must read the entire .INI file and parse it to obtain the section headers.

NOTE: Microsoft recommends using Windows's application programming interfaces (APIs) to read .INI files. The method described below is not guaranteed to work on future releases, especially for system .INI files such as WINFILE.INI, WIN.INI, SYSTEM.INI, CONTROL.INI, and so forth.

MORE INFORMATION

The following file is available for download from the Microsoft Software Library: 

 ~ Iniheadr.exe (size: 29234 bytes)
For more information about downloading files from the Microsoft Software Library, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 

   ARTICLE-ID: Q119591
   TITLE     : How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services
A profile file (WIN.INI) or a private profile (such as CLOCK.INI) must have the following form: 

   [section heading]
   entry=value
      .
      .
      .
For example, given a profile containing the following section headings 

   [windows]
      .
      .
      .
   [Desktop]
      .
      .
      .
   [Extensions]
GetPrivateProfileSections() parses the profile file and places the following in a buffer: 

   windows<NULL>Desktop<NULL>Extensions<NULL><NULL>
Additional query words: Keywords : kbfile kbsample kb16bitonly kbSysSettings kbGrpUser kbWinOS310 kbWinOS311 kbWinOS300

Last Reviewed: December 24, 1998