LINQ to Entities updating multiple rows

Question

I am new to LINQ to Entities and need some guidance about how to think about multiple row updates. My problem is actually more conceptual than syntactical as I am not sure if I am even thinking about the solution correctly.

Here is a single row update. This seems very straightforward.

products prodtbl = (from p in db.products where p.product_id == 1 select p).First();
prodtbl.product_name = "Blueberry Jam";
db.SaveChanges(); 

The problem occurs when I wish to update multiple rows (e.g. remove the where clause). Then prodtbl is not addressable as a list. If I want to see the product name of the 10th row is the only way to do this as follows?

'List<type> prodlist = prodtbl.ToList<type>()';
string name = prodlist[9].product_name

Now, if I change prodlist[9].product_name, how do I update the original row in prodtbl? Since prodtbl is not addressable as an array I can't just set it, can I? Do I have to create a LINQ statement with a where clause that only updates the single record? If the answer is 'yes, is there a batch update method if I have changed multiple rows?

Answer 1

You don't need to create separate statements.

You can use, e.g.:

prodtbl.ElementAt(9).product_name = "Bob";

Or iterate:

foreach (var p in prodtbl)
{
   p.product_name = "New name";
}