Why can't templates be within extern "C" blocks?

Question

This is a follow-up question to an answer to Is it possible to typedef a pointer-to-extern-“C”-function type within a template?

This code fails to compile with g++, Visual C/C++, and Comeau C/C++ with basically the same error message:

#include <cstdlib>

extern "C" {
    static int do_stuff(int) {
        return 3;
    }

    template <typename return_t_, typename arg1_t_>
    struct test {
        static void foo(return_t_ (*)(arg1_t_)) { }
    };
}

int main()
{
    test<int, int>::foo(&do_stuff);
    return EXIT_SUCCESS;
}

g++ says "error: template with C linkage", Visual C/C++ emits compiler error C2894, and Comeau C/C++ says "error: this declaration may not have extern "C" linkage".

The thing is, all are happy with:

#include <cstdlib>

extern "C" {
    static int do_stuff(int) {
        return 3;
    }

    struct test {
        static void foo(int (*)(int)) { }
    };
}

int main()
{
    test::foo(&do_stuff);
    return EXIT_SUCCESS;
}

Section 7.5, Linkage specifications, of the C++ Standard states:

A C language linkage is ignored for the names of class members and the member function type of class member functions.

And it even gives the example:

extern "C" {
    class X {
        void mf(); // the name of the function mf and the member
                // function's type have C++ language linkage
        void mf2(void(*)()); // the name of the function mf2 has C++ language
                // linkage; the parameter has type pointer to C function
    };
}

If templates were allowed in extern "C" blocks, then the member functions of the instantiations would have C++ linkage.

Why, then, does chapter 14, Templates, of the C++98 Standard state:

A template name may have linkage (3.5). A template, a template explicit specialization (14.7.3), and a class template partial specialization shall not have C linkage.

What does it mean that a template "may" have linkage? What is template linkage?

Why is it explicitly forbidden to have a template with C linkage, when a class is okay, and all member functions of instantiations of the template (the default constructor, destructor, and assignment operator overload) would have C++ linkage?

Answer 1

What does it mean that a template "may" have linkage? What is template linkage?

All names either have external linkage, internal linkage, or have no linkage (C++03 §3.5p2), but this is not the same linkage as language linkage. (Confusing, I know. C++0x changes things around considerably with linkage, too.) External linkage is required for anything used as a template argument:

void f() {
  struct S {};
  vector<S> v;  // Not allowed as S has internal linkage.
}

Notice that C++98 has "may" in what you quoted of §14p4, but C++03 removes the "may", as templates cannot be declared in a context that would give them internal linkage:

void f() {
  // Not allowed:
  template<class T>
  struct S {};
}