C# defines two binary stream classes that can be used to read and write binary data directly.
BinaryReader.
BinaryWriter.
A BinaryReader is a wrapper around a byte stream that handles the reading of binary data.
Method
Description
int Read()
Returns an integer representation of the next available character. Returns -1 when the end of the file is encountered.
int Read(byte[ ] buf, int offset, int num)
Attempts to read up to num bytes into buf starting at buf[offset], returning the number of bytes successfully read.
int Read(char[ ] buf, int offset, int num)
Attempts to read up to num characters into buf starting at buf[offset], returning the number of characters successfully read.
Commonly Used Input Methods Defined by BinaryReader
Method
Description
bool ReadBoolean()
Reads a bool.
byte ReadByte()
Reads a byte.
sbyte ReadSByte()
Reads an sbyte
byte[] ReadBytes(int num)
Reads num bytes and returns them as an array.
char ReadChar()
Reads a char.
char[] ReadChar(int num)
Reads num characteds and returns them as an array
double ReadDouble()
Reads a double
float ReadSingle()
Reads a float
short ReadInt16()
Reads a short
int ReadInt32()
Reads an int
long ReadInt64()
Reads a long
ushort ReadUInt16()
Reads a ushort
uint ReadUInt32()
Reads a uint
ulong ReadUInt64()
Reads a ulong
string ReadString()
Reads a string that has been written using a BinaryWriter.
