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c++enumsextern

"error C2065: undeclared identifier" Enum inclusion from another header

I was building a class in the same header file, thinking it would be small, as my code developed it needed to be put into more than one header/cpp file. My data structure relies in an enum which now is included in another header file. The compiler complains.

error C2653: 'EnumBox' : is not a class or namespace name

error C2065: 'PLAYERNAME' : undeclared identifier

error C2065: 'RANDOMNUMBER' : undeclared identifier

It worked when they were all classes which used my enum were in the same headerfile. What is going on? Extern doesn't seem to work with enums.

GameDataNetworkHelper.h

#pragma once
#ifndef GAMEDATANETWORKHELPER_H
#define GAMEDATANETWORKHELPER_H
#include "../RakNetP2PExample/NetworkHelper.h"
#include "../GameExample/NumberGuesser.h"
#include "BitStream.h"
#include "../RakNetP2PExample/GameData.h"
#include "..\ConsoleApplication1\RandomNumber.h"
#include "..\ConsoleApplication1\PlayerName.h"
class NumberGuesser;
class NetworkHelper;

class EnumBox
{
public:
static const enum GameDataType {GAMEDATA = 0, PLAYERNAME=1, RANDOMNUMBER=2};
};


//..some code which uses RandomNumber, and PlayerName



#endif

And RandomNumber.h

    #pragma once

    #ifndef RANDOMNUMBER_H
    #define RANDOMNUMBER_H
    #include "../RakNetP2PExample/NetworkHelper.h"
    #include "../GameExample/NumberGuesser.h"
    #include "BitStream.h"
    #include "../RakNetP2PExample/GameData.h"
    #include "GameDataNetworkHelper.h"
    class RandomNumber : public GameData
    {
    public:
    static const int randomNumberType = EnumBox::GameDataType::RANDOMNUMBER;

    //.. some other code
   };


#endif

PlayerName.h

#pragma once
#ifndef PLAYERNAME_H
#define PLAYERNAME_H
#include "../RakNetP2PExample/NetworkHelper.h"
#include "../GameExample/NumberGuesser.h"
#include "BitStream.h"
#include "../RakNetP2PExample/GameData.h"
#include "GameDataNetworkHelper.h"
class PlayerName : public GameData
{

public:
    static const int playerNameType = EnumBox::PLAYERNAME;
    //...some other code

};
#endif

I've tried also extern enum GameDataType {GAMEDATA =0, PLAYERNAME, RANDOMNUMBER};

Solution

  • You've got two headers trying to include each other. Remove any #include that you don't need; and try to replace them with forward declarations where possible.

    In particular, find a way to stop GameDataNetworkHelper.h and RandomNumber.h from including each other. Unless RandomNumber is doing something really strange, it shouldn't depend on games, data, or networks. Perhaps you could move EnumBox into a separate header, so that it only needs to include that.