CallerMemberNameAttribute Class

Definition

Namespace:

System.Runtime.CompilerServices

Assembly:

System.Runtime.dll

Source:

CallerMemberNameAttribute.cs

Allows you to obtain the method or property name of the caller to the method.

public ref class CallerMemberNameAttribute sealed : Attribute

[System.AttributeUsage(System.AttributeTargets.Parameter, Inherited=false)]
public sealed class CallerMemberNameAttribute : Attribute

[<System.AttributeUsage(System.AttributeTargets.Parameter, Inherited=false)>]
type CallerMemberNameAttribute = class
    inherit Attribute

Public NotInheritable Class CallerMemberNameAttribute
Inherits Attribute

Inheritance

Object

Attribute

CallerMemberNameAttribute

Attributes

AttributeUsageAttribute

Examples

The following example shows how to use the CallerMemberName attribute. On each call to the TraceMessage method, the caller information is substituted as an argument to the optional parameter.

public void DoProcessing()
{
    TraceMessage("Something happened.");
}

public void TraceMessage(string message,
        [System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerMemberName] string memberName = "",
        [System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerFilePath] string sourceFilePath = "",
        [System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerLineNumber] int sourceLineNumber = 0)
{
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("message: " + message);
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("member name: " + memberName);
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("source file path: " + sourceFilePath);
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("source line number: " + sourceLineNumber);
}

// Sample Output:
//  message: Something happened.
//  member name: DoProcessing
//  source file path: c:\Users\username\Documents\Visual Studio 2012\Projects\CallerInfoCS\CallerInfoCS\Form1.cs
//  source line number: 31

Private Sub DoProcessing()
    TraceMessage("Something happened.")
End Sub

Public Sub TraceMessage(message As String,
        <System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerMemberName> Optional memberName As String = Nothing,
        <System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerFilePath> Optional sourcefilePath As String = Nothing,
        <System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CallerLineNumber()> Optional sourceLineNumber As Integer = 0)

    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("message: " & message)
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("member name: " & memberName)
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("source file path: " & sourcefilePath)
    System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine("source line number: " & sourceLineNumber)
End Sub

' Sample output:
'   message: Something happened.
'   member name: DoProcessing
'   source file path: C:\Users\username\Documents\Visual Studio 2012\Projects\CallerInfoVB\CallerInfoVB\Form1.vb
'   source line number: 15

Remarks

You apply the CallerMemberName attribute to an optional parameter that has a default value. You must specify an explicit default value for the optional parameter. You can't apply this attribute to parameters that aren't specified as optional.

For more information, see Caller Information.

You can use the CallerMemberName attribute to avoid specifying the member name as a String argument to the called method. By using this technique, you avoid the problem that Rename Refactoring doesn't change the String values. This is especially useful for the following tasks:

• Using tracing and diagnostic routines.

• Implementing the INotifyPropertyChanged interface when binding data. This interface allows the property of an object to notify a bound control that the property has changed, so that the control can display the updated information. Without the CallerMemberName attribute, you must specify the property name as a literal.

The following chart shows the member names that are returned when you use the CallerMemberName attribute.

Call occurs within	Member name result
Method, property, or event	The name of the method, property, or event from which the call originated.
Constructor	The string ".ctor"
Static constructor	The string ".cctor"
Destructor	The string "Finalize"
User-defined operators or conversions	The generated name for the member, for example, "op_Addition".
Attribute constructor	The name of the member to which the attribute is applied. If the attribute is any element within a member (such as a parameter, a return value, or a generic type parameter), this result is the name of the member that's associated with that element.
No containing member (for example, assembly-level or attributes applied to types)	The default value of the optional parameter.

Constructors

CallerMemberNameAttribute()

Initializes a new instance of the CallerMemberNameAttribute 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)

See also

• CallerFilePathAttribute
• CallerLineNumberAttribute
• Caller Information (C# and Visual Basic)