Declaring API functions for 64 bit Office (and Mac Office)

Content

Introduction

If you develop VBA code for multiple versions of Office, you may face a challenge: ensuring your code works on both 32 bit and 64 bit platforms.

This page is meant to be the first stop for anyone who needs the proper syntax for his API declaration statement in Office VBA.

Many of the declarations were figured out by Charles Williams of www.decisionmodels.com when he created the 64 bit version of our Name Manager.

All of these are Windows API calls. Some have Mac equivalents however (like the CopyMemory one). I'll try to add those as I find them.

Of course Microsoft documents how to do this. There is an introductory article on Microsoft MSDN:

Compatibility Between the 32-bit and 64-bit Versions of Office 2010

That article describes the how-to's to properly write the declarations. What is missing is which type declarations go with which API function or sub.

Microsoft has provided an updated version of the Win32API.txt with all proper declarations available for download here:

Office 2010 Help Files: Win32API_PtrSafe with 64-bit Support

When you run the installer after downloading the file form the link above, it does not tell you where it installed the information. Look in this -new- folder on your C drive:

C:\Office 2010 Developer Resources\Documents\Office2010Win32API_PtrSafe

You can find a list of the old Win32 API declarations here:

Visual Basic Win32 API Declarations

Microsoft also published a tool to check your code for 64 bit related problems, called the Microsoft Office Code Compatibility inspector addin.

API functions that were added/modified in 64-bit Windows: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa383663(VS.85).aspx

API Functions by Windows release:

 http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa383687(VS.85).aspx

Utter Access API declarations (a comprehensive list of many declarations)

Last, but certainly not least: Dennis Walentin has built an API viewer that is really helpful. You can find the API viewer here.

Declarations by API function

CloseClipboard

#If VBA7 Then
  Declare PtrSafe Function CloseClipboard Lib "User32" () As LongPtr
#Else
  Declare Function CloseClipboard Lib "User32" () As Long
#End If

CopyMemory

#If Mac Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function CopyMemory_byVar Lib "libc.dylib" Alias "memmove" (ByRef dest As Any, ByRef src As Any, ByVal size As Long) As LongPtr
#Else
    #If VBA7 Then
        Public Declare PtrSafe Sub CopyMemory Lib "kernel32" Alias "RtlMoveMemory" _
               (ByRef destination As Any, ByRef SOURCE As Any, ByVal Length As LongPtr)
    #Else
        Public Declare Sub CopyMemory Lib "kernel32" Alias "RtlMoveMemory" _
                                      (ByRef destination As Any, ByRef SOURCE As Any, ByVal Length As Long)
    #End If
#End If

CreateProcess

This is a complicated one because it has a lot of arguments. A fully functional example is included below the example declaration lines.
Courtesy: The example code was taken from this page

'Full example shown below, including the necessary structures
#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function CreateProcess Lib "kernel32" _
                                   Alias "CreateProcessA" (ByVal lpApplicationName As String, _
                                                           ByVal lpCommandLine As String, _
                                                           lpProcessAttributes As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES, _
                                                           lpThreadAttributes As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES, _
                                                           ByVal bInheritHandles As Long, _
                                                           ByVal dwCreationFlags As Long, _
                                                           lpEnvironment As Any, _
                                                           ByVal lpCurrentDriectory As String, _
                                                           lpStartupInfo As STARTUPINFO, _
                                                           lpProcessInformation As PROCESS_INFORMATION) As LongPtr

    Const INFINITE = &HFFFF
    Const STARTF_USESHOWWINDOW = &H1
Private Enum enSW
    SW_HIDE = 0
    SW_NORMAL = 1
    SW_MAXIMIZE = 3
    SW_MINIMIZE = 6
End Enum

Private Type PROCESS_INFORMATION
    hProcess As LongPtr
    hThread As LongPtr
    dwProcessId As Long
    dwThreadId As Long
End Type

Private Type STARTUPINFO
    cb As Long
    lpReserved As String
    lpDesktop As String
    lpTitle As String
    dwX As Long
    dwY As Long
    dwXSize As Long
    dwYSize As Long
    dwXCountChars As Long
    dwYCountChars As Long
    dwFillAttribute As Long
    dwFlags As Long
    wShowWindow As Integer
    cbReserved2 As Integer
    lpReserved2 As Byte
    hStdInput As LongPtr
    hStdOutput As LongPtr
    hStdError As LongPtr
End Type

Private Type SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES
    nLength As Long
    lpSecurityDescriptor As LongPtr
    bInheritHandle As Long
End Type

Private Enum enPriority_Class
    NORMAL_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H20
    IDLE_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H40
    HIGH_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H80
End Enum
#Else
    Declare Function CreateProcess Lib "kernel32" _
                                   Alias "CreateProcessA" (ByVal lpApplicationName As String, _
                                                           ByVal lpCommandLine As String, _
                                                           lpProcessAttributes As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES, _
                                                           lpThreadAttributes As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES, _
                                                           ByVal bInheritHandles As Long, _
                                                           ByVal dwCreationFlags As Long, _
                                                           lpEnvironment As Any, _
                                                           ByVal lpCurrentDriectory As String, _
                                                           lpStartupInfo As STARTUPINFO, _
                                                           lpProcessInformation As PROCESS_INFORMATION) As Long

    Const INFINITE = &HFFFF
    Const STARTF_USESHOWWINDOW = &H1
Private Enum enSW
    SW_HIDE = 0
    SW_NORMAL = 1
    SW_MAXIMIZE = 3
    SW_MINIMIZE = 6
End Enum

Private Type PROCESS_INFORMATION
    hProcess As Long
    hThread As Long
    dwProcessId As Long
    dwThreadId As Long
End Type

Private Type STARTUPINFO
    cb As Long
    lpReserved As String
    lpDesktop As String
    lpTitle As String
    dwX As Long
    dwY As Long
    dwXSize As Long
    dwYSize As Long
    dwXCountChars As Long
    dwYCountChars As Long
    dwFillAttribute As Long
    dwFlags As Long
    wShowWindow As Integer
    cbReserved2 As Integer
    lpReserved2 As Byte
    hStdInput As Long
    hStdOutput As Long
    hStdError As Long
End Type

Private Type SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES
    nLength As Long
    lpSecurityDescriptor As Long
    bInheritHandle As Long
End Type

Private Enum enPriority_Class
    NORMAL_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H20
    IDLE_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H40
    HIGH_PRIORITY_CLASS = &H80
End Enum
#End If

Private Function SuperShell(ByVal App As String, ByVal WorkDir As String, dwMilliseconds As Long, _
                            ByVal start_size As enSW, ByVal Priority_Class As enPriority_Class) As Boolean


    Dim pclass As Long
    Dim sinfo As STARTUPINFO
    Dim pinfo As PROCESS_INFORMATION
    'Not used, but needed
    Dim sec1 As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES
    Dim sec2 As SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES
    'Set the structure size
    sec1.nLength = Len(sec1)
    sec2.nLength = Len(sec2)
    sinfo.cb = Len(sinfo)
    'Set the flags
    sinfo.dwFlags = STARTF_USESHOWWINDOW
    'Set the window's startup position
    sinfo.wShowWindow = start_size
    'Set the priority class
    pclass = Priority_Class

    'Start the program
    If CreateProcess(vbNullString, App, sec1, sec2, False, pclass, _
                     0&, WorkDir, sinfo, pinfo) Then
        'Wait
       ' WaitForSingleObject pinfo.hProcess, dwMilliseconds
        SuperShell = True
    Else
        SuperShell = False
    End If
End Function

Sub Test()
    Dim sFile As String
    'Set the dialog's title
    sFile = Application.GetOpenFilename("Executables (*.exe), *.exe", , "")
    SuperShell sFile, Left(sFile, InStrRev(sFile, "\")), 0, SW_NORMAL, HIGH_PRIORITY_CLASS
End Sub

DrawMenuBar

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function DrawMenuBar Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function DrawMenuBar Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
#End If

EmptyClipboard

#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function EmptyClipboard Lib "User32" () As LongPtr
#Else
    Declare Function EmptyClipboard Lib "User32" () As Long
#End If

FindWindow

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function FindWindow Lib "USER32" Alias "FindWindowA" (ByVal lpClassName As String, ByVal lpWindowName As String) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function FindWindow Lib "USER32" Alias "FindWindowA" (ByVal lpClassName As String, ByVal lpWindowName As String) As Long
#End If

FindWindowEx

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function FindWindowEx Lib "USER32" _
                                  Alias "FindWindowExA" (ByVal hWnd1 As LongPtr, ByVal hWnd2 As LongPtr, _
                                  ByVal lpsz1 As String, ByVal lpsz2 As String) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function FindWindowEx Lib "USER32" _
                                  Alias "FindWindowExA" (ByVal hWnd1 As Long, ByVal hWnd2 As Long, _
                                  ByVal lpsz1 As String, ByVal lpsz2 As String) As Long
#End If

GdipCreateBitmapFromFile

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GdipCreateBitmapFromFile Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal filename As LongPtr, bitmap As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GdipCreateBitmapFromFile Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal filename As Long, bitmap As Long) As Long
#End If

GdipCreateHBITMAPFromBitmap

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GdipCreateHBITMAPFromBitmap Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal bitmap As LongPtr, hbmReturn As LongPtr, ByVal background As Long) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GdipCreateHBITMAPFromBitmap Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal bitmap As Long, hbmReturn As Long, ByVal background As Long) As Long
#End If

GdipDisposeImage

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GdipDisposeImage Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal image As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GdipDisposeImage Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal image As Long) As Long
#End If

GdiplusShutdown

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GdiplusShutdown Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal token As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GdiplusShutdown Lib "GDIPlus" (ByVal token As Long) As Long
#End If

GdiplusStartup

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GdiplusStartup Lib "GDIPlus" (token As LongPtr, inputbuf As GdiplusStartupInput, Optional ByVal outputbuf As LongPtr = 0) As LongPtr

    Private Type GdiplusStartupInput
        GdiplusVersion As Long
        DebugEventCallback As LongPtr
        SuppressBackgroundThread As Long
        SuppressExternalCodecs As Long
    End Type
#Else
    Private Declare Function GdiplusStartup Lib "GDIPlus" (token As Long, inputbuf As GdiplusStartupInput, Optional ByVal outputbuf As Long = 0) As Long
    Private Type GdiplusStartupInput
        GdiplusVersion As Long
        DebugEventCallback As Long
        SuppressBackgroundThread As Long
        SuppressExternalCodecs As Long
    End Type

#End If

GetClassName

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetClassName Lib "user32" Alias "GetClassNameA" _
           (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal lpClassName As String, _
            ByVal nMaxCount As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetClassName Lib "user32" Alias "GetClassNameA" _
                                         (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal lpClassName As String, _
                                          ByVal nMaxCount As Long) As Long
#End If

GetDiskFreeSpaceEx

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDiskFreeSpaceEx Lib "kernel32" Alias _
            "GetDiskFreeSpaceExA" (ByVal lpDirectoryName As String, _
                                   lpFreeBytesAvailableToCaller As Currency, lpTotalNumberOfBytes As _
                                                                             Currency, lpTotalNumberOfFreeBytes As Currency) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDiskFreeSpaceEx Lib "kernel32" _
                                                Alias "GetDiskFreeSpaceExA" (ByVal lpDirectoryName As String, _
                                                                             lpFreeBytesAvailableToCaller As Currency, _
                                                                             lpTotalNumberOfBytes As Currency, _
                                                                             lpTotalNumberOfFreeBytes As Currency) As Long
#End If

GetDC

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDC Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDC Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
#End If

GetDesktopWindow

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDesktopWindow Lib "user32" () As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDesktopWindow Lib "user32" () As Long
#End If

getDeviceCaps

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDeviceCaps Lib "gdi32" (ByVal hDC As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDeviceCaps Lib "gdi32" (ByVal hDC As Long, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#End If

GetDriveType

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDriveType Lib "kernel32" Alias _
            "GetDriveTypeA" (ByVal sDrive As String) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDriveType Lib "kernel32" Alias _
                                          "GetDriveTypeA" (ByVal sDrive As String) As Long
#End If

GetExitCodeProcess

#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function GetExitCodeProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal _
        hProcess As LongPtr, lpExitCode As Long) As Long
#Else
    Declare Function GetExitCodeProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal _
        hProcess As Long, lpExitCode As Long) As Long
#End If

GetForegroundWindow

#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function GetForegroundWindow Lib "user32.dll" () As LongPtr
#Else
    Declare Function GetForegroundWindow Lib "user32.dll" () As Long
#End If

GetFrequency

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetFrequency Lib "kernel32" Alias "QueryPerformanceFrequency" (cyFrequency As Currency) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetFrequency Lib "kernel32" Alias "QueryPerformanceFrequency" (cyFrequency As Currency) As Long
#End If

GetKeyState

#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function GetKeyState Lib "USER32" (ByVal vKey As Long) As Integer
#Else
    Declare Function GetKeyState Lib "USER32" (ByVal vKey As Long) As Integer
#End If

GetLastInputInfo

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Type LASTINPUTINFO
        cbSize As LongPtr
        dwTime As LongPtr
    End Type
    Private Declare PtrSafe Sub GetLastInputInfo Lib "USER32" (ByRef plii As LASTINPUTINFO)
#Else
    Private Type LASTINPUTINFO
        cbSize As Long
        dwTime As Long
    End Type
    Private Declare Sub GetLastInputInfo Lib "USER32" (ByRef plii As LASTINPUTINFO)
#End If

GetOpenFileName

Option Explicit

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetOpenFileName Lib "comdlg32.dll" Alias _
            "GetOpenFileNameA" (pOpenfilename As OPENFILENAME) As Long
      
    Private Type OPENFILENAME
        lStructSize As Long
        hwndOwner As LongPtr
        hInstance As LongPtr
        lpstrFilter As String
        lpstrCustomFilter As String
        nMaxCustFilter As Long
        nFilterIndex As Long
        lpstrFile As String
        nMaxFile As Long
        lpstrFileTitle As String
        nMaxFileTitle As Long
        lpstrInitialDir As String
        lpstrTitle As String
        flags As Long
        nFileOffset As Integer
        nFileExtension As Integer
        lpstrDefExt As String
        lCustData As LongPtr
        lpfnHook As LongPtr
        lpTemplateName As String
    End Type
  
#Else

    Private Declare Function GetOpenFileName Lib "comdlg32.dll" Alias _
            "GetOpenFileNameA" (pOpenfilename As OPENFILENAME) As Long
      
    Private Type OPENFILENAME
        lStructSize As Long
        hwndOwner As Long
        hInstance As Long
        lpstrFilter As String
        lpstrCustomFilter As String
        nMaxCustFilter As Long
        nFilterIndex As Long
        lpstrFile As String
        nMaxFile As Long
        lpstrFileTitle As String
        nMaxFileTitle As Long
        lpstrInitialDir As String
        lpstrTitle As String
        flags As Long
        nFileOffset As Integer
        nFileExtension As Integer
        lpstrDefExt As String
        lCustData As Long
        lpfnHook As Long
        lpTemplateName As String
    End Type
#End If
'/////////////////////////////////
'// End code GetOpenFileName    //
'/////////////////////////////////


Private Function GetMyFile(strTitle As String) As String

    Dim OpenFile    As OPENFILENAME
    Dim lReturn     As Long
  
    OpenFile.lpstrFilter = ""
    OpenFile.nFilterIndex = 1
    OpenFile.hwndOwner = 0
    OpenFile.lpstrFile = String(257, 0)
    #If VBA7 Then
        OpenFile.nMaxFile = LenB(OpenFile.lpstrFile) - 1
        OpenFile.lStructSize = LenB(OpenFile)
    #Else
        OpenFile.nMaxFile = Len(OpenFile.lpstrFile) - 1
        OpenFile.lStructSize = Len(OpenFile)
    #End If
    OpenFile.lpstrFileTitle = OpenFile.lpstrFile
    OpenFile.nMaxFileTitle = OpenFile.nMaxFile
    OpenFile.lpstrInitialDir = "C:\"
    OpenFile.lpstrTitle = strTitle
    OpenFile.flags = 0
    lReturn = GetOpenFileName(OpenFile)
  
    If lReturn = 0 Then
        GetMyFile = ""
    Else
        GetMyFile = Trim(Left(OpenFile.lpstrFile, InStr(1, OpenFile.lpstrFile, vbNullChar) - 1))
    End If
  
End Function

GetSystemMetrics

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetSystemMetrics Lib "user32" (ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetSystemMetrics Lib "user32" (ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#End If

GetTempPath

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetTempPath Lib "kernel32" _
            Alias "GetTempPathA" (ByVal nBufferLength As LongPtr, _
                                  ByVal lpbuffer As String) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetTempPath Lib "kernel32" _
                                         Alias "GetTempPathA" (ByVal nBufferLength As Long, _
                                                               ByVal lpbuffer As String) As Long
#End If

getTickCount

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function getTickCount Lib "kernel32" Alias "QueryPerformanceCounter" (cyTickCount As Currency) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function getTickCount Lib "kernel32" Alias "QueryPerformanceCounter" (cyTickCount As Currency) As Long
#End If

timeGetTime

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function timeGetTime Lib "winmm.dll" () As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function timeGetTime Lib "winmm.dll" () As Long
#End If

GetWindow

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindow Lib "user32" _
            (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal wCmd As Long) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetWindow Lib "user32" _
                                       (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal wCmd As Long) As Long
#End If

GetWindowLong

This is one of the few API functions that requires the Win64 compile constant:

#If VBA7 Then
    #If Win64 Then
        Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindowLongPtr Lib "USER32" Alias "GetWindowLongPtrA" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long) As LongPtr
    #Else
        Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindowLongPtr Lib "USER32" Alias "GetWindowLongA" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long) As LongPtr
    #End If
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetWindowLong Lib "USER32" Alias "GetWindowLongA" (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#End If

GetWindowsDirectory

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindowsDirectory& Lib "kernel32" Alias _
            "GetWindowsDirectoryA" (ByVal lpbuffer As String, _
                                    ByVal nSize As LongPtr)
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetWindowsDirectory& Lib "kernel32" Alias _
            "GetWindowsDirectoryA" (ByVal lpbuffer As String, _
                                    ByVal nSize As Long)
#End If

GetWindowText

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindowText Lib "user32" Alias "GetWindowTextA" _
            (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal lpString As String, _
             ByVal cch As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetWindowText Lib "user32" Alias "GetWindowTextA" _
                                           (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal lpString As String, _
                                            ByVal cch As Long) As Long
#End If

GetWindowTextLength

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetWindowTextLength Lib "user32" Alias "GetWindowTextLengthA" _
            (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetWindowTextLength Lib "user32" Alias "GetWindowTextLengthA" _
                                           (ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
#End If

GlobalAlloc

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GlobalAlloc Lib "kernel32" (ByVal wFlags As Long, ByVal dwBytes As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GlobalAlloc Lib "kernel32" (ByVal wFlags As Long, ByVal dwBytes As Long) As Long
#End If

GlobalLock

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GlobalLock Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hMem As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function GlobalLock Lib "kernel32" (ByVal hMem As Long) As Long
#End If

InternetGetConnectedState

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function InternetGetConnectedState _
            Lib "wininet.dll" (lpdwFlags As LongPtr, _
                               ByVal dwReserved As Long) As Boolean
#Else
    Private Declare Function InternetGetConnectedState _
                          Lib "wininet.dll" (lpdwFlags As Long, _
                                             ByVal dwReserved As Long) As Boolean
#End If

IsCharAlphaNumericA

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function IsCharAlphaNumericA Lib "user32" (ByVal byChar As Byte) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function IsCharAlphaNumericA Lib "user32" (ByVal byChar As Byte) As Long
#End If

lstrcpy

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function lstrcpy Lib "kernel32" (ByVal lpString1 As Any, ByVal lpString2 As Any) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function lstrcpy Lib "kernel32" (ByVal lpString1 As Any, ByVal lpString2 As Any) As Long
#End If

Mouse_Event

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Sub mouse_event Lib "user32" (ByVal dwFlags As Long, ByVal dx As Long, _
                                                  ByVal dy As Long, ByVal cButtons As Long, _
                                                   ByVal dwExtraInfo As LongPtr)
#Else
    Private Declare Sub mouse_event Lib "user32" (ByVal dwFlags As Long, ByVal dx As Long, _
                                                  ByVal dy As Long, ByVal cButtons As Long, _
                                                  ByVal dwExtraInfo As Long)
#End If
Private Const MOUSEEVENTF_MOVE = &H1         ' mouse move

OleCreatePictureIndirect

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function OleCreatePictureIndirect Lib "oleaut32.dll" (PicDesc As PICTDESC, RefIID As GUID, ByVal fPictureOwnsHandle As LongPtr, IPic As IPicture) As LongPtr

    Private Type PICTDESC
        Size As Long
        Type As Long
        hPic As LongPtr
        hPal As LongPtr
    End Type
#Else
    Private Declare Function OleCreatePictureIndirect Lib "oleaut32.dll" (PicDesc As PICTDESC, RefIID As GUID, ByVal fPictureOwnsHandle As Long, IPic As IPicture) As Long

    Private Type PICTDESC
        Size As Long
        Type As Long
        hPic As Long
        hPal As Long
    End Type
#End If

OleTranslateColor

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function OleTranslateColor Lib "oleaut32.dll" (ByVal lOleColor As Long, _
                                                                           ByVal lHPalette As Long, lColorRef As Long) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function OleTranslateColor Lib "olepro32.dll" (ByVal lOleColor As Long, _
                                                                   ByVal lHPalette As Long, ByRef lColorRef As Long) As Long
#End If

OpenClipboard

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function OpenClipboard Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function OpenClipboard Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
#End If

OpenProcess

#If VBA7 Then
    Declare PtrSafe Function OpenProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal _
        dwDesiredAccess As Long, ByVal bInheritHandle As Long, ByVal _
        dwProcessId As Long) As LongPtr
#Else
    Declare Function OpenProcess Lib "kernel32" (ByVal _
        dwDesiredAccess As Long, ByVal bInheritHandle As Long, ByVal _
        dwProcessId As Long) As Long
#End If

ReleaseDC

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function ReleaseDC Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal hDC As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function ReleaseDC Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal hDC As Long) As Long
#End If

SendMessage

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SendMessageA Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal wMsg As Long, _
                                                                ByVal wParam As LongPtr, lParam As Any) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function SendMessageA Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal wMsg As Long, _
                                                        ByVal wParam As Long, lParam As Any) As Long
#End If

SetActiveWindow

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SetActiveWindow Lib "user32.dll" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function SetActiveWindow Lib "user32.dll" (ByVal hWnd As Long) As Long
#End If

SetClipboardData

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SetClipboardData Lib "user32" (ByVal wFormat As LongPtr, ByVal hMem As LongPtr) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function SetClipboardData Lib "user32" (ByVal wFormat As Long, ByVal hMem As Long) As Long
#End If

SetCurrentDirectory

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SetCurrentDirectoryA Lib "kernel32" (ByVal lpPathName As String) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function SetCurrentDirectoryA Lib "kernel32" (ByVal lpPathName As String) As Long
#End If

SetWindowLongPtr

This is another one of the few API functions that require the Win64 compile constant:

#If VBA7 Then
    #If Win64 Then
        Private Declare PtrSafe Function SetWindowLongPtr Lib "USER32" Alias "SetWindowLongPtrA" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long, ByVal dwNewLong As LongPtr) As LongPtr
    #Else
        Private Declare Function SetWindowLongPtr Lib "USER32" Alias "SetWindowLongA" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long, ByVal dwNewLong As LongPtr) As LongPtr
    #End If
#Else
    Private Declare Function SetWindowLong Lib "USER32" Alias "SetWindowLongA" (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal nIndex As Long, ByVal dwNewLong As Long) As Long
#End If

SetWindowPos

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SetWindowPos _
            Lib "user32" (ByVal hwnd As LongPtr, ByVal hWndInsertAfter As LongPtr, _
                          ByVal X As Long, ByVal Y As Long, ByVal cx As Long, _
                          ByVal cy As Long, ByVal wFlags As Long) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function SetWindowPos _
            Lib "user32" (ByVal hwnd As Long, _
                          ByVal hWndInsertAfter As Long, _
                          ByVal X As Long, ByVal Y As Long, _
                          ByVal cx As Long, _
                          ByVal cy As Long, _
                          ByVal wFlags As Long) As Long
#End If

SHBrowseForFolder

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Type BROWSEINFO
        hOwner As LongPtr
        pidlRoot As LongPtr
        pszDisplayName As String
        lpszTitle As String
        ulFlags As Long
        lpfn As LongPtr
        lParam As LongPtr
        iImage As Long
    End Type
                       
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SHBrowseForFolder Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHBrowseForFolderA" _
        (lpBrowseInfo As BROWSEINFO) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Type BROWSEINFO
        hOwner As Long
        pidlRoot As Long
        pszDisplayName As String
        lpszTitle As String
        ulFlags As Long
        lpfn As Long
        lParam As Long
        iImage As Long
    End Type
                       
    Private Declare Function SHBrowseForFolder Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHBrowseForFolderA" _
        (lpBrowseInfo As BROWSEINFO) As Long
#End If
Private Const BIF_RETURNONLYFSDIRS = &H1

ShellExecute

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function ShellExecute Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "ShellExecuteA" ( _
            ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal lpOperation As String, ByVal lpFile As String, _
            ByVal lpParameters As String, ByVal lpDirectory As String, ByVal nShowCmd As Long) As LongPtr
#Else
    Private Declare Function ShellExecute Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "ShellExecuteA" ( _
                                          ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal lpOperation As String, ByVal lpFile As String, _
                                          ByVal lpParameters As String, ByVal lpDirectory As String, ByVal nShowCmd As Long) As Long

#End If

SHFileOperation

#If VBA7 Then
    Type SHFILEOPSTRUCT
        hWnd As LongPtr
        wFunc As Long
        pFrom As String
        pTo As String
        fFlags As Integer
        fAborted As Boolean
        hNameMaps As Longptr
        sProgress As String
    End Type
    Declare PtrSafe Function SHFileOperation Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHFileOperationA" _
                                     (lpFileOp As SHFILEOPSTRUCT) As LongPtr
#Else
    Type SHFILEOPSTRUCT
        hWnd As Long
        wFunc As Long
        pFrom As String
        pTo As String
        fFlags As Integer
        fAborted As Boolean
        hNameMaps As Long
        sProgress As String
    End Type
    Declare Function SHFileOperation Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHFileOperationA" _
                                     (lpFileOp As SHFILEOPSTRUCT) As Long
#End If

SHGetPathFromIDList

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SHGetPathFromIDList Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHGetPathFromIDListA" _
            (ByVal pidl As LongPtr, ByVal pszPath As String) As Boolean
#Else
    Private Declare Function SHGetPathFromIDList Lib "shell32.dll" Alias "SHGetPathFromIDListA" _
                                                 (ByVal pidl As Long, ByVal pszPath As String) As Boolean
#End If

SHGetSpecialFolderLocation

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function SHGetSpecialFolderLocation Lib _
            "shell32.dll" (ByVal hwndOwner As LongPtr, ByVal nFolder As Long, _
                           pidl As ITEMIDLIST) As LongPtr
    Private Type SHITEMID
        cb As LongPtr
        abID As Byte
    End Type
#Else
    Private Declare Function SHGetSpecialFolderLocation Lib _
            "shell32.dll" (ByVal hwndOwner As Long, ByVal nFolder As Long, _
                           pidl As ITEMIDLIST) As Long
    Private Type SHITEMID
        cb As Long
        abID As Byte
    End Type
#End If
Private Type ITEMIDLIST
    mkid As SHITEMID
End Type

timeGetTime

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function timeGetTime Lib "winmm.dll" () As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function timeGetTime Lib "winmm.dll" () As Long
#End If

URLDownloadToFile

#If VBA7 Then
Private Declare PtrSafe Function URLDownloadToFile Lib "urlmon" _
        Alias "URLDownloadToFileA" (ByVal pCaller As LongPtr, _
                                    ByVal szURL As String, ByVal szFileName As String, _
                                    ByVal dwReserved As LongPtr, ByVal lpfnCB As LongPtr) As Long
#Else
Private Declare Function URLDownloadToFile Lib "urlmon" _
        Alias "URLDownloadToFileA" (ByVal pCaller As Long, _
                                    ByVal szURL As String, ByVal szFileName As String, _
                                    ByVal dwReserved As Long, ByVal lpfnCB As Long) As Long
#End If

Which Longs should become LongPtr?

It's actually pretty easy to determine what requires LongPtr and what can stay as Long. The only things that require LongPtr are function arguments or return values that represent addresses in memory. This is because a 64-bit OS has a memory space that is too large to hold in a Long data type variable. Arguments or return values that represent data will still be declared Long even in 64-bit.

The SendMessage API is a good example because it uses both types:

32-bit:

Private Declare Function SendMessageA Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As Long, ByVal wMsg As Long, _
                                                   ByVal wParam As Long, lParam As Any) As Long

64 bit:

Private Declare PtrSafe Function SendMessageA Lib "user32" (ByVal hWnd As LongPtr, ByVal wMsg As Long, _
                                                           ByVal wParam As LongPtr, lParam As Any) As LongPtr

The first argument -hWnd- is a window handle, which is an address in memory. The return value is a pointer to a function, which is also an address in memory. Both of these must be declared LongPtr in 64-bit VBA. The argument wMsg is used to pass data, so can be Long in both 32-bit and 64-bit.

How to determine what is a memory address and what is data? You just have to read the MSDN documentation for the API functions (the C++ version) and it will tell you. Anything called a handle, pointer, brush or any other object type will require a LongPtr in 64-bit. Anything that is strictly data can stay as Long.

Conditional compiling

If your code needs to run on both 32 bit and 64 bit Excel, then another thing to do is add conditional compilation to your VBA.

Microsoft devised two compile constants to handle this:

VBA7: True if you're using Office 2010, False for older versions

WIN64: True if your Office installation is 64 bit, false for 32 bit.

Since the 64 bit declarations also work on 32 bit Office 2010, all you have to test for is VBA7:

#If VBA7 Then
    Private Declare PtrSafe Function GetDeviceCaps Lib "gdi32" (ByVal hDC As LongPtr, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#Else
    Private Declare Function GetDeviceCaps Lib "gdi32" (ByVal hDC As Long, ByVal nIndex As Long) As Long
#End If

And then in the routine where this function is put to use:

#If VBA7 Then
    Dim hDC As LongPtr
#Else
    Dim hDC As Long
#End If
Dim lDotsPerInch As Long
'Get the user's DPI setting
lDotsPerInch = GetDeviceCaps(hDC, LOGPIXELSX)

Other API functions

Have a function declaration which is not on this list? I invite you to send me your (working and tested!!!) declarations so I can add them here.

I also welcome comments and suggestions on improvements!

Comments

Showing last 8 comments of 372 in total (Show All Comments):

 

Comment by: GG (27-9-2023 09:59:00) deeplink to this comment

I want to know why MS document Win32api.txt is limited to the A variant.Doesn't need the W variant to change 32bit to 64bit migration.
Sorry for my bad question,please give me advice.Thanks you.

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (27-9-2023 11:58:00) deeplink to this comment

Hi GG,

Whether to use the A or W variants depends whether you are using the Windows code page or Unicode, see:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/intl/conventions-for-function-prototypes

I suspect the declarations can be easily translated from A to W simply by replacing the A with the W in the declaration line. It is best to read the documentation. Tip: To get to the docs of the w variant, simply replace the a with the w in the url of the documentation page.

Comment by: Henrique Schumacher (19-11-2023 20:33:00) deeplink to this comment

The "A" variants use the active code page for the system and usually accepts codepoints as 1 byte each, in pratice because windows uses UTF-16 internally, most "A" APIs will involve converting to UTF-16 internally

The "W" variants use UTF-16 in modern windows (and used to use UCS-2, which is compatible with UTF-16) which uses 2 bytes for each codepoint, while VB6 and VBA strings are directly compatible with this, VB6 converts any API declaration with "As String" to a string in the system code page, and i believe VBA probably does the same.

Which means any API call with strings will probably :
1- Make VB6/VBA convert the string to the system active code page with 1 byte for each codepoint
2- The A Api will internally convert back to UTF-16 with 2 bytes for each codepoint

In VB6 i used to solve this by either declaring the API in a typelib (which enabled me to use "As String" directly as a UTF-16 string without any implicit conversion) or treat it as a Long/LongPtr and use StrPtr(MyStringVariable) instead

So that's probably the reason they are limited to the A variant, it's because VB6 and VBA are probably doing a implicit conversion

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (20-11-2023 09:54:00) deeplink to this comment

Hi Henrique,

Thanks for that clarification, very helpful!

Comment by: Andy Smith (16-7-2024 20:06:00) deeplink to this comment

I have three environments I'm trying to manage:
- Windows 10 / Office 2019/32
- Windows 10 / Office 365/64
- Windows 11 / Office 365/64

I've changed many Office/VBA artifacts with Windows API declarations by adding an #If VBA7 block, putting the old declarations AFTER the #Else part and putting the PtrSafe/LongPtr declarations BEFORE the #Else.

But VBA7 is true in all three environments! Isn't there a "VBA8" to determine Office 365? In any case I changed all the #If blocks to #If Win64 instead. Is that correct?

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (16-7-2024 20:29:00) deeplink to this comment

Hi Andy,

If you don't expect anyone to be using an Excel version older than 2010(!), basically you can simply use the ptrSafe declarations without conditional compilation. The only exceptions are the ones on this page that include a separate clause with win64.

Comment by: Andy Smith (16-7-2024 20:49:00) deeplink to this comment

You wrote:
"Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (16-7-2024 20:29:00) deeplink to this comment

Hi Andy,

If you don't expect anyone to be using an Excel version older than 2010(!), basically you can simply use the PtrSafe declarations without conditional compilation. The only exceptions are the ones on this page that include a separate clause with win64."

Wait - 32-bit Office and 64-bit Office BOTH have LongPtrs and LongLongs? All the stuff I've read on the web about converting mentions conditional compilation using VBA7, not Win64. I'm pretty confused now, but rest assured Office 2019 and Windows 10 are the oldest versions of those products we use!

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (16-7-2024 23:22:00) deeplink to this comment

As of Excel 2010, VBA is version 7, which knows to use the LongPtr type as a Long in 32 bit Office, or as a Long Long in 64 bit. That is why you can use almost all ptrSafe versions of the APIs, except for this one for example: GetWindowLong, which needs the #If win64 bit. . See above.

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