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The All-in-One Guide to C++20

Cooperative Interruption of a std::jthread

Explore how std::jthread differs from std::thread by automatically joining on destruction and supporting cooperative interruption through std::stop_token. Understand how to handle stop requests safely in concurrent programming with practical examples.

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To get a general idea, let me present a simple example.

C++
#include <chrono>
#include <iostream>
#include <thread>
using namespace::std::literals;
int main() {  
    std::cout << '\n';
    
    std::jthread nonInterruptible([]{ 
        int counter{0};
        while (counter < 10){
            std::this_thread::sleep_for(0.2s);
            std::cerr << "nonInterruptible: " << counter << '\n'; 
            ++counter;
        }
    });
    
    std::jthread interruptible([](std::stop_token stoken){ 
        int counter{0};
        while (counter < 10){
            std::this_thread::sleep_for(0.2s);
            if (stoken.stop_requested()) return;
            std::cerr << "interruptible: " << counter << '\n'; 
            ++counter;
        }
    });
    
    std::this_thread::sleep_for(1s);
    
    std::cerr << '\n';
    std::cerr << "Main thread interrupts both jthreads" << '\n';
    nonInterruptible.request_stop();
    interruptible.request_stop();
    
    std::cout << '\n';  
}

In the main program I start the two threads nonInterruptible and interruptible (lines 10 and 19). Unlike in the thread nonInterruptible, the thread interruptible ...