Find number of files with a specific extension, in all subdirectories

Question

Is there a way to find the number of files of a specific type without having to loop through all results inn a Directory.GetFiles() or similar method? I am looking for something like this:

int ComponentCount = MagicFindFileCount(@"c:\windows\system32", "*.dll");

I know that I can make a recursive function to call Directory.GetFiles , but it would be much cleaner if I could do this without all the iterating.

EDIT: If it is not possible to do this without recursing and iterating yourself, what would be the best way to do it?

Answer 1

You should use the Directory.GetFiles(path, searchPattern, SearchOption) overload of Directory.GetFiles().

Path specifies the path, searchPattern specifies your wildcards (e.g., *, *.format) and SearchOption provides the option to include subdirectories.

The Length property of the return array of this search will provide the proper file count for your particular search pattern and option:

string[] files = directory.GetFiles(@"c:\windows\system32", "*.dll", SearchOption.AllDirectories);

return files.Length;

EDIT: Alternatively you can use Directory.EnumerateFiles method

return Directory.EnumerateFiles(@"c:\windows\system32", "*.dll", SearchOption.AllDirectories).Count();