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c++c++11type-traitsstatic-assert

Static Assert for Public Inheritance


I built a helper class that would construct a custom class via templates, this custom class must inherit from a certain class, I can check for this with std::is_base_of.

However I also need to check that the inheritance is public, how can this be achieved?

For reference, here is a stripped down version of the class, I have the std::is_base_of in there.

template<class CustomSink>
class Sink
{
    static_assert(std::is_base_of<BaseSink, CustomSink>::value, "CustomSink must derive from BaseSink");
    //Some static assert here to check if custom sink has publicly inherited BaseSink 
    //static_assert(is_public.....
public:
    template<class... Args>
    Sink(Args&&... args)
    {
    }
    ~Sink()
    {
    }       
};

Solution

  • Thanks to both Quentin and cpplearner for pointing me in the right direction. I found Quentins answer worked fine if the assert should pass, but on a failed case the static_assert would not catch the error, instead it would be generated inside the template, removing the benefit of the clear static_assert message.

    Then cpplearner mentioned std::is_convertible which I had tried to use before but had forgotten about needing the *, also the B and D seemed to be the wrong way round.

    All of this lead me to creating:

    static_assert(std::is_convertible<Derived*, Base*>::value, "Derived must inherit Base as public");
    

    Which seems to do the job, below is the full code as a complete example.

    #include <type_traits>
    
    class Base { };
    class Derived : Base { };
    class DerivedWithPublic : public Base { };
    
    int main() {
        static_assert(std::is_convertible<DerivedWithPublic*, Base*>::value, "Class must inherit Base as public");
        static_assert(std::is_convertible<Derived*, Base*>::value, "Derived must inherit Base as public");
    }