Call-stack for exceptions in C++

Question

Today, in my C++ multi-platform code, I have a try-catch around every function. In every catch block I add the current function\'s name to the exception and throw it again,

Answer 1

One solution which may be more graceful is to build a Tracer macro/class. So at the top of each function, you write something like:

TRACE()

and the macro looks something like:

Tracer t(__FUNCTION__);

and the class Tracer adds the function name to a global stack on construction, and removes itself upon destruction. Then that stack is always available to logging or debugging, maintenance is much simpler (one line), and it doesn't incur exception overhead.

Examples of implementations include things like http://www.drdobbs.com/184405270, http://www.codeproject.com/KB/cpp/cmtrace.aspx, and http://www.codeguru.com/cpp/v-s/debug/tracing/article.php/c4429. Also Linux functions like this http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/6391 can do it more natively, as described by this Stack Overflow question: How to generate a stacktrace when my gcc C++ app crashes. ACE's ACE_Stack_Trace may be worth looking at too.

Regardless, the exception-handling method is crude, inflexible, and computationally expensive. Class-construction/macro solutions are much faster and can be compiled out for release builds if desired.