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Use Enumeration Instead of SAFEARRAY to Get an Array’s Elements

Use Enumeration Instead of SAFEARRAY to Get an Array’s Elements

C++’s SAFEARRAY is difficult to use. A better option is to enumerate an array’s elements by repeatedly calling your own custom enumeration function and incrementing the element index. When the function returns false, all the elements have been enumerated:

bool EnumIntFromArray(int* nInt, int nIndex);

This simple technique works fine for single-threaded applications, but for multi-threaded applications, you need to add BeginEnum() and EndEnum() methods, which lock the array for enumeration and avoid having the array in an inconsistent or unsynchronized state while you enumerate.

In addition, because an exception may happen while you enumerate, always remember to call EndEnum() in any exception catch block to unlock the array.

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