Sub Statement (Visual Basic)

Declares the name, parameters, and code that define a Sub procedure.

[ <attributelist> ] [ Partial ] [ accessmodifier ] [ proceduremodifiers ] [ Shared ] [ Shadows ] [ Async ]
Sub name [ (Of typeparamlist) ] [ (parameterlist) ] [ Implements implementslist | Handles eventlist ]
    [ statements ]
    [ Exit Sub ]
    [ statements ]
End Sub

Parts

Remarks

All executable code must be inside a procedure. Use a Sub procedure when you don't want to return a value to the calling code. Use a Function procedure when you want to return a value.

Defining a Sub Procedure

You can define a Sub procedure only at the module level. The declaration context for a sub procedure must, therefore, be a class, a structure, a module, or an interface and can't be a source file, a namespace, a procedure, or a block. For more information, see Declaration Contexts and Default Access Levels (Visual Basic).

Sub procedures default to public access. You can adjust their access levels by using the access modifiers.

If the procedure uses the Implements keyword, the containing class or structure must have an Implements statement that immediately follows its Class or Structure statement. The Implements statement must include each interface that's specified in implementslist. However, the name by which an interface defines the Sub (in definedname) doesn't have to match the name of this procedure (in name).

Returning from a Sub Procedure

When a Sub procedure returns to the calling code, execution continues with the statement after the statement that called it.

The following example shows a return from a Sub procedure.

Sub mySub(ByVal q As String)
    Return
End Sub 

The Exit Sub and Return statements cause an immediate exit from a Sub procedure. Any number of Exit Sub and Return statements can appear anywhere in the procedure, and you can mix Exit Sub and Return statements.

Calling a Sub Procedure

You call a Sub procedure by using the procedure name in a statement and then following that name with its argument list in parentheses. You can omit the parentheses only if you don't supply any arguments. However, your code is more readable if you always include the parentheses.

A Sub procedure and a Function procedure can have parameters and perform a series of statements. However, a Function procedure returns a value, and a Sub procedure doesn't. Therefore, you can't use a Sub procedure in an expression.

You can use the Call keyword when you call a Sub procedure, but that keyword isn't recommended for most uses. For more information, see Call Statement (Visual Basic).

Visual Basic sometimes rearranges arithmetic expressions to increase internal efficiency. For that reason, if your argument list includes expressions that call other procedures, you shouldn't assume that those expressions will be called in a particular order.

Async Sub Procedures

By using the Async feature, you can invoke asynchronous functions without using explicit callbacks or manually splitting your code across multiple functions or lambda expressions.

If you mark a procedure with the Async modifier, you can use the Await operator in the procedure. When control reaches an Await expression in the Async procedure, control returns to the caller, and progress in the procedure is suspended until the awaited task completes. When the task is complete, execution can resume in the procedure.

You can also mark a Function Statement (Visual Basic) with the Async modifier. An Async function can have a return type of Task<TResult> or Task. An example later in this topic shows an Async function that has a return type of Task<TResult>.

AsyncSub procedures are primarily used for event handlers, where a value can't be returned. An AsyncSub procedure can't be awaited, and the caller of an AsyncSub procedure can't catch exceptions that the Sub procedure throws.

An Async procedure can't declare any ByRef parameters.

For more information about Async procedures, see Asynchronous Programming with Async and Await (C# and Visual Basic), Control Flow in Async Programs (C# and Visual Basic), and Async Return Types (C# and Visual Basic).

Example

The following example uses the Sub statement to define the name, parameters, and code that form the body of a Sub procedure.

Sub computeArea(ByVal length As Double, ByVal width As Double)
    ' Declare local variable. 
    Dim area As Double 
    If length = 0 Or width = 0 Then 
        ' If either argument = 0 then exit Sub immediately. 
        Exit Sub 
    End If 
    ' Calculate area of rectangle.
    area = length * width
    ' Print area to Immediate window.
    Debug.WriteLine(area)
End Sub

In the following example, DelayAsync is an an AsyncFunction that has a return type of Task<TResult>. DelayAsync has a Return statement that returns an integer. Therefore, the function declaration of DelayAsync must have a return type of Task(Of Integer). Because the return type is Task(Of Integer), the evaluation of the Await expression in DoSomethingAsync produces an integer, as the following statement shows: Dim result As Integer = Await delayTask.

The startButton_Click procedure is an example of an Async Sub procedure. Because DoSomethingAsync is an Async function, the task for the call to DoSomethingAsync must be awaited, as the following statement shows: Await DoSomethingAsync(). The startButton_ClickSub procedure must be defined with the Async modifier because it has an Await expression.

' Imports System.Diagnostics 
' Imports System.Threading.Tasks 

' This Click event is marked with the Async modifier. 
Private Async Sub startButton_Click(sender As Object, e As RoutedEventArgs) Handles startButton.Click
    Await DoSomethingAsync()
End Sub 

Private Async Function DoSomethingAsync() As Task
    Dim delayTask As Task(Of Integer) = DelayAsync()
    Dim result As Integer = Await delayTask

    ' The previous two statements may be combined into 
    ' the following statement. 
    ' Dim result As Integer = Await DelayAsync()

    Debug.WriteLine("Result: " & result)
End Function 

Private Async Function DelayAsync() As Task(Of Integer)
    Await Task.Delay(100)
    Return 5
End Function 

'  Output: 
'   Result: 5

See Also

Tasks

How to: Use a Generic Class (Visual Basic)

Troubleshooting Procedures (Visual Basic)

Reference

Implements Statement

Function Statement (Visual Basic)

Parameter List (Visual Basic)

Dim Statement (Visual Basic)

Call Statement (Visual Basic)

Of Clause (Visual Basic)

Concepts

Parameter Arrays (Visual Basic)

Partial Methods (Visual Basic)