c++14 - No <optional> in MS Visual Studio 2013 - what to do?

Question

I want to use std::experimental::optional, but MSVS 2013 tells me it can't find the header.

• Why isn't it there?
• Can I roll my own based on code elsewhere? The C++14 proposal maybe?

Answer 1

std::experimental::optional originates from the Boost.Optional library, and this implementation works well in Visual C++ 12.0 (though it differs a little). Reference single-header implementation, based on the N3793 proposal paper, can be found here.

The latest list of supported C++11/14/1z core and library features that are shipped with Visual Studio can be found from the Visual C++ Team blog, from this post in particular. A set of header files of the Standard Library implementation (and some extensions) from Microsoft can be viewed here.