Has anyone managed to get Visual Studio 2003 runni

Question

Yes, I know... I could set up a virtual machine running XP. Unfortunately our build environment is such that we need to be running VC2003, 2005 and 2008 concurrently and it would be much more convenient if I could run 2003 natively on Windows 7 for the few projects we have that require it.

I realize some things may not be available in the IDE, but I was able to run 2003 under windows Vista and if I could get the same base level of functionality under Windows 7 I would be extremely happy.

Right now I get an error opening the *.pdb file when I compile after switching vc2003 to run as Administrator under compatibility mode for XP SP 2.

Thanks!

Answer 1

PATCH NOW AVAILABLE
After some reverse-engineering, I found the incorrectly refcounted COM object responsible for the leak (it was off by 1) and developed a stable patch and corresponding article describing the fix. This addresses problems encountered while using Windows 7 thru Windows 10. Details and download available at:

http://bytepointer.com/articles/vs7.1_2003_on_win7_pdb_handle_leak_bug_unofficial_fix.htm

If you want to perform the patch manually, those details are also included.

NOTE: The SysInternals Handle tool workaround did not work for files on a network-share. The .PDB was not completely unlocked although the Handle tool claimed it was closed. My fix eliminates the problem once and for all and avoids any side effects.

Answer 2

I've been using Visual studio 2003 on win7 since the very first RC edition was released :S why do people have issues?

Answer 3

I have a really dirty and pathetic workaround for the pdb problem.

Download and run Sysinternals-ProceXP, press CTRL-F enter the name of pdb(smt like ($ProjectName).pdb) that can't be created while linking. Double click when it is found.(if it can't be found run procexp with administrator priviliges)

Then you will see that the .pdb file is highlighted in the lower pane of the main screen. Right click it and select Close Handle. When you retry building your solution it wont raise an error.

I dont know if this solution can be scripted but it is at least better than restarting visual studio.