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Visual Lint - FAQ

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Frequently Asked Questions

On this page you will find answers to some common questions about Visual Lint. If there is anything you need to know which is not covered here, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Can I use Visual Lint on its own?

Which platforms does Visual Lint support?

Which versions of Visual Studio and Visual C++ is Visual Lint compatible with?

Which editions of Visual Studio and Visual C++ is Visual Lint compatible with?

Which versions of PC-Lint is Visual Lint compatible with?

Which programming languages does Visual Lint support?

How closely integrated into Visual Studio is Visual Lint?

Can I pass my own parameters to the PC-Lint executable?

I have Windows XP SP2, and some of the links in the reports don't work

I tried to register the add-in using Visual Studio 6.0 or Visual C++ 6.0, and received lots of error messages

What features are included in the Visual Lint Free Edition?

 

Can I use Visual Lint on its own?

No. To use Visual Lint, you must have a licenced copy of PC-Lint.

If you need to purchase a copy of PC-Lint and are located within Europe, we recommend PhaedruS SystemS - the only European distributor able to supply PC-Lint and Flexe-lint site licences.

Please contact Gimpel Software for support and other information regarding PC-Lint.

 

Which platforms does Visual Lint support?

Visual Lint has been tested on Windows 2000 SP4, Windows Server 2003 SP1, Windows XP SP2 and Windows Vista.

Please note that in order to install current versions of Visual Lint under Windows Vista the procedure described in Running Visual Lint under Windows Vista should be followed. We aim to have a new installer installer available soon which will remove the need for this procedure to be followed.

Please contact us if you have any queries about compatibility with a particular platform or service pack level.

 

Which versions of Visual Studio and Visual C++ is Visual Lint compatible with?

Visual Lint 1.5 is compatible with eMbedded Visual C++ 4.0, Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0, Visual Studio .NET 2002, Visual Studio .NET 2003, Visual Studio 2005 and (from 1.5.5.69 onwards) Visual Studio codename "Orcas" Beta 1.

Visual Lint 1.0 is compatible with Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2002, Visual Studio .NET 2003 and Visual Studio 2005.

Please contact us if you have any queries about compatibility with a particular environment or service pack level.

 

Which editions of Visual Studio and Visual C++ is Visual Lint compatible with?

Visual Lint is compatible with all editions of Visual C++ and Visual Studio, with the exception of Visual Studio Express Editions.

This restriction is not one of our choosing - unfortunately the Visual Studio Express Editions do not allow the loading of third party add-ins and extension packages. This is a limitation imposed directly by Microsoft themselves.

 

Which versions of PC-Lint is Visual Lint compatible with?

Visual Lint has been tested with version 8.00q onwards of PC-Lint. Builds from version 1.0.3.45 onwards are also compatible with version 7.50r of PC-Lint.

 

Which programming languages does Visual Lint support?

Visual Lint currently supports the same languages supported by PC-Lint - namely C and C++.

If you require support for another language we encourage you to write to Gimpel Software and ask them about support for the language you are interested in.

Alternatively, if you know of an alternative command line lint tool which provides the analysis capability you need, please contact us and we will look into integrating it into Visual Lint.

 

How closely integrated into Visual Studio is Visual Lint?

Visual Studio .NET 2002, Visual Studio .NET 2003 and Visual Studio 2005 allow extremely close integration into the IDE. Under these environments, Visual Lint will integrate its commands into the Visual Studio menubar and command bars, and even add a "Perform Lint Analysis" command to the context menu in the code editor. The three Visual Lint toolwindows can be docked anywhere in the IDE, and can be pinned and autohidden just like any other window.

Under Visual C++ 6.0 and eMbedded Visual C++ 4.0 the level of integration we can offer is, unfortunately, rather more limited. Visual Lint will still create its own toolbar (named "VisLint" rather than "Visual Lint" due to the rather low level method we have to use to set the name), but it cannot add commands to the menubar or control the state of the toolbar commands (disabled, selected etc.) as the IDE simply does not provide the capability for add-ins to do this. Even worse, the IDE does not provide any capabilities to integrate third party toolwindows. We have, however, been able to integrate them into the Workspace View (but not the Output Window - at least not yet) using window subclassing techniques.

The good news is that we hope to address the two major outstanding issues (integration into the Output Window and control of the state of command buttons on the Visual Lint toolbar) in the not too distant future. Both features are currently planned to be included in Visual Lint 2.0.

 

Can I pass my own parameters to the PC-Lint executable?

Yes. The Command Line page in the Options Dialog provides a control which allows you to enter parameters to pass to the PC-Lint executable. Registered copies of Visual Lint Professional Edition also provide a similar capability on a per solution or per project basis.

Please contact us if you have specific requirements.

 

I have Windows XP Service Pack 2 installed, and some of the links in the reports don't work

This is a direct result of the "Local Machine Zone Lockdown" policy introduced in Windows XP SP2, which prevents Javascript code (which is included in the HTML reports to provide table sorting facilities) from running when HTML pages are accessed locally.

The following articles discuss the lockdown and its implications:

According to the articles we've read on this, it should be possible to circumvent this by adding "The mark of the web" (in Microsoft terminology to the generated HTML. Unfortunately, so far this has proved unreliable - possibly due to the way the XSLT transformation formats line endings. We will continue to look for a way to circumvent this restriction, but for now simply click on the Information Bar when the warning appears and select the "Allow Blocked Content" option.

Note that this issue only affects Internet Explorer. Other browsers should be unaffected.

 

I tried to register the add-in using Visual Studio 6.0 or Visual C++ 6.0, and received lots of error messages

When the add-in is loaded by browsing it via the Visual Studio 6.0 "Customize" dialog, Visual Studio 6.0 will enumerate the COM interfaces registered by the add-in, and (rather unfortunately) will assume that any interfaces it finds are Visual Studio 6.0 add-in interfaces.

As a result, as well as the VS6 Visual Lint add-in itself (titled as "Visual Lint for VC6" in the "Customize" dialog) the interfaces for the VS2002/2003/2005 add-in and all ActiveX controls implemented within the add-in will also be displayed within the "Customize" page:

Problems with the VS6 Customize dialog

Consequently, error messages will be seen if any of the non-VS6 interfaces are selected when the "Close" button is pressed. To avoid this, deselect the following interfaces before pressing "Close":

  • WarningLookupToolWindowCtrl class
     
  • AnalysisStatusToolWindowCtrl class
     
  • AnalysisResultsToolWindowCtrl class
     
  • AnalysisGraphToolWindowCtrl class
     
  • Connect Class

As with all IDE bugs, we are researching workarounds for this issue. As Visual Studio 6.0 and Visual C++ 6.0 are no longer supported by Microsoft, a fix for the bug itself is highly unlikely.

 

What features are included in Visual Lint Free Edition?

The Free Edition has been provided to offer a basic level of analysis capability for those who do not require the advanced automated analysis features offered by the registered version.

It supports the following features:

  • Manual Lint analysis, with results presented in the Lint Analysis Results pane in the Output Window.
     
  • Access to the PC-Lint manual within the IDE.
     
  • Editing of PC-Lint configuration files within the IDE
     
  • Access to the Visual Lint Getting Started Guide

For further information, please see Product Editions.