Method of using ::SHCreateDirectoryEx function in C++

In C++,::SHCreateDirectoryExis a function provided by the Windows Shell API to create multi-level directories (similar tomkdir -pOrder). With the standard libraryCreateDirectoryDifferently, it can automatically create missing intermediate directories in the path. The following are detailed usage methods and examples:

1. Function prototype and dependencies

#include &lt;&gt;
#include <> // Include header file#pragma comment(lib, "") // Link Shell32 library
int SHCreateDirectoryEx(
  _In_opt_ HWND                hwnd,         // Parent window handle (can be set to NULL)  _In_     LPCTSTR             pszPath,      // The directory path to create  _In_opt_ const SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES *psa    // Security attributes (usually NULL));

Return value：

0（ERROR_SUCCESS): Created successfully.
Nonzero value: Error code (can be passedGetLastError()Get detailed error information).

2. Basic usage examples

Example 1: Create a single-layer directory

#include &lt;&gt;
#include &lt;&gt;
#include &lt;iostream&gt;

int main() {
    LPCWSTR path = L"C:\\MyFolder";  // Wide character path (Unicode)
    int result = ::SHCreateDirectoryEx(
        NULL,        // Parentless window        path,        // Directory path        NULL         // Default security properties    );

    if (result == ERROR_SUCCESS) {
        std::wcout &lt;&lt; L"Catalog created successfully: " &lt;&lt; path &lt;&lt; std::endl;
    } else {
        std::wcerr &lt;&lt; L"Error code: " &lt;&lt; result &lt;&lt; std::endl;
    }

    return 0;
}

Example 2: Create a multi-level directory

LPCWSTR path = L"C:\\Parent\\Child\\Grandchild";  // Automatically create missing directories in the middleint result = ::SHCreateDirectoryEx(NULL, path, NULL);

3. Key considerations

(1) Unicode and multibyte character sets

Recommended Unicode version: The Windows API uses wide characters first by default (WCHAR/LPCWSTR）。

If using multibyte character set (char), explicit conversion paths are required:

LPCSTR pathA = "C:\\MyFolder";
WCHAR pathW[MAX_PATH];
MultiByteToWideChar(CP_ACP, 0, pathA, -1, pathW, MAX_PATH);
::SHCreateDirectoryEx(NULL, pathW, NULL);

(2) Path format

useDouble backslash\\orForward slash/As a separator:

LPCWSTR path1 = L"C:/MyFolder/Subdir";  // Forward slashLPCWSTR path2 = L"C:\\MyFolder\\Subdir"; // Double backslash

(3) Error handling

Judging whether it is successful by the return value, combined withGetLastError()Get detailed information:

if (result != ERROR_SUCCESS) {
    DWORD error = ::GetLastError();
    LPWSTR errorMsg = nullptr;
    ::FormatMessage(
        FORMAT_MESSAGE_ALLOCATE_BUFFER | FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM,
        NULL,
        error,
        0,
        (LPWSTR)&amp;errorMsg,
        0,
        NULL
    );
    std::wcerr &lt;&lt; L"mistake: " &lt;&lt; errorMsg &lt;&lt; std::endl;
    ::LocalFree(errorMsg);
}

4. FAQs and Solutions

Problem 1: Insufficient path permissions

Performance: Return the error code5（ERROR_ACCESS_DENIED）。
solve：
- Run the program with administrator privileges (right-click → Run as administrator).
- Modify the target directory permissions (right-click directory → Properties → Security → Edit permissions).

Issue 2: The path is invalid or contains illegal characters

Performance: Return the error code123（ERROR_INVALID_NAME）。
solve: Check whether the path contains<, >, :, ", |, ?, *etc.

Problem 3: Insufficient disk space

Performance: Return the error code112（ERROR_DISK_FULL）。
solve: Clean the disk or select another storage location.

5. Alternatives

(1) Use the standard library <filesystem> (C++17 and above)

#include &lt;filesystem&gt;
namespace fs = std::filesystem;

bool createDirectory(const std::wstring&amp; path) {
    try {
        return fs::create_directories(path);
    } catch (const fs::filesystem_error&amp; e) {
        std::wcerr &lt;&lt; L"mistake: " &lt;&lt; () &lt;&lt; std::endl;
        return false;
    }
}

(2) Use the Boost file system library

#include &lt;boost/&gt;
namespace fs = boost::filesystem;

bool createDirectory(const std::string&amp; path) {
    try {
        return fs::create_directories(path);
    } catch (const fs::filesystem_error&amp; e) {
        std::cerr &lt;&lt; "mistake: " &lt;&lt; () &lt;&lt; std::endl;
        return false;
    }
}

Summarize

::SHCreateDirectoryExIt is an efficient tool for creating multi-level directories under the Windows platform, suitable for scenarios where older systems need to be compatible with legacy systems or directly using the Shell API.
Pay attention when usingPath format、Character encodingandError handling。
For new projects, priority is givenC++17's<filesystem>orBoost Library, the code is more concise and cross-platform.

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