Should I Pass Pointers to Arrays or Slices in Go Functions?

Using a Pointer to Array in Go

When working with arrays in Go, passing a pointer to a slice to a function is not recommended. Instead, it's preferable to pass the entire array as a slice, as it's an efficient reference type.

Passing Slices as Parameters

In Go, slices are reference types, which means they point to the underlying array. When passing a slice to a function, the function operates directly on the underlying array without creating a copy. This makes it efficient for passing large arrays without copying the entire data.

Original Approach Using a Pointer

The initial approach, as mentioned in the question, was to pass a pointer to the array:

func conv(x []int, xlen int, h []int, hlen int, y *[]int) {
    // Operations using the dereferenced pointer here...
}

However, this approach is not advised as it doesn't utilize the benefits of slices.

Using Slices Instead

To use slices effectively, the function can be rewritten as:

func conv(x, h []int, xlen, hlen int, y []int) {
    // Direct operations on the slice y...
}

Calling this function would involve passing the entire array as a slice:

s := []int{1, 2, 3}
conv(s, h, len(s), len(h), y)

This approach utilizes the efficient reference mechanism of slices, avoiding unnecessary copying of arrays.

Conclusion

In Go, it's generally recommended to pass arrays as slices, utilizing their reference type behavior for efficiency. This eliminates the need for passing pointers to arrays directly and allows for seamless operations on the underlying data.

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