How can I give two compatible names to a C class template with deduction guides?-CodePudding

If I have a widely-used class template called Foo that I want to rename to Bar without having to update all of its users atomically, then up until C 17 I could simply use a type alias:

template <typename T>
class Bar {
 public:
  // Create a Bar from a T value.
  explicit Bar(T value);
};

// An older name for this class, for compatibility with callers that haven't
// yet been updated.
template <typename T>
using Foo = Bar<T>;

This is very useful when working in a large, distributed codebase. However as of C 17 this seems to be broken by class template argument deduction guides. For example, if this line exists:

template <typename T>
explicit Foo(T) -> Foo<T>;

then the obvious thing to do when renaming the class is to change the Foos in the deduction guide to Bars:

template <typename T>
explicit Bar(T) -> Bar<T>;

But now the expression Foo(17) in a random caller, which used to be legal, is an error:

test.cc:42:21: error: alias template 'Foo' requires template arguments; argument deduction only allowed for class templates
  static_cast<void>(Foo(17));
                    ^
test.cc:34:1: note: template is declared here
using Foo = Bar<T>;
^

Is there any easy and general way to give a class with deduction guides two simultaneous names in a fully compatible way? The best I can think of is defining the class's public API twice under two names, with conversion operators, but this is far from easy and general.

CodePudding user response：

Your problem is exactly what P1814R0: Wording for Class Template Argument Deduction for Alias Templates wants to solve, that is to say, in C 20, you only need to add deduction guides for Bar to make the following program well-formed:

template <typename T>
class Bar {
 public:
  // Create a Bar from a T value.
  explicit Bar(T value);
};

// An older name for this class, for compatibility with callers that haven't
// yet been updated.
template <typename T>
using Foo = Bar<T>;

template <typename T>
explicit Bar(T) -> Bar<T>;

int main() {
  Bar bar(42);
  Foo foo(42); // well-formed
}

Demo.

But since it is a C 20 feature, there is currently no solution in C 17.

CodePudding user response：

Have you tried to define a macro?

#define Foo Bar;

(Personally I'd find it confusing with multiple names for same implementation, but I'm not you.)

Sorry I can't test at the moment, but I hope it works!