Swift Protocol get only settable?

Question

why can I do this without any error:

var testDto = ModelDto(modelId: 1) testDto.objectId = 2 

while I define this:

protocol DataTransferObject {     var objectType: DtoType { get }     var parentObjectId: Int { get set }     var objectId: Int { get }     var objectName: String { get set } }  struct ModelDto: DataTransferObject {     var objectType: DtoType     var parentObjectId: Int     var objectId: Int     var objectName: String      init(modelId: Int) {         self.objectType = DtoType.Model         self.objectId = modelId         self.parentObjectId = -1         self.objectName = String()     } } 

If the definition in my protocol is mostly ignored (getter, setter definition), why should I use them anyway?

Answer 1

Apple states in the "Swift Programming Language (Swift 3)":

If the protocol only requires a property to be gettable, the requirement can be satisfied by any kind of property, and it is valid for the property to be also settable if this is useful for your own code.

For this reason, the five following Playground code snippets are all valid:

Example #1: constant property

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     let fullName: String }  let scrooge = Duck(fullName: "Scrooge McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge McDuck" 

Example #2: variable property

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     var fullName: String         }      var scrooge = Duck(fullName: "Scrooge McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge McDuck"  scrooge.fullName = "Scrooge H. McDuck" print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge H. McDuck" 

Example #3: computed property (get only)

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     private var name: String     var fullName: String {         return name     } }  let scrooge = Duck(name: "Scrooge McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge McDuck" 

Example #4: computed property (get and set)

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     private var name: String     var fullName: String {         get {             return name         }         set {             name = newValue         }     } }  var scrooge = Duck(name: "Scrooge McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge McDuck"  scrooge.fullName = "Scrooge H. McDuck" print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge H. McDuck" 

Example #5: private(set) variable property

/* Duck.swift located in Sources folder */  protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  public struct Duck: FullyNamed {     public private(set) var fullName: String      public init(fullName: String) {         self.fullName = fullName     }      public mutating func renameWith(fullName: String) {         self.fullName = fullName     } }  /* Playground file */  var scrooge = Duck(fullName: "Scrooge McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge McDuck"  scrooge.renameWith("Scrooge H. McDuck") print(scrooge.fullName) // returns "Scrooge H. McDuck" 

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Apple also states:

If a protocol requires a property to be gettable and settable, that property requirement cannot be fulfilled by a constant stored property or a read-only computed property.

For this reason, the two following Playground code snippets ARE NOT valid:

Example #1: constant property

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get set } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     let fullName: String }  let scrooge = Duck(fullName: "Scrooge McDuck") // Error message: Type 'Duck' does not conform to protocol 'FullyNamed' 

Example #2: computed property (get only)

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get set } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     private var name: String     var fullName: String {         return name     } }  var scrooge = Duck(name: "Scrooge McDuck") // Error message: Type 'Duck' does not conform to protocol 'FullyNamed' 

Example #3: computed property (get only)

protocol FullyNamed {     var fullName: String { get } }  struct Duck: FullyNamed {     var fullName: String {return "Scrooge McDuck"}      init(fullName: String) {         self.fullName = fullName    // Error Message Cannot assign to Property: "FullName" is get only     } } 

Answer 2

As per the official documentation:

The getter and setter requirements can be satisfied by a conforming type in a variety of ways. If a property declaration includes both the get and set keywords, a conforming type can implement it with a stored variable property or a computed property that is both readable and writeable (that is, one that implements both a getter and a setter). However, that property declaration can’t be implemented as a constant property or a read-only computed property. If a property declaration includes only the get keyword, it can be implemented as any kind of property.