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SerializableAttribute Class

Definition

Indicates that a class can be serialized using binary or XML serialization. This class cannot be inherited.

C#
[System.AttributeUsage(System.AttributeTargets.Class | System.AttributeTargets.Delegate | System.AttributeTargets.Enum | System.AttributeTargets.Struct, Inherited=false)]
public sealed class SerializableAttribute : Attribute
C#
[System.AttributeUsage(System.AttributeTargets.Class | System.AttributeTargets.Delegate | System.AttributeTargets.Enum | System.AttributeTargets.Struct, Inherited=false)]
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.ComVisible(true)]
public sealed class SerializableAttribute : Attribute
Inheritance
SerializableAttribute
Attributes

Examples

The following example demonstrates SOAP serialization of an object that's marked with the SerializableAttribute attribute.

C#
using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Soap;

public class Test {
   public static void Main()  {

      // Creates a new TestSimpleObject object.
      TestSimpleObject obj = new TestSimpleObject();

      Console.WriteLine("Before serialization the object contains: ");
      obj.Print();

      // Opens a file and serializes the object into it in binary format.
      Stream stream = File.Open("data.xml", FileMode.Create);
      SoapFormatter formatter = new SoapFormatter();

      formatter.Serialize(stream, obj);
      stream.Close();

      // Empties obj.
      obj = null;

      // Opens file "data.xml" and deserializes the object from it.
      stream = File.Open("data.xml", FileMode.Open);
      formatter = new SoapFormatter();

      obj = (TestSimpleObject)formatter.Deserialize(stream);
      stream.Close();

      Console.WriteLine("");
      Console.WriteLine("After deserialization the object contains: ");
      obj.Print();
   }
}

// A test object that needs to be serialized.
[Serializable()]
public class TestSimpleObject  {

    public int member1;
    public string member2;
    public string member3;
    public double member4;

    // A field that is not serialized.
    [NonSerialized()] public string member5;

    public TestSimpleObject() {

        member1 = 11;
        member2 = "hello";
        member3 = "hello";
        member4 = 3.14159265;
        member5 = "hello world!";
    }

    public void Print() {

        Console.WriteLine("member1 = '{0}'", member1);
        Console.WriteLine("member2 = '{0}'", member2);
        Console.WriteLine("member3 = '{0}'", member3);
        Console.WriteLine("member4 = '{0}'", member4);
        Console.WriteLine("member5 = '{0}'", member5);
    }
}

Remarks

Apply the SerializableAttribute attribute to a type to indicate that instances of this type can be serialized using binary or XML serialization. The common language runtime throws SerializationException if any type in the graph of objects being serialized does not have the SerializableAttribute attribute applied.

Apply the SerializableAttribute attribute even if the class also implements the ISerializable interface to control the binary serialization process.

When you apply the SerializableAttribute attribute to a type, all private and public fields are serialized by default. You can control binary serialization more granularly by implementing the ISerializable interface to override the serialization process.

Or you can exclude fields from serialization by applying the NonSerializedAttribute attribute to the field. If a field of a binary-serializable type contains a pointer, a handle, or some other data structure that is specific to a particular environment, and cannot be meaningfully reconstituted in a different environment, then you might want to apply the NonSerializedAttribute attribute to that field.

For more information about using attributes, see Attributes. For more information about binary serialization, see System.Runtime.Serialization.

Note

This attribute does not apply to JSON serialization using System.Text.Json.

Constructors

SerializableAttribute()

Initializes a new instance of the SerializableAttribute class.

Properties

TypeId

When implemented in a derived class, gets a unique identifier for this Attribute.

(Inherited from Attribute)

Methods

Equals(Object)

Returns a value that indicates whether this instance is equal to a specified object.

(Inherited from Attribute)
GetHashCode()

Returns the hash code for this instance.

(Inherited from Attribute)
GetType()

Gets the Type of the current instance.

(Inherited from Object)
IsDefaultAttribute()

When overridden in a derived class, indicates whether the value of this instance is the default value for the derived class.

(Inherited from Attribute)
Match(Object)

When overridden in a derived class, returns a value that indicates whether this instance equals a specified object.

(Inherited from Attribute)
MemberwiseClone()

Creates a shallow copy of the current Object.

(Inherited from Object)
ToString()

Returns a string that represents the current object.

(Inherited from Object)

Explicit Interface Implementations

_Attribute.GetIDsOfNames(Guid, IntPtr, UInt32, UInt32, IntPtr)

Maps a set of names to a corresponding set of dispatch identifiers.

(Inherited from Attribute)
_Attribute.GetTypeInfo(UInt32, UInt32, IntPtr)

Retrieves the type information for an object, which can be used to get the type information for an interface.

(Inherited from Attribute)
_Attribute.GetTypeInfoCount(UInt32)

Retrieves the number of type information interfaces that an object provides (either 0 or 1).

(Inherited from Attribute)
_Attribute.Invoke(UInt32, Guid, UInt32, Int16, IntPtr, IntPtr, IntPtr, IntPtr)

Provides access to properties and methods exposed by an object.

(Inherited from Attribute)

Applies to

Product Versions
.NET Core 1.0, Core 1.1, Core 2.0, Core 2.1, Core 2.2, Core 3.0, Core 3.1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
.NET Framework 1.1, 2.0, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.6, 4.6.1, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8, 4.8.1
.NET Standard 2.0, 2.1

See also