convert a Linux program to Windows 10

To be upfront, this thread is MY IDEA. I want to suggest to a guy I know that he convert his Linux program to run on Windows 10/11. The Linux binary is 2.8 MB and uses a lot of file I/O.

I did some ChatGPT searches, but didn't get back anything useful. Not being a developer I am not sure that I know where to look.

If this guy doesn't know much about Windows, what does he need to learn? Where does he start?

• Win 32 API?
• Registry?
• What else?

What are some good resources?

Unless you have the source code, the chances of achieving this are as high as meeting an honest politician.

Just make your suggestion.
If he's interested then he'll know what he needs to find out about Windows.
But he might not be at all interested.


Denis

cereberus said:

Unless you have the source code, the chances of achieving this are as high as meeting an honest politician.

He does have the source code. I should have mentioned that in my OP.

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Try3 said:

Just make your suggestion.
If he's interested then he'll know what he needs to find out about Windows.
But he might not be at all interested.


Denis

@denis,

That is the "default" idea. I thought I might be "helpful" in compiling some responses in this thread. He's already an accomplished developer, just not in Windows (so far as I know).

x509 said:

.... I want to suggest to a guy I know that he convert his Linux program to run on Windows 10/11.....

You do know you may be able to run it natively using the Windows Subsystem for Linux?

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) lets developers run a GNU/Linux environment -- including most command-line tools, utilities, and applications -- directly on Windows, unmodified, without the overhead of a traditional virtual machine or dualboot setup.

Enable or Disable Windows Subsystem for Linux WSL in Windows 10

Bree said:

You do know you may be able to run it natively using the Windows Subsystem for Linux?

I do know that and I'm actually running it under WSL. But for lots of people using WSL is a barrier to adoption. In a forum post the program author expressed the idea of a Windoze (sic) port.

My own personal experience with UNIX/Solaris and AT&T UNIX is so old that I have forgotten almost everything.

What Programming language is the code? For example, if it is C++ then the parts that are standard C++ would be easy. The parts that are not would have to be dealt with. The biggest problem are libraries. If there are comparable ones between Linux and Windows then you might be able to modify the calls to get the same results from Windows libraries. You also have to deal with the I/O which you have to deal with the same way you dealt with the libraries.

BTW, there are games that are ported from one platform to another. These cost a lot of money and are done by a number of developers working together. That shows what you friend wants to do has been done before.

There are a lot of factors to consider such as the experience of the programmer and whether he wants to take the time to undertake this project. If it is just a learning experience then the time taken may be worth it otherwise probably not.

MisterEd said:

What Programming language is the code? For example, if it is C++ then the parts that are standard C++ would be easy. The parts that are not would have to be dealt with. The biggest problem are libraries. If there are comparable ones between Linux and Windows then you might be able to modify the calls to get the same results from Windows libraries. You also have to deal with the I/O which you have to deal with the same way you dealt with the libraries.

BTW, there are games that are ported from one platform to another. These cost a lot of money and are done by a number of developers working together. That shows what you friend wants to do has been done before.

There are a lot of factors to consider such as the experience of the programmer and whether he wants to take the time to undertake this project. If it is just a learning experience then the time taken may be worth it otherwise probably not.

I honestly don't know how what languages were used to develop this program. For reasons of privacy I won't say exactly what this program does, but it is most definitely not a game. Also I don't know if this programmer how far this programmer wants to go with Windows.

Actually I was hoping for some answers like this written by people with the hands-on experience that I certainly don't have.

• For win 32 API, here are some good websites to get started ...... ....... ...... . Here is a good online course ..... ........
  
• For Windows registry, go to this website ......... .......... ........ Also ........ and .......
  

x509 said:

I honestly don't know how what languages were used to develop this program. For reasons of privacy I won't say exactly what this program does, but it is most definitely not a game. Also I don't know if this programmer how far this programmer wants to go with Windows.

Actually I was hoping for some answers like this written by people with the hands-on experience that I certainly don't have.

• For win 32 API, here are some good websites to get started ...... ....... ...... . Here is a good online course ..... ........
  
• For Windows registry, go to this website ......... .......... ........ Also ........ and .......
  

You said the original program was run in Linux. Many Linux programs are open source and have freely available source code. I assume the program your friend has has source code like that. If that is the case I don't why your friend would worry about what he is doing because people are encouraged to use the source code.

I used to be Computer Programmer but retired over 10 years ago. The process is a lot more difficult that you might think. It is not simply a matter of looking at a few websites. A online course only gives you the basics. Only a lot of experience would give what is needed to do what your friend wanted to do. After all, if it was that easy why would they be paying people $100,000 or more per year to do it.

BTW, maybe 15 years ago for fun I reverse engineered a few programs I had. I didn't have the source code. I had to run these programs and watch what their output was from the input. I then wrote new code to replicate the the original programs. That was quite a learning experience.

x509 said:

To be upfront, this thread is MY IDEA. I want to suggest to a guy I know that he convert his Linux program to run on Windows 10/11. The Linux binary is 2.8 MB and uses a lot of file I/O.

I did some ChatGPT searches, but didn't get back anything useful. Not being a developer I am not sure that I know where to look.

If this guy doesn't know much about Windows, what does he need to learn? Where does he start?

• Win 32 API?
• Registry?
• What else?

What are some good resources?

This is why we have WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux). You are not going to be able to make a Linux program run on Windows, unless you have access to the code and it can be compiled to run on Windows with minimum code change.