Inheritance Model¶

Base Classes¶

The library provides two base classes:

OptimizedEnum<TEnum, TValue>¶

The primary base class. Accepts any value type that implements IComparable<TValue>.

public abstract partial class OptimizedEnum<TEnum, TValue>
    where TEnum  : OptimizedEnum<TEnum, TValue>
    where TValue : notnull, IComparable<TValue>

Use this when your enum uses a non-int value type (e.g., string, Guid, long).

OptimizedEnum<TEnum>¶

A convenience subclass that fixes TValue = int.

public abstract class OptimizedEnum<TEnum> : OptimizedEnum<TEnum, int>
    where TEnum : OptimizedEnum<TEnum, int>

Use this for the common case of integer-valued enums to reduce boilerplate.

Multi-Level Inheritance¶

The generator walks the full inheritance chain when looking for OptimizedEnum<TEnum, TValue>. This means you can introduce an intermediate abstract base class:

// Intermediate abstract base — adds domain behavior
public abstract partial class GameStatus<TEnum> : OptimizedEnum<TEnum, int>
    where TEnum : OptimizedEnum<TEnum, int>
{
    public bool IsTerminal { get; }

    protected GameStatus(int value, string name, bool isTerminal)
        : base(value, name)
    {
        IsTerminal = isTerminal;
    }
}

// Concrete enum — generator fires here
public partial class DuelStatus : GameStatus<DuelStatus>
{
    public static readonly DuelStatus Active  = new(1, nameof(Active),  false);
    public static readonly DuelStatus Won     = new(2, nameof(Won),     true);
    public static readonly DuelStatus Lost    = new(3, nameof(Lost),    true);

    private DuelStatus(int value, string name, bool isTerminal)
        : base(value, name, isTerminal) { }
}

The generator will produce the full lookup API for DuelStatus because it finds OptimizedEnum<TEnum, int> further up the chain.

sealed Is Optional¶

Unlike some SmartEnum libraries, sealed is not required. You may leave a type unsealed if you need further subclassing. The generator does not enforce or require sealed.

The partial Requirement¶

partial is the only hard requirement. The generator needs to emit a second partial declaration for the same class. Without partial, the compiler cannot merge the two and the generator reports OE0001.

error OE0001: The class 'MyEnum' must be declared as partial for OptimizedEnum source generation