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What is the purpose of a partial class? Provide a scenario where it is beneficial.

Gautam Ramesh12002-Jul-2023

What is the purpose of a partial class? Provide a scenario where it is beneficial.

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Updated on 04-Jul-2023
Gautam Ramesh

Gautam Ramesh

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I am Gautam Ramesh from Uttar Pradesh. Have completed my B. Tech. course from MNNIT campus Prayagraj in 2022. I have good knowledge of computer networking.

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Aryan Kumar

Aryan Kumar

04-Jul-2023

A partial class is a class that is defined in multiple files. The compiler combines the code from all of the partial classes into a single class file when the application is compiled.

Partial classes are useful in a number of scenarios, including:

  • Splitting a class definition across multiple files. This can be useful for large classes or classes that are being developed by multiple developers. By splitting the class definition across multiple files, each developer can work on their own part of the class without having to worry about interfering with the work of the other developers.
  • Separating the user interface code from the business logic code. This can be useful for web applications, where the user interface code is typically generated by a designer and the business logic code is written by a developer. By separating the two types of code, the designer can focus on creating a user-friendly interface without having to worry about the underlying business logic, and the developer can focus on writing efficient and reliable code without having to worry about the user interface.
  • Allowing code generators to add functionality to a class. Code generators can be used to automatically generate code for certain tasks, such as creating database tables or generating user interfaces. By using partial classes, code generators can add their generated code to a class without having to modify the original class definition.

For example, let's say you are developing a web application that has a user interface for managing a list of customers. The user interface code would be stored in a separate file from the business logic code. The user interface code would define the controls that the user can use to interact with the application, such as text boxes, buttons, and lists. The business logic code would handle the tasks of adding, updating, and deleting customers from the database.

The user interface code and the business logic code could be defined in separate partial classes. The user interface code would be defined in a file called CustomerUI.cs, and the business logic code would be defined in a file called CustomerBL.cs. The compiler would combine the code from these two files into a single class file called Customer.cs when the application is compiled.

This would allow the developer who is responsible for the user interface to focus on creating a user-friendly interface without having to worry about the underlying business logic, and the developer who is responsible for the business logic to focus on writing efficient and reliable code without having to worry about the user interface.

It would also allow the code generator to automatically generate the user interface code without having to modify the business logic code. The code generator could simply generate the user interface code and save it to the CustomerUI.cs file. The compiler would then combine the code from the CustomerUI.cs file and the CustomerBL.cs file into a single class file called Customer.cs when the application is compiled.

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