The goal of this C++ library is to load dynamic libraries (.so, .dll, .dylib) and access its functions and global variables at runtime.
โญ Don't forget to put a star if you like the project!
Works on Linux
, MacOS
and Windows
You can install dylib
from vcpkg or conan center:
vcpkg install dylib
conan install --requires=dylib/2.2.1
You can also fetch dylib
to your project using CMake
:
include(FetchContent)
FetchContent_Declare(
dylib
GIT_REPOSITORY "https://github.com/martin-olivier/dylib"
GIT_TAG "v2.2.1"
)
FetchContent_MakeAvailable(dylib)
The dylib
class can load a dynamic library from the system library path
// Load "foo" library from the system library path
dylib lib("foo");
The dylib
class can also load a dynamic library from a specific path
// Load "foo" library from relative path "./libs"
dylib lib("./libs", "foo");
// Load "foo" library from full path "/usr/lib"
dylib lib("/usr/lib", "foo");
The dylib
class will automatically add the filename decorations of the current os to the library name, but you can disable that by setting decorations
parameter to dylib::no_filename_decorations
// Windows -> "foo.dll"
// MacOS -> "libfoo.dylib"
// Linux -> "libfoo.so"
dylib lib("foo");
// Windows -> "foo.lib"
// MacOS -> "foo.lib"
// Linux -> "foo.lib"
dylib lib("foo.lib", dylib::no_filename_decorations);
get_function
Get a function from the dynamic library currently loaded in the object
get_variable
Get a global variable from the dynamic library currently loaded in the object
// Load "foo" dynamic library
dylib lib("foo");
// Get the function "adder" (get_function<T> will return T*)
auto adder = lib.get_function<double(double, double)>("adder");
// Get the variable "pi_value" (get_variable<T> will return T&)
double pi = lib.get_variable<double>("pi_value");
// Use the function "adder" with "pi_value"
double result = adder(pi, pi);
has_symbol
Returns true if the symbol passed as parameter exists in the dynamic library, false otherwise
get_symbol
Get a symbol from the dynamic library currently loaded in the object
native_handle
Returns the dynamic library handle
dylib lib("foo");
if (lib.has_symbol("GetModule") == false)
std::cerr << "symbol 'GetModule' not found in 'foo' lib" << std::endl;
dylib::native_handle_type handle = lib.native_handle();
dylib::native_symbol_type symbol = lib.get_symbol("GetModule");
assert(handle != nullptr && symbol != nullptr);
assert(symbol == dlsym(handle, "GetModule"));
load_error
This exception is raised when the library failed to load or the library encountered symbol resolution issues
symbol_error
This exception is raised when the library failed to load a symbol
Those exceptions inherit from dylib::exception
try {
dylib lib("foo");
double pi_value = lib.get_variable<double>("pi_value");
std::cout << pi_value << std::endl;
} catch (const dylib::load_error &) {
std::cerr << "failed to load 'foo' library" << std::endl;
} catch (const dylib::symbol_error &) {
std::cerr << "failed to get 'pi_value' symbol" << std::endl;
}
A full example about the usage of the dylib
library is available HERE
To build unit tests, enter the following commands:
cmake . -B build -DDYLIB_BUILD_TESTS=ON
cmake --build build
To run unit tests, enter the following command inside build
directory:
ctest
If you have any question about the usage of the library, do not hesitate to open a discussion
If you want to report a bug or provide a feature, do not hesitate to open an issue or submit a pull request
Set the cmake flag DYLIB_BUILD_TESTS
to ON
to enable tests and make it easier for you to contribute
cmake . -B build -DDYLIB_BUILD_TESTS=ON
Do not forget to sign your commits and use conventional commits when providing a pull request
git commit -s -m "feat: ..."