C++ Builder Function error [bcc32 - Ambiguity error] inside dll file

Question

I am creating a currency converter Win32 program in Embarcadero C++Builder. I wrote a function for transforming date from format specified on user PC to YYYY-MM-DD format. I need that part because of API settings.

When I have this function inside my project it works fine, but I need to have that function inside a DLL.

This is how my code looks like:

#pragma hdrstop
#pragma argsused
#include <SysUtils.hpp>

extern DELPHI_PACKAGE void __fastcall DecodeDate(const System::TDateTime DateTime, System::Word &Year, System::Word &Month, System::Word &Day);

extern "C" UnicodeString __declspec (dllexport) __stdcall datum(TDateTime dat) {
    Word dan, mjesec, godina;
    UnicodeString datum, datum_dan, datum_mjesec, datum_godina;
    DecodeDate(dat, godina, mjesec, dan);

    if (dan<=9 && mjesec<=9) {
        datum_dan="0"+IntToStr(dan);
        datum_mjesec="0"+IntToStr(mjesec);
    }

    if (dan<=9 && mjesec>9) {
        datum_dan="0"+IntToStr(dan);
        datum_mjesec=IntToStr(mjesec);
    }

    if (dan>9 && mjesec<=9) {
        datum_dan=IntToStr(dan);
        datum_mjesec="0"+IntToStr(mjesec);
    }

    if (dan>9 && mjesec>9) {
        datum_dan=IntToStr(dan);
        datum_mjesec=IntToStr(mjesec);
    }

    datum_godina=IntToStr(godina);

    return datum_godina+"-"+datum_mjesec+"-"+datum_dan;

}

extern "C" int _libmain(unsigned long reason)
{
    return 1;
}
    `

I've included SysUtils.hpp and declared DecodeDate() function, without those lines I have a million errors. But with code looking like this, I am getting this error, which I can't get rid of:

[bcc32 Error] File1.cpp(30): E2015 Ambiguity between '_fastcall System::Sysutils::DecodeDate(const System::TDateTime,unsigned short &,unsigned short &,unsigned short &) at c:\program files (x86)\embarcadero\studio\19.0\include\windows\rtl\System.SysUtils.hpp:3466' and '_fastcall DecodeDate(const System::TDateTime,unsigned short &,unsigned short &,unsigned short &) at File1.cpp:25'
  Full parser context
    File1.cpp(27): parsing: System::UnicodeString __stdcall datum(System::TDateTime)

Can you help me to get rid of that error?

Answer 1

The error message is self-explanatory. You have two functions with the same name in scope, and the compiler doesn't know which one you want to use on line 30 because the parameters you are passing in satisfy both function declarations.

To fix the error, you can change this line:

DecodeDate(dat, godina, mjesec, dan);

To either this:

System::Sysutils::DecodeDate(dat, godina, mjesec, dan);

Or this:

dat.DecodeDate(&godina, &mjesec, &dan);

However, either way, you should get rid of your extern declaration for DecodeDate(), as it doesn't belong in this code at all. You are not implementing DecodeDate() yourself, you are just using the one provided by the RTL. There is already a declaration for DecodeDate() in SysUtils.hpp, which you are #include'ing in your code. That is all the compiler needs.

Just make sure you are linking to the RTL/VCL libraries to resolve the function during the linker stage after compiling. You should have enabled VCL support when you created the DLL project. If you didn't, recreate your project and enable it.

BTW, there is a MUCH easier way to implement your function logic - instead of manually pulling apart the TDateTime and reconstituting its components, just use the SysUtils::FormatDateTime() function or the TDateTime::FormatString() method instead, eg:

UnicodeString __stdcall datum(TDateTime dat)
{
    return FormatDateTime(_D("yyyy'-'mm'-'dd"), dat);
}

UnicodeString __stdcall datum(TDateTime dat)
{
    return dat.FormatString(_D("yyyy'-'mm'-'dd"));
}

That being said, this code is still wrong, because it is not safe to pass non-POD types, like UnicodeString, over the DLL boundary like you are doing. You need to re-think your DLL function design to use only interop-safe POD types. In this case, change your function to either:

• take a wchar_t* as input from the caller, and just fill in the memory block with the desired characters. Let the caller allocate the actual buffer and pass it in to your DLL for populating:

  #pragma hdrstop
  #pragma argsused
  #include <SysUtils.hpp>
  
  extern "C" __declspec(dllexport) int __stdcall datum(double dat, wchar_t *buffer, int buflen)
  {
      UnicodeString s = FormatDateTime(_D("yyyy'-'mm'-'dd"), dat);
      if (!buffer) return s.Length() + 1;
      StrLCopy(buffer, s.c_str(), buflen-1);
      return StrLen(buffer);
  }
  
  extern "C" int _libmain(unsigned long reason)
  {
      return 1;
  }
  

  wchar_t buffer[12] = {};
  datum(SomeDateValueHere, buffer, 12);
  // use buffer as needed...
  

  int len = datum(SomeDateValueHere, NULL, 0);
  wchar_t *buffer = new wchar_t[len];
  int len = datum(SomeDateValueHere, buffer, len);
  // use buffer as needed...
  delete[] buffer;
  

• allocate a wchar_t[] buffer to hold the desired characters, and then return a wchar_t* pointer to that buffer to the caller. Then export a second function that the caller can pass the returned wchar_t* back to you so you can free it correctly.

  #pragma hdrstop
  #pragma argsused
  #include <SysUtils.hpp>
  
  extern "C" __declspec(dllexport) wchar_t* __stdcall datum(double dat)
  {
      UnicodeString s = FormatDateTime("yyyy'-'mm'-'dd", dat);
      wchar_t* buffer = new wchar_t[s.Length()+1];
      StrLCopy(buffer, s.c_str(), s.Length());
      return buffer;
  }
  
  extern "C" __declspec(dllexport) void __stdcall free_datum(wchar_t *dat)
  {
      delete[] dat;
  }
  
  extern "C" int _libmain(unsigned long reason)
  {
      return 1;
  }
  

  wchar_t *buffer = datum(SomeDateValueHere);
  // use buffer as needed...
  free_datum(buffer);