goto statement

 

C++

Language

Standard library headers

Concepts

Utilities library

Strings library

Containers library

Algorithms library

Iterators library

Numerics library

Input/output library

Localizations library

Regular expressions library (C++11)

Atomic operations library (C++11)

Thread support library (C++11)

Technical Specifications

 

C++ language

 

Statements

Labels

label : statement

Expression statements

expression ;

Compound statements

{ statement... }

Selection statements

if

switch

Iteration statements

while

do-while

for

range for(C++11)

Jump statements

break

continue

return

goto

Declaration statements

declaration ;

Try blocks

try compound-statement handler-sequence

 

Transfers control unconditionally.

Used when it is otherwise impossible to transfer control to the desired location using other statements.

Syntax

attr(optional) goto label ;

Explanation

The goto statement transfers control to the location specified by label. The goto statement must be in the same function as the label it is referring, it may appear before or after the label.

If transfer of control exits the scope of any automatic variables (e.g. by jumping backwards to a point before the declarations of such variables or by jumping forward out of a compound statement where the variables are scoped), the destructors are called for all variables whose scope was exited, in the order opposite to the order of their construction.

The goto statement cannot transfer control into a try-block or into a catch-clause, but can transfer control out of a try-block or a catch-clause (the rules above regarding automatic variables in scope are followed)

If transfer of control enters the scope of any automatic variables (e.g. by jumping forward over a declaration statement), the program is ill-formed (cannot be compiled), unless all variables whose scope is entered have

1) scalar types declared without initializers

2) class types with trivial default constructors and trivial destructors declared without initializers

3) cv-qualified versions of one of the above

4) arrays of one of the above

(Note: the same rules apply to all forms of transfer of control)

Keywords

goto

Notes

In the C programming language, the goto statement has fewer restrictions and can enter the scope of any variable other than variable-length array or variably-modified pointer.

Example

Run this code

#include <iostream>
 
struct Object {
    // non-trivial destructor
    ~Object() { std::cout << "d"; }
};
 
struct Trivial {
    double d1;
    double d2;
}; // trivial ctor and dtor
 
int main()
{
    int a = 10;
 
    // loop using goto
label:
    Object obj;
    std::cout << a << " ";
    a = a - 2;
 
    if (a != 0) {
        goto label;  // jumps out of scope of obj, calls obj destructor
    }
    std::cout << '\n';
 
    // goto can be used to leave a multi-level loop easily
    for (int x = 0; x < 3; x++) {
        for (int y = 0; y < 3; y++) {
            std::cout << "(" << x << ";" << y << ") " << '\n';
            if (x + y >= 3) {
                goto endloop;
            }
        }
    }
endloop:
    std::cout << '\n';
 
    goto label2; // jumps into the scope of n and t
    int n; // no initializer
    Trivial t; // trivial ctor/dtor, no initializer
//  int x = 1; // error: has initializer
//  Object obj2; // error: non-trivial dtor
label2:
 
    {
        Object obj3;
        goto label3; // jumps forward, out of scope of obj3
    }
label3: ;
 
}

Output:

10 d8 d6 d4 d2
(0;0) 
(0;1) 
(0;2) 
(1;0) 
(1;1) 
(1;2) 
 
dd

See Also

C documentation for goto