std::optional serialization conflicts with boost::shared_ptr in Boost 1.84 and 1.85

[sowle]

I'm experiencing a very strange compilation issue when using boost::shared_ptr with the (de)serialization of std::optional.

std::optional serialization support has been added recently in version 1.84.0: https://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_84_0/boost/serialization/optional.hpp (see also commit 61a2b1207619cedb1f4d3ac1c7193f10ef9334f7)

After a lot of effort I have reduced the problem to a minimal reproducible example, which highlights the issue in both 1.84 and 1.85 versions (earlier versions don't support std::optional serialization).

MRE:

#include <fstream>
#include <iostream>
#include <optional>
#include <boost/filesystem/fstream.hpp>
#include <boost/serialization/optional.hpp>
#include <boost/archive/text_iarchive.hpp>
#include <boost/archive/text_oarchive.hpp>

struct pluto_t
{
  uint64_t mass = 0;
  std::optional<uint64_t> optional_mass;

  template <class archive_t>
  void serialize(archive_t &_a, const unsigned int ver)
  {
    _a & mass;
    _a & optional_mass;                          // <-- no error if this line is commented out
  }

};

int main()
{
  const char* filename = "tmpfile";
  // store to file
  {
    pluto_t pluto{};
    pluto.mass = 13025000000000000000ull;

    std::ofstream ofs(filename);
    boost::archive::text_oarchive oa(ofs);
    oa << pluto;
  }

  // load from file
  {
    pluto_t pluto{};

    std::ifstream ifs(filename);
    boost::archive::text_iarchive ia(ifs);
    ia >> pluto;                                 // <-- no error if this line is commented out

    std::cout << pluto.mass << std::endl;
  }

  std::cout << "done." << std::endl;
  return 0;
}

#include <boost/serialization/shared_ptr.hpp>    // <-- no error if this line is commented out

[[maybe_unused]] static int foo = 42;

Error (there's lots of text, here's only the error line):

/usr/include/c++/8/type_traits:1147:12: error: invalid use of incomplete type ‘class boost::serialization::U’
     struct __is_trivially_copy_constructible_impl<_Tp, true>
            ^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Compilation flags: g++ f.cpp -std=c++17 -g -O3 -Wall -DNDEBUG -o f -I$BOOST_ROOT -L$BOOST_ROOT/stage/lib -static -lboost_system -lboost_serialization -s

Compiler version:

g++ --version
g++ (Ubuntu 8.4.0-1ubuntu1~18.04) 8.4.0
Copyright (C) 2018 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

This example doesn't compile. If any of the corresponding lines in the code are commented out, there's no error whatsoever.

UPD. It looks like a gcc-specific issue. I have no compilation issues with MSVC Community 2022 (64-bit) Version 17.10.4.

[mclow]

Compiles w/o error for me using clang: clang++ -std=c++17 -I $BOOST boost.cpp -c

[correaa]

Confirmed in Godbolt: https://godbolt.org/z/8h5Mc3aYe (works with clang and not with gcc).

It is strange that is trying to use a type called boost::serialization::U; seems like a template parameter U missing somewhere or interpreted as an actual type (maybe a typename missing somewhere).

[correaa]

This is the problematic code: https://github.com/boostorg/serialization/blob/develop/include/boost/serialization/shared_ptr_helper.hpp#L45

Here it is a confirmation that this line is problematic and a proposed change by properly declaring U as a template parameter https://godbolt.org/z/jh5T1Tvjs Not sure how this ever worked since it is rejected by both compilers.

The difference in the two compilers may come from the BOOST_NO_MEMBER_TEMPLATE_FRIENDS, which, in any case, can give you accidentally a way to workaround the problem until it is fixed: https://godbolt.org/z/sxWPhfrr4

[correaa]

I opened a PR https://github.com/boostorg/serialization/pull/320 to solve what that I think causes this problem.

[olologin]

Yep, we found the same problem in our project today. Please fix :)

[olologin]

@correaa

Does the following sample work with your fix for you?

#include <optional>
#include <sstream>

#include <boost/archive/binary_iarchive.hpp>
#include <boost/serialization/optional.hpp>
#include <boost/serialization/shared_ptr.hpp>
#include <boost/serialization/vector.hpp>
///////////

void Foo()
{
    std::istringstream archiveStream;
    boost::archive::binary_iarchive arch(archiveStream);
    auto asd = std::optional<size_t>();
    auto bsd = std::vector<long unsigned int>();
    arch & asd;
    arch & bsd;
}

I tried your fix, but for me it raises the following issue, but I must say beforehand - I am using 1.78 with some patches backported from more recent versions, so maybe it is my fault:

/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/split_free.hpp: In instantiation of ‘static void boost::serialization::free_loader<Archive, T>::invoke(Archive&, T&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; T = std::vector<long unsigned int>]’:
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/split_free.hpp:74:18:   required from ‘void boost::serialization::split_free(Archive&, T&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; T = std::vector<long unsigned int>]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/vector.hpp:177:39:   required from ‘void boost::serialization::serialize(Archive&, std::vector<_ValT, _Allocator>&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; U = long unsigned int; Allocator = std::allocator<long unsigned int>]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/serialization.hpp:109:14:   required from ‘void boost::serialization::serialize_adl(Archive&, T&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; T = std::vector<long unsigned int>]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/iserializer.hpp:189:42:   required from ‘void boost::archive::detail::iserializer<Archive, T>::load_object_data(boost::archive::detail::basic_iarchive&, void*, unsigned int) const [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; T = std::vector<long unsigned int>]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/iserializer.hpp:122:7:   required from ‘class boost::archive::detail::iserializer<boost::archive::binary_iarchive, std::vector<long unsigned int> >’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/iserializer.hpp:411:27:   [ skipping 4 instantiation contexts, use -ftemplate-backtrace-limit=0 to disable ]
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/common_iarchive.hpp:67:22:   required from ‘void boost::archive::detail::common_iarchive<Archive>::load_override(T&) [with T = std::vector<long unsigned int>; Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/basic_binary_iarchive.hpp:76:50:   required from ‘void boost::archive::basic_binary_iarchive<Archive>::load_override(T&) [with T = std::vector<long unsigned int>; Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/binary_iarchive_impl.hpp:58:60:   required from ‘void boost::archive::binary_iarchive_impl<Archive, Elem, Tr>::load_override(T&) [with T = std::vector<long unsigned int>; Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; Elem = char; Tr = std::char_traits<char>]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/interface_iarchive.hpp:68:36:   required from ‘Archive& boost::archive::detail::interface_iarchive<Archive>::operator>>(T&) [with T = std::vector<long unsigned int>; Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/archive/detail/interface_iarchive.hpp:75:32:   required from ‘Archive& boost::archive::detail::interface_iarchive<Archive>::operator&(T&) [with T = std::vector<long unsigned int>; Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive]’
/builds/branch1/company/dev/libraries/TPVisualizer/src/test.cpp:17:9:   required from here
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/split_free.hpp:58:13: error: call of overloaded ‘load(boost::archive::binary_iarchive&, std::vector<long unsigned int>&, const boost::serialization::version_type&)’ is ambiguous
   58 |         load(ar, t, v);
      |         ~~~~^~~~~~~~~~
In file included from /builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/shared_ptr.hpp:29,
                 from /builds/branch1/company/dev/libraries/TPVisualizer/src/test.cpp:6:
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/shared_ptr_helper.hpp:44:6: note: candidate: ‘void boost::serialization::load(Archive&, SPT<U>&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; SPT = std::vector; U = long unsigned int]’
   44 | void load(
      |      ^~~~
In file included from /builds/branch1/company/dev/libraries/TPVisualizer/src/test.cpp:7:
/builds/branch1/company/dev/third_party/boost_1_78/boost/serialization/vector.hpp:150:13: note: candidate: ‘void boost::serialization::load(Archive&, std::vector<_ValT, _Allocator>&, unsigned int) [with Archive = boost::archive::binary_iarchive; U = long unsigned int; Allocator = std::allocator<long unsigned int>]’
  150 | inline void load(

[olologin]

The following replacement of faulty fwd declaration in shared_ptr_helper.hpp works for us, I am not sure if this is correct:

#ifndef BOOST_NO_MEMBER_TEMPLATE_FRIENDS
template<class Archive, class T>
void load(
    Archive & ar,
    mwboost::shared_ptr< T > &t,
    const unsigned int file_version
);

template<class Archive, class T>
void load(
    Archive & ar,
    std::shared_ptr< T > &t,
    const unsigned int file_version
);

template<class Archive, class T>
void load(
    Archive & ar,
    mwboost_132::shared_ptr< T > &t,
    const unsigned int file_version
);
#endif

[ProfFan]

We found the same problem in our project, which prevents builds in latest Ubuntu 24.04.