---
title: "deprecated (C++) | Microsoft Docs"
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ms.date: "03/28/2017"
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---

This topic is about the Microsoft-specific deprecated declspec declaration. For information about the C++14 [[deprecated]] attribute, and guidance on when to use that attribute vs. the Microsoft-specific declspec or pragma, see C++ Standard Attributes.

With the exceptions noted below, the deprecated declaration offers the same functionality as the deprecated pragma:

• The deprecated declaration lets you specify particular forms of function overloads as deprecated, whereas the pragma form applies to all overloaded forms of a function name.

• The deprecated declaration lets you specify a message that will display at compile time. The text of the message can be from a macro.

• Macros can only be marked as deprecated with the deprecated pragma.

If the compiler encounters the use of a deprecated identifier or the standard [[deprecated]] attribute, a C4996 warning is thrown.

The following sample shows how to mark functions as deprecated, and how to specify a message that will be displayed at compile time, when the deprecated function is used.

// deprecated.cpp  
// compile with: /W3  
#define MY_TEXT "function is deprecated"  
void func1(void) {}  
__declspec(deprecated) void func1(int) {}  
__declspec(deprecated("** this is a deprecated function **")) void func2(int) {}  
__declspec(deprecated(MY_TEXT)) void func3(int) {}  
  
int main() {  
   func1();  
   func1(1);   // C4996  
   func2(1);   // C4996  
   func3(1);   // C4996  
}  

The following sample shows how to mark classes as deprecated, and how to specify a message that will be displayed at compile time, when the deprecated class is used.

// deprecate_class.cpp  
// compile with: /W3  
struct __declspec(deprecated) X {  
   void f(){}  
};  
  
struct __declspec(deprecated("** X2 is deprecated **")) X2 {  
   void f(){}  
};  
  
int main() {  
   X x;   // C4996  
   X2 x2;   // C4996  
}  

__declspec
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