Typically, a switch statement in C# looks like this
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
case 2:
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
default:
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
}
But for the first time ever, I saw someone using curly braces for each case statement within a switch statement like below:
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
}
case 2:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
}
default:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
}
}
Why are these curly braces {, } being used for each case and default blocks of the case statement above?
Why are they needed?
What is the difference?
They are not required, but they are useful if you declare variables with the same name in multiple branches:
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
var test = "test";
Console.WriteLine(test);
break;
case 2:
var test = "test";
Console.WriteLine(test);
break;
}
This will not compile, complaining about conflicting variable names. But if you add braces
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
{
var test = "";
Console.WriteLine(test);
break;
}
case 2:
{
var test = "";
Console.WriteLine(test);
break;
}
}
that will create its own scope for each branch and it will compile fine.
Some people get used to this and always add bracers, even when not defining any variables.
The issue you sometimes face in a switch statement is that all the cases are in the same scope. That means (for example) that you can not use the same variable name in two cases. Consider this:
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
int result = 1;
return result;
case 2:
int result = 2;
return result;
}
This will lead to a compiler error, since you are declaring result twice in the same scope. You remove the error by introducing new scopes in the cases:
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
{
int result = 1;
return result;
}
case 2:
{
int result = 2;
return result;
}
}
Considering that switch cases are somewhat controversial, because they introduce additional complexity, adding extra scopes adds to the confusion. I prefer to use switch blocks in a way that does not lead to the described problem (by keeping the amount of code in the cases low and try to avoid large switch blocks).
In your example the scopes are not needed and I would not use them on a general basis, since this is "unusual" code. And unusual usually means confusing. Your question is a proof to that opinion (and it is an opinion, just to avoid a religious war here), since this construct confused you enough to ask the question.
I belive this is remains of old code. I remember in C when I didnt put the break I would just fall in the next case...
This is no longer relevant and is just code style.
Note you can also do
switch (sh)
{
case 1:
DoThis();
DoThat();
break;
case 2:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
}break;
case 3:
case 4:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
}
case 5:
goto case 1;
default:
{
DoThis();
DoThat();
}
}
The break will just leave the Switch but which will be left after leaving the bracket.
This question already has answers here:
Multiple cases in switch statement
(24 answers)
Switch case: can I use a range instead of a one number [duplicate]
(16 answers)
Closed 1 year ago.
Does anyone know if it's possible to include a range in a switch statement (and if so, how)?
For example:
switch (x)
{
case 1:
//do something
break;
case 2..8:
//do something else
break;
default:
break;
}
The compiler doesn't seem to like this kind of syntax - neither does it like:
case <= 8:
No, this isn't possible. There are a few ways I've done this in the past:
Fixed coding:
switch (x)
{
case 1:
//do something
break;
case 2:
case 3:
case 4:
case 5:
case 6:
case 7:
case 8:
//do something else
break;
default:
break;
}
In combination with an if {} statement:
switch (x)
{
case 1:
//do something
break;
default:
if (x <= 8)
{
// do something
}
else
{
// throw exception
}
break;
}
No, but you can write this, so you at least avoid writing the // do something else part multiple times.
switch (x)
{
case 1:
//do something
break;
case 2: case 3: case 4: case 5: case 6: case 7: case 8:
//do something else
break;
default:
break;
}
Whilst this wasn't possible when I originally asked this question, through the miracle of C# Pattern Matching, it now is (in C# 7):
switch (i)
{
case var test when test <= 2:
Console.WriteLine("Less than 2");
break;
case var test when test > 2 && test < 10:
Console.WriteLine("Between 2 and 10");
break;
case var test when test >= 10:
Console.WriteLine("10 or more");
break;
}
A blog post on the subject
Short answer : no. It would be possible to write all of the cases there but such a range notation is not supported.
I think you have to use if statement here or switch to a language where there is a better support for case descrimination.
One possibility is to convert your ranges into integers. For example:
//assuming x>=9 or if (x <= 0) return;
switch((x+12)/7)
{ case 1:Console.WriteLine("one");
break;
case 2:Console.WriteLine("2 through 8 inclusive");
break;
case 3:Console.WriteLine("9 through 15 inclusive");
break;
default: Console.WriteLine("16 or more");
break;
}
If you have so few cases, if would be much preferred.
You could, handle the explicit cases case by case, and if you only have one range, deal with it in the default case.
you can do
case 2:
case 3:
case 4:
...
case 8:
// code here
break
You can use case fall through:
switch (x)
{
case 1:
//do something
break;
case 2:
case 3:
case 4:
case 5:
case 6:
case 7:
case 8:
//do something else
break;
default:
break;
}
But I'd just use if for this.
You cannot use any conditional statements in a switch case.
If you want to execute the same lines of code for different options then you can do one thing:
switch (i)
{
case 0:
case 1:
case 2:
case 3:
//do something here.
break;
default:
//do something here.
break;
}
I just started using C# and I've got a couple of issues.
Is there any way to code the C# equivalent of the VB.NET Select statement like the following?
Select Object.Name.ToString()
Case "Name1"
'Do something
Case "Name2"
'Do something else
Case Else
'Do the default action
End Select
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for the input so far now what about if I hook several controls to one event handler as in the following and I want to perform a slightly different action for each control:
Private Sub Button_Click(sender as Object, e as EventArgs) _
Handles button1.Click, Button2.Click
'do a general activity
Select CType(sender, Button).Name
Case button1.Name
'do something
Case button2.Name
'do something else
Case Else
'do the defalut action
End Select
End Sub
Is there any way of doing the above select statement in C# without having to use nested ifs?
I have come to find over time that some VB.NET Select...Case constructs do not apply in C# and the only way around is to write a lot of ifs.
For instance, in VB.NET, you can write:
Dim num as Integer = 5
Select Case num
Case 1 to 10
'do something
Case 11 to 20
'do another thing
Case Else
'do the default
End Select
But there is no switch construct in C# that allows you to do something of this sort. You'll have to code in roundabout like so:
int num = 5;
switch (num)
{
case 1:
case 2:
case 3:
case 4:
case 5:
case 6:
case 7:
case 8:
case 9:
case 10:
//do something
break;
case 11:
case 12:
case 13:
case 14:
case 15:
case 16:
case 17:
case 18:
case 19:
case 20:
//do something else
break;
default:
//do the default
break;
}
Or if you happen to be working with Double or any type which is made up of continuous instead of discrete values, you'll have to use ifs to get the required action.
Reason? C#'s switch requires constants for the various cases. This is different from VB.NET's Select Case which allows writing ranges.
You'd be looking for the switch statement...
switch (Object.Name.ToString())
{
case "Name1":
//Do something
break;
default:
//default
break;
}
Note that the breaks are import, otherwise the program will drop through your cases. You should be able to find this on almost any C# introduction...
Use a switch statement.
switch (object.Name.ToString()) {
case "Name1":
break;
//Do something
case "Name2":
break;
//Do something else
default:
break;
//Do the default action
}
And don't forget that there is a free online conversion tool that allows you to convert VB.net to C# and viceversa.
With C# 7, switch has been significantly enhanced, and it's now possible to apply more conditions within cases, although it's still not as "clean" as the VB version. E.g. you could do something like:
switch (examScore)
{
case int es when es >= 90: grade = "A"; break;
case int es when es >= 80: grade = "B"; break;
case int es when es >= 70: grade = "C"; break;
case int es when es >= 60; grade = "D"; break;
default: grade = "F"; break;
}
Taken from / References:
C# Switches vs. VB Case Statements
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/csharp/language-reference/keywords/switch
It appears I need to use a break in each case block in my switch statement using C#.
I can see the reason for this in other languages where you can fall through to the next case statement.
Is it possible for case blocks to fall through to other case blocks?
Thanks very much, really appreciated!
Yes, you can fall through to the next case block in two ways. You can use empty cases, which don't need a break, or you can use goto to jump to the next (or any) case:
switch (n) {
case 1:
case 2:
case 3:
Console.WriteLine("1, 2 or 3");
goto case 4;
case 4:
Console.WriteLine(4);
break;
}
The enforcement of "break" is there to stop bugs. If you need to force a fall-thru then use "goto case " (replace the with appropriate value)
the following example shows what you can do:
switch(n)
{
case 1:
case 2:
//do something for 1+2
//...
goto case 3;
case 3:
//do something for 3, and also extra for 1+2
//...
break;
default:
//do something for all other values
//...
break;
}
See http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/06tc147t%28VS.80%29.aspx
C# doesn't support implicit fall through construct, but the break (or goto) nonetheless has to be there (msdn). The only thing you can do is stack cases in the following manner:
switch(something) {
case 1:
case 2:
//do something
break;
case 3:
//do something else
}
but that break (or another jump statement like goto) just needs to be there.
In my C# (.NET 1.1, CF) code, both of these are allowed:
switch (_printerChoice)
{
case BeltPrintersEnum.ZebraQL220:
return new ZebraQL220Printer();
break;
case BeltPrintersEnum.ONeal:
return new ONealPrinter();
break;
default:
return new ZebraQL220Printer();
break;
}
switch (_printerChoice)
{
case BeltPrintersEnum.ZebraQL220:
return new ZebraQL220Printer();
case BeltPrintersEnum.ONeal:
return new ONealPrinter();
default:
return new ZebraQL220Printer();
}
...but with the breaks in, they are grayed out, so considered moot. So, at least in my case, they are allowed but not required.
Is there a way to fall through multiple case statements without stating case value: repeatedly?
I know this works:
switch (value)
{
case 1:
case 2:
case 3:
// Do some stuff
break;
case 4:
case 5:
case 6:
// Do some different stuff
break;
default:
// Default stuff
break;
}
but I'd like to do something like this:
switch (value)
{
case 1,2,3:
// Do something
break;
case 4,5,6:
// Do something
break;
default:
// Do the Default
break;
}
Is this syntax I'm thinking of from a different language, or am I missing something?
I guess this has been already answered. However, I think that you can still mix both options in a syntactically better way by doing:
switch (value)
{
case 1: case 2: case 3:
// Do Something
break;
case 4: case 5: case 6:
// Do Something
break;
default:
// Do Something
break;
}
There is no syntax in C++ nor C# for the second method you mentioned.
There's nothing wrong with your first method. If however you have very big ranges, just use a series of if statements.
Original Answer for C# 7
In C# 7 (available by default in Visual Studio 2017/.NET Framework 4.6.2), range-based switching is now possible with the switch statement and would help with the OP's problem.
Example:
int i = 5;
switch (i)
{
case int n when (n >= 7):
Console.WriteLine($"I am 7 or above: {n}");
break;
case int n when (n >= 4 && n <= 6 ):
Console.WriteLine($"I am between 4 and 6: {n}");
break;
case int n when (n <= 3):
Console.WriteLine($"I am 3 or less: {n}");
break;
}
// Output: I am between 4 and 6: 5
Notes:
The parentheses ( and ) are not required in the when condition, but are used in this example to highlight the comparison(s).
var may also be used in lieu of int. For example: case var n when n >= 7:.
Updated examples for C# 9
switch(myValue)
{
case <= 0:
Console.WriteLine("Less than or equal to 0");
break;
case > 0 and <= 10:
Console.WriteLine("More than 0 but less than or equal to 10");
break;
default:
Console.WriteLine("More than 10");
break;
}
or
var message = myValue switch
{
<= 0 => "Less than or equal to 0",
> 0 and <= 10 => "More than 0 but less than or equal to 10",
_ => "More than 10"
};
Console.WriteLine(message);
This syntax is from the Visual Basic Select...Case Statement:
Dim number As Integer = 8
Select Case number
Case 1 To 5
Debug.WriteLine("Between 1 and 5, inclusive")
' The following is the only Case clause that evaluates to True.
Case 6, 7, 8
Debug.WriteLine("Between 6 and 8, inclusive")
Case Is < 1
Debug.WriteLine("Equal to 9 or 10")
Case Else
Debug.WriteLine("Not between 1 and 10, inclusive")
End Select
You cannot use this syntax in C#. Instead, you must use the syntax from your first example.
With C#9 came the Relational Pattern Matching. This allows us to do:
switch (value)
{
case 1 or 2 or 3:
// Do stuff
break;
case 4 or 5 or 6:
// Do stuff
break;
default:
// Do stuff
break;
}
In deep tutorial of Relational Patter in C#9
Pattern-matching changes for C# 9.0
Relational patterns permit the programmer to express that an input
value must satisfy a relational constraint when compared to a constant
value
You can leave out the newline which gives you:
case 1: case 2: case 3:
break;
but I consider that bad style.
.NET Framework 3.5 has got ranges:
Enumerable.Range from MSDN
you can use it with "contains" and the IF statement, since like someone said the SWITCH statement uses the "==" operator.
Here an example:
int c = 2;
if(Enumerable.Range(0,10).Contains(c))
DoThing();
else if(Enumerable.Range(11,20).Contains(c))
DoAnotherThing();
But I think we can have more fun: since you won't need the return values and this action doesn't take parameters, you can easily use actions!
public static void MySwitchWithEnumerable(int switchcase, int startNumber, int endNumber, Action action)
{
if(Enumerable.Range(startNumber, endNumber).Contains(switchcase))
action();
}
The old example with this new method:
MySwitchWithEnumerable(c, 0, 10, DoThing);
MySwitchWithEnumerable(c, 10, 20, DoAnotherThing);
Since you are passing actions, not values, you should omit the parenthesis, it's very important. If you need function with arguments, just change the type of Action to Action<ParameterType>. If you need return values, use Func<ParameterType, ReturnType>.
In C# 3.0 there is no easy Partial Application to encapsulate the fact the the case parameter is the same, but you create a little helper method (a bit verbose, tho).
public static void MySwitchWithEnumerable(int startNumber, int endNumber, Action action){
MySwitchWithEnumerable(3, startNumber, endNumber, action);
}
Here an example of how new functional imported statement are IMHO more powerful and elegant than the old imperative one.
Here is the complete C# 7 solution...
switch (value)
{
case var s when new[] { 1,2,3 }.Contains(s):
// Do something
break;
case var s when new[] { 4,5,6 }.Contains(s):
// Do something
break;
default:
// Do the default
break;
}
It works with strings too...
switch (mystring)
{
case var s when new[] { "Alpha","Beta","Gamma" }.Contains(s):
// Do something
break;
...
}
The code below won't work:
case 1 | 3 | 5:
// Not working do something
The only way to do this is:
case 1: case 2: case 3:
// Do something
break;
The code you are looking for works in Visual Basic where you easily can put in ranges... in the none option of the switch statement or if else blocks convenient, I'd suggest to, at very extreme point, make .dll with Visual Basic and import back to your C# project.
Note: the switch equivalent in Visual Basic is Select Case.
Another option would be to use a routine. If cases 1-3 all execute the same logic then wrap that logic in a routine and call it for each case. I know this doesn't actually get rid of the case statements, but it does implement good style and keep maintenance to a minimum.....
[Edit] Added alternate implementation to match original question...[/Edit]
switch (x)
{
case 1:
DoSomething();
break;
case 2:
DoSomething();
break;
case 3:
DoSomething();
break;
...
}
private void DoSomething()
{
...
}
Alt
switch (x)
{
case 1:
case 2:
case 3:
DoSomething();
break;
...
}
private void DoSomething()
{
...
}
In C# 7 we now have Pattern Matching so you can do something like:
switch (age)
{
case 50:
ageBlock = "the big five-oh";
break;
case var testAge when (new List<int>()
{ 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89 }).Contains(testAge):
ageBlock = "octogenarian";
break;
case var testAge when ((testAge >= 90) & (testAge <= 99)):
ageBlock = "nonagenarian";
break;
case var testAge when (testAge >= 100):
ageBlock = "centenarian";
break;
default:
ageBlock = "just old";
break;
}
One lesser known facet of switch in C# is that it relies on the operator= and since it can be overriden you could have something like this:
string s = foo();
switch (s) {
case "abc": /*...*/ break;
case "def": /*...*/ break;
}
gcc implements an extension to the C language to support sequential ranges:
switch (value)
{
case 1...3:
//Do Something
break;
case 4...6:
//Do Something
break;
default:
//Do the Default
break;
}
Edit: Just noticed the C# tag on the question, so presumably a gcc answer doesn't help.
I think this one is better in C# 7 or above.
switch (value)
{
case var s when new[] { 1,2 }.Contains(s):
// Do something
break;
default:
// Do the default
break;
}
You can also check Range in C# switch case: Switch case: can I use a range instead of a one number
OR
int i = 3;
switch (i)
{
case int n when (n >= 7):
Console.WriteLine($"I am 7 or above: {n}");
break;
case int n when (n >= 4 && n <= 6):
Console.WriteLine($"I am between 4 and 6: {n}");
break;
case int n when (n <= 3):
Console.WriteLine($"I am 3 or less: {n}");
break;
}
Switch case multiple conditions in C#
Or if you want to understand basics of
C# switch case
Actually I don't like the GOTO command too, but it's in official Microsoft materials, and here are all allowed syntaxes.
If the end point of the statement list of a switch section is reachable, a compile-time error occurs. This is known as the "no fall through" rule. The example
switch (i) {
case 0:
CaseZero();
break;
case 1:
CaseOne();
break;
default:
CaseOthers();
break;
}
is valid because no switch section has a reachable end point. Unlike C and C++, execution of a switch section is not permitted to "fall through" to the next switch section, and the example
switch (i) {
case 0:
CaseZero();
case 1:
CaseZeroOrOne();
default:
CaseAny();
}
results in a compile-time error. When execution of a switch section is to be followed by execution of another switch section, an explicit goto case or goto default statement must be used:
switch (i) {
case 0:
CaseZero();
goto case 1;
case 1:
CaseZeroOrOne();
goto default;
default:
CaseAny();
break;
}
Multiple labels are permitted in a switch-section. The example
switch (i) {
case 0:
CaseZero();
break;
case 1:
CaseOne();
break;
case 2:
default:
CaseTwo();
break;
}
I believe in this particular case, the GOTO can be used, and it's actually the only way to fallthrough.
Source
In C# 8.0 you can use the new switch expression syntax which is ideal for your case.
var someOutput = value switch
{
>= 1 and <= 3 => <Do some stuff>,
>= 4 and <= 6 => <Do some different stuff>,
_ => <Default stuff>
};
If you have a very big amount of strings (or any other type) case all doing the same thing, I recommend the use of a string list combined with the string.Contains property.
So if you have a big switch statement like so:
switch (stringValue)
{
case "cat":
case "dog":
case "string3":
...
case "+1000 more string": // Too many string to write a case for all!
// Do something;
case "a lonely case"
// Do something else;
.
.
.
}
You might want to replace it with an if statement like this:
// Define all the similar "case" string in a List
List<string> listString = new List<string>(){ "cat", "dog", "string3", "+1000 more string"};
// Use string.Contains to find what you are looking for
if (listString.Contains(stringValue))
{
// Do something;
}
else
{
// Then go back to a switch statement inside the else for the remaining cases if you really need to
}
This scale well for any number of string cases.
You can also have conditions that are completely different
bool isTrue = true;
switch (isTrue)
{
case bool ifTrue when (ex.Message.Contains("not found")):
case bool ifTrue when (thing.number = 123):
case bool ifTrue when (thing.othernumber != 456):
response.respCode = 5010;
break;
case bool ifTrue when (otherthing.text = "something else"):
response.respCode = 5020;
break;
default:
response.respCode = 5000;
break;
}
An awful lot of work seems to have been put into finding ways to get one of C# least used syntaxes to somehow look better or work better. Personally I find the switch statement is seldom worth using. I would strongly suggest analyzing what data you are testing and the end results you are wanting.
Let us say for example you want to quickly test values in a known range to see if they are prime numbers. You want to avoid having your code do the wasteful calculations and you can find a list of primes in the range you want online. You could use a massive switch statement to compare each value to known prime numbers.
Or you could just create an array map of primes and get immediate results:
bool[] Primes = new bool[] {
false, false, true, true, false, true, false,
true, false, false, false, true, false, true,
false,false,false,true,false,true,false};
private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) {
int Value = Convert.ToInt32(textBox1.Text);
if ((Value >= 0) && (Value < Primes.Length)) {
bool IsPrime = Primes[Value];
textBox2.Text = IsPrime.ToString();
}
}
Maybe you want to see if a character in a string is hexadecimal. You could use an ungly and somewhat large switch statement.
Or you could use either regular expressions to test the char or use the IndexOf function to search for the char in a string of known hexadecimal letters:
private void textBox2_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e) {
try {
textBox1.Text = ("0123456789ABCDEFGabcdefg".IndexOf(textBox2.Text[0]) >= 0).ToString();
} catch {
}
}
Let us say you want to do one of 3 different actions depending on a value that will be the range of 1 to 24. I would suggest using a set of IF statements. And if that became too complex (Or the numbers were larger such as 5 different actions depending on a value in the range of 1 to 90) then use an enum to define the actions and create an array map of the enums. The value would then be used to index into the array map and get the enum of the action you want. Then use either a small set of IF statements or a very simple switch statement to process the resulting enum value.
Also, the nice thing about an array map that converts a range of values into actions is that it can be easily changed by code. With hard wired code you can't easily change behaviour at runtime but with an array map it is easy.
A more beautiful way to handle that
if ([4, 5, 6, 7].indexOf(value) > -1)
//Do something
You can do that for multiple values with the same result
Just to add to the conversation, using .NET 4.6.2 I was also able to do the following.
I tested the code and it did work for me.
You can also do multiple "OR" statements, like below:
switch (value)
{
case string a when a.Contains("text1"):
// Do Something
break;
case string b when b.Contains("text3") || b.Contains("text4") || b.Contains("text5"):
// Do Something else
break;
default:
// Or do this by default
break;
}
You can also check if it matches a value in an array:
string[] statuses = { "text3", "text4", "text5"};
switch (value)
{
case string a when a.Contains("text1"):
// Do Something
break;
case string b when statuses.Contains(value):
// Do Something else
break;
default:
// Or do this by default
break;
}
We can also use this approach to achieve Multiple cases in switch statement... You can use as many conditions as you want using this approach..
int i = 209;
int a = 0;
switch (a = (i>=1 && i<=100) ? 1 : a){
case 1:
System.out.println ("The Number is Between 1 to 100 ==> " + i);
break;
default:
switch (a = (i>100 && i<=200) ? 2 : a) {
case 2:
System.out.println("This Number is Between 101 to 200 ==> " + i);
break;
default:
switch (a = (i>200 && i<=300) ? 3 : a) {
case 3:
System.out.println("This Number is Between 201 to 300 ==> " + i);
break;
default:
// You can make as many conditions as you want;
break;
}
}
}
Using new version of C# I have done in this way
public string GetValue(string name)
{
return name switch
{
var x when name is "test1" || name is "test2" => "finch",
"test2" => somevalue,
_ => name
};
}
For this, you would use a goto statement. Such as:
switch(value){
case 1:
goto case 3;
case 2:
goto case 3;
case 3:
DoCase123();
//This would work too, but I'm not sure if it's slower
case 4:
goto case 5;
case 5:
goto case 6;
case 6:
goto case 7;
case 7:
DoCase4567();
}