LIB File Documentation

Overview

Feature Value
File Extension .lib
Full Name Microsoft Linker Input Library File
Primary Association Windows Development
File Type Static Library
Used By Microsoft Visual Studio, GCC (with MinGW on Windows)
Content Type Binary
Purpose Linking static libraries to executables or other libraries
Contains Object code, Symbols
Compatibility Windows
Structure Archive of COFF (Common Object File Format) files
Can Include Metadata, Debugging Information
Typical Usage Software Development, Linking in Software Compilation Process
Manipulation Tools LIB.exe (part of Microsoft Visual Studio), AR (GNU Binutils)
How to Create Using Microsoft Visual Studio or GCC with AR command
Encryption Support No
Compression No inherent compression, but can be manually compressed
Advantages Facilitates modular programming, reusability
Disadvantages Platform dependent, can increase executable size
Difference from DLL Static linking vs. Dynamic linking
Accessibility Can only be opened and manipulated with specific development tools
Example Tools for Creation Microsoft LIB tool, GNU AR tool
Example Tools for Extraction 7-Zip, WinRAR (with varying degrees of success)