Re: [boost] [uuid] PR to remove auto-linking to advapi32 when BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB is defined

Subject: Re: [boost] [uuid] PR to remove auto-linking to advapi32 when BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB is defined
From: Edward Diener (eldiener_at_[hidden])
Date: 2016-09-15 12:53:35

On 9/15/2016 12:25 PM, Steven Watanabe wrote:
> AMDG
>
> On 09/15/2016 10:04 AM, Edward Diener wrote:
>> I don't know how to resolve a PR for uuid (
>> https://github.com/boostorg/uuid/pull/11 ). If a library exists only as
>> a DLL and not as a static library should BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB still be
>> considered in effect ?
>>
>> My viewpoint is 'no' but the person who created the PR believes that the
>> BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB config macro should turn off any #pragma auto-linking
>> in code even when their is no other way to use a library other than as a
>> shared library.
>>
>> What I am afraid of is breaking user code even if BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB is
>> defined by producing link errors. But perhaps I am wrong and this should
>> be considered justified when BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB is being used.
>>
>
>   The real question is whether BOOST_ALL_NO_LIB
> disables all auto-linking (including system libraries)
> or only auto-linking for Boost libraries.  I've always
> assumed the latter.

Good point.

To me there are two different cases of which your post is one of them. 
The other is if a shared library has no static lib equivalent. In Boost 
this almost never occurs but in Windows all the base Windows DLLs exist 
in that form and not as static libs. The same could be true for other 
shared libraries.