Access levels

This is a brief description of the different access levels available in commonly used languages and what encapsulation boundaries they provide.

Java

• private - Any code in this class
• package level - private + any other class in this package (This is the default access level)
• protected - package + any subclasses
• public - Open access

C#

• private - Any code in this class (or struct)
• protected - private + any subclass
• internal - private + any other class (or struct) in this assembly
• protected internal - private + any subclass + any other class (or struct) in this assembly
• public - open access

C++

• private - Any code in this class
• protected - private + any subclasses
• public - open access

C++ doesn't have a package level access equivalent, but it can give access to others using the 'friend' keyword.

See Also

• Encapsulation
• Encapsulation boundary