I assume you mean cross-process COM calls?
No, no it works cross-machine. We've designed our own binary protocol
(Variant-ParamArray-Serialization + support for IPersistStream regarding
Object-Transport + ZLib-based Compression + built-in Strong-Encryption
+ MITM-secured Diffie-Hellman-Auth.).
It has its own Server-Part, uses only one Port (where DCOM needs a
complete Port-Range), it has a runtime- adjustable ThreadPool, it is
working completely independent of DCOM and - most important - of
the Windows-Registry.
We've developed this some years ago, because we were annoyed by the
DCOM-Config-Orgies and the Dll-Hell regarding correct Proxy/Stub-
Interface-Registrations, the difficulties, to change COM-Binaries whilst
continous operation - all those problems - gone since we implemented
our own RPC-Server.
If you have an XP- or W2K-VM somewhere, there's no setup needed, to
test our Download (VB6-Runtime and ADO are then already present).
Just copy the Server- and Client-Folders, start the appropriated Apps
and play around, to get an idea of the whole thing (needs 5 minutes).
The D-part of DCOM is not currently supported.
I know, but as said, we don't need it.
So Wine has ca. 3 times the Call-Overhead, regarding Object-
Instantiation and Method-Invoking-By-Name...
This is expected and it is on my todo list to fix this...
Good to know... :-)
1. Running as Service...
No. It doesn't really make sense at the moment. We don't recommend
that Wine be run as root and we don't support impersonating other Unix
users that would be necessary to maintain security in this environment.
Ok, no big problem.
2. Win-Authentication and -Impersonation
(LogonUser- and ImpersonateLoggedOnUser-APIs ...
The probably both do nothing. Since you shouldn't be running as root,
then this isn't a problem.
Ok, no big problem under Linux, but the MS-SQLServer for example,
supports (besides DB-Internal Security-Accounts) Win-Based-Security
(Tables/Views/etc., wich are secured using Win-Auth.) and this feature
is often used by MSSQL-Admins - that's why impersonation is (among
other things) important under Windows inside the Pre-DB-Layer.
But someone who decides, to do COM-Hosting under Linux, probably
uses Postgre or Firebird and their builtin DB-Security/Usermanagement.
3. Global ServerSingletons using ROT-Entries with FileMonikers...
Not supported yet. During a recent rewrite of the ROT implementation
I made it easier to do this, but our midl replacement widl isn't quite
at the point where this can be implemented yet.
Ok, no big problem, if we can get '4.' to work (it's anyway the more
recommended way to work with Stateful Objects.
4. RPCServer-internal Singletons ...
CoMarshalInterThreadInterfaceInStream and
CoGetInterfaceAndReleaseStream ...
I'm not sure what you mean here by RPCServer-internal singletons.
Please elaborate.
Normally RPCs should use stateless objects (Object-Instantiation, Method-
Calling, Object-Destroying). That's what we do inside our WorkerThreads.
Now there's often the need, to pin an object or some data somewhere
between two or more RPCs (for Transactions, Session-Management,
Object-Pooling, usage of serverside resources like COM-Ports , etc.).
So we allow instantiation of Singleton-Objects inside the RPC-
Serverprocess on their own threads (beside the WorkerThreadPool).
The two types of singletons behave the same regarding their access
from inside the workerthreads (handled unter Windows by the Free-
Threaded-Marshaler) - but only the Singletons of Type '3.' can also be
accessed from outside (and marshaled) X-Process per GetObject(...).
Both of the APIs you mention should be fully functional.
I've just tested this using the following VB-Code:
Inside the same Thread it works without problems under Wine
(altough that makes no sense of course).
Cross-Thread it is failing under Wine, whilst the cast of the IUnkn.-Proxy
to a second ObjectVariable of Type IDispatch.
Maybe, the problem is related to VBs Apartment-Threading and its
usage of Thread-Local-Storage (TLS), but it could also be related to
incorrect Ref-Counting inside Wine.
Here's the Debug-Output of WINEDEBUG=+ole:
(First two parts are sucessful, the 3rd-part fails - I've
intermitted the Output using MessageBox-related-Breaks
http://www.datenhaus.de/Downloads/WineDebug.txt
'here the Types and WinAPI-Declares
Private Type GUID
Data1 As Long '32Bit-Value
Data2 As Integer '16Bit
Data3 As Integer '16Bit
Data4(0 To 7) As Byte
End Type
Declare Function CoMarshalInterThreadInterfaceInStream Lib ole32.dll _
(ByRef rIID As Any, ByVal pUnk As IUnknown, ByRef ppStm as Long)
Declare Function CoGetInterfaceAndReleaseStream Lib ole32.dll _
(ByVal pStm As Long, ByRef rIID As Any, ByRef pUnk As IUnknown)
'And here the used Functions (last one is failing with a valid pStream-Ptr -
'but only in a Cross-Thread-Scenario)
Function GetStreamPtr(ByVal Obj As Object) As Long
Dim IID_IUnknown As GUID
IID_IUnknown.Data4(0) =