Enumerable.AsEnumerable<TSource>(IEnumerable<TSource>) Method

Definition

Returns the input typed as IEnumerable<T>.

public static System.Collections.Generic.IEnumerable<TSource> AsEnumerable<TSource> (this System.Collections.Generic.IEnumerable<TSource> source);

Type Parameters

TSource

The type of the elements of source.

Parameters

source
IEnumerable<TSource>

The sequence to type as IEnumerable<T>.

Returns

IEnumerable<TSource>

The input sequence typed as IEnumerable<T>.

Examples

The following code example demonstrates how to use AsEnumerable<TSource>(IEnumerable<TSource>) to hide a type's custom Where method when the standard query operator implementation is desired.

// Custom class.
class Clump<T> : List<T>
{
    // Custom implementation of Where().
    public IEnumerable<T> Where(Func<T, bool> predicate)
    {
        Console.WriteLine("In Clump's implementation of Where().");
        return Enumerable.Where(this, predicate);
    }
}

static void AsEnumerableEx1()
{
    // Create a new Clump<T> object.
    Clump<string> fruitClump =
        new Clump<string> { "apple", "passionfruit", "banana",
            "mango", "orange", "blueberry", "grape", "strawberry" };

    // First call to Where():
    // Call Clump's Where() method with a predicate.
    IEnumerable<string> query1 =
        fruitClump.Where(fruit => fruit.Contains("o"));

    Console.WriteLine("query1 has been created.\n");

    // Second call to Where():
    // First call AsEnumerable() to hide Clump's Where() method and thereby
    // force System.Linq.Enumerable's Where() method to be called.
    IEnumerable<string> query2 =
        fruitClump.AsEnumerable().Where(fruit => fruit.Contains("o"));

    // Display the output.
    Console.WriteLine("query2 has been created.");
}

// This code produces the following output:
//
// In Clump's implementation of Where().
// query1 has been created.
//
// query2 has been created.

Remarks

The AsEnumerable<TSource>(IEnumerable<TSource>) method has no effect other than to change the compile-time type of source from a type that implements IEnumerable<T> to IEnumerable<T> itself.

AsEnumerable<TSource>(IEnumerable<TSource>) can be used to choose between query implementations when a sequence implements IEnumerable<T> but also has a different set of public query methods available. For example, given a generic class Table that implements IEnumerable<T> and has its own methods such as Where, Select, and SelectMany, a call to Where would invoke the public Where method of Table. A Table type that represents a database table could have a Where method that takes the predicate argument as an expression tree and converts the tree to SQL for remote execution. If remote execution is not desired, for example because the predicate invokes a local method, the AsEnumerable method can be used to hide the custom methods and instead make the standard query operators available.

Applies to

Product Versions
.NET Core 1.0, Core 1.1, Core 2.0, Core 2.1, Core 2.2, Core 3.0, Core 3.1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
.NET Framework 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.6, 4.6.1, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8, 4.8.1
.NET Standard 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.6, 2.0, 2.1
UWP 10.0