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    CWG Issue 2181</TITLE>
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<P><EM>This is an unofficial snapshot of the ISO/IEC JTC1 SC22 WG21
  Core Issues List revision 118b.
  See http://www.open-std.org/jtc1/sc22/wg21/ for the official
  list.</EM></P>
<P>2025-09-28</P>
<HR>
<A NAME="2181"></A><H4>2181.
  
Normative requirements in an informative Annex
</H4>
<B>Section: </B>Clause Annex B&#160; [<A href="https://wg21.link/implimits">implimits</A>]
 &#160;&#160;&#160;

 <B>Status: </B>C++20
 &#160;&#160;&#160;

 <B>Submitter: </B>Sean Hunt
 &#160;&#160;&#160;

 <B>Date: </B>2015-10-18<BR>


<P>According to Clause Annex B [<A href="https://wg21.link/implimits#1">implimits</A>] paragraph 1,</P>

<BLOCKQUOTE>

Because computers are finite, C++ implementations are
inevitably limited in the size of the programs they can
successfully process. Every implementation shall document
those limitations where known.

</BLOCKQUOTE>

<P>Because Annex Clause Annex B [<A href="https://wg21.link/implimits">implimits</A>] is informative, not
normative, it should not use &#8220;shall.&#8221;</P>

<P><B>Additional notes (May, 2024)</B></P>

<P>The Annex was
<A HREF="https://github.com/cplusplus/draft/commit/7e66cc0c7d0c4fea57fff2c283dd0900d6333f8e">editorially switched</A>
from "informative" to "normative" in September 2020 with this change
description:</P>

<BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>[intro.compliance.general, implimits] Cite Annex B normatively.</P>

<P>This change also promotes Annex B [implimits] to a "normative"
annex.  The existing wording in the annex is already normative in
character.</P>
</BLOCKQUOTE>

<P>Discussion about the intended normative contents of Annex B is
pursued in <A HREF="2891.html">issue 2891</A>.</P>

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