C#: Benefit of explicitly stating “unsafe” / compiler option

Question

I understand pointers and the rare need to use them in C# code. My question is: what is the reasoning behind having to explicitly state \"unsafe\" in a block of code. Additi

Answer 1

Actually the CLR makes no requirements at all about an /unsafe switch or keyword. In fact, C++/CLI (the C++ language that runs under the CLR) has no such /unsafe switch, and pointers can be used freely on the CLR.

So I would rephrase your question as "Why does C# require the use of /unsafe before pointers can be used?" And the answer to that question is as stated in other answers given here: to help the user make a conscious decision to lose the ability to run in anything less than Full Trust mode on the CLR. C++ virtually always requires Full Trust on the CLR, and C# can whenever you call code that requires Full Trust, or whenever you use pointers.