C# seems not to understand pointer any more

We have code like this in our managed wrapper (written with managed
extensions in C++)

Byte * some_method();

which we compile with VS2003 to a managed assembly.

The functions in the assembly work nicely with C#/VB programs written with
VS2003, allowing unsafe code.

However, as soon as VS2005 is used to access these functions, the C#
compiler issues an error message of the kind that the language would not
support this construct.

Does anybody know what is going on here? Is this an issue with C# 2.0? How
can this be fixed?

Thanks.
Peter

"Peter" <p.schregle (AT) impuls-imaging (DOT) com> wrote

We have code like this in our managed wrapper (written with managed
extensions in C++)

Byte * some_method();

which we compile with VS2003 to a managed assembly.

The functions in the assembly work nicely with C#/VB programs written with
VS2003, allowing unsafe code.

However, as soon as VS2005 is used to access these functions, the C#
compiler issues an error message of the kind that the language would not
support this construct.

Does anybody know what is going on here? Is this an issue with C# 2.0? How
can this be fixed?

Thanks.
Peter

Please post the exact error message, it's not possible that the C# compiler
would show an error for a C++ module which isn't even compiled by the C#
compiler.
Not sure what you mean with "C#/VB programs written with VS2003, allowing
unsafe code." though, VB does not support unsafe code.


Willy.

I'm sorry, I was a bit unclear in my description.

1) We create an assembly with Managed Extensions for C++ named
some_name.dll. This assembly has source code like the following

Byte * some_method() // a method returning a pointer, defined within some
class
{
....
}

This assembly is created with VS2003, i.e. it is a .NET 1.1 assembly.

2) We then create an application in C# using the assembly of step 1. In this
application we try to use some_method from the assembly. When we compile
this application with C# in VS2003 everything is fine: the C# compiler
issues no error message and the function works as expected when executed.

3) When we compile the same C# code with C# in VS2005, the compiler issues
the error message: "language does not support this construct". Using other
methods which do not use pointers from the same assembly still works
properly.

I hope the desciption is clearer now.

Clearly something must have changed between C#/VS2003 and C#/VS2005 with
regards to using pointers. It would be instructive to know what has been
changed. Furthermore, how can the issue be dealt with and worked around?

Peter