C# Recurse Directories using Directory.GetFiles and search pattern

Question

I want to find all excel files within a directory structure using recursion. The problem is, the search pattern used in Directory.GetFiles only allows a single extension at a t

Answer 1

I think the second alternative is more efficient. Loop through every file with the following pattern: .xl, then narrow the list looking for specific endings.

Something like:

foreach (String f in Directory.GetFiles(path, "*.xl*", SearchOption.AllDirectories))
{
    if (HasSomeExcelExtension(f))
        files .Add(f);
}

You could use the EndsWith method to check "f" against each extension, or extract the extension using the Path.GetExtension method and look it up in a hashtable containing the desired extensions.

just my $.02 hth