DLL is ellipsis for Dynamic Link Library and it’s to be found in Microsoft Operating Systems. These are usually small files containing data that may be shared across multiple applications. DLLs are usually called to bear by various applications which may use them in a concurrent fashion. There are two ways in which DLL files may be registered into the operating systems registry. One is a mechanism called self-registering files, and the second option involves manually registering the files in the file registry. Many DLL files actually use the former method of self-registering and they have the information needed to install into the operating systems registry on their own. As the mechanism itself implies, no human intervention is required for registering files this way. These self-registering DLL files will automatically store themselves in the operating system and are available when the need arises.
The second method of registering DNL files is manual. Manual registration can be accomplished by following these instructions:
· Start up your computer to launch the operating system.
· Copy the files that you want to register by creating a shortcut to Regsvr32 which resides in [C:\WINDOWS\system32].
· Once the operating system is up and running, go to the “Start” button, and click on “Run” and than go into the command mode by typing “cmd” in the “Run” textbox.
· To register the files, key in this command regsvr32 file.ax.
· Then click “Ok”. After tha,t a message should come up informing the user that the files have been successfully registered.
What if you want to replace a previous DLL with a new one? If this is the situation, then you have two options. The first is to break the compatibility of the oldxer DLL with the new one, and this implies several things, including:
· Set the Project Properties/Component to “No Compatibility”.
· Then, alter the project name in VB IDE and then save the project with this novel project name. Recompile the DLL and will now use a new name DLL say xyz2.dll if the old one was abc.dll. This is because you are most likely going to place this new DLL in the same folder as the old one, and the old one cannot just be replaced because it will be used until it is unregistered in the next server reboot.
· Place the new DLL in the same folder at the website and register it using register.asp.
· Alter the project name in your calling asp pages at the website so that they will call upon the new DLL, not the old one. From here, the new program is ready to run. Use the browser to open your asp pages and the changes will be manifested.
· Do remember to register the old DLL.
The second option is to maintain compatibility of the new DLL with the old one. This you will do by following these steps:
· Keep the defaults setting in the Project Properties/Component which is “Project Compatibility”. The original DLL’s name will most likely to appear in the textbox below that section. It is not necessary to change the project name you will also not be required to change project name in the calling asp pages.
· Recompile the project with the brand new DLL name.
· Take the new DLL in the same folder of the old DLL at the website. The old DLL file may be unregistered using unregister.asp. The new DLL can then be registered using register.asp.
For more information on registering DLL read:
