ConnectionData

Readonly struct that carries user identity information during the Netcode connection handshake. Provides implicit conversion operators to and from byte[] for seamless integration with Unity Netcode's ConnectionData payload.

Definition

Namespace: Paragon.Core.Network Assembly: Paragon.dll

public readonly struct ConnectionData

Remarks

When a client connects to a session, Netcode sends a byte[] connection payload that the server can inspect during connection approval. ConnectionData wraps this mechanism by:

1. Storing a NetworkUser (containing user ID and display name).

2. Providing implicit operator byte[] to automatically serialize the struct when assigned to Netcode's NetworkConfig.ConnectionData.

3. Providing implicit operator ConnectionData to automatically deserialize incoming byte[] payloads.

Serialization uses Unity Netcode's FastBufferWriter / FastBufferReader with Allocator.Temp for zero-allocation in steady state.

Quick Lookup

Goal	How
Create from a user	new ConnectionData(networkUser)
Serialize to bytes	byte[] bytes = connectionData; (implicit)
Deserialize from bytes	ConnectionData data = bytes; (implicit)
Get user ID	data.UserID
Get user name	data.UserName

Properties

User

The NetworkUser this connection data represents.

public NetworkUser User { get; }

UserID

Shortcut to User.ID.

public string UserID { get; }

UserName

Shortcut to User.Name.

public string UserName { get; }

Methods

Constructor

public ConnectionData(NetworkUser user)

Parameter	Type	Description
user	NetworkUser	The user identity to embed in the connection payload

Implicit Operators

public static implicit operator byte[](ConnectionData data)
public static implicit operator ConnectionData(byte[] bytes)

These enable seamless assignment to/from Netcode's byte[] connection data fields:

// Serialize — happens implicitly when assigned to NetworkConfig
NetworkManager.API.NetworkConfig.ConnectionData = new ConnectionData(user);

// Deserialize — happens implicitly when reading from approval request
ConnectionData data = request.Payload;

Examples

Setting Connection Data Before Joining

var user = new NetworkUser(userId, displayName);
NetworkManager.API.NetworkConfig.ConnectionData = new ConnectionData(user);

Reading Connection Data During Approval

void OnConnectionApproval(ConnectionApprovalRequest request, ConnectionApprovalResponse response)
{
    ConnectionData data = request.Payload;
    Debug.Log($"Player connecting: {data.UserName} ({data.UserID})");
    response.Approved = true;
}

See Also

• NetworkManager — sets connection data during Connect()

• NetworkPlayer — runtime representation of a connected player