java.lang
Class Class

java.lang.Object
  |
  +--java.lang.Class

All Implemented Interfaces:

Serializable

public final class Class

extends Object

implements Serializable

Instances of the class Class represent classes and interfaces in a running Java application. Every array also belongs to a class that is reflected as a Class object that is shared by all arrays with the same element type and number of dimensions. The primitive Java types (boolean, byte, char, short, int, long, float, and double), and the keyword void are also represented as Class objects.

Class has no public constructor. Instead Class objects are constructed automatically by the Java Virtual Machine as classes are loaded and by calls to the defineClass method in the class loader.

The following example uses a Class object to print the class name of an object:

     void printClassName(Object obj) {
         System.out.println("The class of " + obj +
                            " is " + obj.getClass().getName());
     }
 

Since:

JDK1.0

See Also:

ClassLoader.defineClass(byte[], int, int), Serialized Form

Method Summary

boolean	desiredAssertionStatus() Returns the assertion status that would be assigned to this class if it were to be initialized at the time this method is invoked.
static Class	forName(String className) Returns the Class object associated with the class or interface with the given string name.
static Class	forName(String name, boolean initialize, ClassLoader loader) Returns the Class object associated with the class or interface with the given string name, using the given class loader.
Class[]	getClasses() Returns an array containing Class objects representing all the public classes and interfaces that are members of the class represented by this Class object.
ClassLoader	getClassLoader() Returns the class loader for the class.
Class	getComponentType() Returns the Class representing the component type of an array.
Constructor	getConstructor(Class[] parameterTypes) Returns a Constructor object that reflects the specified public constructor of the class represented by this Class object.
Constructor[]	getConstructors() Returns an array containing Constructor objects reflecting all the public constructors of the class represented by this Class object.
Class[]	getDeclaredClasses() Returns an array of Class objects reflecting all the classes and interfaces declared as members of the class represented by this Class object.
Constructor	getDeclaredConstructor(Class[] parameterTypes) Returns a Constructor object that reflects the specified constructor of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Constructor[]	getDeclaredConstructors() Returns an array of Constructor objects reflecting all the constructors declared by the class represented by this Class object.
Field	getDeclaredField(String name) Returns a Field object that reflects the specified declared field of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Field[]	getDeclaredFields() Returns an array of Field objects reflecting all the fields declared by the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Method	getDeclaredMethod(String name, Class[] parameterTypes) Returns a Method object that reflects the specified declared method of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Method[]	getDeclaredMethods() Returns an array of Method objects reflecting all the methods declared by the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Class	getDeclaringClass() If the class or interface represented by this Class object is a member of another class, returns the Class object representing the class in which it was declared.
Field	getField(String name) Returns a Field object that reflects the specified public member field of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Field[]	getFields() Returns an array containing Field objects reflecting all the accessible public fields of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Class[]	getInterfaces() Determines the interfaces implemented by the class or interface represented by this object.
Method	getMethod(String name, Class[] parameterTypes) Returns a Method object that reflects the specified public member method of the class or interface represented by this Class object.
Method[]	getMethods() Returns an array containing Method objects reflecting all the public member methods of the class or interface represented by this Class object, including those declared by the class or interface and and those inherited from superclasses and superinterfaces.
int	getModifiers() Returns the Java language modifiers for this class or interface, encoded in an integer.
String	getName() Returns the name of the entity (class, interface, array class, primitive type, or void) represented by this Class object, as a String.
Package	getPackage() Gets the package for this class.
ProtectionDomain	getProtectionDomain() Returns the ProtectionDomain of this class.
URL	getResource(String name) Finds a resource with a given name.
InputStream	getResourceAsStream(String name) Finds a resource with a given name.
Object[]	getSigners() Gets the signers of this class.
Class	getSuperclass() Returns the Class representing the superclass of the entity (class, interface, primitive type or void) represented by this Class.
boolean	isArray() Determines if this Class object represents an array class.
boolean	isAssignableFrom(Class cls) Determines if the class or interface represented by this Class object is either the same as, or is a superclass or superinterface of, the class or interface represented by the specified Class parameter.
boolean	isInstance(Object obj) Determines if the specified Object is assignment-compatible with the object represented by this Class.
boolean	isInterface() Determines if the specified Class object represents an interface type.
boolean	isPrimitive() Determines if the specified Class object represents a primitive type.
Object	newInstance() Creates a new instance of the class represented by this Class object.
String	toString() Converts the object to a string.

Methods inherited from class java.lang.Object

clone, equals, finalize, getClass, hashCode, notify, notifyAll, wait, wait, wait

Method Detail

toString

public String toString()

Converts the object to a string. The string representation is the string "class" or "interface", followed by a space, and then by the fully qualified name of the class in the format returned by getName. If this Class object represents a primitive type, this method returns the name of the primitive type. If this Class object represents void this method returns "void".

Overrides:

toString in class Object

Returns:

a string representation of this class object.

forName

public static Class forName(String className)
                     throws ClassNotFoundException

Returns the Class object associated with the class or interface with the given string name. Invoking this method is equivalent to:

  Class.forName(className, true, currentLoader)
 

where currentLoader denotes the defining class loader of the current class.

For example, the following code fragment returns the runtime Class descriptor for the class named java.lang.Thread:

   Class t = Class.forName("java.lang.Thread")
 

A call to forName("X") causes the class named X to be initialized.

Parameters:

className - the fully qualified name of the desired class.

Returns:

the Class object for the class with the specified name.

Throws:

LinkageError - if the linkage fails

ExceptionInInitializerError - if the initialization provoked by this method fails

ClassNotFoundException - if the class cannot be located

forName

public static Class forName(String name,
                            boolean initialize,
                            ClassLoader loader)
                     throws ClassNotFoundException

Returns the Class object associated with the class or interface with the given string name, using the given class loader. Given the fully qualified name for a class or interface (in the same format returned by getName) this method attempts to locate, load, and link the class or interface. The specified class loader is used to load the class or interface. If the parameter loader is null, the class is loaded through the bootstrap class loader. The class is initialized only if the initialize parameter is true and if it has not been initialized earlier.

If name denotes a primitive type or void, an attempt will be made to locate a user-defined class in the unnamed package whose name is name. Therefore, this method cannot be used to obtain any of the Class objects representing primitive types or void.

If name denotes an array class, the component type of the array class is loaded but not initialized.

For example, in an instance method the expression:

  Class.forName("Foo")
 

is equivalent to:

  Class.forName("Foo", true, this.getClass().getClassLoader())
 

Note that this method throws errors related to loading, linking or initializing as specified in Sections 12.2, 12.3 and 12.4 of The Java Language Specification. Note that this method does not check whether the requested class is accessible to its caller.

If the loader is null, and a security manager is present, and the caller's class loader is not null, then this method calls the security manager's checkPermission method with a RuntimePermission("getClassLoader") permission to ensure it's ok to access the bootstrap class loader.

Parameters:

name - fully qualified name of the desired class

initialize - whether the class must be initialized

loader - class loader from which the class must be loaded

Returns:

class object representing the desired class

Throws:

LinkageError - if the linkage fails

ExceptionInInitializerError - if the initialization provoked by this method fails

ClassNotFoundException - if the class cannot be located by the specified class loader

Since:

1.2

See Also:

forName(String), ClassLoader

newInstance

public Object newInstance()
                   throws InstantiationException,
                          IllegalAccessException

Creates a new instance of the class represented by this Class object. The class is instantiated as if by a new expression with an empty argument list. The class is initialized if it has not already been initialized.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

a newly allocated instance of the class represented by this object.

Throws:

IllegalAccessException - if the class or its nullary constructor is not accessible.

InstantiationException - if this Class represents an abstract class, an interface, an array class, a primitive type, or void; or if the class has no nullary constructor; or if the instantiation fails for some other reason.

ExceptionInInitializerError - if the initialization provoked by this method fails.

SecurityException - if there is no permission to create a new instance.

isInstance

public boolean isInstance(Object obj)

Determines if the specified Object is assignment-compatible with the object represented by this Class. This method is the dynamic equivalent of the Java language instanceof operator. The method returns true if the specified Object argument is non-null and can be cast to the reference type represented by this Class object without raising a ClassCastException. It returns false otherwise.

Specifically, if this Class object represents a declared class, this method returns true if the specified Object argument is an instance of the represented class (or of any of its subclasses); it returns false otherwise. If this Class object represents an array class, this method returns true if the specified Object argument can be converted to an object of the array class by an identity conversion or by a widening reference conversion; it returns false otherwise. If this Class object represents an interface, this method returns true if the class or any superclass of the specified Object argument implements this interface; it returns false otherwise. If this Class object represents a primitive type, this method returns false.

Parameters:

obj - the object to check

Returns:

true if obj is an instance of this class

Since:

JDK1.1

isAssignableFrom

public boolean isAssignableFrom(Class cls)

Determines if the class or interface represented by this Class object is either the same as, or is a superclass or superinterface of, the class or interface represented by the specified Class parameter. It returns true if so; otherwise it returns false. If this Class object represents a primitive type, this method returns true if the specified Class parameter is exactly this Class object; otherwise it returns false.

Specifically, this method tests whether the type represented by the specified Class parameter can be converted to the type represented by this Class object via an identity conversion or via a widening reference conversion. See The Java Language Specification, sections 5.1.1 and 5.1.4 , for details.

Parameters:

cls - the Class object to be checked

Returns:

the boolean value indicating whether objects of the type cls can be assigned to objects of this class

Throws:

NullPointerException - if the specified Class parameter is null.

Since:

JDK1.1

isInterface

public boolean isInterface()

Determines if the specified Class object represents an interface type.

Returns:

true if this object represents an interface; false otherwise.

isArray

public boolean isArray()

Determines if this Class object represents an array class.

Returns:

true if this object represents an array class; false otherwise.

Since:

JDK1.1

isPrimitive

public boolean isPrimitive()

Determines if the specified Class object represents a primitive type.

There are nine predefined Class objects to represent the eight primitive types and void. These are created by the Java Virtual Machine, and have the same names as the primitive types that they represent, namely boolean, byte, char, short, int, long, float, and double.

These objects may only be accessed via the following public static final variables, and are the only Class objects for which this method returns true.

Returns:

true if and only if this class represents a primitive type

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Boolean.TYPE, Character.TYPE, Byte.TYPE, Short.TYPE, Integer.TYPE, Long.TYPE, Float.TYPE, Double.TYPE, Void.TYPE

getName

public String getName()

Returns the name of the entity (class, interface, array class, primitive type, or void) represented by this Class object, as a String.

If this class object represents a reference type that is not an array type then the binary name of the class is returned, as specified by the Java Language Specification, Second Edition. If this class object represents a primitive type or void, then the name returned is the name determined by the following table. The encoding of element type names is as follows:

 B            byte
 C            char
 D            double
 F            float
 I            int
 J            long
 Lclassname;  class or interface
 S            short
 Z            boolean
 V	    void
 

If this class object represents a class of arrays, then the internal form of the name consists of the name of the element type as specified above, preceded by one or more "[" characters representing the depth of array nesting. Thus:

 (new Object[3]).getClass().getName()
 

returns "[Ljava.lang.Object;" and:

 (new int[3][4][5][6][7][8][9]).getClass().getName()
 

returns "[[[[[[[I". The class or interface name classname is given in fully qualified form as shown in the example above.

Returns:

the name of the class or interface represented by this object.

getClassLoader

public ClassLoader getClassLoader()

Returns the class loader for the class. Some implementations may use null to represent the bootstrap class loader. This method will return null in such implementations if this class was loaded by the bootstrap class loader.

If a security manager is present, and the caller's class loader is not null and the caller's class loader is not the same as or an ancestor of the class loader for the class whose class loader is requested, then this method calls the security manager's checkPermission method with a RuntimePermission("getClassLoader") permission to ensure it's ok to access the class loader for the class.

If this object represents a primitive type or void, null is returned.

Returns:

the class loader that loaded the class or interface represented by this object.

Throws:

SecurityException - if a security manager exists and its checkPermission method denies access to the class loader for the class.

See Also:

ClassLoader, SecurityManager.checkPermission(java.security.Permission), RuntimePermission

getSuperclass

public Class getSuperclass()

Returns the Class representing the superclass of the entity (class, interface, primitive type or void) represented by this Class. If this Class represents either the Object class, an interface, a primitive type, or void, then null is returned. If this object represents an array class then the Class object representing the Object class is returned.

Returns:

the superclass of the class represented by this object.

getPackage

public Package getPackage()

Gets the package for this class. The class loader of this class is used to find the package. If the class was loaded by the bootstrap class loader the set of packages loaded from CLASSPATH is searched to find the package of the class. Null is returned if no package object was created by the class loader of this class.

Packages have attributes for versions and specifications only if the information was defined in the manifests that accompany the classes, and if the class loader created the package instance with the attributes from the manifest.

Returns:

the package of the class, or null if no package information is available from the archive or codebase.

getInterfaces

public Class[] getInterfaces()

Determines the interfaces implemented by the class or interface represented by this object.

If this object represents a class, the return value is an array containing objects representing all interfaces implemented by the class. The order of the interface objects in the array corresponds to the order of the interface names in the implements clause of the declaration of the class represented by this object. For example, given the declaration:

 class Shimmer implements FloorWax, DessertTopping { ... }
 

suppose the value of s is an instance of Shimmer; the value of the expression:

 s.getClass().getInterfaces()[0]
 

is the Class object that represents interface FloorWax; and the value of:

 s.getClass().getInterfaces()[1]
 

is the Class object that represents interface DessertTopping.

If this object represents an interface, the array contains objects representing all interfaces extended by the interface. The order of the interface objects in the array corresponds to the order of the interface names in the extends clause of the declaration of the interface represented by this object.

If this object represents a class or interface that implements no interfaces, the method returns an array of length 0.

If this object represents a primitive type or void, the method returns an array of length 0.

Returns:

an array of interfaces implemented by this class.

getComponentType

public Class getComponentType()

Returns the Class representing the component type of an array. If this class does not represent an array class this method returns null.

Returns:

the Class representing the component type of this class if this class is an array

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Array

getModifiers

public int getModifiers()

Returns the Java language modifiers for this class or interface, encoded in an integer. The modifiers consist of the Java Virtual Machine's constants for public, protected, private, final, static, abstract and interface; they should be decoded using the methods of class Modifier.

If the underlying class is an array class, then its public, private and protected modifiers are the same as those of its component type. If this Class represents a primitive type or void, its public modifier is always true, and its protected and private modifiers are always false. If this object represents an array class, a primitive type or void, then its final modifier is always true and its interface modifier is always false. The values of its other modifiers are not determined by this specification.

The modifier encodings are defined in The Java Virtual Machine Specification, table 4.1.

Returns:

the int representing the modifiers for this class

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Modifier

getSigners

public Object[] getSigners()

Gets the signers of this class.

Returns:

the signers of this class, or null if there are no signers. In particular, this method returns null if this object represents a primitive type or void.

Since:

JDK1.1

getDeclaringClass

public Class getDeclaringClass()

If the class or interface represented by this Class object is a member of another class, returns the Class object representing the class in which it was declared. This method returns null if this class or interface is not a member of any other class. If this Class object represents an array class, a primitive type, or void,then this method returns null.

Returns:

the declaring class for this class

Since:

JDK1.1

getClasses

public Class[] getClasses()

Returns an array containing Class objects representing all the public classes and interfaces that are members of the class represented by this Class object. This includes public class and interface members inherited from superclasses and public class and interface members declared by the class. This method returns an array of length 0 if this Class object has no public member classes or interfaces. This method also returns an array of length 0 if this Class object represents a primitive type, an array class, or void.

For this class and each of its superclasses, the following security checks are performed: If there is a security manager, the security manager's checkMemberAccess method is called with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments, where this is this class or the superclass whose members are being determined. If the class is in a package, then the security manager's checkPackageAccess method is also called with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array of Class objects representing the public members of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getFields

public Field[] getFields()
                  throws SecurityException

Returns an array containing Field objects reflecting all the accessible public fields of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The elements in the array returned are not sorted and are not in any particular order. This method returns an array of length 0 if the class or interface has no accessible public fields, or if it represents an array class, a primitive type, or void.

Specifically, if this Class object represents a class, this method returns the public fields of this class and of all its superclasses. If this Class object represents an interface, this method returns the fields of this interface and of all its superinterfaces.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

The implicit length field for array class is not reflected by this method. User code should use the methods of class Array to manipulate arrays.

See The Java Language Specification, sections 8.2 and 8.3.

Returns:

the array of Field objects representing the public fields

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Field, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getMethods

public Method[] getMethods()
                    throws SecurityException

Returns an array containing Method objects reflecting all the public member methods of the class or interface represented by this Class object, including those declared by the class or interface and and those inherited from superclasses and superinterfaces. The elements in the array returned are not sorted and are not in any particular order. This method returns an array of length 0 if this Class object represents a class or interface that has no public member methods, or if this Class object represents an array class, primitive type, or void.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

The class initialization method <clinit> is not included in the returned array. If the class declares multiple public member methods with the same parameter types, they are all included in the returned array.

See The Java Language Specification, sections 8.2 and 8.4.

Returns:

the array of Method objects representing the public methods of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Method, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getConstructors

public Constructor[] getConstructors()
                              throws SecurityException

Returns an array containing Constructor objects reflecting all the public constructors of the class represented by this Class object. An array of length 0 is returned if the class has no public constructors, or if the class is an array class, or if the class reflects a primitive type or void.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array containing Method objects for all the declared public constructors of this class matches the specified parameterTypes

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Constructor, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getField

public Field getField(String name)
               throws NoSuchFieldException,
                      SecurityException

Returns a Field object that reflects the specified public member field of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The name parameter is a String specifying the simple name of the desired field.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

The field to be reflected is determined by the algorithm that follows. Let C be the class represented by this object:

1. If C declares a public field with the name specified, that is the field to be reflected.
2. If no field was found in step 1 above, this algorithm is applied recursively to each direct superinterface of C. The direct superinterfaces are searched in the order they were declared.
3. If no field was found in steps 1 and 2 above, and C has a superclass S, then this algorithm is invoked recursively upon S. If C has no superclass, then a NoSuchFieldException is thrown.

See The Java Language Specification, sections 8.2 and 8.3.

Parameters:

name - the field name

Returns:

the Field object of this class specified by name

Throws:

NoSuchFieldException - if a field with the specified name is not found.

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Field, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getMethod

public Method getMethod(String name,
                        Class[] parameterTypes)
                 throws NoSuchMethodException,
                        SecurityException

Returns a Method object that reflects the specified public member method of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The name parameter is a String specifying the simple name the desired method. The parameterTypes parameter is an array of Class objects that identify the method's formal parameter types, in declared order. If parameterTypes is null, it is treated as if it were an empty array.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

If the name is "<init>"or "<clinit>" a NoSuchMethodException is raised. Otherwise, the method to be reflected is determined by the algorithm that follows. Let C be the class represented by this object:

1. C is searched for any matching methods. If no matching method is found, the algorithm of step 1 is invoked recursively on the superclass of C.
2. If no method was found in step 1 above, the superinterfaces of C are searched for a matching method. If any such method is found, it is reflected.

To find a matching method in a class C: If C declares exactly one public method with the specified name and exactly the same formal parameter types, that is the method reflected. If more than one such method is found in C, and one of these methods has a return type that is more specific than any of the others, that method is reflected; otherwise one of the methods is chosen arbitrarily.

See The Java Language Specification, sections 8.2 and 8.4.

Parameters:

name - the name of the method

parameterTypes - the list of parameters

Returns:

the Method object that matches the specified name and parameterTypes

Throws:

NoSuchMethodException - if a matching method is not found or if then name is "<init>"or "<clinit>".

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Method, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getConstructor

public Constructor getConstructor(Class[] parameterTypes)
                           throws NoSuchMethodException,
                                  SecurityException

Returns a Constructor object that reflects the specified public constructor of the class represented by this Class object. The parameterTypes parameter is an array of Class objects that identify the constructor's formal parameter types, in declared order.

The constructor to reflect is the public constructor of the class represented by this Class object whose formal parameter types match those specified by parameterTypes.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.PUBLIC as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Parameters:

parameterTypes - the parameter array

Returns:

the Method object of the public constructor that matches the specified parameterTypes

Throws:

NoSuchMethodException - if a matching method is not found.

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Constructor, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredClasses

public Class[] getDeclaredClasses()
                           throws SecurityException

Returns an array of Class objects reflecting all the classes and interfaces declared as members of the class represented by this Class object. This includes public, protected, default (package) access, and private classes and interfaces declared by the class, but excludes inherited classes and interfaces. This method returns an array of length 0 if the class declares no classes or interfaces as members, or if this Class object represents a primitive type, an array class, or void.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array of Class objects representing all the declared members of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredFields

public Field[] getDeclaredFields()
                          throws SecurityException

Returns an array of Field objects reflecting all the fields declared by the class or interface represented by this Class object. This includes public, protected, default (package) access, and private fields, but excludes inherited fields. The elements in the array returned are not sorted and are not in any particular order. This method returns an array of length 0 if the class or interface declares no fields, or if this Class object represents a primitive type, an array class, or void.

See The Java Language Specification, sections 8.2 and 8.3.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array of Field objects representing all the declared fields of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Field, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredMethods

public Method[] getDeclaredMethods()
                            throws SecurityException

Returns an array of Method objects reflecting all the methods declared by the class or interface represented by this Class object. This includes public, protected, default (package) access, and private methods, but excludes inherited methods. The elements in the array returned are not sorted and are not in any particular order. This method returns an array of length 0 if the class or interface declares no methods, or if this Class object represents a primitive type, an array class, or void. The class initialization method <clinit> is not included in the returned array. If the class declares multiple public member methods with the same parameter types, they are all included in the returned array.

See The Java Language Specification, section 8.2.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array of Method objects representing all the declared methods of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Method, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredConstructors

public Constructor[] getDeclaredConstructors()
                                      throws SecurityException

Returns an array of Constructor objects reflecting all the constructors declared by the class represented by this Class object. These are public, protected, default (package) access, and private constructors. The elements in the array returned are not sorted and are not in any particular order. If the class has a default constructor, it is included in the returned array. This method returns an array of length 0 if this Class object represents an interface, a primitive type, an array class, or void.

See The Java Language Specification, section 8.2.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Returns:

the array of Method objects representing all the declared constructors of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Constructor, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredField

public Field getDeclaredField(String name)
                       throws NoSuchFieldException,
                              SecurityException

Returns a Field object that reflects the specified declared field of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The name parameter is a String that specifies the simple name of the desired field. Note that this method will not reflect the length field of an array class.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Parameters:

name - the name of the field

Returns:

the Field object for the specified field in this class

Throws:

NoSuchFieldException - if a field with the specified name is not found.

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Field, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredMethod

public Method getDeclaredMethod(String name,
                                Class[] parameterTypes)
                         throws NoSuchMethodException,
                                SecurityException

Returns a Method object that reflects the specified declared method of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The name parameter is a String that specifies the simple name of the desired method, and the parameterTypes parameter is an array of Class objects that identify the method's formal parameter types, in declared order. If more than one method with the same parameter types is declared in a class, and one of these methods has a return type that is more specific than any of the others, that method is returned; otherwise one of the methods is chosen arbitrarily. If the name is "<init>"or "<clinit>" a NoSuchMethodException is raised.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Parameters:

name - the name of the method

parameterTypes - the parameter array

Returns:

the Method object for the method of this class matching the specified name and parameters

Throws:

NoSuchMethodException - if a matching method is not found.

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Method, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getDeclaredConstructor

public Constructor getDeclaredConstructor(Class[] parameterTypes)
                                   throws NoSuchMethodException,
                                          SecurityException

Returns a Constructor object that reflects the specified constructor of the class or interface represented by this Class object. The parameterTypes parameter is an array of Class objects that identify the constructor's formal parameter types, in declared order.

If there is a security manager, this method first calls the security manager's checkMemberAccess method with this and Member.DECLARED as its arguments. If the class is in a package, then this method also calls the security manager's checkPackageAccess method with the package name as its argument. Either of these calls could result in a SecurityException.

Parameters:

parameterTypes - the parameter array

Returns:

The Method object for the constructor with the specified parameter list

Throws:

NoSuchMethodException - if a matching method is not found.

SecurityException - if access to the information is denied.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

Constructor, SecurityManager.checkMemberAccess(Class, int), SecurityManager.checkPackageAccess(String)

getResourceAsStream

public InputStream getResourceAsStream(String name)

Finds a resource with a given name. This method returns null if no resource with this name is found. The rules for searching resources associated with a given class are implemented by the defining class loader of the class.

This method delegates the call to its class loader, after making these changes to the resource name: if the resource name starts with "/", it is unchanged; otherwise, the package name is prepended to the resource name after converting "." to "/". If this object was loaded by the bootstrap loader, the call is delegated to ClassLoader.getSystemResourceAsStream.

Parameters:

name - name of the desired resource

Returns:

a java.io.InputStream object.

Throws:

NullPointerException - if name is null.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

ClassLoader

getResource

public URL getResource(String name)

Finds a resource with a given name. This method returns null if no resource with this name is found. The rules for searching resources associated with a given class are implemented by the * defining class loader of the class.

This method delegates the call to its class loader, after making these changes to the resource name: if the resource name starts with "/", it is unchanged; otherwise, the package name is prepended to the resource name after converting "." to "/". If this object was loaded by the bootstrap loader, the call is delegated to ClassLoader.getSystemResource.

Parameters:

name - name of the desired resource

Returns:

a java.net.URL object.

Since:

JDK1.1

See Also:

ClassLoader

getProtectionDomain

public ProtectionDomain getProtectionDomain()

Returns the ProtectionDomain of this class. If there is a security manager installed, this method first calls the security manager's checkPermission method with a RuntimePermission("getProtectionDomain") permission to ensure it's ok to get the ProtectionDomain.

Returns:

the ProtectionDomain of this class

Throws:

SecurityException - if a security manager exists and its checkPermission method doesn't allow getting the ProtectionDomain.

Since:

1.2

See Also:

ProtectionDomain, SecurityManager.checkPermission(java.security.Permission), RuntimePermission

desiredAssertionStatus

public boolean desiredAssertionStatus()

Returns the assertion status that would be assigned to this class if it were to be initialized at the time this method is invoked. If this class has had its assertion status set, the most recent setting will be returned; otherwise, if any package default assertion status pertains to this class, the most recent setting for the most specific pertinent package default assertion status is returned; otherwise, if this class is not a system class (i.e., it has a class loader) its class loader's default assertion status is returned; otherwise, the system class default assertion status is returned.

Few programmers will have any need for this method; it is provided for the benefit of the JRE itself. (It allows a class to determine at the time that it is initialized whether assertions should be enabled.) Note that this method is not guaranteed to return the actual assertion status that was (or will be) associated with the specified class when it was (or will be) initialized.

Returns:

the desired assertion status of the specified class.

Since:

1.4

See Also:

ClassLoader.setClassAssertionStatus(java.lang.String, boolean), ClassLoader.setPackageAssertionStatus(java.lang.String, boolean), ClassLoader.setDefaultAssertionStatus(boolean)