Boost C++ Libraries

...one of the most highly regarded and expertly designed C++ library projects in the world. Herb Sutter and Andrei Alexandrescu, C++ Coding Standards

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Mixing sources with RTTI on and RTTI off

Linking a binary from source files that were compiled with different RTTI flags is not a very good idea and may lead to a lot of surprises. However if there is a very strong need, TypeIndex library provides a solution for mixing sources: just define BOOST_TYPE_INDEX_FORCE_NO_RTTI_COMPATIBILITY macro. This would lead to usage of same type_index class (boost::typeindex::ctti_type_index or boost::typeindex::stl_type_index) all around the project.

[Note] Note

Do not forget to rebuild all the projects with BOOST_TYPE_INDEX_FORCE_NO_RTTI_COMPATIBILITY macro defined

You must know that linking RTTI on and RTTI off binaries may succeed even without defining the BOOST_TYPE_INDEX_FORCE_NO_RTTI_COMPATIBILITY macro, but that does not mean that you'll get a working binary. Such actions may break the One Definition Rule. Take a look at the table below, that shows how the boost::type_index get_integer(); function will look like with different RTTI flags:

RTTI on

RTTI off

boost::typeindex::stl_type_index get_integer();

boost::typeindex::ctti_type_index get_integer();

Such differences are usually not detected by linker and lead to errors at runtime.

[Warning] Warning

Even with BOOST_TYPE_INDEX_FORCE_NO_RTTI_COMPATIBILITY defined there is no guarantee that everything will be OK. Libraries that use their own workarounds for disabled RTTI may fail to link or to work correctly.


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