The GetPrivateProfileString function retrieves a string from the specified section in an initialization file. This function is provided for compatibility with 16-bit Windows-based applications. Win32-based applications should store initialization information in the registry. 

DWORD GetPrivateProfileString(

    LPCTSTR lpAppName,	// points to section name 
    LPCTSTR lpKeyName,	// points to key name 
    LPCTSTR lpDefault,	// points to default string 
    LPTSTR lpReturnedString,	// points to destination buffer 
    DWORD nSize,	// size of destination buffer 
    LPCTSTR lpFileName 	// points to initialization filename 
   );	
 

Parameters

lpAppName

Points to a null-terminated string that specifies the section containing the key name. If this parameter is NULL, the GetPrivateProfileString function copies all section names in the file to the supplied buffer. 

lpKeyName

Pointer to the null-terminated string containing the key name whose associated string is to be retrieved. If this parameter is NULL, all key names in the section specified by the lpAppName parameter are copied to the buffer specified by the lpReturnedString parameter. 

lpDefault

Pointer to a null-terminated default string. If the lpKeyName key cannot be found in the initialization file, GetPrivateProfileString copies the default string to the lpReturnedString buffer. This parameter cannot be NULL.
Avoid specifying a default string with trailing blank characters. The function inserts a null character in the lpReturnedString buffer to strip any trailing blanks.
Windows 95: Although lpDefault is declared as a constant parameter, Windows 95 strips any trailing blanks by inserting a null character into the lpDefault string before copying it to the lpReturnedString buffer. 

Windows NT: Windows NT does not modify the lpDefault string. This means that if the default string contains trailing blanks, the lpReturnedString and lpDefault strings will not match when compared using the lstrcmp function.

lpReturnedString

Pointer to the buffer that receives the retrieved string. 

nSize

Specifies the size, in characters, of the buffer pointed to by the lpReturnedString parameter. 

lpFileName

Pointer to a null-terminated string that names the initialization file. If this parameter does not contain a full path to the file, Windows searches for the file in the Windows directory.