Version: 2023.1
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GameObject.GetComponentInParent

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Declaration

public T GetComponentInParent(bool includeInactive = false);

Parameters

includeInactive Whether to include inactive parent GameObjects in the search.

Returns

T A Component of the matching type T, otherwise null if no Component is found.

Description

Gets a reference to a component of type T on the specified GameObject, or any parent of the GameObject.

This method checks the GameObject on which it is called first, then recurses upwards through each parent GameObject, until it finds a matching Component of the type T specified.

Only active parent GameObjects are included in the search, unless you call the method with the includeInactive parameter set to true, in which case inactive parent GameObjects are also included. The GameObject on which the method is called is always searched regardless of this parameter.

The typical usage for this method is to call it on a reference to a different GameObject than the one your script is on. For example:

myResults = otherGameObject.GetComponentInParent<ComponentType>()

However if you are writing code inside a MonoBehaviour class, you can omit the preceding GameObject reference to perform the search on the same GameObject your script is attached to, and its parents. In this instance, you are actually calling Component.GetComponentInParent because the script itself is a type of component, but the result is the same as if you had referenced the GameObject itself. For example:

myResults = GetComponentInParent<ComponentType>()

Note: GetComponentInParent returns only the first matching component found, and the order that the components are checked on any individual GameObject is not defined. Therefore, if there are more than one of the specified type that could match on any individual GameObject, and you need to find a specific one, you should use Component.GetComponentsInParent and check the list of components returned to identify the one you want.

To find components attached to other GameObjects, you need a reference to that other GameObject (or any component attached to that GameObject). You can then call GetComponentInParent on that reference.

See the Component and GameObject class reference pages for the other variations of the GetComponent family of methods.

The following example gets a reference to a hinge joint component on the referenced GameObject, or any of its parents, and if found, sets a property on that hinge joint component.

using UnityEngine;
using System.Collections;

public class GetComponentInParentExample : MonoBehaviour { // Disable the spring on the first HingeJoint component found on the referenced GameObject or any of its parents

public GameObject objectToCheck;

void Start() { HingeJoint hinge = objectToCheck.GetComponentInParent<HingeJoint>();

if (hinge != null) { hinge.useSpring = false; } } }

Note: If the type you request is a derivative of MonoBehaviour and the associated script can't be loaded then this function will return `null` for that component.


Declaration

public Component GetComponentInParent(Type type);

Declaration

public Component GetComponentInParent(Type type, bool includeInactive);

Parameters

type The type of component to search for.
includeInactive Whether to include inactive parent GameObjects in the search.

Returns

Component A Component of the matching type, otherwise null if no Component is found.

Description

The non-generic version of this method.

This version of GetComponentInParent is not as efficient as the Generic version (above), so you should only use it if necessary.

using UnityEngine;
using System.Collections;

public class GetComponentInParentExample : MonoBehaviour { // Disable the spring on the first HingeJoint component found on the referenced GameObject or any of its parents

public GameObject objectToCheck;

void Start() { HingeJoint hinge = objectToCheck.GetComponentInParent(typeof(HingeJoint)) as HingeJoint;

if (hinge != null) { hinge.useSpring = false; } } }