Question: In a C# enumeration, are there any negative side effects of using a negative number?

I am modelling response codes and one of the codes in negative. This compiles but I want to know if there are any negative side effects to this.

```
public enum ResponseCodes
{
    InvalidServerUserPasswordCombo = -1,

    // etc.
}

```

Answer: 
There's no negative side effects, however, keep in mind that an enum gets initialized to zero in this instance:

```
class YourClass {
    public ResponseCodes ResponseCode { get; set; }
}

```

Providing just negative one will have an undesired impact for any users of the class (unless they initialize it.
This answer is 7 years late but I haven't seen the point made anywhere else.

There is a minor negative side effect when using negative numbers for enums. If you want to cast a negative number to an enum you'll need to ensure the number is in brackets to avoid a compile error, e.g.: 

```
class YourClass {
    ResponseCodes rc = (ResponseCodes)(-1);
}

```