How do I use an arbitrary string as a lock in C++?

Question

Let\'s say I have a multithreaded C++ program that handles requests in the form of a function call to handleRequest(string key). Each call to handleRequest

Answer 1

It will depend on the platform, but the two techniques that I'd try would be:

• Use named mutex/synchronization objects, where object name = Key
• Use filesystem-based locking, where you try to create a non-shareable temporary file with the key name. If it exists already (=already locked) this will fail and you'll have to poll to retry

Both techniques will depend on the detail of your OS. Experiment and see which works. .