Multiple WHERE Clauses with LINQ extension methods

Solution 1:

Two ways:

results = results.Where(o => (o.OrderStatus == OrderStatus.Open) &&
                             (o.CustomerID == customerID));

or:

results = results.Where(o => (o.OrderStatus == OrderStatus.Open))
                 .Where(o => (o.CustomerID == customerID));

I usually prefer the latter. But it's worth profiling the SQL server to check the query execution and see which one performs better for your data (if there's any difference at all).

A note about chaining the .Where() methods: You can chain together all the LINQ methods you want. Methods like .Where() don't actually execute against the database (yet). They defer execution until the actual results are calculated (such as with a .Count() or a .ToList()). So, as you chain together multiple methods (more calls to .Where(), maybe an .OrderBy() or something to that effect, etc.) they build up what's called an expression tree. This entire tree is what gets executed against the data source when the time comes to evaluate it.

Solution 2:

You can continue chaining them like you've done.

results = results.Where (o => o.OrderStatus == OrderStatus.Open);
results = results.Where (o => o.InvoicePaid);

This represents an AND.

Solution 3:

If you working with in-memory data (read "collections of POCO") you may also stack your expressions together using PredicateBuilder like so:

// initial "false" condition just to start "OR" clause with
var predicate = PredicateBuilder.False<YourDataClass>();

if (condition1)
{
    predicate = predicate.Or(d => d.SomeStringProperty == "Tom");
}

if (condition2)
{
    predicate = predicate.Or(d => d.SomeStringProperty == "Alex");
}

if (condition3)
{
    predicate = predicate.And(d => d.SomeIntProperty >= 4);
}

return originalCollection.Where<YourDataClass>(predicate.Compile());

The full source of mentioned PredicateBuilder is bellow (but you could also check the original page with a few more examples):

using System;
using System.Linq;
using System.Linq.Expressions;
using System.Collections.Generic;

public static class PredicateBuilder
{
  public static Expression<Func<T, bool>> True<T> ()  { return f => true;  }
  public static Expression<Func<T, bool>> False<T> () { return f => false; }

  public static Expression<Func<T, bool>> Or<T> (this Expression<Func<T, bool>> expr1,
                                                      Expression<Func<T, bool>> expr2)
  {
    var invokedExpr = Expression.Invoke (expr2, expr1.Parameters.Cast<Expression> ());
    return Expression.Lambda<Func<T, bool>>
          (Expression.OrElse (expr1.Body, invokedExpr), expr1.Parameters);
  }

  public static Expression<Func<T, bool>> And<T> (this Expression<Func<T, bool>> expr1,
                                                       Expression<Func<T, bool>> expr2)
  {
    var invokedExpr = Expression.Invoke (expr2, expr1.Parameters.Cast<Expression> ());
    return Expression.Lambda<Func<T, bool>>
          (Expression.AndAlso (expr1.Body, invokedExpr), expr1.Parameters);
  }
}

Note: I've tested this approach with Portable Class Library project and have to use .Compile() to make it work:

Where(predicate .Compile() );