We have class library as
class A {
public void callWorkflow() {
B b = new B();
}
}
class B {
public void callStatic() {
C.someMethod();
}
}
class C {
public static someMethod() {}
}
We are actually trying to change functionality of static method someMethod. Is there a way to solve this problem without changing call hierarchy?
You can't just Override a static method. In my opinion, remove static from the method someMethod(), then create an object of class C inside class B. Then call the method.
Class A{
public void callWorkflow() {
B b = new B();}
}
Class B{
public void callStatic(){
C c = new C();
c.someMethod();}
}
Class C{
public someMethod(){}
}
There is no way to override a static method.
That's why one of these approaches is preferred to calling static methods:
Inject another object (service) that will provide the functionality in a non-static method and call it through the injected object
Make the static method a thin wrapper that just delegates the work to some non-static object that can be configured (like in slf4j's logger)
For example a class:
//class1
class A {
private A() { } // why would I make it private?
public A(int) { } //why isn't it implicitly public?
}
//class2
class B {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//A a = new A();
}
}
A constructor instantiates a class so why it has the access modifier?
Is there a case when we have to declare a constructor private?
A constructor instantiates a class so why it has the access modifier?
The modifier can be used so you control where the object can be constructed.
Is there a case when we have to declare a constructor private?
Say you have a factory method like
class A {
private A(int n) { }
public static A create(int n) {
return new A(n);
}
}
or you have a shared constructor which should be called directly.
class B {
public B(int n) {
this(n, "");
}
public B(String str) {
this(0, str);
}
private B(int n, String str) { }
}
or you have a Singleton
final class Singleton {
Singleton INSTANCE = new Singleton();
private Singleton() { }
}
however I prefer to use an enum which has a private constructor.
enum Singleton {
INSTANCE;
}
or you have a Utility class
final class Utils {
private Utils() { /* don't create one */ }
public static int method(int n) { }
}
however I prefer to use an enum in this case
enum Utils {
/* no instances */;
public static int method(int n) { }
}
Note: if you use a private constructor on a final class you can still create instances using nested classes, or reflection. If you use an enum you can't create an instance as easily/accidentally.
Warning: You can create instances of an enum using Unsafe
Note in enum the constructor has to be private
class BuySell {
BUY(+1), SELL(-1);
private BuySell(int dir) { }
}
You don't have to make it private explicitly as this is the default.
The private modifier when applied to a constructor works in much the same way as when applied to a normal method or even an instance variable. Defining a constructor with the private modifier says that only the native class (as in the class in which the private constructor is defined) is allowed to create an instance of the class, and no other caller is permitted to do so. There are two possible reasons why one would want to use a private constructor – the first is that you don’t want any objects of your class to be created at all, and the second is that you only want objects to be created internally – as in only created in your class.
Uses of private construtor:-
1) Private constructors can be used in the singleton design pattern
2) Private constructors can prevent creation of objects
This might also help Can a constructor in Java be private? the use cases of private constructor
Constructor are not responsible for Creating a object of a Class, these constructor are only responsible for initialize the member variables only.
There are various Reason behind this. One of the most popular reason behind this is design-Pattern.
//class1
class A {
private A() { } // why would I make it private?
}
why make private Constructor ?
If you want to make a Class singleton then your constructor must be private. then only it is possible to make a Class a Singleton.
This is my first post on here so I will try to be precise. This is for a university project, we have to create a fish tank simulation on top of an OO architecture that we individually make. I'm exploring the uses of singletons and have found them quite useful, however reading online the way I currently implement it is not thread safe.
The way I currently implement it (Think its the lazy method) Note: We have to go through the interface
public interface myInterface
{
void foo();
}
public class myClass implements myInterface
{
private static myInterface instance;
private myClass(){}
private static myInterface Instance()
{
if(instance == null)
instance = new myClass();
return instance;
}
public void foo()
{
//Do stuff
}
public void bar()
{
//Do More Stuff
}
}
This works well however its not thread safe I could add the synchronized keyword to the getter but I've read that that is quite heavy on the system and I have quite a few singletons.
private synchronized static myInterface Instance()
{
if(instance == null)
instance = new myClass();
return instance;
}
I have then moved on to an enum singleton which is thread safe and is not heavy on the system however I am unsure on how to program it to the interface.
public enum myClass implements myInterface
{
INSTANCE;
private myClass(){}
public void foo()
{
//Do stuff
}
public void bar()
{
//Do More Stuff
}
}
In programming to the interface I mean when I call the singleton I can only access methods that are in the interface (please correct me if I'm referring to this wrongly). This is where the way I have done the enum singleton fails. For example: With the lazy singleton I can not call this as its not in the interface:
myClass.Instance().bar();
But it can call this which is correct, as it is in the interface.
myClass.Instance().foo();
With the enum however I can call this and its not programming to the interface
myClass.INSTANCE.bar();
I understand why its doing this as the class is an enum so it will be able to call everything in that enum class. So after this long post which I apologise for, the main question is: Can I make the enum version only call methods that are declared in the interface?
If it can't how heavy is a synchronized method on the system, I would have around 4-6 of them?
Please Note: Even though this is for a university project we are only running the simulation on one thread so it does not even need to be thread safe. I don't quite understand multi-threading but I thought it would be a good learning opportunity.
You can always hide your enum implementation as well if you prefer the enum route:
public interface Singleton {
void foo();
}
public final class SingletonAccessor {
public static Singleton getInstance() {
return SingletonImpl.INSTANCE;
}
private SingletonAccessor() {
}
private enum SingletonImpl implements Singleton {
INSTANCE;
public void foo() {
// ...
}
public void bar() {
// ...
}
}
}
EDIT
As pointed out by Peter Lawrey in the comments, you can even use an enum for the SingletonAccessor :)
public enum SingletonAccessor {
SINGLETON;
public Singleton get() {
return SingletonImpl.INSTANCE;
}
private enum SingletonImpl implements Singleton {
INSTANCE;
public void foo() {
// ...
}
public void bar() {
// ...
}
}
}
You can cast it to the interface or
myInterface my = myClass.INSTANCE;
my.foo();
You can still use a method like
myClass.getInstance().foo();
But this isn't a real solution IMHO.
Can I make the enum version only call methods that are declared in the interface?
Ultimately you have to decide which methods you want on the instance which are public. If you make a method or field public, you can access it and if you don't want to be able to access it, make it private.
At some point you have to trust you know what you are doing and you do things for a reason. You don't have to think up ways to prevent yourself from call code you wrote.
just simply change your singleton class this way:
public class myClass implements myInterface
{
private static myInterface instance = new myClass();
private myClass(){}
private static myInterface Instance()
{
return instance;
}
public void foo()
{
//Do stuff
}
public void bar()
{
//Do More Stuff
}
}
this will assure that the singleton object will be created at class-loading time, and you don't need to worry about race-conditions in the Instance() method
Try looking at java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicReference. Specifically compareAndSet.
instance.compareAndSet(null, new MyClass());
That is if your instance field is null, set to new object, if not null, leave intact. Should be less heavy.
If we have class A & B, and class A's constructor is private, and we want to use an instance of A in B, how to do that ? I see an answer that says "provide a static method or variable that allows access to an instance created from within the class " but I didn't understand that.
The code pattern you seek is called the Factory Method.
The class provides a static method that returns an instance of its own class. Private constructors are visible to all methods (including static ones) of the class, so the static method can invoke the private constructor on the caller's behalf.
Here's an example of this pattern in action:
public class A {
private A() {
}
public static A create() {
return new A();
}
}
This is often employed in conjunction with the Singleton Pattern, which would change the above example to this:
public class A {
private static A INSTANCE = new A();
private A() {
}
public static A getInstance() {
return INSTANCE;
}
}
A needs to have a public method that provides an instance of the class A, eg:
class A {
/*Constructors and other methods omitted*/
public static A getInstance() {
return new A();
}
}
Alternatively, if B is an inner class of A (or vice-versa), then B can directly reference the constructor eg:
public class A {
private A() {}
public static class B {
private A instanceOfA = new A();
public B() {}
}
}
A class that only has private constructors is designed so that other classes cannot instantiate it directly. Presumably there is a sound reason for this. The class may provide a factory method for instantiating the class ... or getting an existing instance of the class.
If you need to change the design, the best way is to modify the class; e.g. by making a constructor visible, or by adding a factory method. If you can't do that, I think it is possible to use reflection to break the visibility rules and create an instance using a private constructor. However, I'd only do this as a last resort ... and not before carefully analysing the consequences for the overall application.
Private constructors are intended to make a class not to have any instance. But the content can be accessed from child class using super(). Implementation is like this:
public class ClassA {
private int val;
private ClassA(int val)
{
this.val = val;
}
public int getVal() {
return val;
}
}
public class ClassB extends ClassA {
public ClassB(int val) {
super(val); } }
...
ClassB b = new ClassB(4);
System.out.println("value of b: " + b.getVal());
As an example see class Calendar. To get an instance you must not call its constructor but use a static method:
Calendar rightNow = Calendar.getInstance();
source
I am a Java developer. In an interview I was asked a question about private constructors:
Can you access a private constructor of a class and instantiate it?
I answered 'No' but was wrong.
Can you explain why I was wrong and give an example of instantiating an object with a private constructor?
One way to bypass the restriction is to use reflections:
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
public class Example {
public static void main(final String[] args) throws Exception {
Constructor<Foo> constructor = Foo.class.getDeclaredConstructor();
constructor.setAccessible(true);
Foo foo = constructor.newInstance();
System.out.println(foo);
}
}
class Foo {
private Foo() {
// private!
}
#Override
public String toString() {
return "I'm a Foo and I'm alright!";
}
}
You can access it within the class itself (e.g. in a public static factory method)
If it's a nested class, you can access it from the enclosing class
Subject to appropriate permissions, you can access it with reflection
It's not really clear if any of these apply though - can you give more information?
This can be achieved using reflection.
Consider for a class Test, with a private constructor:
Constructor<?> constructor = Test.class.getDeclaredConstructor(Context.class, String[].class);
Assert.assertTrue(Modifier.isPrivate(constructor.getModifiers()));
constructor.setAccessible(true);
Object instance = constructor.newInstance(context, (Object)new String[0]);
The very first question that is asked regarding Private Constructors in Interviews is,
Can we have Private constructor in a Class?
And sometimes the answer given by the candidate is, No we cannot have private constructors.
So I would like to say, Yes you can have private Constructors in a class.
It is no special thing, try to think it this way,
Private: anything private can be accessed from within the class only.
Constructor: a method which has same name as that of class and it is implicitly called when object of the class is created.
or you can say, to create an object you need to call its constructor, if constructor is not called then object cannot be instantiated.
It means, if we have a private constructor in a class then its objects can be instantiated within the class only. So in simpler words you can say, if the constructor is private then you will not be able to create its objects outside the class.
What's the benefit
This concept can be implemented to achieve singleton object (it means only one object of the class can be created).
See the following code,
class MyClass{
private static MyClass obj = new MyClass();
private MyClass(){
}
public static MyClass getObject(){
return obj;
}
}
class Main{
public static void main(String args[]){
MyClass o = MyClass.getObject();
//The above statement will return you the one and only object of MyClass
//MyClass o = new MyClass();
//Above statement (if compiled) will throw an error that you cannot access the constructor.
}
}
Now the tricky part, why you were wrong, as already explained in other answers, you can bypass the restriction using Reflection.
I like the answers above, but there are two more nifty ways of creating a new instance of a class which has private constructor. It all depends on what you want to achieve and under what circumstances.
1: Using Java instrumentation and ASM
Well in this case you have to start the JVM with a transformer. To do this you have to implement a new Java agent and then make this transformer change the constructor for you.
First create the class transformer. This class has a method called transform. Override this method and inside this method you can use the ASM class reader and other classes to manipulate the visibility of your constructor. After the transformer is done, your client code will have access to the constructor.
You can read more about this here: Changing a private Java constructor with ASM
2: Rewrite the constructor code
Well, this is not really accessing the constructor, but still you can create an instance. Let's assume that you use a third-party library (let's say Guava) and you have access to the code but you don't want to change that code in the jar which is loaded by the JVM for some reason (I know, this is not very lifelike but let's suppose the code is in a shared container like Jetty and you can't change the shared code, but you have separate class loading context) then you can make a copy of the 3rd party code with the private constructor, change the private constructor to protected or public in your code and then put your class at the beginning of the classpath. From that point your client can use the modified constructor and create instances.
This latter change is called a link seam, which is a kind of seam where the enabling point is the classpath.
Using java Reflection as follows :
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
import java.lang.reflect.InvocationTargetException;
class Test
{
private Test() //private constructor
{
}
}
public class Sample{
public static void main(String args[]) throws ClassNotFoundException, InstantiationException, IllegalAccessException, NoSuchMethodException, SecurityException, IllegalArgumentException, InvocationTargetException
{
Class c=Class.forName("Test"); //specify class name in quotes
//----Accessing private constructor
Constructor con=c.getDeclaredConstructor();
con.setAccessible(true);
Object obj=con.newInstance();
}
}
Yes you could, as mentioned by #Jon Steet.
Another way of accessing a private constructor is by creating a public static method within this class and have its return type as its object.
public class ClassToAccess
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
{
ClassWithPrivateConstructor obj = ClassWithPrivateConstructor.getObj();
obj.printsomething();
}
}
}
class ClassWithPrivateConstructor
{
private ClassWithPrivateConstructor()
{
}
public void printsomething()
{
System.out.println("HelloWorld");
}
public static ClassWithPrivateConstructor getObj()
{
return new ClassWithPrivateConstructor();
}
}
You can of course access the private constructor from other methods or constructors in the same class and its inner classes. Using reflection, you can also use the private constructor elsewhere, provided that the SecurityManager is not preventing you from doing so.
Yes, we can access the private constructor or instantiate a class with private constructor. The java reflection API and the singleton design pattern has heavily utilized concept to access to private constructor.
Also, spring framework containers can access the private constructor of beans and this framework has used java reflection API.
The following code demonstrate the way of accessing the private constructor.
class Demo{
private Demo(){
System.out.println("private constructor invocation");
}
}
class Main{
public static void main(String[] args){
try{
Class class = Class.forName("Demo");
Constructor<?> con = string.getDeclaredConstructor();
con.setAccessible(true);
con.newInstance(null);
}catch(Exception e){}
}
}
output:
private constructor invocation
I hope you got it.
I hope This Example may help you :
package MyPackage;
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
/**
* #author Niravdas
*/
class ClassWithPrivateConstructor {
private ClassWithPrivateConstructor() {
System.out.println("private Constructor Called");
}
}
public class InvokePrivateConstructor
{
public static void main(String[] args) {
try
{
Class ref = Class.forName("MyPackage.ClassWithPrivateConstructor");
Constructor<?> con = ref.getDeclaredConstructor();
con.setAccessible(true);
ClassWithPrivateConstructor obj = (ClassWithPrivateConstructor) con.newInstance(null);
}catch(Exception e){
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
}
Output:
private Constructor Called
Reflection is an API in java which we can use to invoke methods at runtime irrespective of access specifier used with them.
To access a private constructor of a class:
My utility class
public final class Example{
private Example(){
throw new UnsupportedOperationException("It is a utility call");
}
public static int twice(int i)
{
int val = i*2;
return val;
}
}
My Test class which creates an object of the Utility class(Example)
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
import java.lang.reflect.Field;
import java.lang.reflect.InvocationTargetException;
class Test{
public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
int i =2;
final Constructor<?>[] constructors = Example.class.getDeclaredConstructors();
constructors[0].setAccessible(true);
constructors[0].newInstance();
}
}
When calling the constructor it will give the error
java.lang.UnsupportedOperationException: It is a utility call
But remember using reflection api cause overhead issues
Look at Singleton pattern. It uses private constructor.
Yes you can instantiate an instance with a private constructor using Reflection, see the example I pasted below taken from java2s to understand how:
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
import java.lang.reflect.InvocationTargetException;
class Deny {
private Deny() {
System.out.format("Deny constructor%n");
}
}
public class ConstructorTroubleAccess {
public static void main(String... args) {
try {
Constructor c = Deny.class.getDeclaredConstructor();
// c.setAccessible(true); // solution
c.newInstance();
// production code should handle these exceptions more gracefully
} catch (InvocationTargetException x) {
x.printStackTrace();
} catch (NoSuchMethodException x) {
x.printStackTrace();
} catch (InstantiationException x) {
x.printStackTrace();
} catch (IllegalAccessException x) {
x.printStackTrace();
}
}
}
The basic premise for having a private constructor is that having a private constructor restricts the access of code other than own class' code from making objects of that class.
Yes we can have private constructors in a class and yes they can be made accessible by making some static methods which in turn create the new object for the class.
Class A{
private A(){
}
private static createObj(){
return new A();
}
Class B{
public static void main(String[]args){
A a=A.createObj();
}}
So to make an object of this class, the other class has to use the static methods.
What is the point of having a static method when we are making the constructor private?
Static methods are there so that in case there is a need to make the instance of that class then there can be some predefined checks that can be applied in the static methods before creation of the instance. For example in a Singleton class, the static method checks if the instance has already been created or not. If the instance is already created then it just simply returns that instance rather than creating a new one.
public static MySingleTon getInstance(){
if(myObj == null){
myObj = new MySingleTon();
}
return myObj;
}
We can not access private constructor outside the class but using Java Reflection API we can access private constructor. Please find below code:
public class Test{
private Test()
System.out.println("Private Constructor called");
}
}
public class PrivateConsTest{
public void accessPrivateCons(Test test){
Field[] fields = test.getClass().getDeclaredFields();
for (Field field : fields) {
if (Modifier.isPrivate(field.getModifiers())) {
field.setAccessible(true);
System.out.println(field.getName()+" : "+field.get(test));
}
}
}
}
If you are using Spring IoC, Spring container also creates and injects object of the class having private constructor.
I tried like this it is working. Give me some suggestion if i am wrong.
import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
class TestCon {
private TestCon() {
System.out.println("default constructor....");
}
public void testMethod() {
System.out.println("method executed.");
}
}
class TestPrivateConstructor {
public static void main(String[] args) {
try {
Class testConClass = TestCon.class;
System.out.println(testConClass.getSimpleName());
Constructor[] constructors = testConClass.getDeclaredConstructors();
constructors[0].setAccessible(true);
TestCon testObj = (TestCon) constructors[0].newInstance();
//we can call method also..
testObj.testMethod();
} catch (Exception e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
}
}
Simple answer is yes we can have private constructors in Java.
There are various scenarios where we can use private constructors. The major ones are
Internal Constructor chaining
Singleton class design pattern
Also have another option create the getInstance() where we can create instance of private constructor inside same class and return that object.
class SampleClass1{
private SampleClass1() {
System.out.println("sample class constructor");
}
public static SampleClass1 getInstance() {
SampleClass1 sc1 = new SampleClass1();
return sc1;
}
}
public class SingletonDemo {
public static void main(String[] args) {
SampleClass1 obj1 = SampleClass1.getInstance();
}
}
We can create instance of private class by creating createInstance() in the same class and simply call the same method by using class name in main():
class SampleClass1{
private SampleClass1() {
System.out.println("sampleclass cons");
}
public static void createInstance() {
SampleClass1 sc = new SampleClass1();
}
}
public class SingletonDemo {
public static void main(String[] args) {
//SampleClass1 sc1 = new SampleClass1();
SampleClass1.createInstance();
}
}
Well, you can also if there are any other public constructors. Just because the parameterless constructor is private doesn't mean you just can't instantiate the class.
you can access it outside of the class its very easy to access
just take an example of singaltan class we all does the same thing make the private constructor and access the instance by static method here is the code associated to your query
ClassWithPrivateConstructor.getObj().printsomething();
it will definately work because i have already tested