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I have a program built with VB6 and using some 32-bit DLL's. Will this program run on a 64-bit machine? This page suggests that it should run fine on the Windows on Windows layer, but what about the DLL's?

john2x
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3 Answers3

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Yes, both the VB 6 program and the DLLs will work just fine on a 64-bit version of Windows.

Since both are 32-bit, they will run under the Windows-on-Windows 64 (WoW64) subsystem, which effectively emulates a 32-bit operating system on the 64-bit versions of Windows.

I've run many such programs myself with nary a hitch.

Beyond Explorer extensions and kernel mode drivers (neither of which you've written in VB 6), any compatibility problems that you might experience are almost certainly the result of bugs in your own code, which are easily fixed upon detection. Ask more questions about that when you find them.

Cody Gray - on strike
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Are the DLLs built with VB6 as well? Or are they native?

If you are dealing with 100% VB6, then in my experience, yes they tend to run with minimal problems (I maintained a number of plug-ins for another program that were mostly implemented as VB6 COM components, around the time that Windows 7 came out).

It will all of course depend on what libraries your code is using, whether or not you are accessing locations such as %PROGRAMFILES% etc, calling code in native libraries. These things can cause small problems but it is possible to work around them.

mdm
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  • The DLL's in question are from [DynaZIP](http://www.innermedia.com/), which has me worried. I've updated the OP to include the DLL name. – john2x Jun 13 '11 at 14:13
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    I'm sure you will be fine. As Cody Gray has pointed out, it will run under WoW64, although he is a little more optimistic-sounding than me, myself having been burned a few times, but this was down to lack of foresight by the original developers and bugs that crept in as a result. The chances are that any bugs you do encounter have already been dealt with in some way before, and I'm sure you'll find good answers on SO :) – mdm Jun 13 '11 at 14:19
  • Ok. Thanks for the reassurance. :) – john2x Jun 13 '11 at 14:24
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Microsoft are still supporting the VB6 runtime on 64-bit windows

Yes, it works, and if you have any problems they will help you.

MarkJ
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