Chapter 11:

Exception Handling
 Tests
• Test 2
• 3 Oct and 7 Oct
• Test 3
• 10 Oct and 14 Oct
• Makeup tests
• 26 Sep-30 Sep

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 2

 Objectives
• Learn about exceptions, the Exception class,
and generating SystemExceptions
• Learn about traditional and object-oriented
error-handling methods
• Use the Exception class’s ToString()
method and Message property
• Catch multiple exceptions
• Examine the structure of the TryParse()
methods

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 3

 Objectives (cont’d.)
• Use the finally block
• Handle exceptions thrown from outside methods

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 4

 Understanding Exceptions

• Exception
– Any error condition or unexpected behavior in an executing
program
• Exceptions are objects of the Exception class or
one of its derived classes

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 5

 Understanding Exceptions:
Errors generated by Programs
• Your program asks for user input, but the user enters
invalid data
• The program attempts to divide an integer by zero
• You attempt to access an array with a subscript that
is too large or too small
• You calculate a value that is out of range for the
answer’s variable type
• Exception handling
– Object-oriented techniques used to manage such errors

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 6

 Understanding Exceptions:
• In C#, all exceptions are objects that are instances of
the Exception class or one of its derived classes.
• The Exception class is a descendant of the Object
class
• The Exception class has several descendant classes of
its own

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 7

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 8
 Understanding Exceptions (cont’d.)

• Most exceptions derive from three classes:

– Predefined Common Language Runtime exception classes
derived from SystemException
– User-defined application exception classes you derive from
ApplicationException
– The Exception class

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 9

Purposely Generating a SystemException
• You can deliberately generate a
SystemException by forcing a program to
contain an error
– Example:
• Dividing an integer by zero
• You don’t necessarily have to deal with exceptions
• Termination of the program is abrupt and unforgiving
• Object-oriented error-handling techniques provide
more elegant solutions

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 10

Purposely Generating a SystemException
(cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 11

Purposely Generating a SystemException
(cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 12

 Understanding Traditional and
Object-Oriented Error-Handling Methods
• Check a variable’s value with an if statement before
attempting to divide it into another number
– Prevents division by zero
• However, it does not really “handle an exception”
– Is efficient if you think it will be a frequent problem
• Has little “overhead”
• Otherwise, create an Exception object

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 13

 Understanding Object-Oriented
Exception-Handling Methods
• try block
– Contains statements that can produce an error
• Code at least one catch block or finally block
immediately following a try block
• catch block
– Can “catch” one type of Exception

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 14

 Understanding Object-Oriented
Exception-Handling Methods (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 15

 Understanding Object-Oriented
Exception-Handling Methods (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 16

 Understanding Object-Oriented
Exception-Handling Methods (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 17

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property
• The Exception class overrides ToString()
– Provides a descriptive error message
– The user can receive precise information about the nature
of any Exception that is thrown

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 18

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 19

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 20

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property (cont’d.)
• Exception class Message property
– Contains useful information about an Exception
• getType() method
– Indicates the name of the class

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 21

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 22

Using the Exception Class’s ToString()
Method and Message Property (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 23

 Catching Multiple Exceptions
• You can place as many statements as you need within
a try block
– Only the first error-generating statement throws an
Exception
• Multiple catch blocks are examined in sequence
until a match is found for the Exception that
occurred
• Various Exceptions can be handled by the same
catch block

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 24

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 25

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 26

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 27

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 28

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 29

 Catching Multiple Exceptions (cont’d.)

• It is poor coding style for a method to throw more

than three or four types of Exceptions
• If it does, one of the following conditions might be
true:
– The method is trying to accomplish too many diverse tasks
– The Exception types thrown are too specific and should
be generalized
• Unreachable blocks(dead code)
– Contain statements that can never execute under any
circumstances because the program logic “can’t get there”

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 30

 Using the finally Block
• finally block
– Contains actions to perform at the end of a try…catch
sequence
– Executes whether the try block identifies any
Exceptions or not
– Used to perform clean-up tasks
• A finally block executes after:
– The try ends normally
– The catch executes
– The try ends abnormally and the catch does not
execute
Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 31
 Using the finally Block (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 32

 Using the finally Block (cont’d.)

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 33

 Summary
• An exception is any error condition or unexpected
behavior in an executing program
• You can purposely generate a SystemException
by forcing a program to contain an error
• When you think an error will occur frequently, it is
most efficient to handle it in the traditional way
• In object-oriented terminology, you “try” a
procedure that may not complete correctly
• Every Exception object contains a ToString()
method and a Message property
Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 34
 Summary (cont’d.)
• You can place as many statements as you need
within a try block
– Catch as many different Exceptions as you want
• When you have actions to perform at the end of a
try…catch sequence, use a finally block
• When methods throw Exceptions, they don’t have
to catch them

Microsoft Visual C# 2012, Fifth Edition 35