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Query Expression Syntax Examples: Join Operators

.NET Framework 4.5

Joining is an important operation in queries that target data sources that have no navigable relationships to each other, such as relational database tables. A join of two data sources is the association of objects in one data source with objects that share a common attribute in the other data source. For more information, see Standard Query Operators Overview.

The examples in this topic demonstrate how to use the GroupJoin and Join methods to query the AdventureWorks Sales Model using query expression syntax. The AdventureWorks Sales Model used in these examples is built from the Contact, Address, Product, SalesOrderHeader, and SalesOrderDetail tables in the AdventureWorks sample database.

The examples in this topic use the following using/Imports statements:


using System;
using System.Data;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Data.Objects;
using System.Globalization;
using System.Data.EntityClient;
using System.Data.SqlClient;
using System.Data.Common;

GroupJoin

Example

The following example performs a GroupJoin over the SalesOrderHeader and SalesOrderDetail tables to find the number of orders per customer. A group join is the equivalent of a left outer join, which returns each element of the first (left) data source, even if no correlated elements are in the other data source.


using (AdventureWorksEntities context = new AdventureWorksEntities())
{
ObjectSet<SalesOrderHeader> orders = context.SalesOrderHeaders;
ObjectSet<SalesOrderDetail> details = context.SalesOrderDetails;

var query =
from order in orders
join detail in details
on order.SalesOrderID
equals detail.SalesOrderID into orderGroup
select new
{
CustomerID = order.SalesOrderID,
OrderCount = orderGroup.Count()
};

foreach (var order in query)
{
Console.WriteLine("CustomerID: {0}  Orders Count: {1}",
order.CustomerID,
order.OrderCount);
}
}

Example

The following example performs a GroupJoin over the Contact and SalesOrderHeader tables to find the number of orders per contact. The order count and IDs for each contact are displayed.


using (AdventureWorksEntities context = new AdventureWorksEntities())
{
ObjectSet<Contact> contacts = context.Contacts;
ObjectSet<SalesOrderHeader> orders = context.SalesOrderHeaders;

var query =
from contact in contacts
join order in orders
on contact.ContactID
equals order.Contact.ContactID into contactGroup
select new
{
ContactID = contact.ContactID,
OrderCount = contactGroup.Count(),
Orders = contactGroup
};

foreach (var group in query)
{
Console.WriteLine("ContactID: {0}", group.ContactID);
Console.WriteLine("Order count: {0}", group.OrderCount);
foreach (var orderInfo in group.Orders)
{
Console.WriteLine("   Sale ID: {0}", orderInfo.SalesOrderID);
}
Console.WriteLine("");
}
}

Example

The following example performs a GroupJoin over the Contact and SalesOrderHeader tables. A group join is the equivalent of a left outer join, which returns each element of the first (left) data source, even if no correlated elements are in the other data source.


using (AdventureWorksEntities context = new AdventureWorksEntities())
{
ObjectSet<Contact> contacts = context.Contacts;
ObjectSet<SalesOrderHeader> orders = context.SalesOrderHeaders;

var query =
from contact in contacts
join order in orders
on contact.ContactID
equals order.Contact.ContactID into contactGroup
select new
{
ContactID = contact.ContactID,
OrderCount = contactGroup.Count(),
Orders = contactGroup
};

foreach (var group in query)
{
Console.WriteLine("ContactID: {0}", group.ContactID);
Console.WriteLine("Order count: {0}", group.OrderCount);
foreach (var orderInfo in group.Orders)
{
Console.WriteLine("   Sale ID: {0}", orderInfo.SalesOrderID);
}
Console.WriteLine("");
}
}

Join

Example

The following example performs a join over the SalesOrderHeader and SalesOrderDetail tables to get online orders from the month of August.


using (AdventureWorksEntities context = new AdventureWorksEntities())
{
ObjectSet<SalesOrderHeader> orders = context.SalesOrderHeaders;
ObjectSet<SalesOrderDetail> details = context.SalesOrderDetails;

var query =
from order in orders
join detail in details
on order.SalesOrderID equals detail.SalesOrderID
where order.OnlineOrderFlag == true
&& order.OrderDate.Month == 8
select new
{
SalesOrderID = order.SalesOrderID,
SalesOrderDetailID = detail.SalesOrderDetailID,
OrderDate = order.OrderDate,
ProductID = detail.ProductID
};

foreach (var order in query)
{
Console.WriteLine("{0}\t{1}\t{2:d}\t{3}",
order.SalesOrderID,
order.SalesOrderDetailID,
order.OrderDate,
order.ProductID);
}
}

Query Expression Syntax Examples: Join Operators

GroupJoin

Example

Example

Example

Join

Example

See Also

Concepts