❮ C Function Localtime Cpp Pointers Vs Arrays ❯

Returning Arrays from Functions in C++

C++ does not allow returning an entire array as a function argument. However, you can return a pointer to an array by specifying the array's name without an index.

If you want to return a one-dimensional array from a function, you must declare a function returning a pointer, like this:

int * myFunction()
{
    // Function body
}

Additionally, C++ does not support returning the address of a local variable outside the function unless the local variable is defined as a static variable.

Now, let's look at the following function, which generates 10 random numbers and returns them using an array:

Example

#include <iostream>
#include <cstdlib>
#include <ctime>

using namespace std;

// Function to generate and return random numbers
int * getRandom()
{
    static int r[10];

    // Set seed
    srand((unsigned)time(NULL));
    for (int i = 0; i < 10; ++i)
    {
        r[i] = rand();
        cout << r[i] << endl;
    }

    return r;
}

// Main function to call the above defined function
int main()
{
    // A pointer to an integer
    int *p;

    p = getRandom();
    for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++)
    {
        cout << "*(p + " << i << ") : ";
        cout << *(p + i) << endl;
    }

    return 0;
}

When the above code is compiled and executed, it produces the following result:

624723190
1468735695
807113585
976495677
613357504
1377296355
1530315259
1778906708
1820354158
667126415
*(p + 0) : 624723190
*(p + 1) : 1468735695
*(p + 2) : 807113585
*(p + 3) : 976495677
*(p + 4) : 613357504
*(p + 5) : 1377296355
*(p + 6) : 1530315259
*(p + 7) : 1778906708
*(p + 8) : 1820354158
*(p + 9) : 667126415

C++ Arrays

❮ C Function Localtime Cpp Pointers Vs Arrays ❯