Talk:Family API

Family API is subset of Legacy API which emulated via DOS interrupts in binded to OS/2 NE (New Executable) executable instead of standard stub.

Standard NE EXE contains stub which writes something like "This program requires OS/2"

For Family API BIND tool replaces such stub by "emulation library" and NE loader/linker.

So "binded" OS/2 exe file can be executed under DOS if OS/2 exe uses only Family API subset.

Such library named api.lib in old SDK.

32-bit LX executables doesn't work with Family API. Only old NE executables.

HX DOS extender uses similar approach to execute Windows NE executables under dos and Windows PE executables. Before OS/2 2.0 main exe format was NE. LE format is not widely used but can be found. LX is main format for OS/2 for now. Also PE format is used in SciTech SNAP drivers. So FAPI work only for NE formats. In current OS/2 some command line tools is family executables.