Friend Keyword

Friend Keyword

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Description

The Friend keyword is used to set the access level for various types and type members. By including this keyword, the associated type or member can be accessed by the entire assembly or application but not by other assemblies that may interact with the type or member.

When combined with the Protected keyword, the related element takes on all aspects of both the Protected and Friend keywords.

The Friend keyword can be used with the following statements:

Class Statement

Const Statement (but not for local constants)

Declare Statement

Delegate Statement

Dim Statement (but not for local variables)

Enum Statement

Event Statement

Function Statement

Interface Statement

Module Statement

Property Statement

Structure Statement

Sub Statement

By default, classes, modules, structures, and interfaces have Friend access.

See Also

For the statements listed above, see the related entries elsewhere in this chapter for usage information. For information on using the Friend keyword as a statement, see the entry for the Dim Statement.

Private Keyword, Protected Keyword, Public Keyword