The Old New Thing

Practical development throughout the evolution of Windows.

Latest posts

Jul 3, 2026
Post comments count 1
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How did we conclude that CcNamespace.dll was the ringleader of a group of DLLs that unloaded prematurely?

Raymond Chen

Contextual clues.

Jul 2, 2026
Post comments count 6
Post likes count 3

The case of the thread executing from an unloaded third-party DLL

Raymond Chen

Oops, I didn't realize that I was still doing that.

Jul 1, 2026
Post comments count 5
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It rather involved being on the other side of this airtight hatchway: Changing administrative settings

Raymond Chen

Unlocking the door from the inside.

Jun 30, 2026
Post comments count 2
Post likes count 1

2026 mid-year link clearance

Raymond Chen

Made it to another midpoint.

Jun 30, 2026
Post comments count 5
Post likes count 2

A compatibility note on the abuse of Windows window class extra bytes

Raymond Chen

Finding an illicit place to hide data.

Jun 29, 2026
Post comments count 2
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The evolution of window and class extra bytes in Windows

Raymond Chen

The intended usage is encoded in the prefix.

Jun 26, 2026
Post comments count 21
Post likes count 5

The case of the DLL that was not present in memory despite not being formally unloaded, part 2

Raymond Chen

Tying two bugs together.

Jun 25, 2026
Post comments count 3
Post likes count 4

Raymond’s hot take on Hainanese chicken

Raymond Chen

Subtlety.

Jun 25, 2026
Post comments count 5
Post likes count 8

The case of the DLL that was not present in memory despite not being formally unloaded, part 1

Raymond Chen

Figuring out how it went missing.