Get int value from enum in C#
Get int value from enum in C#
Question
I have a class called Questions (plural). In this class there is an enum called Question (singular) which looks like this.
public enum Question
{
Role = 2,
ProjectFunding = 3,
TotalEmployee = 4,
NumberOfServers = 5,
TopBusinessConcern = 6
}
In the Questions class I have a get(int foo) function that returns a Questions object for that foo. Is there an easy way to get the integer value off the enum so I can do something like this Questions.Get(Question.Role)?
Accepted Answer
Just cast the enum, e.g.
int something = (int) Question.Role;
The above will work for the vast majority of enums you see in the wild, as the default underlying type for an enum is int.
However, as cecilphillip points out, enums can have different underlying types.
If an enum is declared as a uint, long, or ulong, it should be cast to the type of the enum; e.g. for
enum StarsInMilkyWay:long {Sun = 1, V645Centauri = 2 .. Wolf424B = 2147483649};
you should use
long something = (long)StarsInMilkyWay.Wolf424B;
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Since Enums can be any integral type (byte, int, short, etc.), a more robust way to get the underlying integral value of the enum would be to make use of the GetTypeCode method in conjunction with the Convert class:
enum Sides {
Left, Right, Top, Bottom
}
Sides side = Sides.Bottom;
object val = Convert.ChangeType(side, side.GetTypeCode());
Console.WriteLine(val);
This should work regardless of the underlying integral type.
Declare it as a static class having public constants:
public static class Question
{
public const int Role = 2;
public const int ProjectFunding = 3;
public const int TotalEmployee = 4;
public const int NumberOfServers = 5;
public const int TopBusinessConcern = 6;
}
And then you can reference it as Question.Role, and it always evaluates to an int or whatever you define it as.
Question question = Question.Role;
int value = (int) question;
Will result in value == 2.
On a related note, if you want to get the int value from System.Enum, then given e here:
Enum e = Question.Role;
You can use:
int i = Convert.ToInt32(e);
int i = (int)(object)e;
int i = (int)Enum.Parse(e.GetType(), e.ToString());
int i = (int)Enum.ToObject(e.GetType(), e);
The last two are plain ugly. I prefer the first one.
It's easier than you think - an enum is already an int. It just needs to be reminded:
int y = (int)Question.Role;
Console.WriteLine(y); // Prints 2