The LlmClient ActiveX control provides a simple, high-level interface
for integrating large language model (LLM) capabilities into Windows
applications. The control is designed for developers using COM-compatible
development tools such as Visual Basic 6.0, VBA, Delphi, PowerBuilder, and
scripting environments that support ActiveX automation.
The control enables developers to quickly add AI-powered functionality to
existing applications without needing to directly work with REST APIs, JSON
payloads, HTTP requests, or provider-specific implementation details. Using
familiar COM properties, methods, and events, applications can send prompts,
receive responses, manage conversation history, and interact with modern AI
services using a traditional Windows programming model.
Reference
Control Information
| File Name |
CSLLMX12.OCX |
| Version |
12.0.3024.1286 |
| ProgID |
SocketTools.LlmClient.12 |
| ClassID |
79FA9AF1-C367-4F24-9E8A-1886AC2581E1 |
| Threading Model |
Apartment |
| Help File |
CST12CTL.CHM |
| Dependencies |
None |
Overview
The LlmClient ActiveX control is built around a session-based
architecture that manages all aspects of interacting with a language model,
including connection settings, provider configuration, conversation history,
and model selection. It automatically maintains conversational state
between requests, making it easier to create interactive applications without
manually tracking prior prompts or responses. By providing a consistent
interface across multiple AI providers and models, it allows applications
to switch between services with minimal code changes. Developers can
enumerate providers and models, query supported capabilities, configure
default behavior, and adjust settings such as token limits, reasoning
levels, and generation parameters at runtime.
A primary goal of the control is to simplify the integration of AI features
into both modern and legacy Windows applications. Developers can work with
large language models using familiar COM automation techniques while the
control internally handles low-level details such as HTTPS connections,
request formatting, JSON serialization, authentication, and response parsing.
This allows applications to communicate with AI services using a
familiar programming model that is consistent with traditional ActiveX and
COM development.
The control can be added to a form at design time or created dynamically at
runtime using standard COM automation techniques. This makes it suitable for
desktop applications, scripting environments, Microsoft Office automation,
and other solutions that rely on COM-compatible components.
The control also includes comprehensive support for managing conversation
history and session state. Applications can enumerate previous messages and
responses, search message history, import or export conversation data, and
automatically limit retained context to help manage token usage and provider
limitations.
In addition to messaging functionality, the control includes utility
features for estimating and tracking token usage, validating prompts and
model names, managing cached provider information, and logging diagnostic
information for debugging purposes. These capabilities help developers better
understand how their applications interact with AI services and assist in
identifying configuration or performance issues.
The LlmClient control makes it practical to add AI-powered features
such as chat assistants, automated responses, content generation, text
analysis, and workflow automation to existing Windows applications while
preserving compatibility with your current development tools.
Requirements
The SocketTools ActiveX Edition components are self-registering
controls that are compatible with any programming language that
supports the Component Object Model (COM) and the ActiveX control
specification. If you are using Visual Basic 6.0, Service Pack 6 (SP6)
is required. We recommend installing all available updates for your
development tools. Although the Visual Basic 6.0 runtime is supported
on Windows 11, the IDE itself is no longer officially supported by
Microsoft. Legacy IDEs and compilers may also require elevated
(administrator) privileges to run properly.
The ActiveX controls are supported on Windows 7, Windows Server
2008 R2, and later versions of both desktop and server editions of
Windows. For Windows 7, Service Pack 1 (SP1) is the minimum
requirement. For Windows 8 systems, the 8.1 update must be installed.
On ARM-based platforms, the minimum supported version is Windows 10
build 1709.
SocketTools includes components for both 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit
(x64) Windows platforms. All modern versions of Windows are 64-bit,
but we continue to include 32-bit components for compatibility with
legacy development tools such as Visual Basic 6.0. We also provide
native ARM64 ActiveX controls for systems running Windows on ARM. Note
that 32-bit applications on ARM run using x86 emulation, and Microsoft
no longer supports native ARM32 applications.
If you are using VBScript, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), or
another scripting environment on an ARM-based system, be aware that
64-bit hosts will require ARM64 components, while 32-bit hosts will
use x86 components under emulation. This includes applications created
with Visual Basic 6.0. To reduce deployment complexity and avoid
confusion, SocketTools does not include ARM32 ActiveX controls in its
standard redistribution packages but they are available on request for
legacy or specialized scenarios.
Distribution
When you distribute an application that uses this control, you can
either install the file in the same folder as your application
executable or as a shared component in the appropriate system folder.
If you install the control in the system folder, it is important that
you distribute the correct version for the target platform and it
must be registered. If you install the control in the same folder as
your executable, it is recommended that you use registration-free
activation or COM redirection to ensure that the correct version of
the control is loaded by the application.
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