Passing an array of parameters to a stored procedure

If you are using Sql Server 2008 or better, you can use something called a Table-Valued Parameter (TVP) instead of serializing & deserializing your list data every time you want to pass it to a stored procedure.

Let’s start by creating a simple schema to serve as our playground:

CREATE DATABASE [TestbedDb]
GO


USE [TestbedDb]
GO

    /* First, setup the sample program's account & credentials*/
CREATE LOGIN [testbedUser] WITH PASSWORD=N'µ×?
?S[°¿Q­¥½q?_Ĭ¼Ð)3õļ%dv', DEFAULT_DATABASE=[master], DEFAULT_LANGUAGE=[us_english], CHECK_EXPIRATION=OFF, CHECK_POLICY=ON
GO

CREATE USER [testbedUser] FOR LOGIN [testbedUser] WITH DEFAULT_SCHEMA=[dbo]
GO

EXEC sp_addrolemember N'db_owner', N'testbedUser'
GO


    /* Now setup the schema */
CREATE TABLE dbo.Table1 ( t1Id INT NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY );
GO

INSERT INTO dbo.Table1 (t1Id)
VALUES
    (1),
    (2),
    (3),
    (4),
    (5),
    (6),
    (7),
    (8),
    (9),
    (10);
GO

With our schema and sample data in place, we are now ready to create our TVP stored procedure:

CREATE TYPE T1Ids AS Table (
        t1Id INT
);
GO


CREATE PROCEDURE dbo.FindMatchingRowsInTable1( @Table1Ids AS T1Ids READONLY )
AS
BEGIN
        SET NOCOUNT ON;

        SELECT Table1.t1Id FROM dbo.Table1 AS Table1
        JOIN @Table1Ids AS paramTable1Ids ON Table1.t1Id = paramTable1Ids.t1Id;
END
GO

With both our schema and API in place, we can call the TVP stored procedure from our program like so:

        // Curry the TVP data
        DataTable t1Ids = new DataTable( );
        t1Ids.Columns.Add( "t1Id",
                           typeof( int ) );

        int[] listOfIdsToFind = new[] {1, 5, 9};
        foreach ( int id in listOfIdsToFind )
        {
            t1Ids.Rows.Add( id );
        }
        // Prepare the connection details
        SqlConnection testbedConnection =
                new SqlConnection(
                        @"Data Source=.\SQLExpress;Initial Catalog=TestbedDb;Persist Security Info=True;User ID=testbedUser;Password=letmein12;Connect Timeout=5" );

        try
        {
            testbedConnection.Open( );

            // Prepare a call to the stored procedure
            SqlCommand findMatchingRowsInTable1 = new SqlCommand( "dbo.FindMatchingRowsInTable1",
                                                                  testbedConnection );
            findMatchingRowsInTable1.CommandType = CommandType.StoredProcedure;

            // Curry up the TVP parameter
            SqlParameter sqlParameter = new SqlParameter( "Table1Ids",
                                                          t1Ids );
            findMatchingRowsInTable1.Parameters.Add( sqlParameter );

            // Execute the stored procedure
            SqlDataReader sqlDataReader = findMatchingRowsInTable1.ExecuteReader( );

            while ( sqlDataReader.Read( ) )
            {
                Console.WriteLine( "Matching t1ID: {0}",
                                   sqlDataReader[ "t1Id" ] );
            }
        }
        catch ( Exception e )
        {
            Console.WriteLine( e.ToString( ) );
        }
  /* Output:
   * Matching t1ID: 1
   * Matching t1ID: 5
   * Matching t1ID: 9
   */

There is probably a less painful way to do this using a more abstract API, such as Entity Framework. However, I do not have the time to see for myself at this time.