WCF-like Native C++ Library

Question

I am looking for a library for native C++ (library source code has to be gcc compatible and portable across Linux and Windows) that does what WCF does in its very basic form - i.e. OperationContracts and DataContracts in a client-server environment, with data exchanges in binary format (binary serialization).

Ideally I'd like to use a library to achieve this. So if there's a library already available that compiles OperationContracts and DataContracts into rich C++ classes with metadata for reflection which can be consumed in our code and with client-server TCP communications built-in (i.e. a rudimentary implementation of WCF's functionality without the need to be compatible with WCF at all), please point me to it.

If not, implementing them myself (unlikely due to time constraints), I could use boost::serialization for DataContracts but how would I implement OperationContracts?

Answer 1

Apache Thrift is another option you might consider,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apache_Thrift

Answer 2

It's not necessarily compatible with gcc--so it's somewhat tangential to the precise question asked here--but I'd like to include a reference to the Windows Web Services API, Microsoft's native-code counterpart to WCF (for Windows systems).

From this secondary article:

WWS is designed from the ground up to be a completely native-code implementation of SOAP, including support for many of the WS-* protocols. WWS is, strictly speaking, exposed through a C API, making interoperability with other languages and runtimes very straightforward, but it is the C++ developer who will likely benefit the most.

Answer 3

I have found one that fits the purpose called "RCF" (Remote Call Framework) by Delta V Software. It's open source (GPLv2 or US$195 closed source). So far in my testing, it's working very well. According to the site, companies like HP, Ericsson and Siemens are users of the library.