Here is the format of a class object in DATA that uses the default streamer. Objects of many classes with custom streamers can have very similar formats.
---------------- 0->3 ByteCount = Number of remaining bytes in object (uncompressed) | OR'd with kByteCountMask (0x40000000) 4->.. ClassInfo = Information about class of object | If this is the first occurrence of an object of this class in the record | 4->7 -1 = New class tag (constant kNewClassTag = 0xffffffff) | 8->.. Classname = Object Class Name (null terminated string) | Otherwise | 4->7 clIdx = Byte offset of new class tag in record, plus 2. | OR'd with kClassMask (0x80000000) 0->3 ByteCount = Number of remaining bytes in object (uncompressed) | OR'd with kByteCountMask (0x40000000) 4->5 Version = Version of Class
The rest consists of objects of base classes and persistent non-static data members. Data members marked as transient are not stored.
6->.. Sequentially, Objects of each base class from which this class is derived (rarely more than one) 0->.. Sequentially, Objects of all non-static persistent data members.
Class objects are broken down recursively as above.
Built in types are stored as follows: 1 Byte: char, unsigned char 2 Bytes: short, unsigned short 4 Bytes: int, unsigned int, float 8 Bytes: long, unsigned long, double
Note that a long (signed or unsigned) is stored as 8 bytes even if it is only four bytes in memory. In that case, it is filled with leading zeros (or ones, for a negative value).