Object Graph

Definitions

1. The directed graph formed by objects in memory and their references to one another, where nodes are object instances and edges are fields or properties pointing to other objects. Garbage collectors traverse the object graph to identify reachable (live) objects, and serializers walk it to persist or transmit complex data structures.

   In plain English: The web of connections between objects in a program — which object points to which other objects.

   Example: "The DI container wires up the entire object graph at startup, so by the time the app handles requests everything is already connected."

Related Terms

• Marshalling
• Mediator Pattern
• Null Object Pattern
• Open-Closed Principle
• Protocol Buffer
• Prototype Pattern
• Proxy Pattern
• Service Locator
• Value Object