What's the Best Way to Convert a Stream to a Byte Array in .NET?

Optimizing .NET Stream to Byte Array Conversion

Several methods exist for converting a stream to a byte array in .NET. This article explores the most efficient approaches, addressing limitations of simpler techniques.

Beyond BinaryReader

While using BinaryReader to convert a stream to a byte array is possible (especially in .NET 3.5), it requires knowing the stream's length beforehand. This isn't always practical.

Handling Unknown Stream Lengths

For streams with unknown lengths, a more robust solution is needed. A common approach involves reading the stream in chunks, appending each chunk to a MemoryStream.

Custom ReadFully Function

A custom ReadFully function provides a clean way to achieve this chunked reading. This method iteratively reads and appends data until the end of the stream is reached, effectively mirroring BinaryReader's functionality without the length requirement.

Leveraging Stream.CopyTo ( .NET 4 )

.NET 4 and later versions offer the convenient Stream.CopyTo method. This simplifies the process by directly copying the stream's contents into a MemoryStream, which can then be easily converted to a byte array.

Performance Tuning for Large Streams

Both the chunked approach and Stream.CopyTo involve memory allocation and copying. While acceptable for small streams, performance can suffer with large streams. Optimization strategies include pre-allocating the MemoryStream to the expected size or using more direct buffer copy operations for improved efficiency.

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