Dear all,
Now I want to implement reference counter in C, for automatic garbage collection.
For example, now I have a struct x.
How to know, how many are there pointer are pointing to this struct? If I know, and the number of pointer is 0, I can free this struct.
Please give me an idea.
Any help are welcome.
You won't know "automagically"... you're going to have to write your own version of malloc() that keeps track of it for you.
Dear Tater,
Thanks for your help
But, let consider the following example
So, in this case, how many pointers are pointing to struct1? 1 or 2 pointers?my_struct struct1;
my_struct* pointer;
pointer = &struct1;
pointer = &struct1;
Considering that there is only one pointer in your code snippet...Originally Posted by Hannibal2010
Look up a C++ Reference and learn How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
Yes, I know
But how can I know it in source code.
I mean, there are 2 times a pointer point to my_struct, so how can I know these 2 pointers are the same, and reference count is still only 1.
I am far from an expert on the implementation of garbage collectors, but perhaps examining the Boehm-Demers-Weiser garbage collector would be a start.
Look up a C++ Reference and learn How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
Have a look at the C99 qualifier restrict.
This is a good hint for any GC contexts.
Dear laserlight & BillyTkid
Thanks for your help
I will check
