Edit

Friend keyword

  • Article

Modifies the definition of a procedure in a form module or class module to make the procedure callable from modules that are outside the class, but part of the project within which the class is defined. Friend procedures cannot be used in standard modules.

Syntax

[ Private | Friend | Public ] [ Static ] [ Sub | Function | Property ] procedurename

The required procedurename is the name of the procedure to be made visible throughout the project, but not visible to controllers of the class.

Remarks

Public procedures in a class can be called from anywhere, even by controllers of instances of the class. Declaring a procedure Private prevents controllers of the object from calling the procedure, but also prevents the procedure from being called from within the project in which the class itself is defined.

Friend makes the procedure visible throughout the project, but not to a controller of an instance of the object. Friend can appear only in form modules and class modules, and can only modify procedure names, not variables or types. Procedures in a class can access the Friend procedures of all other classes in a project. Friend procedures don't appear in the type library of their class. A Friend procedure can't be late bound.

Example

When placed in a class module, the following code makes the member variable dblBalance accessible to all users of the class within the project. Any user of the class can get the value; only code within the project can assign a value to that variable.

Private dblBalance As Double 
 
Public Property Get Balance() As Double 
 Balance = dblBalance 
End Property 
 
Friend Property Let Balance(dblNewBalance As Double) 
 dblBalance = dblNewBalance 
End Property

See also

Support and feedback

Have questions or feedback about Office VBA or this documentation? Please see Office VBA support and feedback for guidance about the ways you can receive support and provide feedback.