Foundations of C++/CLI: The Visual C++ Language for .NET 3.5

CHAPTER 13Interoperability

Interoperability, or interop as it is usually called, refers to using or invoking program code from some other programming environment or language, for example, calling COM or native C++ code from a managed language. Interop is a complex but extremely necessary thing. Many people think that the C++/CLI language for the .NET platform would be used primarily to extend existing code bases written in native C++. While there is no reason why you could not use C++/CLI as your .NET language of choice, the support that C++/CLI provides for native code interop on the .NET platform is indeed impressive. In many cases, you simply turn on the /clr compiler option and recompile your native code, producing managed code (or at least ...