How to generate a checksum for an java object

Question

I\'m looking for a solution to generate a checksum for any type of Java object, which remains the same for every execution of an application that produces the same object.

Answer 1

The Apache commons lang library provides a HashCodeBuilder class which helps building a hash code that fills your requirements from the class properties.

Example:

   public int checksum() {
     // you pick a hard-coded, randomly chosen, non-zero, odd number
     // ideally different for each class
     return new HashCodeBuilder(17, 37).
       append(property1).
       append(property2).
       append(property3).
       toHashCode();
   }

See Commons Lang API