xref: /reactos/media/doc/win32k_refs.txt (revision 4561998a)
1References:
2-----------
3
4window -> desktop
5window -> class
6
7thread_input -> thread
8
9thread -> process
10process -> winsta
11thread -> desktop
12desktop -> winsta
13winsta -> session
14
15NOTE: 	Message queue has 1:1 relationship with (w32)thread and need no ref. count.
16      	-If the (w32)thread is destroyed, so is the message queue.
17	-If the (w32)thread exist, so does the message queue.
18	So if you want the queue to hang around, you reference the thread instead.
19
20^ This is wrong, one can attach message queue to different thread using
21AttachThreadInput. The number of threads sharing a queue is stored in the
22message queue structure and can be considered a reference count. Also on
23Windows systems there is maintained a global list of thread attachments.
24
25Above references create following dependencies:
26-----------------------------------------------
27
28window -> desktop -> winsta -> session
29window -> class
30
31thread -> process -> winsta -> session
32thread -> desktop -> winsta -> session
33
34process -> winsta -> session
35
36NtUser/NtGdi/win32k syscalls
37----------------------------
38
39A process and/or thread automatically gets converted to a GUI thread /
40process when the first syscall from the shadow service table is called (ie.
41any NtUser* or NtGdi* call). GUI threads have bigger kernel stack (FIXME:
42not the case on ReactOS yet) and have associated storage for the Win32
43structures. The conversion itself happens in the syscall handler and the
44win32k callbacks (registered with PsEstablishWin32Callouts) are called
45accordingly.
46
47A process automatically establishes a connection to a window station on the
48GUI thread conversion.  The Win32 process initialization callback routine
49also creates and initializes the W32PROCESS structure and associates it with
50the process.
51
52Similary for thread the callback routine automatically assigns a desktop
53when the thread is converted to GUI thread. The thread also gets a W32THREAD
54structure, a message queue and a thread input structures.
55
56Beware that there is an exception to these rules and that's WinLogon. Since
57at the time the process starts no window stations or desktops exist, none
58are assigned to the the initial thread / process. The first Win32k calls
59the thread does are to create the window station and desktop and to associate
60them with itself.
61
62FIXME: At the time of this writing there's a second exception, a "primitive
63message queue" thread in CSRSS that is created before any window stations
64exist and is used to capture keyboard input in console mode. Eventually we
65should get rid of it and replace is with hidden window w/ focus or something
66similar.
67
68Generally this means that when you are in a Win32k syscall function (other
69than the window station or desktop functions) you can be 100% sure that the
70following exists:
71
72- Process window station
73- Win32 process structure
74- Win32 thread structure
75- Thread message queue
76- Thread input
77- Thread desktop
78
79There is no need to validate any of these values, because they MUST EXIST!
80