System and method for supporting new and existing extensions to application programming interfaces

One or more computer readable storage media having stored thereon a plurality of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, causes the one or more processors to:

• expose an IKsControl Component Object Model (COM) interface that can be invoked by both Application Programming Interface (API) extensions designed to work with a DirectShow® API and API extensions designed to work with an API to replace the DirectShow® API;
• invoke a driver associated with one of the API extensions whenever a call is made by the API extension via the IKsControl COM interface regardless of whether the API extension is designed to work with the DirectShow® API or with the API to replace the DirectShow® API;
• identify an event handle for the call;
• and
• prior to the driver being invoked, set a flag in the event handle indicating that an API completion port is not to be signaled by the driver when the call is completed when the request is received from the DirectShow® API, and not set the flag in the event handle indicating that the I/O completion port is not to be signaled by the driver when the call is completed when the request is received from the API to replace the DirectShow® API.

A method implemented on a computer system, the method comprising:

• receiving by a Component Object Model (COM) object, from an Application Programming Interface (API) plug-in, a request associated with an Input/Output (I/O) call, the API plug-in including one or more interfaces to allow an application to invoke functionality supported by a driver associated with the API plug-in, wherein the API plug-in is a contemporary API plug-in or a previous version API plug-in;
• setting, by the COM object on behalf of the API plug-in, one or more setting values for the request so that the request is compatible with requests associated with other I/O calls, wherein the setting comprises setting, in an event handle, a flag indicating than in I/O completion port is not to be signaled by the driver upon completion of the I/O call when the request is received from a previous version API plug-in, and not setting, in the event handle, the flag indicating that the I/O completion port is not to be signaled by the driver upon completion of the I/O call when the request is received from a contemporary API plug-in;
• and
• invoking the driver to carry out the I/O call.

A system comprising:

• memory;
• one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory;
• an object aggregation module configured to aggregate an additional object onto a first object,
• wherein the additional object is one of a Application Programming Interface (API) plug-in or a API extension, and wherein the API plug-in is a contemporary API plug-in or a previous version API plug-in;
• and
• a compatibility module configured to set one or more setting values for a request received from an interface exposed by the additional object, the request being associated with an Input/Output (I/O) call, the one or more setting values being set so that the I/O call can be completed in a manner that is compatible with other I/O calls, based on whether the request is received from an interface exposed by the contemporary API plug-in or from an interface exposed by the previous version API plug-in, and further to invoke a driver to carry out the I/O call, the driver being associated with the additional object,
• wherein set the one or more setting values comprises identify an event handle for the I/O call, and
• set, in the event handle, a flag indicating that an I/O completion port is not to be signaled by the driver when the I/O call is completed when the request is received from the previous version API plug-in, and not set, in the event handle, the flag indicating that the I/O completion port is not to be signaled by the driver when the I/O call is completed when the request is received from the contemporary API plug-in.