Consider the following scenario:

• You develop a Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Service Pack 1 (SP1) application by using Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 SP1.
• The application uses the ifstream class to perform stream operations.
• The application calls the ifstream::seekg function.
• The seek position is located after the end position of the stream.

In this scenario, the value of the stream pointer is the value that represents the end position of the stream. However, you expect "-1" to be the value of the stream pointer. Additionally, this behavior leads to the following problems:

• When you call the ifstream::tellg function to obtain the pointer value, "-1" is not the value that is returned.
• When you call the ifstream::eof function, "true" is not the value that is returned.

Note This issue does not occur in Visual C++ 2005 SP1.

Hotfix information

A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft. However, it is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. This hotfix may receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, we recommend that you wait for the next service pack that contains this hotfix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Customer Support Services to obtain the hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Support Services telephone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:Note In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

Prerequisites

You must have Visual Studio 2008 SP1 installed to apply this hotfix.

Restart requirement

You do not have to restart the computer after you apply this hotfix if no instance of Visual Studio is being used.

Hotfix replacement information

This hotfix does not replace any other hotfixes.

File information

The English version of this hotfix has the file attributes (or later file attributes) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time item in Control Panel.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the "Applies to" section.