Object Serialization extends the core Java Input/Output classes with
support for objects. Object Serialization supports the encoding of
objects, and the objects reachable from them, into a stream of bytes; and
it supports the complementary reconstruction of the object graph from
the stream. Serialization is used for lightweight persistence and for
communication via sockets or Remote Method Invocation (RMI). The
default encoding of objects protects private and transient data, and
supports the evolution of the classes. A class may implement its own
external encoding and is then solely responsible for the external
format.
Serialization now includes an API that allows the serialized
data of an object to be specified independently of the fields of the class
and allows those serialized data fields to be written to and read from
the stream using the existing protocol to ensure compatiblity with the
default writing and reading mechanisms.
Enhancements
Enhancements
- Describes enhancements and improvements to Object Serialization in
the Java 2 platform.
Specification
Specification
- Describes the architecture of the Object Serialization system and the
APIs. The specification is also available in PS
and PDF
formats.
API Specification (javadoc)
java.io
Package - Documents all of the interfaces and classes.
Examples
Examples-
Demonstrate different aspects of and uses for Object Serialization.
FAQ
FAQ-
Answers the most frequently asked questions about Object Serialization.
Tools
serialver- Explains the serialver command, which returns the serialVersionUID
for a class.