Porting from C++ to C++/CLI - c++

I do not really believe that this question was never asked before, but i really tried to search without success, if you got a link to an already answered similar question, please share it.
I am porting a C++/Win32 program to C++/CLI, and, of course, I am trying to make the fewer number of modifications possible to the code in order to speed-up the re-testing phase.
I am having some trouble due to global functions having objects as parameters, here a short example:
Class header file
namespace MyNamespace {
public ref class MyClass {
public:
void test();
};
}
Class cpp file
using MyNamespace;
void myFunction(MyClass ^obj);
void MyClass::test() {
myFunction(this);
}
And here comes the problem: if I leave out myFunction from MyNamspace, it cannot use MyClass as a parameter's type. If I include myFunction in MyNamespace, every cpp file will compile correctly, but i will get a linker error "LNK2028 unresolved token".
An idea is to define a new class and include myFunction as a public static method, but to do this will be a long job, because myFunction, in the real project, is not alone... Any other idea?

If MyClass is in MyNamespace and myFunction is not, you could use MyClass with full name qualification:
void myFunction(MyNamespace::MyClass ^obj);
Of course your myFunction should be implemented somewhere.

I made some tests following Nikita's suggestion, and the final, working, code looks like this:
Class header file
namespace MyNamespace {
public ref class MyClass {
public:
void test();
};
}
Class cpp file
void myFunction(MyClass ^obj);
using MyNamespace;
void MyClass::test() {
myFunction(this);
}
Global function cpp file
using namespace MyNamespace;
void myFunction(MyClass ^obj) {
//do something
}
Using this approach in global function's cpp file is possible to use MyClass while myFunction remains (or pretend to remain) global, and MyClass::test can access myFunction even if not in the same namespace, just using a prototype declaration as in "old" c++.

Related

C++ Multiple Libraries Define Same Class Name

I am developing a project in which I have a vendor library, say vendor.h, for the specific Arduino-compatible board I'm using which defines class HTTPClient that conflicts with an Arduino system library, HTTPClient.h, which also defines class HTTPClient.
These two classes are unrelated other than having the same name, and the vendor implementation of an HTTP client is far less capable than the Arduino system library's implementation, so I'd prefer to use the latter. But I can't omit including the former, because I need quite a bit from the vendor.h. Essentially, I have the problem posed here, but with classes rather than functions. I have the full code of both, but given that one is a system library and the other is a vendor library, I'm reluctant to fork and edit either, as that adds lots of merging work down the road if either of them are updated, so my preference would be to find a tidy solution that doesn't edit either header.
I've tried a variety of solutions posted in other SO questions:
I do not want to leave out either header, as I need vendor.h for quite a few things and need the capabilities of HTTPClient.h's client implementation
Proper namespaces in the headers would solve the problem, I would prefer to avoid editing either header
I tried wrapping the #include <HTTPClient.h> in a namespace in my main.cpp, but that caused linking errors, as it's not a header-only library, so the header & cpp weren't in the same namespace
I tried a simple wrapper as proposed for the function in the above linked SO question in which the header contained just a forward declaration of my wrapper class & the associated cpp contained the actual class definition. This gave a compiler error of error: aggregate 'HTTP::Client client' has incomplete type and cannot be defined (Code sample of this attempt below)
main.cpp:
#include <vendor.h>
#include "httpclientwrapper.h"
HTTP::Client client;
httpclientwrapper.h:
#ifndef INC_HTTPCLIENTWRAPPER_H
#define INC_HTTPCLIENTWRAPPER_H
namespace HTTP {
class Client;
}
#endif
httpclientwrapper.cpp:
#include "httpclientwrapper.h"
#include <HTTPClient.h>
namespace HTTP {
class Client : public ::HTTPClient {};
}
In that example, I can't inherit from HTTPClient in a class definition in my header, as that will reintroduce the duplicate class name to the global namespace in my main program (hence the perhaps misguided attempt to see if a forward declaration would do the trick). I suspect that I can resolve the issue by completely duplicating the class definition of HTTPClient in my wrapper class above rather than trying to use inheritance. I would then add member definitions to my wrapper cpp which pass the call to HTTPClient's members. Before I go through the trouble of rewriting (or more likely, copy/pasting) the entire HTTPClient definition from HTTPClient.h into my own wrapper, I was wondering if there was a better or more proper way to resolve the conflict?
Thanks for you help!
As a solution was never proposed, I'm posting an answer that summarizes my research and my ultimate resolution. Mostly, I encourage the use of namespaces, because proper uses of namespaces would have eliminated the conflict. However, Arduino environments try to keep things simple to lower the barrier of entry, eschewing "complicated" features of C++, so more advanced use cases will likely continue to run into issues like this. From other SO answers and forum posts (cited where I could), here are some methods for avoiding name conflicts like this:
If you can edit the source
Edit the source code to remove the conflict or add a namespace to one of both libraries. If this is an open source library, submit a pull request. This is the cleanest solution. However, if you can't push your changes back upstream (such as when one is a system library for some hardware), you may end up with merge issues down the road when the maintainer/developer updates the libraries.
If you can't edit the source
Credit for part of this: How to avoid variable/function conflicts from two libraries in C++
For libraries that are header only libraries (or all functions are inline)
(ie, they have only a .h file without a .o or .cpp)
Include the library inside a namespace. In most code, this is frowned upon as poor form, but if you're already in a situation where you are trying to cope with a library that doesn't contain itself nicely, it's a clean and simple way to contain the code in a namespace and avoid name conflicts.
main.cpp
namespace foo {
#include library.h
}
int main() {
foo::bar(1);
}
For libraries with functions
The above method will fail to link at compile time, because the declarations in the header will be inside the namespace, but the definitions of those functions are not.
Instead, create a wrapper header and implementation file. In the header, declare your namespace and functions you wish to use, but do not import the original library. In the implementation file, import your library, and use the functions inside your new namespaced functions. That way, the one conflicting library is not imported into the same place as the other.
wrapper.h
namespace foo {
int bar(int a);
}
wrapper.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
#include "library.h"
namespace foo {
int bar(int a) {
return ::bar(a);
}
}
main.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
int main() {
foo::bar(1);
}
You could also, for the sake of consistency, wrap both libraries so they're each in their own namespace. This method does mean that you will have to put in the effort to write a wrapper for every function you plan to use. This gets more complicated, however, when you need to use classes from the library (see below).
For libraries with classes
This is an extension of the wrapper function model from above, but you will need to put in more work, and there are a few more drawbacks. You can't write a class that inherits from the library's class, as that would require importing the original library in your wrapper header prior to defining your class, so you must write a complete wrapper class. You also cannot have a private member of your class of the type from the original class that you can delegate calls to for the same reason. The attempt at using a forward declaration I described in my question also did not work, as the header file needs a complete declaration of the class to compile. This left me the below implementation, which only works in the cases of a singleton (which was my use case anyway).
The wrapper header file should almost completely duplicate the public interface of the class you want to use.
wrapper.h
namespace foo {
Class Bar() {
public:
void f(int a);
bool g(char* b, int c, bool d);
char* h();
};
}
The wrapper implementation file then creates an instance and passes the calls along.
wrapper.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
#include "library.h"
namespace foo {
::Bar obj;
void Bar::f(int a) {
return obj.f(a);
}
bool Bar::g(char* b, int c, bool d) {
return obj.g(b, c, d);
}
char* Bar::h() {
return obj.h();
}
}
The main file will interact with only a single instance of the original class, no matter how many times your wrapper class in instantiated.
main.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
int main() {
foo::Bar obj;
obj.f(1);
obj.g("hello",5,true);
obj.h();
}
Overall, this strikes me as a flawed solution. To fully wrap this class, I think the this could be modified to add a factory class that would be fully contained inside the wrapper implementation file. This class would instantiate the original library class every time your wrapper class is instantiated, and then track these instances. In this way, your wrapper class could keep an index to its associated instance in the factory and bypass the need to have that instance as its own private member. This seemed like a significant amount of work, and I did not attempt to do so, but would look something like the code below. (This probably needs some polish and a real look at its memory usage!)
The wrapper header file adds a constructor & private member to store an instance id
wrapper.h
namespace foo {
Class Bar() {
public:
Bar();
void f(int a);
bool g(char* b, int c, bool d);
char* h();
private:
unsigned int instance;
};
}
The wrapper implementation file then adds a factory class to manage instances of the original library's class
wrapper.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
#include "library.h"
namespace foo {
class BarFactory {
public:
static unsigned int new() {
instances[count] = new ::Bar();
return count++;
}
static ::Bar* get(unsigned int i) {
return instances[i];
}
private:
BarFactory();
::Bar* instances[MAX_COUNT]
int count;
};
void Bar::Bar() {
instance = BarFactory.new();
}
void Bar::f(int a) {
return BarFactory.get(i)->f(a);
}
bool Bar::g(char* b, int c, bool d) {
return BarFactory.get(i)->g(b, c, d);
}
char* Bar::h() {
return BarFactory.get(i)->h();
}
}
The main file remains unchanged
main.cpp
#include "wrapper.h"
int main() {
foo::bar obj;
obj.f(1);
obj.g("hello",5,true);
obj.h();
}
If all of this seems like a lot of work, then you're thinking the same thing I did. I implemented the basic class wrapper, and realized it wasn't going to work for my use case. And given the hardware limitations of the Arduino, I ultimately decided that rather than add more code to be able to use the HTTPClient implementation in either library, I wrote my own HTTP implementation library in the end, and so used none of the above and saved several hundred kilobytes of memory. But I wanted to share here in case somebody else was looking to answer the same question!

C++ - how to forward declare a class in the same file as main() - getting variable uses undefined class error

I'm aware of using function prototypes, and I was under the impression that forward class declarations could serve a similar purpose when main() and a class are in the same file. For example, I would have expected this would compile:
// main.cpp
#include <iostream>
// class prototypes
class MyClass;
int main(void)
{
MyClass myClass;
// do stuff with myClass here
return(0);
}
class MyClass
{
public:
int someInt;
double someDouble;
// more stuff here . . .
};
But on the MyClass myClass; line I'm getting the error 'myClass' uses undefined class 'MyClass'. What am I doing wrong?
P.S. I'm aware that I could cut/paste main() below all the classes it uses and that would fix the error, but I'd prefer to keep main() as the first function or class.
P.P.S. I'm aware that in any substantial size production program main(), .h content, and .cpp content would be in 3 separate files. In this case I'm attempting to write a small example or test program where main and a class(es) are in the same file.
Forward declarations can only be used via pointers or references.
Calling a constructor function doesn't fall into this category.
I'm aware that I could cut/paste main() below all the classes it uses and that would fix the error, but I'd prefer to keep main() as the first function or class.
That's why usually header files are used, instead of placing all the declarations and definitions in the main.cpp file.
I'm aware that in any substantial size production program main(), .h content, and .cpp content would be in 3 separate files. In this case I'm attempting to write a small example or test program where main and a class(es) are in the same file.
You should still stick to that idiom though, everything else would probably end up in a mess.
This doesn't use forward declarations but it partially addresses the spirit of a single main.cpp with your "main" at the top. I find this technique sometimes useful when you want to share something via an online C++ ide where a single file is much easier to deal with, and you want to focus on the action in main rather than implementation detail in helper structs/classes etc.
#include <iostream>
template<typename MyClass,typename MyOtherClass>
int main_()
{
MyClass a;
a.do_foo();
MyOtherClass b;
b.do_bar();
return 0;
}
struct MyClass
{
void do_foo() { std::cout << "MyClass: do_foo called\n"; }
};
struct MyOtherClass
{
void do_bar() { std::cout << "MyOtherClass: do_bar called\n"; }
};
int main()
{
return main_<MyClass,MyOtherClass>();
}

Class redefinition: How to wrap methods within class [duplicate]

Is there a way to avoid the Graph:: repetition in the implementation file, yet still split the class into header + implementation? Such as in:
Header File:
#ifndef Graph_H
#define Graph_H
class Graph {
public:
Graph(int n);
void printGraph();
void addEdge();
void removeEdge();
};
#endif
Implementation File:
Graph::Graph(int n){}
void Graph::printGraph(){}
void Graph::addEdge(){}
void Graph::removeEdge(){}
I'm guessing this is to avoid lots of "unnecessary typing". Sadly there's no way to get rid of the scope (as many other answers have told you) however what I do personally is get the class defined with all my function prototypes in nice rows, then copy/paste into the implementation file then ctrl-c your ClassName:: on the clip board and run up the line with ctrl-v.
If you want to avoid typing the "Graph::" in front of the printGraph, addEdge etc., then the answer is "no", unfortunately. The "partial class" feature similar to C# is not accessible in C++ and the name of any class (like "Graph") is not a namespace, it's a scope.
No there's not. Not directly at least. You could go for preprocessor tricks, but don't do it.
#define IMPL Graph::
IMPL Graph(int n){}
void IMPL printGraph(){}
void IMPL addEdge(){}
void IMPL removeEdge(){}
Also, you shouldn't even want to do it. What's the point. Besides it being a C++ rule, it lets you know you're actually implementing a member function.
One option is using. If you have method definitions which are in a cpp file that never gets #included, then using is safe (doesn't affect other files):
foo.h:
class FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters
{
int x_;
public:
int Get () const;
void Set (int);
};
foo.cpp:
#include "foo.h"
using Foo = FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters;
int Foo::Get () const
{
return x_;
}
void Foo::Set (int x)
{
x_ = x;
}
main.cpp:
#include "foo.h"
int main ()
{
//Foo foo; <-- error
FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters foo;
return 0;
}
No, there is no way to avoid it. Otherwise, how would you know if a given function definition is for a class function or for a static function?
If you are asking if you can define a member function such as Graph::printGraph without specifying the class name qualification, then the answer is no, not the way that you want. This is not possible in C++:
implementation file:
void printEdge(){};
The above will compile just fine, but it won't do what you want. It won't define the member function by the same name within the Graph class. Rather, it will declare and define a new free function called printEdge.
This is good and proper, if by your point of view a bit of a pain, because you just might want two functions with the same name but in different scopes. Consider:
// Header File
class A
{
void foo();
};
class B
{
void foo();
};
void foo();
// Implementation File
void foo()
{
}
Which scope should the definition apply to? C++ does not restrict you from having different functions with the same names in different scopes, so you have to tell the compiler what function you're defining.
//yes it is possible using preprocessor like this:
#define $ ClassName //in .cpp
void $::Method1()
{
}
//or like this: in the header .h:
#undef $
#define $ ClassName'
// but you have to include the class header in last #include in your .cpp:
#include "truc.h"
#include "bidule.h" ...
#include "classname.h"
void $::Method() { }
//i was using also
#define $$ BaseClass
//with single inheritance than i can do this:
void $::Method()
{
$$::Method(); //call base class method
}
//but with a typedef defined into class like this it's better to do this:
class Derived : Base
{
typedef Base $$;
}
EDIT: I misread your question. This would be an answer to the question whether you can split header-files. It doesn't help you to avoid using LongClassName::-syntaxes, sorry.
The simple answer: You can split up c++-file, but you can not split up header-files.
The reason is quite simple. Whenever your compiler needs to compile a constructor, it needs to know exactly how many memory it needs to allocate for such an object.
For example:
class Foo {
double bar; //8 bytes
int goo; //4 bytes
}
new Foo() would require the allocation of 12 bytes memory. But if you were allowed to extend your class definitions over multiple files, and hence split header files, you could easily make a mess of this. Your compiler would never know if you already told it everything about the class, or whether you did not. Different places in your code could have different definitions of your class, leading to either segmentation faults or cryptic compiler errors.
For example:
h1.h:
class Foo {
double bar; // 8 bytes
int goo; // 4 bytes
}
h2.h:
#include "h1.h"
class Foo {
double goo; // 8 bytes
} // we extend foo with a double.
foo1.cpp:
#include "foo1.h"
Foo *makeFoo() {
return new Foo();
}
foo2.cpp:
#include "foo2.h"
void cleanupFoo(Foo *foo) {
delete foo;
}
foo1.h:
#include "h1.h"
Foo *makeFoo();
foo2.h:
#include "h1.h"
#include "h2.h"
void cleanupFoo(Foo *foo)
main.cpp:
#include foo1.h
#include foo2.h
void main() {
Foo *foo = makeFoo();
cleanupFoo(foo);
}
Carefully check what happens if you first compile main.cpp to main.o, then foo1.cpp to foo1.o and foo2.cpp to foo2.o, and finally link all of them together. This should compile, but the makeFoo() allocates something else then the cleanupFoo() deallocated.
So there you have it, feel free to split .cpp-files, but don't split up classes over header files.

Is it possible to avoid repeating the class name in the implementation file?

Is there a way to avoid the Graph:: repetition in the implementation file, yet still split the class into header + implementation? Such as in:
Header File:
#ifndef Graph_H
#define Graph_H
class Graph {
public:
Graph(int n);
void printGraph();
void addEdge();
void removeEdge();
};
#endif
Implementation File:
Graph::Graph(int n){}
void Graph::printGraph(){}
void Graph::addEdge(){}
void Graph::removeEdge(){}
I'm guessing this is to avoid lots of "unnecessary typing". Sadly there's no way to get rid of the scope (as many other answers have told you) however what I do personally is get the class defined with all my function prototypes in nice rows, then copy/paste into the implementation file then ctrl-c your ClassName:: on the clip board and run up the line with ctrl-v.
If you want to avoid typing the "Graph::" in front of the printGraph, addEdge etc., then the answer is "no", unfortunately. The "partial class" feature similar to C# is not accessible in C++ and the name of any class (like "Graph") is not a namespace, it's a scope.
No there's not. Not directly at least. You could go for preprocessor tricks, but don't do it.
#define IMPL Graph::
IMPL Graph(int n){}
void IMPL printGraph(){}
void IMPL addEdge(){}
void IMPL removeEdge(){}
Also, you shouldn't even want to do it. What's the point. Besides it being a C++ rule, it lets you know you're actually implementing a member function.
One option is using. If you have method definitions which are in a cpp file that never gets #included, then using is safe (doesn't affect other files):
foo.h:
class FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters
{
int x_;
public:
int Get () const;
void Set (int);
};
foo.cpp:
#include "foo.h"
using Foo = FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters;
int Foo::Get () const
{
return x_;
}
void Foo::Set (int x)
{
x_ = x;
}
main.cpp:
#include "foo.h"
int main ()
{
//Foo foo; <-- error
FooLongNameSpecialisationsParamaters foo;
return 0;
}
No, there is no way to avoid it. Otherwise, how would you know if a given function definition is for a class function or for a static function?
If you are asking if you can define a member function such as Graph::printGraph without specifying the class name qualification, then the answer is no, not the way that you want. This is not possible in C++:
implementation file:
void printEdge(){};
The above will compile just fine, but it won't do what you want. It won't define the member function by the same name within the Graph class. Rather, it will declare and define a new free function called printEdge.
This is good and proper, if by your point of view a bit of a pain, because you just might want two functions with the same name but in different scopes. Consider:
// Header File
class A
{
void foo();
};
class B
{
void foo();
};
void foo();
// Implementation File
void foo()
{
}
Which scope should the definition apply to? C++ does not restrict you from having different functions with the same names in different scopes, so you have to tell the compiler what function you're defining.
//yes it is possible using preprocessor like this:
#define $ ClassName //in .cpp
void $::Method1()
{
}
//or like this: in the header .h:
#undef $
#define $ ClassName'
// but you have to include the class header in last #include in your .cpp:
#include "truc.h"
#include "bidule.h" ...
#include "classname.h"
void $::Method() { }
//i was using also
#define $$ BaseClass
//with single inheritance than i can do this:
void $::Method()
{
$$::Method(); //call base class method
}
//but with a typedef defined into class like this it's better to do this:
class Derived : Base
{
typedef Base $$;
}
EDIT: I misread your question. This would be an answer to the question whether you can split header-files. It doesn't help you to avoid using LongClassName::-syntaxes, sorry.
The simple answer: You can split up c++-file, but you can not split up header-files.
The reason is quite simple. Whenever your compiler needs to compile a constructor, it needs to know exactly how many memory it needs to allocate for such an object.
For example:
class Foo {
double bar; //8 bytes
int goo; //4 bytes
}
new Foo() would require the allocation of 12 bytes memory. But if you were allowed to extend your class definitions over multiple files, and hence split header files, you could easily make a mess of this. Your compiler would never know if you already told it everything about the class, or whether you did not. Different places in your code could have different definitions of your class, leading to either segmentation faults or cryptic compiler errors.
For example:
h1.h:
class Foo {
double bar; // 8 bytes
int goo; // 4 bytes
}
h2.h:
#include "h1.h"
class Foo {
double goo; // 8 bytes
} // we extend foo with a double.
foo1.cpp:
#include "foo1.h"
Foo *makeFoo() {
return new Foo();
}
foo2.cpp:
#include "foo2.h"
void cleanupFoo(Foo *foo) {
delete foo;
}
foo1.h:
#include "h1.h"
Foo *makeFoo();
foo2.h:
#include "h1.h"
#include "h2.h"
void cleanupFoo(Foo *foo)
main.cpp:
#include foo1.h
#include foo2.h
void main() {
Foo *foo = makeFoo();
cleanupFoo(foo);
}
Carefully check what happens if you first compile main.cpp to main.o, then foo1.cpp to foo1.o and foo2.cpp to foo2.o, and finally link all of them together. This should compile, but the makeFoo() allocates something else then the cleanupFoo() deallocated.
So there you have it, feel free to split .cpp-files, but don't split up classes over header files.

C++ accessing a function from in a class, receiving functions as a parameter

i have two questions that are fairly small and related so i will put them both in the same question.
i have been experimenting with classes and i was attempting to access a class in another file that wasn't in a class so for example.
//class 1 .cpp
void Class1::function1()//another error
{
function()
}
//main.cpp
void function()
{
//stuff happens
}
is there a way to-do this? or would i need to add this function to a class to get it to work. also how would you go about creating a function that receives a function as it parimetre? for example function(function2())
i am simply trying to access a function from a class as it would make my code easier to use later if the function that i am using doesn't get added to a class. with regards to the seconds question i which to create a function that receives a time and a function as an argument. it will wait for the specified time then execute the program
How to access a function in another file?
Depends on the type of function, there can be to cases:
1. Accessing class member functions in another file(Translation Unit):
Obviously, you need to include the header file, which has the class declaration in your caller translation unit.
Example code:
//MyClass.h
class MyClass
{
//Note that access specifier
public:
void doSomething()
{
//Do something meaningful here
}
};
#include"MyClass.h" //Include the header here
//Your another cpp file
int main()
{
MyClass obj;
obj.doSomething();
return 0;
}
2. Accessing free functions in another file(Translation Unit):
You do not need to include the function in any class, just include the header file which declares the function and then use it in your translation unit.
Example Code:
//YourInclude.h
inline void doSomething() //See why inline in #Ben Voight's comments
{
//Something that is interesting hopefully
}
//Your another file
#include"YourInclude.h"
int main()
{
doSomething()
return 0;
}
Another case as pointed out by #Ben in comments can be:
A declaration in the header file, followed by a definition in just one translation unit
Example Code:
//Yourinclude File
void doSomething(); //declares the function
//Your another file
include"Yourinclude"
void doSomething() //Defines the function
{
//Something interesting
}
int main()
{
doSomething();
return 0;
}
Alternately, a messy way to do this can be to just mark the function as extern in your another file and use the function.Not recommended but a possibility so here is how:
Example Code:
extern void doSomething();
int main()
{
doSomething();
return 0;
}
How would you go about creating a function that receives a function as it parameter?
By using function pointers
In a nutshell Function pointers are nothing but pointers but ones which hold address of functions.
Example Code:
int someFunction(int i)
{
//some functionality
}
int (*myfunc)(int) = &someFunction;
void doSomething(myfunc *ptr)
{
(*ptr)(10); //Calls the pointed function
}
You need a prototype for the function you want to call. A class body contains prototypes for all its member functions, but standalone functions can also have prototypes. Typically you organize these in a header file, included from both the file which contains the function implementation (so the compiler can check the signature) and in any files which wish to call the function.
(1) How can the `class` function be accessible ?
You need to declare the class body in a header file and #include that wherever needed. For example,
//class.h
class Class1 {
public: void function1 (); // define this function in class.cpp
};
Now #include this into main.cpp
#include"class.h"
You can use function1 inside main.cpp.
(2) How to pass a function of class as parameter to another function ?
You can use pointer to class member functions.