Enum Flags Explained

Enum

An Enumeration (Enum) type offers an effective and optimized approach for defining a collection of named integral constants that can be assigned to variables.

enum Grade { Low, Medium, High, Maximum };

Enum Flags Attribute

What Does the [Flags] Attribute Really Do c# asp.net vb.net

The concept of Enum Flags is designed to enable an enumeration variable to hold multiple values simultaneously. It is recommended to utilize Enum Flags when the enumeration represents a collection of flags rather than a singular value. These flag-based enumeration collections are commonly manipulated using bitwise operators. To create a bit flags enum, the System.FlagsAttribute attribute is applied, and the values are defined appropriately to facilitate bitwise operations such as AND, OR, NOT, and XOR on them.

[Flags] enum Grade { Low = 1, Medium = 2, High = 4, Maximum = 8 }

VB.Net

<Flags> _ Enum Grade Low = 1 Medium = 2 High = 4 Maximum = 8 End Enum

You can use like this:

Grade eGrade = Grade.Medium Grade.High;

In conditions:

if((mySchool.AllowedGrade & Grade.High) == Grade.High) { // Code Here }

c# Create Enumeration as Bit Flags asp.net

To properly implement an enum as a flag, you need to have the values increasing by a power of two (2). You should define enumeration constants in powers of two, that is, 1, 2, 4, 8, and so on. It is important, because it allows us to do bit-wise operations on the number. The values themselves can easily be calculated by raising 2 to the power of a zero-based sequence of numbers like the following:

yields this (yes, 2 to the zero power is one):

1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64

This means the individual flags in combined enumeration constants do not overlap.

Unlike the old enums, the actual values in a flags enumerator must be in sequence for it to work correctly. This does not refer to a base 10 sequence, but instead to a base 2 sequence. Hence the Character enumeration can now act in Bitwise Operators. The values of the Enum will look like the following:

00000000 0 00000001 1 00000010 2 00000100 4 00001000 16 00010000 32 00100000 64 01000000 128

What it is explain that the integer value expressed as base 2 must be as shown (for four values in the above example): 00001 00010 00100 01000 . Expressed in base 10, this is 1, 2, 4, 8.

Difference :

You can see the difference lies in the Enum.ToString() method. If your enum has the [Flags] attribute set then the ToString() will return a comma seperated values list of bitwise enum values. If there's no [Flags] attribute ToString() will return a number for every bitwise value.

C# Source Code

using System; using System.Windows.Forms; namespace WindowsFormsApplication1 { public partial class Form1 : Form { public Form1() { InitializeComponent(); } enum Grade { Low = 1, Medium = 2, High = 4, Maximum = 8 } [Flags] enum GradeFlags { Low = 1, Medium = 2, High = 4, Maximum = 8 } private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { string iGrade = (Grade.Low Grade.High ).ToString(); string fGrade = (GradeFlags.Low GradeFlags.High).ToString(); MessageBox.Show(iGrade + " - with flag : " + fGrade); } } }

Output : 5 - with flag : Low, High

VB.Net Source Code

Public Class Form1 Enum Grade Low = 1 Medium = 2 High = 4 Maximum = 8 End Enum <Flags()> _ Enum GradeFlags Low = 1 Medium = 2 High = 4 Maximum = 8 End Enum Private Sub Button1_Click(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Button1.Click Dim iGrade As String = (Grade.Low Or Grade.High).ToString() Dim fGrade As String = (GradeFlags.Low Or GradeFlags.High).ToString() MessageBox.Show(iGrade & " - with flag : " & fGrade) End Sub End Class

Output : 5 - with flag : Low, High

NOTE:

While it is true that C# allows developers to perform bitwise operations on enumerations without explicitly applying the FlagsAttribute, it is important to note that Visual Basic (VB.Net) does not provide this flexibility. Therefore, if you are exposing your types to other programming languages or working in a multi-language environment, it is beneficial to mark the enumeration with the FlagsAttribute. This practice not only ensures compatibility across languages but also conveys a clear intention that the members of the enumeration are intended to be used together as a collection of flags.

Conclusion

By applying the FlagsAttribute, you establish a standard and promote better understanding and usage of the enumeration within the development ecosystem.

Next > Can you store multiple data types in an Array

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