diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.cpp b/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.cpp
index 925d78ae6..9ee47eca2 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.cpp
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.cpp
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ multiSlsDetector::multiSlsDetector(int id, bool verify, bool update)
 
 multiSlsDetector::~multiSlsDetector() {
     if (sharedMemory) {
-        sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory(thisMultiDetector);
+        sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory();
         delete sharedMemory;
     }
 }
@@ -252,20 +252,21 @@ void multiSlsDetector::freeSharedMemory(int multiId, int detPos) {
     // multi
     // get number of detectors
     int numDetectors = 0;
-    auto shm = SharedMemory(multiId, -1);
+    auto shm = SharedMemory<sharedMultiSlsDetector>(multiId, -1);
 
     // get number of detectors from multi shm
     if (shm.IsExisting()) {
-        sharedMultiSlsDetector *mdet =
-            (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)shm.OpenSharedMemory(
-                sizeof(sharedMultiSlsDetector));
-        numDetectors = mdet->numberOfDetectors;
-        shm.UnmapSharedMemory(mdet);
+        // sharedMultiSlsDetector *mdet =
+        //     (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)shm.OpenSharedMemory(
+        //         sizeof(sharedMultiSlsDetector));
+        shm.OpenSharedMemory(sizeof(sharedMultiSlsDetector));
+        numDetectors = shm()->numberOfDetectors;
+        shm.UnmapSharedMemory();
         shm.RemoveSharedMemory();
     }
 
     for (int i = 0; i < numDetectors; ++i) {
-        auto shm = SharedMemory(multiId, i);
+        auto shm = SharedMemory<sharedMultiSlsDetector>(multiId, i);
         shm.RemoveSharedMemory();
     }
 }
@@ -288,7 +289,7 @@ void multiSlsDetector::freeSharedMemory(int detPos) {
     // clear multi detector shm
     if (sharedMemory) {
         if (thisMultiDetector) {
-            sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory(thisMultiDetector);
+            sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory();
             thisMultiDetector = nullptr;
         }
         sharedMemory->RemoveSharedMemory();
@@ -326,19 +327,23 @@ std::string multiSlsDetector::getUserDetails() {
 void multiSlsDetector::initSharedMemory(bool verify) {
     try {
         // shared memory object with name
-        sharedMemory = new SharedMemory(detId, -1);
+        sharedMemory = new SharedMemory<sharedMultiSlsDetector>(detId, -1);
         size_t sz = sizeof(sharedMultiSlsDetector);
 
         // create
         if (!sharedMemory->IsExisting()) {
-            thisMultiDetector =
-                (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)sharedMemory->CreateSharedMemory(sz);
+            // thisMultiDetector =
+            //     (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)sharedMemory->CreateSharedMemory(sz);
+            sharedMemory->CreateSharedMemory(sz);
+            thisMultiDetector= (*sharedMemory)(); //TODO remove line
             initializeDetectorStructure();
         }
         // open and verify version
         else {
-            thisMultiDetector =
-                (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)sharedMemory->OpenSharedMemory(sz);
+            // thisMultiDetector =
+            //     (sharedMultiSlsDetector *)sharedMemory->OpenSharedMemory(sz);
+            sharedMemory->OpenSharedMemory(sz);
+            thisMultiDetector = (*sharedMemory)();
             if (verify && thisMultiDetector->shmversion != MULTI_SHMVERSION) {
                 FILE_LOG(logERROR) << "Multi shared memory (" << detId << ") version mismatch "
                                                                           "(expected 0x"
@@ -350,7 +355,7 @@ void multiSlsDetector::initSharedMemory(bool verify) {
         if (sharedMemory) {
             // unmap
             if (thisMultiDetector) {
-                sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory(thisMultiDetector);
+                sharedMemory->UnmapSharedMemory();
                 thisMultiDetector = nullptr;
             }
             // delete
diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.h b/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.h
index 6b52bddab..3a80bc2f2 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.h
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/multiSlsDetector/multiSlsDetector.h
@@ -10,9 +10,9 @@
 #include "error_defs.h"
 #include "logger.h"
 #include "sls_detector_defs.h"
-
+#include "SharedMemory.h"
 class slsDetector;
-class SharedMemory;
+// class SharedMemory;
 class ZmqSocket;
 class detectorData;
 
@@ -27,10 +27,7 @@ class detectorData;
 #define SHORT_STRING_LENGTH 50
 #define DATE_LENGTH 30
 
-class multiSlsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs,
-                         public virtual errorDefs {
 
-  private:
     /**
      * @short structure allocated in shared memory to store detector settings
      * for IPC and cache
@@ -99,7 +96,7 @@ class multiSlsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs,
         int maxNumberOfChannelsPerDetector[2];
 
         /** timer values */
-        int64_t timerValue[MAX_TIMERS];
+        int64_t timerValue[slsDetectorDefs::timerIndex::MAX_TIMERS];
 
         /** flag for acquiring */
         bool acquiringFlag;
@@ -113,6 +110,12 @@ class multiSlsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs,
 
     } sharedMultiSlsDetector;
 
+class multiSlsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs,
+                         public virtual errorDefs {
+
+  // private:
+
+
   public:
     /**
      * Constructor
@@ -1963,7 +1966,7 @@ class multiSlsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs,
     int detId;
 
     /** Shared Memory object */
-    SharedMemory *sharedMemory {nullptr};
+    SharedMemory<sharedMultiSlsDetector> *sharedMemory {nullptr};
 
     /** Shared memory structure */
     sharedMultiSlsDetector *thisMultiDetector {nullptr};
diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.cpp b/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.cpp
index 10a47d37c..97b76f903 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.cpp
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.cpp
@@ -3,6 +3,9 @@
 #include "ansi.h"
 #include "logger.h"
 
+#include "slsDetector.h"
+#include "multiSlsDetector.h"
+
 #include <iostream>
 #include <stdio.h>      // printf
 #include <cerrno>       // errno
@@ -18,7 +21,8 @@
 #define SHM_SLS_PREFIX "_sls_"
 #define SHM_ENV_NAME	"SLSDETNAME"
 
-SharedMemory::SharedMemory(int multiId, int slsId):
+template<typename T>
+SharedMemory<T>::SharedMemory(int multiId, int slsId):
     fd(-1),
 	shmSize(0)
 {
@@ -26,14 +30,14 @@ SharedMemory::SharedMemory(int multiId, int slsId):
 }
 
 
-
-SharedMemory::~SharedMemory(){
+template<typename T>
+SharedMemory<T>::~SharedMemory(){
 	if (fd >= 0)
 		close(fd);
 }
 
-
-bool SharedMemory::IsExisting() {
+template<typename T>
+bool SharedMemory<T>::IsExisting() {
     bool ret = true;
     int tempfd = shm_open(name.c_str(), O_RDWR, 0);
     if ((tempfd < 0) && (errno == ENOENT)) {
@@ -43,12 +47,13 @@ bool SharedMemory::IsExisting() {
     return ret;
 }
 
-std::string SharedMemory::GetName() {
+template<typename T>
+std::string SharedMemory<T>::GetName() {
     return name;
 }
 
-
-void* SharedMemory::CreateSharedMemory(size_t sz){
+template<typename T>
+void SharedMemory<T>::CreateSharedMemory(size_t sz){
     // create
     fd = shm_open(name.c_str(), O_CREAT | O_TRUNC | O_EXCL | O_RDWR, S_IRUSR | S_IWUSR);
     if (fd < 0) {
@@ -65,12 +70,15 @@ void* SharedMemory::CreateSharedMemory(size_t sz){
     }
 
     // map
-    void* addr = MapSharedMemory(sz);
+    // void* addr = MapSharedMemory(sz);
+    shared_struct = MapSharedMemory(sz);
     FILE_LOG(logINFO) << "Shared memory created " << name;
-    return addr;
+    
+    // return addr;
 }
 
-void* SharedMemory::OpenSharedMemory(size_t sz){
+template<typename T>
+void SharedMemory<T>::OpenSharedMemory(size_t sz){
     // open
     fd = shm_open(name.c_str(), O_RDWR, 0);
     if (fd < 0) {
@@ -78,19 +86,21 @@ void* SharedMemory::OpenSharedMemory(size_t sz){
         throw SharedMemoryException();
     }
 
-    return MapSharedMemory(sz);
+    shared_struct = MapSharedMemory(sz);
+    // return MapSharedMemory(sz);
 }
 
-
-void SharedMemory::UnmapSharedMemory(void* addr) {
-    if (munmap(addr, shmSize) < 0) {
+template<typename T>
+void SharedMemory<T>::UnmapSharedMemory() {
+    if (munmap(shared_struct, shmSize) < 0) {
     	FILE_LOG(logERROR) << "Unmapping shared memory " << name << " failed: " << strerror(errno);
         close(fd);
         throw SharedMemoryException();
     }
 }
 
-void SharedMemory::RemoveSharedMemory() {
+template<typename T>
+void SharedMemory<T>::RemoveSharedMemory() {
     if (shm_unlink(name.c_str()) < 0) {
         // silent exit if shm did not exist anyway
         if (errno == ENOENT)
@@ -102,7 +112,8 @@ void SharedMemory::RemoveSharedMemory() {
 }
 
 
-void* SharedMemory::MapSharedMemory(size_t sz) {
+template<typename T>
+T* SharedMemory<T>::MapSharedMemory(size_t sz) {
     void* addr = mmap(nullptr, sz, PROT_READ | PROT_WRITE, MAP_SHARED, fd, 0);
     if (addr == MAP_FAILED) {
     	FILE_LOG(logERROR) << "Mapping shared memory " << name << " failed: " << strerror(errno);
@@ -111,11 +122,11 @@ void* SharedMemory::MapSharedMemory(size_t sz) {
     }
     shmSize = sz;
     close(fd);
-    return addr;
+    return (T*)addr;
 }
 
-
-std::string SharedMemory::ConstructSharedMemoryName(int multiId, int slsId) {
+template<typename T>
+std::string SharedMemory<T>::ConstructSharedMemoryName(int multiId, int slsId) {
 
 	// using environment path
 	std::string sEnvPath = "";
@@ -141,8 +152,8 @@ std::string SharedMemory::ConstructSharedMemoryName(int multiId, int slsId) {
 	return temp;
 }
 
-
-int SharedMemory::VerifySizeMatch(size_t expectedSize) {
+template<typename T>
+int SharedMemory<T>::VerifySizeMatch(size_t expectedSize) {
     struct stat sb;
     // could not fstat
     if (fstat(fd, &sb) < 0) {
@@ -163,3 +174,5 @@ int SharedMemory::VerifySizeMatch(size_t expectedSize) {
     return 0;
 }
 
+template class SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>;
+template class SharedMemory<sharedMultiSlsDetector>;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.h b/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.h
index ebec18606..6b15e61d4 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.h
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/sharedMemory/SharedMemory.h
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@
 #include <iostream>
 #include <string>
 
+template <typename T>
 class SharedMemory{
 public:
 	/**
@@ -43,21 +44,20 @@ public:
      * throws a SharedMemoryException exception on failure to create, ftruncate or map
      * @param sz of shared memory
      */
-    void* CreateSharedMemory(size_t sz);
+    void CreateSharedMemory(size_t sz);
 
     /**
      * Open existing Shared memory and call MapSharedMemory to map it to an address
      * throws a SharedMemoryException exception on failure to open or map
      * @param sz of shared memory
      */
-    void* OpenSharedMemory(size_t sz);
+    void OpenSharedMemory(size_t sz);
 
     /**
      * Unmap shared memory from an address
      * throws a SharedMemoryException exception on failure
-     * @param addr double pointer to address to be mapped
      */
-    void UnmapSharedMemory(void* addr);
+    void UnmapSharedMemory();
 
 	/**
 	 * Remove existing Shared memory
@@ -69,6 +69,19 @@ public:
      */
     static const int NAME_MAX = 255;
 
+
+    /*
+    Using the call operator to access the pointer
+
+    */
+    T* operator()(){
+        return shared_struct;
+    }
+
+    const T* operator()() const{
+        return shared_struct;
+    }
+
 private:
     /**
      * Create Shared memory name
@@ -84,7 +97,7 @@ private:
      * throws a SharedMemoryException exception on failure
      * @param sz of shared memory
      */
-    void* MapSharedMemory(size_t sz);
+    T* MapSharedMemory(size_t sz);
 
     /**
      * Verify if existing shared memory size matches expected size
@@ -102,4 +115,6 @@ private:
 	/** shm size */
 	size_t shmSize;
 
+    T* shared_struct;
+
 };
diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.cpp b/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.cpp
index cfbef4cdd..502c391e2 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.cpp
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.cpp
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ slsDetector::slsDetector(detectorType type, int multiId, int id, bool verify)
 	 * so sls shared memory will be created */
 
     // ensure shared memory was not created before
-    auto shm = SharedMemory(multiId, id);
+    auto shm = SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>(multiId, id);
     if (shm.IsExisting()) {
         FILE_LOG(logWARNING) << "This shared memory should have been "
                                 "deleted before! "
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ int64_t slsDetector::getId(idMode mode) {
 }
 
 void slsDetector::freeSharedMemory(int multiId, int slsId) {
-    auto shm = SharedMemory(multiId, slsId);
+    auto shm = SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>(multiId, slsId);
     shm.RemoveSharedMemory();
 }
 
@@ -236,7 +236,7 @@ void slsDetector::initSharedMemory(bool created, detectorType type, int multiId,
         int sz = calculateSharedMemorySize(type);
 
         // shared memory object with name
-        sharedMemory = new SharedMemory(multiId, detId);
+        sharedMemory = new SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>(multiId, detId);
 
         // create
         if (created) {
@@ -636,7 +636,7 @@ int slsDetector::receiveModule(sls_detector_module *myMod) {
 }
 
 slsDetectorDefs::detectorType slsDetector::getDetectorTypeFromShm(int multiId, bool verify) {
-    auto shm = SharedMemory(multiId, detId);
+    auto shm = SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>(multiId, detId);
     if (!shm.IsExisting()) {
         FILE_LOG(logERROR) << "Shared memory " << shm.GetName() << " does not exist.\n"
                                                                    "Corrupted Multi Shared memory. Please free shared memory.";
diff --git a/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.h b/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.h
index 74239311e..dabc95bd7 100644
--- a/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.h
+++ b/slsDetectorSoftware/slsDetector/slsDetector.h
@@ -13,13 +13,13 @@
 #include "error_defs.h"
 #include "logger.h"
 #include "ClientSocket.h"
-
+#include "SharedMemory.h"
 class ClientInterface;
 
 #include <cmath>
 
 class multiSlsDetector;
-class SharedMemory;
+// class SharedMemory;
 class ServerInterface;
 class MySocketTCP;
 
@@ -42,9 +42,6 @@ typedef  struct detParameterList {
 } detParameterList;
 
 
-class slsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs, public virtual errorDefs {
-
-private:
 	/**
 	 * @short structure allocated in shared memory to store detector settings for IPC and cache
 	 */
@@ -68,7 +65,7 @@ private:
 		char hostname[MAX_STR_LENGTH];
 
 		/** detector type  \ see :: detectorType*/
-		detectorType myDetectorType;
+		slsDetectorDefs::detectorType myDetectorType;
 
 		/** END OF FIXED PATTERN -----------------------------------------------*/
 
@@ -125,22 +122,22 @@ private:
 		int nROI;
 
 		/** list of rois */
-		ROI roiLimits[MAX_ROIS];
+		slsDetectorDefs::ROI roiLimits[MAX_ROIS];
 
 		/** readout flags */
-		readOutFlags roFlags;
+		slsDetectorDefs::readOutFlags roFlags;
 
 		/** name root of the output files */
 		char settingsFile[MAX_STR_LENGTH];
 
 		/** detector settings (standard, fast, etc.) */
-		detectorSettings currentSettings;
+		slsDetectorDefs::detectorSettings currentSettings;
 
 		/** detector threshold (eV) */
 		int currentThresholdEV;
 
 		/** timer values */
-		int64_t timerValue[MAX_TIMERS];
+		int64_t timerValue[slsDetectorDefs::timerIndex::MAX_TIMERS];
 
 		/** memory offsets for the module structures  */
 		int modoff;
@@ -226,7 +223,7 @@ private:
 		int64_t receiverAPIVersion;
 
 		/** receiver frames discard policy */
-		frameDiscardPolicy receiver_frameDiscardMode;
+		slsDetectorDefs::frameDiscardPolicy receiver_frameDiscardMode;
 
 		/** receiver partial frames padding enable */
 		bool receiver_framePadding;
@@ -250,7 +247,7 @@ private:
 		int receiver_fileIndex;
 
 		/** file format */
-		fileFormat receiver_fileFormatType;
+		slsDetectorDefs::fileFormat receiver_fileFormatType;
 
 		/** frames per file */
 		int receiver_framesPerFile;
@@ -263,10 +260,7 @@ private:
 
 	} sharedSlsDetector;
 
-
-
-
-
+class slsDetector : public virtual slsDetectorDefs, public virtual errorDefs {
 public:
 
 	/**
@@ -1794,7 +1788,7 @@ private:
 	int detId;
 
 	/** Shared Memory object */
-	SharedMemory* sharedMemory {nullptr};
+	SharedMemory<sharedSlsDetector>* sharedMemory {nullptr};
 
 	/** Shared memory structure */
 	sharedSlsDetector *thisDetector {nullptr};