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C++ guide

How to use C++ headers and sources generated by DeukPack in your project. For servers and native tools.

1. Code generation

Specify --cpp to generate C++ from IDL.

npx deukpack ./schema.deuk ./gen --cpp --protocol tbinary

Output goes under gen/cpp/ (or your specified folder) as <stem>_deuk.h and <stem>_deuk.cpp per IDL source file (the _deuk suffix avoids colliding with hand-written headers like Foo.h). An include-only .deuk emits an umbrella <stem>_deuk.h that forward-#includes the matching *_deuk.h headers (no outer C++ namespace wrapper). C++17 is assumed.

2. Including in the build

  • Include path: Add the directory containing generated headers to your include path (e.g. gen/cpp, gen/cpp/include — structure depends on generation output).
  • Sources: Add generated *_deuk.cpp files to your build targets.

CMake example:

include_directories(${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}/../gen/cpp)
set(GEN_SOURCES
  ../gen/cpp/DemoPoint_deuk.cpp
  ../gen/cpp/DemoUser_deuk.cpp
  # or file(GLOB ...) to collect generated *_deuk.cpp
)
add_executable(demo main.cpp ${GEN_SOURCES})

Actual file names and paths depend on your IDL structure. For a working example, see core repo examples/consumer-cpp.

3. Serialization & deserialization

Generated C++ types serialize via Read / Write (or protocol-specific interfaces). Use buffers and streams as provided by the runtime.

Concept example:

#include "gen/cpp/DemoUser_deuk.h"  // actual path/header depends on generation output

// Write
DemoUser user;
user.id = 1;
user.name = "Alice";
user.home.x = 10;
user.home.y = 20;
// call user.Write(...) with protocol-specific Writer → serializes to buffer/stream

// Read
// call DemoUser::Read(...) with Reader from buffer/stream → restores instance

See the generated code and core C++ runtime documentation for the exact API.

4. kFieldId · pack/binary write · extends

Each generated struct includes:

  • kFieldId_* — static constexpr int field ID constants. Use StructName::kFieldId_PropertyName.
  • Emitted pack/binary (or Thrift interop) write helpers — same field-ID model as C#/JS; use them next to your types for fan-out and partial sends (no separate apply_overrides step).
  • struct extends — use extends in IDL to auto-merge parent fields into child. Generated as a flat struct.

Tutorial & comparison: Unified Write tutorial · API reference.

5. Protocol (Binary / Compact / JSON)

The Reader/Writer used depends on --protocol tbinary (or tcompact, tjson, pack, json, …) at generation time. - binary: Binary format compatible with Thrift Binary protocol. - compact: Space-efficient binary. - json: Useful for debugging and REST integration.

For selection criteria, see Protocol & serialization.

6. Next steps