Lambda capture as const reference?

Question

In c++14 using static_cast / const_cast:

[&best_string = static_cast<const std::string&>(best_string)](const string& s)
{
    best_string = s; // fails
};

DEMO

---

In c++17 using std::as_const:

[&best_string = std::as_const(best_string)](const string& s)
{
    best_string = s; // fails
};

DEMO 2

const isn't in the grammar for captures as of n3092:

capture:
  identifier
  & identifier
  this

The text only mention capture-by-copy and capture-by-reference and doesn't mention any sort of const-ness.

Feels like an oversight to me, but I haven't followed the standardization process very closely.

I think the capture part should not specify const, as the capture means, it only need a way to access the outer scope variable.

The specifier is better specified in the outer scope.

const string better_string = "XXX";
[&better_string](string s) {
    better_string = s;    // error: read-only area.
}

lambda function is const(can't change value in its scope), so when you capture variable by value, the variable can not be changed, but the reference is not in the lambda scope.

I guess if you're not using the variable as a parameter of the functor, then you should use the access level of the current function. If you think you shouldn't, then separate your lambda from this function, it's not part of it.

Anyway, you can easily achieve the same thing that you want by using another const reference instead :

#include <cstdlib>
#include <vector>
#include <string>
#include <algorithm>
using namespace std;

int main()
{
    string strings[] = 
    {
        "hello",
        "world"
    };
    static const size_t num_strings = sizeof(strings)/sizeof(strings[0]);

    string best_string = "foo";
    const string& string_processed = best_string;

    for_each( &strings[0], &strings[num_strings], [&string_processed]  (const string& s)  -> void 
    {
        string_processed = s;    // this should fail
    }
    );
    return 0;
}

But that's the same as assuming that your lambda have to be isolated from the current function, making it a non-lambda.

There is a shorter way.

Note that there is no ampersand before "best_string".

It will be of a const std::reference_wrapper<T> type.

[best_string = std::cref(best_string)](const string& s)
{
    best_string = s; // fails
};

http://coliru.stacked-crooked.com/a/0e54d6f9441e6867

I think you have three different options:

• don't use const reference, but use a copy capture
• ignore the fact that it is modifiable
• use std::bind to bind one argument of a binary function which has a const reference.

using a copy

The interesting part about lambdas with copy captures is that those are actually read only and therefore do exactly what you want them to.

int main() {
  int a = 5;
  [a](){ a = 7; }(); // Compiler error!
}

using std::bind

std::bind reduces the arity of a function. Note however that this might/will lead to an indirect function call via a function pointer.

int main() {
  int a = 5;
  std::function<int ()> f2 = std::bind( [](const int &a){return a;}, a);
}