Section

std::shared_ptr

std::shared_ptr is a smart pointer that retains shared ownership of an object through a pointer. Several shared_ptr objects may own the same object. The object is destroyed and its memory deallocated when either of the following happens:

# Declarations

template< class T > class shared_ptr;

(since C++11)

# Notes

The ownership of an object can only be shared with another shared_ptr by copy constructing or copy assigning its value to another shared_ptr. Constructing a new shared_ptr using the raw underlying pointer owned by another shared_ptr leads to undefined behavior.

std::shared_ptr may be used with an incomplete type T. However, the constructor from a raw pointer (template shared_ptr(Y*)) and the template void reset(Y*) member function may only be called with a pointer to a complete type (note that std::unique_ptr may be constructed from a raw pointer to an incomplete type).

The T in std::shared_ptr may be a function type: in this case it manages a pointer to function, rather than an object pointer. This is sometimes used to keep a dynamic library or a plugin loaded as long as any of its functions are referenced:

# Example

#include <chrono>
#include <iostream>
#include <memory>
#include <mutex>
#include <thread>
 
using namespace std::chrono_literals;
 
struct Base
{
    Base() { std::cout << "Base::Base()\n"; }
 
    // Note: non-virtual destructor is OK here
    ~Base() { std::cout << "Base::~Base()\n"; }
};
 
struct Derived : public Base
{
    Derived() { std::cout << "Derived::Derived()\n"; }
 
    ~Derived() { std::cout << "Derived::~Derived()\n"; }
};
 
void print(auto rem, std::shared_ptr<Base> const& sp)
{
    std::cout << rem << "\n\tget() = " << sp.get()
              << ", use_count() = " << sp.use_count() << '\n';
}
 
void thr(std::shared_ptr<Base> p)
{
    std::this_thread::sleep_for(987ms);
    std::shared_ptr<Base> lp = p; // thread-safe, even though the
                                  // shared use_count is incremented
    {
        static std::mutex io_mutex;
        std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lk(io_mutex);
        print("Local pointer in a thread:", lp);
    }
}
 
int main()
{
    std::shared_ptr<Base> p = std::make_shared<Derived>();
 
    print("Created a shared Derived (as a pointer to Base)", p);
 
    std::thread t1{thr, p}, t2{thr, p}, t3{thr, p};
    p.reset(); // release ownership from main
 
    print("Shared ownership between 3 threads and released ownership from main:", p);
 
    t1.join();
    t2.join();
    t3.join();
 
    std::cout << "All threads completed, the last one deleted Derived.\n";
}

# See also

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