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Home/ Questions/Q 6716611
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Editorial Team
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Editorial Team
Asked: May 26, 20262026-05-26T08:45:15+00:00 2026-05-26T08:45:15+00:00

What is happening when you include some file and what is happening when you

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What is happening when you include some file and what is happening when you forward declare some function/class? If two files include the same file will the first one success to read all the function the second will fail but still be able to use the functions??

What happens when I forward declare some function? Is this function now “saved” and I can use it anywhere or it’s known only for the same file? then why two files with include(to a file with guards) will work?

Can I just include every thing in the main and won’t bother any longer?

EDIT:

And why the cpp files should include their headers?? What If i won’t include them?

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  1. Editorial Team
    Editorial Team
    2026-05-26T08:45:15+00:00Added an answer on May 26, 2026 at 8:45 am

    What is happening when you include some file and what is happening when you forward declare some function/class?

    When you include a file, its contents get “copy and pasted” into the inclusion source by the preprocessor. When you forward declare a function/class you are declaring an incomplete type, letting the rest of the translation unit know that a function/class with that name exist and making it usable within context where an incomplete declaration is allowed.

    If two files include the same file will the first one success to read all the function the second will fail but still be able to use the functions??

    If the included file includes proper include guards, the second inclusion within the same translation unit will be effectively a no-op. If two different source files include that same header file, the full content will be included in both files.

    What happens when I forward declare some function? Is this function now “saved” and I can use it anywhere or it’s known only for the same file? then why two files with include(to a file with guards) will work?

    The function can only be used within the translation unit that contains the forward declaration. Generally each source file (.cpp) is a different translation unit, macro definitions (those of the header guards) as well as declarations/definitions are valid within that translation unit. Header guards prevent the same header file from being included more than once within the same translation unit, to prevent multiple declaration errors.

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