Assigning pointers to arrays in C++

Question

I want to do something like this below:

int main() {
   int a[10];
   int *d = generateArrayOfSize(10) // This generates an array of size 10 on the heap
   a = d;
   print(a); // Prints the first 10 elements of array.
}

However above code gives compilation error (incompatible types in assignment of ‘int*’ to ‘int [10]’). What can I do to make the above code to work?

As the designer of C++, Bjarne Stroustrup, [says](http://www.stroustrup.com/bs_faq2.html#arrays), an array is "a very low level data structure with a vast potential for misuse and errors and in essentially all cases there are better alternatives". Try using an STL container. — Tom Blodget, Jul 28 '13 at 15:04

score 4 · Answer 1 · answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:06

4

Arrays are non-assignable and non-copyable, so you'd have to copy each element by hand (in a loop), or using std::copy.

answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:06

Lightness Races in Orbit

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score 4 · Answer 2 · answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:22

If you're using C++, then use C++ arrays rather than C style arrays and pointers. Here's an example

#include <array>
#include <iostream>

template<size_t N>
std::array<int, N> generateArrayOfSize(void)
{
    std::array<int, N> a;
    for (int n=0; n<N; ++n)
        a[n] = n;
    return a;
}

template<size_t N>
void print(std::array<int, N> const &a)
{
    for (auto num : a)
        std::cout << num << " ";
}

int main() {
   std::array<int, 10> a;
   std::array<int, 10> d = generateArrayOfSize<10>();
   a = d;
   print(a); // Prints the first 10 elements of array.
}

which outputs 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

score 3 · Answer 3 · edited May 23 '17 at 12:17

3

Arrays are not pointers.

You can't do :

int a[10];
int *d;
a = d;

Change it to :

int *a;
int *d;
a = d;

Main differences between arrays and pointers in C programming :

Pointer                                    | Array
-------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------
A pointer is a place in memory that keeps  | An array is a single, pre allocated chunk
address of another place inside            | of contiguous elements (all of the same
                                           | type), fixed in size and location.
-------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------
A pointer can point to a dynamically       | They are static in nature. Once memory is 
allocated memory. In this case, the memory | allocated , it cannot be resized or freed
allocation can be resized or freed later.  | dynamically.
-------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------

You have a quite good explanation here : https://stackoverflow.com/a/7725410/1394283

edited May 23 '17 at 12:17

Community

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answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:05

Pierre Fourgeaud

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2

I actually find the list of differences more confusing than helpful. *Pointer can’t be initialized at definition.* => of course they can: `int a = 3; int* b = &a;`, *The memory allocation can be resized or freed later* => not a characteristic of the pointers, but of *some* pointed-to memory. *The assembly code of Pointer is different than Array* => this does not mean anything to a beginner to start with. – Matthieu M. Jul 28 '13 at 13:14
Agree. `Pointer can’t be initialized at definition.` Downvoting for that alone. – 7stud Jul 28 '13 at 13:15
@MatthieuM. I removed the parts who were not clear. But I meant that the memory pointed-to by the pointer cannot be initialized during the pointer definition... – Pierre Fourgeaud Jul 28 '13 at 13:21
The second point raised by @MatthieuM. still applies. In fact, a pointer could point to an array, which, as you say, cannot be resized or freed. – Tom Blodget Jul 28 '13 at 14:59
@TomBlodget I tried to make it more clear... It's quite hard to explain this idea in few lines. But thanks to point out that it is not exact. – Pierre Fourgeaud Jul 28 '13 at 15:06

nullptr · Answer 4 · 2013-07-28T13:08:48.230

2

An array is not a pointer (although a name of an array often decays to a pointer to its first element).

To make the above code to work, you can declare a as a pointer: int *a;. The print function takes an int* (or a decayed array) anyway.

If you really want to have two arrays and copy contents from one array to another, you should copy the data in a loop.

edited Jul 28 '13 at 13:08

answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:02

nullptr

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score 1 · Answer 5 · answered May 17 '14 at 01:47

This will print in this way when you assign a string reference to a pointer you have to use *ptr to print the value of a pointer otherwise in your case print(d) that is like cout< in c++ it will only print the location of the d[0].

 int ary[5]={1,2,3,4,5};
 int *d;
 d=ary;
 for(int i=0;i<5;i++)
 cout<<*(d+i);

score 0 · Answer 6 · answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:02

0

Because array names are non-modifiable. So you can't do

a = d;

Declare it as a pointer like this:

int *a;

answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:02

Yu Hao

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score 0 · Answer 7 · answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:04

0

Little rusty with my C++ but try something like this.

int main() {
   int *a;
   int *d = generateArrayOfSize(10) // This generates an array of size 10 on the heap
   a = d;
   print(a); // Prints the first 10 elements of array.
}

answered Jul 28 '13 at 13:04

Ryan Williams

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Assigning pointers to arrays in C++

7 Answers7