byteswapped

A byte-swapped value refers to a sequence of bytes that has had the order of its constituent bytes reversed. This operation is typically performed when dealing with data that has been written or read using a different byte order than the system currently in use. There are two primary byte orders: big-endian and little-endian.

In a big-endian system, the most significant byte of a multi-byte data type is stored at the lowest memory address. Conversely, in a little-endian system, the least significant byte is stored at the lowest memory address. When data is transferred between systems with different endianness, byte swapping is necessary to ensure the data is interpreted correctly. For example, a 32-bit integer represented as 0x12345678 would be stored as bytes 12, 34, 56, 78 in big-endian order. In a little-endian system, it would be stored as 78, 56, 34, 12. To convert from one to the other, the byte order needs to be reversed.

Byte swapping is a common operation in computer programming, particularly in network programming where data is often exchanged between systems with potentially different endianness. Many programming languages and libraries provide functions or methods to perform byte swapping. This ensures data integrity and allows for interoperability between diverse hardware and software platforms. The process is a fundamental aspect of data serialization and deserialization.