Check if HybridDictionary is Synchronized in C#

The HybridDictionary class in C# provides the IsSynchronized property to check if the dictionary is thread-safe for multi-threaded operations. By default, HybridDictionary is not synchronized, meaning it is not thread-safe.

A HybridDictionary automatically switches between a ListDictionary (for small collections) and a Hashtable (for larger collections) based on the number of elements, but remains unsynchronized unless explicitly wrapped.

Syntax

The IsSynchronized property returns a boolean value indicating thread safety −

bool isSync = hybridDictionary.IsSynchronized;

To create a synchronized wrapper around a HybridDictionary −

HybridDictionary syncDict = (HybridDictionary)HybridDictionary.Synchronized(originalDict);

Using IsSynchronized Property

The following example demonstrates checking the synchronization status of a HybridDictionary −

using System;
using System.Collections;
using System.Collections.Specialized;

public class Demo {
   public static void Main(){
      HybridDictionary dict1 = new HybridDictionary();
      dict1.Add("A", "Books");
      dict1.Add("B", "Electronics");
      dict1.Add("C", "Smart Wearables");
      dict1.Add("D", "Pet Supplies");
      dict1.Add("E", "Clothing");
      dict1.Add("F", "Footwear");
      
      Console.WriteLine("HybridDictionary1 elements...");
      foreach(DictionaryEntry d in dict1){
         Console.WriteLine(d.Key + " " + d.Value);
      }
      
      Console.WriteLine("Is the HybridDictionary1 having fixed size? = "+dict1.IsFixedSize);
      Console.WriteLine("If HybridDictionary1 read-only? = "+dict1.IsReadOnly);
      Console.WriteLine("Is HybridDictionary1 synchronized = "+dict1.IsSynchronized);
      
      HybridDictionary dict2 = new HybridDictionary();
      dict2.Add("1", "One");
      dict2.Add("2", "Two");
      dict2.Add("3", "Three");
      dict2.Add("4", "Four");
      dict2.Add("5", "Five");
      dict2.Add("6", "Six");
      
      Console.WriteLine("\nHybridDictionary2 elements...");
      foreach(DictionaryEntry d in dict2){
         Console.WriteLine(d.Key + " " + d.Value);
      }
      
      Console.WriteLine("Is HybridDictionary1 equal to HybridDictionary2? = "+(dict1.Equals(dict2)));
      Console.WriteLine("Is the HybridDictionary2 having fixed size? = "+dict2.IsFixedSize);
      Console.WriteLine("If HybridDictionary2 read-only? = "+dict2.IsReadOnly);
      Console.WriteLine("Is HybridDictionary2 synchronized = "+dict2.IsSynchronized);
   }
}

The output of the above code is −

HybridDictionary1 elements...
A Books
B Electronics
C Smart Wearables
D Pet Supplies
E Clothing
F Footwear
Is the HybridDictionary1 having fixed size? = False
If HybridDictionary1 read-only? = False
Is HybridDictionary1 synchronized = False

HybridDictionary2 elements...
1 One
2 Two
3 Three
4 Four
5 Five
6 Six
Is HybridDictionary1 equal to HybridDictionary2? = False
Is the HybridDictionary2 having fixed size? = False
If HybridDictionary2 read-only? = False
Is HybridDictionary2 synchronized = False

Creating a Synchronized HybridDictionary

To create a thread-safe version, use the Synchronized method −

using System;
using System.Collections;
using System.Collections.Specialized;

public class Demo {
   public static void Main(){
      HybridDictionary dict = new HybridDictionary();
      dict.Add("1", "Finance");
      dict.Add("2", "Marketing");
      dict.Add("3", "IT");
      dict.Add("4", "Operations");
      dict.Add("5", "Purchase");
      
      Console.WriteLine("Original HybridDictionary elements...");
      foreach(DictionaryEntry d in dict){
         Console.WriteLine(d.Key + " " + d.Value);
      }
      
      Console.WriteLine("Original Dictionary - Is synchronized? = "+dict.IsSynchronized);
      
      // Create synchronized wrapper
      HybridDictionary syncDict = (HybridDictionary)HybridDictionary.Synchronized(dict);
      Console.WriteLine("Synchronized Dictionary - Is synchronized? = "+syncDict.IsSynchronized);
      
      Console.WriteLine("Is the HybridDictionary having fixed size? = "+dict.IsFixedSize);
      Console.WriteLine("If HybridDictionary read-only? = "+dict.IsReadOnly);
   }
}

The output of the above code is −

Original HybridDictionary elements...
1 Finance
2 Marketing
3 IT
4 Operations
5 Purchase
Original Dictionary - Is synchronized? = False
Synchronized Dictionary - Is synchronized? = True
Is the HybridDictionary having fixed size? = False
If HybridDictionary read-only? = False

Key Properties Comparison

Conclusion

The IsSynchronized property of HybridDictionary returns false by default, indicating it is not thread-safe. To create a synchronized version for multi-threaded scenarios, use the HybridDictionary.Synchronized() method, which returns a thread-safe wrapper around the original dictionary.