Related
Consider the code below:
DummyBean dum = new DummyBean();
dum.setDummy("foo");
System.out.println(dum.getDummy()); // prints 'foo'
DummyBean dumtwo = dum;
System.out.println(dumtwo.getDummy()); // prints 'foo'
dum.setDummy("bar");
System.out.println(dumtwo.getDummy()); // prints 'bar' but it should print 'foo'
So, I want to copy the dum to dumtwo and change dum without affecting the dumtwo. But the code above is not doing that. When I change something in dum, the same change is happening in dumtwo also.
I guess, when I say dumtwo = dum, Java copies the reference only. So, is there any way to create a fresh copy of dum and assign it to dumtwo?
Create a copy constructor:
class DummyBean {
private String dummy;
public DummyBean(DummyBean another) {
this.dummy = another.dummy; // you can access
}
}
Every object has also a clone method which can be used to copy the object, but don't use it. It's way too easy to create a class and do improper clone method. If you are going to do that, read at least what Joshua Bloch has to say about it in Effective Java.
Basic: Object Copying in Java.
Let us Assume an object- obj1, that contains two objects, containedObj1 and containedObj2.
shallow copying:
shallow copying creates a new instance of the same class and copies all the fields to the new instance and returns it. Object class provides a clone method and provides support for the shallow copying.
Deep copying:
A deep copy occurs when an object is copied along with the objects to which it refers. Below image shows obj1 after a deep copy has been performed on it. Not only has obj1 been copied, but the objects contained within it have been copied as well. We can use Java Object Serialization to make a deep copy. Unfortunately, this approach has some problems too(detailed examples).
Possible Problems:
clone is tricky to implement correctly.
It's better to use Defensive copying, copy constructors(as #egaga reply) or static factory methods.
If you have an object, that you know has a public clone() method, but you don’t know the type of the object at compile time, then you have problem. Java has an interface called Cloneable. In practice, we should implement this interface if we want to make an object Cloneable. Object.clone is protected, so we must override it with a public method in order for it to be accessible.
Another problem arises when we try deep copying of a complex object. Assume that the clone() method of all member object variables also does deep copy, this is too risky of an assumption. You must control the code in all classes.
For example org.apache.commons.lang.SerializationUtils will have method for Deep clone using serialization(Source). If we need to clone Bean then there are couple of utility methods in org.apache.commons.beanutils (Source).
cloneBean will Clone a bean based on the available property getters and setters, even if the bean class itself does not implement Cloneable.
copyProperties will Copy property values from the origin bean to the destination bean for all cases where the property names are the same.
In the package import org.apache.commons.lang.SerializationUtils; there is a method:
SerializationUtils.clone(Object);
Example:
this.myObjectCloned = SerializationUtils.clone(this.object);
Just follow as below:
public class Deletable implements Cloneable{
private String str;
public Deletable(){
}
public void setStr(String str){
this.str = str;
}
public void display(){
System.out.println("The String is "+str);
}
protected Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
return super.clone();
}
}
and wherever you want to get another object, simple perform cloning.
e.g:
Deletable del = new Deletable();
Deletable delTemp = (Deletable ) del.clone(); // this line will return you an independent
// object, the changes made to this object will
// not be reflected to other object
Why is there no answer for using Reflection API?
private static Object cloneObject(Object obj){
try{
Object clone = obj.getClass().newInstance();
for (Field field : obj.getClass().getDeclaredFields()) {
field.setAccessible(true);
field.set(clone, field.get(obj));
}
return clone;
}catch(Exception e){
return null;
}
}
It's really simple.
EDIT: Include child object via recursion
private static Object cloneObject(Object obj){
try{
Object clone = obj.getClass().newInstance();
for (Field field : obj.getClass().getDeclaredFields()) {
field.setAccessible(true);
if(field.get(obj) == null || Modifier.isFinal(field.getModifiers())){
continue;
}
if(field.getType().isPrimitive() || field.getType().equals(String.class)
|| field.getType().getSuperclass().equals(Number.class)
|| field.getType().equals(Boolean.class)){
field.set(clone, field.get(obj));
}else{
Object childObj = field.get(obj);
if(childObj == obj){
field.set(clone, clone);
}else{
field.set(clone, cloneObject(field.get(obj)));
}
}
}
return clone;
}catch(Exception e){
return null;
}
}
I use Google's JSON library to serialize it then create a new instance of the serialized object. It does deep copy with a few restrictions:
there can't be any recursive references
it won't copy arrays of disparate types
arrays and lists should be typed or it won't find the class to instantiate
you may need to encapsulate strings in a class you declare yourself
I also use this class to save user preferences, windows and whatnot to be reloaded at runtime. It is very easy to use and effective.
import com.google.gson.*;
public class SerialUtils {
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static String serializeObject(Object o) {
Gson gson = new Gson();
String serializedObject = gson.toJson(o);
return serializedObject;
}
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static Object unserializeObject(String s, Object o){
Gson gson = new Gson();
Object object = gson.fromJson(s, o.getClass());
return object;
}
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static Object cloneObject(Object o){
String s = serializeObject(o);
Object object = unserializeObject(s,o);
return object;
}
}
Yes, you are just making a reference to the object. You can clone the object if it implements Cloneable.
Check out this wiki article about copying objects.
Refer here: Object copying
Add Cloneable and below code to your class
public Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
return super.clone();
}
Use this clonedObject = (YourClass) yourClassObject.clone();
Deep Cloning is your answer, which requires implementing the Cloneable interface and overriding the clone() method.
public class DummyBean implements Cloneable {
private String dummy;
public void setDummy(String dummy) {
this.dummy = dummy;
}
public String getDummy() {
return dummy;
}
#Override
public Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
DummyBean cloned = (DummyBean)super.clone();
cloned.setDummy(cloned.getDummy());
// the above is applicable in case of primitive member types like String
// however, in case of non primitive types
// cloned.setNonPrimitiveType(cloned.getNonPrimitiveType().clone());
return cloned;
}
}
You will call it like this
DummyBean dumtwo = dum.clone();
This works too. Assuming model
class UserAccount{
public int id;
public String name;
}
First add
compile 'com.google.code.gson:gson:2.8.1' to your app>gradle & sync. Then
Gson gson = new Gson();
updateUser = gson.fromJson(gson.toJson(mUser),UserAccount.class);
You can exclude using a field by using transient keyword after access modifier.
Note: This is bad practice. Also don't recommend to use Cloneable or JavaSerialization It's slow and broken. Write copy constructor for best performance ref.
Something like
class UserAccount{
public int id;
public String name;
//empty constructor
public UserAccount(){}
//parameterize constructor
public UserAccount(int id, String name) {
this.id = id;
this.name = name;
}
//copy constructor
public UserAccount(UserAccount in){
this(in.id,in.name);
}
}
Test stats of 90000 iteration:
Line UserAccount clone = gson.fromJson(gson.toJson(aO), UserAccount.class); takes 808ms
Line UserAccount clone = new UserAccount(aO); takes less than 1ms
Conclusion: Use gson if your boss is crazy and you prefer speed. Use second copy constructor if you prefer quality.
You can also use copy constructor code generator plugin in Android Studio.
Here's a decent explanation of clone() if you end up needing it...
Here: clone (Java method)
Use a deep cloning utility:
SomeObjectType copy = new Cloner().deepClone(someObject);
This will deep copy any java object, check it out at https://github.com/kostaskougios/cloning
Alternative to egaga's constructor method of copy. You probably already have a POJO, so just add another method copy() which returns a copy of the initialized object.
class DummyBean {
private String dummyStr;
private int dummyInt;
public DummyBean(String dummyStr, int dummyInt) {
this.dummyStr = dummyStr;
this.dummyInt = dummyInt;
}
public DummyBean copy() {
return new DummyBean(dummyStr, dummyInt);
}
//... Getters & Setters
}
If you already have a DummyBean and want a copy:
DummyBean bean1 = new DummyBean("peet", 2);
DummyBean bean2 = bean1.copy(); // <-- Create copy of bean1
System.out.println("bean1: " + bean1.getDummyStr() + " " + bean1.getDummyInt());
System.out.println("bean2: " + bean2.getDummyStr() + " " + bean2.getDummyInt());
//Change bean1
bean1.setDummyStr("koos");
bean1.setDummyInt(88);
System.out.println("bean1: " + bean1.getDummyStr() + " " + bean1.getDummyInt());
System.out.println("bean2: " + bean2.getDummyStr() + " " + bean2.getDummyInt());
Output:
bean1: peet 2
bean2: peet 2
bean1: koos 88
bean2: peet 2
But both works well, it is ultimately up to you...
To do that you have to clone the object in some way. Although Java has a cloning mechanism, don't use it if you don't have to. Create a copy method that does the copy work for you, and then do:
dumtwo = dum.copy();
Here is some more advice on different techniques for accomplishing a copy.
Pass the object that you want to copy and get the object you want:
private Object copyObject(Object objSource) {
try {
ByteArrayOutputStream bos = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
ObjectOutputStream oos = new ObjectOutputStream(bos);
oos.writeObject(objSource);
oos.flush();
oos.close();
bos.close();
byte[] byteData = bos.toByteArray();
ByteArrayInputStream bais = new ByteArrayInputStream(byteData);
try {
objDest = new ObjectInputStream(bais).readObject();
} catch (ClassNotFoundException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
return objDest;
}
Now parse the objDest to desired object.
Happy Coding!
Use gson for duplicating an object.
public static <T>T copyObject(Object object){
Gson gson = new Gson();
JsonObject jsonObject = gson.toJsonTree(object).getAsJsonObject();
return gson.fromJson(jsonObject,(Type) object.getClass());
}
Assume I have an object person.So
Person copyPerson = copyObject(person);
Note: The performance is much slower.
Other than explicitly copying, another approach is to make the object immutable (no set or other mutator methods). In this way the question never arises. Immutability becomes more difficult with larger objects, but that other side of that is that it pushes you in the direction of splitting into coherent small objects and composites.
class DB {
private String dummy;
public DB(DB one) {
this.dummy = one.dummy;
}
}
You can deep copy automatically with XStream, from http://x-stream.github.io/:
XStream is a simple library to serialize objects to XML and back
again.
Add it to your project (if using maven)
<dependency>
<groupId>com.thoughtworks.xstream</groupId>
<artifactId>xstream</artifactId>
<version>1.3.1</version>
</dependency>
Then
DummyBean dum = new DummyBean();
dum.setDummy("foo");
DummyBean dumCopy = (DummyBean) XSTREAM.fromXML(XSTREAM.toXML(dum));
With this you have a copy without the need to implement any cloning interface.
public class MyClass implements Cloneable {
private boolean myField= false;
// and other fields or objects
public MyClass (){}
#Override
public MyClass clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
try
{
MyClass clonedMyClass = (MyClass)super.clone();
// if you have custom object, then you need create a new one in here
return clonedMyClass ;
} catch (CloneNotSupportedException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
return new MyClass();
}
}
}
and in your code:
MyClass myClass = new MyClass();
// do some work with this object
MyClass clonedMyClass = myClass.clone();
You can try to implement Cloneable and use the clone() method; however, if you use the clone method you should - by standard - ALWAYS override Object's public Object clone() method.
If you can add an annotation to the source file, an annotation processor or code generator like this one can be used.
import net.zerobuilder.BeanBuilder
#BeanBuilder
public class DummyBean {
// bean stuff
}
A class DummyBeanBuilders will be generates, which has a static method dummyBeanUpdater to create shallow copies, the same way as you would do it manually.
DummyBean bean = new DummyBean();
// Call some setters ...
// Now make a copy
DummyBean copy = DummyBeanBuilders.dummyBeanUpdater(bean).done();
Using Kotlin extension function
fun <T : Any?> T.duplicate(): T? {
var copyObject: T? = null
try {
val byteArrayOutputStream = ByteArrayOutputStream()
val objectOutputStream = ObjectOutputStream(byteArrayOutputStream)
objectOutputStream.writeObject(this)
objectOutputStream.flush()
objectOutputStream.close()
byteArrayOutputStream.close()
val byteData = byteArrayOutputStream.toByteArray()
val byteArrayInputStream = ByteArrayInputStream(byteData)
try {
copyObject = ObjectInputStream(byteArrayInputStream).readObject() as T
} catch (e: ClassNotFoundException) {
e.printStackTrace()
}
} catch (e: IOException) {
e.printStackTrace()
}
return copyObject
}
Use case
var object = Any()
var duplicateObject = object.duplicate()
Java
<T extends Object> T copyObject(T sourceObject) {
T copyObject = null;
try {
ByteArrayOutputStream byteArrayOutputStream = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
ObjectOutputStream objectOutputStream = new ObjectOutputStream(byteArrayOutputStream);
objectOutputStream.writeObject(sourceObject);
objectOutputStream.flush();
objectOutputStream.close();
byteArrayOutputStream.close();
byte[] byteData = byteArrayOutputStream.toByteArray();
ByteArrayInputStream byteArrayInputStream = new ByteArrayInputStream(byteData);
try {
copyObject = (T) new ObjectInputStream(byteArrayInputStream).readObject();
} catch (ClassNotFoundException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
return copyObject;
}
Use case
Object object = new Object();
Object duplicateObject = copyObject(object);
==============================================
Kotlin Update
If you use data class then you will have copy method that copies the Kotlin data class. Cool thing is you could also pass some values to modify the object with new copy. I would recommend this way.
Example:
//class
data class TestModel(val title: String, var subtitle: String)
Use case
val testClass = TestModel("Test title", "Test subtitle")
val newInstance = testClass.copy(subtitle = "new subtitle for copy instance")
Consider the code below:
DummyBean dum = new DummyBean();
dum.setDummy("foo");
System.out.println(dum.getDummy()); // prints 'foo'
DummyBean dumtwo = dum;
System.out.println(dumtwo.getDummy()); // prints 'foo'
dum.setDummy("bar");
System.out.println(dumtwo.getDummy()); // prints 'bar' but it should print 'foo'
So, I want to copy the dum to dumtwo and change dum without affecting the dumtwo. But the code above is not doing that. When I change something in dum, the same change is happening in dumtwo also.
I guess, when I say dumtwo = dum, Java copies the reference only. So, is there any way to create a fresh copy of dum and assign it to dumtwo?
Create a copy constructor:
class DummyBean {
private String dummy;
public DummyBean(DummyBean another) {
this.dummy = another.dummy; // you can access
}
}
Every object has also a clone method which can be used to copy the object, but don't use it. It's way too easy to create a class and do improper clone method. If you are going to do that, read at least what Joshua Bloch has to say about it in Effective Java.
Basic: Object Copying in Java.
Let us Assume an object- obj1, that contains two objects, containedObj1 and containedObj2.
shallow copying:
shallow copying creates a new instance of the same class and copies all the fields to the new instance and returns it. Object class provides a clone method and provides support for the shallow copying.
Deep copying:
A deep copy occurs when an object is copied along with the objects to which it refers. Below image shows obj1 after a deep copy has been performed on it. Not only has obj1 been copied, but the objects contained within it have been copied as well. We can use Java Object Serialization to make a deep copy. Unfortunately, this approach has some problems too(detailed examples).
Possible Problems:
clone is tricky to implement correctly.
It's better to use Defensive copying, copy constructors(as #egaga reply) or static factory methods.
If you have an object, that you know has a public clone() method, but you don’t know the type of the object at compile time, then you have problem. Java has an interface called Cloneable. In practice, we should implement this interface if we want to make an object Cloneable. Object.clone is protected, so we must override it with a public method in order for it to be accessible.
Another problem arises when we try deep copying of a complex object. Assume that the clone() method of all member object variables also does deep copy, this is too risky of an assumption. You must control the code in all classes.
For example org.apache.commons.lang.SerializationUtils will have method for Deep clone using serialization(Source). If we need to clone Bean then there are couple of utility methods in org.apache.commons.beanutils (Source).
cloneBean will Clone a bean based on the available property getters and setters, even if the bean class itself does not implement Cloneable.
copyProperties will Copy property values from the origin bean to the destination bean for all cases where the property names are the same.
In the package import org.apache.commons.lang.SerializationUtils; there is a method:
SerializationUtils.clone(Object);
Example:
this.myObjectCloned = SerializationUtils.clone(this.object);
Just follow as below:
public class Deletable implements Cloneable{
private String str;
public Deletable(){
}
public void setStr(String str){
this.str = str;
}
public void display(){
System.out.println("The String is "+str);
}
protected Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
return super.clone();
}
}
and wherever you want to get another object, simple perform cloning.
e.g:
Deletable del = new Deletable();
Deletable delTemp = (Deletable ) del.clone(); // this line will return you an independent
// object, the changes made to this object will
// not be reflected to other object
Why is there no answer for using Reflection API?
private static Object cloneObject(Object obj){
try{
Object clone = obj.getClass().newInstance();
for (Field field : obj.getClass().getDeclaredFields()) {
field.setAccessible(true);
field.set(clone, field.get(obj));
}
return clone;
}catch(Exception e){
return null;
}
}
It's really simple.
EDIT: Include child object via recursion
private static Object cloneObject(Object obj){
try{
Object clone = obj.getClass().newInstance();
for (Field field : obj.getClass().getDeclaredFields()) {
field.setAccessible(true);
if(field.get(obj) == null || Modifier.isFinal(field.getModifiers())){
continue;
}
if(field.getType().isPrimitive() || field.getType().equals(String.class)
|| field.getType().getSuperclass().equals(Number.class)
|| field.getType().equals(Boolean.class)){
field.set(clone, field.get(obj));
}else{
Object childObj = field.get(obj);
if(childObj == obj){
field.set(clone, clone);
}else{
field.set(clone, cloneObject(field.get(obj)));
}
}
}
return clone;
}catch(Exception e){
return null;
}
}
I use Google's JSON library to serialize it then create a new instance of the serialized object. It does deep copy with a few restrictions:
there can't be any recursive references
it won't copy arrays of disparate types
arrays and lists should be typed or it won't find the class to instantiate
you may need to encapsulate strings in a class you declare yourself
I also use this class to save user preferences, windows and whatnot to be reloaded at runtime. It is very easy to use and effective.
import com.google.gson.*;
public class SerialUtils {
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static String serializeObject(Object o) {
Gson gson = new Gson();
String serializedObject = gson.toJson(o);
return serializedObject;
}
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static Object unserializeObject(String s, Object o){
Gson gson = new Gson();
Object object = gson.fromJson(s, o.getClass());
return object;
}
//___________________________________________________________________________________
public static Object cloneObject(Object o){
String s = serializeObject(o);
Object object = unserializeObject(s,o);
return object;
}
}
Yes, you are just making a reference to the object. You can clone the object if it implements Cloneable.
Check out this wiki article about copying objects.
Refer here: Object copying
Add Cloneable and below code to your class
public Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
return super.clone();
}
Use this clonedObject = (YourClass) yourClassObject.clone();
Deep Cloning is your answer, which requires implementing the Cloneable interface and overriding the clone() method.
public class DummyBean implements Cloneable {
private String dummy;
public void setDummy(String dummy) {
this.dummy = dummy;
}
public String getDummy() {
return dummy;
}
#Override
public Object clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
DummyBean cloned = (DummyBean)super.clone();
cloned.setDummy(cloned.getDummy());
// the above is applicable in case of primitive member types like String
// however, in case of non primitive types
// cloned.setNonPrimitiveType(cloned.getNonPrimitiveType().clone());
return cloned;
}
}
You will call it like this
DummyBean dumtwo = dum.clone();
This works too. Assuming model
class UserAccount{
public int id;
public String name;
}
First add
compile 'com.google.code.gson:gson:2.8.1' to your app>gradle & sync. Then
Gson gson = new Gson();
updateUser = gson.fromJson(gson.toJson(mUser),UserAccount.class);
You can exclude using a field by using transient keyword after access modifier.
Note: This is bad practice. Also don't recommend to use Cloneable or JavaSerialization It's slow and broken. Write copy constructor for best performance ref.
Something like
class UserAccount{
public int id;
public String name;
//empty constructor
public UserAccount(){}
//parameterize constructor
public UserAccount(int id, String name) {
this.id = id;
this.name = name;
}
//copy constructor
public UserAccount(UserAccount in){
this(in.id,in.name);
}
}
Test stats of 90000 iteration:
Line UserAccount clone = gson.fromJson(gson.toJson(aO), UserAccount.class); takes 808ms
Line UserAccount clone = new UserAccount(aO); takes less than 1ms
Conclusion: Use gson if your boss is crazy and you prefer speed. Use second copy constructor if you prefer quality.
You can also use copy constructor code generator plugin in Android Studio.
Here's a decent explanation of clone() if you end up needing it...
Here: clone (Java method)
Use a deep cloning utility:
SomeObjectType copy = new Cloner().deepClone(someObject);
This will deep copy any java object, check it out at https://github.com/kostaskougios/cloning
Alternative to egaga's constructor method of copy. You probably already have a POJO, so just add another method copy() which returns a copy of the initialized object.
class DummyBean {
private String dummyStr;
private int dummyInt;
public DummyBean(String dummyStr, int dummyInt) {
this.dummyStr = dummyStr;
this.dummyInt = dummyInt;
}
public DummyBean copy() {
return new DummyBean(dummyStr, dummyInt);
}
//... Getters & Setters
}
If you already have a DummyBean and want a copy:
DummyBean bean1 = new DummyBean("peet", 2);
DummyBean bean2 = bean1.copy(); // <-- Create copy of bean1
System.out.println("bean1: " + bean1.getDummyStr() + " " + bean1.getDummyInt());
System.out.println("bean2: " + bean2.getDummyStr() + " " + bean2.getDummyInt());
//Change bean1
bean1.setDummyStr("koos");
bean1.setDummyInt(88);
System.out.println("bean1: " + bean1.getDummyStr() + " " + bean1.getDummyInt());
System.out.println("bean2: " + bean2.getDummyStr() + " " + bean2.getDummyInt());
Output:
bean1: peet 2
bean2: peet 2
bean1: koos 88
bean2: peet 2
But both works well, it is ultimately up to you...
To do that you have to clone the object in some way. Although Java has a cloning mechanism, don't use it if you don't have to. Create a copy method that does the copy work for you, and then do:
dumtwo = dum.copy();
Here is some more advice on different techniques for accomplishing a copy.
Pass the object that you want to copy and get the object you want:
private Object copyObject(Object objSource) {
try {
ByteArrayOutputStream bos = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
ObjectOutputStream oos = new ObjectOutputStream(bos);
oos.writeObject(objSource);
oos.flush();
oos.close();
bos.close();
byte[] byteData = bos.toByteArray();
ByteArrayInputStream bais = new ByteArrayInputStream(byteData);
try {
objDest = new ObjectInputStream(bais).readObject();
} catch (ClassNotFoundException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
return objDest;
}
Now parse the objDest to desired object.
Happy Coding!
Use gson for duplicating an object.
public static <T>T copyObject(Object object){
Gson gson = new Gson();
JsonObject jsonObject = gson.toJsonTree(object).getAsJsonObject();
return gson.fromJson(jsonObject,(Type) object.getClass());
}
Assume I have an object person.So
Person copyPerson = copyObject(person);
Note: The performance is much slower.
Other than explicitly copying, another approach is to make the object immutable (no set or other mutator methods). In this way the question never arises. Immutability becomes more difficult with larger objects, but that other side of that is that it pushes you in the direction of splitting into coherent small objects and composites.
class DB {
private String dummy;
public DB(DB one) {
this.dummy = one.dummy;
}
}
You can deep copy automatically with XStream, from http://x-stream.github.io/:
XStream is a simple library to serialize objects to XML and back
again.
Add it to your project (if using maven)
<dependency>
<groupId>com.thoughtworks.xstream</groupId>
<artifactId>xstream</artifactId>
<version>1.3.1</version>
</dependency>
Then
DummyBean dum = new DummyBean();
dum.setDummy("foo");
DummyBean dumCopy = (DummyBean) XSTREAM.fromXML(XSTREAM.toXML(dum));
With this you have a copy without the need to implement any cloning interface.
public class MyClass implements Cloneable {
private boolean myField= false;
// and other fields or objects
public MyClass (){}
#Override
public MyClass clone() throws CloneNotSupportedException {
try
{
MyClass clonedMyClass = (MyClass)super.clone();
// if you have custom object, then you need create a new one in here
return clonedMyClass ;
} catch (CloneNotSupportedException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
return new MyClass();
}
}
}
and in your code:
MyClass myClass = new MyClass();
// do some work with this object
MyClass clonedMyClass = myClass.clone();
You can try to implement Cloneable and use the clone() method; however, if you use the clone method you should - by standard - ALWAYS override Object's public Object clone() method.
If you can add an annotation to the source file, an annotation processor or code generator like this one can be used.
import net.zerobuilder.BeanBuilder
#BeanBuilder
public class DummyBean {
// bean stuff
}
A class DummyBeanBuilders will be generates, which has a static method dummyBeanUpdater to create shallow copies, the same way as you would do it manually.
DummyBean bean = new DummyBean();
// Call some setters ...
// Now make a copy
DummyBean copy = DummyBeanBuilders.dummyBeanUpdater(bean).done();
Using Kotlin extension function
fun <T : Any?> T.duplicate(): T? {
var copyObject: T? = null
try {
val byteArrayOutputStream = ByteArrayOutputStream()
val objectOutputStream = ObjectOutputStream(byteArrayOutputStream)
objectOutputStream.writeObject(this)
objectOutputStream.flush()
objectOutputStream.close()
byteArrayOutputStream.close()
val byteData = byteArrayOutputStream.toByteArray()
val byteArrayInputStream = ByteArrayInputStream(byteData)
try {
copyObject = ObjectInputStream(byteArrayInputStream).readObject() as T
} catch (e: ClassNotFoundException) {
e.printStackTrace()
}
} catch (e: IOException) {
e.printStackTrace()
}
return copyObject
}
Use case
var object = Any()
var duplicateObject = object.duplicate()
Java
<T extends Object> T copyObject(T sourceObject) {
T copyObject = null;
try {
ByteArrayOutputStream byteArrayOutputStream = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
ObjectOutputStream objectOutputStream = new ObjectOutputStream(byteArrayOutputStream);
objectOutputStream.writeObject(sourceObject);
objectOutputStream.flush();
objectOutputStream.close();
byteArrayOutputStream.close();
byte[] byteData = byteArrayOutputStream.toByteArray();
ByteArrayInputStream byteArrayInputStream = new ByteArrayInputStream(byteData);
try {
copyObject = (T) new ObjectInputStream(byteArrayInputStream).readObject();
} catch (ClassNotFoundException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
return copyObject;
}
Use case
Object object = new Object();
Object duplicateObject = copyObject(object);
==============================================
Kotlin Update
If you use data class then you will have copy method that copies the Kotlin data class. Cool thing is you could also pass some values to modify the object with new copy. I would recommend this way.
Example:
//class
data class TestModel(val title: String, var subtitle: String)
Use case
val testClass = TestModel("Test title", "Test subtitle")
val newInstance = testClass.copy(subtitle = "new subtitle for copy instance")
Say I have the following code...
#FunctionalInterface
static interface MessageFunction<T> {
void send(T obj);
}
static #interface Message {
Class<?> value();
}
static class Foo {
#Message(String.class)
MessageFunction<String> bass = (string) -> {
// Do Stuff
};
}
static class MessageManager {
Map<Class<?>, MessageFunction<?>> messages = new HashMap<>();
public void register(Object obj) {
for (Field field : obj.getClass().getDeclaredFields()) {
Message message = field.getAnnotation(Message.class);
if (message != null) {
MessageFunction<?> function;
try {
function = (MessageFunction<?>) field.get(obj);
} catch (IllegalArgumentException | IllegalAccessException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
return;
}
Method sendMethod;
try {
// Will this work?
sendMethod = function.getClass().getDeclaredMethod("send", Object.class);
} catch (NoSuchMethodException | SecurityException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
return;
}
// How do I do something like this?
/*if (sendMethod.testParamaters(message.value())) {
this.messages.put(message.value(), function);
}*/
}
}
}
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
MessageManager manager = new MessageManager();
manager.register(new Foo());
}
I am reflecting a field that references an #FunctionalInterface of a generic type. Because the method parameter is also generic I have no way of knowing what parameters it accepts, Thus I must pass it along through other means (the annotation).
The issue is that there is the annotation value and the generic type do not have to match and there seems to be no way to check. I wan't it to fail in registration if the type listed in the annotation would not be accepted into the send method.
How would I go about thing this without actually calling the method. Is there a way? Better yet although I know its most likely impossible, is there a way to know what the parameter type is without the annotation?
The following is just a suggestion, I have used it in my project. But it is not a perfect solution for the question. May be you can download the source of GenericHibernateDao framework and see the sourcecode of method "getTypeArguments". I think it is so cool!.
// get a class object for your entity
Class clazz = ...
Type type = clazz.getGenericSuperclass();
if (type instanceof ParameterizedType) {
Type trueType = ((ParameterizedType)type).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
Class modelClass = (Class) trueType;
// Now you can creat an Instance in you generic parameterType
Object entity = modelClass.forInstance();
}
I do something similar in some of my code Here is a snippet.
Method[] meths = actionClass.getMethods();
for (Method meth : meths) {
Class<?>[] pTypes = meth.getParameterTypes();
/*
* Filter out all methods that do not meet correct
* signature. The correct signature for an action method
* is: String actionName(HttpServletRequest request)
*/
//...check for the correct number of params and the correct param type
if (pTypes.length != 1 || !HttpServletRequest.class.toString().equals(pTypes[0].toString())) {
continue;
} else {
//...check for return type
if (!String.class.toString().equals(meth.getReturnType().toString())) {
continue;
}
}
//If you make it here than that means the method
//meets the requirements to be a full fledged action.
//...
}
Is it possible to dynamically call a method on a class from java?
E.g, lets say I have the reference to a class, e.g either the string: 'com.foo.Bar', or com.foo.Bar.class, or anything else which is needed..). And I have an array / list of strings, e.g [First, Last, Email].
I want to simply loop through this array, and call the method 'validate' + element on the class that I have a reference to. E.g:
MyInterface item = //instantiate the com.foo.Bar class here somehow, I'm not sure how.
item.validateFirst();
item.validateLast();
item.validateEmail();
I want the above lines of code to happen dynamically, so I can change the reference to a different class, and the names in my string list can change, but it will still call the validate + name method on whichever class it has the reference to.
Is that possible?
The simplest approach would be to use reflection
Given...
package com.foo;
public class Bar {
public void validateFirst() {
System.out.println("validateFirst");
}
public void validateLast() {
System.out.println("validateLast");
}
public void validateEmail() {
System.out.println("validateEmail");
}
}
You could use something like...
String methodNames[] = new String[]{"First", "Last", "Email"};
String className = "com.foo.Bar";
try {
Class classRef = Class.forName(className);
Object instance = classRef.newInstance();
for (String methodName : methodNames) {
try {
Method method = classRef.getDeclaredMethod("validate" + methodName);
method.invoke(instance);
} catch (NoSuchMethodException | SecurityException | IllegalArgumentException | InvocationTargetException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
} catch (ClassNotFoundException | InstantiationException | IllegalAccessException ex) {
ex.printStackTrace();
}
To look up the methods and execute them.
You will need to decide the best way to handle errors and what they mean to you, but it wouldn't be a difficult them to expand the idea to a reusable method...
Updated with idea of concept discussed in comments
Given....
public interface Validator {
public boolean isValid(Properties formProperties);
}
We can create one or more...
public class UserRegistrationValidator implements Validator {
public boolean isValid(Properties formProperties) {
boolean isValid = false;
// Required fields...
if (formProperties.containsKey("firstName") && formProperties.containsKey("lastName") && formProperties.containsKey("email")) {
// Further processing, valid each required field...
}
if (isValid) {
// Process optional parameters
}
return isValid;
}
}
Then from our input controller, we can look and valid the required forms
public class FormController ... {
private Map<String, Validator> validators;
public void validForm(String formName, Properties formProperties) {
boolean isValid = false;
Validator validator = validators.get(formName);
if (validator != null) {
isValid = validate.isValid(formProperties);
}
return isValid;
}
}
Of course you need to provide some way to register the Validators and there may be differences based on the backbone framework you are using and the parameters you can use (you don't have to use Properties, but it is basically just a Map<String, String>...)
You can write something like this... it takes name of a class as string as an argument, the method name and its arguments
private static String invoke(String aClass, String aMethod, Class<?>[] params,
Object[] args) throws Exception {
String resp = "";
Class<?> c = Class.forName(aClass);
Method m = c.getDeclaredMethod(aMethod, params);
Object i = c.newInstance();
resp = m.invoke(i, args).toString();
return resp;
}
You can also refer to the oracle tutorial on reflection ... which demonstrates how to call methods
http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/reflect/member/methodInvocation.html
It's possible using reflection.
First, you create a new class from the FQN (fully qualified name, which is the class name including the package).
Then you iterate through your elements and invoke the "validate" methods on your item.
Class<?> clazz = Class.forName("com.foo.Bar");
Object item = clazz.newInstance();
for (String element : elements) {
Method method = clazz.getDeclaredMethod("validate" + element);
method.invoke(item);
}
You can use reflection, but my favorite method is to use beanutils, eg:
Bar b1 = //...
BeanUtils.getProperty(b1, "first");
BeanUtils.getProperty(b1, "last");
Note that your class has to conform to javabean convention. You can read more about beanutils on this blog post (disclaimer I'm the blog author)
If you know the name of the class beforehand, use Class.forName(yourClassname)
That way, you can invoke the class, and then, you can invoke its methods.
Yes, using reflection.
Using Class.getDeclaredMethod on your object
Object validator = <your object instance>;
final String[] values = {
"Item1","Item2","Item3"
}
for(final String s : values) {
Method m = validator.getDeclaredMethod("validate" + s,String.class);
try {
Object result = m.invoke(validator, s);
}
catch(ex) {}
}
Is there any way to pass class as a parameter in Java and fire some methods from that class?
void main()
{
callClass(that.class)
}
void callClass(???? classObject)
{
classObject.somefunction
// or
new classObject()
//something like that ?
}
I am using Google Web Toolkit and it does not support reflection.
public void foo(Class c){
try {
Object ob = c.newInstance();
} catch (InstantiationException ex) {
Logger.getLogger(App.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex);
} catch (IllegalAccessException ex) {
Logger.getLogger(App.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex);
}
}
Here are some good examples on Reflection API
How to invoke method using reflection
import java.lang.reflect.*;
public class method2 {
public int add(int a, int b)
{
return a + b;
}
public static void main(String args[])
{
try {
Class cls = Class.forName("method2");
Class partypes[] = new Class[2];
partypes[0] = Integer.TYPE;
partypes[1] = Integer.TYPE;
Method meth = cls.getMethod(
"add", partypes);
method2 methobj = new method2();
Object arglist[] = new Object[2];
arglist[0] = new Integer(37);
arglist[1] = new Integer(47);
Object retobj
= meth.invoke(methobj, arglist);
Integer retval = (Integer)retobj;
System.out.println(retval.intValue());
}
catch (Throwable e) {
System.err.println(e);
}
}
}
Also See
Java Reflection
public void callingMethod(Class neededClass) {
//Cast the class to the class you need
//and call your method in the class
((ClassBeingCalled)neededClass).methodOfClass();
}
To call the method, you call it this way:
callingMethod(ClassBeingCalled.class);
Construct your method to accept it-
public <T> void printClassNameAndCreateList(Class<T> className){
//example access 1
System.out.print(className.getName());
//example access 2
ArrayList<T> list = new ArrayList<T>();
//note that if you create a list this way, you will have to cast input
list.add((T)nameOfObject);
}
Call the method-
printClassNameAndCreateList(SomeClass.class);
You can also restrict the type of class, for example, this is one of the methods from a library I made-
protected Class postExceptionActivityIn;
protected <T extends PostExceptionActivity> void setPostExceptionActivityIn(Class <T> postExceptionActivityIn) {
this.postExceptionActivityIn = postExceptionActivityIn;
}
For more information, search Reflection and Generics.
Use
void callClass(Class classObject)
{
//do something with class
}
A Class is also a Java object, so you can refer to it by using its type.
Read more about it from official documentation.
This kind of thing is not easy. Here is a method that calls a static method:
public static Object callStaticMethod(
// class that contains the static method
final Class<?> clazz,
// method name
final String methodName,
// optional method parameters
final Object... parameters) throws Exception{
for(final Method method : clazz.getMethods()){
if(method.getName().equals(methodName)){
final Class<?>[] paramTypes = method.getParameterTypes();
if(parameters.length != paramTypes.length){
continue;
}
boolean compatible = true;
for(int i = 0; i < paramTypes.length; i++){
final Class<?> paramType = paramTypes[i];
final Object param = parameters[i];
if(param != null && !paramType.isInstance(param)){
compatible = false;
break;
}
}
if(compatible){
return method.invoke(/* static invocation */null,
parameters);
}
}
}
throw new NoSuchMethodException(methodName);
}
Update:
Wait, I just saw the gwt tag on the question. You can't use reflection in GWT
Adding <T> T as return type worked for me. Ex with json deserialize
public static <T> T fromJson(String json, Class<T> classOfT){
return gson().fromJson(json, classOfT);
}
I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish, but you may want to consider that passing a class may not be what you really need to be doing. In many cases, dealing with Class like this is easily encapsulated within a factory pattern of some type and the use of that is done through an interface. here's one of dozens of articles on that pattern: http://today.java.net/pub/a/today/2005/03/09/factory.html
using a class within a factory can be accomplished in a variety of ways, most notably by having a config file that contains the name of the class that implements the required interface. Then the factory can find that class from within the class path and construct it as an object of the specified interface.
As you said GWT does not support reflection. You should use deferred binding instead of reflection, or third party library such as gwt-ent for reflection suppport at gwt layer.
Se these:
http://download.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/extra/generics/methods.html
here is the explaniation for the template methods.
Have a look at the reflection tutorial and reflection API of Java:
https://community.oracle.com/docs/DOC-983192enter link description here
and
http://docs.oracle.com/javase/6/docs/api/java/lang/Class.html
Class as paramater. Example.
Three classes:
class TestCar {
private int UnlockCode = 111;
protected boolean hasAirCondition = true;
String brand = "Ford";
public String licensePlate = "Arizona 111";
}
--
class Terminal {
public void hackCar(TestCar car) {
System.out.println(car.hasAirCondition);
System.out.println(car.licensePlate);
System.out.println(car.brand);
}
}
--
class Story {
public static void main(String args[]) {
TestCar testCar = new TestCar();
Terminal terminal = new Terminal();
terminal.hackCar(testCar);
}
}
In class Terminal method hackCar() take class TestCar as parameter.