How to call destructor from base class which is not virtual?

Question

Suppose I have a class that inherits from another class, and I create a pointer from base class point to derived class object. Now if the base class destructor was defined as virtual, then it wouldn't create any issues. However, in my case the base class destructor was not declared virtual, so when I delete this pointer it will cause memory leaks.

How can I overcome this without modifying base class code?

Show more code. In particular, show the code destroying the data (it is not clear if it is your or not). — Basile Starynkevitch, Jan 19 '14 at 08:07

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Jan 19 '14 at 08:19

Assuming that you mean you have pointer of type Base* (which does not have a virtual destructor), pointing to object of type Derived, and you want to delete that.

A simple way to handle this situation is to use a smart pointer such as std::shared_ptr that remembers the original (statically known) object type and applies it for deletion.

More generally, don't use explicit delete: leave that to smart pointers and container objects.

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 19 '14 at 08:08

1

You can cast base class to derived and call delete.

answered Jan 19 '14 at 08:08

Igor

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How to call destructor from base class which is not virtual?

2 Answers2