Converting string to flags enum in C#

Question

A device reports status of its limit switches as a series of ones a zeros (meaning a string containing "010111110000"). Ideal representation of these switches would be a flags enum like this:

[Flags]
public enum SwitchStatus
{
    xMin,
    xMax,
    yMin,
    yMax,

    aMax,
    bMax,
    cMax,
    unknown4,

    unknown3,
    unknown2,
    unknown1,
    unknown0
}

Is it possible to convert the string representation to the enum? If so, how?

score 14 · Accepted Answer · answered Jul 08 '11 at 13:32

You can use Convert.ToInt64(value, 2) or Convert.ToInt32(value, 2) this will give you either the long or the int, then simply use

[Flags]
public enum SwitchStatus : int // or long
{
    xMin = 1,
    xMax = 1<<1,
    yMin = 1<<2,
    yMax = 1<<3,
    ...
}

SwitchStatus status = (SwitchStatus)Convert.ToInt32(value, 2);

Adriano Carneiro · Answer 2 · 2011-07-08T14:08:41.183

8

First you have to convert your "binary string" to int.

String binString = "010111110000";
int number = Integer.parseInt(binString, 2);

You have to have declared your enum items with their respective numbers:

[Flags]
public enum SwitchStatus
{
    xMin = 1,
    xMax = 2,
    yMin = 4,
    //...
    unknown0 = 32 //or some other power of 2
}

At last, the mapping. You get your enum from the number like this:

SwitchStatus stat = (SwitchStatus)Enum.ToObject(typeof(SwitchStatus), number);

edited Jul 08 '11 at 14:08

answered Jul 08 '11 at 13:28

Adriano Carneiro

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The flag values will be whatever values come from the binary string – Adriano Carneiro Jul 08 '11 at 13:32
But the string of 1s and 0s is all the switches. 12 digits, 12 enum names. Each enum value should be the value of a single bit. `0x001` through `0x800`. – Joel B Fant Jul 08 '11 at 13:34
The `SwitchStatus` flags will not work properly numbered consecutively as you have them - you may as well remove the `'[Flags]` attribute. I still give +1 because of the usefulness of the answer. – IAbstract Jul 08 '11 at 13:34
Also, you can't use base as a variable name. It's reserved. – Bob G Jul 08 '11 at 14:00
Sigh... I guess people want *fully compilable code* these days... It's a Q&A site, it's not my production environment. People should find their way through eventual pseudocode fixes. Anyway, fixed it. Getting downvoted for that is just mean... – Adriano Carneiro Jul 08 '11 at 14:10
@Adrian Then you should have listed that it was pseudo-code. A lot of users on this site copy and paste answers as examples of what they should do, and when they don't compile for said beginners, they get confused. Having to figure out why 'base' wouldn't work for them may lead them in a circle for quite a while if unfamiliar with the concept of reserved keywords. Sorry for your butthurt. – Bob G Jul 08 '11 at 14:18
Regardless of what you think or do, I will tell you what I do: before downvoting, I warn the poster of the problems. I only downvote when poster does not update the answer. This way, I try to build a more constructive community. You should do as you please, though. That said, I won't comment anymore on this. – Adriano Carneiro Jul 08 '11 at 14:22

Converting string to flags enum in C#

2 Answers2