Compiler Error C2438

  • Article

'identifier' : cannot initialize static class data via constructor

A constructor is used to initialize a static member of a class. Static members must be initialized in a definition outside the class declaration.

The following sample generates C2438:

// C2438.cpp
struct X {
   X(int i) : j(i) {}   // C2438
   static int j;
};

int X::j;

int main() {
   X::j = 1;
}