31.4 java.util.zip.Checksum (JDK 1.1)

This interface defines the methods required to compute a checksum on a stream of data. The checksum is computed based on the bytes of data supplied by the update() methods, and the current value of the checksum can be obtained at any time with the getValue() method. reset() resets the checksum to its default value--use this method before beginning a new stream of data.

Note that the checksum value computed by a Checksum object and returned through the getValue() method must fit into a long value. Therefore, this interface is not suitable for the cryptographic checksum algorithms used in cryptography and security.

The classes CheckedInputStream and CheckedOutputStream provide a higher-level API for computing a checksum on a stream of data.

public abstract interface Checksum {
    // Public Instance Methods
            public abstract long getValue();
            public abstract void reset();
            public abstract void update(int b);
            public abstract void update(byte[] b, int off, int len);
}

Implemented By:

Adler32, CRC32

Passed To:

CheckedInputStream(), CheckedOutputStream()

Returned By:

CheckedInputStream.getChecksum(), CheckedOutputStream.getChecksum()