C# Automatic Properties

Question

I\'m a bit confused on the point of Automatic properties in C# e.g

public string Forename{ get; set; }

I get that you are saving code by no

Answer 1

I'm not sure what the difference between these 2 statements is, I always thought you used properties if you wanted additional get/set logic?

In the first case, the compiler will automatically add a field for you, and wrap the property. It's basically the equivalent to doing:

private string forename;
public string Forename
{
    get
    { 
        return this.forename;
    }
    set
    {
        this.forename = value;
    }
}

There are many advantages to using properties over fields. Even if you don't need some of the specific reasons, such as databinding, this helps to future-proof your API.

The main problem is that, if you make a field, but in v2 of your application, need a property, you'll break the API. By using an automatic property up front, you have the potential to change your API at any time, with no worry about source or binary compatibility issues.