Ulong Keyword In C#

In this post, we will explore the ulong keyword in C# along with its characteristics, syntax, and illustrations.

What is the ulong Keyword?

In C#, when declaring variables or parameters of type "unsigned long", the keyword used is "ulong". A 64-bit unsigned integer data type, ULONG, can hold integer values ranging from 0 to 18,446,744,073,709,551,615 (inclusive). Being unsigned, it is unable to represent negative integers, only accommodating positive or zero values.

Features of the ulong keyword:

Several features of the ulong Keyword in C# are as follows:

• ✅ Memory Allocation: ulong sets aside 64 bits, or eight bytes, in memory to hold its values. Compared to smaller data types like byte, ushort, or uint, it provides a wider range of representable integers.
• ✅ Literal Suffix: We can apply the suffix UL or ul to a value to indicate that it is ulong. For example, 123UL explicitly declares 123 as an ulong literal declaration of 123 as an ulong literal is made clear in 123UL.
• ✅ Arithmetic Operations: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and modulo operation (remainder after division) are among the common arithmetic operations that ulong provides. These operations behave similarly to those for other numeric types.
• ✅ Overflow Behaviour: Arithmetic operations on ulong values do not raise overflow exceptions because ulong is an unsigned type, compared to signed types. Instead, they wrap around modulo 2^64. For instance, adding 1 to ulong.MaxValue results in 0.
• ✅ Range and Use: The range of representable values for ulong is greater than that of uint, and it is typically used when non-negative integer numbers are required. Common use cases include handling large counts, indices , or binary data requiring non-negative integer values.
• ✅ Performance Consideration: ulong is typically more memory-consuming than smaller integer types (byte, ushort, uint) due to its larger size.

Key Points to Remember:

• ✅ The error message "Integral constant is too large" appears if we enter a number beyond the range.
• ✅ When we enter an incorrect number, such as -34, the error message shows, "Constant value {-34' cannot be converted to a ulong'}".

Syntax:

It has the following syntax:

ulong variable_name = value_of_the_varibale;

Example 1:

Let's consider a scenario to demonstrate the ulong keyword in C#.

using System; 
using System.Text; 
class C# Tutorial
{ 
	static void Main(string[] args) 
	{ 
		//Declaration of the variable
		ulong num_ber = 223; 
		// Printing the variable value 
		Console.WriteLine("The value of the Integer: " + num_ber); 
		//Printing the size of the ulong
		Console.WriteLine("The size of a ulong variable is: " + sizeof(ulong)); 
	} 
}

Output:

The value of the Integer: 223
The size of a ulong variable is: 8

Explanation:

In this instance, the primary objective of this code snippet is to declare a ulong variable, assign it an initial value, display the value, and then output the byte size of the ulong data type.

Example 2:

Let's consider a different scenario to demonstrate the ulong keyword in C#.

using System;
class C# Tutorial
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // ulong variables Declaration and initialization
        ulong num_1 = 1854828373929102938UL; 
        // Suffix "UL" denotes ulong literal
        ulong num_2 = 3647826289303678294;
        // Performing arithmetic operations
        ulong Sum = num_1 + num_2;
        ulong Diff_erence = num_1 - num_2;
        ulong Pro_duct = num_1 * num_2;
        ulong Quo_tient = num_1 / num_2;
        ulong Rema_inder = num_1 % num_2;
        Console.WriteLine("The First value is : " + num_1);
        Console.WriteLine("The Second value is : " + num_2);
         Console.WriteLine("The type of num_1 is : "+num_1.GetType());
         Console.WriteLine("The type of num_2 is : "+num_2.GetType());
        // Displaying the results
        Console.WriteLine("The sum of the two numbers is : " + Sum);
        Console.WriteLine("The difference between the two numbers is : " + Diff_erence);
        Console.WriteLine("The product of two numbers is : " + Pro_duct);
        Console.WriteLine("The quotient is : " + Quo_tient);
        Console.WriteLine("The remainder is : " + Rema_inder);
        Console.WriteLine("The minimum value of the ulong is : " + ulong.MinValue);
        Console.WriteLine("The maximum value of the ulong is : " + ulong.MaxValue);
    }
}

Output:

The First value is: 1854828373929102938
The Second value is: 3647826289303678294
The type of num_1 is: System.UInt64
The type of num_2 is: System.UInt64
The sum of the two numbers is: 5502654663232781232
The difference between the two numbers is: 16653746158334976260
The product of two numbers is : 11324999253036770364
The quotient is : 0
The remainder is: 1854828373929102938
The minimum value of the ulong is : 0
The maximum value of the ulong is: 18446744073709551615

Explanation:

This C# script introduces a class named TutorialCSharp, with the Main function serving as the starting point. Within the program, two variables, num1 and num2 of type ulong, are initialized. The code performs arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and modulo on these variables. The outcomes, along with their respective data types, as well as the minimum and maximum values for ulong, are displayed. Additionally, the UL suffix signifies an unsigned long literal.