BSTR

BSTR

A BSTR (Basic string or binary string) is a string data type that is used by COM, Automation, and Interop functions. Use the BSTR data type in all interfaces that will be accessed from script.

C++

 

typedef WCHAR OLECHAR;

typedef OLECHAR* BSTR;

typedef BSTR* LPBSTR;

 

Remarks

A BSTR is a composite data type that consists of a length prefix, a data string, and a terminator. The following table describes these components.

Item	Description
Length prefix	A four-byte integer that contains the number of bytes in the following data string. It appears immediately before the first character of the data string. This value does not include the terminating null character.
Data string	A string of Unicode characters. May contain multiple embedded null characters.
Terminator	Two null characters.

 
 

A BSTR is a pointer. The pointer points to the first character of the data string, not to the length prefix.

BSTRs are allocated using COM memory allocation functions, so they can be returned from methods without concern for memory allocation.

The following code is incorrect:

BSTR MyBstr = L"I am a happy BSTR";

This code builds (compiles and links) correctly, but it will not function properly because the string does not have a length prefix. If you use a debugger to examine the memory location of this variable, you will not see a four-byte length prefix preceding the data string.

Instead, use the following code:

BSTR MyBstr = SysAllocString(L"I am a happy BSTR");

A debugger that examines the memory location of this variable will now reveal a length prefix containing the value 34. This is the expected value for a 17-byte single-character string that is converted to a wide-character string through the inclusion of the "L" string modifier. The debugger will also show a two-byte terminating null character (0x0000) that appears after the data string.

If you pass a simple Unicode string as an argument to a COM function that is expecting a BSTR, the COM function will fail.

Requirements

Header

WTypes.h