c++ - Update a smart pointer using a reference

Question

I would like to update a smart pointer from a reference.

shared_ptr<My_Toy> my_toy_ptr;

// Something...

void update(shared_ptr<My_Toy> my_toy_ptr, My_Toy& toy){

     my_toy_ptr = &toy;
}

...but his code generates an error.

How can I do this operation?

Answer 1

Don't pass the address of a stack allocated object to a std::shared_ptr. toy will be destructed at the end of its scope and the std::shared_ptr will attempt to delete something that was not newd. The address held by a std::shared_ptr must be that of a dynamically allocated object (although a custom deleter can be provided, but that is not the case here).

To change the object that a std::shared_ptr is managing use std::shared_ptr::reset().