Working with std::thread
Explore how to use std::thread in C++ to run concurrent tasks. Learn to launch threads, pass arguments safely, manage thread lifetimes with join and detach, and how std::jthread improves thread safety by automating join calls. Gain a foundational understanding required for effective multithreaded programming and prepare to tackle synchronization and data sharing in subsequent lessons.
We have explored the conceptual benefits of concurrency; now it is time to translate those ideas into code. In this section, we move beyond single-threaded, sequential execution and learn how to run tasks concurrently alongside the main program. We will examine how to create threads, pass data to them, and manage their lifetimes correctly to ensure our programs remain stable and free of resource leaks.
Launching threads with std::thread
In C++, the <thread> header provides the std::thread class, which represents an individual thread of execution. When a std::thread object is constructed, it immediately attempts to create a new operating system thread and begins executing the function supplied to it.
The function executed by a thread serves as its entry point, similar to how main() serves as the entry point for a program. Execution starts at the beginning of that function, and when the function returns, the thread’s execution ends.
Below is a minimal example demonstrating how to launch a ...