This page is a snapshot from the LWG issues list, see the Library Active Issues List for more information and the meaning of NAD status.

314. Is the stack unwound when terminate() is called?

Section: 17.9.5.4 [terminate] Status: NAD Submitter: Detlef Vollmann Opened: 2001-04-11 Last modified: 2016-01-28

Priority: Not Prioritized

View all other issues in [terminate].

View all issues with NAD status.

Discussion:

The standard appears to contradict itself about whether the stack is unwound when the implementation calls terminate().

From 18.7.3.3p2:

Calls the terminate_handler function in effect immediately after evaluating the throw-expression (lib.terminate.handler), if called by the implementation [...]

So the stack is guaranteed not to be unwound.

But from 15.3p9:

[...]whether or not the stack is unwound before this call to terminate() is implementation-defined (except.terminate).

And 15.5.1 actually defines that in most cases the stack is unwound.

Proposed resolution:

Rationale:

There is definitely no contradiction between the core and library clauses; nothing in the core clauses says that stack unwinding happens after terminate is called. 18.7.3.3p2 does not say anything about when terminate() is called; it merely specifies which terminate_handler is used.