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Convert TimeSpan to Long
This page was last reviewed on Sep 3, 2022.
Dot Net Perls
Convert TimeSpan, Long. In the C# programming language, TimeSpan and long are the same number of bytes. It is possible to store a TimeSpan as a long.
Conversion info. Converting a TimeSpan to a long can be done with the Ticks property on TimeSpan. It is easier to persist a long in storage.
long, ulong
Example. In this program, we get two DateTimes. Then we get the difference as a TimeSpan instance. Next, we convert that TimeSpan into a long Ticks.
Finally We convert that long Ticks back into a TimeSpan, showing that you can round-trip longs and TimeSpans.
using System; class Program { static void Main() { // Difference between today and yesterday. DateTime yesterday = DateTime.Now.Subtract(TimeSpan.FromDays(1)); DateTime now = DateTime.Now; TimeSpan diff = now.Subtract(yesterday); // TimeSpan can be represented as a long [ticks]. long ticks = diff.Ticks; // You can convert a long [ticks] back into TimeSpan. TimeSpan ts = TimeSpan.FromTicks(ticks); // Display. Console.WriteLine(ts); // Note: long and TimeSpan are the same number of bytes [8]. unsafe { Console.WriteLine(sizeof(long)); Console.WriteLine(sizeof(TimeSpan)); } } }
1.00:00:00.0010000 8 8
Byte count. In the unsafe context, the program shows that a long is 8 bytes and a TimeSpan is also 8 bytes. Therefore, it is logical for one to fit in the other.
sizeof
TimeSpan
Summary. It is possible to convert from a TimeSpan and a long using the Ticks property and the FromTicks method. Sometimes a long representation is more useful for external systems.
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Sam Allen is passionate about computer languages. In the past, his work has been recommended by Apple and Microsoft and he has studied computers at a selective university in the United States.
This page was last updated on Sep 3, 2022 (rewrite).
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