Thread: Transfer of control bypasses initialization

  1. #1
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    Transfer of control bypasses initialization

    Hi all,

    i have a switch command. and in case the user enters the command 's' (save), i create an output file, and save the data..
    but then a compile error was given as "transfer of control bypasses initialization of:"

    Code:
    
    
    Code:
    case 's':
                ofstream output_file;
                output_file.open(filename);
                            .... some code....
                output_file.close();
                break;
    case 'x':
                break;
            }


    what is the problem here, i need the output file only in this case, why is the compiler complaining and what is the solution ?

    thanks

  2. #2
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    The output_file variable is still in scope at case 'x', but since the variable wouldn't be properly initialized if case 'x' is taken, the compiler complains about that. A simple fix is to put braces around the "body" of case 's', like this:

    Code:
    case 's':
    {
                ofstream output_file;
                output_file.open(filename);
                            .... some code....
                output_file.close();
                break;
    }
    case 'x':
                break;
            }


  3. #3
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    I would even rewrite it to something like this which also limits the scope of output_file:

    Code:
    case 's':
        if (ofstream output_file(filename)) {
            .... some code ....
        }
        break;
    case 'x':
        break;

  4. #4
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    Or stick the code in a function.

  5. #5
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    Thank you guys, it works,
    although i thought, the compiler would see that i am not using output_file in case 'x' here und hence would not complain

  6. #6
    C++ Witch laserlight's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by christop View Post
    I would even rewrite it to something like this which also limits the scope of output_file:

    Code:
    case 's':
        if (ofstream output_file(filename)) {
            .... some code ....
        }
        break;
    case 'x':
        break;
    You may need to use uniform initialisation syntax to get that to compile.
    Quote Originally Posted by Bjarne Stroustrup (2000-10-14)
    I get maybe two dozen requests for help with some sort of programming or design problem every day. Most have more sense than to send me hundreds of lines of code. If they do, I ask them to find the smallest example that exhibits the problem and send me that. Mostly, they then find the error themselves. "Finding the smallest program that demonstrates the error" is a powerful debugging tool.
    Look up a C++ Reference and learn How To Ask Questions The Smart Way

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by laserlight View Post
    You may need to use uniform initialisation syntax to get that to compile.
    Ah! So you do:

    Code:
    case 's':
        if (ofstream output_file{filename}) {
            .... some code ....
        }
        break;
    case 'x':
        break;
    (And I should've mentioned that this syntax requires C++11 or later, I believe, but that's already 9 years old at this point.)

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