[R] How to call R functions from a C++ program

[Prof Brian D Ripley]

On Fri, 3 Nov 2000, Ramon Diaz-Uriarte wrote:

> If you want to call certain functions, such as the random number generators,
> that is easy. Get the sources, untar, and ./configure; then go to standalone
> src/nmath/standalone, and read the README; if you want to call them as static
> libraries, type make archive.  That will create the libRmath.a library.
> 
> Now, if you were using C, that would be all. But to use those functions from a
> C++ program you need to modify Mathlib.h (in R_DIRECTORY/src/include/R_ext). 
> Edit Mathlib.h and insert, before any of the function headers,
> 
> extern "C" {
> 
> (don't forget to add also the closing braket at the end of the file).
> (The reason why you need to do this is explained, for instance, in Meyer's
> "More effective C++", itme 34).

(BTW, I had spotted that a couple of days ago for linking C++ code
into R, and we will modify the header files. Until then, I suggest using

extern "C" {
#include "R_ext/Mathlib.h"
}

rather than edit the headers.)


> Thats it; you can now use the functions in Mathlib.h by giving the appropriate
> paths to the library and header files.
> 
> For instance:
> 
> g++ -I/usr/lib/R-patched/src/include -L/usr/lib/R-patched/src/nmath/standalone
> test1.cc -lRmath -lm

But that does not call R functions from a C++ program, just a few
utilities in R.  I read `R functions' as the interpreted ones like lm.

The short answer is that you cannot easily do this yet.  On Windows
you can embed R or use a DCOM link.  On Unix similar things (building
R as a shared library, CORBA connections) are in various stages of
preparation.  In all of these you need to remember that R expects
to run its own event loop, and that can cause contortions: this is never
going to be straightforward.

You may have more success calling R functions from a C++ package 
running under R, using eval in a .Call for example.

-- 
Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272860 (secr)
Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
r-help mailing list -- Read http://www.ci.tuwien.ac.at/~hornik/R/R-FAQ.html
Send "info", "help", or "[un]subscribe"
(in the "body", not the subject !)  To: r-help-request at stat.math.ethz.ch
_._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._