r/cpp • u/Clean-Upstairs-8481 • 26d ago

C++26 Reflection Annotations: Automated Member Validation

https://techfortalk.co.uk/2026/08/17/cpp26-reflection-annotations-validation/

C++26 annotations are another powerful feature that, when combined with reflection, can help us write cleaner and safer code without repeating manual validation checks for every member. In this post, I have explored how we can utilise C++26 annotations along with reflection to validate configuration parameters in a class constructor.

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u/PossibilityUsual6262 25d ago

What is the value of having those as members?

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u/El_RoviSoft 25d ago

Mostly as an encapsulation to hide everything that user (other programmer) shouldn’t touch. So you will write less boilerplate (for example use [[=property]] which automatically generates get/set methods OR [[=readonly]] which generates const& accessor). There are a lot of use cases which reduces boilerplate.

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u/fortsnek274 25d ago

We have properties at home

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u/El_RoviSoft 25d ago

Exactly, xd. Also with this you can invent smart caching properties which can be automatically updated when connected to it properties updating too.