https://bugs.winehq.org/show_bug.cgi?id=56661
--- Comment #8 from Paul Gofman pgofman@codeweavers.com --- (In reply to Dmitry Timoshkov from comment #7)
(In reply to Paul Gofman from comment #6)
I think implementing same mechanics doesn't not necessarily assume copying Windows database, or even supporting the format (while the latter would be ideal of course because I saw some games shipping and installing own shim DB with them). Implementing that would probably mean adding compat hacks manually.
Adding compatibility hacks manually implies using Windows shims database as a reference, which seems to be a copyright violation.
How is that different from, e. g, looking at MSVS headers looking at structure definition and function prototypes? The database is available to view with a MS GUI tool (from which I attached a screenshot), without looking at any internal MS files. Also subject for unit testing.