DOC: Description of C2354 Error Is Unclear

ID: Q147427

The information in this article applies to:

The Microsoft C/C++ Compiler (CL.EXE)
- Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Editions, versions 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 5.0, 6.0

SUMMARY

Neither the error message itself nor the online documentation for the C2354 compiler error clearly specify the cause of this error:

'reference' : initialization of reference member requires a temporary variable

MORE INFORMATION

It is illegal to initialize a reference member of a class in the class's constructor with a temporary variable. An attempt to do so generates the C2354 error, as illustrated by this sample code:

Sample Code


int temp() { return 1; }

class Test
{
public:
    int member;
    int& ref_member;
    Test();
};

Test::Test() : ref_member( temp() )
{
}

When this error is encountered, the solution is to change the code so that the reference member is not initialized to a temporary variable. The reference must be initialized to an object that will exist for the lifetime of the reference member.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbdocerr kbCompiler kbCPPonly kbVC200 kbVC210 kbVC220 kbVC400 kbVC410 kbVC420 kbVC500 kbVC600 kbOLDocs
Version : WinNT:2.0,2.1,2.2,4.0,4.1,4.2,5.0
Platform : NT WINDOWS
Issue type :