Re: ctor requires operator delete when using C++ exception handling

From:
peter koch larsen <peter.koch.larsen@gmail.com>
Newsgroups:
comp.lang.c++.moderated
Date:
Fri, 2 Nov 2007 01:03:58 CST
Message-ID:
<1193960617.316832.127600@o80g2000hse.googlegroups.com>
On 1 Nov., 22:42, vl106 <vl...@hotmail.com> wrote:

Hi,
It seems that C++ exception handling (we currently don't use it
really)
requires class to have operator delete available.

I have a service component that creates instances of some class C and
gives
references to client components. I want to forbid clients directly
accessing
C objects - especially deleting them.

Therefore I created a wrapper/smart ptr for them (C_ptr).
NEvertheless
clients can do

         const C* real_C = c.operator->(); // cannot prevent this
         delete real_C; // this must not happen!!!

Therefore I declared but did not implement operator delete. Now
clients
cannot call delete any more and they cannot delete the objects. They
will receive a linker error.

But this only works when exception handling is turned off. When turned
on I
(too) get the linker error:

unresolved external symbol "public: static void __cdecl C::operator
delete(void *)"
(??3C@@SAXPAX@Z) referenced in function
__unwindfunclet$?create_C@Service@@QAE?AVC_ptr@@XZ$0

In the assembly code I see the call to C::delete is part of stack
unwinding
code. This means the trick with hiding delete does not work in this
case.

Do you have another pattern or mechanism where I can achieve the same
as above? That is a delivering a "pointer" with "denial of deletion".
What I dislike very much is my operator-> returning the address of the
real object anyway!

Here's my sample code:

class C {
public:
  C () {} // requires "public: static void __cdecl C::operator
delete(void
*)"
  void f () const {} // client may call
  void g (); // service may call
public:
  // not implemented on purpose!
  void operator delete(void*); // to compile comment out
private:
  // ...

};


you could simply define a private (or protected) operator delete,
using a function to delete the pointer (if you need to allocate
dynamically). This will prevent accidental deletes. You could also
have a private (or protected) destructor, but this will more or less
prevent clients to create instances of your class, and I'm not certain
you want that.

/Peter
[snip]

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