Public Access Control
When we declare methods, properties, classes, and so on as public in Swift, we can access them from anywhere. The scope of the public access modifier is unrestricted. As an example,
class cows {
// Public property
public var legs: Int = 0
// Public method
public func display() {
print("Cow is a domestic animal.");
print("Total Legs of cows:", legs)
}
}
// Creating an object
var obj = cows()
// Accessing and assigning value to public property
obj.legs = 4
// Accesing public method
obj.display()
Output
Cow is a domestic animal.
Total Legs of cows: 4
In the above example, we have created a class named cows with two public data members: legs and display().
We have then created an object of cows class named obj. We then access the public data members directly by using the codes obj1.legs and obj1.display().
Private Access Control
When a type member is declared private, it can only be accessed within the same class or struct. As an example,
class Student {
// Private property
private var name = "coding ninjas"
// Private method
private func display() {
print("Hello!!")
}
}
var student1 = Student()
// Access name property
print("Name:", student1.name)
// Access display() method
student1.display()
Error
error: 'name' is inaccessible due to 'private' protection level
print("Name:", student1.name)
error: 'display' is inaccessible due to 'private' protection level
student1.display()
In the above example, we have created a class named Student with a property name and a method display().
We can't access name or display() outside of Student because they're marked as private. The code will throw the following error in this case.
Fileprivate Access Control
When a type member is declared as fileprivate, it can only be accessed from within the specified source file. As an example,
class company {
// fileprivate property
fileprivate var name = "Coding ninjas"
// fileprivate method
fileprivate func display() {
print("Hello!!")
}
}
// Create object of company class
var employee1 = company()
// Access name property
print("Name:", employee1.name)
// Access display method
employee1.display()
Output
Name: Coding ninjas
Hello!!
We created the fileprivate data members name and display() inside the company class in the preceding example.
Because the name and display() data members are declared as fileprivate, they can be accessed from anywhere in the source file.
Note: If we try to access the fileprivate data members from another Swift file, we'll get an error.
Internal Access Control
When a type or type member is declared internal, it can only be accessed within the same module.
A module is made up of different types (classes, protocols, and so on) and resources (data). They're designed to work together as a logical functional unit.
class company {
// define internal property
internal var name = "coding ninjas"
}
// Create object of company class
var company1 = company()
// Access name property
print("Name:", company1.name)
Output
Name: coding ninjas
We created a class named company with a property name in the preceding example. We can access name outside the class because it is internal, and they are both in the same module.
Internal is similar to the public access modifier when used within a single module.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which of the access specifiers must be used for main() method?
main() method must be specified public.
Which access control is used as a default for a member of a class if no access specifier is used for it?
Private access control must be used because When we pass an argument through call-by-value, a copy of the argument is placed in the formal parameter of the subroutine, and changes to the subroutine's parameters have no effect on the original argument, which remains unchanged.
What is the process by which we can control what parts of a program can access the members of a class?
Encapsulation is the process by which we can control what parts of a program can access the members of a class.
How can a protected modifier be accessed?
The protected access modifier can be used both inside and outside of the package, but only by inheritance. With data members, methods, and constructors, the protected access modifier can be applied. It isn't possible to use it in class.
Conclusion
In this article, we have extensively discussed the concept of the Swift access control. We started with the introduction of Swift access control, and types of Swift access control.
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