[GitHub] [arrow] kevingurney opened a new issue, #35224: [Docs][C++] Add warning to the "Building on Windows" documentation for the Arrow C++ libraries about potential MSVC Runtime compatibility issues with `Debug` builds

["kevingurney (via GitHub)" <gi...@apache.org>]

kevingurney opened a new issue, #35224:
URL: https://github.com/apache/arrow/issues/35224

   ### Describe the enhancement requested
   
   As discussed in [this comment thread](https://github.com/apache/arrow/pull/34563#discussion_r1167214786), when building the Arrow C++ libraries in `Debug` mode on Windows using Visual Studio, the resulting `arrow.dll` file will be linked against a [`MultiThreadedDebugDLL` (i.e. `/MDd`) version](https://cmake.org/cmake/help/latest/prop_tgt/MSVC_RUNTIME_LIBRARY.html) of the [MSVC Runtime libraries](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/c-runtime-library/crt-library-features) (e.g. `VCRUNTIME140D.dll` - note the **D** for **D**ebug in the DLL name).
   
   This can lead to unexpected behavior (e.g. crashes, memory corruptions, etc.) when linking `arrow.dll` against other code that is built against a different MSVC Runtime (e.g. a non-`Debug` version). We ran into this issue when [developing the MATLAB interface](https://github.com/apache/arrow/pull/34563#discussion_r1160962568) and linking a `Debug` build of `arrow.dll` against a [MATLAB MEX function](https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/call-mex-functions.html) (which is linked against a non-`Debug` MSVC Runtime by default). It was quite challenging to determine the root cause of the issue from the symptoms (memory corruption).
   
   The fact that [every DLL and EXE can be linked against a different MSVC Runtime](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/c-runtime-library/crt-library-features?view=msvc-170#what-problems-exist-if-an-application-uses-more-than-one-crt-version) may not be obvious to some C++ developers who primarily develop on platforms other than Windows. Therefore, it might be helpful to add a note to the ["Debug Builds" section of the "Building on Windows" documentation for the Arrow C++ libraries](https://arrow.apache.org/docs/developers/cpp/windows.html#debug-builds) to warn developers about potential MSVC Runtime compatibility issues when building in `Debug` mode. Hopefully, this will help prevent other community members from having to spend lots of effort debugging similar issues in the future.
   
   ### Component(s)
   
   C++, Documentation


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[GitHub] [arrow] westonpace commented on issue #35224: [Docs][C++] Add warning to the "Building on Windows" documentation for the Arrow C++ libraries about potential MSVC Runtime compatibility issues with `Debug` builds

["westonpace (via GitHub)" <gi...@apache.org>]

westonpace commented on issue #35224:
URL: https://github.com/apache/arrow/issues/35224#issuecomment-1515598472

   As someone that has been bitten by this in the past (and still doesn't fully understand it) I can appreciate the suggestion :)


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