Linq: Get a list of all tables within DataContext

Question

I have a DataContext (Linq to Sql) with over 100 tables, is it possible to get a list of all those tables and lets say print them to the console? This might be a silly question.

Thanks.

Answer 1

You can do this via reflection. Essentially, you iterate over the properties in your DataContext class. For each property, check to see if that property's generic parameter type has the TableAttribute attribute. If so, that property represents a table:

using System.Reflection;
using System.Data.Linq.Mappings;

PropertyInfo[] properties = typeof(MyDataContext).GetProperties();
foreach (PropertyInfo property in properties)
{
    if(property.PropertyType.IsGenericType)
    {
        object[] attribs = property.PropertyType.GetGenericArguments()[0].GetCustomAttributes(typeof(TableAttribute), false);
        if(attribs.Length > 0)
        {
            Console.WriteLine(property.Name);
        }
    }
}

Answer 2

It's much easier than above and no reflection required. Linq to SQL has a Mapping property that you can use to get an enumeration of all the tables.

context.Mapping.GetTables();