Question

I have C++ source code (xyz.cpp) for static library called libxyz.lib, in this xyz.cpp I call some functions p, q, r which are part of other static library called libabc.lib.

Now when I compile code (xyz.cpp) i want that object code for libabc.lib gets included inside (libxyz.lib)

Is this possible?
Or do I have to ship both libxyz.lib & libabc.lib to user who wants to use them ?
I am using Visual Studio C++ 2005

Thank you in advance

Answer 1

AFAIK you can only achieve that by turning xyz into a DLL, but in that case you would still be shipping xyz.dll + a xyz.lib file + required headers. When you build a static lib, other static libraries are not linked in: the .lib file only contains the object code of xyz functions. See http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms235627(v=vs.80).aspx

If building from the command line, you must build the program in two steps. First, compile the code using Cl.exe with the /c compiler option (cl /c /EHsc MathFuncsLib.cpp). This will create an object file named MathFuncsLib.obj. For more information, see /c (Compile Without Linking). Second, link the code using the Library Manager Lib.exe (lib MathFuncsLib.obj). This will create the static library MathFuncsLib.lib. For more information on the Library Manager, see LIB Reference.