Return Object in C#

Question

I'm trying to return an object in C#. In JavaScript, I would do this:

function myFunction () {
 var myObj = { firstName: "John", lastName: "Smith", age: 20};
return myObj;
}

Everything I'm reading about returning an object within C# is much different than this so it's throwing me for a loop.

What I want to do is run a query to SQL to get some user info and return the users Role, Full Name, Email, etc...

Here is my current C# Code:

    public static string getUserRole(string connectionString, string userId)
    {
        string role;
        SqlConnection sqlCon = new SqlConnection(connectionString);
        SqlCommand sqlCom = new SqlCommand();
        SqlDataReader reader;

        sqlCom.CommandText = "SELECT Role FROM myDatabase.Table WHERE Email = '" + userId + "'";
        sqlCom.CommandType = CommandType.Text;
        sqlCom.Connection = sqlCon;
        sqlCon.Open();
        reader = sqlCom.ExecuteReader();

        if (reader.Read())
        {
            role = reader.GetString(0);
            sqlCon.Close();
            return role;
        }
        else
        {
            return "An error has occurred";
        }
    }

I'm assuming I need to do something like the following but it doesn't work:

    public static string getUserRole(string connectionString, string userId)
    {
        string role;
        string fullName;
        string email;
        SqlConnection sqlCon = new SqlConnection(connectionString);
        SqlCommand sqlCom = new SqlCommand();
        SqlDataReader reader;

        sqlCom.CommandText = "SELECT Role FROM myDatabase.Table WHERE Email = '" + userId + "'";
        sqlCom.CommandType = CommandType.Text;
        sqlCom.Connection = sqlCon;
        sqlCon.Open();
        reader = sqlCom.ExecuteReader();

        if (reader.Read())
        {
            public class myObject
            {
                role = reader.GetString(0);
                fullName = reader.GetString(1);
                email = reader.GetString(2);
            }
            sqlCon.Close();
            return myObject;
        }
        else
        {
            return "An error has occurred";
        }
    }

I'm probably way off but from what I'm reading, object within c# are basically classes. So that makes sense. I need to create a class that defines my properties. Is this correct? I've ready lots of posts and watched some youtube videos but none are 'clicking'

Thanks in advance for any helpful input.

Sorry, you're doing it wrong. C# is strongly typed, not like JavaScript. You need to declare class earlier, then create instance of that class using new syntax. You should start with C# tutorials imo. — MarcinJuraszek
– MarcinJuraszek, Commented Jun 10, 2014 at 1:09
C# is statically typed. You're attempting to return two different types from your function. An object and a string. You should be getting all sorts of errors with this code since the object part is also very wrong. — Simon Whitehead
– Simon Whitehead, Commented Jun 10, 2014 at 1:09
You cannot return multiple things from a function. You will have to either create a struct or a class and return that. — Ehsan
– Ehsan, Commented Jun 10, 2014 at 1:10
Run this code through code analysis with minimum ruleset for a detailed answer. — Mike Cheel
– Mike Cheel, Commented Jun 10, 2014 at 1:20

Ehsan · Accepted Answer · 2014-06-10 01:19:33Z

4

public class UserInfo
{
    public string role;
        public string fullName;
        public string email;
    public string ErrorCode;
}

and then change signatures to

public static UserInfo getUserRole(string connectionString, string userId)

and then change

if (reader.Read())
        {
            public class myObject
            {
                role = reader.GetString(0);
                fullName = reader.GetString(1);
                email = reader.GetString(2);
            }
            sqlCon.Close();
            return myObject;
        }
        else
        {
            return "An error has occurred";
        }

to create an object of UserInfo and return that. Like,

UserInfo info = new UserInfo();
if (reader.Read())
        {

                info.role = reader.GetString(0);
                info.fullName = reader.GetString(1);
                info.email = reader.GetString(2);

            sqlCon.Close();

        }
        else
        {
            info.ErrorCode =  "An error has occurred";
        }
  return info;

Note: Not the best way to do it, but should get you going. Just to give you an idea.

edited Jun 10, 2014 at 1:19

answered Jun 10, 2014 at 1:12

Ehsan

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3 Comments

Dour High Arch Over a year ago

Good answer, but I recommend throwing an exception rather than returning a valid object the called has to inspect.

mwilson Over a year ago

yea, the error will become a try/catch statement to make sure I get the actual error. just a place holder for now. Thank you!

Ehsan Over a year ago

@DourHighArch. Totally agreed. There are many other such things that should not be done. But, the purpose is to just show him the path here. That is why i have written the note at the bottom.

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