Span<T> and Memory<T> in C# 12 : Performance Booster for Senior Developers

As ASP.NET developers, we’re always looking for ways to make our web applications faster and more efficient. Two powerful tools that can help us do this are Span<T> and Memory<T>. Introduced a few years ago, these types have become essential for writing high-performance C# code

lets explore how to use Span<T> and Memory<T> effectively in ASP.NET applications, with practical examples and tips for C# 12 in 2024

What Are Span<T> and Memory<T>?

Let’s start with the basics:

• Span<T> is a type that represents a continuous block of memory. It works with arrays, strings, or unmanaged memory without creating copies.
• Memory<T> is similar to Span<T> but can be used in async methods and stored in fields.

Think of Span<T> as a view into memory that you can work with directly, while Memory<T> is a reference to that memory that you can pass around more freely.

Let’s look at some common ASP.NET scenarios where Span<T> and Memory<T> can make a big difference:

Span<T>

1. Parsing Request Data

Imagine you’re building an API that receives a lot of JSON data. Instead of…