including headers files getting compilation errors

Question

I don't know if I have a circular inclusion problem or not. I have three headers files:

file A:  needs files B and C
file B:  needs file A
file C:  needs files A and B

I've tried different ways of including files, and have include guards on each header file. But I still get compilation errors with each way I try. Is it possible to make this work with includes?

I always try to avoid using includes in header files. You are creating a circular include here. — drescherjm, Jun 20 '16 at 16:31
#include guards should have solved it, can you copy/paste the source files in here? — Fausto Carvalho Marques Silva, Jun 20 '16 at 16:32
If you post some code in your question or in pastebin, we can give you more exact assistance. Also include the compiler errors. — Brian A. Henning, Jun 20 '16 at 16:32
With circular dependencies you probably need forward declarations to break the dependency. — drescherjm, Jun 20 '16 at 16:32
Then can you forward declare structs? All three files have them. Thanks for your fast answers. — Alex, Jun 20 '16 at 16:36
@Jane Yes, you can forward declare structs, it doesn't even matter if `class` or `struct` keyword is used in the forward declaration. — πάντα ῥεῖ, Jun 20 '16 at 16:44
A smart pointer or reference are common. The linked duplicate should explain that. — drescherjm, Jun 20 '16 at 16:58
***Would declaring the struct variables as externs also work?*** No. — drescherjm, Jun 20 '16 at 17:39

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 20 '16 at 16:31

3

You have clearly described a circular dependency. Have you tried using forward declarations?

answered Jun 20 '16 at 16:31

Brian A. Henning

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including headers files getting compilation errors

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