AHKCompiler

A native AutoHotkey v2 compiler that automates the generation of standalone executables by interfacing directly with Git and MSBuild.

AHKCompiler clones the AutoHotkey C++ source tree, alters build configurations, embeds the target .ahk script into the Win32 resource table (res_AutoHotkeySC.rc), and builds a self-contained executable using MSVC.

Features

• Compiler Optimization Control: UI-driven modification of MSVC architecture and build flags (/O1 vs /O2). Supports toggling Link-Time Code Generation (LTCG), string pooling, and managing static versus dynamic C runtime (CRT) linking conventions.
• Filesystem Compression: Compresses output binaries utilizing native OS NTFS executable compression (compact /exe:lzx) rather than UPX. This minimizes file size while avoiding heuristic triggers common with executable packers.
• Obfuscation and Execution Stripping:
  • Utilizes OS-level delay-loaded DLLs (/DELAYLOAD) to manipulate the static Import Address Table (IAT).
  • Scrubs default AutoHotkey signature strings and standard error output to impede basic static analysis.
  • Conditionally injects null-returning C++ macros (neuter.h) to override explicit Win32 APIs (e.g., OpenProcess, VirtualAllocEx) to constrain script capability boundaries natively.
  • Evaluates and strips target AHK script comments, whitespace, and directives automatically before assembling, drastically minimizing .rdata payloads footprints.
  • Encrypts (RC4) and/or compresses (LZNT1) the standalone script payload and explicitly-targeted .rsrc custom assets natively into the MSVC build loops out of disk visibility.
  • Specifically injects an AutoResourceLoader layer directly at runtime creation, enabling target scripts to seamlessly and invisibly ingest encrypted assets into fast RAM structs without complex boilerplate wrappers.
• Headless Integration: Serializes configuration profiles to local .ahkcompiler.ini config files. Enables execution via CLI (/build) for implementation within CI/CD pipelines.

Prerequisites

• Git: Required for fetching upstream AutoHotkey source branches.
• MSVC Build Tools: Requires MSBuild.exe alongside standard C++ MSVC workloads.

Custom absolute paths to both Git and MSBuild can be provided in the UI for environments that restrict or do not mutate global PATH variables.

Structure

• AHKCompiler.ahk: Primary GUI frontend and build process automation.
• benchmark_tool.ahk: Optimization reference tool. Invokes headless compilation profiles against a target payload to verify MSVC build times, binary file size deltas, and process start-up/execution latency differences between optimization parameters.
• Auto_Build.ahk: Example script demonstrating the CLI parameters for headless remote invocation.