FIX: Minimal Rebuild Fails on Access Specifier Change for Enum

• Microsoft C/C++ Compiler (CL.EXE), used with:
  • Microsoft Visual C++ 32-bit Edition, versions 4.0, 4.1, 4.2

SYMPTOMS

Minimal Rebuild fails to detect the significance of access specifier changes for enums that are declared inside a class. For example, if the public definition of an enum in a class in a header file is changed to private, minimal rebuild does not see the change as significant, and files that depend on the header and the definition of the enum are not rebuilt. The following message is displayed:

Generating Code...
Skipping... (no relevant changes detected)

RESOLUTION

Doing a rebuild all or disabling minimal rebuild forces a full compile and correctly evaluates changes to the access specification of the enum. For details, please see the "More Information" section of this article.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a bug in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. This bug was corrected in Visual C++ version 5.0.

MORE INFORMATION

Steps to Recreate Problem

1. Create a default MFC application. On the File menu, click New, and then click Project Workspace. Name it Test, and select the default for all of the dialog boxes that follow.



2. In the main header file for the application, before the first public: in the application's class declaration, add the following enum definitions:

   
      class CMyTestApp : public CWinApp
      {
      public:                //add these 3 lines
          enum e1 {E1,E2};   //to the header file Test.h
          enum {UE1, UE2};   // 
       public:
          CMyTestApp(); 




3. In the constructor of CAboutDlg, add references to the enums:

   
      CAboutDlg::CAboutDlg() : CDialog(CAboutDlg::IDD)
      {
    
          //{{AFX_DATA_INIT(CAboutDlg)
          //}}AFX_DATA_INIT
          int i= CMy3209App::UE1;             //Add these 2 lines
          CMy3209App::e1 e = CMy3209App::E2;  //to Test.cpp
      } 




4. Check to ensure that minimal rebuild is enabled. On the Build menu, click Settings, and then click C/C++ and category Customize. Build the application.



5. Comment out the first public: in the application's class declaration:

   
        // public:                //add these 3 lines 




6. Build the appplication again (not rebuild all). There are no error messages.



7. Rebuild All. The following errors are generated:

   
      Test.cpp(129) : error C2248: 'UE1' : cannot access private
             enumerator declared in class 'CMyTestApp'
      Test.cpp(130) : error C2248: 'e1' : cannot access private enum
             declared in class 'CMyTestApp'
      Test.cpp(130) : error C2248: 'E2' : cannot access private enumerator
             declared in class 'CMyTestApp' 

Additional query words: kbVC400bug 10.00 10.10 10.20

Keywords : kbCompiler kbCPPonly kbVC kbVC500fix
Version : :4.0,4.1,4.2
Platform : NT WINDOWS
Issue type : kbbug