using System;

using System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary;

using System.IO;

using System.Collections.Generic;

using ProtoBuf;

using ProtoBuf.Meta;

public class Program

{

    public static void Main()

    {

        var item = new MyClass();

        var listItem1 = new ComplexList();

        listItem1.pubField = "first one";

        var listItem2 = new ComplexList();

        listItem2.pubField = "second one";

        item.ComplexList.Add(listItem1);

        item.ComplexList.Add(listItem2);

        item.Print();

        Console.WriteLine();

        Console.WriteLine();

        var serialized = ProtoObjectToByteArray(item);

        var deserialized = ProtoByteArrayToObject<MyClass>(serialized);

        deserialized.Print();

    }

    public static byte[] ProtoObjectToByteArray(object obj)

    {

        if(obj == null)

            return null;

        using (MemoryStream ms = new MemoryStream())

        {

            Serializer.Serialize(ms, obj);

            return ms.ToArray();

        }

    }

    public static T ProtoByteArrayToObject<T>(byte[] arrBytes)

    {

        if(arrBytes == null)

            return default(T);

        using (MemoryStream ms = new MemoryStream(arrBytes))

        {

            return Serializer.Deserialize<T>(ms);

        }

    }

}

​

[Serializable, ProtoContract]

public class ComplexList {

    public string pubField;

    public ComplexList(){}

}

​

[Serializable, ProtoContract]

public class MyClass {  

    public List<ComplexList> ComplexList { get; set; }

    public MyClass(){

        ComplexList = new List<ComplexList>();

    }

    public void Print(){

        foreach(var x in ComplexList){

            Console.WriteLine(x.pubField);

        }

    }

}