Statically linking a DLL into FORTRAN (!!)

Hi all (and thanks for opening what probably sounds like a really boring subject!)

I am trying to incorporate some form of copy protection into a FORTRAN program. I have decided to get the FORTRAN program to obtain the current time from an NTP server off the web and the unique serial ID of the hard drive. A license file is then read by the FORTRAN program and if the dates are correct AND the hard drive ID is in the license file, then the program proceeds. The tricky part is that the functions needed to get the internet time and hard drive ID are written in C++.

So far, I have managed to create a DLL containing the two C++ functions and call them from a FORTRAN program. When I then run the FORTRAN program, the DLL has to be present.

I would like to be able to incorporate the DLL into the FORTRAN program (i.e. statically linking the DLL) but I don't know if this is possible and how to do it if it is! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE help!

DLL stands for dynamically linked library, of course it has to be there. You shouldn't try to statically link to it. Recompile your library into a static library instead.