Re: [boost] reflection for smart_ptr cycles?

From: Peter Dimov (pdimov_at_[hidden])
Date: 2004-11-11 14:31:04

Larry Evans wrote:
>
> If you could "reflect" all the reference counted smart_ptrs, like
> shared_ptr, for a class, T, into some class specific structure, say
> gc_desc<T>, then you could use this for precise garbage collection,
> AFAICT.  Although it does expose the guts (after all, shared_ptr<X>,
> might be private in T), this is what you'd need to detect cycles.

sp_collector.cpp finds shared_ptr instances with a memory scan. That's not 
the problem. The problem is following other owning pointers.

Or, in more general terms, the problem is that different reflection clients 
need different things to be reflected.