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Asked: 2026-05-29T08:44:28+00:00

I am trying to compile a simple C Windows API program using the Windows

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I am trying to compile a simple C Windows API program using the Windows SDK Command Prompt.

Here an excerpt from the program:

#include <Windows.h>
int WINAPI WinMain(HINSTANCE hInstance, HINSTANCE hPrevInstance, LPSTR lpCmdLine, int nCmdShow)
{

[...]

    RegisterClass(&wc);
    hwnd = CreateWindow("test", NULL, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, NULL, NULL, hInstance, NULL);

[...]

When I compile it using

cl test.c

in the Windows SDK Command Promt, it gives me a lot of linker errors like these:

test.obj : error LNK2019: unresolved external symbol __imp_CreateWindowExA referenced in function WinMain
test.obj : error LNK2019: unresolved external symbol __imp_RegisterClassA referenced in function WinMain
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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    Those functions live in user32.lib. You need to supply that to the cl tool.

    cl test.c ""C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v6.0A\Lib\user32.lib"
Microsoft (R) 32-bit C/C++ Optimizing Compiler Version 15.00.307
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.

test.c
Microsoft (R) Incremental Linker Version 9.00.30729.01
Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.

/out:test.exe
test.obj
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v6.0A\Lib\user32.lib"
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