LINQ Interview Question #104

What is IQueryProvider?

LINQ Performance, EF Core LINQ, Expressions & Advanced Queries Senior Advanced

Quick Interview Answer

IQueryProvider is the interface responsible for creating and executing IQueryable queries. An IQueryable exposes both an Expression describing the query and a Provider that knows how to interpret it.

Detailed Explanation

IQueryProvider is the interface responsible for creating and executing IQueryable queries. An IQueryable exposes both an Expression describing the query and a Provider that knows how to interpret it.

Database LINQ providers implement this abstraction so the same LINQ syntax can be translated into provider-specific commands.

Code Example

IQueryable<Product> query = db.Products;

var expression = query.Expression;
var provider = query.Provider;

// The provider interprets the expression when executed.