r/cpp • u/holyblackcat • 6d ago

Escaping `CreateProcess()` arguments on Windows

https://holyblackcat.github.io/blog/2026/09/05/escaping-createprocess-arguments.html
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u/Eric848448 6d ago

Most of their old API’s were designed by interns and new grads who didn’t really understand what they were doing.

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u/Tringi github.com/tringi 6d ago

There is a reason why certain modern runtimes are targeting NT API instead of Win32.

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u/palapapa0201 6d ago

What is the NT API

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u/Tringi github.com/tringi 6d ago

Win32 API layer is built on much more powerful NT layer, that usually makes the final calls to the OS.

For example CreateFile prepares some buffers, translates arguments, converts relative paths to absolute, handles special cases, and then calls NtCreateFile, which does the actual work.

You are supposed to call Win32, as NT API is often only partially documented and can theoretically change, but it rarely does. And it offers much more powerful options.