Is it possible to send array over network?

Question

I'm using C++ and wondering if I can just send an entire int array over a network (using basic sockets) without doing anything. Or do I have to split the data up and send it one at a time?

Answer 1

Yes.

An array will be laid out sequentially in memory so you are free to do this. Simply pass in the address of the first element and the amount of data and you'll send all data.

Answer 2

You could definitely send an array in one send, however you might want to do some additional work. There are issues with interpreting it correctly at the receiving end. For example, if using different machine architectures, you may want to convert the integers to network order (e.g., htonl).

Another thing to keep in mind is the memory layout. If it is a simple array of integers, then it would be contiguous in memory and a single send could successfully capture all the data. If, though, (and this is probably obvious), you have an array with other data, then the layout definitely needs consideration. A simple example would be if the array had pointers to other data such as a character string, then a send of the array would be sending pointers (and not data) and would be meaningless to the receiver.