# Bytes

A value that represents the bytes used ubiquitously in computer hardware.

Bytes represent raw binary data. While most data in SurrealDB is stored as strings or structured values, bytes are useful when working with encoded data such as hashes, binary identifiers, or compact representations.

## Casting from strings

Bytes can be created by casting from a string, and are displayed using hexidecimal encoding.

```surql
<bytes>"I am some bytes";
```

```surql title="Output"
b"4920616D20736F6D65206279746573"
```

## Conversion from other types

_(since v2.3.0)_

Conversions can be performed between bytes, strings, and arrays.

```surql
-- array<int> to bytes to string
<string><bytes>[99, 101, 108, 108, 97, 114, 32, 100, 111, 111, 114];
-- string to bytes to array<int>
<array><bytes>"Hobbits";
```

```surql title="Output"
-------- Query --------

'cellar door'

-------- Query --------

[72, 111, 98, 98, 105, 116, 115]
```

## Byte strings

_(since v3.0.0)_

A string preceded by a `b` prefix can be turned into bytes as long as the string represents a hexidecimal value.

```surql
b"486F6262697473";

<string>b"486F6262697473";

<string>b"This won't work though";
```

```surql title="Output"
-------- Query --------

b"486F6262697473";

-------- Query --------

'Hobbits'

-------- Query --------

"There was a problem with the database: Parse error: Unexpected
  character `T` expected hexidecimal digit
 --> [1:11]
  |
1 | <string>b\"This won't work though\";
  |           ^ 
"
```