Windows® via C/C++, Fifth Edition

Terminating a Process

A process can be terminated in four ways:

• The primary thread’s entry-point function returns. (This is highly recommended.)

• One thread in the process calls the ExitProcess function. (Avoid this method.)

• A thread in another process calls the TerminateProcess function. (Avoid this method.)

• All the threads in the process just die on their own. (This hardly ever happens.)

This section discusses all four methods and describes what actually happens when a process ends.

The Primary Thread’s Entry-Point Function Returns

You should always design an application so that its process terminates only when your primary thread’s entry-point function returns. This is the only way to guarantee that all your primary thread’s resources are cleaned up ...