ArgumentException Class
The exception that is thrown when one of the arguments provided to a method is not valid.
Namespace: System
Assembly: mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)
The ArgumentException type exposes the following members.
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
![]() ![]() ![]() | ArgumentException() | Initializes a new instance of the ArgumentException class. |
![]() ![]() ![]() | ArgumentException(String) | Initializes a new instance of the ArgumentException class with a specified error message. |
![]() ![]() ![]() | ArgumentException(String, Exception) | Initializes a new instance of the ArgumentException class with a specified error message and a reference to the inner exception that is the cause of this exception. |
![]() ![]() ![]() | ArgumentException(String, String) | Initializes a new instance of the ArgumentException class with a specified error message and the name of the parameter that causes this exception. |
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
![]() ![]() ![]() | Data | Gets a collection of key/value pairs that provide additional user-defined information about the exception. (Inherited from Exception.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | HResult | Gets or sets HRESULT, a coded numerical value that is assigned to a specific exception. (Inherited from Exception.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | InnerException | Gets the Exception instance that caused the current exception. (Inherited from Exception.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | Message | Gets the error message and the parameter name, or only the error message if no parameter name is set. (Overrides Exception.Message.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | StackTrace | Gets a string representation of the frames on the call stack at the time the current exception was thrown. (Inherited from Exception.) |
| Name | Description | |
|---|---|---|
![]() ![]() ![]() | Equals(Object) | Determines whether the specified Object is equal to the current Object. (Inherited from Object.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | Finalize | Allows an object to try to free resources and perform other cleanup operations before the Object is reclaimed by garbage collection. (Inherited from Object.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | GetBaseException | When overridden in a derived class, returns the Exception that is the root cause of one or more subsequent exceptions. (Inherited from Exception.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | GetHashCode | Serves as a hash function for a particular type. (Inherited from Object.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | GetType | Gets the runtime type of the current instance. (Inherited from Exception.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | MemberwiseClone | Creates a shallow copy of the current Object. (Inherited from Object.) |
![]() ![]() ![]() | ToString | Creates and returns a string representation of the current exception. (Inherited from Exception.) |
ArgumentException is thrown when a method is invoked and at least one of the passed arguments does not meet the parameter specification of the called method. All instances of ArgumentException should carry a meaningful error message describing the invalid argument, as well as the expected range of values for the argument.
The primary derived classes of ArgumentException are ArgumentNullException and ArgumentOutOfRangeException. These derived classes should be used instead of ArgumentException, except in situations where neither of the derived classes is acceptable. For example, exceptions should be thrown by:
ArgumentNullException whenever null is passed to a method that does not accept it as a valid argument.
ArgumentOutOfRangeException when the value of an argument is outside the range of acceptable values; for example, when the value "46" is passed as the month argument during the creation of a DateTime.
If the method call does not have any argument or if the failure does not involve the arguments themselves, then InvalidOperationException should be used.
ArgumentException uses the HRESULT COR_E_ARGUMENT, which has the value 0x80070057.
For a list of initial property values for an instance of ArgumentException, see the ArgumentException constructors.
Platform Notes
Silverlight for Windows Phone
The following example demonstrates how to throw and catch an ArgumentException.
Note: |
|---|
To run this example, see Building Examples That Use a Demo Method and a TextBlock Control. |
using System; public sealed class Example { public static void Demo(System.Windows.Controls.TextBlock outputBlock) { // ArgumentException is not thrown because 10 is an even number. outputBlock.Text += String.Format("10 divided by 2 is {0}", DivideByTwo(10)) + "\n"; try { // ArgumentException is thrown because 7 is not an even number. outputBlock.Text += String.Format("7 divided by 2 is {0}", DivideByTwo(7)) + "\n"; } catch (ArgumentException) { // Show the user that 7 cannot be divided by 2. outputBlock.Text += "7 is not divided by 2 integrally." + "\n"; } } static int DivideByTwo(int num) { // If num is an odd number, throw an ArgumentException. if ((num & 1) == 1) throw new ArgumentException("Number must be even", "num"); // num is even, return half of its value. return num / 2; } } // This code produces the following output. // // 10 divided by 2 is 5 // 7 is not divided by 2 integrally.
For a list of the operating systems and browsers that are supported by Silverlight, see Supported Operating Systems and Browsers.

