[c#] Passing Objects By Reference or Value in C#

In C#, I have always thought that non-primitive variables were passed by reference and primitive values passed by value.

So when passing to a method any non-primitive object, anything done to the object in the method would effect the object being passed. (C# 101 stuff)

However, I have noticed that when I pass a System.Drawing.Image object, that this does not seem to be the case? If I pass a system.drawing.image object to another method, and load an image onto that object, then let that method go out of scope and go back to the calling method, that image is not loaded on the original object?

Why is this?

How did you pass object to method?

Are you doing new inside that method for object? If so, you have to use ref in method.

Following link give you better idea.

http://dotnetstep.blogspot.com/2008/09/passing-reference-type-byval-or-byref.html

In Pass By Reference You only add "ref" in the function parameters and one more thing you should be declaring function "static" because of main is static(#public void main(String[] args))!

namespace preparation
{
  public  class Program
    {
      public static void swap(ref int lhs,ref int rhs)
      {
          int temp = lhs;
          lhs = rhs;
          rhs = temp;
      }
          static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            int a = 10;
            int b = 80;

  Console.WriteLine("a is before sort " + a);
            Console.WriteLine("b is before sort " + b);
            swap(ref a, ref b);
            Console.WriteLine("");
            Console.WriteLine("a is after sort " + a);
            Console.WriteLine("b is after sort " + b);  
        }
    }
}

Lots of good answers had been added. I still want to contribute, might be it will clarify slightly more.

When you pass an instance as an argument to the method it passes the copy of the instance. Now, if the instance you pass is a value type(resides in the stack) you pass the copy of that value, so if you modify it, it won't be reflected in the caller. If the instance is a reference type you pass the copy of the reference(again resides in the stack) to the object. So you got two references to the same object. Both of them can modify the object. But if within the method body, you instantiate new object your copy of the reference will no longer refer to the original object, it will refer to the new object you just created. So you will end up having 2 references and 2 objects.

When you pass the the System.Drawing.Image type object to a method you are actually passing a copy of reference to that object.

So if inside that method you are loading a new image you are loading using new/copied reference. You are not making change in original.

YourMethod(System.Drawing.Image image)
{
    //now this image is a new reference
    //if you load a new image 
    image = new Image()..
    //you are not changing the original reference you are just changing the copy of original reference
}

One more code sample to showcase this:

void Main()
{


    int k = 0;
    TestPlain(k);
    Console.WriteLine("TestPlain:" + k);

    TestRef(ref k);
    Console.WriteLine("TestRef:" + k);

    string t = "test";

    TestObjPlain(t);
    Console.WriteLine("TestObjPlain:" +t);

    TestObjRef(ref t);
    Console.WriteLine("TestObjRef:" + t);
}

public static void TestPlain(int i)
{
    i = 5;
}

public static void TestRef(ref int i)
{
    i = 5;
}

public static void TestObjPlain(string s)
{
    s = "TestObjPlain";
}

public static void TestObjRef(ref string s)
{
    s = "TestObjRef";
}

And the output:

TestPlain:0

TestRef:5

TestObjPlain:test

TestObjRef:TestObjRef

I guess its clearer when you do it like this. I recommend downloading LinqPad to test things like this.

void Main()
{
    var Person = new Person(){FirstName = "Egli", LastName = "Becerra"};

    //Will update egli
    WontUpdate(Person);
    Console.WriteLine("WontUpdate");
    Console.WriteLine($"First name: {Person.FirstName}, Last name: {Person.LastName}\n");

    UpdateImplicitly(Person);
    Console.WriteLine("UpdateImplicitly");
    Console.WriteLine($"First name: {Person.FirstName}, Last name: {Person.LastName}\n");

    UpdateExplicitly(ref Person);
    Console.WriteLine("UpdateExplicitly");
    Console.WriteLine($"First name: {Person.FirstName}, Last name: {Person.LastName}\n");
}

//Class to test
public class Person{
    public string FirstName {get; set;}
    public string LastName {get; set;}

    public string printName(){
        return $"First name: {FirstName} Last name:{LastName}";
    }
}

public static void WontUpdate(Person p)
{
    //New instance does jack...
    var newP = new Person(){FirstName = p.FirstName, LastName = p.LastName};
    newP.FirstName = "Favio";
    newP.LastName = "Becerra";
}

public static void UpdateImplicitly(Person p)
{
    //Passing by reference implicitly
    p.FirstName = "Favio";
    p.LastName = "Becerra";
}

public static void UpdateExplicitly(ref Person p)
{
    //Again passing by reference explicitly (reduntant)
    p.FirstName = "Favio";
    p.LastName = "Becerra";
}

And that should output

WontUpdate

First name: Egli, Last name: Becerra

UpdateImplicitly

First name: Favio, Last name: Becerra

UpdateExplicitly

First name: Favio, Last name: Becerra