[Xapian-discuss] Python or PHP hangs when loading a cygwin Xapian module

[Patrick Mézard]

Hello,

Thomas Deniau wrote:
[...]
> I then tried to use the Python bindings (maybe I could have re-programmed my
> client web site using Python...).
>
> The Python bindings compile just fine using the same tricks I used for PHP
> (copying python24.dll to libpython24.dll, compile the Windows sources with
> Cygwin to get the necessary header files, etc.). The test made by make then
> fails, but you get a working DLL file that you can copy to Python24\DLLs.
>
> However, when I try to load the Python module, Python just... hangs. Just like
> PHP.
>
> I also tried the instructions put forth by Patrick Mezard at
> http://article.gmane.org/gmane.comp.search.xapian.general/2071 (generate a
> libpython24.a by hand), but the exact same problem occurs.
>
>
> I tried to run a dependency check on the DLLs and I found out that they require
> a file named "apphelp.dll" which couldn't be found. Google reports that that's
> a DLL required by IE6, but that only WinXP has it, not Win2K (and IE still
> works fine, but any other apps have problems loading the DLLs). Since Patrick
> seems not to have had any such problems, and since he is running WinXP, I'm
> wondering if I'm doing something wrong or if I fail because I'm using Win2K.
I just checked the dependencies of both DLLs:
- cygxapian-8.dll depends on kernel32.dll and msvcrt.dll only.
- _xapian.pyd depends on many many DLLs, including apphelp.dll which is 
available in %SYSTEM_ROOT%\system32. It also depends on msjava.dll which 
cannot be found in my system.

apphelp.dll is needed through :
python24.dll <= advapi32.dll <= secur32.dll <= netapi32.dll <= 
dnsapi.dll <= iphlpapi.dll <= mprapi.dll <= setupapi.dll <= apphelp.dll.
There are probably other dependency paths. Since you built everything 
from Win2k stuff or directly from sources, it is strange an undeployed 
DLL is required by the final binaries.

--
Patrick Mézard