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C++ template instantiation: Avoiding long switches


I have a class depending on an integer template parameter. At one point in my program I want to use one instantiation of this template, depending on a value of this parameter determined at runtime. Here is a simple example demonstrating how I would go about this currently, using a big switch statement:

#include <string>
#include <iostream>
#include <type_traits>

template<unsigned A>
struct Wrapper {
    typedef typename std::conditional<A==1, int, float>::type DataType;
    DataType content[A];
    void foo() {
        std::cout << A << std::endl;
    };
};    

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    std::string arg = argv[1];
    int arg_int = std::stoi(arg);

    switch (arg_int) {
    case 1: {
        Wrapper<1> w;
        w.foo();
        break;
    }
    case 2: {
        Wrapper<2> w;
        w.foo();
        break;
    }
    case 3: {
        Wrapper<3> w;
        w.foo();
        break;
    }
    default:
        return 1;
    };

    return 0;
}

This will quickly get unwieldy once I have not only one parameter A, but multiple template arguments in various combinations. Let's also assume that in reality there is a really good reason to implement A as a template parameter.

Is there a way to replace the huge switch statement with almost identical case statements, e.g. using some metaprogramming magic from Boost or a preprocessor hack?

Ideally I would like to be able write something like the following:

INSTANTIATE_DEPENDING(i, {1, 2, 3},
            {
                Wrapper<i> w;
                w.foo();
            }
    );

Solution

  • You could use a variadic template, maybe like this:

    #include <cstdlib>
    #include <string>
    
    int main(int argc, char * argv[])
    {
        if (argc != 2) { return EXIT_FAILURE; }
    
        handle_cases<1, 3, 4, 9, 11>(std::stoi(argv[1]));
    }
    

    Implementation:

    template <int ...> struct IntList {};
    
    void handle_cases(int, IntList<>) { /* "default case" */ }
    
    template <int I, int ...N> void handle_cases(int i, IntList<I, N...>)
    {
        if (I != i) { return handle_cases(i, IntList<N...>()); }
    
        Wrapper<I> w;
        w.foo();
    }
    
    template <int ...N> void handle_cases(int i)
    {
        handle_cases(i, IntList<N...>());
    }