Question

In the .NET compiler (csc.exe) I can use the option /target:exe to compile into an exe that will keep the console open so that I can see some stderr or `stdout“ output. However I cannot achieve this same functionality using the C/C++ compiler (cl.exe).

My program uses WinMain which means it’s an entire UI application. That’s why I need to keep the console.

Answer 1

the flag you need to create a console application is /subsystem:console, check out the MSDN documentation about it. and it is actually a flag for the linker stage:

link /out:foo.exe /subsystem:console a.obj b.obj

you can however tell the compiler to use certain flags when invoking the linker:

cl /flags /link /subsystem:console

since you need a main() to make the link work, provide a simple one that calles WinMain()

int main() { 
    return WinMain(0,0,0,0);
}