System.Net > System.Net.Sockets

TcpClient Class

System.Net.Sockets.TcpClient

Provides client connections for TCP network services.

Namespace: System.Net.Sockets

Assembly: System.Net.Primitives.dll

Inheritance: Object > MarshalByRefObject > TcpClient

Constructors

TcpClient()

public TcpClient()

Initializes a new instance of the TcpClient class.

TcpClient(Int32)

public TcpClient(int portToConnect)

Initializes a new instance of the TcpClient class and connects to the specified port on the local host.

Parameters:

  • portToConnect: The port to which you want to connect.

TcpClient(String, Int32)

public TcpClient(string hostname, int port)

Initializes a new instance of the TcpClient class and connects to the specified host and port.

Parameters:

  • hostname: The name of the remote host to which to connect.
  • port: The port to which you want to connect.

Properties

Active

public bool Active { get; }

Gets a value that indicates whether the TcpClient is connected to a remote host.

Client

public Socket Client { get; set; }

Gets or sets the underlying Socket.

ExclusiveAddressUse

public bool ExclusiveAddressUse { get; set; }

Gets or sets a value that indicates whether the TcpClient allows the bound Socket to be bound to an exclusive local IPAddress.

LingerState

public LingerOption LingerState { get; set; }

Gets or sets a LingerOption for this TcpClient.

NoDelay

public bool NoDelay { get; set; }

Gets or sets a value that indicates whether the Nagle algorithm is disabled for this TcpClient.

ReceiveBufferSize

public int ReceiveBufferSize { get; set; }

Gets or sets the size of the buffer used for receiving data.

ReceiveTimeout

public int ReceiveTimeout { get; set; }

Gets or sets the amount of time a synchronous receive operation will block before timing out.

SendBufferSize

public int SendBufferSize { get; set; }

Gets or sets the size of the buffer used for sending data.

SendTimeout

public int SendTimeout { get; set; }

Gets or sets the amount of time a synchronous send operation will block before timing out.

Methods

Close()

public void Close()

Closes the TcpClient connection.

Connect(String, Int32)

public void Connect(string hostname, int port)

Connects to the specified TCP port on the specified host.

Parameters:

  • hostname: The name of the remote host to which to connect.
  • port: The port to which you want to connect.

Connect(IPAddress, Int32)

public void Connect(IPAddress address, int port)

Connects to the specified TCP port on the specified IP address.

Parameters:

  • address: An IPAddress instance representing the remote host.
  • port: The port to which you want to connect.

GetStream()

public NetworkStream GetStream()

Returns the NetworkStream used for sending and receiving data.

Remarks

The TcpClient class provides a simple way to send and receive data over a network using TCP. It wraps the Socket class, offering a more user-friendly interface for common client-side operations.

To establish a connection, you can use one of the Connect methods or specify the host and port in the constructor. Once connected, you can obtain a NetworkStream using the GetStream method to read from and write to the network.

Important considerations include setting appropriate timeouts for receive and send operations to prevent indefinite blocking, and managing the client's lifecycle by calling Close when it is no longer needed.