Move assignment of vector of non-movable-non-copyable objects does not compile

Question

The following code does not compile with Visual Studio 2013:

#include <vector>

struct X {
    X() = default;
    X(const X&) = delete;
    X& operator=(const X&) = delete;
    X(X&&) = delete;
    X& operator=(X&&) = delete;
    ~X() = default;
};

void foo()
{
    std::vector<X> v;
    std::vector<X> w;
    w = std::move(v);
}

The error message says

error C2280: 'X::X(X &&)' : attempting to reference a deleted function

That makes no sense to me. You should not need the move constructor for X in order to move a vector<X>. Is this a compiler bug, or am I missing something?

Here is the complete error message:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory0(600): error C2280: 'X::X(X &&)' : attempting to reference a deleted function
    Test.cpp(9) : see declaration of 'X::X'
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory0(723) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::allocator<_Ty>::construct<_Objty,_Ty>(_Objty *,_Ty &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Objty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory0(723) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::allocator<_Ty>::construct<_Objty,_Ty>(_Objty *,_Ty &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Objty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory0(872) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::allocator_traits<_Alloc>::construct<_Ty,_Ty>(std::allocator<_Ty> &,_Objty *,_Ty &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Alloc=std::allocator<X>
    ,   _Ty=X
    ,   _Objty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory0(872) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::allocator_traits<_Alloc>::construct<_Ty,_Ty>(std::allocator<_Ty> &,_Objty *,_Ty &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Alloc=std::allocator<X>
    ,   _Ty=X
    ,   _Objty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory(378) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<_Ty>>::construct<X,X>(_Ty *,X &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory(378) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<_Ty>>::construct<X,X>(_Ty *,X &&)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory(416) : see reference to function template instantiation '_FwdIt std::_Uninit_copy<_InIt,_FwdIt,std::allocator<_Ty>>(_InIt,_InIt,_FwdIt,std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<_Ty>> &,std::_Nonscalar_ptr_iterator_tag)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _FwdIt=X *
    ,   _InIt=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ,   _Ty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\xmemory(427) : see reference to function template instantiation '_FwdIt std::_Uninit_copy<_Iter,X,_Alloc>(_InIt,_InIt,_FwdIt,_Alloc &)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _FwdIt=X *
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ,   _Alloc=std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<X>>
    ,   _InIt=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(1640) : see reference to function template instantiation '_FwdIt std::_Uninitialized_copy<_Iter,X*,std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<_Ty>>>(_InIt,_InIt,_FwdIt,_Alloc &)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _FwdIt=X *
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ,   _Ty=X
    ,   _InIt=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ,   _Alloc=std::_Wrap_alloc<std::allocator<X>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(789) : see reference to function template instantiation 'X *std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Ucopy<_Iter>(_Iter,_Iter,X *)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(789) : see reference to function template instantiation 'X *std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Ucopy<_Iter>(_Iter,_Iter,X *)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(766) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Construct<_Iter>(_Iter,_Iter,std::forward_iterator_tag)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(766) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Construct<_Iter>(_Iter,_Iter,std::forward_iterator_tag)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(854) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Construct<std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>>(_Iter,_Iter)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(854) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Construct<std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>>(_Iter,_Iter)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ,   _Iter=std::move_iterator<std::_Vector_iterator<std::_Vector_val<std::_Simple_types<X>>>>
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(849) : while compiling class template member function 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Assign_rv(std::vector<_Ty,std::allocator<_Ty>> &&,std::false_type)'
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ]
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\VC\include\vector(860) : see reference to function template instantiation 'void std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>::_Assign_rv(std::vector<_Ty,std::allocator<_Ty>> &&,std::false_type)' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ]
    Test.cpp(16) : see reference to class template instantiation 'std::vector<X,std::allocator<_Ty>>' being compiled
    with
    [
        _Ty=X
    ]

Answer 1

As mentioned by dyp in the comments, this is a reported bug in C++11*. The expression

a = rv

_{(where a is a Container of type X with element type T and rv is a non-const rvalue of type X)}
had the following requirement in Table 99, "Allocator-aware container requirements":

If allocator_traits<allocator_type>::propagate_on_container_move_assignment ::value is false, T is MoveInsertable into X and MoveAssignable. All existing elements of a are either move assigned to or destroyed.

allocator_traits had the following definition of propagate_on_container_move_assignment:

typedef see below propagate_on_container_move_assignment;

Type: Alloc::propagate_on_container_move_assignment if such a type exists,
otherwise false_type.

The problem was that one forgot to put the corresponding typedef into std::allocator, so propagate_on_container_move_assignment was always false. This was resolved for C++14 by simply adding the typedef.

* _{Note that [default.allocator] and [allocator.traits.types] are actually in §20.6 in N3337, not §20.7.}

Answer 2

Answer for C++11: VS is compliant with the original spec, because according to this defect report, the specification of std::allocator

leads to the unneeded requirements (MoveInsertable and MoveAssignable of the value type) on the move assignment operator of containers with the default allocator.

This was however fixed in C++14. So now std::allocator does not make this code illegal anymore and according to Table 96 in N3797, ([20.2.1,container.requirements.general]), the requirement for the template argument T of std::vector<T> =: X is

Requires: T is Erasable from X

which is true and a = rv for a value a of type X and an non-cpnst r-value rv of type X has the requirement

a shall be equal to the value that rv had before this assignment,

so no further requirement to T. I did not find any additional requirements to T in [23.3.6,vector], so this should be legal code in C++14 (like the defect report suggests).